PB
1223
v;35G
1896
8
A
A
4
1
4
2
1
k GRAMMAR
0> TM«
USH LANGUAGE
8T
W JOYCE. LL.D., T.C.D., M.R.I.A.
DUBLIN j
M. K. GILL & SON.
Ex Libris
C. K. OGDEN
A GRAMMAR
OF THE
IRISH LANGUAGE
BY
P. W, JOYCE, LLD,, T.C.D., M.R.I.A.,
One of the Professors in the Training Department of THB
Commissioners of National Education, Ireland.
DUBLIN
M. H. GILL AND SON
1896.
WORKS BY P. W. JOYCE, LL.D.
1. A Short History of Ireland froni the Earliest
Times to 1608; 565 pages; cloth. 10s. 6d
2. A Concise History of Ireland from the Earliest
Times to 1837 ; 312 pages; Fifth Ed. ; cloth, 2s.
3. Outlines of the History of Ireland from the
Earliest Times to 1837 ; 126 pages; cloth, gd.
4. The Origin and History of Irish Names of
Places. Sixth Ed. ; (in two volumes) ; $s. each.
5. Irish Local Names Explained, is.
6. Old Celtic Romances; Translated from the Gaelic.
Second Ed. ; cloth, 3J. 6d.
7. A Grammar of the Irish Language, is.
8. "Keating" for Students of Gaelic. With Trans-
lation and Notes ; wrapper, is. qd. ; cloth, 2s.
9. Ancient Irish Music; 100 Irish Airs. With
Popular Songs ; wrapper, is. bd. ; cloth, 3J.
10. The Geography of the Counties of Ireland.
With a General Description of the Country, 3^-. 6d.
11. A Hand -Book of School Management and
Methods of Teaching. Fifteenth Ed. ; $s. 6d.
12. A Concise History of England to A.D. 1815, is.
13. A Concise History of Rome to the Death of
Sulla, is. 6d.
14. English Composition for the Use of Schools.
Fifth Ed. ; 6d.
TO BE HAD FROM
M. H. GILL, & SON, DUBLIN.
-nnziS"
J89«
mi
PEEFACE.
Though this text-book is small, it comprises, I believe,
everything necessary — so far as grammar is concerned —
for a student of modem Irish. I have not treated at all
of the ancient forms of the language ; and I have excluded
everything in the shape of dissertation : the grammar of
the modern Irish language, and no more, is here set forth
in words as few and simple as possible.
I have not suggested any changes either in spelling or
in grammatical forms, or attempted innovation of any
kind : this is a grammar of the language as it actually
exists in the works of our best writers.
All the illustrative examples are quotations from
standard Irish writings ; but though I retain the refer-
ences, I have not given them in the grammar, as they
would encumber the book, and impede, rather than facili-
tate the learner. I may mention here, however, that the
works from which the examples are chiefly taken, are,
those of Keating, the publications of the Ossianic Society,
" The Three Sorrowful Stories of Erin" (viz., " The Fate
of the Children of Usna," " The Fate of the Children of
Lir," and " The Fate of the Children of Turenn"), and
occasionally the " Annals of the Four Masters." The
language of the various works published by the Archaeo-
logical and Celtic Societies is generally too antiquated
to be quoted in a grammar of modern Irish.
I have all through given word-for-word translations
of the examples ; free translations would have been more
pleasant to read, but would have added considerably to
the learner's difficulty.
In the last Part — " Idioms" — I have given a popular
rather than a scientific explanation of the principal idioms
of the language. Nothing like this is to be found in any
other Irish Grammar ; and I believe that the learner who
masters it will be saved much labour and perplexity.
IV PREFACE.
There are several other Irish Grammars, but none low
enough in price to be within reach of the many. Who-
ever wishes to study the Irish language in its ancient as
well as in its modern forms, must procure O'Donovan's
Grammar ; without this great work no one can attain a
thorough knowledge of the language. I may also men-
tion " The College Irish Grammar," by the Rev. Ulick J.
Canon Bourke, in which there is a great amount of mis-
cellaneous information on the language, proverbs, and
popular literature of Ireland.
The labours of the Society for the Preservation of the
Irish Language have lately given a great impetus to
Celtic studies. The Society has produced two admirable
little elementary books (the Fi rst and Second Irish Books)
and are about to bring out a third all drawn up by the
members themselves on the plan of the elementary works
of Smith, Arnold, Ahn, &c. But the want of a very
cheap and simple text-book on Irish Grammar has been
much felt ; and this Grammar has been written to supply
the want. I have written it with the cognisance of the
Council of the Society, of which I am myself a member.
It was at first intended that the name of the Society
should appear on the title-page along with my own name,
and a resolution to that effect was passed by the
Council. But I found some difficulty as to the exact
words, and I have accordingly contented myself with
mentioning the matter here.
I acknowledge with thanks that I have received valu-
able assistance from several gentlemen of the Society,
who read every word of my proofs, suggesting various
corrections, alterations, and improvements. One member
in particular, Mr. John Fleming of Rathgormuck, in the
county "Waterford, read all my manuscript in the first
instance, and all the proof-sheets afterwards. Mr.
Fleming's assistance was invaluable to me, for he pos-
Besses an intimate knowledge of modern Irish Grammar,
language, and literature, and what is still better, much
sound sense and clear critical judgment.
Dublin, November, 1878.
CONTENTS,
PART I.
ORTHOGRAPHY.
CHAPTER I.— SOUNDS
i. Letters
ii. Diphthongs ... ...
in. Triphthongs
iv. Various Sounds ...
CHAPTER II.— LETTER CHANGES
i. Aspiration
ii. Rules for Aspiration
in. Eclipsis
IV. Rules for Eclipsis
v. Caol le caol asup leacan le leacan
yi. Syncope
•••
• !•
1
• ••
• ••
1
4
G
6
• ••
•••
•••
•••
•••
•••
• ••
•••
8
••■
• ••
8
■ ••
• ••
1)
• ••
• ••
10
> • •
• ••
11
;an
• ••
• ••
13
14
PART II.
ETYMOLOGY.
CHAPTER I.— THE ARTICLE 16
I. Change of form in the Article ... ... 16
II. Changes produced by the Article ... ... 17
Singular ... .,, ... ... 17
iriur.il ... ... , t . ... ... io
VI CONTENTS.
II.
PAOB
TER II.— THE NOUN
•••
••■
< •
18
Gender
•••
•••
••■
18
Masculine
•••
•••
•••
19
Feminine
•••
•••
•••
19
Declensions
•••
••#
•••
20
Cases
•••
•••
•••
20
First Declension
•'••
•••
•••
21
Second Declension
•♦•
•••
i ••
23
Third Declension
•••
•••
•••
25
Fourth Declension
•••
•••
•••
27
Fifth Declension
•■■
• ••
•••
28
Irregular Declension
•••
• • •
•••
28
Declension of the Article with the Noun
•••
30
CHAPTER III .—THE ADJECTIVE 32
I. Declension of Adjectives ... ... ... 32
First Declension ... ... ... 32
Second Declension ... ... ... 33
Third Declension ... ... ... 33
Fourth Declension ... ... ... 34
II. Declension of the Article and Adjective with the
Noun ... ... ... ... 34
in. Comparison of Adjectives ... ... ... 35
Irregular Comparison ... ... ... 36
IV. Numeral Adjectives ... ... ,., 37
CHAPTER IV.— THE PRONOUN 39
I. Personal Pronouns ... ... ... 39
Declension of Personal Pronouns ... ... 40
Personal Pronouns compounded with Prepo-
sitions ... ... ... ... 41
II. Possessive Pronouns ... ... ... 44
Possessive Pronouns compounded with Pre-
positions ... ... ... ... 45
in. Relative Pronouns ... ... ... 46
iv. Demonstrative Pronouns ... ... ... 47
v. Interrogative Pronouns ... ... ... 47
vi. Indefinite Pronouns ... ... ... 47
CONTENTS. VU
rAare
CHAPTER V.— THE VERB ... ... ... 48
I. Persons: Synthetic and Analytic forms ... 48
II. Tenses ... ... ... •■• ... 50
III. Moods and Voices ... ... ... 51
IY. Conjugation of the regular- Verb buail ... 52
iv. Relative form of the Verb ... ... ... 55
V. Formation and uses of the moods and tenses of
Kegular Verbs ... ... ... 5(5
vl. Verbs in U15, ll, m, lp, lp ... ... ... G2
Paradigm of the regular Verb meall ... 64
Paradigm of the regular Verb dpbuig ... Go
VII. Irregular Verbs ... .. ... ... 66
1. Cdim.Iam .. .. ... ... 66
2. If, it is ... ... ... ... 71
3. bheipim, I give ... ... ... 73
4. beinnn, I bear ... ... ... 74
5. Ciiim, I see ... ... ... 75
6. Cluinim, I bear ... ... .:. 76
7. Dfiunaim, I do ... ... ... 77
8. <5 ,1im or n ' m > Id° ... ... ... 78
9. Oeipim, I say ... ... ... 78
10. pagaini or geibirn, I find ... ... 80
11. lcim, I eat ... ... 81
12. Rigim, I reach ... ... ... 81
13. C6i6irn,Igo ... ... ... 82
14. Gigim, I come ... ... ..- 83
Other Defective Verbs ... ... . . S4-
CHAPTER VL— ADVERBS, PREPOSITIONS, CON-
JUNCTIONS, INTERJECTIONS ... ... 85
I. Adverbs ... ... ••• ••• ••• 85
II. Prepositions ... ... 87
III. Conjunctions ••• ••• 89
iv. Interjections ... ••• ••• ••• 90
CHAPTER VII.— PREFIXES AND AFFIXES ... 91
1. Prefixes ... ... ... • • ... 91
II. Affixes or terminations ... ... ... 93
VU1 CONTENTS.
PART III.
SYNTAX.
PAOE
CHAPTER I.— NOUNS „ 95
CHAPTER II.— THE ARTICLE AND NOUN ... 98
CHAPTER III.— THE ADJECTIVE AND NOUN ... 100
Agreement and collocation of the Adjective
and Noun ... ... ... ... 100
CHAPTER IV.— NUMERAL ADJECTIVES ... 104
CHAPTER V.— THE PRONOUN ... 105
I. Personal Pronouns ... .,, ... 105
II. Possessive Pronouns ... ... ... 106
ill. Relative Pronouns ... .., ... ... 107
IV. Demonstrative Pronouns ... ... ... 109
v. Interrogative and Indefinite Pronouns ... 109
CHAPTER VI.— THE VERB ... 110
CHAPTER VII.— PREPOSITIONS 113
PART IV.
IDIOMS.
Explanation and illustration of forty-three Idioina
of the Irish Language ... ... ... 116
APPENDIX.
Additional examples of declensions of Nouns ... 136
SCHOOL
IRISH GRAMMAR.
PART I.
ORTHOGRAPHY.
CHAPTER I.
SOUNDS.
I. LETTEES.
1. The Irish alphabet consists of eighteen
letters, of which thirteen are consonants and five
are vowels.
2. The five vowels are a, e, l, o, u ; of
which a, o, u are broad, and e, 1 are slender.
S. Each consonant (with the exceptions men-
tioned below) has a broad and a slender sonnd.
"When a consonant comes immediately after or
before a broad vowel, it has its broad sound:
when it comes after or before a slender vowel, it
has its slender sound. But this does not apply to
b, p, b, m, p, each of which has one sound only,
whether joined with a broad vowel or a slender
vowel.
4. Vowels are either long or short. A long
vowel is usually marked by an accent; as bdn,
white : a short vowel has no mark; as mac, a eon.
2
2 ORTHOGRAPHY [PART I.
5. The Irish vowels, like the English, have an
obscure sound in unaccented syllables, of which
it is not necessary to take further notico here.
. 6. The following are the usual sounds of the
Irish letters, so far as they can be represented by
English letters.
7. Those marked with asterisks are only imperfectly re-
presented in sound by the corresponding English letters :
those not so marked are represented perfectly or very nearly so.
8. The sounds of the marked letters must be learned by
ear: it is hardly possible to give in writing such a descrip-
tion of them as would enable a learner to utter them.
9. C is equal to k, yet when it comes before the diph-
thong ao or the triphthong aoi, beginners find it very hard to
sound it : caol (narrow) is neither kail or quail, but some-
thing between : caoin (gentle) is neither keen or queen,
but something between.
10. So also with 5, -which (broad and slender) is equal to
g ingot and get : yet 5C10I is hard for a beginner to utter,
being neither gail nor gwail, but something between.
11. The Irish broad t> and c bear the same relation to each
other as the English d and t ; that is, the first in each case
is flat or soft, and the second sharp or hard. English d and
t are sounded by placing the tip of the tongue against the
roof of the mouth : Irish and c by placing the top of the
tongue against the upper front teeth. Irish and c may be
described in another way : the two sounds of th in those and
thumb are both continuous, the first flat, the second sharp.
Now the two explosive sounds corresponding to these two con-
tinuous sounds (i.e., with the tongue in the same position), are
exactly the Irish b and c.
12. Broad I and n are sounded by placing the top of the
tongue (not against the roof of the mouth as in case of
English^ and n but) against the upper front teeth. Irish
t) and c are to English d and t as 1 rish I or n to English lovn,
13. Slender p is tho most difficult of all the Irish conso-
nantal sounds : and learners, unless tuej have acquired it in
youth, often "x\ to articulate it correctly, though the teacher
niaj sov.nd ft wer and over again for their imitation.
I . As h represents a more breathing or aspiration and
not an articulate sound, and as it never begins a word, some
writers exclude it from tho letters, thus making seventeen
instead of eighteen, as given here.
CHAP. I. j
sounds;
table of sounds.
Letters.
Vowel
Consonant
long or
short.
broad or
slender.
Irish
sounds. )
1
Corresponding
English sounds.
Irish.
Eng.
CI
a
a
long
1
Idn
laien, ball
.
v 1
ii
short
t t
mac
bat or what
b
b
b
, ,
. ,
ball
ban
c
c
c
, ,
broad
cab
cob
n
»j
, ,
slender
cum
Aing
1*
D
b
d
, .
broad
ball
t?/ose
ll
11
y j
, ,
slender
bian
cordial
e
e
e
long
v , i
me
date
1 1
!>
short
. ,
met
F
P
f
. .
. .
pmn
fin
5
5
. •
broad
5opc
got
n
i )
slender
geip
get, gimlet
ii
h
h
a li-anam
//amnier
l
l
i
long
• .
mm
seen |
• i
j»
short
. .
mm
pin
if
i
I
1
. .
broad
I6n
lone
» »
)>
• .
slender
pile
vermi/ion
in
m
m
. ,
# #
mil
will
*
N
n
n
. .
broad
n6p
none l
)>
>»
. .
slender
neab
«ew
long
. ,
m6p
more
n
>j
short
bop
love, run
P
P
P
• .
poc
_pore
R
P
V
, ,
broad
pob
road
*
Jt
JJ
* •
slender
cmp
clarion
S
I 1
a
. ,
broad
pona
5o n
ii
>>
, ,
slender
pfn
sheen
*
c
c
t
1 4
broad
com
thumb
*
11
)J
# ,
slender
ceme
courteous
11
u
u
long
. . .
miiji
moor, rude
i
}>
)>
short
...
mtic
nut, bull
15. The following are the native names of the Irisa letters, but
they need not be used by the learner. All or most of them are
the names of trees. Gilm, a ; beic, b ; coll.. c; baip, d ; ea&a,
e; peapn, /; sopc, g; uac, h; ioga, t';luip, /; mum, m;
niiiii, »; oip or onn, o; peic-bos, p; puip, v ; puil, s; ceme,
t ; tip, «.
ORTHOGRAPHY. [PART I.
II. DIPHTHONGS.
1. There are thirteen diphthongs in the Irish
language — viz., ae, ao, eu, la, ua, ai, ea, ei, eo,
10, iu, 01, ui ; of which the first five are always
long, and the remaining eight are sometimes long
and sometimes short.
2. The following aro the sounds of the five
long diphthongs : —
3. ae sounds like ay in slay ; as pae, the moon,
pronounced ray.
4. ao, in the southern half of Ireland, sounds
nearly like ivay, and in the west and north-west
somewhat like ive. Thus maop, a steward, is
pronounced like mivair in the south, and like
mweer in the west and north-west.
5. eu like ai in lair; as in peup, grass,
pronounced fair.
6. ia like ce in beer; as in ciap, dark-coloured,
pronounced Iceer.
7. u a nearly like oe in doer ; as in luan, Monday,
pronounced loo-an.
8. The following are the sounds of the eight
diphthongs that are sometimes long and
sometimes short. When these diphthongs are
long there is an accent over one of the vowels :
when short there is no accent.
9. di long has an accent over the a, and sound?
something like the awi in drawing ; as in cdin,
tribute, pronounced caw-m.
a\ short is sounded something like the a in
valiant or the o in collier; as in maic, good, whose
sound is very nearly represented by mok.
In Ulster, ai short is pronounced like short e in
bell; as in aipioc, restitution, which is pronounced
tshoc in the north, and ashoc in the south and west.
10. 6a long has an accent over the e, and sounds
CHAP. I.J 80UNDS. 5
like ea in hear; thus m6ap, a finger, is pro-
nounced mare.
ea short sounds like ea in heart (but shorter) ;
as in peap, knowledge, pronounced fass.
11. 61 long- has an accent over the e, and sounds
like ei in rem; as p6im, a course, pronounced raim.
ei short, like e in sell; as in ceip, a "basket,
sounded like kesh.
12. e6 long has an accent over the o, and is
sounded nearly like long English with a slight
sound of y before it ; as in ceol, music, which will
be correctly pronounced if a k sound is put before
the word yole.
eo short, nearly like u in shut, with y before it ;
as in oeoc, drink.
Note. — This diphthong is short in only a very
few words.
13. to long has an accent over the 1, and sounds
very like ea in hear ; as in pfon, wine, pronounced
feen or fee-on.
10 short, nearly like short i; as in miopp, myrrh,
which has nearly the same sound as the first syl-
lable of mirror.
14. iu long has an accent over the u, and has
the same sound as the diphthongal English u in
tune , as in piu, worthy, which is sounded exactly
like/<?w>.
iu short is sounded like the u in put, with a y
before it; as in pliuc, wet.
15. 61 long has an accent over the o, and is
sounded like the oivi in owing ; as in poll, a while,
pronounced fo-il.
01 short like the in love, with a very short * at
the end ; as in coil, the will.
16. tji long, with an accent over the u, is
sounded like 00 i in cooing ; as puil, the eye, pro*
uounced soo-il.
6 ORTHOGRAPHY. [PART I.
uf long, ■with an accent over the i, has nearly the
same sound as we; as in buf6e, yellow, which is
pronounced bwee.
in short is like the xdin quill; as in puipeo^, a
lark, pronounced fwishoge.
III. TRIPHTHONGS.
1. There are commonly reckoned five triphthongs,
which are always long: — aoi, eoi, icu, mi, uai.
2. Qoi is sounded very liko we, as in maoin,
wealth, pronounced mween.
3. Goi is sounded like the youn the combination
yo-ing ; as in peoil, flesh, which will he correctly
pronounced if the sound of / is put before the
combination yo-il.
4. lai is sounded liko eel in seeing ; as liaig, a
physician.
5. lui liko the ewi in mewing ; as ciuin, gentle.
6. Uai like ooi in cooing; as bucul, strike, which
is sounded hoo-il.
7. The preceding attempts to represent the souncb of the
diphthongs and triphthongs are in many cases mereapproxinm-
tions. The student must hear them pronounced, and in no
other way is it possible to learn to sound them correctly.
TV. VARIOUS SOUNDS.
1. Q and o before m, nn, U, or 115, in mono-
syllables, and often before 11c and nc, are sounded
in Munster like the ou in foul; as cam, crooked,
and coll, hazel, pronounced cowm and cowl ; and
gleanncdn, a small glen, pronounced glountliaun :
and o before and 5 has ofteu tho same sound ;
as po^lcmn, learning, pronounced foiclim.
2. Go and ag are often sotmded liko long
English i in fine ; as paoapc, sight, pronounced
CHAP. I.] SOUNDS. 7
ry-arh; laoap, a fork, pronounced lyre; maom, a
breach, pronounced mime.
3. The termination ao is pronounced in Con-
naught nearly the same as oo : thus buatao, strik-
ing, is pronounced booloo in Connaught, but hoola
in Munster.
4. In the combination ol, the t) is silent, and
the whole is sounded like I or 11 ; as coolao, sleep,
pronounced culla.
5. In the combination In, the n is silent, and the
whole is sounded like I or 11; as colna, of a body,
pronounced culla.
6. In the combination bn, the b is silent, and
the whole is sounded the same as n or nn ; as
c6aona, the same, pronounced Icama.
7. Pinal e is never entirely silent in Irish as it
is in English ; thus mfno, smoothness, is pro-
nounced mcena. In some situations it is very
nearly silent in the modern language ; as in
cpoioe, a heart, pronounced cree.
8. There are some Irish consonants which, when
they come together in a word, do not coalesce in
sound, so that when they are uttered, a very short
obscure vowel sound is heard between them.
This generally occurs in the case of two liquids,
or a liquid and a mute. Thus lops, a track, i3
pronounced so as to seem, to an ear accustomed to
English, a word of two syllables ; not lurg but
lurrug. Oecilb, a shape, is sounded, not clalv, but
dallav ; peapb, bitter, is sounded sharrav ; bopb,
proud, is pronounced burrub ; C0I5, a sword,
cullug, and so on. In Irish prosody, however,
such words as these count as only one syllable.
In the English language no such dimculty exists
in regard to most of these letters ; they coalesce
perfectly in sound, so that each of the above
words would be a pure monosyllable.
8 ORTHOGRAPHY. [PART I.
CHAPTER II.
LETTER CHANGES.
I. ASPIRATION-.
1. The term "aspiration" is used to express a
certain change of sound suffered by some of the
Irish consonants under certain grammatical con-
ditions.
2. It is impossible to give a definition of aspiration that
will correctly describe all the cases, inasmuch as the changes
of sound vary in kind with the several consonants. In most
cases the change caused by aspiration is one from an exftlosive
to a continuous sound.
3. There are nine consonants -which can be
aspirated, namely, b, c, b, p, 5, in, p, p, c; these
are called mutable or aspirable consonants ; the
others are called immutable. The aspiration is
denoted either by placing a point over the con-
sonant, as c; or by placing h after it, as ch.
4. The following are the sounds of the aspirated
consonants so far as they can be represented by
English letters.
5. bh or b is sounded sometimes like v and some-
times like to, and it often has a sound something
between both; as a bean, his wife, pronounced
a van ; gabal, a fork, pronounced gowal.
6. Ch broad has a guttural sound which is not
represented in English ; but it is heard in the pro-
nunciation of the word lough, Irish loc, a lake.
Ch slender (i.e. joined with a slender vowel) has
a less guttural sound than c broad; as mi 61 all,
folly, in which the c sound is only a little more
guttural than h in mee-heel.
7. "Oh and 5 have the same sound. "When slender,
they are sounded Hke initial y in English ; as
a Sean, his love, pronounced a yan. T)h and 5
CHAP. II.] LETTER CHANGES.
broad have a guttural sound which cannot be re-
presented by English letters, though it is some-
thing like initial y or initial w ; it stands to the
guttural sound of broad c in the relation of flat to
hard. Both these aspirated letters are silent at
the end of a word; as piao, a deer, pronounced/<?c-«.
But in south Munster the final § is fully sounded, like g
in fig : as Copccng (dative of Copcac, Cork), pronounced
curkig in Munster, but curkce elsewhere.
8. ph is always silent; thus a piop, his know-
ledge, is pronounced a iss ; an peo.065, the plover,
pronounced an addoge.
9. TTlh is very nearly the same as b, viz., like v
or to ; as a rfifap, his dish, pronounced a vee-as.
10. ph has the sound of /, as a pian, his pain,
pronounced afee-an.
11. Sh and c are the same as h ; as a pdl, his
heel, pronounced a haul ; a cobap, his well, pro-
nounced a hubber.
II. RULES FOR ASPIRATION.*
1. The possessive pronouns mo, my; t)0, thy;
and a, his, aspirate the first consonant of the next
word : as mo 136, my cow; bo ceann, thy head;
a gopc, his garden.
2. The article aspirates in the singular feminine
nominative and accusative;! as an bean, the
woman. (See also p. 18, Par. 6, and p. 31.)
3. The article aspirates in the genitive singular
masculine ; as an 511 ipe, of the garden.
* These rules cannot be fully understood without a know-
ledge of Etymology. It must be borne in mind that they
apply only to the aspirable or mutable consonants.
t Irish nouns have no inflection for the accusative (or ob-
jective) i-;ise ; but it is often convenient to speak of nouns
in the accusative, by which is meant the case where the noun
is the object of a transitive verb, or sometimes of a preposi-
tion.
9.
10 ORTHOGRAPHY. [PART I.
Note. — This rule and the preceding do not apply to the
letter p. (See also p. 18, Par. 6, and p. 31.)
4. In compound ■words, the initial consonant of
the second word of the compound is aspirated
(with a few exceptions) : thus from ceann, a
head, and bpac, a garment, is formed ceannbpac,
head-garment or canopy. (See also p. 84, Tar. 2.)
5. The interjections a and O, as signs of the
vocative case, aspirate ; as a pip, man.
6. An adjective agreeing with a noun has its
initial consonant aspirated when the noun is
nominative singular feminine, or genitive singular
masculine, or vocative singular of both genders ;
and, according to O'Donovan, in the nominative
plural masculine, when the noun ends in a conso-
nant ; as b6 bdn, a white cow; cciic bdin, of a
white cat; a pip iii6ip, great man; a bean
peiiii, mild woman ; capaill bcina, white horses,
(b and c are sometimes excepted : see p. 34.)
7. The initial consonant of a verb is aspirated
(1) in the infinitive mood by the particles bo and
a ; as bo bdanab or a beanab, to do: (2), in the
simple past tense, active voice ; as bo peap p6, ho
stood : (3) by tho particles nf, not, and md,
if: as nf beio pf, she will not be; md peapemn
p6, if he stands; (4), by the relative a, who,
(expressed or understood) ; as an ce a buaileap
the person who strikes. (See also pp. 58 and GO.)
8. Tho simplo prepositions, with some excep-
tions, aspirate the initial consonants of nouns : as
aip bdpp, on top; bo liiuliac, to a summit; paoi
gean, under affection.
III. ECLIPSIS.
1. A consonant is said to be eclipsed, or to suffer
eclipsis, when its sound is suppressed, and tho
sound of another consonant which is prefixed to
it, substituted: thus in n-bdn, b is eclipsed by n,
CHAP. II.] LETTER CHANGES. 1 I
and the whole word is pronounced naivn, whereas
bdn is pronounced dawn. It is only at the be-
ginning of words that consonants are eclipsed.
2. The following eight consonants can be
eclipsed: — b, c, b, p, 5, p, p, c; the others cannot.
Between the eclipsing and the eclipsed letter there
is usually placed a hyphen, as m-bdpt) ; but often
they are put together without any separating
mark, as bpopc. Sometimes eclipsis is denoted
Dy the doubling of the eclipsed letter; thus
a ccapb is the same as a b-capb, their bull.
3. Each consonant has an eclipsing letter of
its own.
4. b is eclipsed by m : as a m-bdpt), their bard,
pronounced a matcrd.
5. C is eclipsed by 5 : as a 5- coll, their hazel,
pronounced a gowl or a gull.
6. t) by n ; as a n-oop, their bush, pronounced
a miss.
7. p by b (which itself sounds like v or w) ; as
a b-peapann, their land, pronounced a varran.
8. 5 is eclipsed by n. But this is not a true
eclipsis, for the resulting sound is not that of n,
but the sound of English ng ; thus a njiolla,
their servant, is pronounced ang-ilJa.
9. p is eclipsed by b ; as a b-pian, their pain,
pronounced a bee-an.
10. S is eclipsed by c, as in an c-pfnl, the eye,
pronounced an too-/!.
11. C is eclipsed by t> ; as a b-cdl, their adze,
pronounced a dawl.
TV. IUTLES FOR ECLIPSIS.*
1. The possessive pronouns plural — dp, our.
* These rules apply of course only to those consonants
that can be eclipsed. The rules for eclipsis, like those for
aspiration, suppose a knowledge of Etymology.
12 ORTHOGRAPHY. [PART. I.
bup, your; a, their; eclipse tho initial consonant
of the next word ; as dp o-cigeapna, our Lord ;
bup 5-cpann, your tree ; a b-pdipc, their field.*
2. The article eclipses tho initial consonant of
nouns in the genitive plural; as ceac na ui-bdpb,
the house of the bards; gopc no 5-capall, tho
field of the horses.
3. When a simple preposition is followed by
the article and a noun in the singular number, the
initial consonant of the noun is generally eclipsed ;
as aip an m-b6pb, on the table; 6'n b-paipse, from
the sea. (See p. 31; see also Syntax.)
4. The initial consonant of a verb is eclipsed
after the interrogative particles a, an, cd, nac ; aLeo
after 50, that ; muna, unless ; lap, after; bd, if;
and after the relative a preceded by a preposition ;
as am-beipeann pe? Does ho bear? an m-buail-
eann cti ? Dost thou strike? cd b-puil pf ?
Where is she? naco-cuiseann cu? Dost thou not
understand? 50 m-beannaige t)ia ouic, may
God bless thee ; muna o-cuicpip, unless thou shalt
fall; od n-Oeappamn, if I would say ; an dp ann
a b-cauuc piaD, the country into which they
came.
5. When a noun beginning with p is preceded
by the article, the p is eclipsed when the noun is
nominative feminine, or genitive masculine, and
generally in the dative of both genders, as an
c-paoippe (fern.), the freedom ; ^epean c-pa^aipc,
the field of the priest; aip an c-paogal, or ap an
paogal, in the world. But if the p is followed by
b, c, o, 7;, m, p, or c, it is not eclipsed ; as gleann
an pmoil, the valley of the thrush ; loc an pcdil,
the lake of tho champion. (See pp. 30 and 31.)
* Rules 1, 2, 3, 4, do not apply to p. See for this letter
Rule 5.
CHAP. II.] LETTER CHANGES. 13
6. The following rule is usually given with the
rules for eclipsis : —
When a word begins with a vowel, the letter
11 is generally prefixed in all cases where an
initial consonant (except p) would be eclipsed; as
a n-apdn, their bread ; loc no n-€an, the lake of
the birds.*
v. Caollecaol agup leacan le leacan, or slen-
der WITH SLENDER AND BROAD WITH BROAD.f
1. If a consonant or any combination of conso-
nants comes between two vowels, they must be
either both slender or both broad ; thus in polap,
light, the o and the a are both broad vowels ; and in
cinneap, sickness, the 1 and the e are both slender
vowels. But such combinations as polip and
cmnap are not allowable, because the o and, the 1
in the first case, and the 1 and the a in the second
case, are one of them broad and the other slender.
2. In compliance with this rule, when two words, or a
word and a syllable, are joined together, so that in the result-
ing word a consonant or consonantal combination would fall
between two vowels, one of them broad and the other slender,
then either the broad vowel must be made slender or the
slender one broad, to bring them to an agreement.
3. Sometimes the broad vowel is changed to make it agreo
with the slender vowel ; sometimes the slender vowel is made
broad to agree with the broad vowel; sometimes it is the
vowel before the consonant that is changed ; sometimes the
change is made in the vowel after the consonant. A prefix
is generally changed to suit the word it is joined to, not the
reverse ; thus when c6rii is prefixed to pear-aril, standing, the
word is c6irhpeararh, competition, not c^rhpaparii.
*For a very detailed and clear statement of the laws of
aspiration and eclipsis, see the Second Irish Book by the
Society for the preservation of the Irish Language.
■j-'lhis rule is very generally, but not universally, followed
in the Irish language.
14 OltTIIOGItAPHY. [PART I.
4. Changing a broad vowel to a Blender is called in Irish
caolvj^ao (i.e., making slender, from caol, slender), and in
English attenuation; changing from slender to broad is called
in Irish lecicmijab (i.e., making broad, from leacan, broad).
5. Attenuation takes place chiefly in two ways : — first by
putting a slender vowel between the broad vowel and the
consonant, as when ball, a spot, is changed to baill, spots ;
or when pd is postfixed to buail, and the resulting word is
bucnlped, not buailpd: secondly, by removing the broad
vowel which precedes or follows the consonant, and putting
a slender vowel in its place ; as when ceann, a head, is
changed to cinn, of a head.
6. In like manner " making broad " takes place chiefly in
two ways, which are the reverse of the two preceding.
7. The following examples will illustrate the preceding
rules and remarks : —
8. When the f utin'e termination pab is added to buail, the
resulting word is not buailpab, but buailpeab, I shall strike.
9. When the infinitive termination a& is added to buail,
the resulting word is not buailab but bualab.
10. When mop, great, is prefixed to cion, love, the com-
pound is not mopcion but moipcion, great love.
11. When ceann, head, is prefixed to Imp, a letter, the
compound is not ceannlioip but cinnlicip, a head-letter or
capital letter. (This is a case of irregular attenuation.)
12. When the diminutive termination 65 is added to CUll,
the resulting word is nut CU1I65 but CUileC^, a fly.
13. When e is added to OPO05, a thumb, to inflect it for the
genitive, the word is not opbose but opb6i5e, of a thumb.
14. When the diminutive termination fn is added to ca-
pall, a horse, the whole word is not capalltn but capaillfn.
VI. SYNCOPE.
1. Syncope, or the omission of one or more letters
from the body of a word, is very common in Irish.
2. "When a short vowel occurs between a liquid
(I, n, p, or p) and a mute, or between two liquids,
the word is often syncopated whenit is lengthened
either by grammatical inflection or otherwise.
CHAP. II. | LETTER CHANGES. 15
3. The syncope generally consists in the omis-
sion of the short vowel ; but this change often in-
volves others in accordance with the rule cool le
caol &c. ; and is often also accompanied by some
slight consonantal changes.
4. The following examples exhibit the chief
types of syncope.
5. Ldnaiiia, a married couple ; plural Idnarima,
contracted from Idnariiana.
6. Lapaip, aflame: plural lappaca, contracted
from lapapaca.
7. pocal, a word ; pocloip, a dictionary, con-
tracted from pocaloip.
8. Saibip, rich; comparative paibpe, contracted
from pcubipe.
9. Coxcup, a city; genitive coxpac, contracted
from cacapac.
10. picucecuh ail, princely; comparative plaice-
am la, contracted from plaicearhala.
11. Colann, the body, genitive colna, (sometimes
colla), contracted from colon na.
12. Capa, genitive cap ao: the plural is formed by
adding e to this, which syncopates the second a :
this would make capoe, which again, in accordance
with the rule caol le caol &c., is made caipoe.
13. Uapal, noble, becomes naiple in the com-
parative, by a process exactly similar to the last.
14. pollup, evident, becomes poillpe in the com-
parative in a similar way.
15. Gbann, a river : the plural is formed by add-
ing e ; this causes syncope of the second a and the
omission of one n, which would make the plural
abne ; and this again becomes aibne, by the rule
caol le caol &c.
16. Labaip, speak (imperative mood); labpaun,
I speak, contracted from labapaim,
16 ETYMOLOGY. [PART It
PART II.
ETYMOLOGY.
1. There are nine parts of speech in Irish, whioh
are the same as those in English.
CHAPTER I.
THE ARTICLE.
I. CHANGE OF FORM IN THE ARTICLE.
1. The Irish language has one article, an, which
has the same meaning as the English definite>
article the.
2. The article changes its form according to
number, gender, and case.
3. In the singular numb or the article has the
form an in all the cases except the genitive femi-
nine, in which it becomes na ; as caipledn na
cipce, the castle of the hen.
In the plural number the article is always na.
4. In the spoken language the n of an is often omitted
before a consonant ; as cecum a caipb, the head of the bull.
And this is sometimes found in books also, both printed and
MS., but it is not to be recommended.
6. When an follows a preposition ending in a vowel, the a
is often omitted in writing, but the omission is usually marked
by an apostrophe ; thus, 6 an cfp, from the land, is written
6'n cfp ; and pd an ngpfim, under the sun, is written pan
njspein.
CHAP. I.J THE ARTICLE. 17
Very often in MSS., and sometimes in printed books, tbe
apostrophe in such cases is omitted, and the n of the article
joined with the preposition ; as 6n dp, pdn 115116111.
6. In the plural the article (11a) is often joined to the pre-
position ; as bona, for bo na.
7. The letter p is inserted between certain prepositions and
tbe article an ; and this occasionally leads to combinations
that might puzzle a learner. Thus cmn an leabap, in tho
book, is written annp an leabap, and lp an leabap, which
is still further shortened to pan leabap : also (omitting tho
n) annpa leabap, and even ya leabap. And in the plural,
ip na coppaib, " in the bodies."
II. CHANGES PRODUCED BY THE ARTICLE.
1 . The article produces certain changes in the
initial letters of nouns to which it is prefixed.
2. These changes are very important, and the learner will
obtain a clearer view of them by separating the singular from
the plural. For more on this subject, see page 31.
SINGULAR.
1. If the noun begins -with an aspirable con-
sonant (except p, c, t>), the article aspirates in the
nominative feminine, and in the genitive mascu-
line ; as an b6, the cow; cuan an pip m6ip, the
harbour of the great man.
2. If the noun begins with p, followed by a
vowel or by I, n, or p, the p is eclipsed by c in
those cases where, according to the last rule, a
mutable consonant would be aspirated ; as an
c-pdl (fern.), the heel ; an c-pp6n (fern.), the nose;
luac an c-pniain (masc), the price of the bridle.
3. If the noun begins with a vowel, the article
prefixes c to the nominative masculine, and b to
the genitive feminine ; as an c-acaip, the father ;
Leabap na h-uiope, the book of the dun (cow).
4. If the noun begins with an eclipsable con-
sonant (except t> or c), the article generally eclipses,
if it be preceded by a simple preposition ; as aip
18 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
an 5-cpann, on the tree; 6'n b-pocal iben, " from
the word ' ibcr ;' " leip an b-peap, with tlio man.
5. But after the propositions bo and be, the
article aspirates oftener than it eclipses; asceicpe
cenno bo'n cpiop, four degrees of the zone (Keat-
ing) ; bo leanabap a 5-copa bo'n cappaig, their
feet clung to the rock (story of the Children of Lir).
^ 6. No change is produced by the article in the
singular number, if the noun begins with I, n, p,
b, c, or with p before a mute.
PLURAL.
1. If the noun begins with an eclipsable con-
sonant, the article eclipses in the genitive; as
imp na b-pfobbab, [the] island of thewoods; cailfn
t>eay cpuibce na m-b6, [the] pretty girl of [the]
milking of the cows (i.e., the pretty milking girl).
2. If the noun begins with a vowel, the article
prefixes n to the genitive, and h to the other
cases ; as cfp na n-65, the land of the young
(people) ; 6 na h-dicib pin, from those places.
These are the only changes produced by the
article in the plural.
CHAPTEE II.
THE NOUN.
I. GENDER.
1. There are only two genders in the Irish
language, the masculine and feminine : all Irish
nouns, therefore, are either masculine or feminine
gender.
2. In ancient Irish there was a neuter gender, but no trace
of it remains in the modern language.
3. To know and remember the gender of all ordinary Irish,
nouns is ono of the great difficulties in learning the language,
CHAP. H."j THE NOUN. 19
as it is in learning French and many other languages. With-
out this knowledge, which can only bo mastered by practice,
no one can speak or write Irish correctly.
4. There are a few general rules which will very much
help the learner to distinguish the gender of nouns: they
are only general rules, however, subject to many exceptions ;
and where they do not apply, the student must depend on
practice and memory.
MASCULINE.
1. The following nouns are generallymasculine: —
(1.) Names of males ; as coileac, acock; laoc
a hero ; Fecrp, a man.
(2.) Nouns of more than one syllable, ending
in a consonant, or two consonants, preceded by
a broad vowel ; as boicceall, churlishness : except
(a), derivatives in ace ; (&), diminutives in 65.
(3.) Nouns ending in oip, aipe, ac, ai&e (or oioe,
or uioe), when they denote personal agents, as they
generally do ; as ppealaooip, a mower ; pealgaipe,
a hunter; ceiceapnac, a soldier — one of a body of
hems; pjealaioe orpseuluioe, a story-teller.
(4.) Diminutives in dn and abstracts in ap ; as
coiledn, a whelp ; edipoeap, friendship.
(5.) Diminutives in fn are of the same gender as the nouns
from which they are derived.
FEMININE.
•2. The following nouns are generally femi-
nine : —
(1). Names of females ; names of countries,
rivers, and diseases ; as ceapc, a hen ; Gipe, Ire-
land; beapba, the Barrow; pldi§, a plague.
(2). Diminutives in 65, and derivatives in ace
as puipeo^, a lark ; cuihpacc, fragrance : and ab-
stract nouns formed from the genitive feminine of
adjectives; as oaille, blindness.
20 ETYMOLOGY. [PABT II.
(3). Nouns ending in a consonant, or in two
consonants, preceded by a slender vowel (except
those inoin); aspuil, the eye ; p6glunu, learning
II. DECLENSIONS.
CASES.
1. Irish nouns have four cases, that is, four
different inflections, to express relation : — Nomi-
native, genitive, dative, and vocative.
2. The nominative case is the same as the
nominative in English.
3. The genitive is the same as what is called
the possessive case in English.
4. The dative is the case where a noun is
governed by a preposition.
5. The vocative case is the same as what is
called the nominative of address in English.
6. Irish nouns have different forms for these four cases,
and for no others. Thus, the four cases of bpu06n,a salmon,
are for the plural number, as follows: — Nom. bpaOdin, us
cpf bpcibdin, three salmons ; gen. bpcibdn, as loc na
m-bpaodn, the lake of the salmons ; dat. bpaOdncnb, as bo
na bpaOdnaib, to the salmons ; toc. bpaOdna, as a
bpaOdna, ca b-puil pib 05 bul? "O ye salmons, whither
are ye going ?"
7. These four cases are not always different in form ; thus
the four cases of the same noun in the singular number
are: — Noin, bpaOdn ; gen. bpabdin ; dat. bpabdn ; voc.
bpaOdin ; in which it will be seen that the dative is the
same as the r.oniinative, and the vocative the same as the
genitive.
3. Those cases whicn ar« alise in form are distinguished
by the sense ; just as the nominative and objective eases are
distinguished in English.
9. Some writers on Irish grammar have put iu two more
cases, in imitation of Latin declension; the accusative (or, as
it is calh-d in English, the objective) and the ablative. But
in Irish there are no separate inflections ior them, the accu-
sative being- always the same in form as Ujo nominative.
CHAP. H.] THE NOUN. 21
and the ablative the same as the dative ; so that it would be
only a useless puzzle to the learner to include them in a state-
ment of Irish declension. In certain explanations, however,
and in the statement of certain rules, it is sometimes con-
venient to SDeak of the accusative case.
10. Different nouus have different inflections for
the same case ; thus the datives singular of cop,
a foot, and bop, a bush, are different, namely,
coip and oop. But though this variation ex-
tends to most of the cases, the genitive singular
is taken as the standard, in comparing the de-
clension of one noun with the declension of an-
other.
11. There are five chief ways of forming the
genitive singular of Irish nouns; and in one or
another of these ways, far the greatest number of
nouns in the language form their genitive. There
are usually reckoned, therefore, five declensions
of Irish nouns.
12. Besides these there are other genitive inflections, but
as no one of them comprises any considerable number of
nouns, it is not considered necessary to lay down more than
five declensions. The number of declensions is, however,
very much a matter of convenience ; and, accordingly, in
some Irish grammars, there are more than five, and in some
less.
FIRST DECLENSION.
1. The first declension comprises masculine
nouns which have their characteristic vowel, that is,
the last vowel of the nominative singular, broad.
2. The genitive singular is formed by attenuat-
ing the broad vowel.
3. In the singular, the dative is like the nomi-
native, and the vocative is like the genitive; in
the plural, the nominative is generally like the
genitive singular, and the genitive like the nomi-
native singular. Example, ball, a member or
limb.
22 ETYM0L0G7 [PART II.
Singular. Plural.
Nom.* ball. Nom. baill.
Gen. baill. Gen. ball.
Dat. ball. Dat. ballaib.
Voc. a baill. Voc a bulla.
4. The number of nouns that belong to this declension is
very large; but though they all form their genitive singular
in the same way (except those in a6, in which there is & slight
additional change, for which see next paragraph), thei - e area
few which vary in the formation of other cases.
5. Nouns in ac, in addition to the attenuation,
change c into § in the genitive singular ; and
generally form the nominative plural by adding
e to the genitive singular ; and from this again is
formed the dative plural in lb, in accordance with
the rule in Par. 9, page 23. Example, mapcac, a
horseman.
Singular.
Plural.
Nom. mapcac.
Nom.
mapcaige.
Gen. mapcaig.
Gen.
lnuncuo
Dat. mop cue.
Dat.
mapeaigib.
Voc. a Tiiujicaij.
Voc.
a lhupcaca
6. A few nouns make their nominative plural
by an increase in a ; as peann, a pen ; plur. pearma :
and some of these are syncopated, as uball, an
apple ; plur. nbla.
7. In a few nouns of this declension the nomi-
native plural is formed by adding ca or ca to the
nominative singular ; as pe6l, a sail ; nom. plur.
pe6Lca ; dat. plur. peolcaib : lnun, a wall; nom.
plur. mupca; dat. plur. imipcaib.
8. In many words of ono syllable belonging to this declen-
sion, the attenuation in the genitive singular causes consider-
able change in the vowel or diphthongal part of the word;
thus, cop p, a body ; gen. cui]ip : iapo, a hsh; gen. eirs :
*It would be well for the learner, when declining nouns,
to call this " nominative and accusative" all through tiie de-
clensions.
CHAP. II.] THE NOUN. 23
neap c, strength ; gen. neipc or nipc: peap, a man ; gen.
pip: cparm, a tree; gen. cpoirm : bGal, a mouth; gen.
b6il or beoil.
The three following rules (9, 10, and 11) apply
to all the declensions.
9. The dative plural ends in lb.
This lb corresponds with the Latin dative and ablative
termination idus or bus. It is now very seldom pronounced,
but it is nearly always retained in writing; just as in English,
gh, which was formerly sounded as a guttural in such words as
plough, daughter, is retained in writing, though it is no
longer pronounced.
10. The dative plural is formed from the nomi-
native plural whenever this latter differs from the
genitive singular : otherwise from the nominative
singidar.
11. The vocative is always preceded by the par-
ticle a or O, which aspirates the initial; as a pip,
man; a itind, women; O cfgeapna, Lord.
SECOND DECLENSION.
1. The second declension comprises most of the
feminine nouns in the language.
2. The genitive singular is formed by adding e
to the nominative. If the characteristic vowel is
broad, it must be attenuated in accordance with
the rule caol le cool &c.
3. The dative singular is formed from the geni-
tive singular by dropping the final e.
4. When the characteristic vowel is broad, the
nominative plural is formed from the nominative
singular by adding a ; when the characteristic
Vowel is slender, by adding e.
5. The genitive plural is generally like the nomi-
native singular.
6. The vocative is usually the same as the nomi-
native, and is accordingly omitted from the para-
digm.
24 ETYMOLOGY. |_rART IT.
First example, peamp65, a shamrock.
Singular. Plural.
Nona. peanip6s. Norn. -peamp6^a.
Gen. reanipoise. Gen. peamp65.
Dat. reanrp6i5. Dat. peamp65aiO.
Second example, p6ip c, a worm, a beast.
Singular. Plural.
Nom. peipc. Norn. peipce.
Gen. peipce. Gen. peipc.
Dat. peipc. Dat. peipcib.
7. Nouns in ac, when they belong to this do-
clension, change the c to 5 in the genitive singular :
thus, cldippeac, a harp, is declined as follows :—
Singular. Plural.
Nom. cldippeac. Nom. cldippeaca.
Gen. cldippige. Gen. cldippeac.
Dat. cldippig. Dat. cldippea6aib.
8. There are many nouns belonging to this de-
clension which depart from the general rule laid
down in Par. 4, in forming their nominative
plural.
# 9. Some, probably over fifty, form the nomina-
tive plural by adding anna; and these form the
genitive plural by dropping the final a of this termi-
nation; thus, cnip, a cause; nom plural cinpcanna;
gen. plural, ci'npeunn ; dat. plural, cdipeannaib.
10. Some form their nominative plural by adding
aca : thus, obaip. a work, and opdm, a prayer,
make oibpeuca and opdmeaca in the nominative
plural.
11. When the characteristic vowel is slender, it
is often dropped in the genitive plural ; as puaim,
a sound ; gen. plural puam.
12. When the nominative plural takes re. tho
genitive plural is formed by adding at) ; as colli, a
wood; nom. plur. coillce ; and genitive plural as
C1TAP. II .J TIIE NOUN. 25
seen in Oiledn na 5-coillceao, the island of the
woods (Keating).
13. There are other variations of the nominative and
genitive plural ; but they do not comprise any considerable
number of nouns, and they must be learned by practice.
THIRD DECLENSION.
1. Nouns belonging to the third declension are
some of them masculine and some feminine.
2. The genitive singular is formed by adding a
to the nominative singular.
3. The vocative is like the nominative.
4. The nominative plural is generally formed
by adding a or e.
5. The genitive plural is generally like the
nominative singular. Example, clear, a trick or
feat.
Singular. Plural.
Nom. cleap. Norn, cleapa.
Gen. cleapa. Gen. cleap.
Dat. cleap. Dat. cleapmb.
6. If the characteristic vowel is slender, it must
be made broad in the genitive singular, in accord-
ance with the rule caol le caol &c. ; as coil, the
will, gen. cola.
7. Sometimes c or c is introduced before the a
of the genitive singular, which commonly causes
other changes by syncope ; as cooail, sleep ; gen.
cobalca : buaioipc, trouble, gen. buaioeapca.
8. This is the case with verbal or participial
nouns in ao, eat), and ugao, the genitives of which
have the same form as their passive participles
considered as verbs ; and they are all commonly
reckoned as belonging to this declension, though
the genitive singular is formed in some by adding
3
26 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
e, not a; as molao-, praising; gen, molca: pfneaft
stretching; gen. pfnce : caolugao, making slender;
gen. caoluigce.
9. Nouns in ace generally, and those in eap or
lop, often, belong to this declension; as clirceacc,
dexterity ; gen. clipceacca : t>oil£ior, sorrow ;
gen. t>oil£iopa. But the greater number of those
in eap or lop belong to the first declension; thus
the last noun, boilgiop, is often made ooilgip in the
genitive ; and bponncanap, a gift, makes bponn-
canaip.
10. There are forty or fifty nouns (many of them
ending in lp), which form their genitive singular
in ac, and which are reckoned as belonging to
this declension, though some writers arrange them
under a separate declension; as cacaip, a city;
gen. cacpac : Ceariiaip, Tara, gen. Ceampac :
5pdin, hatred ; gen. jjpdnac.
11. Those in ip generally form their genitive
as above; but acaip, a father; mdcaip, a mother;
and bpdcaip, a brother, form their genitive
by dropping the final i : — gen. acap, mdcap,
bpdeap.
12. Outside the general rule stated in Par. 4
above, there is considerable variety in the forma-
tion of the nominative plural.
13. Those in 6ip generally make the nominative
plural by adding lc-e; as ppealat>6ip, a mower,
nom. plur. ppealat>6ipi6e.
14. And these form the genitive plural variously ;
generally na ppealat)6ipio, but sometimes no
ppealaOoip or na ppealat>6pa6,
15. Others form the nominative plural either
like the genitive singular or by adding nna to it ;
as ppuc, a stream; gen. ppoca ; nom. pi. ppoca
or ppocanna : t>puim, a back ; gen. bpoma ; nom.
plur. t>noma or tmomanna.
CHAP. II.'] 1BE NOTO*. 27
16. Those that add nna, form the genitive plural
by omitting the a; as ppuc; gen. plur. ppuccmn.
17. Many nouns of this declension that end in
ti or I, form their plural by adding ce or ca ; as
moin, a bog; gen. sing. m6na ; nom. plur. m6ince.
18. And these generally form their genitive
plural by adding ao to the nominative plural ; as
moin ; gen. plur. m6incea&.
19. Those that form their genitive singular in
ac (10) form the plural by adding a to this ac :
as lapain, a flame ; gen. sing, lappac ; nom. plur.
lapnaca.
FOURTH DECLENSION.
1. Nouns of the fourth declension end in vowels
or in fn, and are some of them masculine and
some feminine.
2. There is no inflection in the singular, all the
cases being alike.
3. The nominative plural is generally formed by
adding i&e or aoa (with occasionally an obvious
vowel change). Example, dipne, a sloe.
Singular. Plural.
Nom. dipne. Nom. dipni&e.
Gen. dipne. Gen. dipneab.
Dat. dipne. Dat. dipni&iO.
4. Some form the plural by adding ce or ce :
asceirme, afire; nom. plur. ceinnce: baoi, a clown;
nom. plur.oaoice ; and aicne, acommandment, has
nom. plur. aiceanca.
B. These generally form the genitive plural, by
adding & or ao (not to the nominative singular,
as in the model, but) to the nominative plural : as
nom. plur. oaoice, clowns; gen. plur. baoiceao.
6. Nouns ending in ai&e, ui&e, and aipe, gener-
ally belong to this declension; as pcldbuioe, a
slave; pfobaipe. a piper.
28 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II,
FIFTH DECLENSION.
1. Nouns of the fifth declension are mostly
feminine.
2. They generally end in a vowel ; and they
form their genitive by adding n or tin, and occa-
sionally b or c.
3. The dative singular is formed from the geni-
tive by attenuation.
4. The nominative plural is formed from the
genitive singular by adding a.
5. The genitive plural is like the genitive singular.
Example, uppa, a door jamb.
Singular. Plural.
Nom. uyipa. Nom. uppana.
Gen. uppan. Gen. uppan.
Dat. uppain. Dat. uppanaib.
6. To this declension belong the proper names
6ipe, Ireland; gen. 6ipecmn, dat. 6ipinn : Glba,
Scotland; gen., Glban, dat. Glbcun : lTluTiia,
Munster; gen. TTlurrian, dat. TDuriiain ; and se-
veral others of less note.
7. Cap a, a friend, is an example of the genitive
in b : nom. cap a ; gen. capab ; dat. capaib ; nom.
plur. cdipbe.
8. There is a good deal of variety in the forma-
tion of the cases of nouns belonging to this de-
clension, which can only be learned by practice.*
IRREGULAR DECLENSION.
1. Some nouns are irregular ; that is, they are
not inflected in accordance with any of the re-
gular declensions.
2. The most important of the irregular nouns
are :* — bean, a woman ; b6, a cow ; bpu, a womb ;
* For additional examples of declensions of noune, both
regular and irregular, see Appendix at the end of tbo book.
CHAP. II. I THE NOUN. 29
caopa, a sheep; ceo, a fog; cn<5, a hut; cti, a
hound ; tha, God ; Id, a day ; nif, a month ; o or ua,
a grandson. They are declined as follows. (The
vocative is not given where it is like the nomina-
tive.)
bean, a woman, fern.
Singular. Plural.
Norn. bean. Nora. mnd.
Gen. mnd. G-en. ban.
Dat. mnaoi. Dat. mntiib.
bo, a cow, fern.
Nom. bo. Nom. bd
Gen. b6. Gen. bo.
Dat. bum. Dat, buaib.
bpu, a womb, fern.
Nora. bnn. Nora, bponna.
Gen. bpumne or Gen. bponn.
bponn.
Dat, bpoinn. Dat. bponnaib.
Caopa, a sheep, fern.
Nom. caopa. Nom. caoipig,
Gen. caopac. Gen. caopac.
Dat, caopa. Dat. caopcaib.
Voc. a caopa. Voe. a caopca.
Ce6, a fog, masc.
Nom. ceo. Nom. ciao.
Gen. ciac or ceoig. Gen. ced.
Dat, ce6. Dat. ceocaib.
Cn6 or end, a nut, masc.
Nom. cn6. Nom. end, cnai.
Gen. end, cnu?. Gen. cn66.
Dat. cn6, cnu. Dat. cndib.
3*
30 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II,
Cfi, a hound, masc. or fern.
Norn. cu. Noin. coin, cuin, conci, or
coince.
Gen. con. Gen. con.
Dat. coin. Dat. concnb.
Oia, God, masc.
Norn. t)ia. Noin. t)ee, t)eice.
Gen. t)e. Gen. t)ia, Deiceab.
Dat. Dia. Dat. t>eib t)eicib.
Voc. aOheoraOlna.Voc. a t)hee, Oheice.
La, a day, masc.
Norn. Id. Norn, laece.
Gen. lae. Gen. laeceao , Id.
Dat. Id, 16. Dat. laecib.
lTIf, a month, fern. 1
Nom. mf. Nora, mfopa.
Gen. mfr, mfOfa. Gen. lnfoy.
Dat. mf, mtp. Dat. mforaib.
O or ua, agrandson, masc.
Nom. 6, ua. Nom. uf.
Gen. i, uf. Gen. ua.
Dat. o, ua. Dat. lb, uib.
Voc. a, uf. Voc. a, uf.
DECLENSION OP THE ARTICLE
WITH THE NOUN.
1. The initial changes produced by the article in
the nouns to which it is prefixed have been set
forth at page 17 ; these changes must be carefully
observed in declining nouns with the article.
CHAP. II.] THE NOUN. 31
2. Twelve typical examples are here given, corresponding
with the several cases mentioned in paragraphs 1, 2, 3, 4,5,
and 6, pages 17, 18 ; and these examples include almost every
possible variety. There is a good deal of difference of usage
in the dative singular of nouns beginning: with p.
3. The declension of the singular number only is given ;
the changes in the plural are so very simple (see page 18;
that they can present no difficulty.
4. C0I5, a sword, masc. Nom. an C0I5 ; gen.
an CU1I5 ; dat. leip an 5-C0I5 (Par. 4, p. 17), or
bo'n 60I5 (Par. 5, p. 18).
5. Cailleac, a hag, fern. Nom. an cailleac ;
na caillige ; dat. 6'n j-caillig or bo'n caillig.
6. Saogal, the world, raasc. Nom. an paogal ;
gen. an c-paogail; dat. 6'n paogal or bo'n
c-pao§al (Par 5, p. 18).
7. Saboio, the Sabbath, fern. Nom an c-Saboib;
gen. naSaboibe; dat. 6'n Sab6ib or bo'n c-Sab6ib
(Pars. 2 and 5, pp. 17 and 18.)
8. Slac, a rod, f em. Nom. an c-plac; gen. na
plaice; dat. leip an plaic or bo'n c-plaic.
9. Sp6l, satin, masc. Nom. an pp6l ; gen. an
c-pp6il ; dat. 6'n pp6l or bo'n c-pp6l.
10. Qpal, an ass, masc. Nom. an c-apal ; gen,
an apail ; dat. 6'n opal.
11. Imp, an island, fern. Nom. an imp; gen. na
h-inpe; dat. bo'n imp.
