dord

See also: dörd

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Irish dord (“buzz, drone; dord”).

Noun

dord (plural dords)

1. (music) A type of ancient Irish war-horn.
   • 1869, “Folk-lore: Myths and Tales of Various Peoples”, in The London Quarterly & Holborn Review, volume 31, pages 62–63:

     […] there, after digging to a good depth, they find the Dord or great war-horn of Fionn, a blast on which brings “a flock of furious gigantic birds,” and a thigh of one of them is found to be as big as a sheep’s.

   • 1994, Dirk Schellberg, Didgeridoo: Ritual Origins and Playing Techniques, →ISBN, page 46:

     […] the first album on which the dord and the didgeridoo could be heard together was entitled: ‘Two stories in One: (Natural Symphonies)’.

   • 2002, Philip Carr-Gomm, Druid Mysteries: Ancient Wisdom for the 21st Century, →ISBN, page 64:

     The dord, a form of horn with a sound like the Australian Aborigine’s didgeridoo, was clearly a sacred instrument of the Bronze Age […]

Irish

Etymology

From Old Irish dord (“buzzing, humming, droning, intoning”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d̪ˠoːɾˠd̪ˠ/

Noun

dord m (genitive singular as substantive doird, genitive as verbal noun dordta, nominative plural doird)

1. verbal noun of dord
2. buzz, drone
3. (music) bass

Declension

As verbal noun

Declension of dord

Irregular

Bare forms (no plural of this noun) Case Singular Nominative dord Vocative a dhord Genitive dordta Dative dord

Forms with the definite article Case Singular Nominative an dord Genitive an dordta Dative leis an dord don dord

As substantive

Declension of dord

First declension

Bare forms: Case Singular Plural Nominative dord doird Vocative a dhoird a dhorda Genitive doird dord Dative dord doird

Forms with the definite article: Case Singular Plural Nominative an dord na doird Genitive an doird na ndord Dative leis an dord don dord leis na doird

Derived terms

• andord (“drone, chant”)
• dord figiúrtha (“figured bass”)
• dord-druma (“bass drum”)
• dordeochair (“bass clef”)
• dordfhocal (“buzzword”)
• dordghuth (“bass voice”)
• dordlíne (“bassline”)
• dordóir (“bassist”)
• dordveidhil (“cello”)
• dordveidhlín (“bass fiddle”)
• fo-dhordaire (“subwoofer”)
• fodhord (“subdued murmur; backbiting”)
• olldord (“double bass, contrabass”)

 

Verb

dord (present analytic dordann, future analytic dordfaidh, verbal noun dord, past participle dordta)

1. (intransitive) hum, buzz, drone
2. (intransitive) chant in a deep voice

Conjugation

conjugation of dord (first conjugation – A)

		singular			plural			relative	autonomous
		first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative	present	dordaim	dordann tú; dordair†	dordann sé, sí	dordaimid	dordann sibh	dordann siad; dordaid†	a dhordann; a dhordas / a ndordann*; a ndordas*	dordtar
	past	dhord mé; dhordas	dhord tú; dhordais	dhord sé, sí	dhordamar; dhord muid	dhord sibh; dhordabhair	dhord siad; dhordadar	a dhord / ar dhord*	dordadh
	past habitual	dhordainn / ndordainn‡‡	dhordtá / ndordtᇇ	dhordadh sé, sí / ndordadh sé, s퇇	dhordaimis; dhordadh muid / ndordaimis‡‡; ndordadh muid‡‡	dhordadh sibh / ndordadh sibh‡‡	dhordaidís; dhordadh siad / ndordaidís‡‡; ndordadh siad‡‡	a dhordadh / a ndordadh*	dhordtaí / ndordta퇇
future		dordfaidh mé; dordfad	dordfaidh tú; dordfair†	dordfaidh sé, sí	dordfaimid; dordfaidh muid	dordfaidh sibh	dordfaidh siad; dordfaid†	a dhordfaidh; a dhordfas / a ndordfaidh*; a ndordfas*	dordfar
conditional		dhordfainn / ndordfainn‡‡	dhordfá / ndordfᇇ	dhordfadh sé, sí / ndordfadh sé, s퇇	dhordfaimis; dhordfadh muid / ndordfaimis‡‡; ndordfadh muid‡‡	dhordfadh sibh / ndordfadh sibh‡‡	dhordfaidís; dhordfadh siad / ndordfaidís‡‡; ndordfadh siad‡‡	a dhordfadh / a ndordfadh*	dhordfaí / ndordfa퇇
subjunctive	present	go ndorda mé; go ndordad†	go ndorda tú; go ndordair†	go ndorda sé, sí	go ndordaimid; go ndorda muid	go ndorda sibh	go ndorda siad; go ndordaid†	—	go ndordtar
	past	dá ndordainn	dá ndordtá	dá ndordadh sé, sí	dá ndordaimis; dá ndordadh muid	dá ndordadh sibh	dá ndordaidís; dá ndordadh siad	—	dá ndordtaí
imperative		dordaim	dord	dordadh sé, sí	dordaimis	dordaigí; dordaidh†	dordaidís	—	dordtar
verbal noun		dordadh
past participle		dordta

* indirect relative
† archaic or dialect form
‡‡ dependent form used with particles that trigger eclipsis

Mutation

Irish mutation
Radical	Lenition	Eclipsis
dord	dhord	ndord
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

References

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “dord”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• de Bhaldraithe, Tomás (1959) “dord”, in English-Irish Dictionary, An Gúm
• “dord”, in New English-Irish Dictionary, Foras na Gaeilge, 2013-2024

Old Irish

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *dor-d-, from imitative Proto-Indo-European root *dʰer-, *dʰrēn- (“drone; to murmur”), see also English drone, dor and Ancient Greek θρῆνος (thrênos, “dirge, lament”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [dor͈d]

Noun

dord m (genitive duird)

1. buzz, hum, drone

Inflection

Masculine o-stem
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	dord	—	—
Vocative	duird	—	—
Accusative	dordN	—	—
Genitive	duirdL	—	—
Dative	dordL	—	—
Initial mutations of a following adjective: H = triggers aspiration L = triggers lenition N = triggers nasalization

Derived terms

• dordaid
• fodord

Descendants

• Irish: dord

Mutation

Old Irish mutation
Radical	Lenition	Nasalization
dord	dord pronounced with /ð(ʲ)-/	ndord
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), “dord”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
• R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “dwrdd”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies