OIcel ō-stems
OIcel inherits PGmc ō-stems (all feminine) with the following paradigm1
| case | fem.sg | fem.pl |
|---|---|---|
| nom | gjǫf-° | gjaf-ar |
| gen | gjaf-ar | gjaf-a |
| dat | gjǫf-° | gjǫf-um |
| acc | gjǫf-° | gjaf-ar |
Subclasses
The paradigm above is sometimes described as the “pure ō-stems”. Stems orginally ending in -jō- have OIcel j-insertion
| case | fem.sg | fem.pl |
|---|---|---|
| nom | ben-∅ | ben-j-ar |
| gen | ben-j-ar | ben-j-a |
| dat | ben-∅ | ben-j-um |
| acc | ben-∅ | ben-j-ar |
Stems originally ending in -wō have a -v- before all vowel endings, except in the case of u where it is assimilated.
| case | fem.sg. | fem.pl |
|---|---|---|
| nom | ǫr-∅ | ǫr-v-ar |
| gen | ǫr-v-ar | ǫr-v-a |
| dat | ǫr-∅ | ǫr-um |
| acc | ǫr-∅ | ǫr-v-ar |
In some grammars OIcel ijō-stems are included as subclasses of ō-stems.
Irregularities
Some nouns have alternants for nom.pl and acc.pl ending -ir
- farir ← fǫr ‘trip’
- áir ← á ‘river’
Some nouns of this class have alternants for dat.sg with the historic -u preserved
- hǫllu ← hǫll ‘hall‘
- eggju ← egg ‘blade’s edge‘
- ǫru ← ǫr ‘arrow‘