féin

See also: fein, fèin, feîn, féin-, and fèin-

Irish

Etymology 1

From Old Irish féin, from Proto-Celtic *swesin (from Proto-Indo-European *swé (“oneself”)) + *sin (anaphoric pronoun).[1]

Alternative forms

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /heːnʲ/, /fʲeːnʲ/
  • (Aran, also) IPA(key): /pʲeːnʲ/[2] (corresponds to the form péin)
  • (Ulster, rare) IPA(key): /hiːnʲ/[3]

Pronoun

féin

  1. self
    mé féin ― myself (both emphatic and reflexive)
    sinn féin ― ourselves; we ourselves
  2. own
    Thóg mé mo theach féin.
    I built my own house.
Derived terms

Adverb

féin

  1. even, only
    má tá féin ― even if it is

Further reading

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /fʲeːnʲ/

Noun

féin

  1. inflection of féan:
    1. vocative and genitive singular
    2. nominative and dative plural

Mutation
Irish mutation
Radical Lenition Eclipsis
féin fhéin bhféin
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

References
  1. Peter Schrijver (1997) Studies in the History of Celtic Pronouns and Particles (Maynooth Studies in Celtic Linguistics; II), Maynooth: The Department of Old Irish, National University of Ireland, →ISBN, § III.2, pages 75–76
  2. Finck, F. N. (1899) Die araner mundart (in German), volume II, Marburg: Elwert’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, page 109
  3. Quiggin, E. C. (1906) A Dialect of Donegal, Cambridge University Press, page 46

Old Irish

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *swesin (from Proto-Indo-European *swé (“oneself”)) + *sin (anaphoric pronoun).[1]

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /fʲeːnʲ/

Pronoun

féin

  1. self
    • c. 800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 17b12
      Non·samlafammar frinn fesine.
      We will liken ourselves to ourselves.
  2. (adjectival) one's own

Usage notes

The difference between the féin/céin set and the fadéin/cadéin set appears to be that the latter are contrastively reflexive (‘oneself as opposed to someone else’) while the former do not suggest any contrast. The difference between the f- forms and the c- forms may be that the latter have a connotation of ‘even/also oneself’ that the former do not have.[2]

Inflection
féinfadéincéincadéin
1 sg. féin fadéin céin cadéin
2 sg. féin fadéin ——
3 sg. m./n. fes(s)in, feis(s)in
féin		 fades(s)in, fadeis(s)in
fadéne		 ces(s)in, ceis(s)in cades(s)in, cadeis(s)in
3 sg. f. fes(s)in, feis(s)in, fissin
fes(s)ine, feisine, feis(s)ne		 fadisin
fade(is)sne		 ——
1 pl. fes(s)ine fanis(s)in —canisin
2 pl. fes(s)in, feis(s)in
feis(s)ne		 fanis(s)in ——
3 pl. fes(s)in, feis(s)in
fes(s)ine, feisine, feis(s)ne		 fades(s)in, fadeis(s)in, fedesin
fades(s)ine, fadeisine, fadeis(s)ne		 ceisne cades(s)in, cadeis(s)in
cades(s)ine, cadeisine, cadesne

Mutation
Old Irish mutation
RadicalLenitionNasalization
féin ḟéin féin
pronounced with /v(ʲ)-/
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every
possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

References
  1. Peter Schrijver (1997) Studies in the History of Celtic Pronouns and Particles (Maynooth Studies in Celtic Linguistics; II), Maynooth: The Department of Old Irish, National University of Ireland, →ISBN, § III.2, pages 75–76
  2. Peter Schrijver (1997) Studies in the History of Celtic Pronouns and Particles (Maynooth Studies in Celtic Linguistics; II), Maynooth: The Department of Old Irish, National University of Ireland, →ISBN, §§ III.2, III.4, pages 72, 78–83

Further reading

Old Norse

Noun

féin

  1. definite nominative/accusative plural of fé
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