My user name is 'Reachtabhra' wich is a personal name form the 9th century or so.

It is compound of 'Reacht' Law and 'Fabhra' Eyebrow, brow.

So does this name mean literally 'Law-Browed' that dosent really make sense!!!???!

If anyone could shed light on this I would be most greatful

Firstly:

law = dlí
reacht = statute

(not to be confused with "racht", which has the same pronunciation in some dialects and which means "outburst", as in "an outburst of anger" = "racht feirge")

Fabhra = the eyelid and the eyelash (NOT the eyebrow)

"Reacht Fabhra" would mean "Eyelid Statute". Possibly referring to a policy of keeping an eye on something or never letting your guard down, "sleeping with one eye open", just guessing here though.

One thing I'll just note though: It would be "Reacht Fabhra" as opposed to "Reacht Fhabhra", just in case some-one tries to explain the absence of the F.

GRMA

Its going to be from old Irish, so Reacht is definately law,
I thought Fabhra was Eyelid, Eyebrow, and brow (of hill)

I also thought that it technically would be spelt Reachtfhabhra but the Fh was dropped out of spelling because of it being silent and all.

(I got the name from thae annals of the four masters)

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quote:

I also thought that it technically would be spelt Reachtfhabhra but the Fh was dropped out of spelling because of it being silent and all

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That's exactly what I thought too, but "Reacht" is definitely masculine, there's no séimhiú on "Fabhra".

Ó Corráin & Maguire list Reachtabhra, but give no meaning. They give Rechtabra and Reachtúra as alternative spellings.

Where did you get your derivation?

The full information:
In the early period this name was borne by Rechtabra, son of Flann Feórna, a prince of the Ciarraige who died in 741; Rechtabra, king of Corcu Baiscind and ancestor of the O Linnanes and the Baskins who died in 844; and Rechtabra, abbot of Clonfert who died in 850.

Ó Corráin & Maguire Irish Names, pub Lilliput Press 1990, ISBN O 946640 66 1

This site http://www.tartanplace.com/faery/gods/coll.html

gives the derivation as "Lawgiver"

Pacé FnaB the fact that Reacht now means statute does not mean it only carried that meaning in the 8th century!

Mac Bains Etymological dictionary gives:-
reachd
law, statute, so Irish, Old Irish recht, Welsh rhaith, Breton reiz, just: *rektu-, from the root reg; Latin rectum, right, rego, rule; English right

fabhra, fabhrad
abhra, eyelid, eyebrow, Irish abhra, fabhra, eyelid, Early Irish abra, n.pl. abrait, Cornish abrans, Breton abrant, eyebrow, Mac. Greek @Ga@'brou@ntes; further @Go@'frús, brow, English brow. There is an Early Irish bra, pl. brói, dual brúad, *bruvat-. The phonetics are not clear. Stokes has suggested Latin frons, frontis, as allied, *bhront- with the prep. a(p)o (= Early Irish -a-), ab.


(Message edited by aonghus on September 10, 2004)

I thought when compound words were made, lenition occured?

I got my derivation from a friend, its his surname, Ó Reachtabhra (Raftery) and a friend, said the same, his surname is 'Rafter'
Ó Reachtabhair.
I'd say they got the derivation from school.

(Sounded like a nice username)

>> I thought when compound words were made, lenition occured?

I don't think that is a general rule. It depends on the grammar of the words written apart. And since we are talking about a 8th century name, we are talking about the grammar of Old Irish.

A Chairde,

As a general rule in modern grammar, the initial consonant of the second (and subsequent on compounds consisting of more than two componets) part is aspirated except where the letters d, l, n, s or t would come together.

Le meas,

Larry

"As a general rule in modern grammar, the initial consonant of the second (and subsequent on compounds consisting of more than two componets) part is aspirated except where the letters d, l, n, s or t would come together."

So does this mean that there is a slight 'puff' of a F sound in the name, this dosent explain why its taken out of the spelling...

Floggin a dead horse here, its probably as you said Aonghus "Old Irish grammar"

GRMA

Well, here's how you should make a compound word in Irish:

mála scoile

But then for some reason words keep cropping up that take the form:

seicleabhar

which means "cheque book". Don't ask me why it isn't "leabhar seice" or "leabhar seiceanna"... Anyway when this is done, when a "compound word" is made, there is lenition. As for D T S being séimhiú'd after D T S L N, you have the choice of whether to do so or not.