Goireasan Akerbeltz - Obair a' chleachdaiche [gd]

Experience vs Disposition or Tha mi sunndach

2013-04-25T20:55:44Z

Thrissel: cngl

Even though the heading may seem confusing and tricky, this is actually quite straightforward.

In Gaelic you have the apparently confusing choice between two ways of saying things like I'm angry or I'm happy; you can do a periphrastic (roundabout way of saying) construction and say tha sunnd orm or you can add the adjectival suffix -ach and use the verb bi: tha mi sunndach. There's a huge number of these expressions, so let's look at a few more first:

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| tha sunnd orm || tha mi sunndach || I'm cheerful
|-
| tha an fhearg orm || tha mi feargach || I'm angry
|-
| tha am pathadh orm || tha mi pàiteach || I'm thirsty
|-
| tha an t-acras orm || tha mi acrasach || I'm hungry
|-
| tha an t-eagal orm || tha mi eagalach || I'm afraid
|-
| tha fiabhras orm || tha mi fiabhrasach || I'm feverish
|-
|}

And so on. In theory there is not limit to the number of pairs you could find because -ach as an ending is very productive and you can stick it on to as many nouns as you can find.

So what's the catch? The catch is that Gaelic makes a very fine distinction here which is difficult to make in English in as few words - experience versus disposition. Or in other words, between something that is temporary and something that is permanent.

Tha sunnd orm for example means that I am cheerful right now, perhaps because I've won the lottery or have been told that Bill Gates has donated $5,000,000 to Akerbeltz. But that could change quite quickly, say if I had some bad news. Tha mi sunndach on the other hand means that I am cheerful by nature, ie even in the worst circumstances I am cheerful. If the pathadh is on you, it's just now, a drink and you'll be fine, but if you're pàiteach, you're forever feeling thirsty.

In English we have to use roundabout ways of making this difference, eg tha an fhearg orm 'I am angry right now' vs tha mi feargach 'I am angry by nature' or use different words eg in tha galar orm 'I am ill' and tha mi galarach 'I am diseased'.

That's essentially it. The only slightly confusing thing is that with existentials air can be used to describe a permanent state eg tha beul mór air Mórag 'Mórag has a (physically) big mouth'. But as we explained on [[Aig, air agus ann an or The severed head|the page on that]], context usually supplies the right meaning.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Aig, air agus ann an or The severed head

2013-04-25T20:54:44Z

Thrissel: cngl

Now you've probably read and mastered [[Possessives and syllabic structure or Ar n-Athair a tha air nèamh|the chapter on possession]] and when to use mo and when to use an X agam. There is another obstacle however.

There are a number of expressions that in English are all constructed with the same possessive construction 'to have', e.g. I have two eyes, he has one arm, I have a headache, she has a foul mouth, he has a scowl and so on.

The fun begins when you try to say these things in Gaelic, because Gaelic looks at the world differently and uses 3 different ways of expressing what English bunches into the one form. All three hinge on the correct use of the prepositions aig, air and ann an.

Take the sentence 'Mórag has a big head' for example. How would you say that in Gaelic? A lot of you are probably going to say tha ceann mór aig Mórag. Which is a well formed sentence but ... more about this further down. How about tha ceann mór air Mórag? Or even tha ceann mór ann am Mórag? The latter two are also well formed sentences, that is, they are 100% grammatical. So why these three constructions and where is the difference, if there is one?

There is a big difference. The first one, tha ceann mór aig Mórag, which most of you will have at least considered, does mean Mórag has a big head, but it implies that this unfortunately has been severed from its owner's body. Aig, as you will remember from the page on possessives, implies alienable ownership. Which means that item X can be taken away from you and the only way you can do that with ceann is by cutting it off. Rrright ... if you're a Dungeons & Dragons fan, this may well apply but in most settings this won't do. What about the next one, tha tha ceann mór air Mórag?

This is the one we're really after - Mórag has a head (still attached to her, no stitches, no seam). By using air, we imply that the possession is still inalienable. Which is what we want here.

So what on earth is the the third one about, tha ceann mór ann am Mórag? Here we are getting idiomatic and imply a trait or disposition - that Mórag is big-headed and a bit full of herself.

This three way distinction applies in most settings, so here's an overview with a few more examples (note that a three way distinction is not always possible, but the correct preposition still has to be chosen):

{| style="width: 95%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| (ann) an || air || aig
|-
| inherent quality, disposition, nature || physical inalienable possession, physical attribute, permanent state || alienable possession, temporary possession or act
|-
| tha beul mór am Mórag || tha beul mór air Mórag ||
|-
| Mórag has a big mouth [talks too much] || Mórag has a [physically] big mouth ||
|-
|
|-
| tha ceann mór an Seoc || tha ceann mór air Seoc || tha ceann mór aig Seoc
|-
| Jock has a big head [is full of himself] || Jock has a [physically] big head || Jock has a big [severed] head
|-
|
|-
| chan eil tùr ann an Iain || ||
|-
| Ian has no sense || ||
|-
|
|-
| || tha falt dubh air Màiri || tha falt dubh aig Màiri ||
|-
| || Màiri has black hair [growing on her head] || Màiri has black hair [which has been cut off]
|-
|
|-
| || tha ceithir làmhan air || tha ceithir làmhan aige ||
|-
| || he has four hands [pysically attached to his body] || he has four [severed] hands ||
|-
|
|-
| tha cluasan móra ann an Jo || tha cluasan móra air Jo || tha cluasan móra aig Jo
|-
| Jo has big ears [likes to listen, eavesdrop] || Jo has [physically] big ears || Jo has [severed] big ears
|-
|
|-
| chan eil casan ann || tha casan air Jo || tha casan aig Jo
|-
| it has no legs [it isn't possible, feasible] || Jo has [physically] legs || Jo has legs [drumsticks for her dinner]
|-
|
|-
| || tha e air leth làimh || tha leth làimh aige ||
|-
| || he has one hand [attached to himself], is one handed || he has one [severed] hand ||
|-
|
|-
| tha sradag ann || tha sradag aige ||
|-
| he has a temper [by nature] || he has a spark [for lighting a fire etc] ||
|-
|
|-
| tha stac-crùbaich ann an Jo || tha stac-crùbaich air Jo || tha stac-crùbaich aig Jo
|-
| Jo has a limp [e.g. developed due to old age] || Jo has a limp [since birth] || Jo has a limp [temporarily due to a sprained ankle]
|-
|}

I think you get the idea. Of course there are other uses of the same prepositions. In tha cnatan orm or tha sròn orm "I'm in a huff" the use of air implies a non-permanent state, i.e. you will get better at some point. This doesn't upset the system from the Gaelic point of view though, because the noun in question will give you an idea of what the only possible interpretation can be i.e. if it's cnatan, it must be temporary, if it's ceann, it must be permanent.

"But I've heard tha ceann agam!!" I'm sure you have, but this is just due to the ever-increasing influence of English. It's up to you whether you want to learn good idiom or Gall-Ghàidhlig.

And a footnote for good measure: remember that just because English uses a certain construction doesn't mean that Gaelic will use the same - in many cases Gaelic will not use a possessive pronoun where English uses one. A good example is thilg mi an t-uisge mun dà shùil, I threw the water into his eyes or thug mi a chliù dha eadar an dà shùil, I told him how little I think of him straight to his face.

You ever watch Jackie Chan Adventures? "One more thing" ... in very idiomatic Gaelic ann is sometimes used to denote ability - chan eil òran innte "she can't sing" or tha seinn annta "they can sing". The underlying idea here is that there are certain skills which are innate - you either have or don't have them. The ability to sing is one of them, so from the Gaelic point of view it is treated as an inherent ability or disposition and thus uses ann. Yes, you will hear chan urrainn dhomh seinn, but strictly speaking that implies there is some external factor preventing you from doing so - you have a sore throat, you're not getting paid for it or you have been forbidden to do so.

This, by the way, leads us to another issue - the difference between expressions like tha sunnd orm and tha mi sunndach. Click [[Experience vs Disposition or Tha mi sunndach|here]] for the full story.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Aig, air agus ann an or The severed head

2013-03-28T23:12:26Z

Thrissel: uaine

Now you've probably read and mastered the chapter on possession and when to use mo and when to use an X agam. There is another obstacle however.

There are a number of expressions that in English are all constructed with the same possessive construction 'to have', e.g. I have two eyes, he has one arm, I have a headache, she has a foul mouth, he has a scowl and so on.

The fun begins when you try to say these things in Gaelic, because Gaelic looks at the world differently and uses 3 different ways of expressing what English bunches into the one form. All three hinge on the correct use of the prepositions aig, air and ann an.

Take the sentence 'Mórag has a big head' for example. How would you say that in Gaelic? A lot of you are probably going to say tha ceann mór aig Mórag. Which is a well formed sentence but ... more about this further down. How about tha ceann mór air Mórag? Or even tha ceann mór ann am Mórag? The latter two are also well formed sentences, that is, they are 100% grammatical. So why these three constructions and where is the difference, if there is one?

There is a big difference. The first one, tha ceann mór aig Mórag, which most of you will have at least considered, does mean Mórag has a big head, but it implies that this unfortunately has been severed from its owner's body. Aig, as you will remember from the page on possessives, implies alienable ownership. Which means that item X can be taken away from you and the only way you can do that with ceann is by cutting it off. Rrright ... if you're a Dungeons & Dragons fan, this may well apply but in most settings this won't do. What about the next one, tha tha ceann mór air Mórag?

This is the one we're really after - Mórag has a head (still attached to her, no stitches, no seam). By using air, we imply that the possession is still inalienable. Which is what we want here.

So what on earth is the the third one about, tha ceann mór ann am Mórag? Here we are getting idiomatic and imply a trait or disposition - that Mórag is big-headed and a bit full of herself.

This three way distinction applies in most settings, so here's an overview with a few more examples (note that a three way distinction is not always possible, but the correct preposition still has to be chosen):

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| (ann) an || air || aig
|-
| inherent quality, disposition, nature || physical inalienable possession, physical attribute, permanent state || alienable possession, temporary possession or act
|-
| tha beul mór am Mórag || tha beul mór air Mórag ||
|-
| Mórag has a big mouth [talks too much] || Mórag has a [physically] big mouth ||
|-
| tha ceann mór an Seoc || tha ceann mór air Seoc || tha ceann mór aig Seoc
|-
| Jock has a big head [is full of himself] || Jock has a [physically] big head || Jock has a big [severed] head
|-
| chan eil tùr ann an Iain || ||
|-
| Ian has no sense || ||
|-
| || tha falt dubh air Màiri || tha falt dubh aig Màiri ||
|-
| || Màiri has black hair [growing on her head] || Màiri has black hair [which has been cut off]
|-
| || tha ceithir làmhan air || tha ceithir làmhan aige ||
|-
| || he has four hands [pysically attached to his body] || he has four [severed] hands ||
|-
| tha cluasan móra ann an Jo || tha cluasan móra air Jo || tha cluasan móra aig Jo
|-
| Jo has big ears [likes to listen, eavesdrop] || Jo has [physically] big ears || Jo has [severed] big ears
|-
| chan eil casan ann || tha casan air Jo || tha casan aig Jo
|-
| it has no legs [it isn't possible, feasible] || Jo has [physically] legs || Jo has legs [drumsticks for her dinner]
|-
| || tha e air leth làimh || tha leth làimh aige ||
|-
| || he has one hand [attached to himself], is one handed || he has one [severed] hand ||
|-
| tha sradag ann || tha sradag aige ||
|-
| he has a temper [by nature] || he has a spark [for lighting a fire etc] ||
|-
| tha stac-crùbaich ann an Jo || tha stac-crùbaich air Jo || tha stac-crùbaich aig Jo
|-
| Jo has a limp [e.g. developed due to old age] || Jo has a limp [since birth] || Jo has a limp [temporarily due to a sprained ankle]
|-
|}

I think you get the idea. Of course there are other uses of the same prepositions. In tha cnatan orm or tha sròn orm "I'm in a huff" the use of air implies a non-permanent state, i.e. you will get better at some point. This doesn't upset the system from the Gaelic point of view though, because the noun in question will give you an idea of what the only possible interpretation can be i.e. if it's cnatan, it must be temporary, if it's ceann, it must be permanent.

"But I've heard tha ceann agam!!" I'm sure you have, but this is just due to the ever-increasing influence of English. It's up to you whether you want to learn good idiom or Gall-Ghàidhlig.

And a footnote for good measure: remember that just because English uses a certain construction doesn't mean that Gaelic will use the same - in many cases Gaelic will not use a possessive pronoun where English uses one. A good example is thilg mi an t-uisge mun dà shùil, I threw the water into his eyes or thug mi a chliù dha eadar an dà shùil, I told him how little I think of him straight to his face.

You ever watch Jackie Chan Adventures? "One more thing" ... in very idiomatic Gaelic ann is sometimes used to denote ability - chan eil òran innte "she can't sing" or tha seinn annta "they can sing". The underlying idea here is that there are certain skills which are innate - you either have or don't have them. The ability to sing is one of them, so from the Gaelic point of view it is treated as an inherent ability or disposition and thus uses ann. Yes, you will hear chan urrainn dhomh seinn, but strictly speaking that implies there is some external factor preventing you from doing so - you have a sore throat, you're not getting paid for it or you have been forbidden to do so.

This, by the way, leads us to another issue - the difference between expressions like tha sunnd orm and tha mi sunndach. Click [[Experience vs Disposition or Tha mi sunndach|here]] for the full story.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Nasalisation 2 or Why am I married to ə NɯNʲə agam?

2012-12-07T22:38:43Z

Thrissel: shaoilinn gur e seo an ceangal

Good question indeed - but that is really a personal issue between you and your partner. Anyway, this is particularly strange when it comes to Gaelic, as you will see later on. But first of all, what are we on about this time?

Depending on you exposure to spoken Gaelic, you will have come across speakers who do something apparently strange to nouns after the definite article - when according to the grammar books nothing strange is supposed to go on. At least not lenition anyway. It sounds as if they mutate the first sound of the following noun or sometimes even drop it completely. As this is most prominent in the dialects of Lewis and certain parts of the Isle of Skye, where a lot of speakers hail from these days, you should at least be familiar with this phenomenon so it won't baffle you when you ask for planning permission in Gaelic for your new luxury detached home with a heated outdoor swimming pool on the Isle of Harris (swipe at Comhairle nan Eilean Siar's "Bilingual Policy" intended) and the planning officer talks about an taigh ùr agaibh as [aN hɤj uːr agu].

So what is going on here? Without going into the details (for a change) just accept that nasals often do strange things to sounds surrounding them, not only in Gaelic. Compare French where -n indicates nasalisation, but not always ... tres bon is [tʁe bõ] with a nasalised vowel, but in bon appetit it suddenly re-appears [bon apeti]. Or German, where something bizarre happens with certain syllables like -ten which are produced as a "stop with nasal release", transcribed as [entn] (Enten meaning 'ducks'). Bit like snorting an ''n'' sound through your nose. Anyway, I digress.

In Gaelic the final -n and -m of the definite article assimilates the following consonant in the above mentioned dialects, into something which is phonetically closer to a nasal consonant. Let's leave it at that and look at some examples:

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0" align="center"
! Orthography
! Pronunciation (a lot of places)
! Pronunciation (Lewis, parts of Skye)
|-
| am bàta || [əm baːhdə] || [ə maːhdə]
|-
| am pìos || [əm biːs] or [əm bʰiːs] || [əm hiːs]
|-
| an gille || [əŋ gʲiLʲe] || [ə ŋiLʲe]
|-
| an càr || [əŋ gaːr] or [aŋ gʰaːr] || [əŋ haːr]
|-
| an duine || [əN dɯNʲə] || [ə NɯNʲə]
|-
| an taigh || [əN dɤj] or [əN dʰɤj] || [əN hɤj]
|-
|}

Luckily, only words beginning with b, p, g, c, d, t are affected. Well ... that doesn't leave that many, but at least L N R are unaffected. One more thing - this is one of the few instances where b g d are voiced in Gaelic (for an explanation on voicing [[Voiced vs Voiceless or Why does b sound like p but not really?|click here]]) because the strongly voiced quality of the -n preserves (or assimilates, it doesn't matter) the voicing of the following consonant.

Whether you actually want to adopt this in your own speech is up to you - since not all dialects do it, you won't sound odd if you do not.

So why is this a bit odd in Gaelic? Well, just from a historical point of view really. Old Irish had this as a regular sound change, much like lenition in modern Gaelic and Irish still has it (Donegal, the fortress of the foreigners for example is Dún na nGall, "on the road" is ar an mbóthar etc ). Gaelic on the other hand first lost this process - only to re-introduce it later on (admittedly in a somewhat different fashion, but it's still very similar to what Old Irish did). That's why it's a bit odd.
 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Liquids or - L N R in Gaelic

2012-11-15T10:34:34Z

Thrissel: /* East Sutherland */ seems more clear to me like this, revert if you disagree

This is undoubtedly one of the most challenging bits of Gaelic grammar and phonology a learner will come across. Ever.

There are several reasons for it being so difficult. For one thing, unless you are a learner from an Irish speaking background, Gaelic has a number of sound distinctions which English - and most other languages of Europe - simply does not have, which makes it very difficult for the learner to even begin to distinguish them. The other reason is that, dialectal differences aside, the system inherited from Common Gaelic is not 'clean', not for learners anyway.

There is, however, no need to despair. In spite of what linguists might tell you about Second Language Acquisition, Performance, Representation and stuff, it is a feasible approach to learn how to produce the right sound in the right place, even though you might never learn how to "hear" the difference. This is possible because in 99% of all cases, context will clarify whether the fine distinction you have just missed means A or B. And as long as you make the right sounds, you will shed the Blas na Beurla air do chuid Ghàidhlig.

A last word of advice - a lot of the following might sound like nit-picking about "irrelevant" detail. Try not to be Anglo-centric; just because from the point of view of the English language a distinction is irrelevant or minor does not mean the same goes for another language. To many German learners of English ''then'' sounds like ''den'' and ''thin'' like ''fin'' - because to begin with German does not have a ''th'', much less a "minor distinction" between two of them, so they substitute with the closest their native language can come up with. While that does not make communication impossible, most people would agree that it does not constitute "good English". The same goes for Gaelic, making the wrong L does not constitute "good Gaelic".

==Common Gaelic and why "simplification" doesn’t always make things easier==
Not to worry, this is not going to turn into a lecture in historical linguistics, but it just might help a bit to make things more clear. If you find it confuses you more than it helps, just jump down to the "hardcore" stuff.

Common Gaelic, the language common to both Ireland and Scotland up until the 16th/17th century, had a "clean" system of liquids, that is, a clear 4 way distinction. Sounds scary, but from the point of view of a learner it might have actually been easier to learn. Symmetry and all that. So Common Gaelic had (IPA in slashed brackets; in round brackets the annotation commonly used amongst Celticists which you might find useful to correlate the two):

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
| /l̪ˠ/ (L) latha mall || /ʎ/ (L') liath caill || /n̪ˠ/ (N) nàire ceann || /ɲ/ (N') nèamh binn || /rˠ/ (R) ràmh barra || /*/ (R') rionnag girre
|-
| /lˠ/(l) balach màl || /l/ (l') baile càil || /nˠ/ (n) manach làn || /n/ (n') faoineas coin || /ɾ/ (r) caran mar || /rʲ/ (r') fireann fir
|-
|}

<nowiki>*</nowiki> no one actually knows which sound exactly this was and no Gaelic, Irish or Manx dialect has preserved initial slender R. All three languages have merged them with initial broad R.

So, this system was very symmetrical (something which languages seem to favour) - even from the point of view of lenition, that is, a lenited sound of the top row is the corresponding one in the bottom row.

==Ulster==
Moving on from Common Gaelic, both Irish and Gaelic lost phonemes. The most "complete" set can be found in Ulster Irish which has the following:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
|/l̪ˠ/ || /ʎ/ || /n̪ˠ/ || /ɲ/ || /rˠ/ || ✖
|-
| /lˠ/ || /l/ || /n̪/ || /n/ || /ɾ/ || /rʲ/
|-
|}

==East Sutherland==
East Sutherland Gaelic has a very "reduced" system (please note that by that we do not mean it is a degenerate dialect, simply reduced in comparison to Common Gaelic):

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
|/l̪ˠ/ || /ʎ/ || ✖ || ✖ || /rˠ/ || ✖
|-
| ✖ || /l/ || /n̪/ || /n/ || ✖ || ✖
|-
|}

==Most others in Scotland==
Most Scottish Gaelic dialects have established a three way system though (which is the one we will present here. For those interested in a four way system, Harris Gaelic has all four L's:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
|/l̪ˠ/ || /ʎ/ || /n̪ˠ/ || /ɲ/ || /rˠ/ || ✖
|-
| ✖ || /l/ || ✖ || /n/ || /ɾ/ || /rʲ/
|-
|}

Now this reduction in itself would not constitute a problem, after all, it means that there are fewer sounds for the learner to master. But it does become a problem because the "lost" category had to be distributed into the remaining categories - which did not always happen in a clear and straightforward fashion, making it very tricky for learners. We will see some examples of this later on, for now enough historical linguistics and some nitty-gritty useful guidelines.

==Give me an L!==
There are three L sounds in Gaelic. Former non-initial single broad /lˠ/ has now been grouped with /l̪ˠ/ (L in the simplified IPA letter set we're using):

{| style="width: 100%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="33%" | L
! scope="col" width="33%" | Lʲ
! scope="col" width="33%" | l
|- valign="top"
| Broad Initial l Broad ll (Also called Dark l) || Slender Initial l Slender ll (also called Palatal l) || Non-initial Slender l (Also called weak l)
|- valign="top"
| latha, lorg balla, talla, call, mall balach, ealan, màl, gal || leapaidh, leum cailleach, maille, caill, cill || baile, cuilean, càil, sùil
|- valign="top"
| 1) Tongue in an l position 2. Tip of tongue rests against the incisors 3. Body of tongue lowered 4. Back of tongue raised slightly This produces a hollow sounding "dark l" || 1. Tongue in an l position 2. Body of tongue pressed against the palate This produces a palatal l sound. If it helps, think of it as squeezing the l against your palate. For those with foreign language skills, this is the same as Spanish ''ll'', Portuguese ''lh'', Italian ''gli'' and French ''ill''. Note that this is ONE sound, so do NOT make an l followed by a ''y'' sound. || This is essentially the same "neutral" or "weak" l as in English, German etc. This means the tip of your tongue is at the alveolar ridge, not the teeth.
By weak I mean l sounds without any fancy tongue stuff going on
|-
|}

===Leniting l sounds===
Because the /ɫ/ sound has been lost, only slender [Lʲ] is lenited.

====Normal Lenition====
By "normal" we mean lenition caused by anything except the definite article, e.g. possessives, vocative particles, relative particles, noun induced lenition.

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="15%" |
! scope="col" width="85%" |
|-
| Lʲ ⇨ l || leapaidh ⇨ mo leapaidh
|-
| L ⇨ L || làmh ⇨ mo làmh (no change)
|-
| sL ⇨ L || slaodach ⇨ glé shlaodach
|-
| ʃLʲ ⇨ l || sleamhain ⇨ glé shleamhain
|-
| ʃl ⇨ l || sleamhain ⇨ glé shleamhain (NB: both pronunciations of sl- are found, depending on the dialect)
|-
|}

In traditional Harris Gaelic with the "extra l" the lenition would work as follows:

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="15%" |
! scope="col" width="85%" |
|-
| Lʲ ⇨ l || leapaidh ⇨ mo leapaidh
|-
| L ⇨ ɫ || làmh ⇨ mo làmh (to produce this sound, make an /l/ sound but lower the back of your tongue to "darken" it).
|-
|}

====Article Lenition====
There are a few peculiarities regarding article lenition. Since lenition is blocked for words beginning in DNTLS, the only exception here is with words beginning with fl-

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="15%" |
! scope="col" width="85%" |
|-
| Lʲ ⇨ Lʲ || leapaidh ⇨ air an leapaidh (no change)
|-
| L ⇨ L || làmh ⇨ air an làmh (no change)
|-
| fl ⇨ Lʲ || fleasgach ⇨ air an fhleasgach
|-
|}

==Give me an N!==
There are three N sounds in Gaelic. Former non-initial slender /nˠ/ has now been grouped with /n/:

{| style="width: 100%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="33%" | N
! scope="col" width="33%" | Nʲ
! scope="col" width="33%" | n
|- valign="top"
| Broad Initial n Broad nn (also called Dental n) || Slender Initial n Slender nn (also called Palatal n) || Non-initial Single n
|-
| naoi, nàire ceannaich, beannaich, gann, teann || nì, nead, fàinne, cainnt, cruinn, binn || ainm, faoineas, mìn, sin dona, dèanamh, làn, bean
|- valign="top"
| 1. Tongue in an n position 2. Tip of tongue rests against the upper incisors 3. Body of tongue lowered 4. Back of tongue raised slightly This produces a hollow sounding "dark n" || 1. Tongue in an n position 2. Body of tongue pressed against the palate This produces a palatal n sound. If it helps, think of it as squeezing the n against your palate. For those with foreign language skills, this is the same as Spanish ''ñ'', Portuguese ''nh'', Italian and French ''gn''. Note that this is ONE sound, so do NOT make an n followed by a ''y'' sound. || This is essentially the same "neutral" or "weak" n as in English, German etc. This means the tip of your tongue is at the alveolar ridge, not the teeth.
By weak I again mean an n sound with no funny business. Note that many dialects pronounce slender non-initial single n as /Nʲ/ (e.g. ainm, duine...)
|-
|}

===Leniting n sounds===
Seeing that the /nˠ/ vs /n/ distinction has been lost, we would expect lenition of n sounds to work like that of l sounds. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Both /N/ and /Nʲ/ lenite to /n/:

====Normal Lenition====
By "normal" we mean lenition caused by anything except the definite article, e.g. possessives, vocative particles, relative particles, noun induced lenition.

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="15%" |
! scope="col" width="85%" |
|-
| N ⇨ n || nàire ⇨ mo nàire
|-
| Nʲ ⇨ n || nead ⇨ mo nead
|-
| sN ⇨ n || snàthaid ⇨ mo shnàthaid
|-
| ʃNʲ ⇨ n || sneachda ⇨ mo shneachda
|-
|}

====Article Lenition====
Again, there are a few peculiarities regarding article lenition. Since lenition is blocked for words beginning in DNTLS, the only exception here is with words beginning with sn-

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="15%" |
! scope="col" width="85%" |
|-
| N ⇨ N || nàire ⇨ an nàire (no change)
|-
| Nʲ ⇨ Nʲ || nead ⇨ air an nead (no change)
|-
| sNʲ ⇨ -N tr || sneachda ⇨ anns an t-sneachda
|-
|}

====And the article itself actually====
Even though the plural definite articles na and nan start with n, those at the beginning are pronounced with weak /n/. Before vowels and lenited f, the final -n strengthens to /N/ and /Nʲ/, depending on the environment.

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="15%" |
! scope="col" width="85%" |
|-
| n ⇨ N || an ⇨ anns a'''n''' fhàrdach
|-
| || nan ⇨ na'''n''' aibhnichean
|-
| n ⇨ Nʲ || an ⇨ air a'''n''' fheur
|-
| || nan ⇨ na'''n''' eun
|-
|}

====And one more - possessives====
As if life wasn't difficult enough already, we must include a note on the pronunciation of n after possessives. The plural possessive pronouns prefix n- to a noun beginning with a vowel. Although one might be tempted to follow the rules under (1), this n- is always pronounced as weak /n/.

{| style="width: 30%;" border="0"
|-
| ar n-ubhal || /ar nu.əL/
|-
| 'gur n-iarraidh || /gər niaRɪ/
|-
| an ubhal || /a nu.əL/
|-
|}

Note for the curious: the reason for this is that historically the n- is not part of the noun, but of the possessive - as you can see in the third person possessive an where the spelling still reflects that. So way back ar and ur were aron and svaron - which is, incidentally, the reason that in Irish these eclipse i.e. 'our cat' is ár gcat.

So why shift around the n? It's all to do with syllable structure and things like that - happens in all languages, e.g. English ''nickname'' used to be ''an eekname'' - but let's leave it at that.

==Give me an r - hang on, almost there!==
And there are three R sounds in Gaelic. Former slender initial r has has now been grouped with /R/:

{| style="width: 100%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="33%" | R
! scope="col" width="33%" | r
! scope="col" width="33%" | rʲ
|- valign="top"
| Initial r Double r || Non-initial Broad r || Non-initial Slender r
|- valign="top"
| rùn, ràmh, rionnag, ruith (< rith) barra, urram, giorra (< girre)* cearr, barr || caran, darach, cur, cor || mìrean, céire cìr, air
|- valign="top"
| 1. Tongue tip at the alveolar ridge 2. Back of tongue lowered 3. Trill the r This is close to the "Scottish Rolled r". Rather difficult for English monoglot speakers. || 1. Tongue tip at the alveolar ridge 2. Back of tongue lowered 3. Tap the r Another sound difficult for English monoglots. You can also think of this sound as an extremely quickly said (English) <d>, but tapped more with the very tip of your tongue rather than the blade as for <d>. || This sound is like /r/ but pronounced closer to your incisors. A variant of this sound is /ð/as in English ''the'', where instead of your tongue being at your teeth, it is pushed in between your teeth.
|-
|}

<nowiki>*</nowiki>Here the change in pronunciation is reflected in the spelling

Note that the preposition ri (and its conjugated forms) are pronounced with /rʲ/.

===Leniting r sounds===
Once you have actually mastered trilling and tapping your r sounds, leniting them is easy, since there is only one initial r sound left in Gaelic.

====Normal Lenition====
Again, by "normal" we mean lenition caused by anything except the definite article, e.g. possessives, vocative particles, relative particles, noun induced lenition. Note that the whole /sdr/ cluster gets reduced to /r/.

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="15%" |
! scope="col" width="85%" |
|-
| R ⇨ r || rathad ⇨ mo rathad
|-
| R ⇨ r || rionnag ⇨ mo rionnag
|-
| sdr ⇨ r || sruth ⇨ mo shruth
|-
|}

Note that loanwords (usually written with str rather than sr) are unlenitable, for example, stràbh ⇨ mo stràbh.

====Article Lenition====
Again, there are a few peculiarities regarding article lenition. Although lenition is NOT blocked here after the definite article, r in fact does not lenite after the definite article. After fr, r is "strengthened" to /R/.

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="15%" |
! scope="col" width="85%" |
|-
| R ⇨ R || rathad > air an rathad (no change)
|-
| r ⇨ R || fraoch > anns an fhraoch
|-
|}

Sin agad e - That's it, you've done it. Now all you need to do is remember it.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Nasalisation or When to speak through your nose

2012-11-08T12:38:49Z

Thrissel: wkf

As many other languages, Gaelic has nasalised vowels. In linguist-speak that means that you lower your velum while making the vowel sound.

In other words, instead of air passing just through your mouth, some air also escapes through your nose. It is quite easy to learn how to nasalise vowels - just try to additionally breathe out through your nose. You can check whether you are doing the right thing both by listening to your own voice and - if you are still unsure - holding your hand under your nose - if you are doing it right, you will be able to feel your breath on the back of your hand.

So when DO you do this in Gaelic? Unfortunately, there is no simple rule and it also differs vastly from dialect to dialect which words are nasalised or not. Here are a few pointers though:

1) Nasalisation occurs mostly in the vicinity of nasal consonants m, mh, n and ng. Now you could argue successfully that due to the articulation process ALL vowels near a nasal are nasalised. We only talk about nasalised vowels however, if the nasalisation is audible throughout the vowel and fairly noticeable.

In some cases it is very important to nasalise the appropriate vowels as it affects the meaning of your statements, such as in:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| cha bhi || [xa viː] || will not || ≠ || cha mhi || [xa vĩː] || I am not
|-
| a-bhàn || [əˈvaːn] || down (mainland) || ≠ || a-mhàin || [əˈvãːn] || only
|-
| a Dhia! || [ə ʝia] || Oh God! || ≠ || a dhiamh! || [ə ʝĩã] || yuck!
|-
| tàbh || [taːv] || hand-net || ≠ || tàmh || [tãːṽ] || rest
|-
|}

This is not only restricted to the vowel immediately adjacent to the nasal, but can spread through the whole word and even affect consonants, e.g. in màthair [mãːh̃ə̃rʲ] 'mother' or seanmhair [ʃɛ̃nɛ̃və̃rʲ] 'grandmother'.

High mid vowels are almost never nasalised. Eh? I mean [e] [o] and [ɤ]. For example:

* [e] feum, leum, fhéin, beum, ceum...
* [o] mór, modh, coma...
* [ɤ] coinnich, coinneamh...

Words with a helping vowel tend not to have nasalisation, even if they contain nasals, for example:
* ainm [ɛnɛm] "name"

So should you be looking for a bottle of hair conditioner now to dye your hair grey? Not really, nasalisation in Gaelic for the most part is "optional". In other words, it won't affect the meaning of a statement or confuse someone your speaking to. A bit like nasalisation in English really where it does occur but never makes a blind bit of difference to the meaning of what you're saying.

There are languages where it '''does''' matter ... in Lakhóta (what they speak in Dances with Wolves ... which incidentally is Šųkmánitu Thą́ka ų Wačhí ... not that you needed to know that) for example the word ú means ''to come'' and the word ų́ (with nasalisation) means ''to live''. In Gaelic on the other hand, whether you say [mãːh̃ə̃rʲ] or [maːhərʲ], it always means 'mother'.

By the way, this kind of nasalisation has nothing to do with what happens to stops after the definite article in certain dialects (and Irish as a matter of fact). For this phenomenon read the pages on [[Nasalisation 2 or Why am I married to ə NɯNʲə agam?|Nasalisation after the definite article]].
 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Pre-aspiration or What the h in mac is about

2012-10-18T21:03:59Z

Thrissel: columns

This is both a fascinating and slightly boring topic. Boring because it is probably one of the most often cited features of Gaelic. Fascinating because ... well, you'll see.

What pre-aspiration means is that certain languages insert aspiration (the puffing sound you get eg after p, t, c in English at the beginning of words) before such sounds when they occur in the middle or at the end of a word.

The weird thing about this is that it is one of those Sprachbund features. Which means that it is a phenomenon which occurs in a specific area within languages which are unrelated to each other. For example, Gaelic is infinitely closer to Irish and Manx yet it shares pre-aspiration with Icelandic, Sami, Greenlandic, Norwegian, Siksika (also known as Blackfoot, a native American language) and a few other languages on the Arctic Circle:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
| || k || p || t
|-
|Gaelic || mac [maʰk] || cupa [kuʰpə] || cat [kaʰt̪]
|-
|(Irish) || mac [mak] || cupán [kopɑːn] || cat [kat̪]
|-
|Icelandic || sakka [sɑhkɑ] || koppar [kɔhpɑr] || vítt [viht]
|-
|Faroese || bakki [baʰcːɩ] || koppur [kɔʰpːɷr] || mítt [mɷʏ̯ʰtː]
|-
|Siksika || ihkitsíka [iʰkit'sika] || ihpiyi [iʰpiji] || staahtsitsis [staːʰtsitsis]
|-
|}

Let's have a closer look at what happens in Gaelic:

This is where the weird stuff begins - but first for a few rules of thumb of what to do when.

:Most Scottish Gaelic dialects have pre-aspiration these days, so if you are learning Gaelic, you should pre-aspirate.

:The majority of speakers have moderate pre-aspiration ie most insert [ʰ] or [h] and only very few insert [x] throughout.

:Pre-aspiration never occurs word initially and is strongest in the second syllable and weakest in subsequent ones (not that there are many instances of such syllables anyway). It is also weaker after long vowels.

:Pre-aspiration adjusts for broad/slender: before a broad vowel it is [ʰ] but before a slender vowel this changes to [ç] (just like in chì [çiː] only less prominent). For convenience sake it is usually just transcribed as [ʰ].

:Thus you should pre-aspirate as follows:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
|c || p || t
|-
|càr (none) [kaːɾ] || pòr (none) [pɔːɾ] || tùr (none) [t̪uːɾ]
|-
|mac [maʰk] || cupa [kuʰpə] || cat [kaʰt̪]
|-
|mic [miçkʲ] || cipean [kʲiçpan] || lite [ʎiçtʲɪ]
|-
|}

So what's the weird bit? Well, for one thing it's the fact that pre-aspiration is rare amongst the languages of the world and most frequent around the "Arctic Circle". The other weird bit is that it "staggered" which means that [ʰk] is the sound most likely to be pre-aspirated (and most strongly) - but also that if pre-aspiration occurs before [ʰt̪] it must always also exist before [ʰp]. Look at the map above and have a look at pre-aspiration in Bute, Cowal & North Kintyre ... it has [maxk] [kupə] and [kat̪].

Incidentally, there are/were some dialects which didn't pre-aspirate at all. Look at the map again - East Perthshire and Kintyre & Arran Gaelic did not have pre-aspiration at all. Something interesting to listen out for should you meet a speaker from one of these areas.

But why? What for? Interesting question - next time you meet a few linguists, ask them that question and watch them work each other into an apopleptic fit. The answer is that there are several theories, all of which have merit, but none that is fully convincing somehow. Not yet anyway. Some claim that it is a feature spread by Norse - which kind of worries Blackfoot linguists. Others say pre-aspiration derives from geminate stops (long consonants in other words) ... but since they are common and widespread, why only around the Arctic? Others base their theory on structural phonology ...

But that last bit needn't worry you as a learner or speaker of Gaelic as long as you know what to do when.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Aig, air agus ann an or The severed head

2012-10-06T17:55:02Z

Thrissel:

Now you've probably read and mastered the chapter on possession and when to use mo and when to use an X agam. There is another obstacle however.

There are a number of expressions that in English are all constructed with the same possessive construction 'to have', e.g. I have two eyes, he has one arm, I have a headache, she has a foul mouth, he has a scowl and so on.

The fun begins when you try to say these things in Gaelic, because Gaelic looks at the world differently and uses 3 different ways of expressing what English bunches into the one form. All three hinge on the correct use of the prepositions aig, air and ann an.

Take the sentence 'Mórag has a big head' for example. How would you say that in Gaelic? A lot of you are probably going to say tha ceann mór aig Mórag. Which is a well formed sentence but ... more about this further down. How about tha ceann mór air Mórag? Or even tha ceann mór ann am Mórag? The latter two are also well formed sentences, that is, they are 100% grammatical. So why these three constructions and where is the difference, if there is one?

There is a big difference. The first one tha ceann mór aig Mórag, which most of you will have at least considered, does mean Mórag has a big head, but it implies that this unfortunately has been severed from its owner's body. Aig, as you will remember from the page on possessives implies alienable ownership. Which means that item X can be taken away from you and the only way you can do that with ceann is by cutting it off. Rrright ... if you're a Dungeons & Dragons fan, this may well apply but in most settings this won't do. What about the next one, tha ceann mór air Mórag?

This is the one we're really after - Mórag has a head (still attached to her, no stitches, no seam). By using air, we imply that the possession is still inalienable. Which is what we want here.

So what on earth is the the third one about, tha ceann mór ann am Mórag? Here we are getting idiomatic and imply a trait or disposition - that Mórag is big-headed and a bit full of herself.

This three way distinction applies in most settings, so here's an overview with a few more examples (note that a three way distinction is not always possible, but the correct preposition still has to be chosen):

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| (ann) an || air || aig
|-
| inherent quality, disposition, nature || physical inalienable possession, physical attribute, permanent state || alienable possession, temporary possession or act
|-
| tha beul mór am Mórag || tha beul mór air Mórag ||
|-
| Mórag has a big mouth [talks too much] || Mórag has a [physically] big mouth ||
|-
| tha ceann mór an Seoc || tha ceann mór air Seoc || tha ceann mór aig Seoc
|-
| Jock has a big head [is full of himself] || Jock has a [physically] big head || Jock has a big [severed] head
|-
| chan eil tùr ann an Iain || ||
|-
| Ian has no sense || ||
|-
| tha falt dubh air Màiri || tha falt dubh aig Màiri ||
|-
| Màiri has black hair [growing on her head] || Màiri has black hair [which has been cut off]
|-
| tha ceithir làmhan air || tha ceithir làmhan aige ||
|-
| he has four hands [pysically attached to his body] || he has four [severed] hands ||
|-
| tha cluasan móra ann an Jo || tha cluasan móra air Jo || tha cluasan móra aig Jo
|-
| Jo has big ears [likes to listen, eavesdrop] || Jo has [physically] big ears || Jo has [severed] big ears
|-
| chan eil casan ann || tha casan air Jo || tha casan aig Jo
|-
| it has no legs [it isn't possible, feasible] || Jo has [physically] legs || Jo has [severed] legs
|-
| tha e air leth làimh || tha leth làimh aige ||
|-
| he has one hand [attached to himself], is one handed || he has one [severed] hand ||
|-
| tha sradag ann || tha sradag aige ||
|-
| he has a temper [by nature] || he has a spark [for lighting a fire etc] ||
|-
| tha stac-crùbaich ann an Jo || tha stac-crùbaich air Jo || tha stac-crùbaich aig Jo
|-
| Jo has a limp [e.g. developed due to old age] || Jo has a limp [since birth] || Jo has a limp [temporarily due to a sprained ankle]
|-
|}

I think you get the idea. Of course there are other uses of the same prepositions. In tha cnatan orm or tha sròn orm "I'm in a huff" the use of air implies a non-permanent state, i.e. you will get better at some point. This doesn't upset the system from the Gaelic point of view though, because the noun in question will give you an idea of what the only possible interpretation can be i.e. if it's cnatan, it must be temporary, if it's ceann, it must be permanent.

"But I've heard tha ceann agam!!" I'm sure you have, but this is just due to the ever-increasing influence of English. It's up to you whether you want to learn good idiom or Gall-Ghàidhlig.

And a footnote for good measure: remember that just because English uses a certain construction doesn't mean that Gaelic will use the same - in many cases Gaelic will not use a possessive pronoun where English uses one. A good example is thilg mi an t-uisge mun dà shùil, I threw the water into his eyes or thug mi a chliù dhà eadar an dà shùil, I told him how little I think of him straight to his face.

You ever watch Jackie Chan Adventures? "One more thing" ... in very idiomatic Gaelic ann is sometimes used to denote ability - chan eil òran innte "she can't sing" or tha seinn annta "they can sing". The underlying idea here is that there are certain skills which are innate - you either have or don't have them. The ability to sing is one of them, so from the Gaelic point of view it is treated as an inherent ability or disposition and thus uses ann. Yes, you will hear chan urrainn dhomh seinn, but strictly speaking that implies there is some external factor preventing you from doing so - you have a sore throat, you're not getting paid for it or you have been forbidden to do so.

This, by the way, leads us to another issue - the difference between expressions like tha sunnd orm and tha mi sunndach. Click [[Experience vs Disposition or Tha mi sunndach|here]] for the full story.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Existentials or I think therefore I am

2012-10-06T17:51:20Z

Thrissel:

This is where you either start to love or hate the word ann. Existentials is a fancy word for "expressions that talk about the existence of things" although the use of ann goes a bit beyond that as we will see. And before we start, it is the "same" ann as the preposition in (click here for more details), only with a somewhat different function.

Let's start with the easy bit first. Ann is used in Gaelic to express the notion of something existing (or not, as the case may be):

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| tha mi ann || 1. I exist 2. I am there/here
|-
| a bheil Dia ann? || 1. Does God exist? 2. Is there a god? (the answer to both is no, by the way)
|-
| chan eil taibhsean ann || 1. Ghosts do not exist. 2. There are no ghosts.
|-
| 's e a tha ann ... || Fact is ...
|-
| ann bho shean || in existence of old
|-
| an tu a th' ann? || is it you?
|-
| airgead ann no ás || money or no money
|-
|}

As you can see, there is more than one way to translate some of the above Gaelic statements - in Gaelic the exact connotation has to be inferred from context, which isn't much of a problem if you think about it. Thuirt Descartes "Tha smuaint annam is mar sin tha mi ann" can't really mean anything but Descartes said "I think therefore I am" ... unless it's a novel in which Descartes is telling someone he is present of course. And in any case, there isn't much of a difference between 'does God exist?' and 'is there a god?' to be honest.

Not that difficult so far. But ann also has another function which is a bit harder to pin down. In general terms it can be said to have an emphasising force. Let's look at some examples so you will know what I'm talking about:

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| Rinn mi ann e! || I've already done it!
|-
| Cha bhi e a' sabaid ann. || He will not be fighting at all.
|-
| Chan eil aithne aca air an té ann. || They don't know her at all.
|-
| An t-amadan a tha thu ann! || Fool that you are!
|-
| Tha taibhse anns an taigh ann! || There is a ghost in that house!
|-
|}

As you can see, although Gaelic uses the same construction in all the above examples, there are a number of different constructions we have to use in English.

The easiest way to deal with them is perhaps to translate the "extra" ann with it-exists and then see what is the most logical interpretation. No, I'm not running out of ideas - there are a number of things in Gaelic which just juxtapose two concepts and leave it to the listener to figure the most logical connection - think of construction like bhàsaich m' athair 's mi 'nam bhalach òg. Ann is best treated as emphasising the existence (or non-existence) of something or somebody.

So the first example would be 'did I it-exists it' - what I did really exists > I really did it. The second one would be 'not will-be he fighting it-exists' - his fighting will not exist > he will not fight at all and 'be ghost in the house it-exists' > a ghost does exist in that house.

This also explains the subtle difference between the following pairs of sentences:

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| tha cù fon bhòrd || there is a dog under the table
|-
| tha cù ann fon bhòrd || there is a dog under the table
|-
| tha eàrlas £50 anns a' phàipear || there is a £50 voucher in the paper
|-
| tha eàrlas £50 anns a' phàipear ann || there is a £50 voucher in the paper
|-
|}

While the first variant of these Gaelic sentences simply makes a "neutral" statement about the existence of item X, the second variant emphasises the existence of item X, perhaps in response to someone doubting the fact or to express surprise of the fact. Possible scenarios would be the following:

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| Alasdair, bheil fhios a'd dè thachair rium an-diugh? Cheannaich mi am Pàipear Beag agus bha eàrlas £50 anns a' phàipear ann!
|-
| Bha mi aig Caisteal Urchadain sa mhadainn agus abair iongantas a bh' orm nuair a chunna mi an t-uilebheist air a' chladach! Cha robh mi a' creidsinn ann roimhe ach thà uilebheist anns an loch ann!
|-
|}

There is another construction which is connected to this use of ann for existentials. Most of you will be familiar with the contructions 's e X a tha annam and tha mi 'nam X - but you may not be aware of the subtle difference between them as most grammars tend to sidestep this issue.

The difference is one of disposition/inherent attribute and non-permanence. In less fancy terms, the first ('s e ...) is "permanent" and the second (tha e 'na ...) "transient". Let's look at some examples:

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| 's e banaltram a tha innte || she is a nurse
|-
| 's e oileanach a tha ann || he is a student
|-
| 's e balach beag a tha ann || he is a little boy
|-
| tha i 'na draibhear bus || she is a bus driver
|-
| tha e 'na oileanach || he is a student
|-
| tha e 'na bhalach beag || he is a little boy
|-
|}

Didn't I say something about a difference? There is, but it's difficult to literally translate into English. It is best seen when you use the phrases above together (at least the first two):

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| tha i 'na draibhear bus an-dràsda ach 's e banaltram a tha innte || she is a bus driver now but she really is a nurse
|-
| tha e 'na oileanach ach chan e oileanach a tha ann || he is a student but he isn't a student
|-
|}

The first sentence implies that Mrs X trained as a nurse and really want to be one but because the hospital closed, she's temporarily working as a bus driver.

Our student is enrolled at university and thus technically speaking a student, but isn't much of a scholar because he's as thick as two short planks and never goes to lectures.

If you think of ann in these examples stressing the existence, it kind of makes sense - 'se oileanach a tha ann = be-he student that be exist - where you are essentially making a statement about existence twice!

Let's hope you are the latter!!

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

l n r

2012-10-01T13:24:37Z

Thrissel: /* r sounds */

Except for a small group of exceptions, all sonorants have their ''strong'' value at the beginning of words.

==l sounds==
[[File:lnr01.ogg|noicon|90px]]
There are 3 different l sounds:
{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
! Sound
! Position
! Example
! Gaelic
! English
|-
| [L] || Initial broad l || '''[La.ə]''' || latha || day
|-
| || || '''[Lɔx]''' || loch || loch (lake)
|-
| || || '''[Luːb]''' || lùb || bend!
|-
| || || '''[Laːdʲɪrʲ]''' || làidir || strong
|-
| || Broad l and ll elsewhere || '''[gLan]''' || glan || clean (adj.)
|-
| || || '''[bLaː]''' || blàth || warm (adj.)
|-
| || || '''[baLəx]''' || balach || boy
|-
| || || '''[faLu]''' || falamh || empty (adj.)
|-
| || || '''[kadəL]''' || cadal || sleep (n.)
|-
| || || '''[baLə]''' || balla || wall (n.)
|-
| || || '''[faLaNʲ]''' || fallain || healthy
|-
| || || '''[pɔbəL]''' || poball || population
|-
| [Lʲ] || Initial slender l || '''[Lʲiən]''' || lìon || net
|-
| || || '''[Lʲeh]''' || leth || half
|-
| || || '''[LʲũːN]''' || lionn || liquid (n.)
|-
| || || '''[Lʲis]''' || lios || garden
|-
| || || '''[Lʲihdʲɪrʲ]''' || litir || letter (n.)
|-
| || || '''[Lʲɛxg]''' || leac || flagstone
|-
| || Slender ll elsewhere || '''[buLʲə]''' || buille || hit (n.)
|-
| || || '''[kaLʲəx]''' || cailleach || old woman
|-
| || || '''[duLʲag]''' || duilleag || leaf
|-
| || || '''[kaiLʲ]''' || caill || lose!
|-
| || || '''[kɤiLʲ]''' || coill || forest
|-
| || || '''[saiLʲ]''' || saill || salt!
|-
| [l] || Non-initial slender l || '''[balə]''' || baile || village
|-
| || || '''[kalag]''' || caileag || girl
|-
| || || '''[kulag]''' || cuileag || fly (n.)
|-
| || || '''[ulə]''' || uile || all
|-
| || || '''[elə]''' || eile || other
|-
| || || '''[dulɪç]''' || duilich || sorry
|-
|}

Note: the preposition le and its prepositional pronouns (leam, leat, leis, leatha, leinn, leibh, leotha) are pronounced as [l], not [Lʲ].

==n sounds==
[[File:lnr02.ogg|noicon|90px]]
There are 3 different n sounds:
{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
! Sound
! Position
! Example
! Gaelic
! English
|-
| [N] || Initial broad n || '''[Naːbɪ]''' || nàbaidh || neighbour
|-
| || || '''[Nahɪrʲ]''' || nathair || snake
|-
| || || '''[Nɯːv]''' || naomh || holy
|-
| || || '''[Nasg]''' || nasg || tie-band
|-
| || || '''[Nɔxg]''' || nochd || appear
|-
| || || '''[NɔLɪgʲ]''' || Nollaig || Christmas
|-
| || Broad nn || '''[aNə]''' || Anna || Ann(e)
|-
| || || '''[kʲaNɪç]''' || ceannaich || buy!
|-
| || || '''[bjaNəxg]''' || beannachd || blessing
|-
| || || '''[auN]''' || ann || in him
|-
| || || '''[tʲauN]''' || teann || tight
|-
| || || '''[kʲauN]''' || ceann || head (n.)
|-
| [Nʲ] || Initial slender n || '''[NʲiəL]''' || Niall || Neil
|-
| || || '''[Nʲi.ə]''' || nighe || washing
|-
| || || '''[Nʲed]''' || nead || nest (n.)
|-
| || || '''[Nʲi]''' || nigh || wash!
|-
| || || '''[Nʲax]''' || neach || person
|-
| || || '''[Nʲihan]''' || nighean || daughter
|-
| || Slender nn || '''[faːNʲə]''' || fàinne || ring (n.)
|-
| || || '''[baNʲə]''' || bainne || milk (n.)
|-
| || || '''[ʃeiNʲ]''' || seinn || sing!
|-
| || || '''[tʲiNʲə]''' || tinne || sicker
|-
| || || '''[biNʲə]''' || binne || sweeter
|-
| || || '''[kaiNʲdʲ]''' || cainnt || speech
|-
| [n] || Non-initial slender & broad n || '''[dɔnə]''' || dona || bad
|-
| || || '''[sɔnə]''' || sona || happy
|-
| || || '''[anam]''' || anam || soul
|-
| || || '''[banal]''' || banail || feminine
|-
| || || '''[dʲiənəv]''' || dèanamh || doing
|-
| || || '''[ʃin]''' || sin || that
|-
| || || '''[miːn]''' || mìn || soft
|-
| || || '''[ɛnɛm]''' || ainm || name (n.)
|-
| || || '''[uən]''' || uain || lamb (n.)
|-
| || || '''[kɔn]''' || coin || dogs
|-
|}

Note: some dialects pronounce non-initial slender n as [Nʲ] (i.e. like slender nn) rather than [n], e.g:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
| [Nʲ] || || '''[ʃiNʲ]''' || sin || that
|-
| || || '''[miːn]''' || mìn || soft
|-
| || || '''[ɛNʲɛm]''' || ainm || name (n.)
|-
| || || '''[uəNʲ]''' || uain || lamb (n.)
|-
| || || '''[kɔNʲ]''' || coin || dogs
|-
|}

==r sounds==
[[File:lnr03.ogg|noicon|90px]]
There are 3 different n sounds:
{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
! Sound
! Position
! Example
! Gaelic
! English
|-
| [R] || Initial broad & slender r || '''[Rɔh]''' || roth || wheel (n.)
|-
| || || '''[Rɔːn]''' || ròn || seal
|-
| || || '''[Rɔb]''' || Rob || Rob
|-
| || || '''[Ruərɪ]''' || Ruaraidh || Rory
|-
| || || '''[RuNag]''' || rionnag || star
|-
| || || '''[Rixg]''' || riochd || appearance
|-
| || Broad & slender rr || '''[baːR]''' || barr || top
|-
| || || '''[kɔːR]''' || corr || rest (n.)
|-
| || || '''[kɔRəx]''' || corrach || uneven
|-
| || || '''[kaRɛgʲ]''' || carraig || rock
|-
| || || '''[kuRan]''' || curran || carrot
|-
| || || '''[uRə]''' || urra || individual
|-
| [r] || Non-initial broad r || '''[aran]''' || aran || apple
|-
| || || '''[ɔːran]''' || òran || song
|-
| || || '''[dʲɛrɛg]''' || dearg || red
|-
| || || '''[kur]''' || cur || putting
|-
| || || '''[marav]''' || marbh || dead
|-
| || || '''[kar]''' || car || twist (n.)
|-
| [rʲ] || Non-initial slender r || '''[arʲə]''' || aire || attention
|-
| || || '''[arʲɪ]''' || airidh || deserving
|-
| || || '''[furʲəx]''' || fuireach || living, staying
|-
| || || '''[kurʲɪ]''' || cuiridh || will put
|-
| || || '''[ɛrʲɛgʲəd]''' || airgead || money
|-
|}

Note: the preposition ri and its prepositional pronouns (rium, riut, ris, rithe, riutha etc.) are normally pronounced as [rʲ].

 
 

{{Fuaimean}}

l n r

2012-10-01T13:22:45Z

Thrissel: /* l sounds */

Except for a small group of exceptions, all sonorants have their ''strong'' value at the beginning of words.

==l sounds==
[[File:lnr01.ogg|noicon|90px]]
There are 3 different l sounds:
{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
! Sound
! Position
! Example
! Gaelic
! English
|-
| [L] || Initial broad l || '''[La.ə]''' || latha || day
|-
| || || '''[Lɔx]''' || loch || loch (lake)
|-
| || || '''[Luːb]''' || lùb || bend!
|-
| || || '''[Laːdʲɪrʲ]''' || làidir || strong
|-
| || Broad l and ll elsewhere || '''[gLan]''' || glan || clean (adj.)
|-
| || || '''[bLaː]''' || blàth || warm (adj.)
|-
| || || '''[baLəx]''' || balach || boy
|-
| || || '''[faLu]''' || falamh || empty (adj.)
|-
| || || '''[kadəL]''' || cadal || sleep (n.)
|-
| || || '''[baLə]''' || balla || wall (n.)
|-
| || || '''[faLaNʲ]''' || fallain || healthy
|-
| || || '''[pɔbəL]''' || poball || population
|-
| [Lʲ] || Initial slender l || '''[Lʲiən]''' || lìon || net
|-
| || || '''[Lʲeh]''' || leth || half
|-
| || || '''[LʲũːN]''' || lionn || liquid (n.)
|-
| || || '''[Lʲis]''' || lios || garden
|-
| || || '''[Lʲihdʲɪrʲ]''' || litir || letter (n.)
|-
| || || '''[Lʲɛxg]''' || leac || flagstone
|-
| || Slender ll elsewhere || '''[buLʲə]''' || buille || hit (n.)
|-
| || || '''[kaLʲəx]''' || cailleach || old woman
|-
| || || '''[duLʲag]''' || duilleag || leaf
|-
| || || '''[kaiLʲ]''' || caill || lose!
|-
| || || '''[kɤiLʲ]''' || coill || forest
|-
| || || '''[saiLʲ]''' || saill || salt!
|-
| [l] || Non-initial slender l || '''[balə]''' || baile || village
|-
| || || '''[kalag]''' || caileag || girl
|-
| || || '''[kulag]''' || cuileag || fly (n.)
|-
| || || '''[ulə]''' || uile || all
|-
| || || '''[elə]''' || eile || other
|-
| || || '''[dulɪç]''' || duilich || sorry
|-
|}

Note: the preposition le and its prepositional pronouns (leam, leat, leis, leatha, leinn, leibh, leotha) are pronounced as [l], not [Lʲ].

==n sounds==
[[File:lnr02.ogg|noicon|90px]]
There are 3 different n sounds:
{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
! Sound
! Position
! Example
! Gaelic
! English
|-
| [N] || Initial broad n || '''[Naːbɪ]''' || nàbaidh || neighbour
|-
| || || '''[Nahɪrʲ]''' || nathair || snake
|-
| || || '''[Nɯːv]''' || naomh || holy
|-
| || || '''[Nasg]''' || nasg || tie-band
|-
| || || '''[Nɔxg]''' || nochd || appear
|-
| || || '''[NɔLɪgʲ]''' || Nollaig || Christmas
|-
| || Broad nn || '''[aNə]''' || Anna || Ann(e)
|-
| || || '''[kʲaNɪç]''' || ceannaich || buy!
|-
| || || '''[bjaNəxg]''' || beannachd || blessing
|-
| || || '''[auN]''' || ann || in him
|-
| || || '''[tʲauN]''' || teann || tight
|-
| || || '''[kʲauN]''' || ceann || head (n.)
|-
| [Nʲ] || Initial slender n || '''[NʲiəL]''' || Niall || Neil
|-
| || || '''[Nʲi.ə]''' || nighe || washing
|-
| || || '''[Nʲed]''' || nead || nest (n.)
|-
| || || '''[Nʲi]''' || nigh || wash!
|-
| || || '''[Nʲax]''' || neach || person
|-
| || || '''[Nʲihan]''' || nighean || daughter
|-
| || Slender nn || '''[faːNʲə]''' || fàinne || ring (n.)
|-
| || || '''[baNʲə]''' || bainne || milk (n.)
|-
| || || '''[ʃeiNʲ]''' || seinn || sing!
|-
| || || '''[tʲiNʲə]''' || tinne || sicker
|-
| || || '''[biNʲə]''' || binne || sweeter
|-
| || || '''[kaiNʲdʲ]''' || cainnt || speech
|-
| [n] || Non-initial slender & broad n || '''[dɔnə]''' || dona || bad
|-
| || || '''[sɔnə]''' || sona || happy
|-
| || || '''[anam]''' || anam || soul
|-
| || || '''[banal]''' || banail || feminine
|-
| || || '''[dʲiənəv]''' || dèanamh || doing
|-
| || || '''[ʃin]''' || sin || that
|-
| || || '''[miːn]''' || mìn || soft
|-
| || || '''[ɛnɛm]''' || ainm || name (n.)
|-
| || || '''[uən]''' || uain || lamb (n.)
|-
| || || '''[kɔn]''' || coin || dogs
|-
|}

Note: some dialects pronounce non-initial slender n as [Nʲ] (i.e. like slender nn) rather than [n], e.g:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
| [Nʲ] || || '''[ʃiNʲ]''' || sin || that
|-
| || || '''[miːn]''' || mìn || soft
|-
| || || '''[ɛNʲɛm]''' || ainm || name (n.)
|-
| || || '''[uəNʲ]''' || uain || lamb (n.)
|-
| || || '''[kɔNʲ]''' || coin || dogs
|-
|}

==r sounds==
[[File:lnr03.ogg|noicon|90px]]
There are 3 different n sounds:
{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
! Sound
! Position
! Example
! Gaelic
! English
|-
| [R] || Initial broad & slender n || '''[Rɔh]''' || roth || wheel (n.)
|-
| || || '''[Rɔːn]''' || ròn || seal
|-
| || || '''[Rɔb]''' || Rob || Rob
|-
| || || '''[Ruərɪ]''' || Ruaraidh || Rory
|-
| || || '''[RuNag]''' || rionnag || star
|-
| || || '''[Rixg]''' || riochd || appearance
|-
| || Broad & slender rr || '''[baːR]''' || barr || top
|-
| || || '''[kɔːR]''' || corr || rest (n.)
|-
| || || '''[kɔRəx]''' || corrach || uneven
|-
| || || '''[kaRɛgʲ]''' || carraig || rock
|-
| || || '''[kuRan]''' || curran || carrot
|-
| || || '''[uRə]''' || ròn || individual
|-
| [r] || Non-initial broad r || '''[aran]''' || aran || apple
|-
| || || '''[ɔːran]''' || òran || song
|-
| || || '''[dʲɛrɛg]''' || dearg || red
|-
| || || '''[kur]''' || cur || putting
|-
| || || '''[marav]''' || marbh || dead
|-
| || || '''[kar]''' || car || twist (n.)
|-
| [rʲ] || Non-initial slender r || '''[arʲə]''' || aire || attention
|-
| || || '''[arʲɪ]''' || airidh || deserving
|-
| || || '''[furʲəx]''' || fuireach || living, staying
|-
| || || '''[kurʲɪ]''' || cuiridh || will put
|-
| || || '''[ɛrʲɛgʲəd]''' || airgead || money
|-
|}

Note: the preposition ri and its prepositional pronouns (rium, riut, ris, rithe, riutha etc.) are normally pronounced as [rʲ].

 
 

{{Fuaimean}}

l n r

2012-10-01T13:19:10Z

Thrissel: /* n sounds */

Except for a small group of exceptions, all sonorants have their ''strong'' value at the beginning of words.

==l sounds==
[[File:lnr01.ogg|noicon|90px]]
There are 3 different l sounds:
{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
! Sound
! Position
! Example
! Gaelic
! English
|-
| [L] || Initial broad l || '''[La.ə]''' || latha || day
|-
| || || '''[Lɔx]''' || loch || loch (lake)
|-
| || || '''[Luːb]''' || lùb || bend!
|-
| || || '''[Laːdʲɪrʲ]''' || làidir || strong
|-
| || Broad l and ll elsewhere || '''[gLan]''' || glan || clean (adj.)
|-
| || || '''[bLaː]''' || blàth || warm (adj.)
|-
| || || '''[baLəx]''' || balach || boy
|-
| || || '''[faLu]''' || falamh || empty (adj.)
|-
| || || '''[kadəL]''' || cadal || sleep (n.)
|-
| || || '''[baLə]''' || balla || wall (n.)
|-
| || || '''[faLaNʲ]''' || fallain || healthy
|-
| || || '''[pɔbəL]''' || poball || population
|-
| [Lʲ] || Initial slender l || '''[Lʲiən]''' || lìon || net
|-
| || || '''[Lʲeh]''' || leth || half
|-
| || || '''[LʲũːN]''' || lionn || liquid (n.)
|-
| || || '''[Lʲis]''' || lios || garden
|-
| || || '''[Lʲihdʲɪrʲ]''' || litir || letter (n.)
|-
| || || '''[Lʲɛxg]''' || leac || flagstone
|-
| || Slender ll elsewhere || '''[buLʲə]''' || buille || hit (n.)
|-
| || || '''[kaLʲəx]''' || cailleach || old woman
|-
| || || '''[duLʲag]''' || duilleag || leaf
|-
| || || '''[kaiLʲ]''' || caill || lose!
|-
| || || '''[kɤiLʲ]''' || coil || forest
|-
| || || '''[saiLʲ]''' || saill || salt!
|-
| [l] || Non-initial slender l || '''[balə]''' || baile || village
|-
| || || '''[kalag]''' || caileag || girl
|-
| || || '''[kulag]''' || cuileag || fly (n.)
|-
| || || '''[ulə]''' || uile || all
|-
| || || '''[elə]''' || eile || other
|-
| || || '''[dulɪç]''' || duilich || sorry
|-
|}

Note: the preposition le and its prepositional pronouns (leam, leat, leis, leatha, leinn, leibh, leotha) are pronounced as [l], not [Lʲ].

==n sounds==
[[File:lnr02.ogg|noicon|90px]]
There are 3 different n sounds:
{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
! Sound
! Position
! Example
! Gaelic
! English
|-
| [N] || Initial broad n || '''[Naːbɪ]''' || nàbaidh || neighbour
|-
| || || '''[Nahɪrʲ]''' || nathair || snake
|-
| || || '''[Nɯːv]''' || naomh || holy
|-
| || || '''[Nasg]''' || nasg || tie-band
|-
| || || '''[Nɔxg]''' || nochd || appear
|-
| || || '''[NɔLɪgʲ]''' || Nollaig || Christmas
|-
| || Broad nn || '''[aNə]''' || Anna || Ann(e)
|-
| || || '''[kʲaNɪç]''' || ceannaich || buy!
|-
| || || '''[bjaNəxg]''' || beannachd || blessing
|-
| || || '''[auN]''' || ann || in him
|-
| || || '''[tʲauN]''' || teann || tight
|-
| || || '''[kʲauN]''' || ceann || head (n.)
|-
| [Nʲ] || Initial slender n || '''[NʲiəL]''' || Niall || Neil
|-
| || || '''[Nʲi.ə]''' || nighe || washing
|-
| || || '''[Nʲed]''' || nead || nest (n.)
|-
| || || '''[Nʲi]''' || nigh || wash!
|-
| || || '''[Nʲax]''' || neach || person
|-
| || || '''[Nʲihan]''' || nighean || daughter
|-
| || Slender nn || '''[faːNʲə]''' || fàinne || ring (n.)
|-
| || || '''[baNʲə]''' || bainne || milk (n.)
|-
| || || '''[ʃeiNʲ]''' || seinn || sing!
|-
| || || '''[tʲiNʲə]''' || tinne || sicker
|-
| || || '''[biNʲə]''' || binne || sweeter
|-
| || || '''[kaiNʲdʲ]''' || cainnt || speech
|-
| [n] || Non-initial slender & broad n || '''[dɔnə]''' || dona || bad
|-
| || || '''[sɔnə]''' || sona || happy
|-
| || || '''[anam]''' || anam || soul
|-
| || || '''[banal]''' || banail || feminine
|-
| || || '''[dʲiənəv]''' || dèanamh || doing
|-
| || || '''[ʃin]''' || sin || that
|-
| || || '''[miːn]''' || mìn || soft
|-
| || || '''[ɛnɛm]''' || ainm || name (n.)
|-
| || || '''[uən]''' || uain || lamb (n.)
|-
| || || '''[kɔn]''' || coin || dogs
|-
|}

Note: some dialects pronounce non-initial slender n as [Nʲ] (i.e. like slender nn) rather than [n], e.g:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
| [Nʲ] || || '''[ʃiNʲ]''' || sin || that
|-
| || || '''[miːn]''' || mìn || soft
|-
| || || '''[ɛNʲɛm]''' || ainm || name (n.)
|-
| || || '''[uəNʲ]''' || uain || lamb (n.)
|-
| || || '''[kɔNʲ]''' || coin || dogs
|-
|}

==r sounds==
[[File:lnr03.ogg|noicon|90px]]
There are 3 different n sounds:
{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
! Sound
! Position
! Example
! Gaelic
! English
|-
| [R] || Initial broad & slender n || '''[Rɔh]''' || roth || wheel (n.)
|-
| || || '''[Rɔːn]''' || ròn || seal
|-
| || || '''[Rɔb]''' || Rob || Rob
|-
| || || '''[Ruərɪ]''' || Ruaraidh || Rory
|-
| || || '''[RuNag]''' || rionnag || star
|-
| || || '''[Rixg]''' || riochd || appearance
|-
| || Broad & slender rr || '''[baːR]''' || barr || top
|-
| || || '''[kɔːR]''' || corr || rest (n.)
|-
| || || '''[kɔRəx]''' || corrach || uneven
|-
| || || '''[kaRɛgʲ]''' || carraig || rock
|-
| || || '''[kuRan]''' || curran || carrot
|-
| || || '''[uRə]''' || ròn || individual
|-
| [r] || Non-initial broad r || '''[aran]''' || aran || apple
|-
| || || '''[ɔːran]''' || òran || song
|-
| || || '''[dʲɛrɛg]''' || dearg || red
|-
| || || '''[kur]''' || cur || putting
|-
| || || '''[marav]''' || marbh || dead
|-
| || || '''[kar]''' || car || twist (n.)
|-
| [rʲ] || Non-initial slender r || '''[arʲə]''' || aire || attention
|-
| || || '''[arʲɪ]''' || airidh || deserving
|-
| || || '''[furʲəx]''' || fuireach || living, staying
|-
| || || '''[kurʲɪ]''' || cuiridh || will put
|-
| || || '''[ɛrʲɛgʲəd]''' || airgead || money
|-
|}

Note: the preposition ri and its prepositional pronouns (rium, riut, ris, rithe, riutha etc.) are normally pronounced as [rʲ].

