Dair is the
Irish name of the seventh letter of the
Ogham alphabet, ᚇ, meaning "
oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...
". The sga, dair (Early sga, daur) is related to
Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
and to
Breton
Breton most often refers to:
*anything associated with Brittany, and generally
** Breton people
** Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany
** Breton (horse), a breed
**Ga ...
. Its
Proto-Indo-European
Proto-Indo-European (PIE) is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European language family. Its proposed features have been derived by linguistic reconstruction from documented Indo-European languages. No direct record of Proto-Indo-E ...
root was ''*dóru'' ("tree"), possibly a deadjectival noun of ''*deru-'', ''*drew-'' ("hard, firm, strong, solid"). Its phonetic value is
Dair forms the basis of some first names in Irish Gaelic such as Daire, Dara, Darragh and Daragh.
Bríatharogam
In the medieval kennings, called ''
Bríatharogam
In Early Irish literature a ''Bríatharogam'' ("word ogham", plural ''Bríatharogaim'') is a two word kenning which explains the meanings of the names of the letters of the Ogham alphabet. Three variant lists of ''bríatharogaim'' or 'word-oghams' ...
'' or ''Word Ogham'' the verses associated with ''Dair'' are:
- "highest tree" in the Word Ogham of ''Morann mic Moín''
- "handicraft of a craftsman" in the Word Ogham of ''Mac ind Óc''
- "most carved of craftsmanship" in the Word Ogham of ''Culainn''.
[ Auraicept na n-Éces Calder, George, Edinburgh, John Grant (1917), reprint Four Courts Press (1995), ]
References
Ogham letters
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