upphaf

Icelandic

Etymology

From Old Norse upphaf from Proto-Germanic *habą.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈʏhp.haːv/

Noun

upphaf n (genitive singular upphafs, no plural)

1. beginning, start
   • Icelandic translation of Genesis 1:1

     Í upphafi skapaði Guð himin og jörð.

     In the beginning God created heaven and earth.

Declension

Declension of upphaf (sg-only neuter)

	singular
	indefinite	definite
nominative	upphaf	upphafið
accusative	upphaf	upphafið
dative	upphafi	upphafinu
genitive	upphafs	upphafsins

Derived terms

• upphafsskjár

Old Norse

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *habą. Verbal noun of hefja upp (“to begin”).

Noun

upphaf n

1. beginning
   • Gospel of John 1,1 (from "Homiliu-Bók. Isländska Homilier" ed. Wisén 1872)

     Í upphafi var orð ok orð var með guði ok guð var orð.

2. advancement, honour
3. (poetry) the part of a drapa before the first refrain (stef)

Declension

Declension of upphaf (strong a-stem)

neuter	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	upphaf	upphafit	upphǫf	upphǫfin
accusative	upphaf	upphafit	upphǫf	upphǫfin
dative	upphafi	upphafinu	upphǫfum	upphǫfunum
genitive	upphafs	upphafsins	upphafa	upphafanna

Derived terms

• upphafari m (“founder”)
• upphafligr (“original”)
• upphafning f (“elevation, pride”)
• upphafsmaðr m (“author, originator”)
• upphafsstafr m (“initial letter”)

Descendants

• Icelandic: upphaf
• Faroese: upphav
• Norwegian Nynorsk: opphav, upphav (until 1938)
• Old Danish: ophav
  • Danish: ophav
    • Norwegian Bokmål: opphav
• Old Swedish: uphof
  • Swedish: upphov, upphof (until 1906)

Further reading

• Zoëga, Geir T. (1910) “upphaf”, in A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press, page 451; also available at the Internet Archive