Reconstruction:Proto-Celtic/loɸernos

This Proto-Celtic entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Celtic

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-European *h₂(w)lop-erno- (“(red) fox”). Cognate with Proto-Italic *wolpis, Ancient Greek ἀλώπηξ (alṓpēx), Proto-Balto-Slavic *lapijāˀ, Albanian dhelpër, Old Armenian աղուէս (ałuēs), and Proto-Indo-Iranian *Hrawpāćás and Proto-Indo-Iranian *Hláwpiš.

Cognates in other IE languages differ too wildly to reconstruct a PIE prototype noun, so this may be a Wanderwort.

Noun

*loɸernos m^[1]^[2]

fox

Declension

Masculine o-stem
	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*loɸernos	*loɸernou	*loɸernoi
vocative	*loɸerne	*loɸernou	*loɸernoi
accusative	*loɸernom	*loɸernou	*loɸernons
genitive	*loɸernī	*loɸernous	*loɸernom
dative	*loɸernūi	*loɸernobom	*loɸernobos
locative	*loɸernei	*?	*?
instrumental	*loɸernū	*loɸernobim	*loɸernūis

Alternative reconstructions

*loɸersnos^[3] (if compounded with *(h₁e)rs-n-o- "male")

Descendants

Proto-Brythonic: *llowern (“fox”)
- Old Breton: louuern
  - Middle Breton: louarn
    - Breton: louarn (“fox”), lowern, luhern
- Old Cornish: louuern (“vulpes”)
  - Cornish: lowarn (“fox”)
- Old Welsh: louern
  - Middle Welsh: llewyrn (“foxes”)
    - Welsh: llwyrn (“will o' the wisp”)
Old Irish: loarn
Gaulish: *louernos

References

^ Matasović, Ranko (2009), “*loferno-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 243
^ Delamarre, Xavier (2003), Dictionnaire de la langue gauloise: une approche linguistique du vieux-celtique continental [Dictionary of the Gaulish language: A linguistic approach to Old Continental Celtic] (Collection des Hespérides; 9), 2nd edition, Éditions Errance, →ISBN, page 207
^ Kroonen, Guus (2025), “Icelandic leppa ‘fox’ < * h₂lop-n-íh₂-: A New Example of Kluge’s Law in Germanic”, in Amsterdamer Beiträge zur älteren Germanistik, volume 85, number 3, Brill, page 301 of 295-305

[1] Matasović, Ranko (2009), “*loferno-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 243

[2] Delamarre, Xavier (2003), Dictionnaire de la langue gauloise: une approche linguistique du vieux-celtique continental [Dictionary of the Gaulish language: A linguistic approach to Old Continental Celtic] (Collection des Hespérides; 9), 2nd edition, Éditions Errance, →ISBN, page 207

[3] Kroonen, Guus (2025), “Icelandic leppa ‘fox’ < * h₂lop-n-íh₂-: A New Example of Kluge’s Law in Germanic”, in Amsterdamer Beiträge zur älteren Germanistik, volume 85, number 3, Brill, page 301 of 295-305

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