{{Table Oghamletters
Onn is the Irish name of the seventeenth letter of the Ogham alphabet, ᚑ, meaning " ash-tree", which 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 peopl ...
''onn(en)'', from the root was *''ōs-, *osen'' 'ash'. Its phonetic value is
The letter's
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 ...
kennings are the following:
*''congnaid ech'' "wounder of horses"
*''féthem soíre'' "smoothest of craftsmanship"
*''lúth fían'' " quipmentof warrior bands"
These refer to different uses of ashwood as horsewhips, wood used by carpenters, and for spears. In the Old Irish period, ''onn'' "ash" was replaced by ''uinnius''. McManus takes this as an indication that the Ogham letter names date to the
Primitive Irish
Primitive Irish or Archaic Irish ( ga, Gaeilge Ársa), also called Proto-Goidelic, is the oldest known form of the Goidelic languages. It is known only from fragments, mostly personal names, inscribed on stone in the ogham alphabet in Ireland ...
period.
References
*Damian McManus, ''Irish letter-names and their kennings'', Ériu 39 (1988), 127-168.
Ogham letters