Fenian

English

WOTD – 24 July 2025

Etymology

An illustration of Fenians (noun sense 1.1) raising a memorial pillar stone with Ogham letters.[n 1]
Some Fenians (noun sense 1.2) who were founding members of the Irish Republican Brotherhood in 1858.

Partly from both of the following:[1]

  • from Old Irish Féni (“originally the legendary people who inhabited Ireland; later the Irish people generally, especially those belonging to the social class of free citizens”, plural); further etymology uncertain, possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *weǵʰ- (“to bring; to transport”) (whence wagon and wain; referring to the use of chariots); and
  • from Irish fian, fiann (“roving band of (legendary) warrior-hunters”) (generally a view taken by English-speaking scholars, possibly due to the similarity between Old Irish Féni and Irish féine, féinne, the genitive singular forms of fian and fiann), from Old Irish fían, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *weyh₁- (“to chase, pursue”);

+ English -ian (suffix forming adjectives with the sense ‘from; related to’; and forming nouns with the sense ‘one from or related to’). The adjective is attested slightly earlier than the noun.[1]

Pronunciation

  • (Received Pronunciation) enPR: fē-nē-ən, fēn′yən, IPA(key): /ˈfiː.ni.ən/, /ˈfiː.njən/
  • Audio (Southern England):(file)
  • (General American) IPA(key): /ˈfi.ni.ən/, /ˈfi.njən/
  • Audio (General American):(file)
  • (Ireland) IPA(key): /ˈfiː.njən/
  • (Scotland) IPA(key): /ˈfi.njɪn/, /ˈfi.ne.ɪn/
  • Rhymes: -iːniən
  • Hyphenation: Fen‧i‧an

Adjective

Fenian (not comparable)

  1. (Ireland, historical)
    1. Of or relating to roving bands of hunter-warriors in ancient Ireland, especially the band led by the hero Fionn mac Cumhaill in Irish mythology; (generally) of or relating to the people of ancient Ireland.
    2. (also UK) Of or relating to organizations opposing British rule in Ireland, especially the Fenian Brotherhood and Irish Republican Brotherhood which were active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
  2. (chiefly Northern Ireland, Scotland, derogatory, offensive)
    1. Of or relating to a Roman Catholic, chiefly one of Irish descent or ethnicity.
    2. Of or relating to the Scottish association football club Celtic Football Club.

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

Fenian (plural Fenians)

  1. (Ireland, historical)
    2. (chiefly in the plural) A member of a roving band of hunter-warriors in ancient Ireland, especially the band led by the hero Fionn mac Cumhaill in Irish mythology; (generally) a person of ancient Ireland.
    4. (also UK) A member of an organization opposing British rule in Ireland, especially the Fenian Brotherhood and Irish Republican Brotherhood which were active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; (generally) an Irish nationalist or republican.
      Antonyms: (slang, sometimes derogatory) Orangey, (slang, sometimes derogatory) Prod
  2. (chiefly Northern Ireland, Scotland, derogatory, offensive)
    Synonyms: (derogatory) taig, (slang, derogatory) Tim
    1. A Roman Catholic person, chiefly one of Irish descent or ethnicity.
      Antonyms: (slang, sometimes derogatory) Orangey, (slang, sometimes derogatory) Prod
      • [2023 August 23, Rory Carroll, “Files reveal terms ministers were warned not to use in Northern Ireland”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian‎[1], London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 26 May 2025:
        It was sound advice for anyone visiting Northern Ireland in 1999 and remains so today: do not refer to Protestants as "Prods", or to Catholics as "Fenians" or "Taigs", and whatever you do don't refer to your visit as "being out here".]
    2. A supporter of the Scottish association football club Celtic Football Club.

Translations

Notes

  1. ^ By Stephen Reid, from Myths and Legends of the Celtic Race (1910) by Thomas William Rolleston.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 “Fenian, adj. and n.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, September 2024; “Fenian, n.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.

Further reading

Anagrams

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