 
 

{{Fuaimean}}

Minding Your Ps and Qs or Why Porcom is a Headache

2012-09-21T23:01:37Z

Thrissel: /* So what? */ (too many wells and) rm the *fish* example - more confusing than enlighting after preceding sentence (shows Goidelic lost p but also Brythonic keeping k exactly were Goidelic has it)

Today we'll take just a little dip into the history of Gaelic which starts about 5,000 BC so fasten your seatbelts.

==The horrible history==
5000BC is roughly when the first Indo-Europeans start invading Europe (invading because we know there were people here before then). Amongst this lovely bunch of hooligans from the steppes of Central Asia was a group which settled on the northern edges of the Alps. The Celts. Although they weren't really know as the Celts back then and the two earliest "Celtic cultures" that we know are often called the Hallstatt and the La Tène Cultures. Irrespective of the name calling issue, this bunch does well and by the 3rd century AD they have established quite a track record: they muscled the Etruscans out of most of northern Italy, had taken over most of Gaul and large swathes of the Iberian peninsula, Southern Germany, the British Isles, parts of modern day Slovenia, Bulgarian, Romania and Hungary, a fair chunk of land in central Turkey(!), sacked Delphi in 279 BC and Rome itself in 390 BC.

It's from the Greeks that the Celts get their name, incidentally. The historian Hecataeus describes them as ''Keltoi'', the meaning of which can't be ascertained for sure, but seeing they sacked Delphi, it can't have meant anything nice.

After that, they slip a bit though. Rome takes ''Transalpina'' back in 192 BC and gradually takes over... well ... most of Europe really and the decline of the Celts had begun.

==Indo-European==
So what about the language? Patience! The main thing that distinguished the Celts from other Indo-Europeans in terms of their language was the loss of Indo-European p. Pardon? Well, Indo-European (which is not recorded, but reconstructed based on what we know of its daughter languages) seems to have had an elaborate system of stops, 12 of them:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| p || t || k || kʷ
|-
| b || d || g || gʷ
|-
| bʰ || dʰ || gʰ || gʷʰ
|-
|}

==Celtic==
Now we come to Celtic, very old Celtic that is. They decided to drop the entire set of aspirated voiced stops and make do with just 8 stops:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| p || t || k || kʷ
|-
| b || d || g || gʷ
|-
|}

Now, one thing you need to know here about that little superscript ʷ is that it represents something called labialisation. It means that you round your lips when making that sound, like in the English word ''quick'' which is [kʷɪk]. This is important why? You'll see.

==Late Common Celtic==
Next, for whatever reason, Late Common Celtic drops p and says k wherever there was a p before. It just does. That leaves us with:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| || t || k || kʷ
|-
| b || d || g || gʷ
|-
|}

==Goidelic and Brythonic==
Now things get interesting because this is roundabout the time when Goidelic (the granfer of Irish, Gaelic and Manx) and Brythonic (granma of Welsh, Cornish, Cumbric and Breton) put in for a divorce. Over a p. What happens is that Brythonic takes the kʷ sound and turns it into a p. That works because labialisation is made with the lips and there seems to have been a struggle between the labial nature of the ʷ and the velar nature of the k. It appears that the lips won and the k bit was assimilated into a p. It's like the word ''immigrate'' which comes from ''in-migrāre'' where the n has been assimilated into an m because it is immediately followed by one.

Goidelic on the other hand would have none of it and stuck with the lost p. Out of sheer spite, it merged the labial series with the plain stops though: kʷ merged with k and gʷ with g.

So we have the following in Goidelic:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| || t || k
|-
| b || d || g
|-
|}

But in Brythonic:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| || t || k || p
|-
| b || d || g || gʷ
|-
|}

==So what?==
This is the reason for a great many things. For example, it is the reason why Goidelic is sometimes referred to as Q-Celtic and Brythonic as P-Celtic. It's based on the development of the Indo-European word for 5, penkʷe which in Q-Celtic becomes cóic (remember, it dropped p) and in Brythonic pimp (which kept p). Which explains the P but not the Q. Well it does because in Manx cóig is spelled queig.

So what else does it explain? It explains why modern Brythonic languages have a gap, i.e. no (historic) [kw] sound and why they have [p] where modern Goidelic languages have a [k]:

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0" align="center"
| || Indo-European || Loanword from || Gaelic || Irish || Manx || Welsh || Cornish || Breton
|-
| five || penkʷe || || cóig || cúig || queig || pump || pymp || pemp
|-
| head || || || ceann || ceann || qione || pen || penn || penn
|-
| sense || || || ciall || ciall || keeaill || pwyll || poell || poell
|-
| who || kʷos || || có || cé || quoi || pwy || piw || piv
|-
| wool/feather || petna || Lat. plūma || clòimh || clúmh || clooie || plufyn || pluvenn || plu
|-
|}

It also explains some lovely loanwords like Càisg for Easter which is derived from ecclesiastical Latin Pascha (cf Sp. Pasqua) or even the twice borrowed Patricius who shows up as earlier Cadrach and later as Pádraic > Pàdraig.

It also makes for a headache because modern Irish and Gaelic, as we have just seen, do not retain the kʷ sound but sometimes borrow words from English which has kʷ. How to borrow? Do you borrow the sound kʷ and change the set of sounds in these languages or do you adjust to Irish/Gaelic spelling or come up with your own word? Tricky one. Traditionally the second option seems to have prevailed - Irish borrowed Quaker as Caecar and Gaelic turned a quadruped into ceithir-chasach. But of lately words like quinín 'quinine' have showed up in Irish and Gaelic now boasts cuaraidh 'quarry' and cuòta 'quota'. Really tricky one.

So what on earth then is porcom? Well, in the Mesopotamian clay table of Ashur-Bannipal... just kidding. There is a 3rd century inscription in Lusitanian, a language which was spoken in the west of the Iberian peninsula, which is generally described as Celtic which goes:

OILAM TREBOPALA INDI PORCOM LAEBO

etc etc. The tricky bit is that it translates as "a sheep to Trebopala and a pig to Laebo' ... and as we all know the great clue to something being a Celtic language is the loss of p, yet here we have porcom 'pig' ... The answer? We don't know actually except that there may be a question mark over Lusitanian being a Celtic language. If you find out, publish and you'll be famous!

Oh, and in case this kind of thing fascinates you, we've made for you a little picture of what happened to two words - hundred and five - all the way from Indo-European down to over 50 modern Indo-European languages as a pdf here.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Minding Your Ps and Qs or Why Porcom is a Headache

2012-09-21T22:48:44Z

Thrissel: /* Goidelic and Brythonic */

Today we'll take just a little dip into the history of Gaelic which starts about 5,000 BC so fasten your seatbelts.

==The horrible history==
5000BC is roughly when the first Indo-Europeans start invading Europe (invading because we know there were people here before then). Amongst this lovely bunch of hooligans from the steppes of Central Asia was a group which settled on the northern edges of the Alps. The Celts. Although they weren't really know as the Celts back then and the two earliest "Celtic cultures" that we know are often called the Hallstatt and the La Tène Cultures. Irrespective of the name calling issue, this bunch does well and by the 3rd century AD they have established quite a track record: they muscled the Etruscans out of most of northern Italy, had taken over most of Gaul and large swathes of the Iberian peninsula, Southern Germany, the British Isles, parts of modern day Slovenia, Bulgarian, Romania and Hungary, a fair chunk of land in central Turkey(!), sacked Delphi in 279 BC and Rome itself in 390 BC.

It's from the Greeks that the Celts get their name, incidentally. The historian Hecataeus describes them as ''Keltoi'', the meaning of which can't be ascertained for sure, but seeing they sacked Delphi, it can't have meant anything nice.

After that, they slip a bit though. Rome takes ''Transalpina'' back in 192 BC and gradually takes over... well ... most of Europe really and the decline of the Celts had begun.

==Indo-European==
So what about the language? Patience! The main thing that distinguished the Celts from other Indo-Europeans in terms of their language was the loss of Indo-European p. Pardon? Well, Indo-European (which is not recorded, but reconstructed based on what we know of its daughter languages) seems to have had an elaborate system of stops, 12 of them:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| p || t || k || kʷ
|-
| b || d || g || gʷ
|-
| bʰ || dʰ || gʰ || gʷʰ
|-
|}

==Celtic==
Now we come to Celtic, very old Celtic that is. They decided to drop the entire set of aspirated voiced stops and make do with just 8 stops:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| p || t || k || kʷ
|-
| b || d || g || gʷ
|-
|}

Now, one thing you need to know here about that little superscript ʷ is that it represents something called labialisation. It means that you round your lips when making that sound, like in the English word ''quick'' which is [kʷɪk]. This is important why? You'll see.

==Late Common Celtic==
Next, for whatever reason, Late Common Celtic drops p and says k wherever there was a p before. It just does. That leaves us with:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| || t || k || kʷ
|-
| b || d || g || gʷ
|-
|}

==Goidelic and Brythonic==
Now things get interesting because this is roundabout the time when Goidelic (the granfer of Irish, Gaelic and Manx) and Brythonic (granma of Welsh, Cornish, Cumbric and Breton) put in for a divorce. Over a p. What happens is that Brythonic takes the kʷ sound and turns it into a p. That works because labialisation is made with the lips and there seems to have been a struggle between the labial nature of the ʷ and the velar nature of the k. It appears that the lips won and the k bit was assimilated into a p. It's like the word ''immigrate'' which comes from ''in-migrāre'' where the n has been assimilated into an m because it is immediately followed by one.

Goidelic on the other hand would have none of it and stuck with the lost p. Out of sheer spite, it merged the labial series with the plain stops though: kʷ merged with k and gʷ with g.

So we have the following in Goidelic:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| || t || k
|-
| b || d || g
|-
|}

But in Brythonic:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| || t || k || p
|-
| b || d || g || gʷ
|-
|}

==So what?==
This is the reason for a great many things. For example, it is the reason why Goidelic is sometimes referred to as Q-Celtic and Brythonic as P-Celtic. It's based on the development of the Indo-European word for 5, penkʷe which in Q-Celtic becomes cóic (remember, it dropped p) and in Brythonic pimp (which kept p). Which explains the P but not the Q. Well it does because in Manx cóig is spelled queig.

So what else does it explain? Well, it explains why modern Brythonic languages have a gap, i.e. no (historic) [kw] sound and why they have [p] where modern Goidelic languages have a [k]:

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0" align="center"
| || Indo-European || Loanword from || Gaelic || Irish || Manx || Welsh || Cornish || Breton
|-
| five || penkʷe || || cóig || cúig || queig || pump || pymp || pemp
|-
| fish || pik̑sk̑os || || iasg || iasc || eeast || pysgod || pysk || pesk ||
|-
| head || || || ceann || ceann || qione || pen || penn || penn
|-
| sense || || || ciall || ciall || keeaill || pwyll || poell || poell
|-
| who || kʷos || || có || cé || quoi || pwy || piw || piv
|-
| wool/feather || petna || Lat. plūma || clòimh || clúmh || clooie || plufyn || pluvenn || plu
|-
|}

It also explains some lovely loanwords like Càisg for Easter which is derived from ecclesiastical Latin Pascha (cf Sp. Pasqua) or even the twice borrowed Patricius who shows up as earlier Cadrach and later as Pádraic > Pàdraig.

It also makes for a headache because modern Irish and Gaelic, as we have just seen, do not retain the kʷ sound but sometimes borrow words from English which has kʷ. How to borrow? Do you borrow the sound kʷ and change the set of sounds in these languages or do you adjust to Irish/Gaelic spelling or come up with your own word? Tricky one. Traditionally the second option seems to have prevailed - Irish borrowed Quaker as Caecar and Gaelic turned a quadruped into ceithir-chasach. But of lately words like quinín 'quinine' have showed up in Irish and Gaelic now boasts cuaraidh 'quarry' and cuòta 'quota'. Really tricky one.

So what on earth then is porcom? Well, in the Mesopotamian clay table of Ashur-Bannipal... just kidding. There is a 3rd century inscription in Lusitanian, a language which was spoken in the west of the Iberian peninsula, which is generally described as Celtic which goes:

OILAM TREBOPALA INDI PORCOM LAEBO

etc etc. The tricky bit is that it translates as "a sheep to Trebopala and a pig to Laebo' ... and as we all know the great clue to something being a Celtic language is the loss of p, yet here we have porcom 'pig' ... The answer? We don't know actually except that there may be a question mark over Lusitanian being a Celtic language. If you find out, publish and you'll be famous!

Oh, and in case this kind of thing fascinates you, we've done you a little picture of what happened to two words - hundred and five - all the way from Indo-European down to over 50 modern Indo-European languages as a pdf here.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Minding Your Ps and Qs or Why Porcom is a Headache

2012-09-21T22:45:09Z

Thrissel: /* The horrible history */

Today we'll take just a little dip into the history of Gaelic which starts about 5,000 BC so fasten your seatbelts.

==The horrible history==
5000BC is roughly when the first Indo-Europeans start invading Europe (invading because we know there were people here before then). Amongst this lovely bunch of hooligans from the steppes of Central Asia was a group which settled on the northern edges of the Alps. The Celts. Although they weren't really know as the Celts back then and the two earliest "Celtic cultures" that we know are often called the Hallstatt and the La Tène Cultures. Irrespective of the name calling issue, this bunch does well and by the 3rd century AD they have established quite a track record: they muscled the Etruscans out of most of northern Italy, had taken over most of Gaul and large swathes of the Iberian peninsula, Southern Germany, the British Isles, parts of modern day Slovenia, Bulgarian, Romania and Hungary, a fair chunk of land in central Turkey(!), sacked Delphi in 279 BC and Rome itself in 390 BC.

It's from the Greeks that the Celts get their name, incidentally. The historian Hecataeus describes them as ''Keltoi'', the meaning of which can't be ascertained for sure, but seeing they sacked Delphi, it can't have meant anything nice.

After that, they slip a bit though. Rome takes ''Transalpina'' back in 192 BC and gradually takes over... well ... most of Europe really and the decline of the Celts had begun.

==Indo-European==
So what about the language? Patience! The main thing that distinguished the Celts from other Indo-Europeans in terms of their language was the loss of Indo-European p. Pardon? Well, Indo-European (which is not recorded, but reconstructed based on what we know of its daughter languages) seems to have had an elaborate system of stops, 12 of them:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| p || t || k || kʷ
|-
| b || d || g || gʷ
|-
| bʰ || dʰ || gʰ || gʷʰ
|-
|}

==Celtic==
Now we come to Celtic, very old Celtic that is. They decided to drop the entire set of aspirated voiced stops and make do with just 8 stops:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| p || t || k || kʷ
|-
| b || d || g || gʷ
|-
|}

Now, one thing you need to know here about that little superscript ʷ is that it represents something called labialisation. It means that you round your lips when making that sound, like in the English word ''quick'' which is [kʷɪk]. This is important why? You'll see.

==Late Common Celtic==
Next, for whatever reason, Late Common Celtic drops p and says k wherever there was a p before. It just does. That leaves us with:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| || t || k || kʷ
|-
| b || d || g || gʷ
|-
|}

==Goidelic and Brythonic==
Now things get interesting because this is roundabout the time when Goidelic (the granfer of Irish, Gaelic and Manx) split from Brythonic (granma of Welsh, Cornish, Cumbric and Breton) put in for a divorce. Over a p. What happens is that Brythonic takes the kʷ sound and turns it into a p. That works because labialisation is made with the lips and there seems to have been a struggle between the labial nature of the ʷ and the velar nature of the k. It appears that the lips won and the k bit was assimilated into a p. It's like the word ''immigrate'' which comes from ''in-migrāre'' where the n has been assimilated into an m because it is immediately followed by one.

Goidelic on the other hand would have none of it and stuck with the lost p. Out of sheer spite, it merged the labial series with the plain stops though: kʷ merged with k and gʷ with g.

So we have the following in Goidelic:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| || t || k
|-
| b || d || g
|-
|}

But in Brythonic:

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| || t || k || p
|-
| b || d || g || gʷ
|-
|}

==So what?==
This is the reason for a great many things. For example, it is the reason why Goidelic is sometimes referred to as Q-Celtic and Brythonic as P-Celtic. It's based on the development of the Indo-European word for 5, penkʷe which in Q-Celtic becomes cóic (remember, it dropped p) and in Brythonic pimp (which kept p). Which explains the P but not the Q. Well it does because in Manx cóig is spelled queig.

So what else does it explain? Well, it explains why modern Brythonic languages have a gap, i.e. no (historic) [kw] sound and why they have [p] where modern Goidelic languages have a [k]:

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0" align="center"
| || Indo-European || Loanword from || Gaelic || Irish || Manx || Welsh || Cornish || Breton
|-
| five || penkʷe || || cóig || cúig || queig || pump || pymp || pemp
|-
| fish || pik̑sk̑os || || iasg || iasc || eeast || pysgod || pysk || pesk ||
|-
| head || || || ceann || ceann || qione || pen || penn || penn
|-
| sense || || || ciall || ciall || keeaill || pwyll || poell || poell
|-
| who || kʷos || || có || cé || quoi || pwy || piw || piv
|-
| wool/feather || petna || Lat. plūma || clòimh || clúmh || clooie || plufyn || pluvenn || plu
|-
|}

It also explains some lovely loanwords like Càisg for Easter which is derived from ecclesiastical Latin Pascha (cf Sp. Pasqua) or even the twice borrowed Patricius who shows up as earlier Cadrach and later as Pádraic > Pàdraig.

It also makes for a headache because modern Irish and Gaelic, as we have just seen, do not retain the kʷ sound but sometimes borrow words from English which has kʷ. How to borrow? Do you borrow the sound kʷ and change the set of sounds in these languages or do you adjust to Irish/Gaelic spelling or come up with your own word? Tricky one. Traditionally the second option seems to have prevailed - Irish borrowed Quaker as Caecar and Gaelic turned a quadruped into ceithir-chasach. But of lately words like quinín 'quinine' have showed up in Irish and Gaelic now boasts cuaraidh 'quarry' and cuòta 'quota'. Really tricky one.

So what on earth then is porcom? Well, in the Mesopotamian clay table of Ashur-Bannipal... just kidding. There is a 3rd century inscription in Lusitanian, a language which was spoken in the west of the Iberian peninsula, which is generally described as Celtic which goes:

OILAM TREBOPALA INDI PORCOM LAEBO

etc etc. The tricky bit is that it translates as "a sheep to Trebopala and a pig to Laebo' ... and as we all know the great clue to something being a Celtic language is the loss of p, yet here we have porcom 'pig' ... The answer? We don't know actually except that there may be a question mark over Lusitanian being a Celtic language. If you find out, publish and you'll be famous!

Oh, and in case this kind of thing fascinates you, we've done you a little picture of what happened to two words - hundred and five - all the way from Indo-European down to over 50 modern Indo-European languages as a pdf here.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

PPP - Pronouns, prepositions and their pronunciation

2012-08-19T16:22:57Z

Thrissel: /* Ri */ typo?

No explanation needed really, tables of the conjugated pronouns with their pronunciation.

==À==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| à || [a]
|-
| às an || [as əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| asam || [asəm]
|-
| asad || [asəd]
|-
| às || [as]
|-
| aiste || [aʃdʲə]
|-
| asainn || [asɪNʲ]
|-
| asaibh || [asɪv]
|-
| asta || [asdə]
|-
|}

==Aig==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| aig || [ɛgʲ]
|-
| aig an || [ɛgʲ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| agam || [agəm]
|-
| agad || [agəd]
|-
| aige || [ɛgʲə]
|-
| aice || [ɛçgʲə]
|-
| againn || [agɪNʲ]
|-
| agaibh || [agɪv]
|-
| aca || [axgə]
|-
|}

== Aig + possessive pronoun ==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| 'gam || [gam]
|-
| 'gad || [gəd]
|-
| 'ga || [ga]
|-
| 'ga (h-) || [ga (h)]
|-
| 'gar (n-) || [gar (n)]
|-
| 'gur (n-) || [gar (n)]
|-
| 'gan || [gan]
|-
|}

==Air==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| air || [ɛrʲ]
|-
| air an || [ɛrʲ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| orm || [ɔrɔm]
|-
| ort || [ɔRʃd]
|-
| air || [ɛrʲ]
|-
| oirre || [ɔRə]
|-
| oirnn || [ɔːRNʲ]
|-
| oirbh || [ɔrʲɪv]
|-
| orra || [ɔRə]
|-
|}
==Ann an==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| ann an || [ãũN əN(ʲ)]
|-
| anns an || [ãũNs əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| annam || [ũNəm]
|-
| annad || [ũNəd]
|-
| ann || [ãũN]
|-
| innte || [ĩːNʲdʲə]
|-
| annainn || [aNɪNʲ]
|-
| annaibh || [aNɪv]
|-
| annta || [ãũNdə]
|-
|}

==Ann an + possessive pronoun==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
| 'nam || [nam]
|-
| 'nad || [nad]
|-
| 'na || [na]
|-
| 'na (h-) || [na (h)]
|-
| 'nar (n-) || [nar (n)]
|-
| 'nur (n-) || [nar (n)]
|-
| 'nan || [nan]
|-
|}

==De==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| de || [də]
|-
| dhen || [ʝɛnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| dhìom || [ʝĩə̃m]
|-
| dhìot || [ʝied]
|-
| dheth || [ʝe]
|-
| dhith || [ʝi]
|-
| dhinn || [ʝĩNʲ]
|-
| dhibh || [ʝiv]
|-
| dhiubh || [ʝu]
|-
|}

==Do==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| do || [də]
|-
| dhan (an) || [ɣan], [ɣanəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| dhomh || [ɣɔ̃]
|-
| dhut || [ɣuhd]
|-
| dha || [ɣa]
|-
| dhi || [ʝi]
|-
| dhuinn || [ɣɯ̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| dhuibh || [ɣɯiv]
|-
| dhaibh || [ɣaiv]
|-
|}

==Eadar==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| eadar || [edər]
|-
| eadar an || [edər əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| eadarainn || [edərɪNʲ]
|-
| eadaraibh || [edərɪv]
|-
| eatarra || [ehdəRə]
|-
|}

==Fo==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| fo || [fɔ]
|-
| fon || [fɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| fodham || [fo.əm]
|-
| fodhad || [fo.əd]
|-
| fodha || [fo.ə]
|-
| foidhpe || [foihbə]
|-
| fodhainn || [fo.ɪNʲ]
|-
| fodhaibh || [fo.ɪv]
|-
| fodhpa || [fohbə]
|-
|}

==Gu==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| gu || [gu]
|-
| gun chun an || [gunəN(ʲ)] [xunəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| thugam || [hugəm]
|-
| thugad || [hugəd]
|-
| thuige || [hɯgʲə]
|-
| thuice || [hɯçgʲə]
|-
| thugainn || [hugɪNʲ]
|-
| thugaibh || [hugɪv]
|-
| thuca || [huxgə]
|-
|}

==Le==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| le || [le]
|-
| leis an || [leʃ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| leam || [ləm]
|-
| leat || [lahd]
|-
| leis || [leʃ]
|-
| leatha || [le.ə]
|-
| leinn || [lẽĩNʲ]
|-
| leibh || [leiv]
|-
| leotha || [lo.ə]
|-
|}

==Mu==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mu || [mə]
|-
| mun || [munəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| umam || [ũməm]
|-
| umad || [ũməd]
|-
| uime || [ɯ̃imə]
|-
| uimpe || [ɯ̃imbə]
|-
| umainn || [ũmɪNʲ]
|-
| umaibh || [ũmɪv]
|-
| umpa || [ũːmbə]
|-
|}

==O==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| o || [ɔ]
|-
| on || [ɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| uam || [uəm]
|-
| uat || [uəhd]
|-
| uaidhe || [uajə]
|-
| uaipe || [uəihbə]
|-
| uainn || [ũə̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| uaibh || [uəiv]
|-
| uapa || [uəhbə]
|-
|}

==Ri==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| ri || [rʲi]
|-
| ris an || [rʲiʃ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| rium || [rʲum]
|-
| riut || [rʲuʰd]
|-
| ris || [rʲiʃ]
|-
| rithe || [rʲi.ə]
|-
| r(u)inn || [rɯ̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| r(u)ibh || [rɯiv]
|-
| riutha || [ru.ə]
|-
|}

==Tro==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| tro || [trɔ]
|-
| tron an || [trɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| tromham || [trɔ.əm]
|-
| tromhad || [trɔ.əd]
|-
| troimhe || [trɔjə]
|-
| troimhpe || [trɔihbə]
|-
| tromhainn || [trɔ.ɪNʲ]
|-
| tromhaibh || [trɔ.ɪv]
|-
| tromhpa || [trɔ̃hbə]
|-
|}

==Thar==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| thar || [har]
|-
| thar an || [har əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| tharam || [harəm]
|-
| tharad || [harəd]
|-
| thairis air || [harʲɪʃ ɛrʲ]
|-
| thairte || [haRʃdʲə]
|-
| tharainn || [harɪNʲ]
|-
| tharaibh || [harɪv]
|-
| tharta || [haRʃdə]
|-
|}

==Personal pronouns==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mi || [mĩː] || [mi]
|-
| thu tu || [uː] [duː] || [u] [du]
|-
| e || [ɛː] || [ə]
|-
| i || [iː] || [i]
|-
| sinn || [ʃiːNʲ] || [ʃiNʲ]
|-
| sibh || [ʃiːv] || [ʃiv]
|-
| iad || [iəd] || [əd]
|-
|}

==Personal pronouns with emphatic suffixes==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mise || [mĩʃə]
|-
| thusa tusa || [usə] [dusə]
|-
| esan || [ɛsən]
|-
| ise || [iʃə]
|-
| sinne || [ʃiNʲə]
|-
| sibhse || [ʃiːvʃə]
|-
| iadsan || [iədsən]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mo chù || [mə'xuː]
|-
| do chù || [də'xuː]
|-
| a chù || [ə'xuː]
|-
| a cù || [ə'kuː]
|-
| ar cù || [ər'kuː]
|-
| ur cù || [ər'kuː]
|-
| an cù || [əŋ'kuː]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with emphatic suffixes==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mo chù-sa || [mə'xuːsə]
|-
| do chù-sa || [də'xuːsə ]
|-
| a chù-san || [ə'xuːsən]
|-
| a cù-se || [ə'kuːʃə]
|-
| ar cù-ne || [ər'kuːnə]
|-
| ur cù-se || [ər'kuːʃə]
|-
| an cù-san || [ən'kuːsən]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with initial vowel==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| m' anam || [manam]
|-
| d' anam || [danam]
|-
| anam || [anam]
|-
| a h-anam || [ə'hanam]
|-
| ar n-anam || [ər'nanam]
|-
| ur n-anam || [ər'nanam]
|-
| an anam || [ə'nanam]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with initial vowel and emphatic suffixes==
{| style="width: 20%;" border="0"
|-
| m' anam-sa || [manamsə]
|-
| d' anam-sa || [danamsə]
|-
| anam-san || [anamsən]
|-
| a h-anam-se || [ə'hanamʃə]
|-
| ar n-anam-ne || [ər'nanamnə]
|-
| ur n-anam-se || [ər'nanamʃə]
|-
| an anam-san || [ə'nanamsən]
|-
|}

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

PPP - Pronouns, prepositions and their pronunciation

2012-06-28T10:56:54Z

Thrissel: /* Ann an + possessive pronoun */ ce

No explanation needed really, tables of the conjugated pronouns with their pronunciation.

==À==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| à || [a]
|-
| às an || [as əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| asam || [asəm]
|-
| asad || [asəd]
|-
| às || [as]
|-
| aiste || [aʃdʲə]
|-
| asainn || [asɪNʲ]
|-
| asaibh || [asɪv]
|-
| asta || [asdə]
|-
|}

==Aig==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| aig || [ɛgʲ]
|-
| aig an || [ɛgʲ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| agam || [agəm]
|-
| agad || [agəd]
|-
| aige || [ɛgʲə]
|-
| aice || [ɛçgʲə]
|-
| againn || [agɪNʲ]
|-
| agaibh || [agɪv]
|-
| aca || [axgə]
|-
|}

== Aig + possessive pronoun ==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| 'gam || [gam]
|-
| 'gad || [gəd]
|-
| 'ga || [ga]
|-
| 'ga (h-) || [ga (h)]
|-
| 'gar (n-) || [gar (n)]
|-
| 'gur (n-) || [gar (n)]
|-
| 'gan || [gan]
|-
|}

==Air==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| air || [ɛrʲ]
|-
| air an || [ɛrʲ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| orm || [ɔrɔm]
|-
| ort || [ɔRʃd]
|-
| air || [ɛrʲ]
|-
| oirre || [ɔRə]
|-
| oirnn || [ɔːRNʲ]
|-
| oirbh || [ɔrʲɪv]
|-
| orra || [ɔRə]
|-
|}
==Ann an==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| ann an || [ãũN əN(ʲ)]
|-
| anns an || [ãũNs əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| annam || [ũNəm]
|-
| annad || [ũNəd]
|-
| ann || [ãũN]
|-
| innte || [ĩːNʲdʲə]
|-
| annainn || [aNɪNʲ]
|-
| annaibh || [aNɪv]
|-
| annta || [ãũNdə]
|-
|}

==Ann an + possessive pronoun==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
| 'nam || [nam]
|-
| 'nad || [nad]
|-
| 'na || [na]
|-
| 'na (h-) || [na (h)]
|-
| 'nar (n-) || [nar (n)]
|-
| 'nur (n-) || [nar (n)]
|-
| 'nan || [nan]
|-
|}

==De==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| de || [də]
|-
| dhen || [ʝɛnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| dhìom || [ʝĩə̃m]
|-
| dhìot || [ʝied]
|-
| dheth || [ʝe]
|-
| dhith || [ʝi]
|-
| dhinn || [ʝĩNʲ]
|-
| dhibh || [ʝiv]
|-
| dhiubh || [ʝu]
|-
|}

==Do==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| do || [də]
|-
| dhan (an) || [ɣan], [ɣanəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| dhomh || [ɣɔ̃]
|-
| dhut || [ɣuhd]
|-
| dha || [ɣa]
|-
| dhi || [ʝi]
|-
| dhuinn || [ɣɯ̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| dhuibh || [ɣɯiv]
|-
| dhaibh || [ɣaiv]
|-
|}

==Eadar==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| eadar || [edər]
|-
| eadar an || [edər əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| eadarainn || [edərɪNʲ]
|-
| eadaraibh || [edərɪv]
|-
| eatarra || [ehdəRə]
|-
|}

==Fo==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| fo || [fɔ]
|-
| fon || [fɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| fodham || [fo.əm]
|-
| fodhad || [fo.əd]
|-
| fodha || [fo.ə]
|-
| foidhpe || [foihbə]
|-
| fodhainn || [fo.ɪNʲ]
|-
| fodhaibh || [fo.ɪv]
|-
| fodhpa || [fohbə]
|-
|}

==Gu==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| gu || [gu]
|-
| gun chun an || [gunəN(ʲ)] [xunəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| thugam || [hugəm]
|-
| thugad || [hugəd]
|-
| thuige || [hɯgʲə]
|-
| thuice || [hɯçgʲə]
|-
| thugainn || [hugɪNʲ]
|-
| thugaibh || [hugɪv]
|-
| thuca || [huxgə]
|-
|}

==Le==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| le || [le]
|-
| leis an || [leʃ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| leam || [ləm]
|-
| leat || [lahd]
|-
| leis || [leʃ]
|-
| leatha || [le.ə]
|-
| leinn || [lẽĩNʲ]
|-
| leibh || [leiv]
|-
| leotha || [lo.ə]
|-
|}

==Mu==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mu || [mə]
|-
| mun || [munəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| umam || [ũməm]
|-
| umad || [ũməd]
|-
| uime || [ɯ̃imə]
|-
| uimpe || [ɯ̃imbə]
|-
| umainn || [ũmɪNʲ]
|-
| umaibh || [ũmɪv]
|-
| umpa || [ũːmbə]
|-
|}

==O==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| o || [ɔ]
|-
| on || [ɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| uam || [uəm]
|-
| uat || [uəhd]
|-
| uaidhe || [uajə]
|-
| uaipe || [uəihbə]
|-
| uainn || [ũə̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| uaibh || [uəiv]
|-
| uapa || [uəhbə]
|-
|}

==Ri==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| ri || [rʲi]
|-
| ris an || [rʲiʃ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| rium || [rʲum]
|-
| riut || [rʲuʰd]
|-
| ris || [rʲiʃ]
|-
| rithe || [rʲi.ə]
|-
| r(u)inn || [rɯ̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| r(u)ibh || [rɯ̃ĩv]
|-
| riutha || [ru.ə]
|-
|}

==Tro==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| tro || [trɔ]
|-
| tron an || [trɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| tromham || [trɔ.əm]
|-
| tromhad || [trɔ.əd]
|-
| troimhe || [trɔjə]
|-
| troimhpe || [trɔihbə]
|-
| tromhainn || [trɔ.ɪNʲ]
|-
| tromhaibh || [trɔ.ɪv]
|-
| tromhpa || [trɔ̃hbə]
|-
|}

==Thar==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| thar || [har]
|-
| thar an || [har əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| tharam || [harəm]
|-
| tharad || [harəd]
|-
| thairis air || [harʲɪʃ ɛrʲ]
|-
| thairte || [haRʃdʲə]
|-
| tharainn || [harɪNʲ]
|-
| tharaibh || [harɪv]
|-
| tharta || [haRʃdə]
|-
|}

==Personal pronouns==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mi || [mĩː] || [mi]
|-
| thu tu || [uː] [duː] || [u] [du]
|-
| e || [ɛː] || [ə]
|-
| i || [iː] || [i]
|-
| sinn || [ʃiːNʲ] || [ʃiNʲ]
|-
| sibh || [ʃiːv] || [ʃiv]
|-
| iad || [iəd] || [əd]
|-
|}

==Personal pronouns with emphatic suffixes==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mise || [mĩʃə]
|-
| thusa tusa || [usə] [dusə]
|-
| esan || [ɛsən]
|-
| ise || [iʃə]
|-
| sinne || [ʃiNʲə]
|-
| sibhse || [ʃiːvʃə]
|-
| iadsan || [iədsən]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mo chù || [mə'xuː]
|-
| do chù || [də'xuː]
|-
| a chù || [ə'xuː]
|-
| a cù || [ə'kuː]
|-
| ar cù || [ər'kuː]
|-
| ur cù || [ər'kuː]
|-
| an cù || [əŋ'kuː]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with emphatic suffixes==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mo chù-sa || [mə'xuːsə]
|-
| do chù-sa || [də'xuːsə ]
|-
| a chù-san || [ə'xuːsən]
|-
| a cù-se || [ə'kuːʃə]
|-
| ar cù-ne || [ər'kuːnə]
|-
| ur cù-se || [ər'kuːʃə]
|-
| an cù-san || [ən'kuːsən]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with initial vowel==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| m' anam || [manam]
|-
| d' anam || [danam]
|-
| anam || [anam]
|-
| a h-anam || [ə'hanam]
|-
| ar n-anam || [ər'nanam]
|-
| ur n-anam || [ər'nanam]
|-
| an anam || [ə'nanam]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with initial vowel and emphatic suffixes==
{| style="width: 20%;" border="0"
|-
| m' anam-sa || [manamsə]
|-
| d' anam-sa || [danamsə]
|-
| anam-san || [anamsən]
|-
| a h-anam-se || [ə'hanamʃə]
|-
| ar n-anam-ne || [ər'nanamnə]
|-
| ur n-anam-se || [ər'nanamʃə]
|-
| an anam-san || [ə'nanamsən]
|-
|}

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

PPP - Pronouns, prepositions and their pronunciation

2012-06-28T10:56:27Z

Thrissel: /* Ann an + possessive pronoun */ typo

No explanation needed really, tables of the conjugated pronouns with their pronunciation.

==À==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| à || [a]
|-
| às an || [as əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| asam || [asəm]
|-
| asad || [asəd]
|-
| às || [as]
|-
| aiste || [aʃdʲə]
|-
| asainn || [asɪNʲ]
|-
| asaibh || [asɪv]
|-
| asta || [asdə]
|-
|}

==Aig==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| aig || [ɛgʲ]
|-
| aig an || [ɛgʲ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| agam || [agəm]
|-
| agad || [agəd]
|-
| aige || [ɛgʲə]
|-
| aice || [ɛçgʲə]
|-
| againn || [agɪNʲ]
|-
| agaibh || [agɪv]
|-
| aca || [axgə]
|-
|}

== Aig + possessive pronoun ==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| 'gam || [gam]
|-
| 'gad || [gəd]
|-
| 'ga || [ga]
|-
| 'ga (h-) || [ga (h)]
|-
| 'gar (n-) || [gar (n)]
|-
| 'gur (n-) || [gar (n)]
|-
| 'gan || [gan]
|-
|}

==Air==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| air || [ɛrʲ]
|-
| air an || [ɛrʲ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| orm || [ɔrɔm]
|-
| ort || [ɔRʃd]
|-
| air || [ɛrʲ]
|-
| oirre || [ɔRə]
|-
| oirnn || [ɔːRNʲ]
|-
| oirbh || [ɔrʲɪv]
|-
| orra || [ɔRə]
|-
|}
==Ann an==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| ann an || [ãũN əN(ʲ)]
|-
| anns an || [ãũNs əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| annam || [ũNəm]
|-
| annad || [ũNəd]
|-
| ann || [ãũN]
|-
| innte || [ĩːNʲdʲə]
|-
| annainn || [aNɪNʲ]
|-
| annaibh || [aNɪv]
|-
| annta || [ãũNdə]
|-
|}

==Ann an + possessive pronoun==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
| 'nam || [nam]
|-
| 'nad || [nad]
|-
| 'na || [na]
|-
| 'na (h-) || [na (h)]
|-
| 'nar (n-) || [nar n]
|-
| 'nur (n-) || [nar n]
|-
| 'nan || [nan]
|-
|}

==De==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| de || [də]
|-
| dhen || [ʝɛnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| dhìom || [ʝĩə̃m]
|-
| dhìot || [ʝied]
|-
| dheth || [ʝe]
|-
| dhith || [ʝi]
|-
| dhinn || [ʝĩNʲ]
|-
| dhibh || [ʝiv]
|-
| dhiubh || [ʝu]
|-
|}

==Do==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| do || [də]
|-
| dhan (an) || [ɣan], [ɣanəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| dhomh || [ɣɔ̃]
|-
| dhut || [ɣuhd]
|-
| dha || [ɣa]
|-
| dhi || [ʝi]
|-
| dhuinn || [ɣɯ̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| dhuibh || [ɣɯiv]
|-
| dhaibh || [ɣaiv]
|-
|}

==Eadar==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| eadar || [edər]
|-
| eadar an || [edər əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| eadarainn || [edərɪNʲ]
|-
| eadaraibh || [edərɪv]
|-
| eatarra || [ehdəRə]
|-
|}

==Fo==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| fo || [fɔ]
|-
| fon || [fɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| fodham || [fo.əm]
|-
| fodhad || [fo.əd]
|-
| fodha || [fo.ə]
|-
| foidhpe || [foihbə]
|-
| fodhainn || [fo.ɪNʲ]
|-
| fodhaibh || [fo.ɪv]
|-
| fodhpa || [fohbə]
|-
|}

==Gu==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| gu || [gu]
|-
| gun chun an || [gunəN(ʲ)] [xunəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| thugam || [hugəm]
|-
| thugad || [hugəd]
|-
| thuige || [hɯgʲə]
|-
| thuice || [hɯçgʲə]
|-
| thugainn || [hugɪNʲ]
|-
| thugaibh || [hugɪv]
|-
| thuca || [huxgə]
|-
|}

==Le==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| le || [le]
|-
| leis an || [leʃ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| leam || [ləm]
|-
| leat || [lahd]
|-
| leis || [leʃ]
|-
| leatha || [le.ə]
|-
| leinn || [lẽĩNʲ]
|-
| leibh || [leiv]
|-
| leotha || [lo.ə]
|-
|}

==Mu==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mu || [mə]
|-
| mun || [munəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| umam || [ũməm]
|-
| umad || [ũməd]
|-
| uime || [ɯ̃imə]
|-
| uimpe || [ɯ̃imbə]
|-
| umainn || [ũmɪNʲ]
|-
| umaibh || [ũmɪv]
|-
| umpa || [ũːmbə]
|-
|}

==O==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| o || [ɔ]
|-
| on || [ɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| uam || [uəm]
|-
| uat || [uəhd]
|-
| uaidhe || [uajə]
|-
| uaipe || [uəihbə]
|-
| uainn || [ũə̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| uaibh || [uəiv]
|-
| uapa || [uəhbə]
|-
|}

==Ri==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| ri || [rʲi]
|-
| ris an || [rʲiʃ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| rium || [rʲum]
|-
| riut || [rʲuʰd]
|-
| ris || [rʲiʃ]
|-
| rithe || [rʲi.ə]
|-
| r(u)inn || [rɯ̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| r(u)ibh || [rɯ̃ĩv]
|-
| riutha || [ru.ə]
|-
|}

==Tro==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| tro || [trɔ]
|-
| tron an || [trɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| tromham || [trɔ.əm]
|-
| tromhad || [trɔ.əd]
|-
| troimhe || [trɔjə]
|-
| troimhpe || [trɔihbə]
|-
| tromhainn || [trɔ.ɪNʲ]
|-
| tromhaibh || [trɔ.ɪv]
|-
| tromhpa || [trɔ̃hbə]
|-
|}

==Thar==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| thar || [har]
|-
| thar an || [har əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| tharam || [harəm]
|-
| tharad || [harəd]
|-
| thairis air || [harʲɪʃ ɛrʲ]
|-
| thairte || [haRʃdʲə]
|-
| tharainn || [harɪNʲ]
|-
| tharaibh || [harɪv]
|-
| tharta || [haRʃdə]
|-
|}

==Personal pronouns==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mi || [mĩː] || [mi]
|-
| thu tu || [uː] [duː] || [u] [du]
|-
| e || [ɛː] || [ə]
|-
| i || [iː] || [i]
|-
| sinn || [ʃiːNʲ] || [ʃiNʲ]
|-
| sibh || [ʃiːv] || [ʃiv]
|-
| iad || [iəd] || [əd]
|-
|}

==Personal pronouns with emphatic suffixes==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mise || [mĩʃə]
|-
| thusa tusa || [usə] [dusə]
|-
| esan || [ɛsən]
|-
| ise || [iʃə]
|-
| sinne || [ʃiNʲə]
|-
| sibhse || [ʃiːvʃə]
|-
| iadsan || [iədsən]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mo chù || [mə'xuː]
|-
| do chù || [də'xuː]
|-
| a chù || [ə'xuː]
|-
| a cù || [ə'kuː]
|-
| ar cù || [ər'kuː]
|-
| ur cù || [ər'kuː]
|-
| an cù || [əŋ'kuː]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with emphatic suffixes==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mo chù-sa || [mə'xuːsə]
|-
| do chù-sa || [də'xuːsə ]
|-
| a chù-san || [ə'xuːsən]
|-
| a cù-se || [ə'kuːʃə]
|-
| ar cù-ne || [ər'kuːnə]
|-
| ur cù-se || [ər'kuːʃə]
|-
| an cù-san || [ən'kuːsən]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with initial vowel==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| m' anam || [manam]
|-
| d' anam || [danam]
|-
| anam || [anam]
|-
| a h-anam || [ə'hanam]
|-
| ar n-anam || [ər'nanam]
|-
| ur n-anam || [ər'nanam]
|-
| an anam || [ə'nanam]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with initial vowel and emphatic suffixes==
{| style="width: 20%;" border="0"
|-
| m' anam-sa || [manamsə]
|-
| d' anam-sa || [danamsə]
|-
| anam-san || [anamsən]
|-
| a h-anam-se || [ə'hanamʃə]
|-
| ar n-anam-ne || [ər'nanamnə]
|-
| ur n-anam-se || [ər'nanamʃə]
|-
| an anam-san || [ə'nanamsən]
|-
|}

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

PPP - Pronouns, prepositions and their pronunciation

2012-06-28T10:53:34Z

Thrissel: /* Aig + possessive pronoun */ ce; btw *gad* the only one with schwa?

No explanation needed really, tables of the conjugated pronouns with their pronunciation.

==À==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| à || [a]
|-
| às an || [as əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| asam || [asəm]
|-
| asad || [asəd]
|-
| às || [as]
|-
| aiste || [aʃdʲə]
|-
| asainn || [asɪNʲ]
|-
| asaibh || [asɪv]
|-
| asta || [asdə]
|-
|}

==Aig==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| aig || [ɛgʲ]
|-
| aig an || [ɛgʲ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| agam || [agəm]
|-
| agad || [agəd]
|-
| aige || [ɛgʲə]
|-
| aice || [ɛçgʲə]
|-
| againn || [agɪNʲ]
|-
| agaibh || [agɪv]
|-
| aca || [axgə]
|-
|}

== Aig + possessive pronoun ==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| 'gam || [gam]
|-
| 'gad || [gəd]
|-
| 'ga || [ga]
|-
| 'ga (h-) || [ga (h)]
|-
| 'gar (n-) || [gar (n)]
|-
| 'gur (n-) || [gar (n)]
|-
| 'gan || [gan]
|-
|}

==Air==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| air || [ɛrʲ]
|-
| air an || [ɛrʲ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| orm || [ɔrɔm]
|-
| ort || [ɔRʃd]
|-
| air || [ɛrʲ]
|-
| oirre || [ɔRə]
|-
| oirnn || [ɔːRNʲ]
|-
| oirbh || [ɔrʲɪv]
|-
| orra || [ɔRə]
|-
|}
==Ann an==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| ann an || [ãũN əN(ʲ)]
|-
| anns an || [ãũNs əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| annam || [ũNəm]
|-
| annad || [ũNəd]
|-
| ann || [ãũN]
|-
| innte || [ĩːNʲdʲə]
|-
| annainn || [aNɪNʲ]
|-
| annaibh || [aNɪv]
|-
| annta || [ãũNdə]
|-
|}

==Ann an + possessive pronoun==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|- 'nam || [nam]
|-
| 'nad || [nad]
|-
| 'na || [na]
|-
| 'na (h-) || [na (h)]
|-
| 'nar (n-) || [nar n]
|-
| 'nur (n-) || [nar n]
|-
| 'nan || [nan]
|-
|}

==De==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| de || [də]
|-
| dhen || [ʝɛnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| dhìom || [ʝĩə̃m]
|-
| dhìot || [ʝied]
|-
| dheth || [ʝe]
|-
| dhith || [ʝi]
|-
| dhinn || [ʝĩNʲ]
|-
| dhibh || [ʝiv]
|-
| dhiubh || [ʝu]
|-
|}

==Do==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| do || [də]
|-
| dhan (an) || [ɣan], [ɣanəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| dhomh || [ɣɔ̃]
|-
| dhut || [ɣuhd]
|-
| dha || [ɣa]
|-
| dhi || [ʝi]
|-
| dhuinn || [ɣɯ̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| dhuibh || [ɣɯiv]
|-
| dhaibh || [ɣaiv]
|-
|}

==Eadar==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| eadar || [edər]
|-
| eadar an || [edər əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| eadarainn || [edərɪNʲ]
|-
| eadaraibh || [edərɪv]
|-
| eatarra || [ehdəRə]
|-
|}

==Fo==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| fo || [fɔ]
|-
| fon || [fɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| fodham || [fo.əm]
|-
| fodhad || [fo.əd]
|-
| fodha || [fo.ə]
|-
| foidhpe || [foihbə]
|-
| fodhainn || [fo.ɪNʲ]
|-
| fodhaibh || [fo.ɪv]
|-
| fodhpa || [fohbə]
|-
|}

==Gu==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| gu || [gu]
|-
| gun chun an || [gunəN(ʲ)] [xunəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| thugam || [hugəm]
|-
| thugad || [hugəd]
|-
| thuige || [hɯgʲə]
|-
| thuice || [hɯçgʲə]
|-
| thugainn || [hugɪNʲ]
|-
| thugaibh || [hugɪv]
|-
| thuca || [huxgə]
|-
|}

==Le==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| le || [le]
|-
| leis an || [leʃ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| leam || [ləm]
|-
| leat || [lahd]
|-
| leis || [leʃ]
|-
| leatha || [le.ə]
|-
| leinn || [lẽĩNʲ]
|-
| leibh || [leiv]
|-
| leotha || [lo.ə]
|-
|}

==Mu==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mu || [mə]
|-
| mun || [munəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| umam || [ũməm]
|-
| umad || [ũməd]
|-
| uime || [ɯ̃imə]
|-
| uimpe || [ɯ̃imbə]
|-
| umainn || [ũmɪNʲ]
|-
| umaibh || [ũmɪv]
|-
| umpa || [ũːmbə]
|-
|}

==O==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| o || [ɔ]
|-
| on || [ɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| uam || [uəm]
|-
| uat || [uəhd]
|-
| uaidhe || [uajə]
|-
| uaipe || [uəihbə]
|-
| uainn || [ũə̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| uaibh || [uəiv]
|-
| uapa || [uəhbə]
|-
|}

==Ri==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| ri || [rʲi]
|-
| ris an || [rʲiʃ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| rium || [rʲum]
|-
| riut || [rʲuʰd]
|-
| ris || [rʲiʃ]
|-
| rithe || [rʲi.ə]
|-
| r(u)inn || [rɯ̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| r(u)ibh || [rɯ̃ĩv]
|-
| riutha || [ru.ə]
|-
|}

==Tro==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| tro || [trɔ]
|-
| tron an || [trɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| tromham || [trɔ.əm]
|-
| tromhad || [trɔ.əd]
|-
| troimhe || [trɔjə]
|-
| troimhpe || [trɔihbə]
|-
| tromhainn || [trɔ.ɪNʲ]
|-
| tromhaibh || [trɔ.ɪv]
|-
| tromhpa || [trɔ̃hbə]
|-
|}

==Thar==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| thar || [har]
|-
| thar an || [har əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| tharam || [harəm]
|-
| tharad || [harəd]
|-
| thairis air || [harʲɪʃ ɛrʲ]
|-
| thairte || [haRʃdʲə]
|-
| tharainn || [harɪNʲ]
|-
| tharaibh || [harɪv]
|-
| tharta || [haRʃdə]
|-
|}

==Personal pronouns==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mi || [mĩː] || [mi]
|-
| thu tu || [uː] [duː] || [u] [du]
|-
| e || [ɛː] || [ə]
|-
| i || [iː] || [i]
|-
| sinn || [ʃiːNʲ] || [ʃiNʲ]
|-
| sibh || [ʃiːv] || [ʃiv]
|-
| iad || [iəd] || [əd]
|-
|}

==Personal pronouns with emphatic suffixes==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mise || [mĩʃə]
|-
| thusa tusa || [usə] [dusə]
|-
| esan || [ɛsən]
|-
| ise || [iʃə]
|-
| sinne || [ʃiNʲə]
|-
| sibhse || [ʃiːvʃə]
|-
| iadsan || [iədsən]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mo chù || [mə'xuː]
|-
| do chù || [də'xuː]
|-
| a chù || [ə'xuː]
|-
| a cù || [ə'kuː]
|-
| ar cù || [ər'kuː]
|-
| ur cù || [ər'kuː]
|-
| an cù || [əŋ'kuː]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with emphatic suffixes==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mo chù-sa || [mə'xuːsə]
|-
| do chù-sa || [də'xuːsə ]
|-
| a chù-san || [ə'xuːsən]
|-
| a cù-se || [ə'kuːʃə]
|-
| ar cù-ne || [ər'kuːnə]
|-
| ur cù-se || [ər'kuːʃə]
|-
| an cù-san || [ən'kuːsən]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with initial vowel==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| m' anam || [manam]
|-
| d' anam || [danam]
|-
| anam || [anam]
|-
| a h-anam || [ə'hanam]
|-
| ar n-anam || [ər'nanam]
|-
| ur n-anam || [ər'nanam]
|-
| an anam || [ə'nanam]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with initial vowel and emphatic suffixes==
{| style="width: 20%;" border="0"
|-
| m' anam-sa || [manamsə]
|-
| d' anam-sa || [danamsə]
|-
| anam-san || [anamsən]
|-
| a h-anam-se || [ə'hanamʃə]
|-
| ar n-anam-ne || [ər'nanamnə]
|-
| ur n-anam-se || [ər'nanamʃə]
|-
| an anam-san || [ə'nanamsən]
|-
|}

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Expressions of Time

2012-06-16T15:03:39Z

Thrissel: /* Other Adverbs of Time */

Temporal adverbial expressions - or how to say when something happened. Let's take a look at what choices we have to start with:

==Adverbs of Time==
These are itsy words that you can add on to a phrase or sentence to tell people when something happened.

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| a-bhòn-uiridh || an-uiridh || am bliadhna || an ath bhliadhna|| — || —
|-
| the year before last || last year || this year || next year|| — || —
|-
| a-bhòin-dé || an-dé || an-diugh || a-màireach || an-earar || an-eararais
|-
| the day before yesterday || yesterday || today || tomorrow || the day after tomorrow||three days from now
|-
| — || an-raoir || a-nochd || an ath oidhche|| — || —
|-
| — || last night || tonight || tomorrow night || — || —
|-
|}

Now this does not mean that you cannot say <year after next> in Gaelic, it just means that there is no single, easy word for it. Instead you have to employ periphrastic expressions.

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| — || am bliadhna || an ath-bhliadhna
|-
| — || this year || next year
|-
| — || a-nochd || an ath-oidhche
|-
| — || tonight || tomorrow night
|-
| an t-seachdainn seo chaidh || an t-seachdainn-sa || an ath-sheachdain
|-
| last week || this week || next week
|-
|}

==The Days of the Week==

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| DiLuain || DiMàirt || DiCiadain || DiArdaoin || DihAoine || DiSathairne || DiDòmhnaich
|-
| Monday || Tuesday || Wednesday || Thursday || Friday || Saturday || Sunday
|-
|}

Sunday is also called Latha na Sàbaid. Traditionally the usage between the two depends on your denomination - Catholics and Episcopalians using the DiDòmhnaich and Presbyterians Latha na Sàbaid. For non-denominational reasons, we prefer DiDòmhnaich because it fits in with the rest of the paradigm. Be sure to pronounce the long vowel in Sàbaid, otherwise it becomes Latha na Sabaid 'the Day of Fighting'.

The prefix Di- is the equivalant of the English -day suffix. Unlike in English however, it is the prefix that is modified to express the concepts of <Monday afternoon>, <Friday night> etc:

{| style="width: 95%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| madainn Luain || madainn Mhàrt || madainn Chiadain || madainn Ardaoin || madainn hAoine || madainn Sathairne || madainnn Dòmhnaich
|-
| Monday morning || Tuesday morning || Wednesday morning || Thursday morning || Friday morning || Saturday morning || Sunday morning
|-
| feasgar Luain || feasgar Màrt || feasgar Ciadain || feasgar Ardaoin || feasgar hAoine || feasgar Sathairne || feasgar Dòmhnaich
|-
| Monday afternoon || Tuesday afternoon || Wednesday afternoon || Friday afternoon || Friday afternoon || Saturday afternoon || Sunday afternoon
|-
| oidhche Luain || oidhche Mhàrt || oidhche Chiadain || oidhche Ardaoin || oidhche hAoine || oidhche Shathairne || oidhche Dhòmhnaich
|-
| Monday night || Tuesday night || Wednesday night || Thursday night || Friday night || Saturday night || Sunday night
|-
|}

That is the theory anyway ... in colloquial usage, you will often hear people saying things like Feasgar DihAoine, Madainn DiMàirt etc. The most common ones in colloquial usage are the expressions with oidhche such as Oidhche Luain, Oidhche Mhàrt etc.

==The Months==
Genitives are given in square brackets. For purposes of memorisation it is useful to note that from September onwards all months are feminine in gender! There are alternate names for some of the months, but we strongly suggest you stick with the recommended ones. Learning a language is difficult enough without having to worry about having 5 different choices for one term...

{| style="width: 80%;"
|-
| Gaelic || Genitive || English || Alternate Names
|-
| Am Faoilteach (masc.) || ... an Fhaoiltich || January || Am Faoilleach (an Fhaoillich); Mìos Marbh; Deireadh-Geamhraidh
|-
| An Gearran (masc.) || ... a' Ghearrain || February ||
|-
| Am Màrt (masc.) || ... a' Mhàirt || March ||
|-
| An Giblean (masc.) || ... a' Ghiblein || April ||
|-
| An Céitean (masc) || ... a' Chéitein || May || A' Mhàigh (fem) (... na Màighe)
|-
| An t-Ògmhios (masc) || ... an Ògmhiosa || June || Meadhan-Samhraidh
|-
| An t-Iuchar (masc) || ...an Iuchair || July || Deireadh-Samhraidh; Mìos Buidhe
|-
| An Lùnastal (masc) || ... an Lùnastail || August ||
|-
| An t-Sultain (fem) || ...na Sultaine || September ||
|-
| An Dàmhair (fem) || ... na Dàmhair || October ||
|-
| An t-Samhain (fem) || ... na Samhna || November ||
|-
| An Dùbhlachd (fem) || ... na Dùbhlachd || December || Mìos na Nollaig
|-
|}

The date in Gaelic is given in the form of the Xth day of the [month]. A few examples:
{| style="width: 40%"
|-
| 1st March || A' chiad latha dhen Mhàrt
|-
| 24th June || An ceathramh latha ar fhichead dhen Ògmhios
|-
| 31st September || A' chiad latha deug ar fhichead dhen t-Sultain
|-
| 22nd December || An dàrna latha ar fhichead dhen Dùbhlachd
|-
|}

Individual years are said by giving the 'hundreds' first and then the 'tens' (with is between the hundreds and the tens), for example:

{| style="width: 40%"
|-
| 1272 || dà cheud deug trì fichead is a dhà dheug
|-
| 1817 || ochd ceud deug is seachd deug
|-
| 1995 || naoidh ceud deug ceithir fichead is a cóig deug
|-
| 2000 || bliadhna dà mhìle
|-
| 2003 || dà mhìle is a trì
|-
|}

B.C. and A.D. are expressed similarly to English as: R.C. (ro Chrìosd) and A.D. (as déidh Chrìosd), e.g. 347 B.C. is trì ceud dà fhichead is a seachd ro Chrìosd. Optionally sa bhliadhna can be prefixed to any date for clarification, i.e. sa bhliadhna naoi ceud deug trì fichead is a ceithir <in the year 1964>.

BCE? No we don't as it's pointless - it still uses the same date as a reference point so it's no less "offensive" (???) that BC or AD and just adds to the confusion.

==The seasons==
The four seasons are expressed as follows (note that the short form of saying <in X> differs slightly from the long form!):

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| spring || summer || autumn || winter
|-
| earrach (m) gen. & pl. earraich || samhradh (m) gen. samhraidh pl. samhraidhean || foghar (m) gen. foghair pl. foghairean || geamhradh (m) gen. geamhraidh pl. geamhraidhean
|-
| in spring || in summer || in autumn || in winter
|-
| as t-earrach || as t-samhradh || as t-fhoghar || anns a' gheamhradh
|-
| in the spring || in the summer || in the autumn || in the winter
|-
| anns an earrach || anns an t-samhradh || anns an fhoghar || anns a' gheamhradh
|-
|}

==The Holidays of the Year==
Genitives are given in brackets. Note that while the word for day is normally ''latha'', in these special calendar dates this has shortened to ''Là''.

{| style="width: 90%;"
|-
| Faoi. 1 || Là na Bliadhna Ùire || New Year's Day || Callainn (fem) (...na Callainne); Nollaig Bheag (fem) (... na Nollaig Bige)
|-
| Faoi. 6 || Là nan Trì Rìgh || Epiphany || Là Fhéill nan Rìgh; Féill an Taisbeanaidh
|-
| Gearr. 2 || Là Fhéill Brìghde || Candlemas || Là Fhéill Brìghde nan Coinnlean; Là Féill Moire nan Coinnlean
|-
| Gearr. 14 || Là Fhéill Bhaileintin || Valentine's Day ||
|-
| Gearr.|| Là na Bliadhna Ùire Sìnich || Chinese New Year ||
|-
| Gearr. || DiMàirt Inid || Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day ||
|-
| Gearr. || DiCiadain na Luaithre || Ash Wednesday ||
|-
| Gearr. || An Carghas (masc) (... a' Charghais) || Lent ||
|-
| Màrt 1 || Là Dhàibhidh || St. David's Day ||
|-
| Màrt || Là na Màthar || Mother's Day/Mothering Sunday
|-
| Màrt 17 || Là Phàdraig || St. Patrick's Day || Là Fhéill Pàdraig
|-
| Màrt || Seachdain na Càisge || Holy Week ||
|-
| Màrt || DiDòmhnaich Tùrnais || Palm Sunday ||
|-
| Màrt || DiArdaoin a' Bhrochain Mhóir || Maundy Thursday || DiArdaoin Inid
|-
| Màrt || DihAoine na Ceusta || Good Friday ||
|-
| Màrt || A' Chàisg (fem) (... na Càisge) || Easter ||
|-
| Màrt || DiSathairne na Càisge || Easter Saturday ||
|-
| Màrt || A' Chàisg Mhór || Easter Sunday || Là Guileagan; Là Bàs nan Uighean; DiDòmhnaich na Càisge
|-
| Màrt || DiLuain na Càisge || Easter Monday ||
|-
| Màrt || Co-fhad-tràth an Earraich || Vernal Equinox ||
|-
| Gibl. 1 || Là na Gogaireachd || April Fool's Day || Là Ruith na Cuthaige
|-
| Gibl. 23 || Là Fhéill Seòrais || St. George's Day ||
|-
| Céit. 1 || Là Bealltainn || May Day/Beltane ||
|-
| Céit. || Deasghabhail (fem) (... na Deasghabhalach) || Ascension Day || DiArdaoin Freastail
|-
| Céit. || Caingis (fem indef) || Pentecost/Whit Sunday ||
|-
| Céit. || DiDòmhnaich na Trianaid || Trinity Sunday ||
|-
| Céit. || DiArdaoin Corp Crìosda || Corpus Christi Transfiguration
|-
| Céit. || Là Fhéill an Earraich || Spring Bank Holiday ||
|-
| Ògmh. || Là an Athar || Father's Day ||
|-
| Ògmh. 21 || Grianstad an t-Samhraidh Là Leth an t-Samhraidh || Summer Solstice Midsummer's Day
|-
| Iuch. 15 || Là Màrtainn Builg || St. Swithen's Day ||
|-
| Lùna. 1 || Lùghnasa || Lunasa (Harvest) ||
|-
| Lùna. || Là Fhéill an t-Samhraidh || Summer Bank Holiday ||
|-
| Sult. || Co-fhad-tràth an Fhoghair || Autumnal Equinox ||
|-
| Damh. 31 || Oidhche Shamhna || All Souls' Day/Hallowe'en ||
|-
| Damh. 31 Samh. 1 || Là Samhna || Samhain || Là Fhéill Samhna
|-
| Samh. 1 || Là nan Uile Naomh || All Saints' Day ||
|-
| Samh. 5 || Oidhche Ghuy Fawkes || Guy Fawkes' Night ||
|-
| Samh. 11 || Là nan Cuimhneachan || Rememberance Day ||
|-
| Samh. || DiDòmhnaich nan Cuimhneachan || Rememberance Sunday ||
|-
| Samh. || Aidbheint (fem) (... na h-Aidmheint) || Advent ||
|-
| Samh. || A' Chiad Dòmhnaich dhen Aidmheint || Advent Sunday ||
|-
| Samh. || Là na Taingealachd || Thanksgiving || Là Buidheachais an Fhoghair; Là Taingealachd an Fhoghair
|-
| Samh. 30 || Là Chill Rìbhinn || St. Andrew's Day ||
|-
| Dùbh. 6 || Là Bodach na Nollaig || St. Nicholas' Day ||
|-
| Dùbh. 21 || Grianstad a' Gheamhraidh || Winter Solstice ||
|-
| Dùbh. || An Nollaig (fem) (...na Nollaige) || Christmas
|-
| Dùbh. 24 || Oidhche nam Bannag || Christmas Eve || Oidhche na Nollaig
|-
| Dùbh. 25 || Là na Nollaig || Christmas Day || Là nam Bannag
|-
| Dùbh. 26 || || Boxing Day/St. Stephen's Day ||
|-
| Dùbh. 28 || Là Fhéill nan Leanabhan Neo-chiontach || Feast of the Holy Innocents ||
|-
| Dùbh. 31 || Oidhche Challainn || Hogmanay/New Year's Eve ||
|-
|}

==Other Adverbs of Time==

Most adverbs are formed by the prepositon gu + ADJ, but there are a number of adverbs that have different formations:

{| style="width: 40%;"
|-
| a chaoidh || for ever (after)
|-
| a chlisgeadh || suddenly, abruptly
|-
| a dh'aithghearr || soon, in a short while
|-
| a dh'oidhche || by night, at night time
|-
| a ghnàth || habitually, always
|-
| a h-uile turas || every time
|-
| a h-uile uair || every time, always
|-
| a latha || by day, at daytime
|-
| ainneamh || seldom
|-
| (ann) an ceartair || 1) +FUT in a moment 2) +PAST just now
|-
| an-còmhnaidh || always, continually
|-
| an-dràsta || now (in a more broad sense)
|-
| an-sin || whereupon, then
|-
| air a' mhionaid || this moment, minute
|-
| air an uair || just now
|-
| air chionn do ... || by the time that ....
|-
| air ball || immediately, straightaway
|-
| air tùs || in the beginning, at first
|-
| air uairibh || sometimes, at times
|-
| (am) fad is a ... || while
|-
| am feadh || while, whilst
|-
| a-nis || now (i.e. something is the case now that wasn't before)
|-
| (ann) an tiota (beag) || in a twinkling, moment
|-
| anns a' bhad || immediately, on the spot
|-
| anns a' cheart àm || in the meanwhile
|-
| a-rithist || again
|-
| á seo suas || henceforward
|-
| bho àm gu àm || from time to time, occasionally
|-
| bho chionn aimsir || some time ago, long ago
|-
| bho chionn ghoirid || a short while ago
|-
| bho chionn treis || a while ago
|-
| bho seo a-mach || henceforth
|-
| car ùine || for a time, during a period
|-
| (cho) fad is a ... || as long as ...
|-
| fa dheòigh || at last
|-
| f(h)ad is a ... || while, during
|-
| fad na h-ùine || all the time
|-
| ge be uair || whenever, at whichever time
|-
| gach uair || whenever, every time
|-
| gu bràth || forever
|-
| gu cian nan cian || for ever and ever
|-
| gu grad || abruptly
|-
| gu minic || often
|-
| gu seo || thus far, so far
|-
| gu sìorraidh || for ever and ever
|-
| gu tric || often
|-
| gun dàil || immediately, without delay
|-
| iomadh uair || often, many times
|-
| leis sin || whereupon, with which
|-
| mu dheireadh thall || at long last
|-
| mu thràth (mar-thà) || already
|-
| nas motha || no more
|-
| ré tamaill || for a time
|-
| ri h-ùine || by and by, with time
|-
| thuige seo || thus far, so far
|-
| tràth 's a ... || when
|-
| uaireannan || at times, sometimes
|-
|}

Adverbs of time in Gaelic do not require a preposition as certain English expressions do and are simply attached at the end of the phrase, e.g.:

{| style="width: 50%;"
|-
| I saw him yesterday. || Chunnaic mi e an-dé.
|-
| I will go there on Monday. || Théid mi ann DiLuain.
|-
| He spent a little while there. || Bha e ann greis.
|-
| We were there for a week. || Bha sinn ann seachdain.
|-
| She wants to go home for a month. || Tha i ag iarraidh a dhol dhachaigh mìos.
|-
| What did you do in the afternoon? || Dé rinn thu feasgar?
|-
| Wait a moment! || Fuirich tiota!
|-
|}

Particularly the most overused word in modern Gaelic should be avoided - airson.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Expressions of Time

2012-06-16T14:57:29Z

Thrissel: /* The Months */

Temporal adverbial expressions - or how to say when something happened. Let's take a look at what choices we have to start with:

==Adverbs of Time==
These are itsy words that you can add on to a phrase or sentence to tell people when something happened.

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| a-bhòn-uiridh || an-uiridh || am bliadhna || an ath bhliadhna|| — || —
|-
| the year before last || last year || this year || next year|| — || —
|-
| a-bhòin-dé || an-dé || an-diugh || a-màireach || an-earar || an-eararais
|-
| the day before yesterday || yesterday || today || tomorrow || the day after tomorrow||three days from now
|-
| — || an-raoir || a-nochd || an ath oidhche|| — || —
|-
| — || last night || tonight || tomorrow night || — || —
|-
|}

Now this does not mean that you cannot say <year after next> in Gaelic, it just means that there is no single, easy word for it. Instead you have to employ periphrastic expressions.

