beag

See also: beag-

English

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Old English bēag (“circular jewelry worn on the body: ring, armlet, crown, collar”), from Proto-West Germanic *baug, from Proto-Germanic *baugaz, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰewgʰ- (“to bend”). Cognate with dialectal German Baug (“ring, collar”), Icelandic baugur (“ring, circle”). Doublet of bee (“ring”). Related to bagel.

Noun

beag (plural beags)

1. (historical) A ring.
   • 1878, The Numismatic chronicle and journal of the Numismatic Society, Great Britain: Royal Numismatic Society:

     It was a mark of nobility among the German races — by some considered the origin of our coronets — and had even about it a quasi-religious character in memory of the "holy beag" (holy ring), the oath upon which was tantamount to the oath upon Thorr's hammer.

   • 1970, William A. Chaney, The cult of kingship in Anglo-Saxon England:

     [...] and the description of that monarch in his anonymous Vita as coronatus lauro probably indicates a beag which was lighter than the formal diadema.

Anagrams

• Bega, EGBA, Egba, Gabe, bega

Irish

Etymology

From Old Irish bec (“small, little”) (compare Manx beg, Scottish Gaelic beag), from Proto-Celtic *biggos (“small”) (compare Breton bihan and Welsh bach, bychan).

Pronunciation

• (Munster, Connacht) IPA^(key): /bʲɞɡ/
• (Ulster) IPA^(key): /bʲɨ̞ɡ/

Adjective

beag (genitive singular masculine big, genitive singular feminine bige, plural beaga, comparative lú)

1. small, little
   1. (size, amount, extent, degree)
   2. junior, lesser, minor
   3. (hypocoristic)
   4. (deprecatory)
   5. (of late, recent, time)
2. few (with singular or plural noun)

   Is beag áit is deise.

   There are few places that are nicer.

   le blianta beaga anuas

   for the past few years

Declension

Declension of beag

	singular		plural (m/f)
Positive	masculine	feminine	(strong noun)	(weak noun)
nominative	beag	bheag	beaga; bheaga2
vocative	bhig		beaga
genitive		bige	beaga	beag
dative	beag; bheag1	bheag; bhig (archaic)	beaga; bheaga2
Comparative	níos lú
Superlative	is lú

¹ When the preceding noun is lenited and governed by the definite article.
² When the preceding noun ends in a slender consonant.

Derived terms

• Áise Bheag f (“Asia Minor”)
• An Bhreatain Bheag f (“Wales”)
• anairt bheag f (“sailcloth, canvas”)
• baile beag m (“village, small town”)
• beag- (“small; -less; un-, in-”)
• beagadán m (“diminutive person; little one”)
• beagaigh (“lessen, diminish”, verb)
• beagán m (“a little, a bit, a few”)
• beagnach (“almost, nearly”, adverb)
• bilbí beag m (“lesser bilby”)
• caolán beag m (“ileum”)
• cóta beag m (“petticoat”)
• falcóg bheag f (“little auk”)
• méar bheag f (“little finger, pinkie”)
• pláta beag m (“side plate”)
• rón beag m (“common seal, harbor seal”)
• rud beag (“a little, a bit, somewhat”, adverb)
• samhradh beag (“Indian summer, warm autumn”)
• snáthaid bheag f (“fine needle; hour hand”)
• tae beag m (“high tea, afternoon tea”)
• tiomóid bheag f (“smaller catstail”)
• ulchabhán beag m (“little owl”)

 

Noun

beag m (genitive singular big, nominative plural beaganna)

1. little; small amount
2. (with copula) few

Declension

Declension of beag (first declension)

bare forms case singular plural nominative beag beaganna vocative a bhig a bheaganna genitive big beaganna dative beag beaganna forms with the definite article case singular plural nominative an beag na beaganna genitive an bhig na mbeaganna dative leis an mbeag don bheag leis na beaganna

Mutation

Mutated forms of beag

radical	lenition	eclipsis
beag	bheag	mbeag

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Modern Irish.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

Further reading

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “beag”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• de Bhaldraithe, Tomás (1959) “beag”, in English-Irish Dictionary, An Gúm
• “beag”, in New English-Irish Dictionary, Foras na Gaeilge, 2013-2024

Old English

Alternative forms

• bēah

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *baug, from Proto-Germanic *baugaz, derived from *beuganą (“to bend”). Cognate with Old Frisian bāg, Old Saxon bōg, Old High German boug, and Old Norse baugr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bæ͜ɑːɡ/, [bæ͜ɑːɣ]

Noun

bēag m

1. circular object worn on the body, especially one made of gold or silver: ring, armlet, crown, collar, torque
   • c. 897, King Alfred's translation of Pope Gregory's Pastoral Care

     Sē þe ūs ġehǣlþ fram þām stiċe ūrra synna, hē ġeþafode þæt him man sette þyrnenne bēag on þæt hēafod.