12. Leac, a stone, fem. Nom. an leac ; gen. na
leice; dat. bo'n leic (Par. 6, p. 18).
13. th'le, a deluge, fem. Nom. an bfle ; gen.
na btleann ; dat. bo'n bflinn.
14. Sgeul, a story, masc. Nom. an pgeul ; gen.
an pgeil ; dat. 6'n pgeul.
15. Speal, a scythe, fem. Nom. an ppeal ; gen.
na ppeile ; dat. leip an ppeil.
32 ETYMOLOGY. [PAKT JL
CHAPTER III.
THE ADJECTIVE,
I. DECLENSION OF ADJECTIYE3.
1. In Irish the adjective changes its form
according to the gender, case, and number of the
noun.
2. Adjectives are declined in much the same
manner as nouns ; but they never take the inflec-
tion lb in the dative plural (though anciently they
had this inflection Like nouns) : the dative plural
of an adjective is like the nominative plural.
3. There are usually reckoned four declensions
of adjectives.
4. The inflections of these four declensions follow those
of the noun so closely, that when the noun is mastered the
adjective presents no difficulty.
FIRST DECLENSION.
1. Adjectives of the first declension are those
that end in a consonant preceded by a broad
vowel, as bdn, white ; pliuc, wet.
2. In the masculine gender (i.e., when the ad-
jective belongs to a masculine noun), they are
declined the same as nouns of the first declension
of the type of ball, except that the nominative
plural always ends in a.
3. In the feminine gender adjectives are de-
clined the same as nouns of the second declension
of the type of reampos.
4. Both genders are alike in the plural. Ex-
ample, ban, white.
CHAP. III. j THE ADJECTIVE. 33
Singular. Plural.
Masc. Fem. Masc. and Fem.
Nom. bdn. bdn. Noin. bdna.
Gen. bdm. bdinc. Gen. bdn.
Dat. bdn. bdm. Dat. bdna.
Voc. bdm. bdn. Voc. bdna.
SECOND DECLENSION.
1. Adjectives of the second declension are those
that end in a consonant preceded by a slender
vowel.
2. In the singular, all the cases of both mascu-
line and feminine are alike, except the genitive
feminine, which takes e.
3. In the plural, both genders are alike, and all
the cases except the genitive are formed by adding
e ; the genitive is like the nominative singular.
Example, mfn, smooth, fine.
Singular. Plural.
Masc. Feru. Masc. and Fern.
Nom. mfn. mfn. Nom. nifne.
Gen. mfn. mine. Gen. mfn.
Dat. mfn. mfn Dat. mine.
Voc. mfn. mfn. Voc. mfne.
THIRD DECLENSION.
1. Adjectives of the third declension are those
that end in am ail, which has the same significa-
tion as the English postfix like : — bean, a woman
banarhail, womanlike, modest.
2. The two genders are always alike.
3. The four cases singular are alike except the
genitive, which is formed by adding a, with a
syncope.
4. In the plural, the genitive is the same as the
nominative singular ; and the other cases are the
same as the genitive singular. Example, maire-
aifiail, graceful.
34 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
Singular. Plural.
Norn, maipeariiail. Nom. maipearhla.
Gen. maipeamla. Gen. maipeariiail.
Dat. maipeariiail. Dat. maipeariila.
FOURTH DECLENSION.
1. Adjectives of the fourth, declension are those
that end in vowels; as mop&a, majestic.
2. They have no inflections, being alike in all
cases, numbers, and genders.
II. DEOIENSION OF THE ADJECTIVE AND ARTICLE
WITH THE NOUN.
1. The rules for the aspiration of the initial
consonants of adjectives agreeing with nouns are
given at p. 10; and these rules must be very care-
fully observed in declining nouns with adjectives.
2. It maybe added here that b and c sometimes
resist aspiration, especially if they follow a noun
ending in n . There is much variety of usage as
to aspiration of adjectives in the dative singular.
3. When a noun is declined with both an
adjective and the article, the initial of the adjec-
tive is generally eclipsed in the genitive plural
(or takes n if it be a vowel).
4. Four typical examples are here given of the declension
of the adjective with the noun. For the influence of the
article see p. 17.
Gn cctpall ban, the white horse, masc.
Singular. Plural.
Nom. an capall bdn. na capaill bdna.
Gen. an capaill bdui. na 5-capall m-bdn.
Bat. 6'n 5-capall bdn or 0'na capullaib bdna
m-bdn.
Voe. a capaill bdm. a capalla bdna.
CHAP. III.] THE ADJECTIVE. 35
Gn puipeos beag, the little lark, fern.
Noai. an puipedg beag. na puipeoga beaga.
Gen. na puipedige bige. na b-puipe65 m-beag.
Dat. 6'n b-puipeoig big. 6'na puipeogaib beaga.
Voc. a puipe6o beag. a puipedga beaga.
Gn cnoc dpb, the high hill, masc.
Noui. an cnoc dpb. Noui. na cnuic dpba.
Gen. an cnufc dipt). Gen. na 5-cnoc n-dpb.
Dat. o'n 5-cnoc dpb. Dat. 6'na cnocaib dpoa.
Voc. a cnuic dipb. Voc. a cnoca dpoa.
Gn bo bub, the black cow, fern.
Nom. an bd bub. Nom. na bd buba.
Gen. na b6 Ouibe. Gen. na m-bd n-bub.
Dat. bo'n m-bum buib. Dat. Co na bdaib bubo.
Voc. a b6 bub. Voc. a ba buba.
III. COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES.
1. Irish, adjectives have three degrees of com-
parison, the same as English adjectives.
2. The positive is the simple form of the ad-
jective; as apt), high; plaiceariiail, princely.
3. The comparative and the superlative have
the same form, which is that of the genitive singu-
lar feminine ; as dip be, plaiceariila ; and they are
distinguished by prefixed particles, or by the con-
text.
4. The comparative has generally the particle
nfop (or nfopa or nfpa) prefixed, and it is usually
followed by Tirf, than (spelled also ind and lond) ;
as cd an ceac po nfop dipoe nd an ceac pin,
.36 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
this lionse is higher than that house : acd an
laoc ub nfop plaiceariiland an pfgp6in, "yonder
champion is more princely than the king him-
self."
5. The superlative is often preceded by lp or
ap, with the article expressed before the noun ; as
an peap lp plaicearhla pan cfp, the most princely
man in the country.
6. In the comparative, nfop is omitted when tha
assertion or question is made by the verb l pin any of
its forms, expressed or understood ; as ba ouibe a
gpua^nd an gual, "her hair was blacker than the
coal;" lp gile pneacca nd bamne, snow is whiter
than milk ; an pedpp bo oeapbpacaip nd cupa ?
is thy brother better than thou ?
7. When the characteristic particles are not ex-
pressed, the construction generally determines
whether the adjective is comparative or super-
lative ; as an ealaoan lp uaiple nd pilioeacc, the
art which is nobler than poetry; an ealaoan lp
Uaiple aip bic, "the art which is the noblest in
the world."
8. An adjective in the comparative or superla-
tive is not inflected ; all the cases being alike in
form.
IRREGULAR COMPARISON.
1. The following adjectives are irregularly
compared. There are a few others, but their de-
parture from rule is so slight as not to require
notice.
2. Lia is a comparative as it stands, signifying
more (in number) ; but it has no positive, unless
lomoa or m6pdn (many), or some such word, be
considered as such.
CHAP. III.]
THE ADJECTIVE.
37
Positive.
beas, little,
paoa, long,
pupup or upup,
easy.
™° ,,b > ) good.
mime, often.
m6p, great.
olc, bad.
ceic, hot.
Comparative.
nfop luga.
nfop paide,nfoppia.
nfop pura, "fop
upa.
nfop pedpp.
nfop mionca.
nfop m6.
nfop meapa.
nfop ced.
Superlative.
ip luga.
ippaioe, ip pia.
>p pupa, ip upa.
ip pedpp.
ip m6.
ip meapa.
fp ced.
3. There are certain particles which, when
prefixed to adjectives, intensify their significa-
tion ; and in accordance with the rule in Par. 4,
page 10, they aspirate the initials of the adjectives.
4. The principal of these are an, pfop, p6,
pdp, up: as maic, good; an-riiaic, very good:
5pdnna, ugly; pfop-gpdnna, excessively ugly:
mop, large; po-riiop, very large: IdiOip, strong;
pdp-ldioip, very strong, &c.
TV. NUMERAL ADJECTIVES.
1. The following is a list of the most important
of the numerals, both cardinal and ordinal.
For the influence of some of them in aspirating and
eclipsing, and for other syntactical influences on the noun,
see Syntax.
Cardinal. Ordinal.
1.
aon.
1st.
cdab.
2.
06, od.
2nd.
oapa.
3.
cpf, cedpa.
3rd.
cpeap.
4.
ceacaip, ceicpe.
4th.
ceacparhad.
5.
CU15.
5th.
cuigead.
6.
re.
6th.
peipeao.
7.
peadc.
7th.
peaccrhaO.
8.
ode.
8th.
odcriiad.
9.
naoi.
9th.
naomad.
10.
oeid.
10th.
beadrhad.
11.
aon 0605.
11th.
aomhad odag,
4
38
ETYMOLOGY.
[PART II
20.
21.
12. &6tx5ci5,bdb6aa.
13. cpf beag.
And so on, up to
and including 19.
pi6e.
I aon a'\> pi6e, aon
\ aip pi6ib,
And so on, up to 29.
OQ jcpiocab, cpio6a,
') beic a'p pice.
/cpf aip cpiocaib,
33. < cpf t)6a5 a'p
( pice.
(bd picib, ceac-
40. \ pa6a, ceacpa-
( cab.
50. caoga, caogab.
60- 5 recipsat». reargai
I cpf picib.
(pea6citioga,peacc-
70. | rhojab, beiO a'y
( cpf picib.
(occrhoga, o6c-
80. | riio-gab, ceicpe
I picib.
(noca, nocab, beic
90. j a'p ceicpe
' picib
100. ceato.
1,000. mfle.
2,000. bd mfle.
1,000,000. million.
12th.
13th.
bapa b6as.
cpeap beas.
20th. piceab.
21st. [ a0Tlriia& a'! 1
I picib.
(cpio6abab,
30th. | beacmab aip
( picib.
(cpeapaip cpio-
33rd. | caib, cpeap
' beas aip picib.
40th. ceacpa6abao.
50th. caoyjabab.
60thJ rear . 5aba S' CTlf
( picioeab.
(peaccmogabab,
70th. < bea6mab aip
( cpf picib.
/ occmogabab,
80th. J ceicpe picib-
( eat).
(nocabab, beac-
90th.' maoaipceic-
{ pe picib.
100th. ceabao.
1,000th. mfleab.
2,000th. bd rhfleab.
1,000,000th. millitfnab.
2. 06 and ceacaip are used only in the ab-
sence of nonns, i.e. merely as the names of the
numbers; but fid and ceifcpe are always used when
the nonns are expressed; as od clump, two ears;
ceicpe pip, four men.
3. pice is declined : — Nom. pice; gen. piceab ;
dat. picib ; nom. plur. picib.
4. C6abhas gen. c6ib; nom. pi. c6aba orc^abca.
5. The following nouns, which are all except
CHAP. IY.] THE PRONOUN. 89
beipc, formed from the numerals, are applied to
persons only : —
war. wr\ two P 6 ™ " 9 - rehear., ) seyen
beipc, a couple. m6p-peipeap, J ^
cpitip, three persons. o6cap, eight ,,
ceacpap, four ,, nonbap, nacmbap, nine „
ctiiseap, five ,, bei6neabap, ten „
peipeap, six „
CHAPTEE IV.
THE PRONOUN.
1. There are in Irish six kinds of pronouns : —
Personal, Possessive, Eelative, Demonstrative, In-
terrogative, and Indefinite.
I. PERSONAL PRONOUNS.
1. There are four personal pronouns — m6, I,
cu, thou ; p6, he ; pf, she ; with their plurals,
pmn, we ; pib, ye or you ; and pi at), they. These
are the simple forms of the personal pronouns.
2. Each of these takes an emphatic increase or
postfixed syllable, equivalent to the English word
self ; and the whole word thus formed is called the
emphatic form. The emphatic syllables vary their
vowel part in accordance with the rule caol le
caol &c.
3. The following are the emphatic forms : —
TTlipe or mepi, myself; cupa, thyself; pepean.
40 ETYMOLOGY. [PABT II.
himself ; pipe, herself ; pinne, ourselves ; pibpe,
yourselves ; piabpan, themselves.
4. The word p6in, self, is often added to the per-
sonal pronouns, not as a particle but as a separate
word ; and it is still more emphatic than the par-
ticles mentioned in last paragraph : — me" p6in, I
myself; pi p6in, she herself.
5. The personal pronouns are all declined ; and
they may carry the emphatic increase through all
the cases.
6. The personal pronouns (except m6), unlike
nouns, have a distinct form for the accusative (or
objective) case. It is, of course, only the pronoun
cti that is used in the vocative.
DECLENSION OP PERSON AL PRONOUNS.
The declension of the emphatic form of me is given as an
example : observe, in this, the vowel changes in obedience to
caol le caol &c.
me\ I.
Singular. Plural.
Norn, me, I. Nom. pinn, we.
Gen. mo, mine. Gen. dp, our.
Dat. bom, bam, to me. Dat. buirm, to us.
Ace. m6, me. Ace. inn or pinn, us.
lTlipe, myself {emphatic form).
Nom. mipe, mepj, myself. Nom.pmne, ourselves.
Gen. mo-pa, my own. Gen. dp-ne, our own.
Dat. bompa, baihpa, to my- Dat. bthnne, to ourselves
self.
Ace. mipe, mepi, myself. Ace. inne, pinne, ourselves.
Cu, thou.
Nom. cd. Nom. pib.
Gen. bo. Gen. bup, bap.
Dat. buic. Dat. baoib, bib.
Ace. cti. Ace. lb, pib.
Voc. cti. Voc. pib, lb.
?. IV.J
THE PRONOUN.
86,
he.
Nom. p6.
Gen. a.
Dat. bo.
Ace. 6.
Nom. r-iab.
Gen. a.
Dat. b6ib.
Ace. iab.
Sf, ,
she.
Nom. pf.
Gen. a.
Dat. bi.
Ace. f.
Nom. fiab.
Gen. a.
Dat. boib.
Ace. iab.
KRSONAL PRONOUNS
1 CO 51 POUNDED
PREPOSITIONS.
41
WITH
1. In Irish, the personal and the possessive pro-
nonns unite with prepositions, each compound
forming a single word.
2. In each case the preposition and the pronoun
are amalgamated, and the latter changes its form,
so as to be considerably, and in some cases com-
pletely, disguised.
3. These " prepositional pronouns," as they are
sometimes called, are of constant occurrence in
the language — scarce a sentence in which they aro
not met with : they are therefore of great im-
portance, and the learner should .get them all off
by heart.
4. The following prepositions unite with per-
sonal pronouns: — ag ; aip or ap ; ann or l ; ap ;
cum ; Oe ; oo ; eiOip or lOip ; pd or paoi ; le ; o or
ua ; poirh ; peac ; cap ; cp6 ; uap ; urn or un.
5. The following are the combinations of these
prepositions with the personal pronouns.
6. The emphatic particles may be used with
these combinations also, as well as with the un-
compounded pronouns, of which one example is
given.
42 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
Qj, at or ivith.
Singular. Plural.
a^am, with or at me. ajainri, with us.
ojac, agab, with thee. agent), with you.
aige, with him. aca or acu, with them,
aice or aici, with her.
The same with the emphatic increase.
agampa, with myself. agamne, with ourselves,
asacpa, with thyself. agaibpe, with yourselves,
aigepean, with himself. acapan, with themselves,
aicipe, with herself.
Clip or ap, upon.
opm, on me. oppainn, on us.
ope, on thee. oppaib, on you.
aip, on him. oppa, opca, on them,
uippe, on her.
Gnu or i, in.
lormam, in me. lonnainn, loncmrn, in us.
lonnac, lonncib, in thee. lonnaib, in you.
arm, in him. lonnca, in them,
innce, mnci, in her.
Qp, out of.
apam, out of me. apairm, out of us.
opac, apab, out of thee. opaib, out of you.
af, out of him. • apca, apcu, out of them.
aipr,e, aipci, out of her.
Cum, towards, unto.
Cu50.iT), unto me. cujamn, unto us.
oygac, unto thee. cugaib, unto you.
cuige, unto him. 6uca, unto them.
Cuici, unto her.
t)e, from or off.
bforn, off or of me. burn, off us.
bloc, off thee. bib, off you.
be, off him. bfob, off them.
01, off her.
OHAP. IV.] THE PRONOUN. 43
t)o, to.
bam, bom, bam, to me. btiinn, to us.
buic, to thee. baoib, bfo, to you.
bo, to him. b6ib, to them.
bi, to her.
6101 ji, between.
eabpam, between me. eabpamn, between us.
eabp ac, between thee. eabpaib, between you.
eibip 6, between him. eacoppa, between them,
eibip T, between her.
pd or paoi, under.
pum, under me. pumn, under us.
puc, under thee, puib, under you.
paoi, under him. puca, under them,
ptiice, under her.
he, with.
liom, with me. linn, with us.
leac, with thee. lib, with you.
leip, with him. Ie6, with them,
leice, lei, with her.
Le is often written pe in books, and its pronominal com-
binations in this foi'm are often met with. They are as fol-
lows : —
piom, with me. pmn, with us.
pioc, with thee. pib, with you.
pip, with him. piu, with them,
pia, with her.
O or ua,from.
uaim, from me. uainn, from us.
uaic, from thee. uaib, from you.
uab, from him. uaca, from them,
uaice, uaici, from her.
"Roirii, before.
p6riiam, before me. porhamn, before us.
p6rhac, before thee. p6riiaib, before you.
p6ntie, before him. pompa, before them.
p6impe, poimpi, before her.
44 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
Seac, beside.
peacam, beside me. peabainn, beside us.
peacac, beside thee. pea6aib, beside you.
peaG 6, beside him. peaca, beside them.
pea6 T, beside her.
Cap, beyond, over.
copm, capm, over me. coppairm,cappaiTin,overus.
cope, cape, oyer thee. coppaib, cappaib, over you.
caipip, over him. cappca, cappa, over them,
caippce, caippi, over her.
Gpe, through.
cpfom, through me. cptnn, through us.
cpfoc, through thee. tpfb, through you.
cpfo, through him. cpfoca, through them,
cpfce, cptci, through her.
Uap, above.
uapam, above me. uapainn, above us.
uapac, above thee. uapaib, above you.
ucipa, above him. uapca, above them,
uaipce, uaipci, above her.
Um or nn, about.
umam, about me. umainn, about us.
innac, about thee. umaib, about you.
unne, about him. umpa, about them,
uimpe, wmpi, about her.
II. POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS.
1. The possessive pronouns, which are merely
the genitives of the personal pronouns, are as
follows: — mo, my; t>o, thy; a, his or her; dp,
our; bap or bup, your; a, their. The three pos-
sessives, a, his, a, her, and a, their, are distin-
guished by the initial letter changes of the next
word. (See pp. 9, 11, 12 ; and see also Syntax.)
IV
THE PRONOUN. 45
2. The o of mo and bo is omitted before a
vowel or before p ; as m'acaip, my father ;
m'peapann, my land. And bo is often changed,
before a vowel, to c, t, and b ; as c'acaip,
6'acaip, or h-acaip, thy father.
3. The possessive pronouns also take the em-
phatic increase, with this peculiarity, however,
that the emphatic particle always follows the noun
that comes after the possessive, or if the noun be
qualified by one or more adjectives, the emphatic
particle comes last of all ; and in accordance with
the rule caol le caol, its vowel is generally broad
or slender according as the last vowel of the word
it follows is broad or slender ; as mo ceac-pa, my
house, or my own house ; mo ceac m6p buibe-pi,
my great yellow house. And these again may be
followed by pern (Par. 4, p. 40), rendering the
expression still more emphatic ; as mo ceac-pa
pein, my own house.
POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS COMPOUNDED WITH
PREPOSITI ONS.
1. The possessive pronouns are amalgamated
with prepositions, much in the same way as the
personal pronouns ; as beip beannacc 6m cpoibe,
bear a blessing from my heart.
2. The following are the most important of
these combinations : —
Qnn, in.
Singular. Plural.
am, am', in my. indn, 'ndn, in our.
ab, ab', in thy. —
lona, ma, 'na, in bis or her. iona, ma, 'na, in their.
t)o, to.
bom, bom', to my. bdp, b'dn, to our.
bob, bob', to thy. —
bd, ba, to his or her. bd, b'a, to their.
46 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
Le, with.
lem, lem', with ray. lep, le'n, with our
let), let)', with thy. —
lena, le n-a, with his or her. lena, le n-a, with their,
O or ua from.
6m, 6m', from my. oan, 6'r>, from our.
6b, 60', from thy. —
6na, 6 n-a, from his or her. 6na, o n-a, from their.
3. Those that are identical in form and
different in meaning are distinguished by the
initial letter changes they produce in the next
word; as ona cig, from his house ; 6na cig, from
her house; 6na b-cig, from their house.-
4. These combinations can also take the em-
phatic increase, like those of the personal pro-
nouns, with the peculiarity, however, noticed in
Par. 3, p. 45 ; as 6m 615 mop dpt>-pa, from my
great high house.
III. RELATIVE PRONOUNS.
1. There are three relative pronouns in Irish : — -
a, who, which, that; noc, who, which, that;
nac, which not; as an ce a buaileap, the person
who strikes ; an liaig noc a oeip 50 b-puil cti
pldn, the physician that says that you are well;
an c6 nac b-puil Idioip, nf puldip 06 beic 5I1C,
"the person who is not strong, it is necessary for
him to be wise."
2. X)d sometimes takes the place of the relative
a ; and in some grammars it is counted as a dis-
tinct relative pronoun ; as edit) na ^aolca ip
pedpp agum odb-puilao-calam Cpeann, "I have
CHAP. IV.J THE PRONOUN. 4?
the best friends that are (to be found) in the land
of Erin." And sometimes t>o stands for the rela-
tive a.
3. The relative a has sometimes the sense of
"all which" or "all that ;" asbeip beannacccuirt a
maipeannb-epiolpaiclpa'p Gibip," bear a blessing
to all that live of the seed of Ir and Eber;" a
b-puil pan calaiii o'aicme ITIhdine, "all that are
in the land of the tribe of Maine."
4. The relative pronouns are not declined.
Is
IV. DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS.
1. The demonstrative pronouns are po, this,
these; pin, that, those; pub or ut>, yonder: as
an peap po, this man ; ua mnd pin, those women;
put) f pfop, " yonder she (moves) below."
i
V. INTERROGATIVE PRONOUNS.
1. There are usually reckoned three interroga-
tive pronouns: — cia or c6, who? cd, what?
where? cat) or cpeut), what? as cia cpucuig cti?
who created thee ? cat) Oeip cti ? what sayest
thou? ca b-puil an peap pm ? where is that
man? cpeub lp 615m? what is necessary?
vi. indefinite Pronouns.
1. The following are the principal indefinite
pronouns : —
aon, one. ceaccap, eitber.
615111, some, certain. uile, all.
eile, oile, otber. a c6ile, eacb otber.
cdo, all. an ce, an cf, tbe person wbo.
506, eacb, every. cm b'e, Clbe, gibe, whoever*
500 uile, every.
48 ETYMOLOGY. [PAET II ♦
2. The indefinite pronouns are not declined ;
except cdc, which has a genitive form, cdic ; and
50c, which is sometimes made gaca in the geni-
tive.
OHAPTEE V.
THE VERB.
1. Irish verbs are inflected for number, person,
mood, tense, and voice.
2. The conjugation is arranged, not according
to the initial changes, but according to termina-
tions.
3. As to tbe initial changes: — see pages 10 and 58 for
the particles that aspirate, and page 12 for the particles that
eclipse, the initials of verbs.
T. PERSONS : SYNTHETIC AND ANALYTIC FORMS.
1. The verb has three persons singular and
three persons plural ; and it has inflections for the
whole six in the indicative and conditional moods
of the active voice, except in one tense of the in-
dicative.
2. The six forms of the present tense, indicative
mood, active voice, of the verb c6$, take, are as
follows : —
Singular. Plural.
1. c65aim, I take, 1. c65(imaoib, retake.
2. c6;5aip, thou takest. 2. C65CC101, ye take.
3. copula pe, he takes. 3. €65010, they take.
CHAP. V.] THE VERB. 49
3. This is what is called the synthetic form of
the verb. The S3 r nthetic form is that in which the
persons are expressed by inflections or termina-
tions:
4. These six forms express the sense perfectly,
without the accompaniment of the pronouns (ex-
cept in the case of the third person singidar) :
that is, C65CUP, as it stands, without using along
with it the pronoun cu, thou, expresses perfectly
"thoutakest ;" and so of the others.
5: But there is another way of expressing the
persons, singular and plural, namely, by using
one fomi of the verb for the whole six, and put-
ting in the pronouns to distinguish the persons
and numbers. This is what is called the analytic
form of the verb.
6. In this analytic mode of expressing the per-
sons and numbers, the form of the verb that is
used is the same as the form for the third person
singular ; and the persons singular and plural are
expressed as follows : —
Singular. Plural.
1. C65C11O me, 1 take. 1. C65CI10 r ir >n ; w e take.
2. £05010 cu, thou takest. 2. C65C11O fib, ye take.
3. C650.10 f>6, he takes. 3. £650.16 riaO, they take.
7. The third singular of the verb is not a syn-
thetic form like the other five, that is, it does not
include the pronoun as they do. In the third
person singular, therefore, the pronoun must be
always expressed in order to distinguish the
number and person ; unless there is a noun, or
that the nominative is in some other way obvious
from the construction.
8. But generally speaking it is not allowable to
express any other pronoun along with the cor-
responding synthetic form of the verb: — For
50 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
example, it would be wrong to say b6anaim me" or
t)6anainaoiD pmn, both expressions being tauto-
logical.
9. This rule, in the case of the third person
plural, however, is sometimes not observed ; for
such expressions as mokub pfab and molpait)
pi at) — they praise, they will praise — are often met
with, though molaio or molpaib alone would
answer. And a like construction (in the third
plural) is often used when the nominative is a
plural noun, both in the present and in the past
tense; as cpiallaib micTThleao, "the sons of Mile
go ;" map do concabap na bpaoice, "when the
druids saw."
10. The emphatic particles may be postfixed to
all the persons of verbs, in the same manner as
to pronouns and nouns (p. 39) ; as molaun-pe,
I praise; molaip-pe, thou praisest. And in all
such cases, the word p6m (p. 40) may be used
to make the expression still more emphatic; as
bo cuippinn-po p6in mo leanb a coolab, " I my-
self would put my child to sleep."
11. The general tendency of modern languages is to drop
synthetic forms, and to become more analytic. The English
language, for example, has lost nearly all its inflections, and
supplied their place by prepositions, conjunctions, adverbs,
and auxiliary verbs. Following this tendency, the synthetic
forms of the Irish verb are falling into disuse in the spoken
language ; and it has been already remarked (p. ~o) that the
noun-inflection ib is now seldom used in speaking. But all
these forms are quite common in even the most modern Irish
books ; and the learner must, therefore, make himself quite
familiar with theui.
II. TENSES.
1. In English a regular verb has only two
different forms to express tense : — I love, I loved j
CHAP. V.] THE VEKB. 51
all the other tenses are expressed by means of
auxiliaries.
2. In Irish, a regular verb has five different
forms in the indicative mood for tense. Reckon-
ing those tenses only which are expressed by in-
flection, an Irish regular verb has therefore five
tenses in the indicative mood.
3. The five tenses -with the synthetic forms for
the first person singular of the regular verb 501 p,
call, are : —
(1.) The present; gorpim, I call.
(2.) The consuetudinal or habitual present ;
goipeann rn6, I am in the habit of calling.
(3.) The past, or simple past, or perfect (for it
is known by all these three names) ; t>o goipeap,
I called.
(4.) The consuetudinal or habitual past; bo
goipinn, I used to call, or I used to be calling.
(5.) The future; goippeab, I shall or will
call.
in. MOODS AND VOICES.
1. The Irish regular verb has four moods :—
The Imperative, the Indicative, the Conditional,
and the Infinitive. These are the only moods for
which the regular verb has distinct inflections.
2. There are, indeed, other moods, which are expressed, not
by inflection, but by means of certain conjunctions and par-
j tides set before the verb ; and these additional moods are
given in conjugation in some Irish grammars ; but as their
forms do not differ from the forms of the four given in the
last paragraph, they are not included here.
3. It is only the indicative mood of the verb
that has tense inflection ; in each of the other
moods there is only one tense.
52 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
4. There are two voices, the active and the passive.
It is only in the active voice that there are per-
sonal inflections ; in tho passive voice, the three
persons singular and the three persons plural have
all six the same form, rendering it necessary, of
course, that the pronoun be always expressed when
there is no noun.
IV. CONJUGATION OF A REGULAR VERB.
buail, strike.
ACTl-VE VOICE.
Imperative Mood.
Singular. Plural. C £
1 1. buctilimfp, let us strike.
2. buail, strike thou. 2. buailf&, strike ye.
3. bucnleao r6, let him 3. buailiOfp, let them strike.
Btrike.
Indicative Mood.
Present Tense.
Singular. Plural.
1. buailim, I strike. 1. buailimto, we strike.
2. buailin, thou strikest. 2. buuilct, ye strike.
3. buailiO re, he strikes. 3. buailib, they strike.
{For the relative form of this tense, seep. 55.)
Consuetudinal or habitual Present.
buaileann me, I usually strike.