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| — || am bliadhna || an ath-bhliadhna
|-
| — || this year || next year
|-
| — || a-nochd || an ath-oidhche
|-
| — || tonight || tomorrow night
|-
| an t-seachdainn seo chaidh || an t-seachdainn-sa || an ath-sheachdain
|-
| last week || this week || next week
|-
|}

==The Days of the Week==

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| DiLuain || DiMàirt || DiCiadain || DiArdaoin || DihAoine || DiSathairne || DiDòmhnaich
|-
| Monday || Tuesday || Wednesday || Thursday || Friday || Saturday || Sunday
|-
|}

Sunday is also called Latha na Sàbaid. Traditionally the usage between the two depends on your denomination - Catholics and Episcopalians using the DiDòmhnaich and Presbyterians Latha na Sàbaid. For non-denominational reasons, we prefer DiDòmhnaich because it fits in with the rest of the paradigm. Be sure to pronounce the long vowel in Sàbaid, otherwise it becomes Latha na Sabaid 'the Day of Fighting'.

The prefix Di- is the equivalant of the English -day suffix. Unlike in English however, it is the prefix that is modified to express the concepts of <Monday afternoon>, <Friday night> etc:

{| style="width: 95%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| madainn Luain || madainn Mhàrt || madainn Chiadain || madainn Ardaoin || madainn hAoine || madainn Sathairne || madainnn Dòmhnaich
|-
| Monday morning || Tuesday morning || Wednesday morning || Thursday morning || Friday morning || Saturday morning || Sunday morning
|-
| feasgar Luain || feasgar Màrt || feasgar Ciadain || feasgar Ardaoin || feasgar hAoine || feasgar Sathairne || feasgar Dòmhnaich
|-
| Monday afternoon || Tuesday afternoon || Wednesday afternoon || Friday afternoon || Friday afternoon || Saturday afternoon || Sunday afternoon
|-
| oidhche Luain || oidhche Mhàrt || oidhche Chiadain || oidhche Ardaoin || oidhche hAoine || oidhche Shathairne || oidhche Dhòmhnaich
|-
| Monday night || Tuesday night || Wednesday night || Thursday night || Friday night || Saturday night || Sunday night
|-
|}

That is the theory anyway ... in colloquial usage, you will often hear people saying things like Feasgar DihAoine, Madainn DiMàirt etc. The most common ones in colloquial usage are the expressions with oidhche such as Oidhche Luain, Oidhche Mhàrt etc.

==The Months==
Genitives are given in square brackets. For purposes of memorisation it is useful to note that from September onwards all months are feminine in gender! There are alternate names for some of the months, but we strongly suggest you stick with the recommended ones. Learning a language is difficult enough without having to worry about having 5 different choices for one term...

{| style="width: 80%;"
|-
| Gaelic || Genitive || English || Alternate Names
|-
| Am Faoilteach (masc.) || ... an Fhaoiltich || January || Am Faoilleach (an Fhaoillich); Mìos Marbh; Deireadh-Geamhraidh
|-
| An Gearran (masc.) || ... a' Ghearrain || February ||
|-
| Am Màrt (masc.) || ... a' Mhàirt || March ||
|-
| An Giblean (masc.) || ... a' Ghiblein || April ||
|-
| An Céitean (masc) || ... a' Chéitein || May || A' Mhàigh (fem) (... na Màighe)
|-
| An t-Ògmhios (masc) || ... an Ògmhiosa || June || Meadhan-Samhraidh
|-
| An t-Iuchar (masc) || ...an Iuchair || July || Deireadh-Samhraidh; Mìos Buidhe
|-
| An Lùnastal (masc) || ... an Lùnastail || August ||
|-
| An t-Sultain (fem) || ...na Sultaine || September ||
|-
| An Dàmhair (fem) || ... na Dàmhair || October ||
|-
| An t-Samhain (fem) || ... na Samhna || November ||
|-
| An Dùbhlachd (fem) || ... na Dùbhlachd || December || Mìos na Nollaig
|-
|}

The date in Gaelic is given in the form of the Xth day of the [month]. A few examples:
{| style="width: 40%"
|-
| 1st March || A' chiad latha dhen Mhàrt
|-
| 24th June || An ceathramh latha ar fhichead dhen Ògmhios
|-
| 31st September || A' chiad latha deug ar fhichead dhen t-Sultain
|-
| 22nd December || An dàrna latha ar fhichead dhen Dùbhlachd
|-
|}

Individual years are said by giving the 'hundreds' first and then the 'tens' (with is between the hundreds and the tens), for example:

{| style="width: 40%"
|-
| 1272 || dà cheud deug trì fichead is a dhà dheug
|-
| 1817 || ochd ceud deug is seachd deug
|-
| 1995 || naoidh ceud deug ceithir fichead is a cóig deug
|-
| 2000 || bliadhna dà mhìle
|-
| 2003 || dà mhìle is a trì
|-
|}

B.C. and A.D. are expressed similarly to English as: R.C. (ro Chrìosd) and A.D. (as déidh Chrìosd), e.g. 347 B.C. is trì ceud dà fhichead is a seachd ro Chrìosd. Optionally sa bhliadhna can be prefixed to any date for clarification, i.e. sa bhliadhna naoi ceud deug trì fichead is a ceithir <in the year 1964>.

BCE? No we don't as it's pointless - it still uses the same date as a reference point so it's no less "offensive" (???) that BC or AD and just adds to the confusion.

==The seasons==
The four seasons are expressed as follows (note that the short form of saying <in X> differs slightly from the long form!):

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| spring || summer || autumn || winter
|-
| earrach (m) gen. & pl. earraich || samhradh (m) gen. samhraidh pl. samhraidhean || foghar (m) gen. foghair pl. foghairean || geamhradh (m) gen. geamhraidh pl. geamhraidhean
|-
| in spring || in summer || in autumn || in winter
|-
| as t-earrach || as t-samhradh || as t-fhoghar || anns a' gheamhradh
|-
| in the spring || in the summer || in the autumn || in the winter
|-
| anns an earrach || anns an t-samhradh || anns an fhoghar || anns a' gheamhradh
|-
|}

==The Holidays of the Year==
Genitives are given in brackets. Note that while the word for day is normally ''latha'', in these special calendar dates this has shortened to ''Là''.

{| style="width: 90%;"
|-
| Faoi. 1 || Là na Bliadhna Ùire || New Year's Day || Callainn (fem) (...na Callainne); Nollaig Bheag (fem) (... na Nollaig Bige)
|-
| Faoi. 6 || Là nan Trì Rìgh || Epiphany || Là Fhéill nan Rìgh; Féill an Taisbeanaidh
|-
| Gearr. 2 || Là Fhéill Brìghde || Candlemas || Là Fhéill Brìghde nan Coinnlean; Là Féill Moire nan Coinnlean
|-
| Gearr. 14 || Là Fhéill Bhaileintin || Valentine's Day ||
|-
| Gearr.|| Là na Bliadhna Ùire Sìnich || Chinese New Year ||
|-
| Gearr. || DiMàirt Inid || Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day ||
|-
| Gearr. || DiCiadain na Luaithre || Ash Wednesday ||
|-
| Gearr. || An Carghas (masc) (... a' Charghais) || Lent ||
|-
| Màrt 1 || Là Dhàibhidh || St. David's Day ||
|-
| Màrt || Là na Màthar || Mother's Day/Mothering Sunday
|-
| Màrt 17 || Là Phàdraig || St. Patrick's Day || Là Fhéill Pàdraig
|-
| Màrt || Seachdain na Càisge || Holy Week ||
|-
| Màrt || DiDòmhnaich Tùrnais || Palm Sunday ||
|-
| Màrt || DiArdaoin a' Bhrochain Mhóir || Maundy Thursday || DiArdaoin Inid
|-
| Màrt || DihAoine na Ceusta || Good Friday ||
|-
| Màrt || A' Chàisg (fem) (... na Càisge) || Easter ||
|-
| Màrt || DiSathairne na Càisge || Easter Saturday ||
|-
| Màrt || A' Chàisg Mhór || Easter Sunday || Là Guileagan; Là Bàs nan Uighean; DiDòmhnaich na Càisge
|-
| Màrt || DiLuain na Càisge || Easter Monday ||
|-
| Màrt || Co-fhad-tràth an Earraich || Vernal Equinox ||
|-
| Gibl. 1 || Là na Gogaireachd || April Fool's Day || Là Ruith na Cuthaige
|-
| Gibl. 23 || Là Fhéill Seòrais || St. George's Day ||
|-
| Céit. 1 || Là Bealltainn || May Day/Beltane ||
|-
| Céit. || Deasghabhail (fem) (... na Deasghabhalach) || Ascension Day || DiArdaoin Freastail
|-
| Céit. || Caingis (fem indef) || Pentecost/Whit Sunday ||
|-
| Céit. || DiDòmhnaich na Trianaid || Trinity Sunday ||
|-
| Céit. || DiArdaoin Corp Crìosda || Corpus Christi Transfiguration
|-
| Céit. || Là Fhéill an Earraich || Spring Bank Holiday ||
|-
| Ògmh. || Là an Athar || Father's Day ||
|-
| Ògmh. 21 || Grianstad an t-Samhraidh Là Leth an t-Samhraidh || Summer Solstice Midsummer's Day
|-
| Iuch. 15 || Là Màrtainn Builg || St. Swithen's Day ||
|-
| Lùna. 1 || Lùghnasa || Lunasa (Harvest) ||
|-
| Lùna. || Là Fhéill an t-Samhraidh || Summer Bank Holiday ||
|-
| Sult. || Co-fhad-tràth an Fhoghair || Autumnal Equinox ||
|-
| Damh. 31 || Oidhche Shamhna || All Souls' Day/Hallowe'en ||
|-
| Damh. 31 Samh. 1 || Là Samhna || Samhain || Là Fhéill Samhna
|-
| Samh. 1 || Là nan Uile Naomh || All Saints' Day ||
|-
| Samh. 5 || Oidhche Ghuy Fawkes || Guy Fawkes' Night ||
|-
| Samh. 11 || Là nan Cuimhneachan || Rememberance Day ||
|-
| Samh. || DiDòmhnaich nan Cuimhneachan || Rememberance Sunday ||
|-
| Samh. || Aidbheint (fem) (... na h-Aidmheint) || Advent ||
|-
| Samh. || A' Chiad Dòmhnaich dhen Aidmheint || Advent Sunday ||
|-
| Samh. || Là na Taingealachd || Thanksgiving || Là Buidheachais an Fhoghair; Là Taingealachd an Fhoghair
|-
| Samh. 30 || Là Chill Rìbhinn || St. Andrew's Day ||
|-
| Dùbh. 6 || Là Bodach na Nollaig || St. Nicholas' Day ||
|-
| Dùbh. 21 || Grianstad a' Gheamhraidh || Winter Solstice ||
|-
| Dùbh. || An Nollaig (fem) (...na Nollaige) || Christmas
|-
| Dùbh. 24 || Oidhche nam Bannag || Christmas Eve || Oidhche na Nollaig
|-
| Dùbh. 25 || Là na Nollaig || Christmas Day || Là nam Bannag
|-
| Dùbh. 26 || || Boxing Day/St. Stephen's Day ||
|-
| Dùbh. 28 || Là Fhéill nan Leanabhan Neo-chiontach || Feast of the Holy Innocents ||
|-
| Dùbh. 31 || Oidhche Challainn || Hogmanay/New Year's Eve ||
|-
|}

==Other Adverbs of Time==

Most adverbs are formed by the prepositon gu + ADJ, but there are a number of adverbs that have different formations:

{| style="width: 40%;"
|-
| a chaoidh || for ever (after)
|-
| a chlisgeadh || suddenly, abruptly
|-
| a dh'aithghearr || soon, in a short while
|-
| a dh'oidhche || by night, at night time
|-
| a ghnàth || habitually, always
|-
| a h-uile turas || every time
|-
| a h-uile uair || every time, always
|-
| a latha || by day, at daytime
|-
| ainneamh || seldom
|-
| (ann) an ceartair || 1) +FUT in a moment 2) +PAST just now
|-
| an-còmhnaidh || always, continually
|-
| an-dràsta || now (in a more broad sense)
|-
| an-sin || whereupon, then
|-
| air a' mhionaid || this moment, minute
|-
| air an uair || just now
|-
| air chionn do ... || by the time that ....
|-
| air ball || immediately, straightaway
|-
| air tùs || in the beginning, at first
|-
| air uairibh || sometimes, at times
|-
| (am) fad is a ... || while
|-
| am feadh || while, whilst
|-
| a-nis || now (i.e. something is the case now that wasn't before)
|-
| (ann) an tiota (beag) || in a twinkling, moment
|-
| anns a' bhad || immediately, on the spot
|-
| anns a' cheart àm || in the meanwhile
|-
| a-rithist || again
|-
| á seo suas || henceforward
|-
| bho àm gu àm || from time to time, occasionally
|-
| bho chionn aimsir || some time ago, long ago
|-
| bho chionn ghoirid || a short while ago
|-
| bho chionn treis || a while ago
|-
| bho seo a-mach || henceforth
|-
| car ùine || for a time, during a period
|-
| (cho) fad is a ... || as long as ...
|-
| fa dheòigh || at last
|-
| f(h)ad is a ... || while, during
|-
| fad na h-ùine || all the time
|-
| ge be uair || whenever, at whichever time
|-
| gach uair || whenever, every time
|-
| gu bràth || forever
|-
| gu cian nan cian || for ever and ever
|-
| gu grad || abruptly
|-
| gu minic || often
|-
| gu seo || thus far, so far
|-
| gu sìorraidh || for ever and ever
|-
| gu tric || often
|-
| gun dàil || immediately, without delay
|-
| iomadh uair || often, many times
|-
| leis sin || wherupon, with which
|-
| mu dheireadh thall || at long last
|-
| mu thràth (mar-thà) || already
|-
| nas motha || no more
|-
| ré tamaill || for a time
|-
| ri h-ùine || by and by, with time
|-
| thuige seo || thus far, so far
|-
| tràth 's a ... || when
|-
| uaireannan || at times, sometimes
|-
|}

Adverbs of time in Gaelic do not require a preposition as certain English expressions do and are simply attached at the end of the phrase, e.g.:

{| style="width: 50%;"
|-
| I saw him yesterday. || Chunnaic mi e an-dé.
|-
| I will go there on Monday. || Théid mi ann DiLuain.
|-
| He spent a little while there. || Bha e ann greis.
|-
| We were there for a week. || Bha sinn ann seachdain.
|-
| She wants to go home for a month. || Tha i ag iarraidh a dhol dhachaigh mìos.
|-
| What did you do in the afternoon? || Dé rinn thu feasgar?
|-
| Wait a moment! || Fuirich tiota!
|-
|}

Particularly the most overused word in modern Gaelic should be avoided - airson.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Expressions of Time

2012-06-16T14:54:13Z

Thrissel: /* Adverbs of Time */

Temporal adverbial expressions - or how to say when something happened. Let's take a look at what choices we have to start with:

==Adverbs of Time==
These are itsy words that you can add on to a phrase or sentence to tell people when something happened.

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| a-bhòn-uiridh || an-uiridh || am bliadhna || an ath bhliadhna|| — || —
|-
| the year before last || last year || this year || next year|| — || —
|-
| a-bhòin-dé || an-dé || an-diugh || a-màireach || an-earar || an-eararais
|-
| the day before yesterday || yesterday || today || tomorrow || the day after tomorrow||three days from now
|-
| — || an-raoir || a-nochd || an ath oidhche|| — || —
|-
| — || last night || tonight || tomorrow night || — || —
|-
|}

Now this does not mean that you cannot say <year after next> in Gaelic, it just means that there is no single, easy word for it. Instead you have to employ periphrastic expressions.

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| — || am bliadhna || an ath-bhliadhna
|-
| — || this year || next year
|-
| — || a-nochd || an ath-oidhche
|-
| — || tonight || tomorrow night
|-
| an t-seachdainn seo chaidh || an t-seachdainn-sa || an ath-sheachdain
|-
| last week || this week || next week
|-
|}

==The Days of the Week==

{| style="width: 50%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| DiLuain || DiMàirt || DiCiadain || DiArdaoin || DihAoine || DiSathairne || DiDòmhnaich
|-
| Monday || Tuesday || Wednesday || Thursday || Friday || Saturday || Sunday
|-
|}

Sunday is also called Latha na Sàbaid. Traditionally the usage between the two depends on your denomination - Catholics and Episcopalians using the DiDòmhnaich and Presbyterians Latha na Sàbaid. For non-denominational reasons, we prefer DiDòmhnaich because it fits in with the rest of the paradigm. Be sure to pronounce the long vowel in Sàbaid, otherwise it becomes Latha na Sabaid 'the Day of Fighting'.

The prefix Di- is the equivalant of the English -day suffix. Unlike in English however, it is the prefix that is modified to express the concepts of <Monday afternoon>, <Friday night> etc:

{| style="width: 95%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| madainn Luain || madainn Mhàrt || madainn Chiadain || madainn Ardaoin || madainn hAoine || madainn Sathairne || madainnn Dòmhnaich
|-
| Monday morning || Tuesday morning || Wednesday morning || Thursday morning || Friday morning || Saturday morning || Sunday morning
|-
| feasgar Luain || feasgar Màrt || feasgar Ciadain || feasgar Ardaoin || feasgar hAoine || feasgar Sathairne || feasgar Dòmhnaich
|-
| Monday afternoon || Tuesday afternoon || Wednesday afternoon || Friday afternoon || Friday afternoon || Saturday afternoon || Sunday afternoon
|-
| oidhche Luain || oidhche Mhàrt || oidhche Chiadain || oidhche Ardaoin || oidhche hAoine || oidhche Shathairne || oidhche Dhòmhnaich
|-
| Monday night || Tuesday night || Wednesday night || Thursday night || Friday night || Saturday night || Sunday night
|-
|}

That is the theory anyway ... in colloquial usage, you will often hear people saying things like Feasgar DihAoine, Madainn DiMàirt etc. The most common ones in colloquial usage are the expressions with oidhche such as Oidhche Luain, Oidhche Mhàrt etc.

==The Months==
Genitives are given in square brackets. For purposes of memorisation it is useful to note that from September onwards all months are feminine in gender! There are alternate names for some of the months, but we strongly suggest you stick with the recommended ones. Learning a language is difficult enough without having to worry about having 5 different choices for one term...

{| style="width: 80%;"
|-
| Gaelic || Genitive || English || Alternate Names
|-
| Am Faoilteach (masc.) || ... an Fhaoiltich || January || Am Faoilleach (an Fhaoillich); Mìos Marbh; Deireadh-Geamhraidh
|-
| An Gearran (masc.) || ... a' Ghearrain || February ||
|-
| Am Màrt (masc.) || ... a' Mhàirt || March ||
|-
| An Giblean (masc.) || ... a' Ghiblein || April ||
|-
| An Céitean (masc) || ... a' Chéitein || May || A' Mhàigh (fem) (... na Màighe)
|-
| An t-Ògmhios (masc) || ... an Ògmhiosa || June || Meadhan-Samhraidh
|-
| An t-Iuchar (masc) || ...an Iuchair || July || Deireadh-Samhraidh; Mìos Buidhe
|-
| An Lùnastal (masc) || ... an Lùnastail || August ||
|-
| An t-Sultain (fem) || ...na Sultaine || September ||
|-
| An Dàmhair (fem) || ... na Dàmhair || October ||
|-
| An t-Samhain (fem) || ... na Samhna || November ||
|-
| An Dùbhlachd (fem) || ... na Dùbhlachd || December || Mìos na Nollaig
|-
|}

The date in Gaelic is given in the form of the Xth day of the [month]. A few examples:
{| style="width: 40%"
|-
| 1st March || A' chiad latha dhen Mhàrt
|-
| 24th June || An ceathramh latha ar fhichead dhen Ògmhios
|-
| 31st September || A' chiad latha deug ar fhichead dhen t-Sultain
|-
| 22nd December || An dàrna latha ar fhichead dhen Dùbhlachd
|-
|}

Individual years are said by giving the 'hundreds' first and then the 'tens' (without is between the hundreds and the tens), for example:

{| style="width: 40%"
|-
| 1272 || dà cheud deug trì fichead is a dhà dheug
|-
| 1817 || ochd ceud deug is seachd deug
|-
| 1995 || naoidh ceud deug ceithir fichead is a cóig deug
|-
| 2000 || bliadhna dà mhìle
|-
| 2003 || dà mhìle is a trì
|-
|}

B.C. and A.D. are expressed similar to English as: R.C. (ro Chrìosd) and A.D. (as déidh Chrìosd), e.g. 347 B.C. is trì ceud dà fhichead is a seachd ro Chrìosd. Optionally sa bhliadhna can be prefixed to any date for clarification, i.e. sa bhliadhna naoi ceud deug trì fichead is a ceithir <in the year 1964>.

BCE? No we don't as it's pointless - it still uses the same date as a reference point so it's no less "offensive" (???) that BC or AD and just adds to the confusion.

==The seasons==
The four seasons are expressed as follows (note that the short form of saying <in X> differs slightly from the long form!):

{| style="width: 70%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| spring || summer || autumn || winter
|-
| earrach (m) gen. & pl. earraich || samhradh (m) gen. samhraidh pl. samhraidhean || foghar (m) gen. foghair pl. foghairean || geamhradh (m) gen. geamhraidh pl. geamhraidhean
|-
| in spring || in summer || in autumn || in winter
|-
| as t-earrach || as t-samhradh || as t-fhoghar || anns a' gheamhradh
|-
| in the spring || in the summer || in the autumn || in the winter
|-
| anns an earrach || anns an t-samhradh || anns an fhoghar || anns a' gheamhradh
|-
|}

==The Holidays of the Year==
Genitives are given in brackets. Note that while the word for day is normally ''latha'', in these special calendar dates this has shortened to ''Là''.

{| style="width: 90%;"
|-
| Faoi. 1 || Là na Bliadhna Ùire || New Year's Day || Callainn (fem) (...na Callainne); Nollaig Bheag (fem) (... na Nollaig Bige)
|-
| Faoi. 6 || Là nan Trì Rìgh || Epiphany || Là Fhéill nan Rìgh; Féill an Taisbeanaidh
|-
| Gearr. 2 || Là Fhéill Brìghde || Candlemas || Là Fhéill Brìghde nan Coinnlean; Là Féill Moire nan Coinnlean
|-
| Gearr. 14 || Là Fhéill Bhaileintin || Valentine's Day ||
|-
| Gearr.|| Là na Bliadhna Ùire Sìnich || Chinese New Year ||
|-
| Gearr. || DiMàirt Inid || Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day ||
|-
| Gearr. || DiCiadain na Luaithre || Ash Wednesday ||
|-
| Gearr. || An Carghas (masc) (... a' Charghais) || Lent ||
|-
| Màrt 1 || Là Dhàibhidh || St. David's Day ||
|-
| Màrt || Là na Màthar || Mother's Day/Mothering Sunday
|-
| Màrt 17 || Là Phàdraig || St. Patrick's Day || Là Fhéill Pàdraig
|-
| Màrt || Seachdain na Càisge || Holy Week ||
|-
| Màrt || DiDòmhnaich Tùrnais || Palm Sunday ||
|-
| Màrt || DiArdaoin a' Bhrochain Mhóir || Maundy Thursday || DiArdaoin Inid
|-
| Màrt || DihAoine na Ceusta || Good Friday ||
|-
| Màrt || A' Chàisg (fem) (... na Càisge) || Easter ||
|-
| Màrt || DiSathairne na Càisge || Easter Saturday ||
|-
| Màrt || A' Chàisg Mhór || Easter Sunday || Là Guileagan; Là Bàs nan Uighean; DiDòmhnaich na Càisge
|-
| Màrt || DiLuain na Càisge || Easter Monday ||
|-
| Màrt || Co-fhad-tràth an Earraich || Vernal Equinox ||
|-
| Gibl. 1 || Là na Gogaireachd || April Fool's Day || Là Ruith na Cuthaige
|-
| Gibl. 23 || Là Fhéill Seòrais || St. George's Day ||
|-
| Céit. 1 || Là Bealltainn || May Day/Beltane ||
|-
| Céit. || Deasghabhail (fem) (... na Deasghabhalach) || Ascension Day || DiArdaoin Freastail
|-
| Céit. || Caingis (fem indef) || Pentecost/Whit Sunday ||
|-
| Céit. || DiDòmhnaich na Trianaid || Trinity Sunday ||
|-
| Céit. || DiArdaoin Corp Crìosda || Corpus Christi Transfiguration
|-
| Céit. || Là Fhéill an Earraich || Spring Bank Holiday ||
|-
| Ògmh. || Là an Athar || Father's Day ||
|-
| Ògmh. 21 || Grianstad an t-Samhraidh Là Leth an t-Samhraidh || Summer Solstice Midsummer's Day
|-
| Iuch. 15 || Là Màrtainn Builg || St. Swithen's Day ||
|-
| Lùna. 1 || Lùghnasa || Lunasa (Harvest) ||
|-
| Lùna. || Là Fhéill an t-Samhraidh || Summer Bank Holiday ||
|-
| Sult. || Co-fhad-tràth an Fhoghair || Autumnal Equinox ||
|-
| Damh. 31 || Oidhche Shamhna || All Souls' Day/Hallowe'en ||
|-
| Damh. 31 Samh. 1 || Là Samhna || Samhain || Là Fhéill Samhna
|-
| Samh. 1 || Là nan Uile Naomh || All Saints' Day ||
|-
| Samh. 5 || Oidhche Ghuy Fawkes || Guy Fawkes' Night ||
|-
| Samh. 11 || Là nan Cuimhneachan || Rememberance Day ||
|-
| Samh. || DiDòmhnaich nan Cuimhneachan || Rememberance Sunday ||
|-
| Samh. || Aidbheint (fem) (... na h-Aidmheint) || Advent ||
|-
| Samh. || A' Chiad Dòmhnaich dhen Aidmheint || Advent Sunday ||
|-
| Samh. || Là na Taingealachd || Thanksgiving || Là Buidheachais an Fhoghair; Là Taingealachd an Fhoghair
|-
| Samh. 30 || Là Chill Rìbhinn || St. Andrew's Day ||
|-
| Dùbh. 6 || Là Bodach na Nollaig || St. Nicholas' Day ||
|-
| Dùbh. 21 || Grianstad a' Gheamhraidh || Winter Solstice ||
|-
| Dùbh. || An Nollaig (fem) (...na Nollaige) || Christmas
|-
| Dùbh. 24 || Oidhche nam Bannag || Christmas Eve || Oidhche na Nollaig
|-
| Dùbh. 25 || Là na Nollaig || Christmas Day || Là nam Bannag
|-
| Dùbh. 26 || || Boxing Day/St. Stephen's Day ||
|-
| Dùbh. 28 || Là Fhéill nan Leanabhan Neo-chiontach || Feast of the Holy Innocents ||
|-
| Dùbh. 31 || Oidhche Challainn || Hogmanay/New Year's Eve ||
|-
|}

==Other Adverbs of Time==

Most adverbs are formed by the prepositon gu + ADJ, but there are a number of adverbs that have different formations:

{| style="width: 40%;"
|-
| a chaoidh || for ever (after)
|-
| a chlisgeadh || suddenly, abruptly
|-
| a dh'aithghearr || soon, in a short while
|-
| a dh'oidhche || by night, at night time
|-
| a ghnàth || habitually, always
|-
| a h-uile turas || every time
|-
| a h-uile uair || every time, always
|-
| a latha || by day, at daytime
|-
| ainneamh || seldom
|-
| (ann) an ceartair || 1) +FUT in a moment 2) +PAST just now
|-
| an-còmhnaidh || always, continually
|-
| an-dràsta || now (in a more broad sense)
|-
| an-sin || whereupon, then
|-
| air a' mhionaid || this moment, minute
|-
| air an uair || just now
|-
| air chionn do ... || by the time that ....
|-
| air ball || immediately, straightaway
|-
| air tùs || in the beginning, at first
|-
| air uairibh || sometimes, at times
|-
| (am) fad is a ... || while
|-
| am feadh || while, whilst
|-
| a-nis || now (i.e. something is the case now that wasn't before)
|-
| (ann) an tiota (beag) || in a twinkling, moment
|-
| anns a' bhad || immediately, on the spot
|-
| anns a' cheart àm || in the meanwhile
|-
| a-rithist || again
|-
| á seo suas || henceforward
|-
| bho àm gu àm || from time to time, occasionally
|-
| bho chionn aimsir || some time ago, long ago
|-
| bho chionn ghoirid || a short while ago
|-
| bho chionn treis || a while ago
|-
| bho seo a-mach || henceforth
|-
| car ùine || for a time, during a period
|-
| (cho) fad is a ... || as long as ...
|-
| fa dheòigh || at last
|-
| f(h)ad is a ... || while, during
|-
| fad na h-ùine || all the time
|-
| ge be uair || whenever, at whichever time
|-
| gach uair || whenever, every time
|-
| gu bràth || forever
|-
| gu cian nan cian || for ever and ever
|-
| gu grad || abruptly
|-
| gu minic || often
|-
| gu seo || thus far, so far
|-
| gu sìorraidh || for ever and ever
|-
| gu tric || often
|-
| gun dàil || immediately, without delay
|-
| iomadh uair || often, many times
|-
| leis sin || wherupon, with which
|-
| mu dheireadh thall || at long last
|-
| mu thràth (mar-thà) || already
|-
| nas motha || no more
|-
| ré tamaill || for a time
|-
| ri h-ùine || by and by, with time
|-
| thuige seo || thus far, so far
|-
| tràth 's a ... || when
|-
| uaireannan || at times, sometimes
|-
|}

Adverbs of time in Gaelic do not require a preposition as certain English expressions do and are simply attached at the end of the phrase, e.g.:

{| style="width: 50%;"
|-
| I saw him yesterday. || Chunnaic mi e an-dé.
|-
| I will go there on Monday. || Théid mi ann DiLuain.
|-
| He spent a little while there. || Bha e ann greis.
|-
| We were there for a week. || Bha sinn ann seachdain.
|-
| She wants to go home for a month. || Tha i ag iarraidh a dhol dhachaigh mìos.
|-
| What did you do in the afternoon? || Dé rinn thu feasgar?
|-
| Wait a moment! || Fuirich tiota!
|-
|}

Particularly the most overused word in modern Gaelic should be avoided - airson.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Scribes, Shorthand and How to Save on Parchment

2012-06-16T14:45:29Z

Thrissel:

Most of you have probably heard of Ogham, [oɣəm] in Gaelic and [oːm] in Irish, and seen the Uncial script still used (mainly) in Ireland for ornamental purposes. We'll have a look at all that and especially a few tricks from medieval scribes which can help you write Gaelic more quickly when you're in a rush.

Now, Ogham. It represents the earliest writing system in which Goidelic was written. We'll not go into who invented it. It consisted of strokes, dots and other shapes carved on the faobhar (edge) of not-so-easily carried items such as slabs of stone and sticks of wood. Who can spot the drawback? Anyway, here's the most commonly found symbols:

Whoever named these decided to name them after trees, hence all the talk about the tree-alphabet. They are arranged differently ie the letters, if grouped according to their basic shape do not end up in the a b c order which we are so used to (basically because the a b c order was borrowed from the Romans who had borrowed it from the Greeks who had nicked it from the Phoenicians who had picked the brains of some semitic tribe). Why this particular order isn't obvious, it doesn't seem to have a phonological background the way Korean Hangul has except that all the vowels are in one group ... anyway, we'll put it down to too much sitting in stone huts with stones on your chest.

The names have changed slightly since (we're talking 5-6th century AD here) so here's another list of what we think the sound values of the above letters were, what the names mean and what their modern counterparts are (the last series doesn't have tree names):

Ogham IPA Irish Gaelic Gaelic IPA Meaning
beth b bʲ beith beith [b̊e] birch
luis ɫ̪ ɫ ʎ l luis luis [ɫ̪uʃ] rowan
fern f fʲ fearn feàrn [fjaːɹn] alder
sail s ʃ sail sail [sal] willow
nion n̴̪ n̴ ɲ n nuin nuin [n̴̪uɲ] ash
huath h uath uath [uəh] whitethorn
dair d̪ dʲ dair dair [d̪̊aɾʲ] oak
tinne t̪ tʲ tinne teine [tʲenɪ] holly
coll k kʲ coll coll [kɔuɫ̪] hazel
cert kː (?) ceirt ceirt [kʲeɹʃtʲ] crab apple
muin m mʲ muin muin [muɲ] vine
goirt g gʲ gort gort [g̊ɔɹʃt̪] ivy
ngetal ŋ ŋʲ ngéadal ngeadal [ŋʲed̪̊əɫ̪] broom
straif z straif straif [sd̪̊ɾaf] blackthorn
ruis r̴ r(?) ɾ ɾʲ ruis ruis [r̴uʃ] elder
ailm a ailm ailm [alim] elm
onn o onn onn [ɔun̴̪] gorse
úr u úr ùr [uːɾ] heather
eadad e eadhadh eadha [ɛɣə] aspen
idad i íodha iodh [iɣ] yew
éabad ea éabhadh èabhadh [iəvəɣ]
or oi ór òr [ɔːɾ]
uilen ui uileann uileann [ulan̴̪]
ifin ia io ifín ifinn [ifɪɲ]
eamancholl ae eamhancholl eamhancholl [ɛvəcxɔɫ̪]
peith p pʲ peith beith bhog/peith [b̊e vog̊] [pe] dwarf elder

Sooo ... easy things first. The two ette symbols in the picture which aren't in the list are called ite 'feather' and ite thuathail 'reverse feather' and were usually placed at the beginning and end of a line of squiggles.

Now, a single letter was called a feadh 'a few' (Old Irish fid) (cf modern feadhainn) and a whole category an aicme 'a race' and they are named after the first letter in that group, so you get beith aicme etc. Originally there were only 4 groups, the fifth and sixth, called the iar-fheadhainn 'extra ones' (Old Irish Foirfeda) were added later.

Note how p stands out as an oddball too, which we all expect of course since we know that Goidelic lost Indoeuropean p early on.

Do you know the most annoying thing about all this? Gaelic is one of the few languages of Europe which had not only their own alphabet with its own order but also names for all the letters, yet 20th century "educationalists" have decided to completely ignore this wonderful resource and insist we spell Gaelic and Irish the English way. Why? Beats me. Fear of our own heritage I suppose. Just think, our own Alpha Bravo Charlie and we're not using it ...

After a few unsuccessful attempts by Queen Meabh to send her husband out with a slab of a shopping list this system was abandoned when monks introduced Latin writing. Which is actually unfair because there are a few isolated incidents of Ogham in manuscripts, so it could have been adopted for writing on vellum obviously. But it wasn't.

We've discussed the genius behind the system elsewhere already, so we'll ignore that and have a look at this business of shorthand straight away. This system used 18 letters from the Latin alphabet and a few diacritics and quite a number of abbreviations (because vellum or parchment was expensive, really expensive):

The accented letters are nothing new to all of us. The first new-old bit is the bottom row. When it was first written, lenition wasn't always shown in the writing as everybody who wrote Irish could speak it and thus it could easily be inferred from the context or knowledge of the language. Ingen 'daughter' for example was pronounced [in̻ɣen], as if it were spelled inghean. When people began to mark lenition consistently, they didn't stick an h in (for the most part) but just put a dot over the consonant to show it was lenited. Saved space and even allowed you to "update" texts long after they were written. Manuscript writers in Scotland used this system up until the 18th century (there's a document in the National Library of Scotland for example which is signed William Mc̄ ṁuracħ - William MacMhurchaidh) and it was the norm in Ireland up until the Second World War.

