of the Gaelic language.
35
beum, a stroke, cut, taunt, Ir. and O. Ir. béim, nom. pl. bémen, blow, from the root beng, bong, which appears in buain; cf. ceum from ceng-men, leum from leng-men. This agrees with Cor. bom, blow. Some suggest beid-men or beids-men, root bheid, Eng. bite, which suits G. best as to meaning. The favourite derivation has been *ben-s-men, root ben of bean.
beur, beurra, beurtha, sharp, pointed, clear; gibe, jeer (Hend.); cf. Ir. béarrtha, clipped, from beàrr; from berr-tio‑s, with i regressive into berr, giving beirr.
beurla, English, language, Ir. beurla, speech, language, especially English; O. Ir. bélre; bél+re, bél, mouth, and the abstract termination ‑re (as in luibhre, buidhre, etc.).
beus, conduct, habit, so Ir., O. Ir. bés, Br. boaz, *beissu‑, beid-tu‑, root beid, I. E. bheidh, Gr. πειθω, persuade, Lat. fides, English faith. Others derive it from bhend, bind, giving bhend-tu- as the oldest stem. Windisch suggests connection with Got. bansts, barn, Skr. bhâsa, cowstall. The Breton oa seems against these derivations.
bha, bhà, was, Ir. do bhámar, we were (bhá‑), do bhí, was, M. Ir. ro bói, was, O. Ir., bói, bái, búi, a perfect tense, *bove(t), for bebove; Skr. babhūva; Gr. πέφυ-κε; I. E. bheu, to be, as in Lat. fui, was (an aorist form), Eng. be.
bhàn, a bhàn, down; by eclipsis for a(n) bh‑fàn, “into declivity”, from fàn, a declivity, Ir., O. Ir., fán, proclive, W. gwaen, a plain, planities montana, *vag-no‑, root, vag, bow, etc., Lat. vagor, wander, Ger. wackeln, wobble. Ir. has also fán, a wandering, which comes near the Lat. sense. In Sutherlandshire, the adj. fàn, prone, is still used.
bheil, is, Ir. fuil, bh‑fuil, O. Ir. fail, fel, fil, root vel (val), wish, prevail, Lat. volo, valeo, Eng. will.
bho, o, from Ir. ó, ua, O. Ir., ó, úa, *ava; Lat. au‑fero, "away"‑take; Ch. Sl. u‑; Skr. ava, from.
bhos, a bhos, on this side; from the eclipsed form a(n) bh‑fos, “in station”, in rest, Ir. abhus, O. Ir. i foss, here, O. Ir. foss, remaining, staying, rest. See fois, rest, for root.
bhur, bhur n‑, your, Ir. bhar n‑, O. Ir. bar n‑, far n‑, *svaron (Stokes), *s‑ves-ro‑n. For sves‑, see sibh. Cf. for form Got. izvara, Lat. nostrum (nos-tero‑, where ‑tero- is a fuller comparative form than Celtic ‑(e)ro‑, ‑ro- of sves‑ro-n, svaron).
bi, bì, be Ir. bí, be thou, O. Ir. bíu, sum, bí be thou, O. W. bit, sit, bwyf, sim, M. Br. bezaff. Proto-Celtic bhv‑ijô, for O. Ir. bíu, I am; Lat fio; Eng. be; I. E. root bheu, be. See bha. Stokes differs from other authorities in referring bíu, bí to Celtic beiô, root bei, bi, live, as in bith, beatha, Lat. vivo, etc.
