Reconstruction:Proto-Celtic/mātīr

This Proto-Celtic entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Celtic

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-European *méh₂tēr.

Noun

*mātīr f

1. mother

Declension

Masculine/feminine r-stem
	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*mātīr	*mātere	*māteres
vocative	*māter	*mātere	*māteres
accusative	*māteram	*mātere	*māterams
genitive	*mātros	*mātrous	*mātrom
dative	*mātrē	*mātarbom	*mātarbos
locative	*mātri	*?	*?
instrumental	*mātrē	*mātarbim	*mātarbis

Derived terms

• *Mātronā
• ⇒ Proto-Celtic: *mātrikʷā (“maternal aunt”) or, alternatively, *mātrokʷī
  • Proto-Brythonic: *mọdreb
    • Old Cornish: modereb
      • Cornish: modrep, modreb
    • Old Breton: motrep
      • Middle Breton: mozreb
        • Breton: moereb
    • Old Welsh: modreped (plural)
      • Middle Welsh: modryb
        • Welsh: modryb

Descendants

• Brythonic:
  • Welsh: modrydaf (“queen bee”) (from *modr + bydaf (“beehive”))
• Old Irish: máthir
  • Irish: máthair
  • Manx: moir
  • Scottish Gaelic: màthair
• Celtiberian: matrubos (dative plural)
• Gaulish: matir

References

• Matasović, Ranko (2009) Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 260