Then some Irish civil servants got their hands on it and decided to replace it with "normal" letters and abolished the sèimheachadh symbol, or séimhiú as the Irish call it, with an h at the same time. Which made every written or printed text about 1/3 longer ...

Oifig an tSoláthair
Baile Átha Cliath

So ... first thing you could use when writing in a hurry - replace every h that stands for lenition with a dot above the consonant. Note also that the Gaelic ı strictly speaking has no dot, so there's another opportunity to save on your ink: sèıṁeaċaḋ ...

But the old scribes had more tricks in store than just a dot. Here's a few more of their most common shorthand symbols:

So what do we have? Apologies for the old fashioned font, I couldn't find a modern one that has Old Irish abbreviation symbols! A fused rr for a double rr, a tilde over a vowel to show m, a tilde plus a dot for mh, a macron for an n, double for double nn, a macron with dot for any vowel + bh, dh or gh, an a with a descender and little stroke for ar, two strokes for double arr, a with a descender and ascender and little stroke for air, i with a descender and stroke for ir and the thing that looks like a long r with a bar to stand for achd or chd.

The last one is my favourite, the so called agusan [ag̊əsan] or "Tironian ampersand". It's an old abbreviation for and which was used for a long time throughout Europe until the & symbol bounced back. The only people left using it in the 20th century were the Gaels and it's a really handy symbol as it involves a lot less struggle than the & symbol.

Obviously not all of these symbols are 100% adequate for modern "shorthand" but quite a few of them might come in handy.

Incidentally, a full shorthand system was devised for Gaelic in the 1880's but never seems to have reached a wide audience. Watch this space, we might present it at some point.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

aːRd vs aːRʃd or Where the sh comes from

2012-06-16T14:28:58Z

Thrissel:

We won't go into the discussion of whether this feature is Norse or Martian because unless you are hoping to become a historical linguist, it doesn't matter.

So what *can* we tell you about this strange [ʃ] that pops up in Gaelic?

It affects rt and rd groups in Gaelic.

Traditionally, not all dialects are affected, as you can see on the below map and Perthshire Gaelic even diphthongised the [a]. Due to the pervasiveness of Lewis Gaelic in the media, teaching etc, this feature has spread into other dialects, so the presence or lack of the [ʃ] is no clear cue to geographical origin anymore.

If it occurs, it tends to occur only in stressed syllables so ainneart for example tends not to have this intrusive [ʃ].

Some speakers tend to insert [ʃ] only in rt groups, but not rd groups, but never the other way round. Thus you will hear speakers who pronounce ceart and àrd as [kʲaɹʃt̪] and [aːɹʃt̪] but *never* [kʲaɹt̪] and [aːɹʃt̪].

Beyond that, there doesn't appear to be a clear rule, but we'll research this further in the future and see whether there actually is a rule.

It seems to be a good guideline to insert [ʃ] both in rt and rd groups in stressed syllables (i.e. the first) as a learner - it won't sound wrong to a Gael's ears even should he not pronounce it himself. Unless you are desperate to learn a particular dialect (which we don't recommend anyway), in which case you will have to memorise your dialects rt and rd words, as it does not appear to be rule based as far as we can see.

To listen to some examples, check our Fuaimean na Gàidhlig section.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Pre-aspiration or What the h in mac is about

2012-06-16T14:22:31Z

Thrissel:

This is both a fascinating and slightly boring topic. Boring because it is probably one of the most often cited features of Gaelic. Fascinating because ... well, you'll see.

What pre-aspiration means is that certain languages insert aspiration (the puffing sound you get eg after p, t, c in English at the beginning of words) before such sounds when they occur in the middle or at the end of a word.

The weird thing about this is that it is one of those Sprachbund features. Which means that it is a phenomenon which occurs in a specific area within languages which are unrelated to each other. For example, Gaelic is infinitely closer to Irish and Manx yet it shares pre-aspiration with Icelandic, Sami, Greenlandic, Norwegian, Siksika (also known as Blackfoot, a native American language) and a few other languages on the Arctic Circle:

k p t

Gaelic
mac [maʰk] cupa [kuʰpə]

cat
[kaʰt̪]
(Irish) mac [mak] cupán [kopɑːn] cat [kat̪]

Icelandic
sakka [sɑhkɑ] koppar [kɔhpɑr]

vítt
[viht]

Faroese
bakki [baʰcːɩ] koppur [kɔʰpːɷr]

mítt
[mɷʏ̯ʰtː]
Siksika ihkitsíka [iʰkit'sika] ihpiyi [iʰpiji] staahtsitsis [staːʰtsitsis]

Let's have a closer look at what happens in Gaelic:

This is where the weird stuff begins - but first for a few rules of thumb of what to do when.

:Most Scottish Gaelic dialects have pre-aspiration these days, so if you are learning Gaelic, you should pre-aspirate.

:The majority of speakers have moderate pre-aspiration ie most insert [ʰ] or [h] and only very few insert [x] throughout.

:Pre-aspiration never occurs word initially and is strongest in the second syllable and weakest in subsequent ones (not that there are many instances of such syllables anyway). It is also weaker after long vowels.

:Pre-aspiration adjusts for broad/slender: before a broad vowel it is [ʰ] but before a slender vowel this changes to [ç] (just like in chì [çiː] only less prominent). For convenience sake it is usually just transcribed as [ʰ].

:Thus you should pre-aspirate as follows:

c p t
càr (none)

kaːɾ
pòr (none)

pɔːɾ
tùr (none)

t̪uːɾ
mac

maʰk
cupa

kuʰpə
cat

kaʰt̪
mic

miçkʲ
cipean

kʲiçpan
lite

ʎiçtʲɪ

So what's the weird bit? Well, for one thing it's the fact that pre-aspiration is rare amongst the languages of the world and most frequent around the "Arctic Circle". The other weird bit is that it "staggered" which means that [ʰk] is the sound most likely to be pre-aspirated (and most strongly) - but also that if pre-aspiration occurs before [ʰt̪] it must always also exist before [ʰp]. Look at the map above and have a look at pre-aspiration in Bute, Cowal & North Kintyre ... it has [maxk] [kupə] and [kat̪].

Incidentally, there are/were some dialects which didn't pre-aspirate at all. Look at the map again - East Perthshire and Kintyre & Arran Gaelic did not have pre-aspiration at all. Something interesting to listen out for should you meet a speaker from one of these areas.

But why? What for? Interesting question - next time you meet a few linguists, ask them that question and watch them work each other into an apopleptic fit. The answer is that there are several theories, all of which have merit, but none that is fully convincing somehow. Not yet anyway. Some claim that it is a feature spread by Norse - which kind of worries Blackfoot linguists. Others say pre-aspiration derives from geminate stops (long consonants in other words) ... but since they are common and widespread, why only around the Arctic? Others base their theory on structural phonology ...

But that last bit needn't worry you as a learner or speaker of Gaelic as long as you know what to do when.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

The Breaking of Long /e:/ or Feuchainn vs Fiachainn

2012-06-15T22:20:33Z

Thrissel:

<bial> <sgial> <ian> <diag> <ciad> <sia> <fiar> <fiach> <sgriach> <briag> <iadail>
<leum> <beum> <Seumas> <ceum> <leugh>

If some of you feel like scrambling for their dictionaries now, hang on - and those of you who are looking for a baseball bat to beat someone up calm down. The latter will be amongst those who read up the bit on our usage of pointed brackets to represent spelling ...

The above might not look familiar to you, at least some of them, but if you shut your eyes for a moment and read out the list to yourself, you will suddenly realise what this is about. This peculiar business of <eu> sometimes being pronounced [ia] ... and sometimes not.

So what is it all about and is there a rule? Well, sort of, but first of all let us depart into the foggy drizzle of Celtic historical linguistics and look at Common Gaelic, the ancestor of both modern Irish and Gaelic. Common Gaelic had words which contained a long [eː] sound: béal, scéal, éan, déag, céad, sé, féar, féach, sgréach, bréag, éadail, léim, béim, Séamas, céim and léigh. Most of these are still pronounced with a long [eː] in Irish dialects (except Munster Irish which has things like céad [kʲiad̪̊]) but Scottish Gaelic, obviously thinking life was much too boring, did something more entertaining. It "broke" the long vowel.

This isn't quite as weird as it may sound, but very common in the world's languages - think of English words like <time> and <wine>. Great English Vowel Shift? No? Well, these two used to have a long [iː] sound - tīma and wīn but when the vowels shifted around in English, these became [ai] instead.
Well, what happened in Gaelic was that [eː] became [ia]. And having a sense of humour, some rogue [eː]'s decided to stay that way.

No, actually there is sense behind it - we will spare you the full story and just tell you how to tell when to say [ia] and when not. Remember though that this is a rule of thumb in some ways - it once again depends to a certain degree on the dialect and even the individual speaker whether they break their [eː]'s or not. So if you DO have a friend who says *Siamas instead of Seumas ... put aside thoughts of sending us a virus and simply accept it as "one of those things".

Here's the rule: (C')___(C') > [eː] and (C')___(C) > [ia]

Stop sighing - all this means is that if the <eu> is followed by a broad consonant (C), chances are that the [eː] has turned into /ia/ and if the following vowel is slender (C') it is still [eː]. This accounts for beul, sgeul, eun, deug, ceud, feur, feuch, sgreuch, breug and eudail out of the above list - but what about the rest?

Well, if the /eː/ happens to be word final, it generally stays [eː] (e.g. gné, té, dé) except in a few cases which must simply be learnt as exceptions e.g. sia.

Almost there - this leaves a few oddballs like ceum and leum to be accounted for - which is easily done. Remember that Gaelic does not have a distinction anymore between broad and slender labials (b, p, f, m)? So what used to be léim became leum with a broad <m>, similarly béim > beum, céim > ceum and léigh > leugh.

And then there is a tentative "rule": if a word is high register, meaning that it is generally not used in everyday conversation and is restricted to "high functions" such as church or poetry, the pronunciation tends to be [eː]. Words like beus [beːs] or ceusadh [kʲeːsəɣ], which are quite restricted in their use, tend to have [eː].

So why do we spell it <eu> and not <èa> or even <ia>? Because being as efficient as the GOC board, the users of Common Gaelic hadn't quite worked out a standard spelling and so the Irish ended up with the <éa> variant and the Scots with the <eu>.

And why not <ia>? Well, because the GOC board of 1567 when the bible was translated into Gaelic was located in the Central Belt - the part of Scotland which spoke dialects much closer to Irish and who had retained the long [eː] ... so obviously they used <eu>. Only today with the southern dialects being moribund or dead and the majority of Gaels speaking Hebridean and Highland dialects the spelling is slowly changing to reflect that - sé for 'six' used be be quite commonly seen in Scotland, but is now completely replaced with sia, everyone writes sgian not *sgéan. But some haven't quite made it - you will see both feuchainn and fiachainn, but few people would write *bial and *sgial.
Should we? Well ... maybe, today it would certainly make sense.

On the other hand, if we switched to writing <ia> instead of <eu> in all cases, we'd have a small, new problem to contend with. Anyone guess what? Well, two actually. The first one is that most words which have historic <ia>, that is, <ia> has always been <ia> and is not derived from <eu>, the second vowel is a schwa: [iə] e.g. iarr, siar etc. Words with <ia> that derive from é/eu on the other hand have a clear [a] vowel: [ia]. Point being? Well, if you write both <eu> and <ia> as <ia>, there is no way to tell from the spelling whether the correct pronunciation is [iə] or [ia].

Now, for a native speaker that is obviously no problem as he or she has fixed the correct sounds in their memory rather than the spelling, but it makes it even more tricky for learners. Also, even though some <eu> sounds have shifted in spelling to <ia>, they still form their genitives as if they were <eu> words: sgian > sgéin, fiadh > féidh etc. Knowing this can, incidentally, help you pronounce words properly, that is, if a word has <ia> in the nominative and <éi> in the genitive, it will be pronounced [ia].

Once again, there is no perfect answer ...

In any case, here's a rough map of Scotland showing you where the boundary between these two dialect areas lies:
This is merely an indication of where the majority of speakers break or don't break, a more detailed map shows that speakers break their long /eː/'s to varying degrees:

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Existentials or I think therefore I am

2012-06-15T21:53:58Z

Thrissel:

This is where you either start to love or hate the word ann. Existentials is a fancy word for "expressions that talk about the existence of things" although the use of ann goes a bit beyond that as we will see. And before we start, it is the "same" ann as the preposition in (click here for more details), only with a somewhat different function.

Let's start with the easy bit first. Ann is used in Gaelic to express the notion of something existing (or not, as the case may be):

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| tha mi ann || 1. I exist 2. I am there/here
|-
| a bheil Dia ann? || 1. Does God exist? 2. Is there a god? (the answer to both is no, by the way)
|-
| chan eil taibhsean ann || 1. Ghosts do not exist. 2. There are no ghosts.
|-
| 's e a tha ann ... || Fact is ...
|-
| ann bho shean || in existence of old
|-
| an tu a th' ann? | is it you?
|-
| airgead ann no ás || money or no money
|-
|}

As you can see, there is more than one way to translate some of the above Gaelic statements - in Gaelic the exact connotation has to be inferred from context, which isn't much of a problem if you think about it. Thuirt Descartes "Tha smuaint annam is mar sin tha mi ann" can't really mean anything but Descartes said "I think therefore I am" ... unless it's a novel in which Descartes is telling someone he is present of course. And in any case, there isn't much of a difference between 'does God exist?' and 'is there a god?' to be honest.

Not that difficult so far. But ann also has another function which is a bit harder to pin down. In general terms it can be said to have an emphasising force. Let's look at some examples so you will know what I'm talking about:

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| rinn mi ann e! || I've already done it!
|-
| cha bhi e a' sabaid ann. || He will not be fighting at all.
|-
| chan eil aithne aca air an té ann. || They don't know her at all.
|-
| an t-amadan a tha thu ann! || Fool that you are!
|-
| tha taibhse anns an taigh ann! || There is a ghost in that house!
|-
|}

As you can see, although Gaelic uses the same construction in all the above examples, there are a number of different constructions we have to use in English.

The easiest way to deal with them is perhaps to translate the "extra" ann with it-exists and then see what is the most logical interpretation. No, I'm not running out of ideas - there are a number of things in Gaelic which just juxtapose two concepts and leave it to the listener to figure the most logical connection - think of construction like bhàsaich m' athair 's mi 'nam bhalach òg. Ann is best treated as emphasising the existence (or non-existence) of something or somebody.

So the first example would be 'did I it-exists it' - what I did really exists > I really did it. The second one would be 'not will-be he fighting it-exists' - his fighting will not exist > he will not fight at all and 'be ghost in the house it-exists' > a ghost does exist in that house.

This also explains the subtle difference between the following pairs of sentences:

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| tha cù fon bhòrd || there is a dog under the table
|-
| tha cù ann fon bhòrd || there is a dog under the table
|-
| tha eàrlas £50 anns a' phàipear || there is a £50 voucher in the paper
|-
| tha eàrlas £50 anns a' phàipear ann || there is a £50 voucher in the paper
|-
|}

While the first variant of these Gaelic sentences simply makes a "neutral" statement about the existence of item X, the second variant emphasises the existence of item X, perhaps in response to someone doubting the fact or to express surprise of the fact. Possible scenarios would be the following:

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| Aladasair, bheil fhios a'd dè thachair rium an-diugh? Cheannaich mi am Pàipear Beag agus bha eàrlas £50 anns a' phàipear ann!
|-
| Bha mi aig Caisteal Urchadain sa mhadainn agus abair iontas a bh' orm nuair a chunna mi an t-uilebheist air a' chladach! Cha robh mi a' creidsinn ann roimhe ach thà uilebheist anns an loch ann!
|-
|}

There is another construction which is connected to this use of ann for existentials. Most of you will be familiar with the contructions se X a tha annam and tha mi 'nam X - but you may not be aware of the subtle difference between them as most grammars tend to sidestep this issue.

The difference is one of disposition/inherent attribute and non-permanence. In less fancy terms, the first ('s e ...) is "permanent" and the second (tha e 'na ...) "transient". Let's look at some examples:

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| 's e banaltram a tha innte || she is a nurse
|-
| 's e oileanach a tha ann || he is a student
|-
| 's e balach beag a tha ann || he is a little boy
|-
| tha i 'na draibhear bus || she is a bus driver
|-
| tha e 'na oileanach || he is a student
|-
| tha e 'na bhalach beag || he is a little boy
|-
|}

Didn't I say something about a difference? There is, but it's difficult to literally translate into English. It is best seen when you use the phrases above together (at least the first two):

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| tha i 'na draibhear bus an-dràsda ach 's e banaltram a tha innte || she is a bus driver now but she really is a nurse
|-
| tha e 'na oileanach ach chan e oileanach a tha ann || he is a student but he isn't a student.
|-
|}

The first sentence implies that Mrs X trained as a nurse and really want to be one but because the hospital closed, she's temporarily working as a bus driver.

Our student is enrolled at university and thus technically speaking a student, but isn't much of a scholar because he's as thick as two short planks and never goes to lectures.

If you think of ann in these examples stressing the existence, it kind of makes sense - 'se oileanach a tha ann = be-he student that be exist - where you are essentially making a statement about existence twice!

Let's hope you are the latter!!

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Aig, air agus ann an or The severed head

2012-06-15T21:44:14Z

Thrissel:

Now you've probably read and mastered the chapter on possession and when to use mo and when to use an X agam. There is another obstacle however.

There are a number of expressions that in English are all constructed with the same possessive construction 'to have', e.g. I have two eyes, he has one arm, I have a headache, she has a foul mouth, he has a scowl and so on.

The fun begins when you try to say these things in Gaelic, because Gaelic looks at the world differently and uses 3 different ways of expressing what English bunches into the one form. All three hinge on the correct use of the prepositions aig, air and ann an.

Take the sentence 'Mórag has a big head' for example. How would you say that in Gaelic? A lot of you are probably going to say tha ceann mór aig Mórag. Which is a well formed sentence but ... more about this further down. How about tha ceann mór air Mórag? Or even tha ceann mór ann am Mórag? The latter two are also well formed sentences, that is, they are 100% grammatical. So why these three constructions and where is the difference, if there is one?

There is a big difference. The first one tha ceann mór aig Mórag, which most of you will have at least considered, does mean Mórag has a big head, but it implies that this unfortunately has been severed from its owner's body. Aig, as you will remember from the page on possessives implies alienable ownership. Which means that item X can be taken away from you and the only way you can do that with ceann is by cutting it off. Rrright ... if you're a Dungeons & Dragons fan, this may well apply but in most settings this won't do. What about the next one, tha ceann mór air Mórag?

This is the one we're really after - Mórag has a head (still attached to her, no stitches, no seam). By using air, we imply that the possession is still inalienable. Which is what we want here.

So what on earth is the the third one about, tha ceann mór ann am Mórag? Here we are getting idiomatic and imply a trait or disposition - that Mórag is big-headed and a bit full of herself.

This three way distinction applies in most settings, so here's an overview with a few more examples (note that a three way distinction is not always possible, but the correct preposition still has to be chosen):

{| style="width: 60%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| (ann) an || air || aig
|-
| inherent quality, disposition, nature || physical inalienable possession, physical attribute, permanent state || alienable possession, temporary possession or act
|-
| tha beul mór am Mórag || tha beul mór air Mórag ||
|-
| Mórag has a big mouth [talks too much] || Mórag has a [physically] big mouth ||
|-
| tha ceann mór an Seoc || tha ceann mór air Seoc || tha ceann mór aig Seoc
|-
| Jock has a big head [is full of himself] || Jock has a [physically] big head || Jock has a big [severed] head
|-
| chan eil tùr ann an Iain || ||
|-
| Ian has no sense || ||
|-
| tha falt dubh air Màiri || tha falt dubh aig Màiri ||
|-
| Màiri has black hair [growing on her head] || Màiri has black hair [which has been cut off]
|-
| tha ceithir làmhan air || tha ceithir làmhan aige ||
|-
| he has four hands [pysically attached to his body] || he has four [severed] hands ||
|-
| tha cluasan móra ann an Jo || tha cluasan móra air Jo || tha cluasan móra aig Jo
|-
| Jo has big ears [likes to listen, eavesdrop] || Jo has [physically] big ears || Jo has [severed] big ears
|-
| chan eil casan ann || tha casan air Jo || tha casan aig Jo
|-
| it has no legs [it isn't possible, feasible] || Jo has [physically] legs || Jo has [severed] legs
|-
| tha e air leth làimh || tha leth làimh aige ||
|-
| he has one hand [attached to himself], is one handed || he has one [severed] hand ||
|-
| tha sradag ann || tha sradag aige ||
|-
| he has a temper [by nature] || he has a spark [for lighting a fire etc] ||
|-
| tha stac-crùbaich ann an Jo || tha stac-crùbaich air Jo || tha stac-crùbaich aig Jo
|-
| Jo has a limp [e.g. developed due to old age] || Jo has a limp [since birth] || Jo has a limp [temporarily due to a sprained ankle]
|-
|}

I think you get the idea. Of course there are other uses of the same prepositions. In tha cnatan orm or tha sròn orm "I'm in a huff" the use of air implies a non-permanent state, i.e. you will get better at some point. This doesn't upset the system from the Gaelic point of view though, because the noun in question will give you an idea of what the only possible interpretation can be i.e. if it's cnatan, it must be temporary, if it's ceann, it must be permanent.

"But I've heard tha ceann agam!!" I'm sure you have, but this is just due to the ever-increasing influence of English. It's up to you whether you want to learn good idiom or Gall-Ghàidhlig.

And a footnote for good measure: remember that just because English uses a certain construction doesn't mean that Gaelic will use the same - in many cases Gaelic will not use a possessive pronoun where English uses one. A good example is thilg mi an t-uisge mun dà shùil, I threw the water into his eyes or thug mi a chliù dhà eadar an dà shùil, I told him how little I think of him straight to his face.

You ever watch Jackie Chan Adventures? "One more thing" ... in very idiomatic Gaelic ann is sometimes used to denote ability - chan eil òran innte "she can't sing" or tha seinn annta "they can sing". The underlying idea here is that there are certain skills which are innate - you either have or don't have them. The ability to sing is one of them, so from the Gaelic point of view it is treated as an inherent ability or disposition and thus uses ann. Yes, you will hear chan urrainn dhomh seinn, but strictly speaking that implies there is some external factor preventing you from doing so - you have a sore throat, you're not getting paid for it or you have been forbidden to do so.

This, by the way, leads us to another issue - the difference between expressions like tha sunnd orm and tha mi sunndach. Click here for the full story.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Chaidh e dhan chéilidh is mi cho tinn or The mystery of the agus

2012-06-15T19:49:04Z

Thrissel:

I'm sure you have come across these mysterious constructions with agus stuck right in the middle of it. Sentences like bha agam ri dol a dh'obair is mi cho tinn ris a' chù.

For once, the explanation of how to translate this and how to use it is simple.

Gaelic allows you to juxtapose two concepts in a sentence and link them together by using is or agus, leaving it to the hearer to infer the meaning. And before you get out the baseball bat - what that means is that you take two phrases, connect them with is or agus and leave it to the hearer to figure out what the relation is. No kidding.

Take the two statements above: bha agam ri dol a dh'obair and bha mi cho tinn ris a' chù. The meaning of each of those sentences is clear. Now connect them with agus (lose the second verb, whichever it is) and you get bha agam ri dol a dh'obair is mi cho tinn ris a' chù. The agus tells the hearer "here are two statements, you figure how they are connected."

The nice thing about this is that you can make quite complex and varied statements using the same construction, the only problem is that you have to be careful you don't make statements which are too ambiguous. The above translates as ''I was so ill and had to go to work''.

Using two different sentences, the connection changes - Rinn mi mearachd and Bha mi 'nam ghille òg. Put them together and you get Rinn mi mearachd is mi 'nam ghille òg. This translates as 'I made a mistake when I was (only) a young lad'. Simply because it is the most intuitive way in which these two concepts can be related to each other.

That's it really.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Adjective Ordering

2012-06-15T19:33:22Z

Thrissel:

Languages have a certain order in which you can attach them to the noun they are describing. In English for example it sounds odd to a native speaker to talk about a *black beautiful big dog, whereas a beautiful big black dog is perfectly acceptable. In the same way adjectives in Gaelic are attached in a certain order, which is as follows:

{| style="width: 35%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| [NOUN] [SIZE] [QUALITY] [COLOUR]
|-
|}

So our canine friend would be described as:

{| style="width: 35%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| CÙ MÓR BRÈAGHA DUBH
|-
|}

You can either remember the order that way or think of it that way: size goes closest to the noun, colour furthest away. Doesn't matter which way you remember it as long as you remember it.

Here's some more examples:

{| style="width: 35%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| caileag mhór laghach ruadh
|-
| girl big nice red-haired
|-
| a nice tall red haired girl
|-
|
|-
| càr beag saor uaine
|-
| car small cheap green
|-
| a cheap small green car
|-
|}

Now this isn't an ironclad rule, in case someone was going to email in with nighean donn bhòidheach. It's more like strong guidelines although I suspect that our nighean donn bhòidheach may be muddled due to the fact that the composer of this song wanted it to rhyme with the next few lines!

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Fricatives

2012-06-15T19:12:11Z

Thrissel: glè mhath, dèanta

In English when we write h after t, d, c, g, p, s, w, we form new sounds th, dh, ch, gh, ph, sh, wh. The letter h is used far more systematically in this way in Gaelic than in English. It is important to note that, with the single exception of ph [f], when h is added to a consonant in Gaelic, the resulting consonant is never pronounced as in English. When h is added to the consonants (b m c d g p t s), we call the resultant sound a fricative. Once again we must distinguish between broad and slender fricatives. Only the following 9 consonants may have h written after them (note that the translations on this case are often approximate as the effect of lenition is difficult to translate sometimes outside a full sentence):

==Broad==
[[File:fricatives01.ogg|noicon|90px]]
{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
| b → bh || [v] || Same as English v || '''[vaː]''' || '''bha''' || was
|-
| || || || '''[vɔ]''' || '''bho''' || from
|-
| || || || '''[faLav]''' || '''falbh''' || leave!
|-
| m → mh || [v] || Same as English v || '''[vaːhɪrʲ]''' || '''mhàthair''' || mother
|-
| || || || '''[voːr]''' || '''mhór''' || big
|-
| || || || '''[av]''' || '''amh''' || raw
|-
| c → ch || [x] || Same as Scottish English ''loch'' || '''[Lɔx]''' || '''loch''' || loch (lake)
|-
| || || || '''[xaj]''' || '''chaidh''' || went
|-
| || || || '''[saLəx]''' || '''salach''' || dirty
|-
| d → dh || [ɣ] || || '''[ɣaːg]''' || '''dh'fhàg''' || left
|-
| || || || '''[ɣɔ͂]''' || '''dhomh''' || to me
|-
| || || || '''[kLɤɣ]''' || '''cladh''' || ditch (n.)
|-
| || || || '''[ʃɤɣ]''' || '''seadh''' || yes
|-
| || || || '''[buəLəɣ]''' || '''bualadh''' || hitting
|-
| g → gh || [ɣ] || || '''[ɣuNʲ]''' || '''ghuin''' || stung (v.)
|-
| || || || '''[ɣaːlɪgʲ]''' || '''Ghàidhlig''' || Gaelic
|-
| || || || '''[ɤɣ]''' || '''agh''' || heifer
|-
| || || || '''[Lɤɣ]''' || '''lagh''' || law
|-
| p → ph || [f] || Same as English f || '''[fɔːs]''' || '''phòs''' || married (v.)
|-
| || || || '''[fɔuL]''' || '''pholl''' || mud
|-
| || || || '''[faːʃdʲə]''' || '''phàiste''' || child
|-
| t → th || [h] || Same as English h || '''[ha]''' || '''tha''' || is
|-
| || || || '''[mah]''' || '''math''' || good
|-
| || || || '''[maːhɪrʲ]''' || '''màthair''' || mother
|-
| || || || '''[ahɪrʲ]''' || '''athair''' || father
|-
| s → sh || [h] || Same as English h || '''[hɔn]''' || '''shon''' || sake
|-
| || || || '''[hɯj]''' || '''shuidh''' || sat
|-
| || || || '''[had]''' || '''shad''' || thrust (v.)
|-
| f → fh || [v] || Silent || '''[haLd]''' || '''fhalt''' || his hair
|-
| || || || '''[ul]''' || '''fhuil''' || his blood
|-
| || || || '''[oːn]''' || '''fhón''' || his phone
|-
|}

==Slender==
[[File:fricatives02.ogg|noicon|90px]]
{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
| b → bh || [v] || Same as English v || '''[vel]''' || '''bheil''' || form of tha
|-
| || || || '''[leiv]''' || '''leibh''' || with youse
|-
| || || || '''[vile]''' || '''bhile''' || lip
|-
| || [vj] || || '''[vjɔː]''' || '''bheò''' || alive
|-
| m → mh || [v] || Same as English v || '''[viː]''' || '''mhi''' || I
|-
| || || || '''[viːLʲ]''' || '''mhill''' || damaged
|-
| || [vj] || || '''[vjauL]''' || '''mheall''' || deceived (v.)
|-
| c → ch || [ç] || || '''[çiː]''' || '''chì''' || will see
|-
| || || || '''[façə]''' || '''faiche''' || green (n.)
|-
| || || || '''[çaNɪç]''' || '''cheannaich''' || bought
|-
| d → dh || [ʝ] || || '''[ʝes]''' || '''dheas''' || south
|-
| || || || '''[ʝu]''' || '''dhiubh''' || of them
|-
| || || || '''[ʝaLɪç]''' || '''dhealaich''' || separated (v.)
|-
| || [j] || Same as English y || '''[sɯj]''' || '''suidh''' || sit!
|-
| || || || '''[sgaLpaj]''' || '''Sgalpaigh''' || Scalpay
|-
| g → gh || [ʝ] || || '''[ʝaL]''' || '''gheal''' || white
|-
| || || || '''[ʝiLʲə]''' || '''ghille''' || boy
|-
| || || || '''[ʝaLəx]''' || '''ghealach''' || moon
|-
| || [j] || Same as English y || '''[Laj]''' || '''laigh''' || laid (v.)
|-
| p → ph || [f] || Same as English f || '''[fiːs]''' || '''phìos''' || piece
|-
| || [fj] || || '''[fju.ər]''' || '''phiuthar''' || sister
|-
| || || || '''[fjauN]''' || '''pheann''' || pen
|-
| t → th || [h] || Same as English h || '''[higʲ]''' || '''thig''' || will come
|-
| || || || '''[hiːLʲ]''' || '''thill''' || returned
|-
| || [ç] || || '''[içə]''' || '''ithe''' || eating
|-
| || || || '''[feːç]''' || '''féith''' || muscle
|-
| s → sh || [h] || Same as English h || '''[hiːn]''' || '''shìn''' || stretched (v.)
|-
| || [ç] || || '''[çauL]''' || '''sheall''' || showed
|-
| || [h] || || '''[heinn]''' || '''sheinn''' || sang
|-
| f → fh || || Silent || '''[ɛr]''' || '''fhear''' || man
|-
| || || || '''[is]''' || '''fhios''' || his knowledge
|-
|}
 
NOTE: There is a small number of words with fh which are pronounced as [h]:
{| style="width: 50%;" border="0"
|-
| '''[heːn]''' || '''fhéin''' || self
|-
| '''[haLə]''' || '''fhalbh''' || leave!
|-
| '''[ha.əsd]''' || '''fhathast''' || yet
|-
|}

 
 
{{Fuaimean}}

Deasbaireachd:Fricatives

2012-06-08T19:54:40Z

Thrissel: ph

== ph ==

"It is important to note that when h is added to a consonant in Gaelic, the resulting consonant is never pronounced as in English." - except for ph /f/ ? --[[User:Thrissel|Thrissel]] 21:54, 8 dhen Ògmhios 2012 (CEST)

PPP - Pronouns, prepositions and their pronunciation

2012-05-23T19:09:54Z

Thrissel: /* Do */

No explanation needed really, tables of the conjugated pronouns with their pronunciation.

