ifernn

Old Irish

Etymology

From Proto-Brythonic *ifern, from Vulgar Latin *īferna, from Latin īnfernus.

Noun

ifernn m (genitive ifirnn)

1. (Christianity) hell
   • 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. 13^c26

     A ndechor inna corp talmande significat dechor inna pían bete donaib pecthachaib i n-ifurnn.

     The difference of earthly bodies signifies the difference of the punishments that there are for the sinners in Hell.

   • c. 800–825, Diarmait, Milan Glosses on the Psalms, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 7–483, Ml. 130^b6

     .i. ni molat Dia i n-ifurnn co n-etaitis dilgud ho suidiu tri sodain.

     They do not praise God in Hell to obtain forgiveness from [Him] that way.

   • c. 845, St Gall Glosses on Priscian, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1975, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. II, pp. 49–224, Sg. 41^b12

     do dia iffirnn

     to the god of Hell (glossing Latin Orcō (“to Orcus”), referring to the underworld god Orcus)

   • c. 886, Epistil Ísu, published in "Cáin Domnaig", Ériu Vol. 2 (1905), pp. 189-214, edited and with translations by J. G. O'Keeffe, §9

     Nach ech ríadar isin domnach, is ech tened bís i ngabul a marcaig a n-iffirn.

     Whatever horse is ridden on Sunday, it is a horse of fire that is between the thighs of its rider in Hell.

Inflection

Masculine o-stem
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ifernn	—	—
Vocative	ifirnn	—	—
Accusative	ifernnN	—	—
Genitive	ifirnnL	—	—
Dative	ifurnnL	—	—
Initial mutations of a following adjective: H = triggers aspiration L = triggers lenition N = triggers nasalization

Descendants

• Irish: ifreann
• Scottish Gaelic: ifrinn
• Manx: niurin

Mutation

Old Irish mutation
Radical	Lenition	Nasalization
ifernn (pronounced with /h/ in h-prothesis environments)	unchanged	n-ifernn
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), “ifern, ifrenn”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language