cíar

See also: ciar

Old Irish

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *kēros, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ḱeh₃i-, extension of *(s)ḱeh₃- (“grey, dark”). Further cognates are Old Novgorodian хѣрь (xěrĭ, “gray cloth”) and Old English hār (“grey-haired”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [kʲiːa̯r]

Adjective

cíar

1. murky, dark, gloomy

   Synonym: dorchae

2. black

   Synonym: dub

Declension

o/ā-stem

singular	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	cíar	cíar	cíar
vocative	céir* cíar**
accusative	cíar	céir
genitive	céir	céire	céir
dative	cíar	céir	cíar
plural	masculine	feminine/neuter
nominative	céir	cíara
vocative	cíaru cíara†
accusative	cíaru cíara†
genitive	cíar
dative	cíaraib

*modifying a noun whose vocative is different from its nominative
**modifying a noun whose vocative is identical to its nominative
† not when substantivized

Derived terms

• Cíarán

Descendants

• Irish: ciar (“dusky”)
• Scottish Gaelic: ciar (“dusky”)

Mutation

Mutation of cíar

radical	lenition	nasalization
cíar	chíar	cíar pronounced with /ɡ(ʲ)-/

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in Old Irish.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

Further reading

• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “1 cíar”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language