Orkneyjar

Icelandic

Etymology

From Old Norse Orkneyjar.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɔr̥kneiːjar/

Proper noun

Orkneyjar f pl (proper noun, plural only, genitive plural Orkneyja)

1. the Orkney Islands

Declension

Declension of Orkneyjar (pl-only feminine)

	plural
	indefinite	definite
nominative	Orkneyjar	Orkneyjarnar
accusative	Orkneyjar	Orkneyjarnar
dative	Orkneyjum	Orkneyjunum
genitive	Orkneyja	Orkneyjanna

Derived terms

• Orkneyingur
• orkneyskur

Old Norse

Etymology

Adapted from a Pictish word (perhaps from Proto-Celtic *ɸorkos (“pig”)), with a suffixed eyjar (“islands”). Compare Latin Orcades.

Proper noun

Orkneyjar f pl

1. the Orkney Islands

Declension

Declension of Orkneyjar (strong jō-stem, plural only)

feminine	plural
	indefinite	definite
nominative	Orkneyjar	Orkneyjarnar
accusative	Orkneyjar	Orkneyjarnar
dative	Orkneyjum	Orkneyjunum
genitive	Orkneyja	Orkneyjanna

Derived terms

• Orkneyingr
• orkneyskr

Descendants

• Icelandic: Orkneyjar f pl
• Faroese: Orknoyggjar f pl
• Norwegian Nynorsk: Orknøyar f pl; (definite form) Orknøyane, Orknøyarne
• Norwegian Bokmål: Orknøyene m pl or f pl
• Swedish: Orknöarna c pl
• Danish: Ørkenøerne c pl
• → English: Orkney, Orkneys, Orkney Islands

Further reading

• Zoëga, Geir T. (1910) “Orkneyjar”, in A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press; also available at the Internet Archive