rhieni
Welsh
[edit]Etymology
[edit]Derived by Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru from rhy- (“before”) + geni (“birth”), possibly continuing a Proto-Celtic stem *ɸro-gany-. Compare Ancient Greek πρόγονος (prógonos, “ancestor”) for an equivalent formation.
In the 1990s, Lambert and Schrijver found a possible Gaulish cognate, relating rhieni with Gaulish regenia. They disagreed on the words' shared Proto-Celtic reconstruction, however. Lambert opts for *ɸrogenyā while Schrijver opts for *ɸrogenesa.[1] Both reconstructions face phonological difficulties. Lambert has no explanation for the -i ending in Welsh (final *-yā after a consonant is normally lost in Welsh) while Schrijver assumes a tenuous deletion of weakened -s- in Gaulish (which has many counterexamples).
Pronunciation
[edit]- (North Wales) IPA(key): /ˈr̥jɛni/
- (South Wales) IPA(key): /ˈr̥jeːni/, /ˈr̥jɛni/
Noun
[edit]rhieni m (collective, singulative rhiant)
Mutation
[edit]| radical | soft | nasal | aspirate |
|---|---|---|---|
| rhieni | rieni | unchanged | unchanged |
Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Welsh.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.
Further reading
[edit]R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “rhieni”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies