Etymology Explorer › Middle Irish

Where does “ní” come from?

ní (Middle Irish) comes from Old Irish ní, from Proto-Celtic nīs, from Proto-Indo-European ne h₁ésti — is not.

ní (Middle Irish): not; is not, isn’t; something, anything

Definitions

  1. not; is not, isn’t; something, anything

Ancestry of “ní”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Irishnínot; is not, isn’t; something, anything
2Proto-Celticnīs—
3Proto-Indo-Europeanne h₁éstiis not

Words derived from “ní”

  • neimní
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ne h₁ésti →