Ár nAthair
/ɑːɾˠ ˈn̪ˠɑhəɾʲ/word by word
Ár nAthair is the Irish phrase for the English "the our father", referring to the central prayer in the Christian tradition.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the possessive pronoun ár (our) and the noun athair (father).
How does it change in a sentence?
In the phrase Ár nAthair, the n is a prosthetic n required by the grammar of the possessive pronoun ár because it precedes a word starting with a vowel.
How do you pronounce it?
/ɑːɾˠ ˈn̪ˠɑhəɾʲ/
Did you know?
- While athair means 'father', the visually similar word nathair means 'snake'.
- The word ár is a homonym in Irish, meaning it can translate to 'our', 'slaughter' or 'area' depending on the context.
- The term athair is used both for biological fathers and as a formal title for priests in the Irish language.
Example conversation
Two friends are preparing for a church service.
- SaoirseAn féidir leat Ár nAthair a rá?Can you say the Our Father?
- OisínIs féidir, ach tá mé Nerbhach.I can, but I am nervous.
- SaoirseNá bí buartha, Saoirse, tá sé go maith.Don't worry, Saoirse, it is good.
- OisínGo raibh maith agat, a Saoirse.Thank you, Saoirse.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry Ár nAthair, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (ár, nathair) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries nathair, ár, CC BY-SA 4.0.