{The same form for all persons and numbers.)
OHAJP. V.J THE VERB. 53
Past.
1. buaileap, I struck. 1. buaileairtap, we 9truck.
2. buailip, thou struckest. 2. buaileabap, ye struck.
3. buailpe, he struck. 3. buaileabap, they struck.
Old form of Past.
1. buaileap. 1. buailpeam orbuailpiom.
2. buailip. 2. buaileabap.
3. buaileapcap. 3. buailpeab, or buailpiob,
or buailpeabap.
Constietudinal Past
1. buailinn, I used to 1. buailimfp.we used to strike.
strike.
2. buailced, thou usedst 2. buailcf, ye used to strike.
to strike.
3. buaileab pe, he used to 3. buailibfp, they used to
strike. strike.
Future.
1. buailpeab, I will strike. 1. buailpimfb, we will strike.
2. buailpip, thou wilt strike. 2. buailpib, ye will strike.
3. buailpib pe, he will strike. 3. buailpib, they will strike.
(For the relative form of this tense, see p. 55.)
Conditional Mood.
1. buailpinn, I would 1. buailpnnfp, we would
strike. strike.
2. buailped, thou wouldst 2. buailpib, ye would strike.
strike.
3. buailpeab pe, he would 3. buailpibfp, they would
strike. strike.
Inf. Mood. Do bualab, to strike. Part. 05 bualab, striking,
54 ETYMOLOGY. [PAST IL
PASSIVE VOICE.
Imperative Mood.
(The same as the Indicative Present.)
Indicative Mood.
Present Tense.
Singular. Plural.
1. bvailceap me, I am 1. buailceap pinn or inn, we
struck. are struck.
2. buailceap cu, thou art 2. buailceap pib or lb, ye are
struck. struck.
3. buailceap 6, be is struck. 3. buailceap iat», they are
struck.
Cons net udinal Present.
(Same as the Indicative Present.)
Past.
1. buailea& me, I was 1. buaileaS pinn or inn, we
struck. were struck.
2. buaileab cu, thou wast 2. buaileab pib or ib, ye
struck. were struck.
3. buaileab e, lie was 3. buaileab iat), they were
struck. struck.
Consuetudinal Past.
1. buailcf me, I used to be 1. buailcf pinn or mn, we
struck. used to be struck.
2. buailcf ctj, thou usedst 2. buailcf rib or ib, ^e used
to be struck. to be struck.
3. buailcf e, he used to be 3. buailcf iat», they used to
struck. be struck.
CHAP. V.] THE VERB. 55
Future.
Singular. Plural.
1. buailpeap m6, 1 shall or 1. buailpeap pmn or inn, we
will be struck. shall or will be struck.
2. buailpeap cti, thou shalt 2. buailpeap pib or ib, ye
or wilt be struck. shall or will be struck.
3. buailpeap 6, he shall or 3. buailpeap lab, they shall
will be struck. or will be struck.
Conditional Mood.
1. buailpfoe me, I would 1. buailpf&e pmn or inn, we
be struck. would be struck.
2. buailpf&e ctj, thou 2. buailpf&e pib or ib, ye
wouldst be struck. would be struck.
3. buailpt&e 6, he would 3. buaflpf&e lab, they would
be struck. be struck.
Infinitive Mood.
Do beic buailce, to be struck.
i
Participle.
i
buailce, struck.
TV. RELATIVE FORM OF THE VERB.
1. Besides the forms given in the preceding
conjugation, the verb has what is called a "relative
form," i.e., a form used after a relative pronoun.
In two of the tenses of the indicative mood,
namely, the present and the future, the relative
form has a distinct inflection, viz. , ap, ip, eap, or
lop.
2. For instance, " the person who calls, " is
translated, not by an c6 a goipio (3rd sing, form),
but by an c6 a goipeap ; and " he who will steal, "
is not an ce a goiopfo (3rd sing, form ), but an
re" a goiopeap. In other tenses and moods the
5G ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
relative form is the same as that of the third per-
son singular.
3. This form of the verb is often used even when its nomi-
native is not a relative, but a noun or personal pronoun, to
express the " historical present," i.e., the present tense used
for the past; as piappaigeap Giriiipsin a h-cnnim Di,
" Amorgin asks her name of her." (See for a further account
of the historical present, p. 57.)
4. And not unfrequently the relative form is used as an
ordinary present ; as, Ip m6p an c-ionsna liompa, na6
b'Oipfn lappap pionn mipe, "It is a great wonder to me
that it is not for Oisin Finn seeks ^aj\j\ay) me."
V. FORMATION AND USES OF THE MOODS AND TENSES
OF REGULAR VERBS.
1. The second person singular of the imperative
mood, active voice, is the root or simplest form of
the verb, from which all the other persons, moods,
and tenses are formed directly, by affixing the
various terminations.
2. Verb3 which end in a consonant preceded by
a slender vowel have all their inflections precisely
like those of buail (with the exception mentioned
in Par. 4, p. 60) ; and they all begin with a
slender vowel (except sometimes that of the infini-
tive) in accordance with the rule caol le caol &c.
3. But when the final consonant is preceded by
a broad vowel, the synthetic terminations begin
with a broad vowel, in accordance with the same
rule. A table of the fidl conjugation of a re-
gular verb ending in a broad vowel is given at
page. 64.
4. The root generally remains unchanged
through all the variations of the verb, except that
it occasionally suffers a trifling change in the in-
finitive. The cases in which the root suffers change
in the infinitive are mentioned in Par. 4. p. 60 :
See also Par. 8, p. 63.
CHAT. V.J THE VERB. 57
IiTDiciTivE Mood.
Present Tense.
1. The present tense is formed by affixing the
six personal terminations lm (or aim), lp (or
aip), &e., to the root.
2. The historical present, i.e., the present tense
used for the past, or where past time is intended,
is very common in Irish ; indeed in many narrative
and historical pieces it occurs quite as often as the
ordinary past tense in relating past transactions ;
as, Oalalc, lomoppo, ollmuigceap Ions leip, " as
to Ith, indeed, a ship is prepared, by him" (instead
of ollrhuigeaD, teas prepared).
3. It has been already remarked (Par. 3, p. 56),
that the relative form of the verb is often used
for the historical present ; as noccap 6ipem6n
061b, " Eremon reveals to them."
Consuetudinal Past and Present.
1. These tenses express customary action ; as
leigeann m§, I am in the habit of reading ;
leigeao pe, he used to read, or he was in the habit
of reading.
2. In the sentences, ' ' I write always after break-
fast," and "he sold bread in his youth," the verbs
" write" and " sold " are used in the same manner
as the Irish consuetudinal tense ; except, indeed,
that the idea is not so distinctly marked by the
English phrase as by the Irish.
3. One of the particles bo or po is usually pre-
fixed to the consuetudinal past; and the initial
5
58 ETYMOLOGY. fPART II.
consonant is generally aspirated ; as bo goipibfp,
they used to call.
4. Tlio Irish peasantry seem to feel the want of these two
tenses when they are speaking English ; and they often, in
fact, attempt to import them into the English language, even
in districts where no Irish has been spoken for generations:
thus they will say, " I do be reading while you do be writing ;"
" I used to be walking every day while 1 lived in the
country," &e.
Past Tense.
1. In the past tense the initial consonant is as-
pirated in the active voice, but not in the passive
voice.
2. With the exception of the aspiration, the
third singular past tense is the same as the
root.
3. One of the particles bo or po is generally
prefixed to the past tense in both voices ; as bo
peapap, I stood ; po coblaip, thou sleepedst; bo
molab iab, they were praised ; po buaileab 6, he
was struck.
4. The particle po, used as a mark of the past
tense, is often compounded with other particles, the
p only being retained, but it still causes aspira-
tion in the active voice, as if it were uncom-
pounded.
5. The principal of these compounds are : —
(1.) Op, whether? from an and po ; as op buail
po, did ho strike?
(2.) (5 ll P> that, from 50 and po; as cpeibim gup
buail pe, I believe that he struck.
(3.) lllunap, unless, from nuina and po; as
niunap buail pe, unless he struck.
(1.) Nacap, orna'p, orndp, whether not? from
nac and po ; as ndp buail }€, did not he strike?
' J TIIE VERB. 59
(5.) "Nfop, not, from nf and po ; as nfop buail p<3,
no did not strike.*
6. The particle po, as a sign of past tense, is
also often combined with the relative pronoun a ;
as an peap b'ap geallap mo Icabap, the man to
whom I promised my book. For a further account
of this, see Syntax.
Future Tense.
1. All the personal inflections of this tense, in
both voices, begin with the letter p, which, in the
spoken language, is often sounded like h ; thus
bunpab, I shall shut, is colloquially pronounced
doonhad (instead of doonfad).
Conditional Mood.
1. The particle bo, causing aspiration, is often
prefixed to verbs in the conditional mood ; as bo
pmbalpainn, I would walk.
2. But very often also bd, if, or inuna, unless,
is prefixed, and with these particles the initial is
eclipsed; asod b-pagainn-pemo poga, "iflwould
get my choice;" muna m-beibeab p6, "unless he
would be."
3. It is important to note that the personal in-
flections of this mood in both voices, as well as
those of the future indicative, all begin with p.
Infinitive Mood.
1. The initial is aspirated in the infinitive,
whether the particle bo or a be expressed or under -
* See Second Irish Book by the Society for the Preservation
of the Irish Language, p. t)3.
60 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
stood. But in some cases the aspiration is pre-
vented by other grammatical influences, as shown
in next paragraph.
2. When the infinitive is preceded by one of the
possessive pronouns, the initial of the verb falls
under the influence of the pronoun.*
(1.) It is aspirated for a, his; mo, my; bo, thy
(but here the influence of the pronoun is not per-
ceived, as there would bo aspiration without it) ;
as Od gonab, to wound him (literally to his
wounding, and so of the others) ; bo m'gonao, to
wound me ; bo b'gonab, to wound thee.
(2.) It is preserved from aspiration by a, her;
as bd gonab, to wound her.
(3.) It is eclipsed by the three plural posses-
sives ; as bdp n-^onab, to wound us ; bo bup
n-5onab to wound you ; bd n-gonab, to wound
them.
3. The general way of forming the infinitive is
by adding ab or eab, the first when the last vowel
of the root is broad ; the second when the vowel
is slender.
4. If the final consonant of the root be preceded
by l as part of a diphthong or triphthong, the
final vowel is made broad in the infinitive (which
is usually, but not always, done by dropping the
l) ; as bucul, bualcib; 50m, ^onab, to wound.
But if the final consonant be preceded by 1
alone, the infinitive is formed according to the
general ride in the last paragraph; as mill, mil-
leub, to destroy.
5. The infinitives of many verbs are formed
irregularly, and these must be learned by prac-
* For the influence of the possessive pronouns, see pages
9, 11, 12; and see also Svntax.
CHAP. V.]
THE VERB.
61
tice. The following are a few of such verbs.
Each group exhibits a particular type, in which
the manner of forming the infinitive will be obvi*
ous on inspection.
Root or Imperative.
Infinitive.
eag.
pndrh.
61.
b'eag, to die.
bo pndrh, to swim.
b'6l, to drink.
cappamg.
bo cappaing, to draw.
cuip.
501I.
bo 6up, to put.
bo gol, to weep.
lmip.
U151I.
btbip.
ceil.
b'rnnpc, to play,
b'mgilc, to graze,
bo Otbipc, to banish,
bo cede, to conceal.
F<35-
gab.
C65.
b' pdgbdil, to leave.
bo gabdil, to take.
bo cogbdil, to lift.
lean,
caill.
oil.
poill.
bo leanariiam, to follow,
bo caillearham, to lose,
b'oileaitiam, to nourish,
b'poillearham to suit.
gluaip.
eipc.
bo gluapacc, to move,
b'eipceacc, to listen.
The Participle.
1. The active participle is merely the infinitive
mood, with some such particle as 05 prefixed ; as
05 bualao at beating or a-beating.
2. The passive participle is generally formed
by adding ce or ce when the last vowel of the
root is slender, and ca or ca, when broad.
When the root ends in 6, 6, 1, 11, n, nn, p, c, or 5 (except
verbs in 1115 or 15;, the c of the participial termination re-
tains its sound : after any other consonant, and also in verba
in ui§ or lg, the c is aspirated. In the passive voice, the
terminations cap and ct follow the same law.
62 ETYMOLOGY. fPAET II.
VI. VERBS IN 111$, &C.
1. Verbs of two or more syllables with the root
ending in ui$, or 15, and some other dissyllabic
verbs ending in ll, in, lp, and lp, differ so decidedly
from the model verb in the formation of some of
their moods and tenses, that some writers,* not
without reason, class them as a second conjuga-
tion.
2. The difference lies in the formation of the
future and of the conditional in both voices ; the
other moods and tenses are formed like those of
buail.
3. In buail, and all other verbs of its kind, the
letter p is a characteristic mark of the future
and of the conditional mood in both voices, as
stated in Par. 3, p. 59.
4. The verbs now under consideration have no
p in the future and conditional, but they take in-
stead, eo, before the final consonant of the root.
5. In addition to this change, verbs in uig and
15 change 5 into c ; though in the spoken lan-
guage of most parts of Ireland, the § retains its
place.
6. There is no other inflectional difference be-
tween these verbs and buail, the personal ter-
minations following the final consonant of the
root being the same in all cases.
7. In the other tenses of the indicative, verbs
in ll, in, ip and lp are almost always syncopated
by the elision of the vowel or diphthong preceding
the final root consonant, ascoOail, sleep, coolaim,
* As for instance the Rev. Canon Bourke in bis " Colleg«
Irish Grammar."
CHAP. V.J THE VERB. G3
I sleep, &c. (But this change is not regarded as
grammatical inflection.)
8. Verbs in uig almost always form their in-
finitive by dropping the 1 and adding the usual ter-
mination at) ; those in 15 alone (not preceded by u),
retain the 1 and take u after it in the infinitive :
as cotiiapcuig, mark ; infinitive, coiiiapcuga'6 ;
coiiiaiplig, advise; infinitive, coihaipliuga&.
9. (Sometimes there are other slight changes,
caused chiefly by the rule coal le caol &c, which
will be obvious on inspection.
10. The following are a few examples of the
formation of the present and future indicative,
and of the conditional mood, in such verbs. The
first person singular only is given in each case, as
the other persons have the same terminations as
bum I and meall.
Root or imper. Pros, indie. Future indie. Conditional Mood.
Oipig, direct. tripigiwi. Ofpedccib. bfpeocainn.
(5pd&ing,love. 5pd&ui§ini-5pdifte6cab. spdi&eocainn.
Labaip, speak. labpaim. Iaibe6pat>. laibeopairm.
Cappumg. draw, caipngim. carp eon 50b. caipeonftcnnn.
popoQil, open, popjjlaim. poip^eolab. poip5e6lciinn.
Copani, defend, copnann. coipeonab. coipeoncnnn.
lnnip, tell, innipini. inneopab. lnneopninn.
Dtbip, banish, btbpini. btbe6pab. bibeopainn.
11. In Munster, verbs in ll, in, ip, and lp, are
conjugated like those in uig or 15; and the e6
comes after the final consonant: thus ufbip,
banish, is made in the future and conditional,
OfbpeOgab and bfbpeogamn, as if the verb were
olbpig.
12. A table of the full conjugation of a verb in
uig (dpbuig) is given at page Co
64
ETYMOLOGY.
[PART II.
c
r~
C
p je
s .e
-jO
P
~tO
5^ ;£,=£
<u
p" -
p* T.
f—
a
p £> O
4^
09
p ;0 jO
pp°
P © .O
r r a
p -3 ^> C^C
Z. p.2.p-p^2
5
"=
—
P3
"" _
^^ JCD
.
^
jh
P-
en
o
P- i E
d
p
h- (
a
U
©
a
° i •
u
a"
o
o
J
00
p-3
a
P4
CD
a
a
u
r— *
a
^ a -2 <d
•P ! CD O No
—
i a
CD
>
Jh
CD
•*->
CD
CD
p
p
K
P4
P
01
c3
£
£
P
1 -
>
•r.
'Si
PM
<D
c3
a
o
1-1
,
a
o
— ■ — .
— ■■^•,
U
.
<D >;3
P-U^
4) >3
E-ID^
p-g^
P-d^
3
S
-
<
P.
3
U
a
03
CO
•©
O
a
p.
a
o
5
•—
^-i
Z
CD
a
i
O
u
p.
p.
H
r^>
,_^»
r-3
ri
,—3
p
ej
a
*-^»
|J
»-j
p-3
HH
EG
p
a
CD
a
CD
a
CD
P
o
CD
•P
!
P jO
p £> a
p. p. p.
o
P-
o
■■-,_-
P.
P" P-
o
O P
-
O
a ,p-
5
£o2
p
p
a
p © o
o
£§5
a
a a 5
p 2o
a a c
C-
a 5 5
o u o
i-j
a a a
a -u a
p-p-p-
CLfLfLjpJ
•d
•
^ £ J>
— ' r^ r^
o
rJ-J-)
r-> P> r±>
'^ *-. ^
. — ■ — —
r
o
w
<-^ r^> -J
r^> ,-J -^
r3 p-3 ^j
I— 9 — ■ — ■
o
o
a a a
a a a
CD
c a a
a a a
a a a
c a a
^-*
<u cd
O CD CD
P
CD CD CD
CD CD CD
CD CD CD
CD CD CD
•—
o
a>
E
to
o
a
TL
43
o
s>
w
>
H
CJ
^£
r— r- r-
{= t: 1=
\7 _
■£ •£ •£
•£•£•£
£ S p
•E -E -E
o
o
a
CD
>
-
P-l
•JO
i "so"
1 CD CD
P-
£ P-O
5 5 5
■ ^^ i
a a a
CD CD CD
~2>p^
p id p.
a E
ga
p
p. p - ^
a a p.
— 2 P^ -J
a a a
CD CD CD
<D
P P-
p ^a -o
a u 3
-^ -i — ^
o a a
CD CD CD
>CD
a og
p-ti-a.
^ -- > ^->
a a a
CD CD oj
<D
P P-
P -J3
atia
p. P- p.
a a o
CD CD CD
£ E
E E £
E •£•£
■e -e -p
£ 5 E
•E -E "E
s
SB
13
PM
— i oi co
r-" N CO
— i t?j co
^-i oi co
— i oi CO
— (Ol CO
HH
o3
43
<D
00
q
-*-3 -t-3
CO
S3
43
c3
'H
cj O
H
g
en en
P g
P4
Or
.1
5 S
o
h
43
o
i— i
C/3 '
O
•poop
[ oai}i;j
P"l^_
CIIAP. V.]
THE VEKB.
05
H
■J
O
>
>
<
Oh
CJ
B
■5
■-
o
<c
a
3
H2
P
ELE.2
p.
o
0)
•u
•JO
5
o
p
S3
O
0)
■o
•JO
p
O
P-
X3
CD
^3
o
CD
a
0Q
p
p
p
p
5?°
p
p^
Ffi
pjcTo
p-p- 2
Itl
i-o"j=
p-P-H
111
0)
•n
•■^ w ■ '
^»-^-— '
* ^"■^ '
^ - ^ '
•o
p.
CD
•o
•IC
a
a>
•ib
•u
I
•io
a
•6
S3
5
•i
P
o
Ft
CD
p
o
p.
p
p-
©
p.
S3
(U
p.
•a
53
•U
•JO
5
o
sd
S3
s5
p.
si
«
1?
43
a
CD
•ib
5
p.
S3
•?^P
•u
•ib
p
o
S3
p.
o
i
•o
VD
CD
D
P-
s5
p 5 « !•«
CD
■O
•O
S3
CD
O
P-
s5
■_
o
I w
i>
—
o
<1
= -lb -io -ib
000
p p- p-
S3S3 S3
P" p p
P a
P^
a a
CD CD
a
p a5 o
p £p
•jo -to -JO,
5 5 5 !
o c o i
p p P-
S3 S3 S3 :
O
IO -IC -K3 vo
P i 03
O
P P
o o o . .
p p p.' p
S3 S3 S3 .S3
V ?
•6 -6
vo S3
CD CD
P P
O O
2 5
P c
a -U
•6 -6
S3 S3
CD CD
p p
S3 S3 I S3 C
<D
P-
a
•jo -ib
5 5
I o o
I pp
S3 S3
~A ci co
^sssu!
VD
p u f-'
P-
*~-»^~»~'
P <- o
p E--2
I
•IO
i i i
<- P
•lO-lO-lO
2 p
p p p
o a
P CD
S3
s^z-z-
S3 S3 S3
. ■ ,
i-HMCO
^h ci eo
p.
r_<3
CD P P
•IC-JO-JO -K
P P P
*=- — P-
S3 S3 S3
<© I
H
p -u © .
•ib -ib -ib <o
555;^
^ ~ ^
P P P
S3 S3 S3
; ffi co !»-< g» co
CD
■X3 'p
g O
a
f-H
tn CD
CD en
«* G
tn en
C CD
■5 Pj
3'
o
o |
P-
PO
5 5
•6 o
S3 O
CD CD
O
P P
P-
D
5
■6
P-Uc
•jPlsJ
•o'°
^ S3
•6 -b -b
vo v3 S3
CD CD CD
D
P.
S3 S3 S3 ; S3 S3 S3
i oi eo ■*-> oi co
CD
u
3
3
•pooj\[ aAi^oipui
o ^
66 ETYMOLOGY. [PART IT.
VII. IRREGULAR VERBS.
1. There aro fourtoon irregular verbs, several
of which are defective, i.e., "want one or more of
the moods and tenses. The conjugation of somo
of them, it will be observed, is niado up of that of
two or more different verbs.
2. It will also be observed that through all
their irregularities, the five synthetic personal
terminations remain unchanged ; for which reason
it is scarcely correct to call these verbs irregular
at all.
3. The irregular verbs are as follows : — (1),
edim, I am ; (2), the assertive verb lp ; (3), beipnn,
I give; (4), beipnn, I bear; (5), cfm, I see (in-
cluding peicini); (G), cluinun, I hear ; (7), Oean-
ann, I do ; (8), gnfm or nim, I do; (9), Ocipim,
I say; (10), pagcum or geibim, I find ; (11), lcun,
I eat; (12), pigim, I reach; (13), c6ioun, I go ;
(14), cngim, I come.
4. The following is the synthetic conjugation of
the irregular verbs (except in the case of the second
verb lp, which has no synthetic conjugation).
They may be all conjugated analytically, by using
the third person singular of each tense with the
three personal pronouns singular and plural, as
shown in case of the regular verb at page 49.
As an example, the analytic conjugation of the
present tense of the first verb, cdim, is given.
(1.) Cdim, I am.
Imperative Mood.
Singular. Plural.
1 1. bfmtp, let us be.
2. bf, botliou. 2. bttM6, be ye.
3. bi6ea6 r-6> or bfo^ r£, 3. btolp, let thein be.
let him be .
CHAP. V.] THE VERB, 67
Indicative Mood.
Present Tense.
Singular. Plural.
1. cdini, acdim, I am. 1. cdmaoit), acdmaoib, wo
are.
2. cdip, acdip, thou art. 2. cdcaoi, acdcaoi, ye are.
3. cd p6, acd pd, be is. 3. edit), acdit), they are.
Present Tense : analytic conjugation.
1. cdmd, acd md, I am; 1. cd yirm, acd firm, wo
are.
2. cd cu, acd cu, thou 2. cd pib, acd fib, yc
art. are.
3. cd pd, acd pd, he is. 3. cd piat>, acd piat>, they
are.
Consuetudinal Present.
1. bf&im, I am usually. 1. btmfb, bf&mfb, bfo-
maoit), we are usually.
2. bf&ip, thou art usually. 2. bfcf, bf&cf, ye are usu-
ally.
3. bf&eann pd, or bfonn pd, 3. bft>. bf&it>, they are usu-
he is usually. ally.
Interrogative and Negative Present.
(The negative particle is here used : see Par. 3, p. 69.)
1. nl b-puilim, I am not.* 1. nf b-puilmft>, we are not.
2. nf b-pmlip, thou art not. 2. nf b-puilcf, ye are not.
3. nf b-puil pd, he is not. 3. nf b puilit), they are not.
* These are commonly pronounced in conversation as if the
b-pui were omitted in each case ; and accordingly they are
often contracted in books tonf'lim, nflrp, nfl pd, &c.
68 ETYMOLOGY. [PART
Past Tense.
Singular. Plural.
1. btbeap, bfop, I was. 1. btbeamap, btomap, we
. were.
2. btDip, bfp, thou wert. 2. blbeabap, bfobap, ye
were.
3. bto p6, bf p6, he was. 3. btbeaOap, btobap, they
were.
Consuetu&inal Past.
1. btbmn, btnn, I used to be. 1. btbmtp, btmtp, we used
to be.
2. bf&ced, btced, thou usedst 2. btbtt, btct, ye used to
to be. be.
3. bfbeab p6, bfob p6, he used 3. btbbtp, btbtp, they need
to be. to be.
Interrogative and Negative Past.
(The negative particle is here used : see Par. 3, p. fi9).
1. nt pabap, I was not. 1. nt pabcimap, wu were
not.
2. nf pabaip, thou wert not. 2. ntpababap, ye were not.
">. nt paib p6, he was not. 3. nt pabaDap, they were
not.
Fuhtre.
1. beibeab, I shall be. 1. beibmto, we shall be.
2. beiftip, thou shalt be. 2. beibib, ye shall bo.
3. beib p6, he shall be. 3. beibiO, they shall be.
CHAP. V.] THE VERB. (59
Conditional Mood.
1. bei&inii, I would be. 1. bei&mfp, we would be.
2. beioced, thouwouldst be. 2. bei&cf, ye would be.
3. beioeaft p6, or belt pe, 3. beit)fr, they would be.
he would be.
Infinitive Mood.
Do beic, to be.
Participle.
G5 beic, being.
1. Cd is commonly called the substantive verb,
and answers to the verb " to be" in English.
2. It has two forms, which the regular verb has
not, namely, a form in the present tense for in-
terrogation and negation (b-puilim), and a form
in the past tense for the same (pabap)^ These
two are classed by O'Donovan as a subjunctive
mood, present and past tense.
3. The forms b-puilim and pabap are used
only: —
(a.) After negative and interrogative particles ;
as nf b-puil pe cinn, he is not sick; ni paib me"
ann pin, I was not there: an b-puil pfon in bap
longaib? "Is there wine in your ships?" On
pabaip 05 an 5-cappais? "Wert thou at the
rock" (or at Carrick) ? O nac b-puil oul uoib
05am, "since I cannot escape from him" (lit.
"since it is not with me to go from him"); an
b-puil a pi op agac pern, a pinnn? nf puil, ap
pionn, " 'Is the knowledge of it with thyself,
Finn?' « It is not,' says Finn."
(But these forms are not used after the inter-
rogative cionnap, how ?)
TO ETYMOLOGY, [PAET It.
(b.) After 50, that; asbeipnn 50 b-puilpe pldn,
I say that he is well.
(c.) After the relative a when it follows a pre-
position, or when it signifies "all that" (Par. 3,
page 47) ; as cpeut) 6 an ppeagpa cabappaip
ap Ohia, ag a b-puil piop bo locc? " What
answer wilt thou give to God, -who has a know-
ledge of 111,7 81118?" (lit. "with whom is a know-
ledge"); a b-puil 6 Clc-cliac 50 h-Oiledn m6p an
bliuppaig, " all that is from Ath-eliath (Dublin) to
Oilean rnor an Bharraigh ;" 00 bcipmfo ap ni-bpia-
cap nac beag linn a ln-bcupani 50 pionn Oiob,
" we pledge our word, that we do not think it
little, all that we shall bring of them to Finn."
4. This verb, like verbs in general, has a rela-
tive form for the present and future ; but the rela-
tive form of the present is always a consuetudinal
tense (whereas in regular verbs it is generally not
consuetudinal) ; as map an g-c^abna bfop (or
bfoeap) an bap an Olpcill 00 pfop ap an ouine;
"in like manner death is (in the habit of) lying
in wait always for man."
5. The analytic form of this verb is now far
more common in the spoken language than the
synthetic. In asking a question the analytic form
is often preferred : but in answering, the syn-
thetic ; as an paib cu 05 an g-Cappuig ? t)o
bfop 05 an 5-Cappai;5, " Were you at Carrick?
I was at Carrick."
6. The letter a is often prefixed to the present
tense both in speaking and writing : acd instead
of cd, (Src. ; it is sometimes slightly emphatic, birt
oftcner merely euphonic, and does not otherwise
affect the meaning.
7. This verb is often used as an auxiliary, like
the verb "to be" in English; and it is the only
verb in tho Irish language that can be regarded
CHAP. V.] TIIE VERB. 71
as an auxiliary. Thus, instead of buailceap me\
I am struck, we can say cd me bum Ice : for do
buaileuo m6, I was struck, Do bf m6 buailce, &c.
(2.) lp, it is.
Indicative Mood.
Present Tense.
If, it is : as if me, it is I ; ip ct5, it is thou.
Past Tense.
i.
ba or bub, it was ; a3 ba me, it was I.
Future Tense.
buD o.- bup, it will be.
Conditional Mood.
bab, it would I.e.,
L This is commonly called the assertive verb.
2. It has no inflection for person, being always
used in the third person singular : hence it is
often called the impersonal verb.
3. It has no other moods and tenses besides
those given above.
4. It takes other forms in the modern language,
some of them contracted, which are often puzzling
to learners.
