n (crob) gender and infl. uncertain, crobhaing .b., IGT Decl. § 13 (66.10) in section listing fem. nouns appar. implies existence of a masc. -ang also in class. verse, cf. DDána 9.6 infra (leg. -ang ?), IGT Decl. ex. 1222 infra (g s. -aing). See Marstrander, ZCP vii 397 and Festskrift til Prof. Alf Torp, 239-252 (Best Bibliogr. ii no. 338).

(a) cluster, bunch (of nuts, fruit, etc.): crobung iii n-uboll, RC ix 468.z (ICM). cét cróboing for slait, cét cnó in cech cróboing, Airne F. 354 - 5 . o chall cháin na crobang cas ` nut-clusters ', Fen. 396.11 . gan chnaoi ccaoich 'na chrobhoingibh `in whose clusters was no blind nut', Bard. P. 27.4 .

In generalised sense: gur' thoit 'n-a crobaing 'san cath `until fell he destroyed in the battle', MacCarthy 418 § 6 .

(b) More freq. in transfd. meaning of family, race, kindred etc. in laudatory sense: in crobang . . . / Tuatha De Danand do chéin, LL 974 (= crobhaing, BB 31a41 ). na trí Ruadcind . . . / láechda in crobaṅg , LL 6433 . C., S. . . . / co coibne na crobung, Gorm. May 15 . fiú an chrobhaingsin nochar chin / riú a comhaimsir a ceirdibh the equals of this band (see fíu ), IGT Decl. ex. 1222 . don chrobhaing ghlan (: Athar), DDána 9.6 (see above). crobhaing dhileas dhron, Duan. F. ii 184.5 . M. cnú ós crobhaing `renowned above heroes', AFM v 1636.7 . crobuing oir, LL 394.1 . caem crobung (chev.), Gorm. Nov. 8 .

Compds. With adjj. mes crobang-caomh, Bruss. 2569, 66a (cited Contribb. 523 ). barr cnúais ar chraoíbh chrobhuinnghil, O'R. Poems 594 . With vb. gach sgaoi cnuais do chrobhuingéirigh, DDána 89.21 .

n o. A pair of persons. Cf. trecheng. The want of eclipsis, Fél. Mar. 6 (decheng deodae), points to masculine gender. The frequent writing drecheng after prím and mór does not prove neuter gender, as it may be = threcheng.—By Irish grammarians associated with cing `a champion' or with cenn `a head' (`a person'): decheng .i. dá ching nó dá chend, O'Curry Transcr. LB. cing .i. trénfer ut est inmain deceng deoda, Thr. Ir. Gl. 130. 16 . Cf. trecheng .i. tríar .i. trí cinn móra, Fél. Sept. 16 n. .i. trí cind, ib. p. 248 . décheng with é, Fél. Nov. 26 (Laud 610). Elsewhere always decheng as trecheng. deicheng, LL 29 b 36 . dechenn, Fél. Nov. 26 v.l., cf. trechenn, BDD § 93 . —The inflexion is against the derivation †dé-ching. Besides dechenc can hardly be separated from trethenc, Wb. 29 c 5 : cui gloria honor et imperium sempeternum .i. is trethenc comadas do it is a fitting triad to him. The relations between this and trechenc, dechenc are obscure. In Mid.-Ir. treicheng and treitheng would render one and the same pronunciation (†treheŋ).—Dech-enc and treth-enc either cpds. with †cenc, †tenc, or derivatives of Pre-Celt. and Indo-Eur. †dueiko-, duiko-, and †tṛt[i]o-, trit[i]o-; the former is represented by Teut. †tvī˘ha(n)- consisting of two (also of persons as O. Eng. mid unc twîh between us twain), Scr. dvika-; the latter by Lat. tertius, Teut. þridjan-, Gk. τρισσός and W. trydydd. Apart from the gender trethenc seems identical with ON priðjungr a third, dechenc with O. Eng. twēoung (†twīhungō-). For the treatment of unaccented -nk, cf. 1 cumang (con-icc) and crobang `a fistful' which seems a derivative of crob.

Of saints: inmain decheng deodae...Felicitas...Perpetua, Fél. Mar. 7 . cain d.¤ , Sep. 6 . a s. guid decheng (v.l. décheng, dechenn, decheceng) ṅderb ṅdálach...Banbán... Siric, Nov. 26 . mórdecheng, Nov. 28 v.l. Of kings and warriors : cathach decheng dána fial: Feidelmid [Clothach] Cormac Ciar, Rawl. 116 a 5 = cath[ach] déceng, etc. (corrupt) LL 387 a 34 . assa decheng lassa torchair, YBL 13 a 27 . Snedg. u. Mac R 12. 11 . Of chiefs and professionals : druid ┐ aire désa deicheṅg nád bí dóer, LL 29 b 36 .—Obs.

n u, m., (cf. W. mes `acorns') tree-fruit (coll.), esp. mast. mess, Corm. Y 917. budiu nā mess cumra, LL 295b49 . crand messa .i. dair, 358 marg. dext. ní caiter mess crobang ccáemh, ACL iii 304 y . mes dairbhre, BS 132.4 . meas ralach, Oss. iv 280.18 . cnuas cacha feada .i. a mes ┐ a cno, Laws v 484.13 Comm. turcbat uile don chóemchrund | duille ┐ bláth ┐ mess, Metr. Dinds. iii 288. mess ┐ claiss ┐ muirthorud (a result of good government), LU 10116 , cf. ZCP iii 229 § 1. is ina flaith atát na tri bairr for Erind .i. barr días ┐ barr scoth ┐ barr messa, BDD 66. dithle ith ┐ blicht ┐ meas (result of misconduct in a ruler), Laws v 450.13 . meas dub a draignib (i.e. blackberries, sloes), YBL 118a marg. inf. = Bruchst. i § 161 . mess na habla 'den Fruchtertrag des Apfelbaumes', RÉ ii 594.452 . slat mín messa, Irish Texts ii 23 § 10. mac . . . meic messai meic thoraid, MacCongl. 33.20 . i gcuibhreann na muc fán meas, TSh. 3451. pl. mārmesa mārḟeda great crops of mast from the great forest, ZCP xi 92 § 17. fochmuine cen messu, RC xxvi 46.2 . g s. as attrib.: saill tuircc mesa of a mast-fed boar, ZCP xiii 270.19 . peata muice measa, Content. xi 6. Prov. is muc remithuit mess a pig that falls before the mast falls (of one dying prematurely), BDD 66 = is mucc remitéit [remetuit, remituit v.l.] mess, 106 . Cf. AFM ii 114.13 .

Fig. of persons: mār-mess cona hilblasaib (of Colum Cille), Rawl. 122b30 . a Mælṡeachlaind ní[t] meas meathcraind, IT iii 88 § 105 = Bruchst. i § 33 . Cf. a c[h]nú da meas na Ma[i]gdini (of Christ), ACL iii 235 § 29.

In plant-name: mes torc (= agnus castus), ACL i 325 § 2. meas torc allaid tutsan, parkleaves , Rosa Angl. 214 y . g s. lurga an meas tuirc allaid, 62.19 .