cíar

See also: ciar

Old Irish

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *kēros, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ḱeh₃i-, extension of *(s)ḱeh₃- (“grey, dark”). Further cognates are Old Novgorodian хѣрь (xěrĭ, “gray cloth”) and Old English hār (“grey-haired”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [kʲiːa̯r]

Adjective

cíar

1. murky, dark, gloomy

   Synonym: dorchae

2. black

   Synonym: dub

Declension

o/ā-stem
Singular	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	cíar	cíar	cíar
Vocative	céir* cíar**
Accusative	cíar	céir
Genitive	céir	céire	céir
Dative	cíar	céir	cíar
Plural	Masculine	Feminine/neuter
Nominative	céir	cíara
Vocative	cíaru cíara†
Accusative	cíaru cíara†
Genitive	cíar
Dative	cíaraib
Notes	*modifying a noun whose vocative is different from its nominative **modifying a noun whose vocative is identical to its nominative † not when substantivized

Derived terms

• Cíarán

Descendants

• Irish: ciar (“dusky”)
• Scottish Gaelic: ciar (“dusky”)

Mutation

Old Irish mutation
Radical	Lenition	Nasalization
cíar	chíar	cíar pronounced with /ɡ(ʲ)-/
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

Further reading

• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “1 cíar”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language