bráthair

See also: brathair and bràthair

Irish

Etymology

PIE word
*bʰréh₂tēr

From Old Irish bráthair (“brother”), from Proto-Celtic *brātīr, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰréh₂tēr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbˠɾˠɑːhəɾʲ/

Noun

bráthair m (genitive singular bráthar, nominative plural bráithre)

1. (religion) brother (male fellow member of a religious community)
   1. friar
   2. kinsman (member of society)
2. monkfish, angelfish

Declension

Declension of bráthair

Irregular

Bare forms Case Singular Plural Nominative bráthair bráithre Vocative a bhráthair a bhráithre Genitive bráthar bráithre Dative bráthair bráithre

Forms with the definite article Case Singular Plural Nominative an bráthair na bráithre Genitive an bhráthar na mbráithre Dative leis an mbráthair don bhráthair leis na bráithre

Derived terms

• bráthair an dreoilín (“hedge-sparrow”)
• bráithre bána (“white-crested waves; grubs of bees”)

Related terms

• bráithriúil (“brotherly”, adjective)
• bráithriúlacht m (“brotherliness”)
• deartháir m (“brother, male sibling”)

Mutation

Irish mutation
Radical	Lenition	Eclipsis
bráthair	bhráthair	mbráthair
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

Further reading

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “bráthair”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• de Bhaldraithe, Tomás (1959) “bráthair”, in English-Irish Dictionary, An Gúm
• Finck, F. N. (1899) Die araner mundart (in German), volume II, Marburg: Elwert’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, page 49
• “bráthair”, in New English-Irish Dictionary, Foras na Gaeilge, 2013-2024

Old Irish

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *brātīr, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰréh₂tēr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbraːθirʲ/

Noun

bráthair m (genitive bráthar, nominative plural bráithir)

1. brother, cousin, kinsman
   • c. 800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 7^d8

     Do·beir-som ainm bráthre doib, arná·epret is ara miscuis in cúrsachad, act is ara seircc.

     He calls them brothers, lest they should say the reprimand is because of hatred for them, but it is because of love for them.

   • c. 800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 10^c21

     Ba torad sa⟨í⟩thir dúun in chrud so ce du·melmis cech túari et ce du·gnemmis a ndu·gníat ar céli, act ní bad nertad na mbráithre et frescsiu fochricce as móo.

     It would be a fruit of labor for us in this way if we consumed every food and if we did what our fellows do, but it would not be a strengthening of the brothers and a hope of a greater reward.

   • c. 800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 34^a4

     ɔrabad cech bráthair post alium .i. is huisse ce ru·samaltar fri Críst

     so that each brother should be after the other, i.e. it is right that he be compared to Christ

Inflection

Masculine r-stem
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	bráthair	bráthairL	bráithir
Vocative	bráthair	bráthairL	bráithrea
Accusative	bráthairN	bráthairL	bráithrea
Genitive	bráthar	bráthar	brátharN, brá(i)threN
Dative	bráthairL	bráithrib	bráithrib
Initial mutations of a following adjective: H = triggers aspiration L = triggers lenition N = triggers nasalization

Derived terms

• bráthardacht
• bráthardae
• bráthirse
• derbráthair
• sinserbráthair

 

Descendants

• Irish: bráthair
• Manx: braar
• Scottish Gaelic: bràthair
• ⇒ Middle Irish: bráithremail

Mutation

Old Irish mutation
Radical	Lenition	Nasalization
bráthair	bráthair pronounced with /β(ʲ)-/	mbráthair
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

Further reading

• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “bráthair”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language