5. After ft-up, that, it is often made ab, which
is given by O'Donovan as a subjunctive mood; as
cpeioini 5up ab e acd cinn, I believe that it is he
(who) is sick : mearuuu Da peip pin, ^up ab Da
bliagain astip pice pul pugao Gbpaham cdnic
Papcolon l n-Gipmn, "I think, according to that
72 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
that it is two years and twenty before Abraham
was born, that Partholon came to Erin."
6. Yery often 511 p ab is shortened by omitting
the a ; as cpeionn gup 'b6, &c.; and sometimes
the b is joined to gup, as cpeiOnn gupb 6, &c.
7. After md, if, the 1 is omitted, as rrd'p pfon e\
if it be true ; and in this case the p is often joined
to the md ; as mdp pfop 6 : nidp maio leac a beic
buan, caic puap asiip ceic, "if you wish to bo
long-lived, drink cold and hot" (or "drink cold
and flee " — a celebrated Irish saying of double
meaning).
8. Sometimes ba or ba is shortened to b or b
alone, which again is often joined to the preced-
ing word; as laoc o'dp b'ainm Lip, or laoc
Oapb Qinm Lip, " a hero whose name was
Lir ; " of which the full construction is, laoc 00
apoba ainm Lip, "a hero to whom was name Lir."
9. There is another form, pd, for the past tense,
which is now disused, but which is constantly used
by Keating, and by other writers of the seven-
teenth and eighteenth centuries : pd cpebnpeap
an Ceac po, " this Ceat was a mighty man ;" lp f
(banba) pa bean bo Tllhac Coill, b'ap b'ainm
blliop Gacup, " it is she (Bauba) who was wife to
Mac Coll, whose proper name was Eathur ;" 6p 6
an pcoicueapla pd cean^a coicceann pan Scicia
an cpdc. bo fpiall "Neniieao aipbe, "since it is
the Scotia language which was the common tongue
in Scythia in the time that Neimheadh emigrated
from it."*
10. For the distinction between cd and ip, see
Idioms.
*For the various forms assumed by this verb in Hie ancient
language, see 0' Donovan's most instructive article in his
" Irish Grammar," p. 161.
CHAP. V.]
THE VERB.
73
(3.) bheipim, I give.
active voic B.
Imperative Mood.
Singular,
1. . . .
2. cabaip.
3. cabpab pe.
Plural. !
1. cabpamaoip.
2. cabpaib.
3. cabpabaoip.
Indicative Mood.
First Person Singular.
Tresent: beipim, cabpaim, or
rug aim.
Consuet. Prcs. : beipeann.
Past : cugap.
Consuet. Past : beipinn, fcugamn.
Future: beappab, cabappab.
Conditional beappainn, tabappainn.
Mood:
With the usual
terminations for
' theotherpersons
and numbers.
Infinitive; Do cabaipc. Participle; as cabaipc.
PASSIVE VOICE.
Imperative ; berpceap, cabapcap, cugcap, me, cti, e, &o.
Indicative Mood.
Present: beipceap, cugtap.
Past: cugab.
Consuet. Past : beipci&e, cuguaioe.
Future: beappap, cabappap.
Conditional beappai&e, cabappaioe.
Mood :
• me, cti, 6,&a.
Infinitive ; bo beic cabapca, bo belt cugca.
Participle; cabapca, cugca.
74
ETYMOLOGY.
[paut n.
1. This verb is made up of three different verbs :
in some of tho tenses any one of the three may
be employe! ; in some, either of two ; and in some
only one ; as shown in the paradigm.
2. In the present tense, beipim (but not the
other two verbs) takes the particle Do (which is a
mark of the past in regular verbs), and commonly
has its initial aspirated.
(4.) beijum, Hear.
ACTIVE VOICE.
Imperative Mood.
Singular.
1. . . .
2. beip.
3. beipeao pe<
Plural.
1. beipimfp.
2. beipio.
3. beipiDfp.
Indicative Mood.
First Person Singular.
Present :
Conduct. Present :
beipim.
beipeann.
Past :
Consuet. Past :
Future :
puoap.
beipinn.
beuppab.
Conditional
Mood:
beappainn
With the usual
terminations for
> the other persons
and nu uibers.
Imknitive; bobpeifc. Participle; 05 bpeifr
PASSIVE VOICE.
Imperative Mood; berpCeap m6, 6tS, 6, &o.
OUAP. V.]
THE VERB,
75
Indicative Mood.
boipreap.
Present :
Past: pugab.
Consuet. Past : be 1 p cf .
Future: b6uppap.
Conditional b6appaibe.
Mood:
r 1T1 6, ct5, 6, Ac.
Infinitive; bo beic beipce. Participle; beipce.
(5.) Cfm, I see.
ACTIVE VOICE.
Imperative Mood.
Singular.
1. . . .
2. peic.
3. peiceao pe.
Plural.
1. peicimfp, peicimfb.
2. peicfb.
3. peicmfp.
Indicative Mood.
Present Tense.
1. 6fbim, cfm, peicim. 1. cf&mfb, cfmft), peicimfb
2. cfftip. cfp, peicip. 2. ci&cf, cfcf, peiccf.
3. ctDib pe, ci6 po, peicib pe. 3. cfbiD, cfo, peicm.
Consuet. Pres.; Cic-eann, peiceann, rne, cti, pe, &c
Past.
1. conn ap cap.
2. connapcaip.
3. connaipe p6.
1. concamap.
2. concabap.
3. concaoap.
Consuet. Past
Future :
Conditional
Mood:
First Person Singular.
efbmn or 6fnn.
clopeao or cipeab.
With the usual
terminations for
» <s . ■< f theotber persons
6fbpinn, or cfpinn, or , .'
I and numbers.
eicpinn. )
Infinitive Mood; b'peicpm or b*peicpinc.
Participle ; 0.5 peicpin or 0.5 peicpinc.
76 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
PASSIVE VOICE.
Imperative Mood ; peicceap, m6, cti, 6, &&
Indicative Mood.
Present Tense: cl&ceap or peicceap. ^
Past: connapcaO.
Past. Consuet. : cl&cf or peicof.
Future: cl&peap or peicpeap. ^llle, cti, 6, &c.
Conditional OfOpi&e or peicpioe.
Mood :
Infinitive Mood; t»o beic peicce. Participle; peicce
1. Cf&im is defective in some of its moods and
tenses, which are supplied by other verbs — the
imperative and infinitive by peicim or paicim, and
the past indicative of both voices by an old verb —
otherwise disused — connapcaim.
2. peicim or paicim, although it is brought in
among the irregular verbs to supply the defects
of cfonn, is itself regular.
3. Observe that the initial of cf&im is always
aspirated.
(6.) Clumim. Ihear.
Indicative Mood.
Past Tense.
1. 6uaXap. 1. cualamap.
2. cualtnp. 2. cualabap.
3. cuuluiO pe. 3. cualaoap-
Infinitive Mood Active; t»o clop or t>o cloir-cin.
Participle Active ; 05 clop or 05 cloipcin.
1. In all the other moods and tenses, cluinim is
regular, and is conjugated like buail.
CHAP.
v.]
THE VERB.
77
(7.) b6anaim, I do.
a c TIV E VOICE.
Imperative Mood.
1. • • • 1. b6anam, beanamaoip,
beanamaoib.
2. bean. 2. beanaib.
3. beanab p6. 3. b6anaibfp.
Indicative Mood.
Past Tense.
1. -pignear, bedpnap, b&a- 1. pigneamap, bedpnamap,
Tiap. beanamap.
2. pignip, bednnaip, Ma- 2. pigneabap, bedpnabap,
naip. beanabap.
3. pigne p6, bedpnab p6, 3. pijneabap, bedpnabap,
bean pe. b6anabap.
First Person Singular.
Present : b6anaim.
Consuel. Pres. : beanann.
Consuet. Past: gnfoinn,beapnainn,bea-
namn.
Future : beanpab.
With the
usual termina-
• tions for the
ether persons
and numbers.
Conditional beanpamn.
Mood : J
Infinitive Mood ; bo b6anam or bo beanab
Participle ; ag beanarh or 05 beanab.
PASSIVE VOICE.
Imperative Mood; Oeancap me, cu, 6, &&
Indicative Mood.
Present: b6ancap. ^
pigneab, bedpnab.
gnfef.
Past :
Consuct. Past :
Future ,
beanpap.
> 1116, cd, e,&c.
)
Conditional beanpaibe.
Mood :
Infinitive Mood ; bo beic beanca. Participle; beanca.
1. This verb and the next borrow from each
other to form some of the moods and tenses in
which they are defective.
78
ETYMOLOGY.
[part II.
Present :
Past :
Consuet. Past:
(8.) "finim or ^ m > I d°-
A C TIVE VOICE.
Indicative Mood.
First Person Singular.
gntm or nfm.
gnf&ear or nfoeap.
gnl&inn or nlomn.
With the usual
terminations for
the other persons
and numbers.
PASSIVE VOICE.
Indicative Mood.
Present: jntceap or nfceap.
Consuet. Past : gnlct or nlcf.
1116, tt5, 6, Ac.
1. This verb is used in no other moods or tenses ;
but so far as it goes it is very common in both
forms — with and without the 5 (gnfin and nfm).
The other moods and tenses are expressed by
means of b6cmomn.
Singular.
1. . . .
2. abaip.
3. abpuD pe;
(9.) beipim, I say.
ACTIVE VOICE.
Imperative Mood.
Plural.
1. abpam, abpamaoip,abpamaoib.
2. abpuio.
3. abpabaoip.
Indicative Mood.
Present Tense.
1. beipim:
2. beipip.
3. beip pe.
1. beipimfb.
2. beipcio
3. beipib.
Consnet. Pres. beipearm me, cti, p6, &c.
CHAP, y.j
THE VERB.
79
Past.
1. bubpap.
2. bubpaip.
3. bubaipc pe.
Consuet. Past
Future :
Conditional
Mood :
First Person Singular.
beipinn.
b6appab.
beappamn.
1. bubpamap.
2. bubpabap.
3. bubpabap.
With the usual
terminations for
■ the other persona
and numbers.
/
Infinitive Mood; bo pdo. Participle; 05 pd&.
PASSIVE VOICE.
Imperative Mood; abapcap me, cti, 6, &c.
Present :
Past :
Consuet Past
Future :
Conditional
Mood :
Indicative Mood.
beipceap.
bubpao.
beipcf.
bSappap.
b6appaibe.
» m6,eu,6,&c.
Iniinitivb Mood ; bo beic pdi&ce, bo bei6 pdice.
Participle; pdioce, pdice.
1. The verb abpaim, I say, from which beipim
borrows its imperative, is itself a regular verb.
2. Observe the characteristics of bubpap, the
past indicative active : — (a) it does not take the
participle bo or po ; (b) the initial is not aspirated.
3. The letter a is often prefixed to this verb
for the sake of emphasis; as a beipim for beipim,
X say ; a bubaipc p6 for bubaipc pe, he said.
80 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
(10.) pagann or geibnn, I find.
ACTIVE VOICE.
Imperative Mood.
Singular. Plural.
1. . . . I. pagmaoip, pagmaoib.
2. pag. 2. pagaib.
3. F a 5 a6 ' ?6. 3. pagaibfp.
Indicative Mood.
Present Tense.
1. pagaim or geibim. 1. pagmaoib or geibmto.
2. pagaip or geibip. 2. pagcafb or geibcfb.
3. pagai&re, orgeibp6. 3. pagaib or geibit).
Past.
1. puapap. 1. puaparhap.
2. puapaip. 2. puapabap.
3. puaip p6. 3. puapatmp.
First Person Singular.
Coiisuet. Past .• pagainn or geibinn. '
Future : geabab, geobab.
Future ncg. $ interrog. geabab or bpuigeab.
With the
usual termina
► tions for the
Conditional geabainn, geobamn. I U^ UV SS^
Moon: or b-pagainn, b-puiginn/
Infinitive ; b'Fdgail. Participle ; 05 pdgail.
PASSIVE VOICE.
Imperative Mood ; pagcap me, cti, e, &c.
Indicative Mood.
Present: pagcap. \
Past: puapab or ppit.
Consuet. Past : geibcl. L m6> ^ 6 ^
Conditional geabcai6e,5-FUigci6e. I
.Mood : /
(Defective in Infinitive and Participle.)
CHAP. V.] THE VERB. 81
1. The second form of this verb (geibnn) has its
initial aspirated in the present and future active.
2- The past tense (puapap, &c.) may or may
not take the particle bo or po ; but its initial con-
sonant is not aspirated.
(11.) Icim, I eat.
ACTIVE VOICE.
First Person Singular.
Future Indicative : loppab. \ ,-,.., ,, . ,
With tho usual termi-
r, > nations for the other
Conditional lorpainn. ( , ,
at . J P er80ns anc > numbers.
1. The past indicative is either the regular form
t>'iceap, &c, or the irregular buap (-with the usual
terminations : — buaip, t>uai& p6, &c.)
2. The infinitive is o'ice.
3. In other respects this verb is regular.
(12.) Rigim,
I reach.
Imperative Mood.
Singular,
I
Plural.
1.
2.
3.
T»S-
pigeao p6.
1.
2.
3.
pigmfp.
pi§T&.
pis^r*
Indicative Mood.
Present Tense.
Singular.
Plural
1.
2.
3.
pio-im
piS'P
pi$r««
1.
2
3.
pigmfb.
, pi$cf.
pijjit).
82
ETYMOLOGY.
[PART II.
Past.
1. pdnsar-
2. pdngmp.
8. pdnii5pe, pdnaij pe\
1. pdnsamap.
2. pdnsnbap.
3. pdnsabap.
First Person Singular.
Consuet Past ;
Future :
Conditional
Mood :
yngirm.
pi(5peao.
pioFinn.
With the usual termi-
• nations for the other per-
sons and numbers.
Infinitive ; bo piciccain or bo po6cain.
1. The past, future, and conditional, are some-
times expressed by a different verb, as follows : —
but this form (which is the same form as the in-
finitive), is not often met with in the modern lan-
guage.
First Person Singular.
Past: piciccap.
Future : piaccpab.
Conditional
Mood :
placcpamn.
With the usual terrui-
V nations for the other persons
and numbers.
(13.) C6ioim, I go.
IlirERATIVE MOOD.
Singular.
1. . . . 1.
2. ceib. 2.
3. ceibeao pe. 3.
Plural,
ceiomfp.
ceioio. "*
ceiootp.
Indicative Mood.
Present Tense.
Singular.
7. cfiioim. 1.
2. ceiSip. 2.
3. cei& pc. 3.
Plural.
cCiomtb.
cGidcIo or ceitio
ceibib.
CHAP. V.J
THE VERB.
Past Tense.
83
1. 6ua&ap.
2. cua&cup.
3. cuaib p6,
1. cuaftmap.
2. cuafrbap.
3. cua&t>ap.
There is another form of the past tense of this
verb used after the particles 50, nf, &c., which
O'Donovan classes as a subjunctive mood. The
negative nf , which aspirates, is here prefixed : after
50, the initial would be eclipsed.
1. nf oeacap 1. nl oeacamap.
2. m Deacuip. 2. nf Oeacabap.
3. nf oeacaiO pe\ 3. nf oeacaOap.
First Person Singular.]
Consuet Past :
Future :
Conditional
Mood :
c6i&inn.
pacpaO orpa6ab.
pacpainn or pacamn.
"\ With the
1 usual tormina-
i-tions for the
other persons
) and numbers.
Infinitive
; ; t)0 &ul. Participle ; 05 oul.
(14.) ci5im, I come.
Imperative Mood.
Singular.
Plural.
1,
2.
3.
• • •
cap or C15
cigeao pe.
1.
2.
3.
cfsimfp or cigeam
C151&.
cioiofp.
IlNDICATIVE MOOD
Present Tense.
1.
2.
3.
cisim.
C151P.
C15P6
1.
2.
3.
cisimfb.
CI5IO.
84 ETYMOLOGY. [PART II.
Past Tense.
1. bdn^cip. 1. cdngamap.
2. cdngaip. 2. cdnsabap.
3. cdinicp6. 3. cdnsabap.
First Person Singular
Consuet Past cisinn.
Future: ciocpab. With the usual termi-
v nations for the other
Conditional ciocpainn persons and numbers.
Mood : J
Infinitive ; bo eea6c. Participle ; 05 ceacc.
OTHKR DEPECTITE VERBS.
1. The folio-wing defective verbs are often met
with in the modern language.
Gip or op, " says." It is used only in the third
person, much like the English defective verb quoth ;
as, aip p6, says he : cpeub 00 beunpaip bam ? ap
t)iapmaiO: "'What wilt thou do for me?' says
Diarmaid ;" b6an e6lup oflinn map a b-puil p6, ap
pi at>, " ' give knowledge to us where he is,' said
they (or say they)." In the older writings this verb
is often written ol.
Gc bac, he (or she) died.
Oap, it seems, it seemed, or it might seem (ac-
cording to the tense or mood of the verb with which
it is connected). Dap liom, methinks or me-
thought ; bap leac it seems or seemed to thee ;
and so on with the rest of these prepositional pro-
nouns singular and plural : t)o pic p6, bap liom,
map an jaoic, he ran, methought (or it seemed
t0 me) like the wind.
Dligceap, it is lawful, it is allowed.
CHAP. IV.] ADVERBS. 85
Oup, to know; camicpe' Oup an paibpiaOann.he
came (in order) to know whether they were there.
peaoap, I know; used only negatively and in-
terrogatively, and in the present tense : nf peaoap
m6, I do not know ; nf peaoap p6, he does not
know; an b-peaopabap ? do ye know?
Nf puldip, it is necessary (or " must," used im-
personally) ; nf puldip 6am abeic aip puibal, "it is
necessary for me to be (or I must be"* walking
(away)."
CHAPTEE VI.
ADVERBS, PREPOSITIONS, CONJUNCTIONS,
INTERJECTIONS.
I. ADVERBS.
1. There are not many simple adverbs in the
Irish language. Par the greatest number of the
Irish adverbs are compounds of two or more words.
2. An adverb may be formed from an adjective
by prefixing the particle 50, which in this applica-
tion has the same effect as the English postfix ly ;
as bopb, fierce ; 50 bopb, fiercely. Almost all
Irish adjectives admit of being changed in this
manner to adverbs.
8. Besides the adverbs formed in this way, there
are many compound adverbs, which are generally
made up of a noun and a preposition ; the prepo-
sition often causing an ecHpsis.
4. The following is an alphabetical list of the
compound adverbs in most general use, with a few
of the simple adverbs. Some of the compound
adverbs become, in some situations, prepositions : —
Q b-pat>, far off, in space or Q t>-cora6, at first, in the
time. beginning.
Obup, on this side. (See O O-cuatD, northwards.
call.) a 5-ceat>6ip, immediately.
86
ETYMOLOGY.
[PAUT II.
5-06111, far off.
5-coihnui6c, always.
Q5 pm, there.
G5 po, here.
G5 r^t), yonder.
Clip cup, back, backward.
(See ciip 615111.)
Qip bull, on the spot, in-
stantly.
Gip bic, at all.
Qip bun, on foundation:
cup cup bun, to found,
to institute.
Qip ceana, in like manner;
in general.
Gip coi&ce, for ever.
Gip 615111, with difficulty;
perforce: — cup cup no cup
615m, by consent or by
force : nolens volcns; willy
nil ly.
Gip 5-cul, backwards, hack :
cup cup 5-cul — the op-
posite to cup cup bun — to
put back, to abolish.
Gip leic, apart, separately.
Gip iho6, 111 a manner; so
that.
Gip pon, for tbe sake of.
Gip uaipib, at times; some-
times.
Gniac, out of, outside.
Gihciin, alone, only.
Gmdpac, to-morrow.
Ginuio", outside.
Qihuil, like, as.
Gn dipbe, on high.
Gn6, yesterday.
Gnfop, from below, upwards.
Gnu einpecicc, together.
Gnn pin, there.
Gnn po, here.
Gnn put), yonder.
G nbectp, southward.
Gnaice, near.
Gncill, to tins side ; hither.
G 115(171, near.
Gnni, to-day.
Gnoip, now.
Gnonn, to that side ; thither.
Qn can, when.
Gnuap, from above, down-
wards.
Gp6ip, last night.
Gpiuih, ever.
Gpfp, again.
Gpcea6, in, into.
Gpcijj, in, inside.
t)eci5 nac, little but ; almost.
Cd li-ap, cat) ap, canap,
from what ? whence ?
Cd Tti6it>, how many ? bow
much ?
Cdic, cd h-dic, cm die,
what place ?
t)e bpig, because.
Do plop, always.
Gabon, that is; i.e.; id est.
pd, gives an adverbial mean-
ing to some words.
Pd c6at)6ip, immediately.
pd 6eoig, at last.
pd 66, twice.
Pd peac, by turns; respec-
tively.
Pa tp'f, thrice.
5o bpdc, for ever (lit. to
[the] judgment).
5o 6eiiiun, verily; truly;
indeed.
5o 6-ci, unto.
<5o p6il, yet; awhile.
<5o h-iomldn, altogether.
5o I6ip, entirely.
5o le6p, enough.
lomoppo, however, moro-
over, indeed.
lllciille pe, together with.
lllap an 5-c6a6na, likewise;
in like luanner.
CHAP. VI.]
PREPOSITIONS.
87
lV)cip aon le, together with. Suap, upwards.
No 50, until. Chall, on the other side; be*
O pom ale, from that time yond. (See Qbup.)
out. Ccmuill, awhile.
Op cionn, above. Cuille eile, besides; more-
Si'op, downwards. over.
Soip, eastwards.
II. PREPOSITIONS.
1. The following is a list of the simple preposi-
tions : —
O or 1, in ; as a mbaile, in
the town.
0, out of, or from (unusual) ;
as a lllurhain, out of
Munster.
O5 or aioi at. with.
dip, aj\, upon.
Qnn, in. This takes p before
the article. (See page 17.)
Gp, out of.
Chum, to or towards, for the
purpose of.
Dap, used in swearing, equi-
valent to by : bap mo bpia-
cap, " by my word."
Do, to. t)e, from, off, of.
6a0ap, the same as lOip.
Pd or paoi, under.
O an , without.
5o, towards, along with. It
takes p before the article
an ; as sup an D-ci§,to the
house.
1, the same as a.
lap, after. It takes p before
the article (an), and be-
comes iapp.
loip, between.
lm, the same as um.
Le or pe, with. It takes p
before the article (an), and
then becomes lei]' or pip.
Ill ap, like, as.
O, from.
Op, over, above.
Re, pia, before. It takes f
before the article (an).
Seac, beyond, besides.
Cap, over, across. It takes
p before the article f an),
and then becomes capp.
Gpe, through. It takes p
before the article, and then
becomes cpep.
Cptt), the same as cp6.
Um or 1m, about.
2. Some of the simple prepositions are amalga-
mated with the personal and possessive pronouns,
for which see pages 41, 45.
3. Besides the simple prepositions, there are in
Irish a number of compound prepositions. Each
of these consists of a simple preposition followed
by a noun ; and in many of them the initial of the
noun is eclipsed by the influence of the simple
88 ETYMOLOGY. |_PAKT II.
preposition. In some cases the preposition has
dropped out and only the noun remains.
4. The following is a list of the most usual
compound prepositions, with their meanings : —
Q b-piabnaipe, in presence of.
Q b-pocaip, with, along with.
Q b-caoib, in regard to, concerning.
a b-cimceall : see cimbeall,
a 5-ceann, at the head of, at the end of, with regard to.
G 5-coinne, against, for (in the phrase to go for) : piciD a
5-coinne a 66ile, "they run against each other:" Oo
Cuaio pe a 5-coinne a acap, he went for his father.
Q 5-COip, by the side of, hard by, along. This is often con-
tracted to coip: coip na bplgOe, "beside the (river)
Bride."
a h-aicle, after : a h-aicle na laoibe pm, " after that lay."
Clmearo> amongst : pfop ameapg na 5-coillceaO, " down
amongst the woods."
Q Idcaip. in presence of.
Qip agaib, forward, over against, opposite: Out aip agaib,
to go forward, to progress: aip agaib na gaoice, oppo-
site (exposed to) the wind.
Qip bealaib, in front of, opposite: bo luigbfp bo jndc
a n-iombaib ap bealaib a n-acap, "they used to lie,
customarily, in beds opposite their father" (Children of
Lir).
Qip bun, on foundation.
Qip beann, for (in the phrase to go for); as a Oubaipc
Naipe le h-Opbdn but aip 6enn Pepguip, "Naisi said
to Ardan to go for Fergus.''
Qtp peab, through, throughout, during: aip peab bliabna,
" during a year."
Qip put), thoughout, amongst aip pub na b-conn, amongst
the waves.
Qip 5-cul, behind.
Oip pon, for the sake of, although.
Q n-biaib, after : a n-biaib a 66Ue, after one another, one
after another.
Coip, contracted from a 5-coip.
Odla, as to : Ortla bldnaibe, " as to Blanaid."
O'eip, after: O'eip na Oflinne, " after the deluge."
0'ionnpaigib or o'lonnpaige, towards: sluaipeap p6ime
b'lonnpaise alumse, "he goes forward towards his ship. '
CHAP. VI.] CONTTTNOTIOlCfl. 89
Oo6um, towards.
Do peip, according to.
5o nuige, unto, until.
go t)-cf , to, unto, as far as : piubail 50 b-cf an bopup,
walk to the door,
omtupa, as to: lomctipa phmn, "as to Finn."
-d cuaipim, towards.
^dirh le or Idirh pe, near, by, beside: puib Idim bom, sit
near me ; Idirh pe beannaib boipce, "beside Beanna
Boircbe."
Op cionn, over, above: 5r a ^> ul 5 Dia 6p cionn 506 uile
nio, "love God above all things : " po eipig op cionn an
gaoi, " he rose over the spear."
1 5-cionn, the same as a 5-ceann : 1 5-cionn na bliaona,
" at the end of the year."
Cap Ceann, besides, for the sake of, beyond, in preference to.
Cap aip, backwards ; same as aip aip.
Cap eip, after; the same as oeip: cap eip na Sariina,
" after the Samhain (1st of November)."
Cimceall, about, around : ceacc cur.ceall Ohiapmaba,
" to go around Dermat."
Op coriiaip, in presence of, before the face of: 6p coriiaip
phinn, " in presence of Finn."
III. CONJUNCTIONS.
1. There are few simple conjunctions in the
Irish language.
2. There are, however, many compound con-
junctions, much like the English conjunctional
phrases, "for the reason that," " to the end that,"
&c.
3. Generally speaking, the meanings of the
compound conjunctions may be easily gathered
from the signification of the words that compose
them ; but there are a few whose meanings are
not so plain.
4. The following is a list of the simple con-
junctions with their meanings, together with those
of the compound conjunctions whose meanin
are not quite obvious.
90
ETYMOLOGY.
[past n.
G6e, but, except.
Gcc Ceona, but however.
QguT, and ; often contracted
to a'p. a?> and 'p.
Giji on aobap pin, where-
to re.
Gn, an interrogative parti-
cle: an 5-puilpf pldn ? la
she well ?
Gp, the same a3 the last,
only used with tho past
tense. See. p. 5S.
bfoO, although : it is really
the third singular impera-
tive of the verb cdim.
Cf&: see 5I6.
C6m, as.
t>d, if: sometimes written
bd mo.
Do bpig, because.
Do cum 50, in order that.
P6p, yet, moreover.
5i& o\- giOeaO, although.
§0, that.
5onat> aipe pin, wherefore.
5up, that: formed of the
preceding and po : seep. 58.
lond, md : see nd.
Ion imp 50, in order that, 80
that.
Hid, if.
Hid cd 50, although that,
lllap, as: 6ee muna.
llluno, if not, unless; often
written mup, and even
(corruptly) map.
fflaipeaft, if so. well then,
lllap pin, map po, in that
manner, in this manner:
thus.
Md, than : seeiond.
Md, nor, not.
M6, or : often pronounced nfi
in Minister.
O, since, seeing that, because.
O cdpto, since, whereas.
Oip, because.
Sut, before.
Uime pin, therefore, where-
fore.
IV. INTERJECTIONS.
1. The following is a list of the most common
interjections. Besides these there are many inter-
jectional expressions somewhat like the English,
" shame !" "Alack ! and well-a-day !" but it ia
not necessary to enumerate them : —
G, the sign of tne vocative
case, usually translated O.
Gp cpuug. alas ! what pity !
Gipc, hush ! list !
papaop, papaoip, alas!
papaoip geup, alas! O
sharp sorrow !
P6a6, see ! behold !
lTlaips, woe I O sad I
111 on dip e, O shame
lTlonuap, alas! woe is met
lllo epilog : see ap cpuag.
06, uc, alas!
066n, or uC6n, alas ! written
o6dn or u6dn in old writ-
ings.
Olagdn, alas I
CHAP, vn.] VBEEIXES and affixes. 91
CHAPTEK VII.
PKEFIXES AND AFFIXES.
1. There are in Irish, as in other languages,
prefixes and affixes, which modify the meanings of
words.
I. PREFIXES.
1. The following is a list of the principal pre-
fixes with their meanings : it will be observed that
many of them have a double form, which arises
from conformity to the rule caol le caol &c.
2. Most of these are inseparable particles ; but
a few are also employed independently as separate
words.
Gip or eip, back or again, like English re: as ioc, pny-
ment; aipioc, repayment, restitution: eipje, rising; eipeipge
resurrection.
Qrh or curt), a negative particle, like English tin: as peiD,
open, clear ; auiipei&, difficult, rough.
Gn, an intensitive particle : as luacgdipeac, joyful ; as an-
luacjjdipeac, overjoyed.
Gn or ain, a negative particle, like English tin: as cpdc
time; cmcpd6, untimely: mtan, desire; amrhian, evil de-
sire.
