braillín

Irish

braillíní

Alternative forms

• bairlín
• bráillín
• braitlín (obsolete)
• braitlinn (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle Irish blaí lín, brá lín (“linen sheet”), by dissimilation, but also influenced in form by brat (“cloth”) and assimilated to the suffix -ín. The first part blaí is from Old Norse blæja (“veil”), from Proto-Germanic *blahjǭ (“cloth”).

Pronunciation

• (Cork) IPA^(key): /bˠɑɾʲˈlʲiːnʲ/ (corresponding to the alternative form bairlín)
• (Cois Fharraige) IPA^(key): /ˈbˠɾˠɑːl̠ʲiːnʲ/ (corresponding to the alternative form bráillín)
• (Ulster) IPA^(key): /ˈbˠɾˠæl̠ʲinʲ/

Noun

braillín f (genitive singular braillíne, nominative plural braillíní)

1. sheet, bedsheet (piece of cloth cut and finished as bed linen)

Declension

Declension of braillín

Second declension

Bare forms Case Singular Plural Nominative braillín braillíní Vocative a bhraillín a bhraillíní Genitive braillíne braillíní Dative braillín braillíní

Forms with the definite article Case Singular Plural Nominative an bhraillín na braillíní Genitive na braillíne na mbraillíní Dative leis an mbraillín don bhraillín leis na braillíní

Derived terms

• braillín sneachta (“covering of snow”)
• dul faoin mbraillín (“to go to bed”)
• fear braillíne (“lie-abed”)

Mutation

Irish mutation
Radical	Lenition	Eclipsis
braillín	bhraillín	mbraillín
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), “2 blaí”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “braillín”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• Quiggin, E. C. (1906) A Dialect of Donegal, Cambridge University Press, page 83