Structure
Verb + といえども
Noun + といえども
[な]Adjective + (だ) + といえども
[い]Adjective + といえども
Details
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Formal
Rare Kanji
雖も
About といえども
といえども is a combination of the case-marking particle と, the hypothetical form of 言う, 言え, and the conjunction particle ども, which is used in much the same way as けれども, or ても. Due to this, despite the more literal translation of 'even if one were to say (A)', it is usually translated simply as 'even if (A)', or 'although (A)'.
といえども will be seen following nouns, い-Adjectives, or verbs in any of their standard form.
といえども may also follow な-Adjectives, but だ will precede といえども in these cases.
Despite the nuance being slightly different, といえども can be thought of as a very old-fashioned way of saying といっても. Due to といえども being old-fashioned, it is often used for emphasis and will frequently be paired with expressions like いくら, いかに, どんなに, etc.
Fun Fact
Although very rarely used, sometimes いえども is seen as 雖も. In these cases the kanji 雖, which means 'however', is simply paired with も. This creates a slight difference between 'however even (A)', and the more modern 'even if one were to say (A)'. Despite this, the meanings are used interchangeably in modern times.
Examples
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ヒジカタが恐るべしと雖も、スギモトの敵ではない。
Even though Hijikata is incredible, he is no match for Sugimoto.
手術中は一瞬と雖気が抜けない。
During an operation you cannot lose focus, not even for a second.
たとえ囚人と雖もときどき刑務所を出ることができる。
Even a prisoner can leave prison from time to time.
雨天と雖も、ゴミ拾いのボランティアをしないわけにはいかない。
Even if it is rainy weather, there is no way that I can not volunteer for the litter clean up.
王様と雖も、法律を犯すことは出来ません。
Although he is the king, he cannot break the law.
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Breakdown and examples
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「だといえども」= formal/fancy 言っても
Japanese StackExchange
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