Qc, a reiterative, like English re: aspd&, a saying ; acpdtv
a repetition.
Qc has sometimes the meaning of English dis in dismantle:
ascuma, a form; ac6uma&, to deform, to destroy ; piogaD,
to crown or elect a king ; aicpiogaft, to dethrone.
ban, feminine (from bean, a woman) ; aseacla6, a mes-
senger; ban-eaclac or bam-eaclac, a female messenger.
Die or bioc, lasting, constant: as bed, living; bic&«6,
everlasting.
92 BTYMOLOGY. [PAET II.
C6th, equal : English co or con : as aimp cap, time ; c6rii-
aimpeapac, contemporary.
Oeaj;, beig, good : as blap, taste ; beajblap, good or
pleasant taste.
Df, bfo, a negative, like English dis: as ceillibe, wise ; bT-
ceillioe, foolish: ceann, ahead; bfceannab, to behead.
Dpo6, bpoic, bad or evil : as obaip, a work ; bpoc-obaip
an evil work.
Do and po are opposites, as are also of ten the letters b and p.
Do denotes difficulty, or ill, or the absence of some good or posi-
tive quality: as puicpeanae or popaicpeanab, visible; bo-
paicpeanac, invisible: boldp, tribulation; p6ldp, comfort:
bonap, ill luck; ponap, good luck: bo-beunca, hard to be
done; po-beunca, easy to be done: bubuO, sad; puba6,
merry.
ea, a negative, often causing eclipsis : as bainsean, strong ;
eabainsean, weak : coip, just; easc6ip, injustice: cpoin,
heavy ; eabcpom, light.
eap, a negative : as on6ip, honour ; eapon6ip, dishonour:
pldn, healthful ; eapldn, sick: caipbeap, friendship; eap-
caipbeap, enmity.
po, under : as buine, a man ; pobuine, an tmder-man, a
common man, a servant.
Ppic, against, back, contra : as buille, a stroke ; ppicbuil-
le, a back stroke : bac, a hook ; ppiocbac, a back-hook, a barb.
11, 10I, many: as lomab, much ; lliomab, sundry, various :
bac, a colour ; lolbacac, many coloured: paobap, an edge ;
lOlpaobaip, many-edged weapons.
In, ion, fit: as beunca, done; mbeunca, fit to be done:
paibce, said ; lonpaibce, fit to be said.
Ldn, full, used as an intensitive: as aibbeil, vast ; Idnaib-
beil, awfully vast.
heat, half: as uaip, an hour; leacuaip, half an hour.
This word is also used to denote one of a pair: thus puil, an
eye; leac-puil (literally half an eye), one of two eyes. See
" Idiom, No. 13."
Tllf, mto, a negative: as m eap, respect; mfrheap, disres-
pect: c6maiplc, advice ; miocditiai pie, evil advice.
Neam, neirii, a negative : as coimpigce, comprehensible ;
necnftcoimpi5ce, incomprehensible: nib, a thing; neirii-
nib, nothing.
Reurii. before, like English pre: as paibce, said; peuiii
paibce, aforesaid.
TCo, an intensitive particle: as ni6p, great; p6-rh6p, very
grea*-
CHAP. Vn.J PREFIXES AND AFFIXES. 99
Sdp, an intensitive particle: as mai6, good; pdp-rhaic,
»ery good.
So, poi, the opposite to bo, denotes apt, easy, good
as beapbca, proved ; poibeapbca, easily proved.
Up ortiip, an intensitive particle: as tpeal, low; tnpfpeal,
very low, bumble, mean, vile.
II. AFFIXES OR TERMINATIONS.*
1. The following is a list of the principal affixes
or terminations, with their meanings ; but it does
not include inflectional terminations, which are all
given in connection with declensions and con-
jugations.
Q6, when it is the termination of an adjective, means full
of, abounding in, like the English y and ous, with the former
of which it seems cognate; as bpaigeon, the black-thorn ;
bpai^eanac, abounding in black-thorn: bpiacap, a word;
bpiacpa6, wordy, talkative.
Go, as the termination of a noun, generally denotes a per-
sonal agent; as cuihacb, power: ctimacbac, a mighty per-
son : Connacca6, a native of Connaught.
G6c, an abstract termination, like the English ness and ty
(in probity) : as capcanac, charitable ; capcana6c, charity:
m6p and mopba, great; mopbaco, greatness.
GiSe, uibe, or l&e, a personal termination, denoting a doer;
as cop. a foot ; coipiGe, a walker : ciomdn, drive ; ciomdn-
di&e, a driver.
Qipe or ipe, a personal termination, denoting an agent or
doer; aslopft, a track; lopgcupe, a tracker: cealg, guile;
ceal^aipe, a deceiver.
Grhail has the same meaning as the English like and ly: as
pldic, a prince ; plaiceattif.il, princely.
Gn, a diminutive termination, but it has now nearly lost its
diminutive sense ; as lo6 a lake ; loodn, a small lake.
Gp or eap, and sometimes the letter p alone, a termination
denoting abstract quality, like ace ; as aoibllin, delightful ;
* For a full account of these terminations see the author's
" Or igin and History of Irish Names of Places." Second,
series, Chaps. I. and II.
94 ETYMOLOGY. (_PART II.
aoibneap, dclightfulness or delight: ceann, a head ; cean-
nap, headship, authority.
bhayi and bpe have a collective or cumulative sense; as
buille, a leaf; buillcabap, foliage: baip, anoakjbaipbpe,
a place of oaks.
Chop has a collective sense like the last ; as becmn, a peak
or gable ; beunneap. abounding in peaks or gables.
Oe, an ancient adjectival termination, has much the same
meaning as the English fid and ly (in manly). In the
modern language it is varied to the forms ba, ha, and ca ; as
mop, groat; m6p&ci, majestic: pecip, a man; peapba,
manly: mile, a champion; mileabca, champion-like,
knightly.
C denotes abstract quality, like abo ; as pirm, fair or
white; pinnc, fairness : bo^, soft; bvnjjc, softness.
In, a diminutive termination. This may be said to bo the
Smly diminutive that still retains its full force in the living
language ; and it is much used in Ireland even where Irish is
not spoken. bbcap, a road ; botaipfn (bohcrcen), a little
road : crush, a pituher ; cruiskcen, a little pitcher.
tab, nac, pac, cab, opab, have all the same meaning as ab,
namely, full of, abounding in ; as bpip, break ; bpipleab, a
breach, a complete defeat : muc, apig; muclab, a piggery :
luacaip, rushes; luacapnab, a rushy place : bo5, a bog or
soft place; bospcic, a place full of bogs: colli, a wood ;
coillceac, a woody place. These seem to be cognate with the
terminations in the English words poultry, varie-ty, &c.
Ill hap means abounding in, like the English fid and ly ;
as bpig, power ; bpiogiiiop, powerful.
O5, a diminutive termination; as cfap, black; CfapOfr", a
black little animal (a clock) : gabal, a fork; gabalbj}, a little
fork.
Oip,orboip, orcoip, denotes an agent or doer, the same
as the English er in reaper; as buail, strike; buailcebip,
thresher: coinneal, a candle; comnlebip, a candlestick
ppeal, a scythe ; ppealab6ip, a mower.
Vie has a collective signification, like bap ; as beul, the
mouth ; belpe, language, speech.
Sectb is used as a sort of feminine termination ; ns fiCtll,
an Englishman ; jjaillpeab, an Englishwoman: binpcab, a
female fool (from an old root 6n, whence the old word 6n
Tnic, a Tool, the equivalent of the modern amabdn).
Cab and cpab : see lab.
CHAP. l.~[ K0TJW8. 95
PART III.
SYNTAX.*
CHAPTER I.
NOUNS.
1. When two nouns come together signifying
different things, the second one is in the genitive
case; as 5116 ^ac-aip, the voice of a hound;
1 b-plaiciop Gpeann, "in the sovereignty of
Erin ;" bdpp nah-mpe, the top of the island.
The noun in the genitive always follows the noun that
governs it.
2. When the genitive noun is singular mascu-
line, its initial is aspirated if the article is used ;
as mac an pip, the son of the man. (See pages
17, 18, for this rule and its exceptions).
3. When the article is not used with the
governed noun in the singular number, the initial
of the latter is generally not aspirated (except in
the case mentioned in next Rule) ; as Con all
1 5-cpocaib bdip, "Conall in the forms 0/ death;"
a n-Ooldp bp6me a'p peme, "in the sorrow of
bondage andq/'^am."
* Several of the rules of Syntax have been unavoidably
anticipated in Orthography and Etymology, as they are in
every Irish Grammar. These rules will be referred to in
their proper places in this Syntax, or repeated when thought
necessary.
96 syntax. [part in.
4. When the noun in the genitive is a proper
name, its initial is generally aspirated, even
though the articlo is not used; as pliocc 5' 1a01D, ^>
" the race of Gaodhal ;" cloioeaiii TTIhanannain,
"the sword of Manannan."
Exception : — In this case, and c often resist aspiration
(p. 34) ; as Gipe lngean Dealbaoic, " Eire, the daughter of
Dealbhaoth."
5. If the governed noun be in the genitive
plural, its initial is eclipsed with the article,
(for which seepage 18); and the initial is generally
aspirated, if the articlo is not used ; as Daingen
mac n-Uipneac, " the fortress of [the] sons of
Usna;" buioean cupao, "acompany of knights;"
biap ban, '"two women" (or rather "a pair of
women").
Even in the absence of the article however, an eclipsis
sometimes occurs; as naoi naonbap bo bf 05 ceacc
b'lappaib cfopa agup cdna b-peap n-Cipionn, " nine times
nine persons who were coming to demand the taxes and
tributes of the men of Erin."
Sometimes also, in the absence of the article, the noun in
the genitive plural is neither aspirated nor eclipsed.
6. When two nouns come together signifying
the same thing (or in apposition), they generally
agree in case; as "Nua&a QipjioOldiii mac
6accaig mic Gaoaplairii, " Nuadha Silver-hand,
son of Eachtach, son of Eadarlamh;" na o-cpf
b-pmneariina, mac Gocaio, "of the three Fin-
navnas, sons of Eochad."
Here, in the first example, Nuaba is nominative, and so is
mac, which is in apposition to it ; Gaccaio" is genitive, and
so is the next word, mic, which is in apposition to it. In
the second example, pinnearima is in the genitive (plural),
and mac also, in opposition to it, is in the genitive (plural).
For exceptions to this Eule, see " Idioms," No. 33, p. 129.
See also next rule.
7. The last rule is not always observed:
departures from it are .sometimes found, even in
good Irish writings j as, pdinni&ebui&e opoamap
chap. i.J nouns. 97
bioeaoap TTlhdipe, bean Sheagam an pfgeabdpa,
" yellow gold rings as used- to-be on Mary, wife of
John (the son of) the weaver ;" cainic nig Chiap-
nuioeluacna b'piopa coih&alca, eaoon,Cian mac
Oiliolla, "the King of Kerry-Luachra came to
visit his foster-son, that is, Cian, the son of
Oilioll : bo cpiall (Opcap) a 5-coinne lnheapsaig
vhipe, an cp6an leorhan " Oscar went to meet
the furious Meargach, the strong lion."
The first example exhibits a disagreement in case between
lYIhdipe and bean, which are in apposition, the former being
dative (after ap), the latter nominative (its dative would be
mnaoi, p. 29). In the second example corhocilca is geni-
tive (after the infinitive, Rule 15, p. 11*2), and Cian, in ap-
position to it, is nominative (its genitive would be C6in). In
the last example lllheapgaig is genitive, and leorhun, in
apposition to it, is nominative. This last example however,
Beemg properly to belong to a class of exceptions to Rule 7
which are explained further on ("Idioms :" No. 33, page 129).
8. A noun used adjectively in English is com-
monly expressed in Irish by a genitive case ; as
English, "a gold ring," Irish, pdinne dip, a ring
of gold. This form of expression is very common
in Irish; as peap bilge, a lawyer ; literally " a
man of law."
9. Collective nouns are singular in form, and as
such they take the singular form of the article
(when the article is used) ; but they are plural iu
signification, and as such they generally take ad-
jectives and pronouns in the plural number, and
also verbs in the plural, when, in accordance with
Par. 9, p. 50, the plural form of the verb is
used; as, noccuio an puipeann pin, " that com-
pany disclose ;" cangabup an buioean cupao
pm bo lacaip phinn, agup bo beannuig piab
bo, " that company of knights came to the presence
of Finn, and they saluted him."
The personal nouns from biap to Oeicneabap, mentioned
at page 39, follow this rule : as t>o baOap an Oiap pm 50
h-impeapnac, "that pair were at strife."
98 SYNTAX. [PART HI.
10. Nouns denoting a part commonly take be
with the dative of the nouns (or pronouns)
of which they form a part ; as gabap b'dp
njabapaib, " a hound of our hounds;" aon caop
biob, "one berry of them;" 50c buine be'n
pobul, " each person of the people."
11. The personal nouns from biap to oeicneabap
inclusive (p. 39,) and also ce6pa, three, generally
govern nouns in the genitive plural; as biap
ban, "two (of) women;" a cpitip mac asup a
b-cpiup ban, "his three sons and their three
wives;" ce6pa ban, "three women;" naonbap
caoipeac, " nine chieftains."
But they sometimes take be with the dative as in tast
rule; as naoi nuonbap Oo maopaib na b-p6rhopa6,
"nine times nine of the stewards of the Fomorians:" mo
bfp mac, mo Dtp b'peapaib, "my two sons, my two men."
CHAPTEE II.
THE ARTICLE AND NOUN.
1. The article agrees with its noun in number,
gender, and caso ; as an peap,the man; na cipce,
of the hen ; na ba, the cows.
2. For the influence of the article on the noun, see p. 17-
3. When one noun governs another in the geni-
tivo, the article can bo used only with the latter.
Thus, in English we can say "the age of the
world" (using the definite article with each noun) ;
but in Irish, tho corresponding expression is, aoip
an t>oiiiain, not, an aoip an boiham.
Exception : — When a demonstrative pronoun follows tho
governing noun, or when the two nouns come together as a
compound word, the governing; noun may take the article ;
a s an c-oibe muince, the teacher ; md Oo beip cu an
ipeao pin bumn 'p Qn 1° r° na n-be6p, "if thougivest
CHAP, n.] THE ARTICLE AND NOUN. 99
bo much to us in this day of tears." Here the article is used
before both 16 and Oe6p. Ccinftabap api'r 1 n-dpmn an
plioco po Shimeon bhpic, " these descendants of Simon
Brec came again into Erin:" here the article is used beforo
pliocc, the governing noun.
4. When a possessive pronoun is used with the
genitive noun, the article cannot be used -with
either; thus, " the house of my father" is ceac
m'acap, not an ceac m'acap.
Tbe peculiarity noticed in the last two rules exists also in
English when the possessive case is used, i.e., the article can
be used only with the possessive noun ; as the world's age ;
my father's house.
5. When a demonstrative pronoun is used with
a noun, the article is also used; as an peap pin,
that man, literally " the man that ;" na nmd Uu,
yonder women : literally " the women yonder."
6. The article is used before the names of some
countries and cities, where the definite article
would not be used in English ; as Tlloenan, abb
Cacpac puppa lpin ppainc, beug, "Moenan,
abbot of Caher Fursa, in (the) France, died ;"
Cpuaca na b-Gipeann, " the stacks of (the)
Erin;" cuaipceapc nab-Qpia, "the north of (the)
Asia." There is in Irish also a form of phrase
corresponding to the English "the mighty
Hector;" as an c-Opcap d§, " the noble Oscar."
7. When an adjective is predicated of a noun by
the verb lp (in any of its forms), the article is
used with the noun (but in the corresponding ex-
pression in English the definite article would not
be used) ; as lp maic an peap 6, he is a good man :
literally " he is the good man."
9. The Irish article is used before abstract
nouns much more commonly than the English
definite article; as an c-ocpup, the hunger;
cpf mo t)o cfm : — an peacaO, an bdp, a'p an
pfan, "three things I see, the sin, the death, and
the pain."
100 SYNTAX. [PART III.
CHAPTER III.
THE ADJECTIVE AND NOUN.;,
1. Adjectives denoting fulness or a part of any-
thing may take either the dative after be or the
genitive; as (dative after be): — ibip bd bapaile
Idn be leann, "between two barrels full of ale ;"
cd me" Idn bo ndipe, "I am full of shame;"
m6pdn b'uaiplib, " many of nobles :" (genitive) : —
Idn a buipn, " the full of his fist ;" an paib m6pdn
aipgib aise, " had he much of money?" cpaob
bpaoigin agup a Idn dipneab uippe, "a branch
of blackthorn and its full of sloes on it."
2. The adjective in the comparative degree
takes nd (or ind or lond) before the noun which
follows it; as lp binne a ceol nd Ion '\>r\d pm6l,
" sweeter is her voice (music) than the blackbird
and than the thrush."
Exception : — If the adjective in the comparative degree
has be (" of it ") after it (see Idiom 39, p. 132), then nd is not
used ; as nac bu peippbe ooib e, " that they would be none
the better of it."
AGREEMENT AND COLLOCATION OF THB
ADJECTIVE AND NOUN.
First Case : "When the adjective is joined im-
mediately with the noun.
Wben the adjective is joined immediately with the
noun as a qualifying or limiting term (as in the
English " a high tower"), in this case the following
ten rules apply.
1. The natural position of the adjective is after
its noun ; as cublac m6p, " a great fleet."
The chief exceptions to this are stated in the next two
rules.
OHAP. III.] THE ADJECTIVE AND NOUN. 101
2. Monosyllabic adjectives are often placed
before their nouns ; as caol-peap, " slender man ;"
m6p paipp^e, "great sea ;" bub-cappaij,
"black rock."
3. This is especially the case with the following
adjectives, some of which are hardly ever used
after their nouns : beag, good; bpoc, evil; pfop,
true; nuao, new; peon, old; cuac, left-handed.
Numeral adjectives form another exception, for which see
next chapter.
4. When a name consists of two words, the
adjective comes between them ; as Slmb abbal-
mop Luacpa, "the tremendous-large Slieve
Lougher;" Garhuin rhfn dluinn TTlaca, "the
6mooth beautiful Eman Macha."
5. When the adjective follows its noun, it
agrees with it in gender, number, and case ; as
peap maic, a good man; pg^ul na mnd m6ipe,
"the story of the large woman" (gen. sing,
fern.); ap an aibbeip lonsancaig, "on the
wonderful abyss" (dat. sing. fern.).
6. When the adjective follows its noun, the
initial of the adjective is aspirated under the cir-
cumstances already stated in Par. 6, page 10 ; or
eclipsed in the circumstance stated in Par. 3,
page 34.
7. When two or more nouns are joined together,
and are followed by an adjective which qualifies or
limits them, all and each, the adjective agrees
with the last: in other words, it is the last noun
only that influences the adjective both in gram-
matical inflection, and in initial change ; as bean
agup peap maic, a good woman and man; peap
asup bean rhaic, a good man and woman.
8. When the adjective precedes the noun, as in
Pules 2 and 3, above, it does not agree with
the noun, i.e., it is not influenced by the noun,
102 SYNTAX. [PARI IIL
either as to inflection, or as to initial change ; in
other words, the simple form of the adjective is
xised, whatevor be the number, gender, or case of
the noun; as m6p uaiple, "great nobles;" bo
riiop uaiplib, "to [the] great nobles ; " bdn cnoic
Gipeann, "the fair hills of Erin;" luac bapca,
swift barks; pfop pseul, "a true story;" pfop
P5eulca, "true stories."
9. When the adjective precedes the noun, the
adjective and the noun are sometimes regarded as
one compound word ; and the initial of the
noun is aspirated (in accordance with Par. 4,
page 10) : also the vowel of the adjective is
often modified by the rule caol le caol &c. ; as
t)eipt>pe an Ouib-pleibe, "Deirdre of Dubh-
Shliabh ; " 615-bean, a young woman.
10. When the adjective precedes the noun, the
initial of the adjective is subject to the same
changes as if the adjective and the noun formed
one word, i.e., one noun; as jdipe no n-615-peap,
"the laughter of the young men;" an c-dpD-
ollarii pin, " that chief professor ;" an c-pean-
bean bocc, " the poor old woman."
Second Case : When the adjective is connected
with the noun by a verb.
When the adjective, instead of being joined imme-
diately with the noun, is predicated of, or ascribed to,
the noun by a verb of any kind (as in the Knglish,
"the man is tall," "ho considered the man tall," " he
made the knife sharp," " the roads were made straight"),
in this case, the following three rules apply.
1. When an adjective is predicated of a noun
by the verb cd, it follows the noun, the order
being : — verb, noun, adjective ; as cd an Id bpedg,
the day is fine.
2. When an adjective is predicated of a noun
CHAP. III.] THE ADJECTIVE AND NOTTN. 103
by the verb ip, it precedes tbe noun, the order
being: — verb, adj ective, noun ; as lp bpedg an
Id 6, it is a fine day.
3. When an adjective is ascribed to a noun by
a verb of any kind, the adj ective does not agree
with the noun, i.e., the adjective is not influenced
by it, either initially or inflectionally ; in other
■words, the simple form of the adjective, without
inflection, is used, whatever be the number or
gender of the noun ; and the initial of the adjec-
tive is neither aspirated nor eclipsed (unless under
the influence of some other word), as ip aibinn oo
cuain acap Do calapuipc acap t»o rhagamfnpcoc-
aca caetiidilne, " delightful are thy harbours,
and thy bays, and thy flowery lovely plains :"
o^up cpoicne p6iceao ap na n-oacugao oeapg,
" and rams' skins dj^ed red." — (Exodus, xxv. 5).
The first example (from the story of tbe Children of Usna),
exhibits both an agreement according to Rule 5, page 101, and
a disagreement according to the present rule. For the three
liouns are plural, and the two last adjectives which qualify
them directly are in the plural form, while the first adjective
Gibinn (modern aoibinn) which is asserted of them by lp, is
in its simple form (the plural would be aibinne or aibne).
In the second example cpoicne is plural, while Oeapg is
singular (plural Oeapftd).
Observe the difference in meaning in the following, accord-
ing to agreement or disagreement: — Do pigne pe na bpaic
glapa ; Oo pio'ne T 6 na bpaic slap: i Q tlie fil ' st th . e aa J e °-
tive agrees with the noun, (both being plural), showing that
it qualifies it directly (Rule 5, p. 101 ) and that the meaning is,
" he made tbe green mantles ;" in the second there is no
agreement, (the adjective being singular and the noun plural),
showing that the adjective is connected with the noun by
the verb (Rule 3 above), and that the meaning is, " be
made the mantles green."
104 SYNTAX. [PART III.
CHAPTEE IV.
NUMEEAL ADJECTIVES.
1. A numeral adjective, whether cardinal or
ordinal, when it consists of one word, goes before
its noun ; as cpf pip, three men ; pan bapa h-dic,
" in the second place."
.2 Numeral adjectives, both cardinal and ordi-
nal, from 11 to 19 inclusive, take their nouns
between the simple numeral and 0605 ; as cpf
capaill 0605, thirteen horses ; an cpeap capall
bea^, the thirteenth horse.
3. Qon, one; od, two; ceab, first; and cpeap,
third, cause aspiration ; as aon peap, one man ; od
Tii n a 01, two women ; an cpeap peace, "the third
occasion."
4. The numerals peace, occ, naoi, and t»ei6,
cause eclipsis (except the noun begins with p, in
which case there is no change), as peace m-bliao-
na, "seven years;" occ m-ba, "eight cows;"
naoi n-aibne, "nine rivers;" beic b-pip, "ten
men."
5. The numerals cpf, ceicpe, CU15, pe, the or-
dinals (except 66ao and cpeap : Kule 3 above),
and the multiples of ten, cause no initial change ;
as ceicpe gaoaip, "four hounds."
6. Qon, one, and all the multiples of ten, take
their nouns in tho singular number; as aon Id,
one day; ceao ceann, a hundred heads (lit. "a
hundred head," just as we say " a hundred head
of cattle") ; cpf caogab laoc, "three times fifty
heroes ;" Trifle bean, " a thousand women."
CHAP. V.] THE PRONOUN. 105
7. t)d, two, takes both the article and the noun
in the singular number ; and if the noun be
feminine, it will be in the dative form ; as Dd
peap, two men ; an t>d Idnii, the two hands. (See
next two rules).
8. If the noun following t>d be in the genitive,
it will be in the genitive plural ; as Idn a 6d Idrii,
" the full of his two hands."
9. Although t>d takes the article and noun in
the singular, yet the adjectives and pronouns
referring to the noun will be in the plural, and
the noun may also take a plural verb ; as oo
gluaipeoOap an bd cpemiiifleafr pin, "these two
strong heroes went;" po gab a 6d pleag cp6-
paippinge cpann-peaiiipa ap na b-pocpugao a
b-puil nacpac neuhe, "he took his two wide-
socketed thick-handled spears, they having been
bathed in the blood of serpents." Here the two
adjectives and the pronoun referring to pleag,
are plural.
CHAPTEE V.
THE PRONOUN.
I. PERSONAL PRONOUNS.
1. Personal pronouns agree with the nouns
Ihey represent, in gender, number, and person ;
as lp maic an bean f, she is a good woman ; lp
maic an peap 6, he is a good man; lp mop na
t)aome iao, they are great men.
2. A personal pronoun, or a possessive pronoun,
which stands for a sentence or part of a sentence, is
8
106 SYNTAX. [PART III.
third person singular masculine ; as bd m-be'iofp
pip Gipecmn an l>ap n-a$ai&, nac bu peippoe
bdib 6, " ii' the men of Erin wore against you,
they would not be the better of #/' (here the
pronoun 6 stands for the sentence).
3. The accusative forms of the personal pro-
nouns are often used as nominatives : always Trith
ip(see Rule 18, p. 113), and with passive verbs (see
Rule 20, p. 113) ; and sometimes with other verbs;
as mdp maic no leaga pib, ap 6ipton, u 'if ye are
the good physicians,' says he."
II. POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS.
1. A possessive pronoun is never used without
a noun.
In English there are distinct forms of the possessive pro-
nouns which can stand without nouns (mine, thine, hers, &c),
but there are no forms corresponding to these in Irish.
2. The possessive pronouns precede their
nouns; as mo mdccnp, my mother; a 5-capbao,
their chariot.
3. The possessives mo, my; bo, thy; and a,
his; aspirate the initials of their nouns; as mo
ceann, my head; bo cop, thy foot; a riieup, his
finger.
4. Tho possessive a, her, recpiires the initial of
its noun in its primitive state (neither aspirated
nor eclipsed), and if the initial be a vowel, it pre-
fixes h ; as a mdcaip, her mother; a h-acaip, her
father.
5. Tho possessives dp, our; bop, yoiir ; and
a, their ; eclipse the initial consonants of their
nouns (except p, on which they exert no in-
fluence), and prefix n to vowels ; as dp O-cfp, our
country; bap m-ba, your cows ; a n-acuin, their
father.
CHAP. V.J THE PRONOUN. 107
6. Possessive pronouns amalgamated with pre-
positions (see p. 45) have the same influence over
the initials of their nouns, as they have in their
uncompounded state ; as bom cpoi6e, to my heart ;
<5na b-cfp, from their country.
7. The manner of using the emphatic increase
after the possessive pronouns has been already
pointed out in Par. 3, page 45. For an additional
Eule of possessives, see Eule 2, page 105.
III. RELATIVE PRONOUNS.
1. The relative follows its antecedent and pre*
cedes its verb ; as an c6 a puibulpap, the person
who shall walk.
2. The relative aspirates the initial of its verb ;
as an iaoc a lftapb an c-acac, "the hero who
slew the giant." To this the next rule is an ex-
ception.
3. When the relative a signifies "all that"
(see p. 47) it eclipses the initial of its verb ; as a
b-puil 6 ^haillib bub beap, "all that is from
Galway southwards;" bo p6ip a n-bubpamap,
"according to ivhat we have said."
4. When the relative a is governed by a prepo-
sition, expressed or understood, and is followed
immediately by a verb to which it is not the
nominative, the initial of the verb (except p) is
eclipsed; as a pe" nib imoppa X)6 b-cdinic a Dap
" (the following) is the circumstance, indeed, from
which came his death;" an boio ma n-icibfp,
"the tent in which they used to eat;" a bubaipc
pionn 50 n-bionsnab (pfc) 51b b6 nop a n-biong-
r\at> Diapmaib f, " Finn said that he would make
(peace) in whatever manner Diarmaid would
make it" (here the preposition ann is understood:
108 SYNTAX. [PART III.
51& b6 n6p arm a n-bionsnab Oiapmaib f, what«
ever the manner in which Diarmaid would make
it.) (See next rule).
5. If, in the case stated in the last rule, the verb
is in the past tense, with the particle po or t>o, the
initial of tho verb is not eclipsed, but aspirated
(Pars. 1 and 4, p. 58,; asdic ap cuic OapaT)eap -,
"the place in which fell Dara Dearg."
6. The relative precedes the verb which governs
it in the accusative (as in English) ; as an cfp a
gpaouigim, tho country which I love.
7. As the relative has no inflection for case, the
construction must determine whether the relative
is the nominative to the verb which follows it,
or is governed by it in the accusative ; as an
capa a gpaouijjio me\ the friend whom I love ;
an capa a gpaouigeap m6, the friend who loves
me.
8. Tho relative is often omitted both in the
nominative and in the accusative ; as oglaoc 00
liiuinncip "Nfn line ]36il cainic uaio 00 bpac na
6ipionn, " a youth of the people of Nin Mac Peil
(who) came from him to view Erin." Gn leabap
po pcpiob(Canibpenpip) 00 cuapapgbaiieipionn,
" the book (which) Cambrensis wrote on the
history of Erin."