==À==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| à || [a]
|-
| às an || [as əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| asam || [asəm]
|-
| asad || [asəd]
|-
| às || [as]
|-
| aiste || [aʃdʲə]
|-
| asainn || [asɪNʲ]
|-
| asaibh || [asɪv]
|-
| asta || [asdə]
|-
|}

==Aig==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| aig || [ɛgʲ]
|-
| aig an || [ɛgʲ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| agam || [agəm]
|-
| agad || [agəd]
|-
| aige || [ɛgʲə]
|-
| aice || [ɛçgʲə]
|-
| againn || [agɪNʲ]
|-
| agaibh || [agɪv]
|-
| aca || [axgə]
|-
|}

== Aig + possessive pronoun ==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| 'gam || [gam]
|-
| 'gad || [gəd]
|-
| 'ga || [ga]
|-
| 'ga (h-) || [ga (h)]
|-
| 'gar (n-) || [gar n]
|-
| 'gur (n-) || [gar]
|-
| 'gan || [gan]
|-
|}

==Air==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| air || [ɛrʲ]
|-
| air an || [ɛrʲ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| orm || [ɔrɔm]
|-
| ort || [ɔRʃd]
|-
| air || [ɛrʲ]
|-
| oirre || [ɔRə]
|-
| oirnn || [ɔːRNʲ]
|-
| oirbh || [ɔrʲɪv]
|-
| orra || [ɔRə]
|-
|}
==Ann an==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| ann an || [ãũN əN(ʲ)]
|-
| anns an || [ãũNs əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| annam || [ũNəm]
|-
| annad || [ũNəd]
|-
| ann || [ãũN]
|-
| innte || [ĩːNʲdʲə]
|-
| annainn || [aNɪNʲ]
|-
| annaibh || [aNɪv]
|-
| annta || [ãũNdə]
|-
|}

==Ann an + possessive pronoun==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|- 'nam || [nam]
|-
| 'nad || [nad]
|-
| 'na || [na]
|-
| 'na (h-) || [na (h)]
|-
| 'nar (n-) || [nar n]
|-
| 'nur (n-) || [nar n]
|-
| 'nan || [nan]
|-
|}

==De==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| de || [də]
|-
| dhen || [ʝɛnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| dhìom || [ʝĩə̃m]
|-
| dhìot || [ʝied]
|-
| dheth || [ʝe]
|-
| dhith || [ʝi]
|-
| dhinn || [ʝĩNʲ]
|-
| dhibh || [ʝiv]
|-
| dhiubh || [ʝu]
|-
|}

==Do==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| do || [də]
|-
| dhan (an) || [ɣan], [ɣanəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| dhomh || [ɣɔ̃]
|-
| dhut || [ɣuhd]
|-
| dha || [ɣa]
|-
| dhi || [ʝi]
|-
| dhuinn || [ɣɯ̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| dhuibh || [ɣɯiv]
|-
| dhaibh || [ɣaiv]
|-
|}

==Eadar==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| eadar || [edər]
|-
| eadar an || [edər əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| eadarainn || [edərɪNʲ]
|-
| eadaraibh || [edərɪv]
|-
| eatarra || [ehdəRə]
|-
|}

==Fo==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| fo || [fɔ]
|-
| fon || [fɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| fodham || [fo.əm]
|-
| fodhad || [fo.əd]
|-
| fodha || [fo.ə]
|-
| foidhpe || [foihbə]
|-
| fodhainn || [fo.ɪNʲ]
|-
| fodhaibh || [fo.ɪv]
|-
| fodhpa || [fohbə]
|-
|}

==Gu==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| gu || [gu]
|-
| gun chun an || [gunəN(ʲ)] [xunəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| thugam || [hugəm]
|-
| thugad || [hugəd]
|-
| thuige || [hɯgʲə]
|-
| thuice || [hɯçgʲə]
|-
| thugainn || [hugɪNʲ]
|-
| thugaibh || [hugɪv]
|-
| thuca || [huxgə]
|-
|}

==Le==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| le || [le]
|-
| leis an || [leʃ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| leam || [ləm]
|-
| leat || [lahd]
|-
| leis || [leʃ]
|-
| leatha || [le.ə]
|-
| leinn || [lẽĩNʲ]
|-
| leibh || [leiv]
|-
| leotha || [lo.ə]
|-
|}

==Mu==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mu || [mə]
|-
| mun || [munəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| umam || [ũməm]
|-
| umad || [ũməd]
|-
| uime || [ɯ̃imə]
|-
| uimpe || [ɯ̃imbə]
|-
| umainn || [ũmɪNʲ]
|-
| umaibh || [ũmɪv]
|-
| umpa || [ũːmbə]
|-
|}

==O==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| o || [ɔ]
|-
| on || [ɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| uam || [uəm]
|-
| uat || [uəhd]
|-
| uaidhe || [uajə]
|-
| uaipe || [uəihbə]
|-
| uainn || [ũə̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| uaibh || [uəiv]
|-
| uapa || [uəhbə]
|-
|}

==Ri==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| ri || [rʲi]
|-
| ris an || [rʲiʃ əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| rium || [rʲum]
|-
| riut || [rʲuʰd]
|-
| ris || [rʲiʃ]
|-
| rithe || [rʲi.ə]
|-
| r(u)inn || [rɯ̃ĩNʲ]
|-
| r(u)ibh || [rɯ̃ĩv]
|-
| riutha || [ru.ə]
|-
|}

==Tro==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| tro || [trɔ]
|-
| tron an || [trɔnəN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| tromham || [trɔ.əm]
|-
| tromhad || [trɔ.əd]
|-
| troimhe || [trɔjə]
|-
| troimhpe || [trɔihbə]
|-
| tromhainn || [trɔ.ɪNʲ]
|-
| tromhaibh || [trɔ.ɪv]
|-
| tromhpa || [trɔ̃hbə]
|-
|}

==Thar==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| thar || [har]
|-
| thar an || [har əN(ʲ)]
|-
|
|-
| tharam || [harəm]
|-
| tharad || [harəd]
|-
| thairis air || [harʲɪʃ ɛrʲ]
|-
| thairte || [haRʃdʲə]
|-
| tharainn || [harɪNʲ]
|-
| tharaibh || [harɪv]
|-
| tharta || [haRʃdə]
|-
|}

==Personal pronouns==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mi || [mĩː] || [mi]
|-
| thu tu || [uː] [duː] || [u] [du]
|-
| e || [ɛː] || [ə]
|-
| i || [iː] || [i]
|-
| sinn || [ʃiːNʲ] || [ʃiNʲ]
|-
| sibh || [ʃiːv] || [ʃiv]
|-
| iad || [iəd] || [əd]
|-
|}

==Personal pronouns with emphatic suffixes==

{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mise || [mĩʃə]
|-
| thusa tusa || [usə] [dusə]
|-
| esan || [ɛsən]
|-
| ise || [iʃə]
|-
| sinne || [ʃiNʲə]
|-
| sibhse || [ʃiːvʃə]
|-
| iadsan || [iədsən]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mo chù || [mə'xuː]
|-
| do chù || [də'xuː]
|-
| a chù || [ə'xuː]
|-
| a cù || [ə'kuː]
|-
| ar cù || [ər'kuː]
|-
| ur cù || [ər'kuː]
|-
| an cù || [əŋ'kuː]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with emphatic suffixes==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| mo chù-sa || [mə'xuːsə]
|-
| do chù-sa || [də'xuːsə ]
|-
| a chù-san || [ə'xuːsən]
|-
| a cù-se || [ə'kuːʃə]
|-
| ar cù-ne || [ər'kuːnə]
|-
| ur cù-se || [ər'kuːʃə]
|-
| an cù-san || [ən'kuːsən]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with initial vowel==
{| style="width: 15%;" border="0"
|-
| m' anam || [manam]
|-
| d' anam || [danam]
|-
| anam || [anam]
|-
| a h-anam || [ə'hanam]
|-
| ar n-anam || [ər'nanam]
|-
| ur n-anam || [ər'nanam]
|-
| an anam || [ə'nanam]
|-
|}

==Possessive pronoun with initial vowel and emphatic suffixes==
{| style="width: 20%;" border="0"
|-
| m' anam-sa || [manamsə]
|-
| d' anam-sa || [danamsə]
|-
| anam-san || [anamsən]
|-
| a h-anam-se || [ə'hanamʃə]
|-
| ar n-anam-ne || [ər'nanamnə]
|-
| ur n-anam-se || [ər'nanamʃə]
|-
| an anam-san || [ə'nanamsən]
|-
|}

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Beagan gràmair

2012-04-22T15:14:53Z

Thrissel: /* The Noun System */

Chan eil a' mhórchuid dhen roinn seo air a sgrìobhadh fhathast agus is e dìreach toiseach tòiseachaidh a tha seo, ach seo liosta dhe na rudan a bhios ann. Ged nach eil sinn a' dèanamh aoraidh do Dhia Briathrachais Cànanachais, thà sinn a' cleachdadh fhaclan teicnigeach - mura cleachd, bhiodh e duilich mìneachadh gu soilleir na tha sinn an dùil a ràdh. Ach na gabh dragh, gheibh thu mìneachadh dhen a h-uile bhriathar.

----
There is not much in this section yet as we are just starting out, but this is a list of things that eventually will be found here. This is definitely not a temple to the God of Grammatical Terminology, but we do use both grammar and technical terms because it would otherwise get very difficult to express the things we need to say clearly. But not to worry, you will find detailed explanations of every term used.

==Spot the difference with Akerbeltz ...==
In line with [http://www.akerbeltz.eu/booksg.html Blas na Gàidhlig] and other resources, we're using a slightly easier form of the IPA for these pages these days. No, we haven't dumbed down, there's still the same amount of detail, there are just fewer squiggles. Here's a list of the symbols used which differ from "full" IPA. Everything else is the same.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Full IPA
!IPA light
|-
| <center>l̪ˠ</center>
| <center>L</center>
|-
| <center>n̪ˠ</center>
| <center>N</center>
|-
| <center>rˠ</center>
| <center>R</center>
|-
| <center>ʎ</center>
| <center>Lʲ</center>
|-
| <center>ɲ</center>
| <center>Nʲ</center>
|-
| <center>ɾ</center>
| <center>r</center>
|-
| <center>ɾʲ</center>
| <center>rʲ</center>
|-
|}

==On the Importance of Pronunciation and other Forewords==
*[[Can't I do pronunciation later? or Why children are different]]
*[[What's wrong with "imitated pronunciation" and how to read the IPA]]
*[[A printable pronunciation guide to Gaelic spelling]]
*[[A Word on Manx Spelling]]
*[[The Famous Sími or The Myth of International Words]]

==Phonetics or "What sounds does Gaelic have?"==
*[[Voiced vs Voiceless or Why does b sound like p but not really?]]
*[[Broad vs Slender]]
*[[Labials or Sounds made at your Lips]]
*[[Dentals or Sounds made at your Teeth]]
*[[Velars or Sounds further back]]
*[[Liquids or - L N R in Gaelic]]
*[[The History of L N and R]]

==Phonology or "How do these sounds interact?"==
*[[Lenition and why that is your mothers fault]]
*[[The homo-organic rule or When not to lenite]]
*[[Nasalisation or When to speak through your nose]]
**[[Nasalisation 2 or Why am I married to ə NɯNʲə agam?|Nasalisation 2 or Why am I married to [ə NɯNʲə] agam?]]
*[[Answer Verbs or Thuirt vs Thubhairt and what's in it|Answer Verbs or ''Thuirt'' vs ''Thubhairt'' and what's in it]]
*[[Final devoicing or Why does naoidh sound like Nɯiç?|Final devoicing or Why does ''naoidh'' sound like [Nɯiç]?]]
*[[Prosthetic F, backformation or Eagal vs feagal|Prosthetic F, backformation or ''Eagal'' vs ''feagal'']]
*[[Intrusive T or Why we're writing sròn not *stròn|Intrusive T or Why we're writing ''sròn'' not ''*stròn'']]
*[[Compensatory lengthening and The secret of time]]
*[[B' àill leibh or Fast speech|''B' àill leibh'' or Fast speech]]
*[[B' àill leibh or fast speech 2|''B' àill leibh'' or Fast speech 2]]
*[[Stress placement and Why going up is a bad thing]]
*[[Initial High Front Vowels or Where the j in eòrna comes from|Initial High Front Vowels or Where the [j] in ''eòrna'' comes from]]
*[[Svarabhakti or The Helping Vowel]]
*[[When to Pronounce Final h (and when not to)]]

==Morphology or "How are words put together?"==
===The Verb System===
*[[The Imperative or How to order people around]]
*[[Éiridh e is ceannaidh e? or the Future tense]]
*[[Epistemic Modality or Do I HAVE to read this?]]
*[[Stative Verbs or How to run in suspended animation]]

===The Noun System===
*[[The Case System or What the heck is a vocative?]]
*[[Possessives and syllabic structure or Ar n-Athair a tha air nèamh]]
*[[Déan moch-éirigh mhór or The gender of verbal nouns]]
*[[Màthraichean-céile or Kinship]]
*[[As t-samhradh or The mysterious t-]]
*[[Genitives and Possessives]]
*[[Genitives in -(th)rach]]
*[[Plurals shmurals and how to predict them]]

===Adverbs & Demonstratives and other annoying little words===
*[[Adverbs or Thall 's a-bhos]]
*[[Demonstratives or An cat ud thall]]
*[[A h-uile? Na h-uile?? Càch??? Gach????]]
*[[De do rium rium or How to crack prepositions]]
*[[Do Re Im or The History of the Prepositions]]
*[[PPP - Pronouns, prepositions and their pronunciation]]

===Numerals===
*[[Numerals or How to write a cheque in Gaelic]]
*[[The new-old numerals or Why this sucks]]
*[[Hóigh, an dithis agaibh! or Personal numerals]]

==Tense/Aspect or "The concept of time"==
*[[Expressions of Time]]

==Syntax or "How to make a sentence/phrase"==
*[[VSO and Master Yoda]]
*[[Adjective Ordering]]
*[[Chaidh e dhan chéilidh is mi cho tinn or The mystery of the agus]]
*[[Aig, air agus ann an or The severed head]]
*[[Experience vs Disposition or Tha mi sunndach]]
*[[Existentials or I think therefore I am]]

==The Corpus or "Confusing Words"==
*[[Àilean and the Mystery Bog]]

==Registers in Gaelic or "Cànan tà leath ri mo chridh"==
==Dialects and other Stuff==
*[[Pre-aspiration or What the h in mac is about]]
*[[The Breaking of Long /e:/ or Feuchainn vs Fiachainn]]
*[[aːRd vs aːRʃd or Where the sh comes from]]
*[[Scribes, Shorthand and How to Save on Parchment]]

==The History of Gaelic==
*[[Minding Your P's and Q's or Why Porcom is a Headache]]

==Explanation of Terms and Abbreviations used==

 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Màthraichean-céile or Kinship

2012-04-22T15:14:15Z

Thrissel:

The famous mother-in-law. No, don't worry, this is going to be completely unbiased, but it IS about kinship terms in Gaelic, which can be a bit tricky. Why? Well, I was hoping you'd ask that question.

For the most part, it's just vocabulary learning, but as always, there's more to it than that. To make it easier, we've drawn you a picture, which you can download [http://akerbeltz.org/images/3/3e/motheaghlach.pdf '''here'''].

The most unusual grammatical feature of kinship terms is, that depending on your view they either break the rules of lenition or they break the rules of not having two genitives in the same noun phrase. Let me give you an example or two:

{| style="width: 25%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| mac mic-peathar || great nephew
|-
| nigheann mic-bràthar || great niece
|-
|}

Now there are two ways of looking at this.

We assume that mac-peathar "nephew" is a compound noun (stress shift seems to indicate this). If this is the case, -peathar functions as an adjectival noun. In other similar noun compounds, the adjectival noun is lenited if the preceding noun is feminine or has slenderised for genitive/plural, e.g. bileag-fhiosrachaidh, cinn-chinnidh ... But in compounds like nighean-peathar "niece" or mac mic-peathar "great nephew" we don't get lenition.

You might say, hang on, maybe mac peathar isn't a close compound and simply two nouns, so there is no reason for peathar to lenite. Well, that is possible, but in this case, we violate another rule - that there may not be two genitives in the same noun phrase. Mac peathar on its own already contains a genitive, peathar. So mac mic peathar would therefore contain two genitives, mic and peathar.

The solution? There isn't one. It's just one of those cases where a language just goes and does something just because. So you just have to remember to put all nouns following other nouns into the genitive e.g. nighean mic nighinn bràthar m' athar. I'll leave you to figure out who that is.

This also applies to genealogical phrases - Eòghann mac mhic Dhòmhnaill mhic Theàrlaich mhic Dhonnachaidh ... until you run out of breath. All of these nouns are in the genitive. In this settings, mhic is pronounced as [ĩçgʲ] which is why you sometimes see it written as 'ic.

The only exception (what would life be without them!) is céile, which behaves regularly, so we get màthair-chéile but athair-céile, piuthair-chéile but bràthair-céile etc.

What else? Beyond grandmothers and grandfathers, just stick another sinn- in front of it. From your great-great-great-grandfather/mother onwards though you insert seachad-. So she would be sinn-seachad-sinn-seanmhair. Some people, incidentally, lenite after sinn-, so you get sinn-sheanmhair etc.

There is slight confusion when it comes to husbands and wives, incidentally. Bean and fear are the prototypical "man/woman" word pair. In Irish bean and fear still mean exactly that - even though curiously enough bean has the secondary meaning of "wife". In Gaelic there has been a slight shift of meaning however. Bean still means woman, but it primarily means "wife". Fear on the other hand still means "man". "Husband" has been taken over by duine - which confusingly also can mean "person" - depends on the context. An duine agam always means "my husband" - but na daoine a chaidh a Ghlaschu means "the people who went to Glasgow". So what is the man/woman word pair then? Well, you can use fear for "man" but in the modern language boireannach/fireannach has largely taken on that function. Notwithstanding, toilets are still labelled Mnathan/Fir - or Mná/Fir in Ireland.

If you are into traditional songs or sometimes read older materials, you may have come across two words used for "daughter" - nighean and inghean - and gotten slightly confused by this. They are both the same word. Inghean is the older form, derived from Old Irish ingen, but at some point the helping vowel that got inserted turned [iNʲjən] into [iNʲijən]. Modern Irish reflects this "halfway point" with iníon [iNʲiːn]. The initial [i] subsequently got dropped and the [j] vocalised and we were left with the more familiar nighean [Nʲĩː.an]. This is also the reason for the two varying genitive forms given in dictionaries - nighinn and ìghne and the plurals nigheanan and ìghnean. Ìghne is a reflection of the older inghean, which quite regularly adds -e and shortens a final syllable ending in a nasal or lateral, whereas nighinn reflects the attempts of the language to "bring the genitive in line" with the nominative.

If you want to know why the word piuthar is irregular, read our page on [[Prosthetic F, backformation or Eagal vs feagal|backformation]].

That's it really, the rest of the "family tree" is self explanatory. You may want to have a quick look at the [[Genitives and Possessives|possessive pronouns page]] though, as it is very relevant to this topic.
 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Genitves and Possessives

2012-04-22T15:13:02Z

Thrissel: Genitves and Possessives air a ghluasad a Genitives and Possessives: typo

#REDIRECT [[Genitives and Possessives]]

Genitives and Possessives

2012-04-22T15:13:02Z

Thrissel: Genitves and Possessives air a ghluasad a Genitives and Possessives: typo

For a change, things are going to be quite straightforward. This is about what happens when you get a possessive pronoun between two nouns.

We all know what happens when the definite article comes between two nouns - the article and the second noun appear in the genitive, e.g.

{| style="width: 25%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| Taigh nan Cumantan
|-
|The House of Commons
|-
|}

But what happens when we get a noun phrase that involves a possessive such as "the house of my mother"? The same thing really:

{| style="width: 25%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| taigh mo mhàthar
|-
| my mother's house
|-
|}

And this is where life gets easier for a change. You probably remember that a verbal noun is followed by the genitive - if it's a definite noun that is e.g.

{| style="width: 25%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| a' dèanamh aran
|-
| making bread
|-
| a' briseadh an dorais
|-
| breaking the door
|-
|}

Traditionally, because verbal nouns like dèanamh are grammatically nouns any noun following one would have to be in the genitive eg a' dèanamh arain, but this usage today is definitely marked - meaning that it's so old fashioned that nobody uses it in spoken Gaelic and few people in very high register texts. So a definite no-no for text messages and letters of complaint to An Comann Gàidhealach because their website hardly has any Gaelic.

But what does this have to do with possessives? Well, you can have a possessive after a verbal noun - and this is where you're in luck because it doesn't require the genitive:

{| style="width: 25%;" border="0" align="center"
|-
| a' bualadh mo mhàthair
|-
| beating my mother
|-
| a' moladh do thaigh
|-
| praising your house
|-
|}
Sin agad e!
 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Genitives and Possessives

2012-04-22T15:12:06Z

Thrissel:

The Case System or What the heck is a vocative?

2012-04-22T15:11:31Z

Thrissel:

Well, I suppose it's our own fault for having asked people to write to us if there is something in particular you have questions about. Someone wrote in and opened the can of worms about how to decline compound nouns - a topic whose basics are covered in every little language course but whose details, in particular the difficult issues are avoided everywhere (if we're wrong and you do know this excellent article on the Gaelic case system, do let us know!) - such as the intriguing question about what happens to nouns followed by compound nouns and feminine nouns forming their genitive by slenderising. We're by no means sure we've got all the answers, but we'll try to do our best anyway.

This is in two parts really, the first gives you the case system in bits and pieces with explanations, but at the end there is a pdf file which contains a table of the case system which you can print out for reference.

But to begin with we need to answer someone else's question about what the point of having masculine and feminine nouns is and why we need a case system. Well, there's and easy and a more complex answer to that question. The easy answer is that Gaelic just has these things and you have to put up with having to learn them just as much as you'd have to contend with three genders in German, a pictographic writing system in Mandarin, politeness particles in Japanese and an indefinido in Castilian.

The more complex answer is that all living languages constantly develop and change. Change, mark you, not "simplify" as many people believe. Meaning? Well, there are different ways in which languages encode meaning once you go beyond simple words. One such method is syntax. This means that the meaning of a sentence arises out of the order of words in it, often using small words or particles to give finer shades of meaning. English is such a language - take two sentences like Jack hit Jill with a club and Jill hit Jack with a club ... using the same words, you paint a very different scenario.

The other way of doing this is to have a lose syntax but a fairly rigid and detailed way or marking who does what to whom and with what on the words. Basque is such a language. In Basque the first example above turns into Jackek Jill makilaz jo du. The -ek tells you who did something and -az tells you what was used and so on. Because the endings make this clear, you can shift the order around - Makilaz jo du Jill Jackek has the same meaning as the other sentence, something that would be impossible in a language like English.

So what does that have to do with Gaelic you may ask, since Gaelic has a rather rigid syntax but also a case system. Well ... languages are eternally shifting between these two extremes, so most languages you will encounter will be somewhere in between relying completely on syntax and relying completely on endings.

Vietnamese is one of the few languages which (currently) rely on syntax 100% and Basque one of those that rely on endings 99%. English, still in the process of exchanging the case system inherited from Old English for syntax is closing in on the syntax end of the spectrum and has lost two of its three genders, Cantonese on the other hand has just started to move away from it. German is lagging behind English, with the genitive case rapidly losing ground to the dative case, Samoan is half way to the other end, acquiring more grammatical forms and relying less on syntax. So all these things have reasons for being there, to help encode meaning in an efficient way and while on the whole the picture keeps changing all the time, we have to accept a language for what it is now.

Gaelic is somewhere in there - moving towards the syntax end, but not as far along as English. Now this does NOT mean that we should therefore make away with the Gaelic case system altogether because that is "inevitable" anyway. For one thing, this is an unconscious process, speakers do not set out to "lose" the dative case, it's something that happens gradually, over time and without noticing (unless you're a linguist looking for this kind of thing). If you don't believe this, ask an English speaker whether they are aware of English losing the noun/verb distinction ... well,you CAN background a picture these days, can't you?

So what ARE we saying? The case system in Gaelic is something it has inherited from Common Gaelic and Old Irish, going even further back and ultimately Indo-European. In the light of language history, it makes sense and is (relatively) logical. If Gaelic will ultimately lose this case system, it won't be a "loss" because Gaelic will gain some structure elsewhere to make up for it. But that is a process that should be left to the language itself and not be tampered with by people, neither those who believe archaic-is-good nor those who think that everything has to be simplified-simplified to make it easier to learn. A healthy balance must be struck to reflect a good standard that is neither archaic and mental not one that reflects every lost vowel of the fast casual speech.

For layout reasons, these pages have been split into two, one for masculine and one for feminine nouns, rather than having them side by side. This is simply for layout reasons, on the .pdf file both genders are shown side by side. Click on the links to go to the respective sections:

*[[Masculine nouns]]
*[[Feminine nouns]]

There's also printable guides, one for the [http://akerbeltz.org/index.php?title=File:Na_Tuislean_seann_n%C3%B2s_.pdf traditional or conservative pattern] and another for the [http://akerbeltz.org/index.php?title=File:Na_Tuislean_n%C3%B2s_%C3%B9r_.pdf normal or colloquial pattern].
 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

A printable pronunciation guide to Gaelic spelling

2012-04-04T20:23:49Z

Thrissel: ceanglaichean cearta

First of all, thanks for all the people who wrote in suggesting we do a reference guide to Gaelic spelling they could just print out - Gun robh mìle math agaibh, a chàirdean!

Second, a small apology. When we started, we thought we could collapse it into one page - which by the end of the day had turned into two pages - and after we added the diphthongs, it had turned into three. And after we formatted it into something more readable and less confusing, it had turned into four whole pages... then came a long pause while I was writing [http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blas-G%C3%A0idhlig-Practical-Scottish-Pronunciation/dp/1907165002/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1306405569&sr=8-1 Blas na Gàidhlig]. It has grown considerably, so I've created a full version (with examples) and a concise version (without examples.)

Just one or two things you need to know (apart from knowing how to read the IPA) to use the guide.

*Anything in brackets means it can either be there or not: a(i) stands for both a and ai, à(i) for à and ài etc.

*C stands for Consonant, because sometimes it's important whether a sound is followed by a vowel or consonant. For example -agh is pronounced as [ɤ], whereas -aghC is pronounced as a long vowel, [ɤː]

*(leath.) stands for leathann, broad and (caol) for, well, caol, or slender

*A hyphen before a letter means it is at the end of a word, one hyphen in front and one after means it is in the middle of a word somewhere. No hyphen means it's at the beginning, for example: c as in '''c'''eòl, -c- as in ba'''c'''adh and -c as in ma'''c'''. Quite straightforward

* With consonants, the second entry is always the lenited consonant, but that's fairly obvious as the examples contain the leniting element, e.g. mo chas

That's it really. You can get the [[Media:Guide detailed with examples.pdf|full version here]] (with examples) and the [[Media:Guide concise.pdf|concise version]] (same number of rules but without examples).

We've also added a few step-by-step examples of how to use this list [[Examples for the guide|here]].

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Cainnt nan eun

2012-03-10T20:07:43Z

Thrissel: /* An t-adharcan-luachrach */

Chan eil na h-eòin ag ràdh dìreach facal no dhà sa Ghàidhlig ach rannan gu léir. Cluinnidh tu na h-eòin a' bìogail ma leughas tu iad os àird - agus cuimhnich dèanadh iad air sgàth seo oir uaireannan that feadhainn ann nach eil ro chiallach. Chan eil fhios againn-e carson a tha uimhir dhiubh ann ach tha iad ann co-dhiù. Fiù feadhainn à Canada fhèin!

Chuala sinn gun robh caoin ris na rannan seo, ach cha bu urrainn dhuinn an lorg - ma tha thusa eòlach orra, nach innis tu dhuinn?

----
Gaelic birds are talkative - they don't only say a word or two but whole rhymes. If you read them aloud, you can almost hear them chatter away - remember that that's why they were made up, since some of them don't make too much sense. We don't know why there are so many - even some which have evolved in Canada!

Allegedly there once were melodies to go with these - if anyone knows of them, do let us know!

==A' bhuidheag-bhealaidh==
(The Yellowhammer)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A ghille bhig chrìn, a ghille bhig chrìn, Till, till, till, till, Na creach mo nead, na creach mo nead, No théid thu dhi, no théid thu dhi. || Mean little boy, mean little boy, Come back, come back, come back, Don't plunder my nest, don't plunder my nest, Or you will be destroyed, or you will be destroyed.
|-
|}

==A' chailleachag==
(The Tit/Chickadee) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Spìd oirbh, spìd oirbh! || Spite you, spite you!
|-
|}

==A' chearc (1)==
(The Hen)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Gog, gog, gog, gog, Gog gog i, Beiridh mise a h-uile latha, 'S cha bheir a' bhó-laoigh! || Cluck, cluck, cluck, Cluck, cluck, I will bear every day, And the cow in calf won't!
|-
|}

==A' chearc (2)==
(The Hen)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Tog, tog, tog, Tog an rud a dh'fhàg mi, Ge beag an t-ugh, ge beag an t-ugh, Tha stà ann, tha stà ann! || Pick, pick pick, Pick up the thing I left behind, Though the egg is small, though the egg is small, It is useful, it is useful.
|-
|}

==A' chuthag==
(The Cuckoo)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| "Gug-gùg" arsa a' chuthag, latha buidhe Bealltainn, "Gug-gùg" arsa ise a-rithis, latha leth an t-samhraidh, Latha leth an t-samhraidh théid a' chuthag gu a taigh-geamhraidh. || "Cuckoo" said the cuckoo, on a golden May-Day, "Cuckoo" he said again, on Midsummers Day, On Midsummers Day the cuckoo will go to the house of winter.
|-
|}

==Am brù-dhearg (1)==
(The Robin)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Big, big, bigean! Có a chreach mo neadan? Mas e gille beag e, Cuiridh mi le creig e, Mas e gille mór e, Cuiridh mi le lòn e! Ach mas fear beag gun chéill e, Gun gléidheadh Dia do a mhàthair fhéin e! || Cheep cheep cheep! Who plundered my little nest? If it is a little boy, I shall throw him over a cliff, If it is a big boy, I shall throw him in a marsh! But if it is a little man without sense, God protect his mother!
|-
|}

==Am brù-dhearg (2)==
(The Robin)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Doire an t-sìthe, Doire an t-sìthe, Doire mo nid, Doire mo nid. || The oak of the hill, The oak of the hill, The oak of my nest, The oak of my nest.
|-
|}

==Am fitheach (1)==
(The Raven)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Earchall, earchall! Càite, càite? San làthaich, san làthaich! Sùil caorach, sùil caorach, 'S e b' fhearr leinn, 's e b' fhearr leinn! || Calamity, calamity! Where, where? In the mire, in the mire! Eye of a sheep, eye of a sheep, Is what we prefer, is what we prefer!
|-
|}

==Am fitheach (2)==
(The Raven) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Cà bheil an corr, an corr, an corr? || Where is the rest, the rest, the rest?
|-
|}

==An calman==
(The Pigeon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Tha mo chùl riut, tha mo chùl riut, Chan ann de mo chuideachd thu, Chan ann de mo chuideachd thu, Chan itheadh tu siud gun mo chuid a thoirt dhomhsa, Gun mo chuid a thoirt dhomhsa. || I have turned my back on you, etc. You are not of my company, You are not of my company, You won't eat that without giving me my share, Without giving me my share.
|-
|}

==An coileach-fraoich==
(The Red Grouse)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Có bhrathadh, có bhrathadh? Có dh'fhaodadh, có dh'fhaodadh? Có bhagradh, có bhagradh? Mo chlaidheamh, mo chlaidheamh. || Who is spying, who is spying? Who might, who might? Who is threatening, who is threatening? My sword, my sword.
|-
|}

==An coileach mór 's an coileach beag==
(The Big Cockerel and the Wee Cockerel)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| An aithne dhut-sa có mi, a Dhòmhnaill? Mac circe, mac circe! || Do you know who I am, Donald? Son of a chicken, son of a chicken!
|-
|}

==An dreathan-donn==
(The Wren)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Thig, thig, thig a dhìol-deirce, Thig, thig, thig a ghille-bhrìghde, Is gillean-bhrìghde na h-eòin uile, Ach mise leam fhìn, Ach mise leam fhìn, Gillean-bhrìghde, gillean-bhrìghde. || Come, come you object of charity, Come, come, oystercatcher, And all the birds are oystercatchers, But I am on my own, But I am on my own Oystercatchers, oystercatchers.
|-
|}

==An fheadag==
(The Plover)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S mór mo dhìobhail, is mór mo dhìobhail, Tha mi cianail, tha mi cianail, Fàg leam fhìn mi, fàg leam fhìn mi. || My distress is great, my distress is great, I am sad, I am sad, Leave me alone, leave me alone.
|-
|}

==An fheannag ris a h-iseanan==
(The Crow to her chicks)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S greannach sibh, 'S greannach sibh, Is cha b' annasach, Cha b' annasach. || You are ugly, You are ugly, And that is no surprise, And that is no surprise.
|-
|}

==An gille-brìde (1)==
(The Oystercatcher)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A ghille ghuib dheirg, a ghille ghuib dheirg, Dé nì mi? Dé nì mi? Freagairt: Cum rithe, cum rithe, Thig an lìonadh, thig an lìonadh, is leigidh i ás thu, leigidh i ás thu. || Boy of the red beak, boy of the red beak, What will I do, what will I do? Answer: Keep on going, keep on going, The tide will come, the tide will come, And it will release you, and it will release you.
|-
|}

==An gille-brìde (2)==
(The Oystercatcher)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Eòin bhig, eòin bhig, Bi glic, bi glic, Fo dhìon, fo dhìon, Fo dhìon, fo dhìon. || Little bird, little bird, Be smart, be smart, Under shelter, under shelter, Under shelter, under shelter.
|-
|}

==An iolaire ri spògan==
(The Eagle to its claws)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S ciùrrail sibh, 'S ciùrrail sibh, 'S bu dùth sin, 'S bu dùth sin. || You are vicious, You are vicious, And that is how it should be, And that is how it should be.
|-
|}

==An learg-dhubh (1)==
(The Diver/Loon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Deoch, deoch, deoch, An loch air tràghadh, Bùrn, bùrn, bùrn, 'S mo lùth air m' fhàgail. || A drink, a drink, a drink, The lake has dried up, Water, water, water, And my strength has left me.
|-
|}

==An learg-dhubh (2)==
(The Diver/Loon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Mo chreach, mo chreach, M' eòin is m' uighean, Mo dhìth, mo dhìth, Mo linn san tuilinn, M' urragain, m' uilleagain, M' eòin is m' uighean, M' ulaidh, m' eilean! || Oh dear, oh dear, My birds and my eggs, My ruin, my ruin, My brood in the flood, My darlings, my pets, My birds and my eggs, My darling, my island!
|-
|}

==An lon-dhubh (1)==
(The Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Bun a' ghuib, oir a' ghuib, barr a' ghuib, Lon dubh air a nead, Sheinn an lon-dubh, Lon dubh, hó-ró, Gràin air na feannagan! || Base of the beak, edge of the beak, end of the beak, Blackbird on its nest, The blackbird sang, Hey blackbird, Shame on the crows!
|-
|}

==An lon-dhubh (2)==
(The Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Dà eun bheag sa choille ud thall, 'S their an dara h-aon ris an aon eile, "'S toil leam thu, is toil leam thu!" 'S their am fear eile "Dearbh e, dearbh e!" || Two little birds in yonder forest, One of them says to the other, "I like you, I like you!" Says the other "prove it, prove it!"
|-
|}

==An sgreuchag==
(The Jay) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada airson sgreuchag ag iarraidh biadh.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Cuiribh rud, cuiribh rud! || Put something, put something!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach is an t-isean (1)==
(The Thrush and the Chick)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| S: 'Ille ruaidh bhig, 'ille ruaidh bhig, trobhad dachaigh, trobhad dachaigh! I: Ciod a thig, ciod a thig? S: Gu do bhiadh, gu do bhiadh! I: Dé 'm biadh, dé 'm biadh? S: Bloigh boiteige, bloigh boiteige! Bloigh bàirnich, bloigh bàirnich! || T: Little red boy, little red boy, come home, come home! C: To what purpose, to what purpose? T: To have your food, to have your food! C: What is the food, what is the food? T: Bits of worm, bits of worm! Bits of limpet, bits of limpet!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach is an t-isean (2)==
(The Thrush and the Chick)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| S: 'Ille ruaidh bhig, 'ille ruaidh bhig, trobhad dachaigh, trobhad dachaigh I: Ciod a thig, ciod a thig? S: Gu do bhiadh, gu do bhiadh! I: Dé 'm biadh, dé 'm biadh? S: Gràinnean cuilgeanach coirce, gràinnean cuilgeanach coirce! 'S boiteagan talmhainn, is boiteagan talmhainn! || T: Little red boy, little red boy, come home, come home! C: To what purpose, to what purpose? T: To have your food, to have your food! C: What is the food, what is the food? T: Bristly grains of oats, bristly grains of oats! And earthworms, and earthworms!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach ris an lon-dubh==
(The Thrush to the Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| An lon-dubh, an lon-dubh, an lon-dubh spàgach! Thug mise dhutsa coille fhasgach fheurach, 'S thug thusa dhomhsa monadh dubh fàsaich. Mo nàir' ort, mo nàir' ort! || The blackbird, the blackbird, the clawed blackbird! I gave you the sheltered, grassy forest, And you gave me the wilderness of the black mountains! Shame on you, shame on you!
|-
|}

==An t-adharcan-luachrach==
(The Lapwing)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Till, till, till, till, Na creach mo nead, na creach mo nead, Imeachd gun teachd dhut, Imeachd gun teachd dhut, A bhraidein, a bhraidein! || Come back, come back, come back, Don't plunder my nest, don't plunder my nest, Go and never return, Go and never return, Thief, thief!
|-
|}

==An traon==
(The Corncrake)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A Dhia nam feart, a Dhia nam feart, Cuir biadh sa ghart, cuir biadh sa ghart Freagairt na cloinne: An trian-ri-trian sa bhliadhna ri gréine, A' bhliadhna, a' bhliadhna 's am biadh san déis. || Oh God of miracles, oh God of miracles, Put food on the field, put food on the field. Childrens' Answer: The corncrake this year facing the sun, The year, the year and the food ready.
|-
|}

==An uiseag (1)==
(The Lark)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S minic, minic, minic, A thig Crìost an riochd a' choigrich, 'S minic, minic, minic, A thig Crìost an riochd a' choigrich. || Often, often, often, Christ comes in the shape of a stranger, Often, often, often, Comes Christ in the shape of a stranger.
|-
|}

==An uiseag (2)==
(The Lark)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Suas anns na neòil théid mi, théid mi, Le fonn 'nam chridhe gun deireas gun dìth, Dòirtidh mi mo òran le ceilearadh grinn, Air lag is air làidir, air slàn is air tinn, Clann bheaga nan daoine a dh'éisteas ri mo cheòl, Ma thachras mo nead ruibh an lagan an fheòir, Cuiribh le coibhneas dìon air mo linn, 'S seinnidh iad fhathast dhuibh leadanan binn. || Up into the clouds, the clouds I will go, With a song in my heart without want or need, I will sing my song with a happy warble, In weakness and strength, in health and sickness, Little man-children who listen to my song, If you happen upon my little nest in a hollow in the grass Protect my offspring with kindness, And they will live to sing you soft melodies.
|-
|}

==Ris an fhaoileag==
(To the Seagull)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Fhaoileag, fhaoileag taobh an cuan, Na faiceam thu air talamh cruaidh, Air talamh cruaidh ma nì thu fois, Bidh gaoth is dìle tighinn 'na chois. || Seagull, seagull by the ocean, Let me not see you on the ground, If you rest on the ground, Gales and heavy rain in your wake.
|-
|}

{{BeaganGaidhlig}}

Cainnt nan eun

2012-03-10T20:04:28Z

Thrissel: /* An lon-dhubh (1) */

Chan eil na h-eòin ag ràdh dìreach facal no dhà sa Ghàidhlig ach rannan gu léir. Cluinnidh tu na h-eòin a' bìogail ma leughas tu iad os àird - agus cuimhnich dèanadh iad air sgàth seo oir uaireannan that feadhainn ann nach eil ro chiallach. Chan eil fhios againn-e carson a tha uimhir dhiubh ann ach tha iad ann co-dhiù. Fiù feadhainn à Canada fhèin!