     The person who heals us from the stabs of our sins allowed a crown of thorns to be placed on his head.

   • Late 10th century, Ælfric, the Old English Hexateuch, Genesis 38:18

     Þā cwæþ Iūdas, "Hwæt wilt þū tō underwedde niman?" Þā cwæþ hēo, "Þīnne hring and þīnne bēag and þīnne stæf þe þū on handa hæfst."

     Judah asked, "What do you want to take as a pledge?" She said, "Your ring and your armlet and your staff that you have in your hand."

Usage notes

• Since Proto-Germanic times, different kinds of bēag were often disambiguated with compounds: earmbēag (“armlet”), hēafodbēag (“crown”), swēorbēag (“collar”). *Fingerbēag is not attested and may not have existed, perhaps because hring was already a specific word for "ring."

• During the 10th century, cynehelm begins to become the normal word for "crown."

Declension

Declension of bēag (strong a-stem)

Case	Singular	Plural
nominative	bēag	bēagas
accusative	bēag	bēagas
genitive	bēages	bēaga
dative	bēage	bēagum

Derived terms

• bēagian
• bēagġiefa
• randbēag
• þyrnen bēag
• wuldorbēag

 

Related terms

• boga
• byht
• byġe
• bīeġan
• bīeġels
• bōg
• būgan
• ġebīeġednes

 

Descendants

• Middle English: beigh, beiȝ, bē, biȝ, by
  • English: bee
• → English: beag (learned)

Scottish Gaelic

Etymology

From Old Irish bec (“small, little”) (compare Manx beg, Irish beag), from Proto-Celtic *biggos (“small”) (compare Breton bic’han and Welsh bach, bychan).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /b̥ek/
• (Lewis) IPA^(key): /b̥ɤk/
• (Barra) IPA^(key): [b̥e̠k]

Adjective

beag (genitive singular masculine big, genitive singular feminine bige, nominative plural beaga, comparative bige or lugha)

1. small, little, short, diminutive

   duine beag ― a small man

   ùine bheag ― a short time

2. disagreeable

   Is beag orm thu. ― I hate you. (literally, “You are disagreeable to me.”)

3. light, trifling, insignificant

   Is beag seo. ― This is a trifling thing.

4. young

   na sionnaich bheaga ― the young foxes

5. sordid, miserly, niggardly

   Is beag sin de Ghàidhlig. ― That is a poor sort of Gaelic.

   Tha e fìor bheag 'n a nàdar. ― He has a very niggardly disposition.

Declension

Declension of beag (type I adjective)

	Masculine	Feminine	Plural
Nominative	beag	bheag	beaga
Genitive	bhig	bige	beaga
Dative	beag	bhig	beaga
Vocative	bhig	bheag	beaga

Synonyms

• bìodach
• mean
• meanbh
• mion

Derived terms

• baile beag m (“village, small town”)
• beag air bheag (“bit by bit”, adverb)
• beag bìodach (“tiny”, adjective)
• beag-sgèile (“small-scale”, adjective)
• beagan m (“a little, a few”)
• beith bheag f (“dwarf birch”)
• cailleach bheag a' chìrein f (“crested tit”)
• cailleach bheag an earbaill f (“long-tailed tit”)
• comhachag-bheag f (“little owl”)
• fèileadh beag m (“filibeg, kilt”)
• guilbneach-beag m (“whimbrel”)
• is fheàrr an teine beag a gharas na an teine mòr a loisgeas (“less is more”, literally “better is the small fire that warms than the great fire that burns”)
• neas bheag f (“weasel”)
• taigh beag m (“toilet, water closet”)

 

Mutation

Mutation of beag

radical	lenition
beag	bheag

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Scottish Gaelic.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

Further reading

• Edward Dwelly (1911) “beag”, in Faclair Gàidhlig gu Beurla le Dealbhan [The Illustrated Gaelic–English Dictionary]‎^[2], 10th edition, Edinburgh: Birlinn Limited, →ISBN
• MacLennan, Malcolm (1925) A Pronouncing and Etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic Language, Edinburgh: J. Grant, →OCLC