-mhar

Irish

Etymology

From Old Irish -mar, from már, mór (“big”).^[1]

Pronunciation

• (Ulster) IPA^(key): /uɾˠ/^[2]

Suffix

-mhar

1. -y (added to nouns to form adjectives meaning “having the quality of”)

Usage notes

• Merges with a preceding th to become -far, e.g. bláth + -mhar = bláfar.
• A preceding mh is deleted, e.g. cnámh + -mhar = cnámhar.

Declension

Declension of -mhar

	singular		plural (m/f)
Positive	masculine	feminine	(strong noun)	(weak noun)
nominative	-mhar	-mhar	-mhara
vocative	-mhair		-mhara
genitive		-mhaire	-mhara	-mhar
dative	-mhar	-mhar; -mhair (archaic)	-mhara
Comparative	níos -mhaire
Superlative	is -mhaire

Derived terms

Irish terms suffixed with -mhar

References

1. Kim McCone (1994) “An tSean-Ghaeilge agus a Réamhstair”, in K. McCone, D. McManus, C. Ó Háinle, N. Williams, L. Breatnach, editors, Stair na Gaeilge: in ómós do P[h]ádraig Ó Fiannachta (in Irish), Maynooth: Roinn na Sean-Ghaeilge, Coláiste Phádraig, →ISBN, page 132:

   Ar an lámh eile, tharlódh gur scar ball deiridh comhfhocail lena bhunfhocal de bharr na bhforbairtí seo, deighilt a réitigh an bealach dá ataifeach mar iarmhír nua scaití. Mar shampla, is léir ó MB nerthfawr, Gl. Nerto-maros < CC *nerto-māros ‘mór (*māro/ā‑, SG már; 3.12) maidir le neart’ gur seanchomhfhocal é SG nert-mar ‘neartmhar’ ach fágadh an ‑mar seo ar leataobh nuair a tháinig comhfhocail nua ar nós argat-már (argat ‘airgead’ + már ‘mór’) chun cinn. B’éasca ‑mar a thuiscint mar iarmhír shealbhach ina dhiaidh sin agus aidiachtaí nua ar nós lógmar ‘luachmhar’, boladmar ‘cumhra’ a bhunú uirthi. (…)

   On the other hand, the final member of a compound word could be separated from its original word due to these developments, a separation that paved the way for its reanalysis as a new suffix. For example, it is clear from Middle Welsh nerthfawr, Gaulish Nerto-maros < Proto-Celtic *nerto-māros ‘great (*māro/ā‑, Old Irish már; 3.12) in relation to strength’ that Old Irish nert-mar ‘strong’ is an old compound, but this ‑mar was left aside when new compounds such as argat-már (argat ‘money’ + már ‘big’) appeared. It was easy to understand ‑mar as a possessive suffix afterwards, and new adjectives such as lógmar ‘valuable’, boladmar ‘fragrant’ were based on it. (…)

2. Quiggin, E. C. (1906) A Dialect of Donegal, Cambridge University Press, page 21