fjǫðr

Old Norse

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *feþrō, whence also Old English feþer (English feather), Old Saxon fethara, Old High German fedara. Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *péth₂r̥ ~ pth₂én- (“feather, wing”), from *peth₂- (“to fly”).

Noun

fjǫðr f (genitive fjaðrar, plural fjaðrar)

1. feather

Declension

Declension of fjǫðr (strong ō-stem)

feminine	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	fjǫðr	fjǫðrin	fjaðrar	fjaðrarnar
accusative	fjǫðr	fjǫðrina	fjaðrar	fjaðrarnar
dative	fjǫðr	fjǫðrinni	fjǫðrum	fjǫðrunum
genitive	fjaðrar	fjaðrarinnar	fjaðra	fjaðranna

Derived terms

• fjaðraspjót n (“a kind of spear”)
• fjaðraðr (“feathered”)
• fjaðrbroddr m (“point of a spear-blade”)
• fjaðrhamr m (“feather-coat”)
• fjaðrlauss (“featherless”)
• fjaðrspjót n (“a kind of spear”)
• fjaðrsárr (“moulting”)

Related terms

• fiðri n (“plumage”)

Descendants

• • Icelandic: fjöður (“feather, fin”)
  • Faroese: fjøður
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: fjør, fjøder
    • → Norwegian Bokmål: fjør
  • Old Swedish: fiæþer
    • Swedish: fjäder
  • Old Danish: fiæthær
    • Danish: fjeder, fjer
      • Norwegian Bokmål: fjær
  • Gutnish: fjädar, fjedur

Further reading

• Zoëga, Geir T. (1910) “fjöðr”, in A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press, page 140; also available at the Internet Archive