foraois

Irish

FWOTD – 31 July 2024

Alternative forms

• foraighis (superseded)

Etymology

From Middle Irish foraís, from Anglo-Norman forest, from Early Medieval Latin forestis.

Pronunciation

• (Munster) IPA^(key): /fəˈɾˠiːʃ/
• (Connacht) IPA^(key): /ˈfɔɾˠiːʃ/
• (Ulster) IPA^(key): /ˈfʌɾˠiʃ/

Noun

foraois f (genitive singular foraoise, nominative plural foraoisí or foraoiseacha)

1. forest, timber
   • 2007, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, translated by Breandán Ó Doibhlin, An Prionsa Beag, Dublin: Read Ireland, →ISBN, page 1:

     Nuair a bhí mé sé bliana d’aois, chonaic mé, uair amháin, pictiúr iontach i leabhar i dtaobh na foraoise darbh ainm “Scéalta fíora.”

     Once when I was six years old, I saw a wonderful picture in a book about the forest called “True stories.”

2. retreat, recess; lair, den

Declension

Declension of foraois (second declension)

bare forms case singular plural nominative foraois foraoisí vocative a fhoraois a fhoraoisí genitive foraoise foraoisí dative foraois foraoisí forms with the definite article case singular plural nominative an fhoraois na foraoisí genitive na foraoise na bhforaoisí dative leis an bhforaois don fhoraois leis na foraoisí

• Alternative plural: foraoiseacha

Derived terms

• bainistíocht foraoisí (“forest management”)
• foraois bháistí (“rainforest”)
• Foraois Dhubh (“Black Forest”)
• foraoiseach (“forested”, adjective)
• foraoiseacht (“forestry”)
• foraoiseoir (“forester”)
• foraoiseolaíocht (“forestry”)
• foraoisí (“sylviculturist”)
• foraoisigh (“forest, afforest”, verb)
• saothraí foraoise (“lumberman”)

 

Mutation

Mutated forms of foraois

radical	lenition	eclipsis
foraois	fhoraois	bhforaois

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

Further reading

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “foraois”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• “forest”, in New English-Irish Dictionary, Foras na Gaeilge, 2013–2024
• “timber”, in New English-Irish Dictionary, Foras na Gaeilge, 2013–2024
• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “foraís”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
• Dinneen, Patrick S. (1904) “foraiġis”, in Foclóir Gaeḋilge agus Béarla, 1st edition, Dublin: Irish Texts Society, page 329
• de Bhaldraithe, Tomás (1959) “foraois”, in English-Irish Dictionary, An Gúm
• “foraois”, in New English-Irish Dictionary, Foras na Gaeilge, 2013-2024