Fenian
nounEtymology
Partly from both of the following: * from Old Irish Féni (“originally the legendary people who inhabited Ireland; later the Irish people generally, especially those belonging to the social class of free citizens”, plural); further etymology uncertain, possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *weǵʰ- (“to bring; to transport”) (whence wagon and wain; referring to the use of chariots); and * from Irish fian, fiann (“roving band of (legendary) warrior-hunters”) (generally a view taken by English-speaking scholars, possibly due to the similarity between Old Irish Féni and Irish féine, féinne, the genitive singular forms of fian and fiann), from Old Irish fían, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *weyh₁- (“to chase, pursue”); + English -ian (suffix forming adjectives with the sense ‘from; related to’; and forming nouns with the sense ‘one from or related to’). The adjective is attested slightly earlier than the noun.
Ireland, Historical, In plural A member of a roving band of hunter-warriors in ancient Ireland, especially the band led by the hero Fionn mac Cumhaill in Irish mythology; (generally) a person of ancient Ireland.
- Do you compare your psalms / To the tales of the bare-arm'd Fenians?1816, [Walter Scott], chapter I, in The Antiquary. […], volume III, Edinburgh: […] James Ballantyne and Co. for Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown, →OCLC, page 26:
Ireland, UK, Also, Historical A member of an organization opposing British rule in Ireland, especially the Fenian Brotherhood and Irish Republican Brotherhood which were active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; (generally) an Irish nationalist or republican.
Northern Ireland, Scotland, Derogatory, Offensive A Roman Catholic person, chiefly one of Irish descent or ethnicity.
- It was sound advice for anyone visiting Northern Ireland in 1999 and remains so today: do not refer to Protestants as "Prods", or to Catholics as "Fenians" or "Taigs", and whatever you do don't refer to your visit as "being out here".[2023 August 23, Rory Carroll, “Files reveal terms ministers were warned not to use in Northern Ireland”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 26 May 2025:
Northern Ireland, Scotland, Derogatory, Offensive A supporter of the Scottish association football club Celtic Football Club.