9. The relative a is often disguised by combina-
tion with other words and particles, especially
with po, the mark of the past tense; as an cfp op
cdmic me, "the country from which I came"
(here 6p = 6 a po) ; pldig lep mapbao not mile
Ofob, " a plague, by which were killed nine thou-
sand of them " (here 16p = le a po) ; an cfp t>d
t>-cdinic pe\ the country to which he came (od=
bo a); Id oap com6pao aonac le pig eipeann, "a
day on which was convoked an assembly by the
king of Erin" (oap=tx> apo) ; nf beag liompa ap
CHAP. V.] THE PRONOUN. 109
ploinneap p6in map eipic, "I do not think it little
■what I have named as an ot'c." (Gp=a po, in
which a means " all that :" Par. 3, page 47.)
IV. DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS.
1. The demonstrative pronouns follow their
nouns or pronouns ; as an peap pin, that man ;
cia h-e" pin ? who is that ?
Exception : — When tbe verb lp in any of its forms is under-
stood ; as pub bap 5-CU1O, " yonder (is) your meal;" po an
Id, this is the day.
2. If the noun he followed by one or more ad-
jectives, the demonstrative pronoun comes last;
as cia an peap ballac binnbpiacpac do? " Who
is that freckled sweet-worded man?"
V. INTERROGATIVE AND INDEFINITE PRONOUNS.
1. An interrogative pronoun comes first in the
sentence; as cd b-puil mo leabap ? where is my
book ? cia an laoc lio ap gualainn 5hoill ?
" who is that hero at the shoulder of Goll ?"
This rule holds good even when the interrogative is governed
by a preposition, i.e., ihe preposition follows the interrogative
that it governs ; as cat) ap cu ? cut of what (place art; thou ?
50 be map cd cu ? how do you do ? (literally " like to what
art thou?') cpeut) pd ap eip^eabap, " what for did ye
rise ?"
2. When u lie precedes its noun, it means "every;"
when it follows the noun it means " all;" as plan
6n uile galap, " sourid from every sickness ;" t>0
bacao an cine baona uile 50 n-aon occap, " all
the human race was drowned, all to (except) a
single eight."
There are occasional exceptions ; as opon5 ainbpiopad
ip na li-uiLe pubddcib, " people ignorant in alt virtues " (in
this passage from Keutuig, uile means " all" though it precedes
its noun).
110 SYNTAX. [PART III.
CHAPTER VI.
THE VERB.
1. As a general rulo the verb precedes its no-
minative; as t)0 gluaip Pepjup, " Fergus went ;"
t>o claoi&ead lilac ^appaifc, "Mac Garraidh was
defeated." (See next Rule.)
2. When the nominative is a relative or an in-
terrogative pronoun, it precedes the verb ; and
sometimes also in poetry, the nominative, even
though a noun, precedes the verb ; as an ce a
pinl>alpap, the person who will walk; cpeuo oxd
annpo ? what is here? T)e6paioce pfopa 5cm
P516 5011 pop mfanaio a o-cfp 'p a n-ouccap,
" perpetual exiles without pause or rest, long-for
their country and their native-home."
3. When the verb is transitive, i.e., when it
governs the accusative (see Rule 9, p. Ill), tho
usual order is verb, nominative, object ; as
tKMiigel Concobap bopac, "Conchobhar addressed
Borach ;" t>o lion 5pdihne an copn, " Grainne filled
the goblet."
4. But when the accusative is a relative or an
interrogative pronoun, the usual order is, pronoun
(or accusative), verb, nominative ; as an laoc a
conaipc me" ane, the hero whom I saw yesterday ;
cat) Oeip cu ? what sayest thou ?
5. When the verb cd is used, the usual order is,
verb, nominative, predicate; as edit) na peulca
po-lonnpac, the stars are very bright.
6. When the verb lp, expressed or understood,
is used, the usual order is, verb, predicate, nomina-
tive; asbabinnea sl6p nd ce6\iuar\-6\in, u hervoic$
CHAP. VL] THE VERB. Ill
was sicceter than the music of the birds :" nf paba
uaic an die, " not (is) far from thee the place."
Exception.— If the article is used before the predicate, or if
the predicate is a proper name, the order is, verb, subject,
predicate ; as lp cupa an cfp. po-aoibinn, "thou art the de-
lightful country;" lp me Cian mac Cdince, "I am Cian,
the son of Cainte:" an cu pionn ? " art thou Finn?"
7. The only cases in Avhich there is agreement
between the verb and its nominative, are ( 1 ) when
the nominative and verb are both third person
singular ; (2) when a noun or pronoun in third
plural has a verb in third plural, in accordance
with Par. 9, p. 50.
It may be doubted whether (1) is a genuine ease of agree-
ment ; and the general absence of agreement between verb
and nominative is further exemplified in the following rule.
8. When two or more nouns, whether singular
or plural, joined by a conjunction, are nominatives
to ODe verb, the verb has the third person singular
form; as Oo gluaip bpeap asup na opaoice
pompa, " Breas and the druids went forward."
9. A transitive verb governs the noun or pro-
noun which is the object of the action, in the ac-
cusative case; as buail e\ strike him; t>o cuipea-
t>a]} Cuaca De Oanann ceo Dpaoioeucca i n-a
b-cimceall pern, " the Tuatha de Dananns put a
magical mist around themselves."
10. The initial of a verb in the infinitive mood
is aspirated, unless the aspiration is prevented by
some special influence. For such an influence see
Par. 2, p. 60.
11. The preposition le or pe before the infini-
tive active often gives it a passive signification ;
as (leubaip eil.e) acd pe b-paicpin i n -Cipmn,
"(other books ; which are to be seen in Erin."
lint, in many such constructions the preposition expre-ses
purpose, and the signification is active; as a5iip 50 m -bit)
ollaiii peOfenuih pcille mp a CCile, "andtkittUey are rend/
to do treachery uueadi otlier."
112 SYNTAX. [PAKT III
12. The infinitive, even without the preposition
Le, has often a passive signification; aspiacpa
mac Gilene cigeapna "THugoopn bo liiapbab,
"Fiachra, son of Ailene, lord of Mourne, to be
slain" (lit. "Fiachra, &c, to slay") : agup an peap
nac ciobpao (an cfop) pin uaib, a pp6n Oo buuin
6na ceunn Oe, " and the man who would not pay
that tribute from him, his nose to be cut off from
his head."
13. One verb governs another that follows it or
depends upon it in the infinitive mood ; as ba
m-bab nac pacpao clanna llloipne o'lappuib na
5-caop pin, " if it were so that the Clann Morna
had not come to seek those berries."
The following very important rule was first enunciated by
O'Donovan, and is given here in his own words (" Irish Gram-
mar," p. 387.)
14. " When the governed verb is one express-
ing motion or gesture, which does not govern the
accusative, the sign Oo is never prefixed; as bubaipc
p6 lioin oul 50 Copcaig, he told me to go to Cork."
15. If the noun which is the object of a transi-
tive verb in the infinitive mood follows the verb, it
is in the genitive case; as cansaoap cablac m6p
bo beanaiii C051110, " a great fleet came to make
tear'' (noni. C05U&, war, yen. coguib) ; Oo liulleab
cloinne Lip, "to kill the children of Lir."
16. A noun or pronoun which is the object of a
transitive verb in the infinitive mood often pre-
cedes the verb, and in this case it is (not in the
genitive, as in the last rule, but) in the accusative;
as, a^up lpeao Oo 51110b, bd cuaille bo Cup 10-cul-
liiam agup ceann an c-pndice bo ceun^at t)a 50c
cuuillebiob, a^up ubullbo cup aip lhuLlac cuuillo
aca, "and it is what he used to do, two poles to put
in the earth, and the end of a thread to tie to each
polo of them, and an apple to put on the top of a
polo of them."
CHAP. VII.] PREPOSITIONS. US
17. The active participle of a transitive verb
governs the noun which is the object of the action,
in the genitive case; as 05 bpuicneab an 6ip,
" smelting the gold" (lit. " smelting of the gold") ;
bo bf an ^aooal po 05 munab pool, " this G-aodhal
was teaching schools" (lit. " teaching of schools");
03 cocailc na caiman, " digging the ground."
18. The verb ip in any of its forms expressed or
understood, takes the accusative form of a per-
sonal pronoun as its nominative ; as ip f ceaopao
bpomge pe peancup, "it is the opinion of some
historians;" ip mic pig 50 pfpinneac iat>, "they
are truly sons of a king ;" a^up piappaigeap an
pig cia h-iao p6m, "and the king asks who they
(are)."
19. The verb ip is very often omitted, especially
in negative and interrogative sentences, and in
answers to questions ; as beaca an pcapai&e
pfpmne, "truth (is) the food of the historian;"
ceann tHnapmuOa Ui T)huibne an ceann uo,
" that head (is) the head of Diarmaid O'Duibhne ;"
cio cupa? mipi lollan, " who (art) thou ? I (am)
Iollan;" an pfop pin, "whether (is) that true?
nf mipi, " (it is) not I."
20. A verb in the passive voice takes the
accusative form of a personal prononn as its
nominative; as t>6ancap 6, it is done; buailceap laD
they are struck.
CHAPTEE VII.
PREPOSITIONS.
1. A simple preposition governs the dative (in-
cluding the ablative, for which there is no distinct
114 syntax. [part ni
inflection) ; as cdinic pe 50 Con com ft, he came to
Cork; 05 coip an c-plcibo, at the foot of the
mountain ; aipiino cum bo na h-tj§t>apaib, " some
of the authors reckon." (See next rule for excep-
tion.)
2. The preposition lbip generally governs the
accusative in the singular, and the dative in the
plural ; as lbip Copcac a^up Linmneac, between
Cork and Limerick; 101 p na coigea&aib, " between
tho provinces."
3. The prepositions arm, ^o.iap, pia,leorpe, and
cap, take p before an, the article, the p being- some-
times joined with the preposition and sometimes
with the article ; as annp an leabup or ann pun
leubap, in the book; leip an b-peap, with the
man. (See par. 7, page 17.)
4. Tho compound prepositions govern their
nouns in the genitive; as bo PU5 an conna pip
a n-ajai'6 an cnuic, " he brought the tun with him
against the hill-" a b-piaonuipe b-peap n-Cipionn,
"in presence of the men of Erin;" t»o ftlumpeuoap
clann Cuipeann pompa b'lonnpuibe an coca, " the
children of Tuireann went forwards towards the
)>
battle.
The following prepositions, 611m, towards ; bdld, a9 to; beip,
Etfter ; loincupu, as to; mucips of atrieapg, amongst; peip,
according to; and cimcioll. about, although having the Form
of simple prepositions, are in reality compound, and take their
nouns in the genitive. See end of Par. 3, p. 88.
As a compound preposition consists of a noun governed by
a simple preposition, it is in reality the noun-part of the
compound preposition that govorns the noun in the genitive,
in accordance with Rule 1, page 95 : thus the expression
above, a n-ogairj an cnuic, is literally " in tho face of the
hill," where cnuic is governed iu the genitive by a^aiO, face;
and so of the othej \
5. Tho simplo prepositions, except bo, be, ficin,
and lDip, generally cause eclipsis in singular nouns
when tho article is used; as 6'n 5-cnoc pin, "from
CHAP. VII.} PREPOSITIONS. 115
that hill ;" 05 an m-baile na h-inre p lap, " at the
town of the island in the west." (See pages
17, 18.)
6. The simple prepositions generally cause aspi-
ration when the article is not expressed; as cup
bapp an cpoinn, "on the top of the tree;" 6
riu'jpaib na Gearhpac, "from the ramparts of
Tara."
Exception 1 : a or 1, lap, nnd 50 (when it means " with")
cause ellipsis without the article; as a m -baile aca ctiafe,
in Uaile-atha-cliath (Dublin) ; lap n-Oflinn, " after the
deluge."
Exception 2 : 05. le, and sometimes 50, cause no change in
the initial, and 5cm may either aspirate or not; as pliin le
ITIciig. "farewell to (the river) Maigue;" o'n c-Sionuinn
fOip 50 paippse, "from the Shannon east to the sea."
7. W hen a simple preposition ending in a vowel
comes before the possessive a (whether it signifies
his, her, or their), the letter n is inserted between
the vowels; as cpe n-a bapaib, "through his
hands;" an Id 50 n-a Idn c-poillpe, "the day
with its abundant light."
Except after bo and be ; as cabarp peup bd ccrpall give
grass to 1 lis horse; bam 5eu5 b'd 5-cpann, take a branch
from their tree.
Before any other word beginning with a vowel, the letter h
is usually inserted after these p ^positions; as 00 CUU'D p©
50 h-CUbuin, he weut to Albari ^Scotlaudj.
116
IDIOMS.
[pabt IV,
PART IV.
IDIOMS.
Am idiom, in the sense in which it is used hero, may be
defined : — An expression that has acquired by usage a certain
meaning, which becomes lost in a word-for-word translation
into another language ; so that in order to convey the true
meaning in that other language, the form of expression must
be changed.
Thus, " cd an leaban 05 an bume " is an idiom, for its
sense is lost in the word-for-word translation, "the book is
at the man ; " and in order to convey the true meaning, the
English expression must be changed to "the man has the book."
Idioms constitute one of the chief difficulties in learning
any language; and the student is recommended to master
this Part, in which the principal idioms of the Irish language
are explained and illustrated.
l. The Infinitive governing Possessive Pronouns.
The infinitive of a transitive verb governs its object in
the genitive (Syntax, Rule 15, p. 112). When the object, in-
stead of being a noun, is a personal pronoun, then, according
to the analogy of the Rule quoted, it should be in the geni-
tive case. But the genitive of a personal pronoun is a pos-
sessive pronoun; and possessive pronouns precede the words
they refer to; so that the pronoun which represents the
object of the action, is a possessive, and precedes the infini-
tive, influencing its initial as if it were a noun (see Syntax, p.
106, Rules 3, 4, 5). This gives rise to idiomatic expressions
like the following, which are of very frequent occuricuce.
English.
Irish.
Contracted to.
'me,
bo mo bunlao,
bom' bualuo.
thee,
too '00 bualub,
tooto' buuluo.
liiiu,
too a buuluo,
tod buuluO.
To strike «
her,
too a buuluo,
tod buuluo.
us,
too dp m-buulao,
todp m- bualao.
yu,
too bup m-buala&j
(not contracted)
.thorn,
too a m-bualuD,
tod m-buuUiO.
PART IV.] IDIOMS. 117
These may be translated literally, " to my striking," " to
their striking," &c.
A like construction prevails in the case of a transitive par-
ticiple : 05 a bualab, striking him : 05 a bualab, striking
her: 05 dn m-bualab, striking us, &c. In this construc-
tion the participle may itself be governed in the genitive
case by a noun: — cdmic mfan a mapbca bam p6in, "a
desire to kill them, has come to me " (lit. " a desire of the
killing of them," or " of their killing.")
2. Compound Prepositions governing Possessive
Pronouns.
A compound preposition governs the genitive (Rule 4,
p. 114); and when the governed word is not a noun but
a personal pronoun, this last becomes a possessive, and goes
before the noun-part of the compound preposition, giving
rise to idiomatic phrases, corresponding with those quoted in
last Idiom. Example : dip pon, for the sake o ; aip a pon,
for his sake; dip bup pon, for your sake, &c. Do buaib
Diapmait) bd h-eip, Diarmaid went after her: cdimc
cmneap oppa pern, asup ap a pliocc 'n-a n-biaib, " sick-
ness came upon themselves, and on their posterity after
them."
A similar construction often occurs with the compound
adverbs. Example: cap aip, backwards; bo cuaib p6
cap a aip, he went backwards ; bo cuaib pf cap a h-aip,
she went backwards; bo buaib piab cap a n-aip, they
went backwards, &c.
3. To die.
" To die," is very often expressed in Irish by a phrase
meaning "to find death:" the verb pa§, find, being used
for this purpose, in its various forms ; as, an bapa bliagam
bd eip pin puaip lpial bdp, " the second year after that
Trial found death ;" agup mdp ann acd a n-bdn bavh bdp
b'pdgail, "aDd if it be here that it is in fate for me death
to find " (i. e., " that it is fated for me to die.'')
There is, however, a single verb b'eug, meaning to die,
but it is not used so often as the above. The following
example exhibits both forms : — Q beip cuib bo na pean-
ugOapaib gup ab a n^jleann ba loca puaip naompab-
PU15 bdp; biob 50 n-abpaib bpuns oile gupab ann
118 idioms. [part rv.
Gpbmaca D'eu5 p6, " some of the old authors say that it is
in Glendalough St. Patrick found death, although, another
party say that it is in Armagh he died."
4. Nominative Absolute.
What 13 called tlio nominative absolute in English is
expressed in Irish by the preposition dip (on), or lap (after),
placed before the participle, and the preposition Do (to)
before the noun ; which will be understood from the follow-
ing examples : — ap m-beic cica paoa do Chopmac 05 a
b-peicioui, " Cormac, having been a long time watching
thein " (lit. " on being a long time to Cormac a-watching of
them") : agup aip ni-beic ollarh Don turns, " a nd the ship
being ready " (lit. " and on being ready to the ship "); G5UP
aip n-Dut a IUIT15 D6i5, ''and they having gone into a
ship:" (lit. "and on going into a ship to them "): lap
m-beic cpean lp an cfp D<3ib, " they having grown strong
in the country " (lit. " after being strong in the country to
them").
5. To have no help for a thing-,
The Irish phrase corresponding to this is " to have no
strength (neapc) on a thing:" the " having " being expressed
in accordance with Idiom 34, p 130. Nf b-puil neapc
0511111 aip an niD pin, I have no help for that thing — I
cannot help that (lit. " there is to me no strength on that
thing"). Q5UP a Dubaipc citrine nac P a,D "eapc
aice pein aip, " and Grainno said that she had no help for
it" (or "could not help it," "could not have prevented it").
Sometimes leigeap, remedy or cure, is used in the same way
as neapc.
6. To cause a thing to be done.
To cause a thing to be done, to have it done, to see that it
is done, to order it to be clone, is often expressed in Irish
by Do Cup (or Do cabaipc)pd Deapa, "to put (or bring, or
give), under notice." Qjup po cuip lVliooac pa 11-Deupa
tiip lnpe Cuile DO cup puib, "and Miodhach caused the
mould (or soil) of Inis Tuile to be placed under you:" Do
PU5 (pl§) bpeac bdip aip an m-bpeicearh, asup 6U5 pa
Deapa a CpocaD " (the king), passed sentence of death on
the judge, and had him hanged " ("put under notice him to
hang," or "his hmging").
PART IV. J IDIOMS. 119
7. Number of individuals of which a company is
composed.
Tbe number of individuals of which any collection of per-
sons or things is made up, is often inserted, in the nominative
form, in a narrative sentence, without any syntactical con-
nexion with the rest of the sentence. Qgup cdinic lip
Sonne apnamdpac, caogac caippceac, 6 Shfoo buibb
leipo". " and Lir set out on the morrow, fifty chariot-men,
from Shee Bove Derg" (i.e., with fifty chariots) : agup cainic
boob Deups, naoi ceabpicceab, ban-ionnpuige ; "and
Bove Derg came, twenty-niue hundred men, towaids them."
This is like the English : — " The duke began his march next
morning, 20,000 strong."
8. Passive Verbs used impersonally.
Apassive verb is often used impersonally; as o n ^T a Cugainn
amac, Q5up nf larhpap puiliugao ope, " come forth to ua
and no one will dare to wound thee : " (literally, " and it will
not be dared [to put] wounding on thee).
This form of expression is of very frequent occurrence in
the older narrative writings : — thus instead of " they advance ;
tbey plunge into the (river) Crond," the writer expresses him-
self in this way : — " it is advanced ; it is plunged into the
Crond."
9. Nominatives before Infinitives and Participles.
Instead of the usual assertive construction, consisting of a
rerb with its nominative (noun or pronoun), the following
construction is often adopted : — the verb is put in the infini-
tive or participial form, and the subject (whether noun or
personal pronoun) is placed before it, the pronoun being in
the accusative form (but whether the noun is nominative or
accusative cannot be determined, as there is no distinction of
form) ; as ip amlaiD bf Naipi asup Deipbpe, o^up an
6enncairh ecappa, agup tab 05 imipe uippe, " it is in this
manner Naisi and Deirdre were (seated), and thp Cenn-
chaimb (a chess board) between them, and they 'playing on it;
ip arhlaib t»o 61 Cobcac, ajup e 05 peapsab, " it is thus
Cohhthach was, and he pining away ;" cuipiop pceula 50
bldcnuib 6 pein bo beic ann pin, " he sends word to
Blanid, he himself to be there" (i.e., "that he himself was
there".).
120 IDIOMS. [part IV
Thi9 form of expression is often adopted even when the
verb or participle is (notexprcssedbut) understood; as Do CUip
(an cti) a ceann a n-ucc Ohiapmuba asup e ma cotda
" (the hound) put her head in the breast of Diarmaid, and he
in his sleep."
lO. One person meeting another.
" Donall met Fergus " is often expressed in Irish in the
following way :— Do capaS pepftup aip Doirmall ; literally
"Fergus was met (or turned) on Donall." Do capao Goibell
na Cpaise leice opumn, "we met Eevel of Graglea" (lit.
"Eevel of Craglea was met [or turned] on us"): cia
cappai&e opm ace pcuaiO-bean, " whom should I meet
but the fair woman" ("who should be met on me").
Tne same idea is expressed by the verb capla, happened:
agup cdpla oglac oppca ap m-bosac, " and they met a
youth on the moor" (lit. "and a youth happened on [or
to] them") : cpialluit) 50 SliablTlip 50 ccdpla banba 50
n-a opaoirib oppa ami, "they travel to Slieve Mish until
they met Banba with her druids there" ("until Banba with
her druidi happened on[ or to] them there ").
11. Although: Although not.
5'on 50 or gion gup has two opposite meanings which can
only be distinguished by the general sense of the passage :
sometimes it means " although " (or "although that"), and
sometimes " although not."
Although :— a piimn, ap Op^ap, sion gup po^re mo
gaol buicpe nd t>o Dhiapmuib O'Dhuibne, " ' O Finn,
says Oscar, 'although my relationship with thee is nearer
than to Diarmaid O'Duibhne.' "
Although not: — t>o b6puim c6riiaiple maic &fb, a
Cblamn Uipmg, gion 50 n-06ncap lib 1, "I shall give a
good counsel to you, O sons of Usna, though it will not be
done by you ;" gion ^up cedppb mnd an nfopm, "although
that proceeding would not bo the business of a woman."
12. To be ahle.
To be able <o do a tiling is expressed in different ways.
The most usual is by phrases of the type, ip p6iOip le, " it is
possible with;" asippeibipl'om a oeanaD.Ican doit (lit. "it
is possible with me to do it :" see Idiom 1.)
Another, and more idiomatic way, is by the verb ciftim, " I
A>
TART IV.] IDIOMS. 121
come," in its various moods and tenses ; and with this verb " I
can do," or " I am able to do," is expressed by " it comes with
me to do;" as muna b-cigeab pip an cailleac b'amap,
" unless he would bo able to strike the hag" (lit. " unless it
would come with him the hag to strike") ; ace mop boilse
pmn md pm map acdib dp b-cpf pemmbe ceangailce
indp b-piabnuipe, asup nac b-as pmn psaoileab bfob,
"and we think more grievous than that, how our three
champions are bound in our presence, and that we are not
able to free them :" nf cuipeann ualac oppamn nac D-C15
linn a lomcap, "he puts not a burden on us that we are not
able to bear."
Sometimes the verb cd or lp is used instead of C15, and
also the preposition 05 instead of le; as 6 nac liom bul 6n
5-concabaipc po, " since I cannot escape from this danger"
(" since it is not with me to go from this danger " : here lp is
understood) : 6 nac b-puil bul uaib agum, " since I cannot
escape from him" (" since it is not with me to go from him : "
here cd and 05 are used, as in " possession : " Idiom 34.
13. One of a pair.
One of a pair is often expressed by the word leac, half :
leac-cop, one foot (lit. half- foot). In this compound
the word leac is used adjectively, so that leac-cop means,
not half of a foot, but a half-foot (i.e., a foot which is itself
a half, i.e., half of a pair). So also leac-pthl, one eye, leac-
caob, one side, &c. lp arhlaib bo bf an pij pm asup leac-
larh aipsib aip, " it is thus that king was, and one hand of
Bilyer on him."
14. To be alone.
The word aonap, which the dictionaries now interpret as
meaning "alone," was originally a concrete numeral noun
like epitjp, cmseap, &c. (p. 39), and meant " one person;"
and this meaning it retains to some extent in its present ap-
plication: — bo piuoai me a'm aonap, I walked alone (lit.
" I walked in my one person" [see Idiom 42] : or " I walked as
one person") ; bo piubal cu ab' aonap, thou walkedst alone:
bo piubal pt n-a h-aonap, "she walked alone," &c. ; am
aonap peal a piubal bibeap, " alone, of a time, walking I
was.
Another way of saying in Irish "he is alone" is "he is
with himself : " cd m6 liom pern, I am alone (" I am with
myself"): cd cti leac pern, thou art alone: cd piab leo
pern, they are alone: cd mo mdicptn 'n-a coblab, afiur*
mire liom pern, "my mother is asleep, and I am alone."
9
122 IDIOMS. (_PART IT.
15. One thing given for another.
When you give or take, sell or buy, one thing for another,,
it is expressed in Irish by saying you give it, &e , on that
other, the preposition dip being used. Oo 6115 p6 cpf bd
Gip an 5-capall pin, he gave three cows for that horse: dip
6ipe nf 'nedpainn cia b-t, "for Erin 1 would not tell who
she is" ('nedpamn for inne6pamn : see p. 63).
In this sense, the preposition aip is set before the noun of
price: bo ceanmnjeap an b6 bdn pin aip p6 puinc, I
bought that white cow for six pounds: nt h-iongnu ap
Copmac, 6ip lp mate an luaO cusap uippe, "'No
wonder,' says Corinac, ' for good is the price I gave for it.' "
16. Debt.
The fact that Donall owes Fergus money, or that Donall
is under any obligation to pay money to Fergus, is expressed
by saying, " Fergus has money on Donall," the preposition aip
being used before the name of the debtor, and the act of
"having'' being expressed by cd and 05 as in Idiom 34.
Cd cp1 puinc 05 Fep^up aip Dorhnalt, Donall owes three
pounds to Fergus : cd bean eile a n-eocaitl a b-puil aici
copom aip, there is another woman in Youghal to whom he
owes a crown" ("to whom is a crown on him") : ip arhtaiO
bo bf an pfg po, agup ctop ctim m6p epom 05 poihopaig
aj\ Cuaca t)e Danann pe n-a linn, " it is how this king was,
and (that) the Fomoriana had a great heavy tribute and rule
over the Tuatha De Dananns during his time" ("a great
heavy tribute and rule was with the Fomorians on the
Tuath De Dananns").
17. Ashing, entreating, &c.
To ask, request, entreat, or demand of a person, is ex-
pressed hy "to ask, &<\, on that person:" lapp aip Dbia na
jpdpa pin, " ask of God those graces."
18. Sensation, suffering, &c.
That a person is hungry, thir»ty, cold, afraid, sick, &c, it
expressed in Irish by saying that hunger, thirst, cold, fear, sick-
ness, &c, is on him, the preposition nip being used : cd puacc
cnm (cold is on me), 1 am cold ; pd Woo eagla ope (let not
fen* be on thee) be not afraid : bo bt cape m6p aip Shea-
Jan (great thirst was on John), John was very ttursfcf ; cat*'
PART rv.] IDIOMS. 123
6 fin op c ? (what is that on thee ? ) what ails you ? Q Cuiple
mo cnoi&e cpeub f an gpuaim pin ope ? " O pulse of my
heart, what is that frown on thee ?"
19. One person entertaining feelings (of love,
hatred, &c.) towards another.
That Donall entertains certain feelings towards Fergus is
expressed by saying that Donall has such feelings on Fergus ;
the preposition dip being used before " Fergus," and the act of
" having " being expressed by cd and 05, as in idiom 34 : — nf
m6 an cion po bd 05 dongup opepa ind an cion po 5d ag
mumcip Clongupa ap riiac an peaccaipe. 50 paib popmab
m6p ap c'acaip pd n-a cionn pin, "not greater was the affec-
tion Aonghus felt for thee than the affection the people of
Aonglius felt for the son of the steward, so that thy
father felt great jealousy on that account " (lit. " not greater
was the affection which was with Aonghus on thee,
so that great jealousy was on thy father on the head of that :"
see Idiom 32).
Where the agent is not specified, a similar form of expres-
sion is retained : you are loved, is expressed by love is on you :
you are esteemed, by estimation is on you, &c. : cd meap
asup cion m6p aip Opcap (great esteem and love are on
Oscar), Oscar is greatly esteemed and loved.
20. To know : to know a person.
To know is usually expressed in Irish by the phrase know-
ledge is with me, I have knowledge ; and to know a person
by "to have or to give knowledge on a person : " '" a^up on
b-puil a piop 0500 pem, a phmn?' ' nf b-puil,' ap
fhonn : " " ' do you know it, O Finn ? ' ' I do not,' says Finn "
(lit., is its knowledge with you, O Finn? It is not, says
Finn): an dil leac piop b'fdgail? do you wish to know?
("is it a desire with you knowledge to get ?'*) : blob a piop
Q^ac, a leugcoip. "know O reader" ("be its knowledge
with thee, reader"): (strangers are seen coming towards
Finn and his party), po piappnig pionn bo ede an rj-cusa-
t)a^ aicne oppca, " Finn asked of the others did they know
them" (lit. "did they put knowledge on thfm ") : 05up cu-
Kaippe aicne opm, " and thou knewest iC : (lit. h and thou
didst put knowledge on rV).
