-fa

Welsh

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *magos (“field”). Compare Cornish -va, Old Irish mag, from Proto-Indo-European *méǵh₂s.

According to Morris-Jones, in some cases (such as lladdfa) instead from the verbnoun ending -fan (as in hedfan), from Proto-Celtic *-man.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /va/

Suffix

-fa f (plural -feydd or -faoedd or -fâu)

1. Used to derive places from verbs and nouns.

   Synonym: -le

   ‎swydd (“job”) ‎-fa → ‎swyddfa (“office”)

   ‎meddyg (“doctor”) ‎-fa → ‎meddygfa (“doctor's surgery”)

   ‎myned (“to go”) ‎-fa → ‎mynedfa (“entrance”)

   ‎amlosgi (“to cremate”) ‎-fa → ‎amlosgfa (“crematorium”)

2. Used to derive actions and states from verbs and nouns.

   ‎cyboli (“to jumble”) ‎-fa → ‎cybolfa (“hotchpotch, jumble”)

   ‎cosi (“to itch; to beat”) ‎-fa → ‎cosfa (“itch; beating, hiding”)

   ‎dal (“to catch, to seize”) ‎-fa → ‎dalfa (“custody”)

Derived terms

Welsh terms suffixed with -fa