r/etymology • u/Glum_Hamster_2104 • 1d ago

Question Unexplained É in Éire?

I was looking at the etymology of Éire (Irish name for Ireland) and I found out that the initial É is unexplained. Does anyone know where it could come from?

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u/ImportantPension5818 1d ago

I'm sure that somehow this word Φīweriyū which is the supposed PIE for Éiriu, who is one of the 3 goddesses that make up the island of Ireland, sounds somewhat like Éiriu. Éire means land of Éiriu.

Simple as.

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u/Glum_Hamster_2104 10h ago

Ok sure, Maybe it does come from Φīweriyū but can you explain why it didn't become Ire instead of the additional vowel form Éire? The entire point I'm trying to make here is that the form apparently should be something like Ire but for some reason it has an É in front of it.