upphaf
Icelandic
Etymology
From Old Norse upphaf from Proto-Germanic *habą.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈʏhp.haːv/
Noun
upphaf n (genitive singular upphafs, no plural)
- beginning, start
- Icelandic translation of Genesis 1:1
- Í upphafi skapaði Guð himin og jörð.
- In the beginning God created heaven and earth.
- Icelandic translation of Genesis 1:1
Declension
| 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
- 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.
- Gospel of John 1,1 (from "Homiliu-Bók. Isländska Homilier" ed. Wisén 1872)
- advancement, honour
- (poetry) the part of a drapa before the first refrain (stef)[1]
Declension
| 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
References
- ^ Kari Ellen Gade 2012, ‘Formal structures in Old Norse poetry: stanzas and poems’ in Diana Whaley (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 1: From Mythical Times to c. 1035. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 1. Turnhout: Brepols, pp. lxvii-lxix.
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