ierfe

Old English

Alternative forms

• yrfe, irfe, erfe, ærfe

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *arbī, from Proto-Germanic *arbiją, from Proto-Indo-European *h₃erbʰ- (“to change ownership”). Cognate with Old High German erbi, Old Norse erfi. Related to Old English earm (“poor”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈi͜yr.fe/, [ˈi͜yrˠ.ve]

Noun

ierfe n

1. inheritance
2. cattle, livestock
3. property

Declension

Strong ja-stem:

	singular	plural
nominative	ierfe	ierfu
accusative	ierfe	ierfu
genitive	ierfes	ierfa
dative	ierfe	ierfum

Derived terms

• sundorierfe
• ierfan
• ierfebēċ
• ierfeġewrit
• ierfelāf
• ierfenuma
• ierfeweard

Descendants

• Middle English: erve, erfe, erf, irve, yrfe (through the Anglian equivalent)
  • English: erf
  • Scots: arff, airf