Reconstruction:Proto-Celtic/abū

This Proto-Celtic entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Celtic

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-European *h₂ep-h₃ō ~ *h₂p-h₃nés, from *h₂ep- (“water”).

Noun

*abū f

1. river

Declension

Masculine/feminine n-stem
	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*abū	*abone?	*abones
vocative	*abū	*abone?	*abones
accusative	*abonam	*abone?	*abonams
genitive	*abonos	*abonows?	*abonom
dative	*abonei	*abombom	*abombos
locative	*abon(i)	*?	*?
instrumental	*abonei	*abombim	*abombis

The Old Irish genitive singular abae apparently derives from the neuter ending *-ens.

Descendants

• Proto-Brythonic: *aβon
  • Middle Breton: auon
    • Breton: aven
  • Cornish: avon
  • Middle Welsh: afon
    • Welsh: afon
  • → English: Avon
  • → Scots: A'an
• Old Irish: aub, ab, ob, oub
  • Middle Irish: ab, aband, abann
    • Irish: abha, abhainn
    • Manx: awin
    • Scottish Gaelic: abhainn

Further reading

• Matasović, Ranko (2009) Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, pages 23-24
• Mills, David (2011): A Dictionary of British Place-Names, p. 2