124 IDIOMS. [paet rv.
21. To part from, to separate from.
To separate from a person is expressed in Irish by "to
separate with a person," the preposition le or pe being used:
much in tbe same manner as we say in English, " I parted
with him: '' pcapabap pem a?;up Oiapmaib pen-a 661I9,
" they themselves andDiarmaid separated from each other : "
bo pcap pe pinn, " he separated from us ;" pcap Opcap le
Oiapmaib, " Oscar separated from Diarmaid : " bo pcap pip,
"he separated from him;" ag Cuppa6 Cill'-bapa bo
pcapap le ^at mo cpoibe, "at the Curragh of Kildaro
I parted from the ' love of my heart.' "
22. However great, however good, however
brave, &c.
Da placed before some abstract nouns gives a meaning which ,
though it is well understood in practical use, has puzzled
grammarians to analyse and explain, and which will bo best
understood by a few examples. From the adjective dlainn,
fine or beautiful, is formed dilne or dille, fineness, beauty;
and ba dilne or ba dille, means " however fine," " how fine
soever." Examples: — Ni b-puilpiontJpbdrheub,na6b-cuil-
lib, "there isno punishment however great that they do not de-
serve : " an cpeap geip, $an compos aompip bd cpeipi aip
calrhain b'obab, " the third injunction, not to refuse single
combat to any man on earth, however mighty :" bearhannd
biabal bd cpeipe tditi, "demon or devil, however mighty of
hand."
23. Both one and another : both these and those.
Both, in such phrases as "both men and women," is often
expressed in Irish by the preposition lbip, between ; as bain-
pio Dia pdparh biob ann 506 pocap b'd b-cug b6ib lbip
ceill, ceabpabaib, agup cona6 paogalca, " God will exact
an account from them in every advantage He has given to them
between understanding, senses, and worldly prosperity :" ctiig.
mfle ibip peapaib agup mndib, five thousand, between men
And women (i.e. both men and women, or reckoning men and
women).
24. To overtake.
To overtake a person is often expressed by " to bear on a
person," the verb beip, bear, being used with the preposition
PART rv.] IDIOMS. 125
dip. Examples :—pd5bam an culac po ap eagla 50
m-beappab Oongup an bhpoga oppuinn, "let us leave this
hill for tear that Aonghus of the Brugh would overtake us:"
leanup aip a lops 50 p6imbfneac lab bo'n lTlhuitiam,
50 PU5 oppa 05 Solcoib, " he follows them on their track
directly to Munster, so that he overtook them at Solchoid . "
50 nac puigpibfp a™ F oriri rn> n6 50 m-beipeab lllapcpa
Sibe oppa, " that they might not leave that territory till the
fairy cavalcade should overtake them:" panpaOpa leac ap
an Idcaip po n6 50 m-beipip opm apfp, " I will wait for
thee at this place till thou overtake me again :" 50c aon aip
a m-beappamnpi, "every one whom I would overtake"
(" every one on whom I would bear").
25. To win a game on a person.
To win a game on a person is expressed by " to put a game
on him:" asup t>o £65 Oipfn an peap pm, asup po buip
an cluicce ap pinonn, "and Oisin moved that (chess-) man
and won a game on Finn :" agup nf pusamap an bdipe ap
a ceile, "and we did not win the goal on each other" (i.e.
neither of us won the goal on the other."
26. To think long, short, well of, ill of : to think
hot, cold, hateful, &c.
Such phrases as " it seemed long to him," "he thought, it
long," are expressed by the verb lp and the preposition le : ip
paba liom ("it is long with me"), it seems long to me, I
think it long. G511P t>o bo paba le na bpdicpib bo bi
Opian uaca, "and his brothers thought it long that Brian
was away from them" (" it was long with his brothers, &c") :
ip olc linn ap bean pioc, "we think bad of what has
happened to thee" (" it is evil with us:" ajt = a po, and a
means "all that:" seep. 47) : cuigimpi nacionihum leacpa
me p6m, " I understand that thou dost not love me" (" that
not beloved with thee am I myself").
Observe the difference in meaning conveyed by the two pie-
positions le and bo : ip maic 6 bo'n b-peap pin, it is ad-
vantageous to that man (whether he thinks it so or not) : ip
maic 6 leip an b-peap pm, that man thinks it advantageous
(whether it is really so or not). The following example shows
both forms: — ba maic liom piubail abc mop maic bam
6, I wished to walk, but it was not good for me.
126 IDIOMS. J TAUT IV.
27. To wish for: to like : to be glad of : to prefer.
After the same manner, a desire, wish, liking for, &c, i(
expressed by such words as mian, desire ; aic, pleasure ; di\,
will or pleasure, &e. : if dill liom piop b'pdjjotil, I wish tdi
know (" it is a desire with me knowledge to get") : bo CUip-
pmn pein ptiil an caic pin aO h-u6c a n-ionab Oo pfil, aj\
peap Oiob : Oo b'aic liom pm, ap an bdippeoip, " 'I would
put the eye of that eat in thy lap in place of thy eye,' sayi
a man of them. ' I'would like that,' says the door-keeper."
The word pedpp, better, is used in the same way to ex
press preference : ip p6app liom bo beapbpdcaip nd cupa,
I prefer thy brother to thyself: I would rather have thy
brother than thyself (lit. " thy brother is better with me,"
&e.) ; bo b'pedpp le bpigib Icabap maic nd aipseab
Brigid would prefer a good book to money (lit. " a good book
would be better with Brigid," &c). The following example
shows the application of botli mfcm and pedpp : — Nf h-6 ip
mian leip an u§bap (nf mo, nf h-e ip mian liom-pa) cu bo
bpeusan ; . . . . ace ip 6 bob' pedpp leip pin (agup
liom-pa) bo cpoibe bo pealbugab: ''it is not what the
author wishes (neither is it my wish) to amuse thee (cu bo
bpeugan) .... but it is what he would prefer (and I also)
to possess thy heart."
Pedpp followed by le expresses mental preference as shown
above : butpeapp followed by bo is equivalent to the English
expression "better for," "better that," &c. Ip pedpp
bompa anoip, ap Luj, piop na h-eapca ub bo cabaipe
baoib. Ip peapp ceana, ap labpan, 'it is better for me
now,' says Lugh, ' a knowledge of that eric (fine) to give you.'
' It is better indeed,' say they."
28. To think little of — much of — to grudge.
Similar to the preceding is the use of the words beas and
m6p (little and much) in several idiomatic phrases, which
occur very frequently, and which will be best understood by
the following examples : — lp m6p liom an luac pm, I think
that price large ("that price is large with me"): 6ip bd
m-beic mac asumne lona puibe pompa, nfop bea^ leo
bo cuip bdp mapbab 6, " for if (even) a child of us would
be sitting ("in his sitting:" Bee Idiom 42) before them,
they would not deem it (too) little cause to kill us " (lit. " it
would not be with them a small [thing] for a cause to kill
ub :" for bdp mapbab : see Idiom 1) : bap mo bpiacap ap
TAKTIV.] IDIOMS. 127
Naipi nfbej Imnepm uaic, " 'by my word,' says Naisi, 'we
do not think that email from thee.'"
The two expressions ip mop le and nf beafi le (it is much
with, it is not little with) are used to express the idea of un-
willingness or grudging : ip mop liom aon pinsfn bo cab-
Oipc bo, I think it much— I grudge— to give one penny to
him : the very same idea is expressed by nf bea5 liom aon
pingln, &c, I think it not little— I grudge— one penny, I
think one penny enough, &c. The two reverse expressions
(nf m6p le— ip beas le) are used to express willingness —
not grudging, &c. : nf m6p liom na cpf ba po bo tabaipc
b6, I do not think it much — I am quite willing— I do not
grudge — to give him these three cows; which might also be
expressed by saying, ip beas liom, &c. — I think it little — I
would give more, I would have more, I would want more;
I am willing— I do not grudge, &c— bo beipmfb dp
m-bpiacap, ap piab, nac beas linn a m-beupam 50 pionn
bfob, " ' we give our word,' said they ' we think it not small —
we grudge— what (a = all that: see p. 47) we shall bring
of them to Finn.' " (See Mr. Standish O'Grady's note, in
the " Pursuit of Diarmaid and Grainne," p. 140.)
When mop and beas are used with the preposition bo,
they give the idea of enough or not enough for a person:
nfop beas bo (mapbab bap n-aicpea6) map eipic uaibpe,
(the killing of your fathers) is not small to him— is enough
for him — should suffice for him — as an eric (fine) from you :
nfop beas buic a ba bo bpeic 6 phionn, " it was not little
for you — it was enough for you — to take away his cows from
Finn."
29. Woe to.
Ip maips bon b-peap pm, woe to that man : a maips
bo'n bpung soipeap bo'n olc maio, "woe to those who call
evil good." Expressions of this kind are sometimes elliptical ;
as, ip maips nab n-beanann comaiple beag-rhnd, " woe
[to him] who doeth not the counsel of a good wife " (lit. " it
is woe who doeth not," &c).
30. So . . as : as . . as.
When these "correspondent conjunctions " are expressed
in Irish, the second one is usually translated either by ajup,
" and," or by le, " with :" asup a bubaipc pia an can bo
biob a mac com appacca agup 50 lionpab a meup an
10b, " and he said to her when his son should be so grown
(com appa6ca) as that his finger would fill the ring" (lit.
128 IDIOMS. [part IV.
"so grown and that his finger," &c.) : bo 5f a plea§ c6rh
pearhap le mol muillinn, " his spear was as thick as the
shaft of a mill" (lit. " as thick with.")
G^ur follows arhlaio or aihla (thus, so, in this manner),
much in the same way as it follows c6ni ; and in this use it
sometimes answers very nearly to "viz.:" ap arhlaib bo
pump Naipi acap Oeipbpe, acap an Cermcaem ecappa,
" it is thus he found Naisi and Deirdre, and the Ccnn-chacmh
(a kind of chess-board) between them.' (Meaning, " it was
thus he found them, viz., with the Ccnn-chaemU between
them.")
31. Every other day : every second day : every
alternate day.
Phrases like these are often expressed in Irish by the in-
definite pronoun 506, followed by the preposition le or pe
J5ac le Dothnac 05 bul cum ceampoill, going to the church
every other (or every alternate) Sunday : nci cp1 pi§ce pm bo
ChuacmbOe t>cmann bo bt 1 b-plaitiop eipeann 506 pe
m-bliagain, " these three kings of the Tuatha De Danaun
were in the sovereignty of Erin every other year' (i.e. each
for a year).
32. The Head.
The word for head is used in Irish, as it is in most lan-
guages, in a great variety of idiomatic phrases. Some have been
already noticed among the compound propositions ; and these
and others will be understood from tho following examples.
Q 5-cecmn bliaSna, at the end of a year : bo bl piab a
5-ceann na pentee, they were at the end of tho field. Q
bubaipc Ncnpi le h-Qpban bulaip beannpepsuip, "Naisi
said to Ardan to go for Fergus" (" to go on the head of Fer-
gus") : p-.Upe dip a 5-cecmn, "turn thou back for them"
("on their head'). O nao liom bul 6n 5-concabaipc r-o
am ceann, " sinco I am not able to escape from this danger
[that lies] before me" (am 6eann, " in my head " = before
me). TCacpab at) ceann, a phmn, agup a 5-ceann na
peinne, " I will go to thee (or before thee), O Finn, and to
the Feni" ("in thy head and in the head of theFeni"). Gcap
beipib buaib acap bennaccain bd cenn, "and bear ye vic-
tory and blessing on its account" (bd cenn, " from its head").
?3ap ceann gup paoil an coiceacnacpaibbaogalap bic
ap pem, "although the rich man thought that thero was no
danger at all to (i.e. of) himself" (cap ceann sup, "over tho
head that" = although), lp longna buicpe an gpab pin bo
TART IV.] IDIOMS. 129
eabaipeoampa cap 6eann phmn, ap Oiapmaib, "'it is a
wonder for thee to give that love to me instead of (to) Finn '
says Diarinaid" (cap ceann pinrm, "overtho head of Finn,"
in preference to Finn, instead of Finn)
33. A proper noun with, the genitive of a noun of
office.*
When a proper noun is followed by a noun in the genitiva
signifying a profession, office, trade, or calling, the resulting
phrase has a curious idiomatic meaning.
Seagan anpigeabopa, which is word for word, "John
of the weaver," means in reality " John (the son, son-in-law,
servant, or some other close connection) of the weaver;"
Seaman na bamcpeabaige, "John (the son, &c.) of the
widow."
If, while the proper name is in the nominative, the second
noun is also in the nominative, the meaning is quite different,
the second noun being then simply in apposition to the first :
thus F e r5 u r Tnaop (nom.) means "Fergus the steward;':
but Pepgup an rhaoip (gen.) is " Fergus (the son, &c.) of
the steward."
Suppose, now, you have to express in Irish such a phrase
as " the house of Fergus the steward," in which the proper
name must be in the genitive : as the two nouns are in appo-
sition, the second, according to a rule of Syntax (Rule 6,
p. 96) should also be in the genitive: ceac phepguip an
rhaoip. But here is an ambiguity; for, according to the
present idiom, this expression would also mean "the house of
Fergus (the son,&c.) of the steward." To avoid this am-
biguity, a disagreement in case is allowed in such expressions,
between the two nouns, when they are in apposition. Thus
" the house of Fergus the steward" is ceacphepftuip maop
(in which phepguip is gen. and maop nom.) ; whereas ceac
phep^uip an rhaoip is understood to mean " the house of
Fergus (the son, &c.) of the steward." So in Dr. MacHale's
translation of Homer, the first two lines are rendered : —
bpuc Clcvjil pemn, 6ignearhoa, a'x 1 buan peaps ;
dcuilnnc peil, an gaipgioeac cemn ceac saps.
" The wrath of Achilles sing, O heavenly virgin, and his en-
during anger, of Achilles son of Peleus, the fieri/ fierce hero."
* The substance of this explanation and the illustrative
examples have been taken from an interesting Essay on the
present state of the Irish language in Munster, written and
sent to the Royal Irish Academy by Mr. John Fleming of
Rathgormuck.
130 IDIOMS. [PABT IV.
Here the la9t noun jaipgioeac, with its two adjectives, is in
the nominative, while (icuil, with which it is in apposition,
is genitive.
In the first example, Rule 7, p. 96, bean Sheagam an
plgeabdpa, accordingly, is not " the wife of John the
weaver," but "the wife of John (son, &c.) of the weaver;"
the wife of John the weaver, would be expressed by bean
Sheagam pigeaoCip.
34. Possession.
There is no verb in Irish corresponding to the English verb
"to have" as expressing possession; and the sentence "the
man lias a book," is expressed in Irish by the verb cd and the
preposition 05, in this form, cd leabap 05 an omne, "a
book is at (or with) the man :" ca aipgeut) U5U111 (" money
is with me"), I have money: cm be 05 a b-puil aipgeat)
(" whoever with whom is money"), whoever has money. NT
peitnp le buine an mo nac m-beibeab ui5e 00 oabaipc
uaio, asup nf b-puil oo-rhapbca6c agumpa, "it is im-
possible for a man to give away what he does not himself
possess, and I do not possess immortality" (word-for-word:
"it is not possible for a man the thing which would not be
with him to give from him, and not is immortality with my-
self"). Do uisel Concubap bopab acap 00 pmppaig be
an paib pleb ollam aige &o, "Conchobhar addressed
Borach and inquired of him whether he had a feast prepared
for him" (lit.: "whether a feast was ready with him [i.e.
Borach] for him [i.e. Conchobar."]
The use of pronouns in this idiom sometimes gives rise to
further idiomatic complications. Cm agumneag a b-puil
an pipmne? "Which of us has the truth?" This is word
f orword: " Which of us with whom is the truth ?" and the
interrogative appears without any government or other syn-
tactical connection. Some good authorities believe that the
preposition 05 in this construction governs not only the rela-
tive a, but also, by a sort of attraction, the interrogative cm.
Cd bean eile a n-eo6aitl a b-puil aici cop6m aip, " there
is another woman in Youghal who has a crown on him" (i.e.
to whom he owes a crown : Idiom 16). Here, also, there is
an apparent redundancy, the act of " having" being expressed
doubly, namely, both by the relative a before b-puil, and by
aici ; and the relative, according to the same authority, would
be governed by the preposition 05 of aici. The sentence may
be expressed without redundancy in this manner : — Cd bean
PART IV.] IDIOMS. 131
eile a n-eo6aill 05 a b-puil cop6m aip. The last ex-
ample exactly resembles the English "tuere is a man in Dublin
whom I owe a pound to him : " and perhaps it would be
better to consider it, like the English sentence, merely as bad
grammar, which is to be avoided by using a different form of
expression in the manner shown. The apparent redundancy
of the first example, which is from a good authority, cannot,
however, be got rid of in this way. So also in, cia leip an
ceac pm (who owns that house), the le of leip would ap-
pear to govern the pronoun with which it is combined, and
also the interrogative cm.
35. Ownership.
Ownership is expressed by the verb lp and the preposition
le, with: ip leacpa an ceac, "the house belongs to thee"
(lit. "it is with thee tbe house"): lp lem' acaip na ba pin,
those cows belong to my father ("it is with my father those
cows'): cia I6ip na ba pm, who owns those cows? ("who
with him [are] those cows ?") Oip ip le nea6 615m t>0
Chuaca Oe Danann na nmca, "for the pigs belong to
tome person of the TuathaDe Danann." (A wizard holds a
golden branch in his hand, and king Cormac asks him) an
leac pein an cpaob pin? "Does that branch belong to
thyself ?"
Observe the distinction between this idiom and the last in
the following sentence: — Ca aipseab 50 le6p agat), accnf
leac peine, "thou hast plenty of money, but it does not
belong to thyself."
36. "Wanting a thing.
The idea of wantiug a thing, including a wish to get it, is
usually expressed by the verb cd and the preposition 6 from :
ca leabap uaim, I want a book: lit., " a book is from me:"
cpeut) acd uaic ? " What dost thou want ?"
37. Genitive plurals of Personal Pronouns.
Each of the three prepositional pronouns, asainn, agaib,
aca, has two different meanings, which are always easily
distinguished by the context.
1. Possession, as in Idiom 34: Oo bf leabaip aca, they
had books.
2. The sense of a genitive plural when following words de-
noting a part: 50c peap aguinn, "each man of us;" po
eipisan bapa peap acopanOo oeanam an bleapa, "the
132 IDIOMS. [PAET IV.
second va&nofthem (acopan, "of themselves") arose toper-
form the feat :" cia aguinne 05 a b-puil an pfpinne, ap
Pionn, "'which of us has the truth,' says Finn" (05 a
b-puil, " with whom is" = " has :" see Idiom 34).
88. To give a name.
To give a name to a thing is often expressed in Irish by to
put a name on it ; map 50 ccuscap Od bancuaca6 aip
bhecoill agup aip tHianann, " as (the name) 'two ladies'
was put on Bechoill and Danann : i.e. as they " were called
'two ladies.'" map 50 O-CU5 cleap aip an 5-cleap pin,
"as he called that feat 'a feat:"' (lit. "as that he put [the
name] 'feat' on that feat").
Sometimes, also, to give such and such a name to a thing
is expressed by "to say such and such a name with a thing :'
TCop-bd-pdilea6pip a pdi&ceap Luimneacaniu, "Ros-da-
shaileach which is called Limerick now" (lit. " R. with which
is said ' Limerick ' now").
89. t)e after comparatives.
The prepositional pronoun be " of it,'' is often postfixed to
comparatives, giving rise to some idiomatic phrases. Gjup
gion 50 b-puil cuiO aftumn bo ltiapbab t)iapmaba, nt
m6ibebo geubab (Gongup) an pipmne uanu, "and al-
though we have no part in killing Diarmaid, Aongus would
not the more receive the truth from us" (here m6ibe is be
added to m6, the comparative of m6p, great : for gion 30 =
" although not :" see Idiom 11). lp pupaibe b'Phionn dp
lop^na teanarham, an eacpa beicagamn, " it is the easier
for Finn to follow our track that we have the horses " (pu-
paibe = be after pupa, comparative of pupup, easy): i.e.
" our having the horses makes it easier for Finn," &c.
40. " A man of great strength."
"A man of great strength," is expressed by the Irish peap
lpmop neapc, which translated word for word is "a man
(who) is great strength:" the words mdp neapc being in the
nominative, and not in the genitive, as might be expected
from the English "of great strength." This idiom is ex-
tremely common in Irish, the verb lp in some of its forms
being always used; and when translating it, remember that
the Irish words, though in the nominative case, convey the
exact sense of the genitive with " of " in English, and must be
PART IV.] IDIOMS. 133
rendered accordingly. Nf paib a 5-c6riiaimpip pip peap
ba rh6 op agup aipgeab 1ndO1apma.it>, " there was not at
the same time with him a man who had more gold and silver
than Diarmaid " (lit. " a man [who] was greater gold and
silver," i.e. "a man who was of greater gold and silver.")
bo oeapcap an beic ba niamoa cpuc, " I saw a lady (of)
bright shape :" Calarii ba pedpp biao ajjup beoc, " a land
(of) the best food and drink:" Oirm ba cpeun neapc a'p
luc, " Oisin of mighty strength and vigour."
Sometimes the preposition 50 (with) is used instead of the
verb: as peap 50 mop neapc, a man with great strength,
i.e. a man of great strength.
41. A wish.
"I wish I had such and such a thing," is often expressed
in Irish by some such form of phrase as " Alas that I have
not got it !" the word gan being generally used as the nega-
tive particle. Qp cpuaig gan peaca 'n itiaoip agum !
"I wish I had the shepherd's pet!" (Here ap cpuaig,
"it is pity" = "alas:" agum is used to denote possession,
with its verb understood — Idiom 31 : and the word-for-word
translation is "it is pity not the pet of the shepherd with
me." a Ohia gan me am'abaillfn, "I wish I were an
apple" ("O God, I not an apple" — or "in my apple.")
42. One noun asserted of another by cd.
When one noun is asserted of another (or of a pronoun) by
the verb cd, in any of its forms, it requires the aid of the
preposition a or ann, 'in," and of one of the possessiva
pronouns, giving rise to a unique and extremely curious
idiom. Thus "I am a man," if expressed in Irish by cd,
will be (not cdme peap, but) cdme am' peap, which ia
word for word, "I am in my man. " bf cdpa ab' pgfan
agup mipe am peoil, "be thou the knife and I the flesh."
(lit. "be thou in thy knife and I in my flesh"). Oecoill
ajup Danann bo bf 1 n-a m-baincfgeapnaib, " Bechoill
and Danann who were princesses" ("who were in their prin-
cesses") : lp pedpp 6ireon mfle uaip nd cupa, cuip a
5-cdp job-puilcti at)' pignoab' ppionnpa. "he is better
a thousand times than thou, even supposing that thou art a
king or a prince" (cuip a 5-cdp, " put in case" = " suppose"
<or "although"): pajaib na baome bdp cuib aca 'n-a
134 IDIOMS. [PART IV.
n-dsdnaib, c^up cuib aca 'n-a pean6ipi<$ib, "men die ('re-
ceive death:' Idiom 3), "some of them (cuit) aca: Idiom
37) as youths, and some as old men'' ("some of them in
their youths and some of them in their old men.") Q Dhia,
gan me am abaillfn !" " would God that I were an apple !"
("OGod without me in my apple!").
Even when one thing is not directly asserted of another,
this use of the preposition and the possessive is extremely
common in Irish. Gdimpe am' 6ot)la, " I am asleep" (" I
am in my sleep") : b'eipij) ina peaparh, "he stood up" (" he
arose in his standing"): mipe am' aonap, "myself alone"
("myself in my one person"): clanna Lip ma 5-ceacpap,
(the four children of Lir) (" the children of Lir in their
four-persons").
The preposition ann is used with ca without any governed
noun, to denote existence in general ; as acd aon Dia
amdm ann, there is only one God ; here the ann in the
end, which has no representative in the translation, means
" in it," i. e. in existence. Sometimes this ann answers very
nearly to the English " here," or " there ;" as lp cu acd ann
" it is thou who art in it— who art in existence— who art
there."
43. Differences between lp and cd.
There are several differences, as to the manner of application,
between ip and cd.
1. lp is a simple copula, and is used to predicate one thing
of another, or to connect an attribute with its subject; as
ipme an c-plige, an pfpmne, agup an beaca, " I am the
way, the truth, and the life."
But if existence in connection with place is to be predicated
of the subject, cd is used; as cd me a m-baile aca cliafc,
I am in Dublin : an palb cu ann pm ? wert thou there?
If an adjective is to be predicated of a noun, either ip or
cd may be used : — ip bpeag an Id 6, or cd an Id bpeag,
"it is a fine day," or "the day is fine."
2. Ip connects one noun or pronoun with another, as
predicate and subject directly, and without the aid of any
other word ; as ip peap m6, I am a man. But cd cannot do
this without the aid of the preposition i or inn and the
possessive pronoun, as already explained in last Idiom ; as cd
me am' peap, I am a man (" I am in my man/'j
pakt rv] EDIOSIS. 135
3. Ip expresses simply that a person or tiling is so, and
implies nothing more. But when the assertion i3 made by
Cd, there is oj'Un something more implied than is contained
in the direct assertion — the idea that the person or thing
has not always been so— has come to be so, &c. Thus, if you
lay to me lp peap e, your assertion means nothing more than
that " he is a man" — not a woman or a coward, &c. If we
Bee a figure approach in the dark, and that after looking
close you find it is a man, your correct phraseology is, ip peap
6, by which I understand you to mean " it is a man" — not a
woman, or a beast, or a ghost.
But if you say to me ca pe 'n-a peap (" he is in his man"),
here I take you to mean a very different thing — that he is
now a man, no longer a boy, grown up to be a man. If I
were speaking of a person as if he were a mere boy, and that
you wished to correct this false impression, the proper
phraseology would be, ca pe 'n-a peap.
But though this idea of an implied change is often
contained in an assertion made by cd, it is not always so; as
nf 5-puil ace non Oia arhdin ann, aca 'n-apiop-ppiopaib,
there is only one God alone, who is a pure spirit : here
the last assertion is made by cd though there can be no
change.
4. Cd is used with 05 to denote possession (Idiom 43) ;
ip is used with le to denote ownership (Idiom 44) ; in these
two applications the two verbs cannot change places.
Cd may indeed be used with le, but the idea conveyed
is not "belonging to," but "being favourable to:" Do bf
6olup leo " (Eolus was with them"^, does not mean that
they were the owners of Eolus (which would be the meaning
if ip had been used), but that "Eolus was favourable to
them" — " was on their side."
6. Cd is used with the Irish words for cold, heat, hunger,
&c, as in Idiom 3(>; as cd ocpap opm, hunger is in me, lam
hungry: here ip canno' be used.
6. When the comparative of an adjective is used as in the
following sentences, either verb will answer : — ip paiDbpe 6
nd mipe or cd p6 mop paiobpe nd mipe, he is richer
than 1.
But when the superlative is employed, ip, not cd, must be
used:— ip e ip peap ip paiobpe pan ouicce e, he is th»
richest man in the country.
APPENDIX.
Additional Examples of Declensions.
FIUST DECLENSION.
bpeac, a trout.
Singular. Plural.
N. bpeac. bpic.
G. bpic. bpeac.
D. bpeac. bpeacaib.
T . a bpic. a bpeaca.
SECOND DECLENSION.
Cop, afoot.
N. cop. copa.
G. coipe cop.
D. coip. copaib.
THIRD DECLENSION.
pigeab6ip, a weaver ; masc.
N. pi§eab6ip. pi5eab6ipise.
G. pi5eab6pa. pi§eab6ip
D. pigeaodip. pigeabdipib.
Qcaip, a father; masc.
N. acaip. aicpe, aicpe-
aca.
G. acap. aicpea6.
1>. acaip. aicpeaCaib.
(TTIdcaip, a mother, and
bpdcaip or beapbpdcaip, a
brother, are declined in tbe
same way. )
bliaoain, a pear ; fern.
N. bliaoain. bliaoanca.
G, bliaona. bliaoan.
D. bliabain bliaoancaib.
Ginm, a name.
TS. amm. amnanna.
G. ainme,anma. anmann.
D. ainm anmannaib.
FOURTH DECLENSION.
Ceme, afire.
Singular. Plural
N. ceme. ceince
G. ceme. ceineao.
D. ceme. ceincib.
emfn, a little bird.
N. emfn. emfnibe.
G. emfn. emfn.
D. emfn. 6mfmb.
FIFTH DECLENSION.
Ldnariia, a married couple.
N. Idnarha. Idnarima.
G. Idnarhan. Idnarhan,
D. Idnariiain. Idnariinaib.
Irregular Nouns.
5a, a spear.
N. 5a, 50c. 5001, gaefca,
gaoice.
G. 501, 5001. 50c, gaecao,
gaoiceao.
D. 5a, 501. 5001b, seacai'ft
Saoicib.
Cp6, a hut, asheepfold.
N. cp6. cpaoiCe, cp6ifce
G. cp6. cp6.
D. cp6. cpaoicib, cp<5i
cib.
V. a 6po. a cpaoiCe, a
6pdiee»
Sliab, a mountain.
N. pliab. pleibce
G. pleibe. pleibceao.
D. pliab. pleibcib.
Angde
L 005 246 364 3
otv of California Library
UmVer \os Angeles
This book is DUEon
the
\
-
/«' (WAV 9"
I [{ Wf
j<,
-
