*berkaną
Runic: ᛒᛖᚱᚲᚨᚾᚨ Pronunciation: /ˈber.kɑ.nɑ̃/noun · neuter · a-stem
Meanings
- birch twig; birch shoot
- name of the rune ᛒ (b)
Etymology
A neuter a-stem formation beside *berkō. Lehmann (1986a: 66) interprets the extension as Proto-Indo-European *-no-, originally adjectival and later nominal, suggesting an original substantivized sense ‘birchen (thing)’ > ‘birch twig’. Mees (2023b: 74) reconstructs *berkaną for the B rune; runological works also use the alternative form *berkanan (Nedoma 2017: 877; Salomon 2021: 145). The term ultimately belongs to the Proto-Indo-European *bʰerHǵ- family. See also *berkō.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nom. | berkaną | berkanō |
| Acc. | berkaną | berkanō |
| Gen. | berkanas, berkanis | berkanǫ̂ |
| Dat. | berkanai | berkanamaz |
| Inst. | berkanō | berkanamiz |
| Voc. | berkaną | berkanō |
Descendants
-
bjarkan (Old Norse)
- biercan (Danish)
- bjarkan (Icelandic)
- bergann (Old Irish)
- 𐌱𐌴𐍂𐌺𐌽𐌰 (bercna; note that the name only survives in a Latin transliteration) (Gothic)