feigr

Old Norse

FWOTD – 9 September 2013

Alternative forms

• fæigʀ — Old East Norse
• ᚠᛆᛁᚴᛁᚭᚿ (faikiąn) — Rök runestone (strong masculine accusative singular)

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *faigijaz, whence also Old English fæġe (English fey)), Old High German feigi (“cowardly”).

Pronunciation

• (12th century Icelandic) IPA^(key): /ˈfɛiɣr̩/

Adjective

feigr

1. fey, doomed to die

Declension

The original paradigm inherited from Proto-Germanic was a ja-stem, but already by classic written Old Norwegian-Icelandic it had shifted to a regular a-stem, thus with accusative feigan. However, on the 9th century Swedish Rök runestone we find the form faikiąn (normalized spelling fęigjan), with the ja-stem declension still intact.

Strong declension of feigr

singular	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	feigr	feig	feigt
accusative	feigan	feiga	feigt
dative	feigum	feigri	feigu
genitive	feigs	feigrar	feigs
plural	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	feigir	feigar	feig
accusative	feiga	feigar	feig
dative	feigum	feigum	feigum
genitive	feigra	feigra	feigra

Weak declension of feigr

singular	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	feigi	feiga	feiga
accusative	feiga	feigu	feiga
dative	feiga	feigu	feiga
genitive	feiga	feigu	feiga
plural	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	feigu	feigu	feigu
accusative	feigu	feigu	feigu
dative	feigum	feigum	feigum
genitive	feigu	feigu	feigu

Declension of comparative of feigr

singular	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	feigari	feigari	feigara
accusative	feigara	feigari	feigara
dative	feigara	feigari	feigara
genitive	feigara	feigari	feigara
plural	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	feigari	feigari	feigari
accusative	feigari	feigari	feigari
dative	feigurum	feigurum	feigurum
genitive	feigari	feigari	feigari

Strong declension of superlative of feigr

singular	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	feigastr	feigust	feigast
accusative	feigastan	feigasta	feigast
dative	feigustum	feigastri	feigustu
genitive	feigasts	feigastrar	feigasts
plural	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	feigastir	feigastar	feigust
accusative	feigasta	feigastar	feigust
dative	feigustum	feigustum	feigustum
genitive	feigastra	feigastra	feigastra

Weak declension of superlative of feigr

singular	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	feigasti	feigasta	feigasta
accusative	feigasta	feigustu	feigasta
dative	feigasta	feigustu	feigasta
genitive	feigasta	feigustu	feigasta
plural	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	feigustu	feigustu	feigustu
accusative	feigustu	feigustu	feigustu
dative	feigustum	feigustum	feigustum
genitive	feigustu	feigustu	feigustu

Related terms

• feigð (“feyness”)

Descendants

• Icelandic: feigur
• Faroese: feigur
• Norwegian: feig; (dialectal) feig’u, feig’e, feg
• Old Swedish: fēgher
  • Swedish: feg
• Old Danish: fegh
  • Danish: fej, fejg
    • Norwegian Bokmål: feig

Further reading

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