Chuala sinn gun robh caoin ris na rannan seo, ach cha bu urrainn dhuinn an lorg - ma tha thusa eòlach orra, nach innis tu dhuinn?

----
Gaelic birds are talkative - they don't only say a word or two but whole rhymes. If you read them aloud, you can almost hear them chatter away - remember that that's why they were made up, since some of them don't make too much sense. We don't know why there are so many - even some which have evolved in Canada!

Allegedly there once were melodies to go with these - if anyone knows of them, do let us know!

==A' bhuidheag-bhealaidh==
(The Yellowhammer)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A ghille bhig chrìn, a ghille bhig chrìn, Till, till, till, till, Na creach mo nead, na creach mo nead, No théid thu dhi, no théid thu dhi. || Mean little boy, mean little boy, Come back, come back, come back, Don't plunder my nest, don't plunder my nest, Or you will be destroyed, or you will be destroyed.
|-
|}

==A' chailleachag==
(The Tit/Chickadee) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Spìd oirbh, spìd oirbh! || Spite you, spite you!
|-
|}

==A' chearc (1)==
(The Hen)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Gog, gog, gog, gog, Gog gog i, Beiridh mise a h-uile latha, 'S cha bheir a' bhó-laoigh! || Cluck, cluck, cluck, Cluck, cluck, I will bear every day, And the cow in calf won't!
|-
|}

==A' chearc (2)==
(The Hen)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Tog, tog, tog, Tog an rud a dh'fhàg mi, Ge beag an t-ugh, ge beag an t-ugh, Tha stà ann, tha stà ann! || Pick, pick pick, Pick up the thing I left behind, Though the egg is small, though the egg is small, It is useful, it is useful.
|-
|}

==A' chuthag==
(The Cuckoo)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| "Gug-gùg" arsa a' chuthag, latha buidhe Bealltainn, "Gug-gùg" arsa ise a-rithis, latha leth an t-samhraidh, Latha leth an t-samhraidh théid a' chuthag gu a taigh-geamhraidh. || "Cuckoo" said the cuckoo, on a golden May-Day, "Cuckoo" he said again, on Midsummers Day, On Midsummers Day the cuckoo will go to the house of winter.
|-
|}

==Am brù-dhearg (1)==
(The Robin)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Big, big, bigean! Có a chreach mo neadan? Mas e gille beag e, Cuiridh mi le creig e, Mas e gille mór e, Cuiridh mi le lòn e! Ach mas fear beag gun chéill e, Gun gléidheadh Dia do a mhàthair fhéin e! || Cheep cheep cheep! Who plundered my little nest? If it is a little boy, I shall throw him over a cliff, If it is a big boy, I shall throw him in a marsh! But if it is a little man without sense, God protect his mother!
|-
|}

==Am brù-dhearg (2)==
(The Robin)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Doire an t-sìthe, Doire an t-sìthe, Doire mo nid, Doire mo nid. || The oak of the hill, The oak of the hill, The oak of my nest, The oak of my nest.
|-
|}

==Am fitheach (1)==
(The Raven)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Earchall, earchall! Càite, càite? San làthaich, san làthaich! Sùil caorach, sùil caorach, 'S e b' fhearr leinn, 's e b' fhearr leinn! || Calamity, calamity! Where, where? In the mire, in the mire! Eye of a sheep, eye of a sheep, Is what we prefer, is what we prefer!
|-
|}

==Am fitheach (2)==
(The Raven) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Cà bheil an corr, an corr, an corr? || Where is the rest, the rest, the rest?
|-
|}

==An calman==
(The Pigeon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Tha mo chùl riut, tha mo chùl riut, Chan ann de mo chuideachd thu, Chan ann de mo chuideachd thu, Chan itheadh tu siud gun mo chuid a thoirt dhomhsa, Gun mo chuid a thoirt dhomhsa. || I have turned my back on you, etc. You are not of my company, You are not of my company, You won't eat that without giving me my share, Without giving me my share.
|-
|}

==An coileach-fraoich==
(The Red Grouse)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Có bhrathadh, có bhrathadh? Có dh'fhaodadh, có dh'fhaodadh? Có bhagradh, có bhagradh? Mo chlaidheamh, mo chlaidheamh. || Who is spying, who is spying? Who might, who might? Who is threatening, who is threatening? My sword, my sword.
|-
|}

==An coileach mór 's an coileach beag==
(The Big Cockerel and the Wee Cockerel)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| An aithne dhut-sa có mi, a Dhòmhnaill? Mac circe, mac circe! || Do you know who I am, Donald? Son of a chicken, son of a chicken!
|-
|}

==An dreathan-donn==
(The Wren)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Thig, thig, thig a dhìol-deirce, Thig, thig, thig a ghille-bhrìghde, Is gillean-bhrìghde na h-eòin uile, Ach mise leam fhìn, Ach mise leam fhìn, Gillean-bhrìghde, gillean-bhrìghde. || Come, come you object of charity, Come, come, oystercatcher, And all the birds are oystercatchers, But I am on my own, But I am on my own Oystercatchers, oystercatchers.
|-
|}

==An fheadag==
(The Plover)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S mór mo dhìobhail, is mór mo dhìobhail, Tha mi cianail, tha mi cianail, Fàg leam fhìn mi, fàg leam fhìn mi. || My distress is great, my distress is great, I am sad, I am sad, Leave me alone, leave me alone.
|-
|}

==An fheannag ris a h-iseanan==
(The Crow to her chicks)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S greannach sibh, 'S greannach sibh, Is cha b' annasach, Cha b' annasach. || You are ugly, You are ugly, And that is no surprise, And that is no surprise.
|-
|}

==An gille-brìde (1)==
(The Oystercatcher)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A ghille ghuib dheirg, a ghille ghuib dheirg, Dé nì mi? Dé nì mi? Freagairt: Cum rithe, cum rithe, Thig an lìonadh, thig an lìonadh, is leigidh i ás thu, leigidh i ás thu. || Boy of the red beak, boy of the red beak, What will I do, what will I do? Answer: Keep on going, keep on going, The tide will come, the tide will come, And it will release you, and it will release you.
|-
|}

==An gille-brìde (2)==
(The Oystercatcher)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Eòin bhig, eòin bhig, Bi glic, bi glic, Fo dhìon, fo dhìon, Fo dhìon, fo dhìon. || Little bird, little bird, Be smart, be smart, Under shelter, under shelter, Under shelter, under shelter.
|-
|}

==An iolaire ri spògan==
(The Eagle to its claws)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S ciùrrail sibh, 'S ciùrrail sibh, 'S bu dùth sin, 'S bu dùth sin. || You are vicious, You are vicious, And that is how it should be, And that is how it should be.
|-
|}

==An learg-dhubh (1)==
(The Diver/Loon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Deoch, deoch, deoch, An loch air tràghadh, Bùrn, bùrn, bùrn, 'S mo lùth air m' fhàgail. || A drink, a drink, a drink, The lake has dried up, Water, water, water, And my strength has left me.
|-
|}

==An learg-dhubh (2)==
(The Diver/Loon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Mo chreach, mo chreach, M' eòin is m' uighean, Mo dhìth, mo dhìth, Mo linn san tuilinn, M' urragain, m' uilleagain, M' eòin is m' uighean, M' ulaidh, m' eilean! || Oh dear, oh dear, My birds and my eggs, My ruin, my ruin, My brood in the flood, My darlings, my pets, My birds and my eggs, My darling, my island!
|-
|}

==An lon-dhubh (1)==
(The Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Bun a' ghuib, oir a' ghuib, barr a' ghuib, Lon dubh air a nead, Sheinn an lon-dubh, Lon dubh, hó-ró, Gràin air na feannagan! || Base of the beak, edge of the beak, end of the beak, Blackbird on its nest, The blackbird sang, Hey blackbird, Shame on the crows!
|-
|}

==An lon-dhubh (2)==
(The Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Dà eun bheag sa choille ud thall, 'S their an dara h-aon ris an aon eile, "'S toil leam thu, is toil leam thu!" 'S their am fear eile "Dearbh e, dearbh e!" || Two little birds in yonder forest, One of them says to the other, "I like you, I like you!" Says the other "prove it, prove it!"
|-
|}

==An sgreuchag==
(The Jay) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada airson sgreuchag ag iarraidh biadh.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Cuiribh rud, cuiribh rud! || Put something, put something!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach is an t-isean (1)==
(The Thrush and the Chick)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| S: 'Ille ruaidh bhig, 'ille ruaidh bhig, trobhad dachaigh, trobhad dachaigh! I: Ciod a thig, ciod a thig? S: Gu do bhiadh, gu do bhiadh! I: Dé 'm biadh, dé 'm biadh? S: Bloigh boiteige, bloigh boiteige! Bloigh bàirnich, bloigh bàirnich! || T: Little red boy, little red boy, come home, come home! C: To what purpose, to what purpose? T: To have your food, to have your food! C: What is the food, what is the food? T: Bits of worm, bits of worm! Bits of limpet, bits of limpet!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach is an t-isean (2)==
(The Thrush and the Chick)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| S: 'Ille ruaidh bhig, 'ille ruaidh bhig, trobhad dachaigh, trobhad dachaigh I: Ciod a thig, ciod a thig? S: Gu do bhiadh, gu do bhiadh! I: Dé 'm biadh, dé 'm biadh? S: Gràinnean cuilgeanach coirce, gràinnean cuilgeanach coirce! 'S boiteagan talmhainn, is boiteagan talmhainn! || T: Little red boy, little red boy, come home, come home! C: To what purpose, to what purpose? T: To have your food, to have your food! C: What is the food, what is the food? T: Bristly grains of oats, bristly grains of oats! And earthworms, and earthworms!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach ris an lon-dubh==
(The Thrush to the Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| An lon-dubh, an lon-dubh, an lon-dubh spàgach! Thug mise dhutsa coille fhasgach fheurach, 'S thug thusa dhomhsa monadh dubh fàsaich. Mo nàir' ort, mo nàir' ort! || The blackbird, the blackbird, the clawed blackbird! I gave you the sheltered, grassy forest, And you gave me the wilderness of the black mountains! Shame on you, shame on you!
|-
|}

==An t-adharcan-luachrach==
(The Lapwing)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Till, till, till, till, Na creach mo nead, na creach mo nead, Imeachd gun teachd dhut, Imeachd gun teachd dhut, A bhraidein, a bhraidein! || Come back, come back, come back, Don't plunder my nest, don't plunder my nest, Go and never return, go and never return, Go and never return, go and never return, Thief, thief!
|-
|}

==An traon==
(The Corncrake)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A Dhia nam feart, a Dhia nam feart, Cuir biadh sa ghart, cuir biadh sa ghart Freagairt na cloinne: An trian-ri-trian sa bhliadhna ri gréine, A' bhliadhna, a' bhliadhna 's am biadh san déis. || Oh God of miracles, oh God of miracles, Put food on the field, put food on the field. Childrens' Answer: The corncrake this year facing the sun, The year, the year and the food ready.
|-
|}

==An uiseag (1)==
(The Lark)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S minic, minic, minic, A thig Crìost an riochd a' choigrich, 'S minic, minic, minic, A thig Crìost an riochd a' choigrich. || Often, often, often, Christ comes in the shape of a stranger, Often, often, often, Comes Christ in the shape of a stranger.
|-
|}

==An uiseag (2)==
(The Lark)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Suas anns na neòil théid mi, théid mi, Le fonn 'nam chridhe gun deireas gun dìth, Dòirtidh mi mo òran le ceilearadh grinn, Air lag is air làidir, air slàn is air tinn, Clann bheaga nan daoine a dh'éisteas ri mo cheòl, Ma thachras mo nead ruibh an lagan an fheòir, Cuiribh le coibhneas dìon air mo linn, 'S seinnidh iad fhathast dhuibh leadanan binn. || Up into the clouds, the clouds I will go, With a song in my heart without want or need, I will sing my song with a happy warble, In weakness and strength, in health and sickness, Little man-children who listen to my song, If you happen upon my little nest in a hollow in the grass Protect my offspring with kindness, And they will live to sing you soft melodies.
|-
|}

==Ris an fhaoileag==
(To the Seagull)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Fhaoileag, fhaoileag taobh an cuan, Na faiceam thu air talamh cruaidh, Air talamh cruaidh ma nì thu fois, Bidh gaoth is dìle tighinn 'na chois. || Seagull, seagull by the ocean, Let me not see you on the ground, If you rest on the ground, Gales and heavy rain in your wake.
|-
|}

{{BeaganGaidhlig}}

Cainnt nan eun

2012-03-10T20:03:49Z

Thrissel: /* An lòn-dhubh (2) */

Chan eil na h-eòin ag ràdh dìreach facal no dhà sa Ghàidhlig ach rannan gu léir. Cluinnidh tu na h-eòin a' bìogail ma leughas tu iad os àird - agus cuimhnich dèanadh iad air sgàth seo oir uaireannan that feadhainn ann nach eil ro chiallach. Chan eil fhios againn-e carson a tha uimhir dhiubh ann ach tha iad ann co-dhiù. Fiù feadhainn à Canada fhèin!

Chuala sinn gun robh caoin ris na rannan seo, ach cha bu urrainn dhuinn an lorg - ma tha thusa eòlach orra, nach innis tu dhuinn?

----
Gaelic birds are talkative - they don't only say a word or two but whole rhymes. If you read them aloud, you can almost hear them chatter away - remember that that's why they were made up, since some of them don't make too much sense. We don't know why there are so many - even some which have evolved in Canada!

Allegedly there once were melodies to go with these - if anyone knows of them, do let us know!

==A' bhuidheag-bhealaidh==
(The Yellowhammer)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A ghille bhig chrìn, a ghille bhig chrìn, Till, till, till, till, Na creach mo nead, na creach mo nead, No théid thu dhi, no théid thu dhi. || Mean little boy, mean little boy, Come back, come back, come back, Don't plunder my nest, don't plunder my nest, Or you will be destroyed, or you will be destroyed.
|-
|}

==A' chailleachag==
(The Tit/Chickadee) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Spìd oirbh, spìd oirbh! || Spite you, spite you!
|-
|}

==A' chearc (1)==
(The Hen)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Gog, gog, gog, gog, Gog gog i, Beiridh mise a h-uile latha, 'S cha bheir a' bhó-laoigh! || Cluck, cluck, cluck, Cluck, cluck, I will bear every day, And the cow in calf won't!
|-
|}

==A' chearc (2)==
(The Hen)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Tog, tog, tog, Tog an rud a dh'fhàg mi, Ge beag an t-ugh, ge beag an t-ugh, Tha stà ann, tha stà ann! || Pick, pick pick, Pick up the thing I left behind, Though the egg is small, though the egg is small, It is useful, it is useful.
|-
|}

==A' chuthag==
(The Cuckoo)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| "Gug-gùg" arsa a' chuthag, latha buidhe Bealltainn, "Gug-gùg" arsa ise a-rithis, latha leth an t-samhraidh, Latha leth an t-samhraidh théid a' chuthag gu a taigh-geamhraidh. || "Cuckoo" said the cuckoo, on a golden May-Day, "Cuckoo" he said again, on Midsummers Day, On Midsummers Day the cuckoo will go to the house of winter.
|-
|}

==Am brù-dhearg (1)==
(The Robin)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Big, big, bigean! Có a chreach mo neadan? Mas e gille beag e, Cuiridh mi le creig e, Mas e gille mór e, Cuiridh mi le lòn e! Ach mas fear beag gun chéill e, Gun gléidheadh Dia do a mhàthair fhéin e! || Cheep cheep cheep! Who plundered my little nest? If it is a little boy, I shall throw him over a cliff, If it is a big boy, I shall throw him in a marsh! But if it is a little man without sense, God protect his mother!
|-
|}

==Am brù-dhearg (2)==
(The Robin)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Doire an t-sìthe, Doire an t-sìthe, Doire mo nid, Doire mo nid. || The oak of the hill, The oak of the hill, The oak of my nest, The oak of my nest.
|-
|}

==Am fitheach (1)==
(The Raven)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Earchall, earchall! Càite, càite? San làthaich, san làthaich! Sùil caorach, sùil caorach, 'S e b' fhearr leinn, 's e b' fhearr leinn! || Calamity, calamity! Where, where? In the mire, in the mire! Eye of a sheep, eye of a sheep, Is what we prefer, is what we prefer!
|-
|}

==Am fitheach (2)==
(The Raven) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Cà bheil an corr, an corr, an corr? || Where is the rest, the rest, the rest?
|-
|}

==An calman==
(The Pigeon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Tha mo chùl riut, tha mo chùl riut, Chan ann de mo chuideachd thu, Chan ann de mo chuideachd thu, Chan itheadh tu siud gun mo chuid a thoirt dhomhsa, Gun mo chuid a thoirt dhomhsa. || I have turned my back on you, etc. You are not of my company, You are not of my company, You won't eat that without giving me my share, Without giving me my share.
|-
|}

==An coileach-fraoich==
(The Red Grouse)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Có bhrathadh, có bhrathadh? Có dh'fhaodadh, có dh'fhaodadh? Có bhagradh, có bhagradh? Mo chlaidheamh, mo chlaidheamh. || Who is spying, who is spying? Who might, who might? Who is threatening, who is threatening? My sword, my sword.
|-
|}

==An coileach mór 's an coileach beag==
(The Big Cockerel and the Wee Cockerel)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| An aithne dhut-sa có mi, a Dhòmhnaill? Mac circe, mac circe! || Do you know who I am, Donald? Son of a chicken, son of a chicken!
|-
|}

==An dreathan-donn==
(The Wren)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Thig, thig, thig a dhìol-deirce, Thig, thig, thig a ghille-bhrìghde, Is gillean-bhrìghde na h-eòin uile, Ach mise leam fhìn, Ach mise leam fhìn, Gillean-bhrìghde, gillean-bhrìghde. || Come, come you object of charity, Come, come, oystercatcher, And all the birds are oystercatchers, But I am on my own, But I am on my own Oystercatchers, oystercatchers.
|-
|}

==An fheadag==
(The Plover)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S mór mo dhìobhail, is mór mo dhìobhail, Tha mi cianail, tha mi cianail, Fàg leam fhìn mi, fàg leam fhìn mi. || My distress is great, my distress is great, I am sad, I am sad, Leave me alone, leave me alone.
|-
|}

==An fheannag ris a h-iseanan==
(The Crow to her chicks)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S greannach sibh, 'S greannach sibh, Is cha b' annasach, Cha b' annasach. || You are ugly, You are ugly, And that is no surprise, And that is no surprise.
|-
|}

==An gille-brìde (1)==
(The Oystercatcher)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A ghille ghuib dheirg, a ghille ghuib dheirg, Dé nì mi? Dé nì mi? Freagairt: Cum rithe, cum rithe, Thig an lìonadh, thig an lìonadh, is leigidh i ás thu, leigidh i ás thu. || Boy of the red beak, boy of the red beak, What will I do, what will I do? Answer: Keep on going, keep on going, The tide will come, the tide will come, And it will release you, and it will release you.
|-
|}

==An gille-brìde (2)==
(The Oystercatcher)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Eòin bhig, eòin bhig, Bi glic, bi glic, Fo dhìon, fo dhìon, Fo dhìon, fo dhìon. || Little bird, little bird, Be smart, be smart, Under shelter, under shelter, Under shelter, under shelter.
|-
|}

==An iolaire ri spògan==
(The Eagle to its claws)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S ciùrrail sibh, 'S ciùrrail sibh, 'S bu dùth sin, 'S bu dùth sin. || You are vicious, You are vicious, And that is how it should be, And that is how it should be.
|-
|}

==An learg-dhubh (1)==
(The Diver/Loon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Deoch, deoch, deoch, An loch air tràghadh, Bùrn, bùrn, bùrn, 'S mo lùth air m' fhàgail. || A drink, a drink, a drink, The lake has dried up, Water, water, water, And my strength has left me.
|-
|}

==An learg-dhubh (2)==
(The Diver/Loon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Mo chreach, mo chreach, M' eòin is m' uighean, Mo dhìth, mo dhìth, Mo linn san tuilinn, M' urragain, m' uilleagain, M' eòin is m' uighean, M' ulaidh, m' eilean! || Oh dear, oh dear, My birds and my eggs, My ruin, my ruin, My brood in the flood, My darlings, my pets, My birds and my eggs, My darling, my island!
|-
|}

==An lon-dhubh (1)==
(The Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Bun a' ghuib, oir a' ghuib, barr a' ghuib, Lon dubh air a nead, Sheinn an lon-dubh, Lon dubh, hó-ró, Gràin air na feannagan! || Base of the beak, edge of the beak, end of the beak, Blackbird on it's nest, The blackbird sang, Hey blackbird, Shame on the crows!
|-
|}

==An lon-dhubh (2)==
(The Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Dà eun bheag sa choille ud thall, 'S their an dara h-aon ris an aon eile, "'S toil leam thu, is toil leam thu!" 'S their am fear eile "Dearbh e, dearbh e!" || Two little birds in yonder forest, One of them says to the other, "I like you, I like you!" Says the other "prove it, prove it!"
|-
|}

==An sgreuchag==
(The Jay) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada airson sgreuchag ag iarraidh biadh.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Cuiribh rud, cuiribh rud! || Put something, put something!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach is an t-isean (1)==
(The Thrush and the Chick)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| S: 'Ille ruaidh bhig, 'ille ruaidh bhig, trobhad dachaigh, trobhad dachaigh! I: Ciod a thig, ciod a thig? S: Gu do bhiadh, gu do bhiadh! I: Dé 'm biadh, dé 'm biadh? S: Bloigh boiteige, bloigh boiteige! Bloigh bàirnich, bloigh bàirnich! || T: Little red boy, little red boy, come home, come home! C: To what purpose, to what purpose? T: To have your food, to have your food! C: What is the food, what is the food? T: Bits of worm, bits of worm! Bits of limpet, bits of limpet!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach is an t-isean (2)==
(The Thrush and the Chick)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| S: 'Ille ruaidh bhig, 'ille ruaidh bhig, trobhad dachaigh, trobhad dachaigh I: Ciod a thig, ciod a thig? S: Gu do bhiadh, gu do bhiadh! I: Dé 'm biadh, dé 'm biadh? S: Gràinnean cuilgeanach coirce, gràinnean cuilgeanach coirce! 'S boiteagan talmhainn, is boiteagan talmhainn! || T: Little red boy, little red boy, come home, come home! C: To what purpose, to what purpose? T: To have your food, to have your food! C: What is the food, what is the food? T: Bristly grains of oats, bristly grains of oats! And earthworms, and earthworms!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach ris an lon-dubh==
(The Thrush to the Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| An lon-dubh, an lon-dubh, an lon-dubh spàgach! Thug mise dhutsa coille fhasgach fheurach, 'S thug thusa dhomhsa monadh dubh fàsaich. Mo nàir' ort, mo nàir' ort! || The blackbird, the blackbird, the clawed blackbird! I gave you the sheltered, grassy forest, And you gave me the wilderness of the black mountains! Shame on you, shame on you!
|-
|}

==An t-adharcan-luachrach==
(The Lapwing)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Till, till, till, till, Na creach mo nead, na creach mo nead, Imeachd gun teachd dhut, Imeachd gun teachd dhut, A bhraidein, a bhraidein! || Come back, come back, come back, Don't plunder my nest, don't plunder my nest, Go and never return, go and never return, Go and never return, go and never return, Thief, thief!
|-
|}

==An traon==
(The Corncrake)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A Dhia nam feart, a Dhia nam feart, Cuir biadh sa ghart, cuir biadh sa ghart Freagairt na cloinne: An trian-ri-trian sa bhliadhna ri gréine, A' bhliadhna, a' bhliadhna 's am biadh san déis. || Oh God of miracles, oh God of miracles, Put food on the field, put food on the field. Childrens' Answer: The corncrake this year facing the sun, The year, the year and the food ready.
|-
|}

==An uiseag (1)==
(The Lark)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S minic, minic, minic, A thig Crìost an riochd a' choigrich, 'S minic, minic, minic, A thig Crìost an riochd a' choigrich. || Often, often, often, Christ comes in the shape of a stranger, Often, often, often, Comes Christ in the shape of a stranger.
|-
|}

==An uiseag (2)==
(The Lark)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Suas anns na neòil théid mi, théid mi, Le fonn 'nam chridhe gun deireas gun dìth, Dòirtidh mi mo òran le ceilearadh grinn, Air lag is air làidir, air slàn is air tinn, Clann bheaga nan daoine a dh'éisteas ri mo cheòl, Ma thachras mo nead ruibh an lagan an fheòir, Cuiribh le coibhneas dìon air mo linn, 'S seinnidh iad fhathast dhuibh leadanan binn. || Up into the clouds, the clouds I will go, With a song in my heart without want or need, I will sing my song with a happy warble, In weakness and strength, in health and sickness, Little man-children who listen to my song, If you happen upon my little nest in a hollow in the grass Protect my offspring with kindness, And they will live to sing you soft melodies.
|-
|}

==Ris an fhaoileag==
(To the Seagull)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Fhaoileag, fhaoileag taobh an cuan, Na faiceam thu air talamh cruaidh, Air talamh cruaidh ma nì thu fois, Bidh gaoth is dìle tighinn 'na chois. || Seagull, seagull by the ocean, Let me not see you on the ground, If you rest on the ground, Gales and heavy rain in your wake.
|-
|}

{{BeaganGaidhlig}}

Cainnt nan eun

2012-03-10T20:03:29Z

Thrissel: /* Am fitheach (2) */

Chan eil na h-eòin ag ràdh dìreach facal no dhà sa Ghàidhlig ach rannan gu léir. Cluinnidh tu na h-eòin a' bìogail ma leughas tu iad os àird - agus cuimhnich dèanadh iad air sgàth seo oir uaireannan that feadhainn ann nach eil ro chiallach. Chan eil fhios againn-e carson a tha uimhir dhiubh ann ach tha iad ann co-dhiù. Fiù feadhainn à Canada fhèin!

Chuala sinn gun robh caoin ris na rannan seo, ach cha bu urrainn dhuinn an lorg - ma tha thusa eòlach orra, nach innis tu dhuinn?

----
Gaelic birds are talkative - they don't only say a word or two but whole rhymes. If you read them aloud, you can almost hear them chatter away - remember that that's why they were made up, since some of them don't make too much sense. We don't know why there are so many - even some which have evolved in Canada!

Allegedly there once were melodies to go with these - if anyone knows of them, do let us know!

==A' bhuidheag-bhealaidh==
(The Yellowhammer)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A ghille bhig chrìn, a ghille bhig chrìn, Till, till, till, till, Na creach mo nead, na creach mo nead, No théid thu dhi, no théid thu dhi. || Mean little boy, mean little boy, Come back, come back, come back, Don't plunder my nest, don't plunder my nest, Or you will be destroyed, or you will be destroyed.
|-
|}

==A' chailleachag==
(The Tit/Chickadee) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Spìd oirbh, spìd oirbh! || Spite you, spite you!
|-
|}

==A' chearc (1)==
(The Hen)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Gog, gog, gog, gog, Gog gog i, Beiridh mise a h-uile latha, 'S cha bheir a' bhó-laoigh! || Cluck, cluck, cluck, Cluck, cluck, I will bear every day, And the cow in calf won't!
|-
|}

==A' chearc (2)==
(The Hen)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Tog, tog, tog, Tog an rud a dh'fhàg mi, Ge beag an t-ugh, ge beag an t-ugh, Tha stà ann, tha stà ann! || Pick, pick pick, Pick up the thing I left behind, Though the egg is small, though the egg is small, It is useful, it is useful.
|-
|}

==A' chuthag==
(The Cuckoo)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| "Gug-gùg" arsa a' chuthag, latha buidhe Bealltainn, "Gug-gùg" arsa ise a-rithis, latha leth an t-samhraidh, Latha leth an t-samhraidh théid a' chuthag gu a taigh-geamhraidh. || "Cuckoo" said the cuckoo, on a golden May-Day, "Cuckoo" he said again, on Midsummers Day, On Midsummers Day the cuckoo will go to the house of winter.
|-
|}

==Am brù-dhearg (1)==
(The Robin)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Big, big, bigean! Có a chreach mo neadan? Mas e gille beag e, Cuiridh mi le creig e, Mas e gille mór e, Cuiridh mi le lòn e! Ach mas fear beag gun chéill e, Gun gléidheadh Dia do a mhàthair fhéin e! || Cheep cheep cheep! Who plundered my little nest? If it is a little boy, I shall throw him over a cliff, If it is a big boy, I shall throw him in a marsh! But if it is a little man without sense, God protect his mother!
|-
|}

==Am brù-dhearg (2)==
(The Robin)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Doire an t-sìthe, Doire an t-sìthe, Doire mo nid, Doire mo nid. || The oak of the hill, The oak of the hill, The oak of my nest, The oak of my nest.
|-
|}

==Am fitheach (1)==
(The Raven)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Earchall, earchall! Càite, càite? San làthaich, san làthaich! Sùil caorach, sùil caorach, 'S e b' fhearr leinn, 's e b' fhearr leinn! || Calamity, calamity! Where, where? In the mire, in the mire! Eye of a sheep, eye of a sheep, Is what we prefer, is what we prefer!
|-
|}

==Am fitheach (2)==
(The Raven) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Cà bheil an corr, an corr, an corr? || Where is the rest, the rest, the rest?
|-
|}

==An calman==
(The Pigeon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Tha mo chùl riut, tha mo chùl riut, Chan ann de mo chuideachd thu, Chan ann de mo chuideachd thu, Chan itheadh tu siud gun mo chuid a thoirt dhomhsa, Gun mo chuid a thoirt dhomhsa. || I have turned my back on you, etc. You are not of my company, You are not of my company, You won't eat that without giving me my share, Without giving me my share.
|-
|}

==An coileach-fraoich==
(The Red Grouse)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Có bhrathadh, có bhrathadh? Có dh'fhaodadh, có dh'fhaodadh? Có bhagradh, có bhagradh? Mo chlaidheamh, mo chlaidheamh. || Who is spying, who is spying? Who might, who might? Who is threatening, who is threatening? My sword, my sword.
|-
|}

==An coileach mór 's an coileach beag==
(The Big Cockerel and the Wee Cockerel)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| An aithne dhut-sa có mi, a Dhòmhnaill? Mac circe, mac circe! || Do you know who I am, Donald? Son of a chicken, son of a chicken!
|-
|}

==An dreathan-donn==
(The Wren)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Thig, thig, thig a dhìol-deirce, Thig, thig, thig a ghille-bhrìghde, Is gillean-bhrìghde na h-eòin uile, Ach mise leam fhìn, Ach mise leam fhìn, Gillean-bhrìghde, gillean-bhrìghde. || Come, come you object of charity, Come, come, oystercatcher, And all the birds are oystercatchers, But I am on my own, But I am on my own Oystercatchers, oystercatchers.
|-
|}

==An fheadag==
(The Plover)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S mór mo dhìobhail, is mór mo dhìobhail, Tha mi cianail, tha mi cianail, Fàg leam fhìn mi, fàg leam fhìn mi. || My distress is great, my distress is great, I am sad, I am sad, Leave me alone, leave me alone.
|-
|}

==An fheannag ris a h-iseanan==
(The Crow to her chicks)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S greannach sibh, 'S greannach sibh, Is cha b' annasach, Cha b' annasach. || You are ugly, You are ugly, And that is no surprise, And that is no surprise.
|-
|}

==An gille-brìde (1)==
(The Oystercatcher)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A ghille ghuib dheirg, a ghille ghuib dheirg, Dé nì mi? Dé nì mi? Freagairt: Cum rithe, cum rithe, Thig an lìonadh, thig an lìonadh, is leigidh i ás thu, leigidh i ás thu. || Boy of the red beak, boy of the red beak, What will I do, what will I do? Answer: Keep on going, keep on going, The tide will come, the tide will come, And it will release you, and it will release you.
|-
|}

==An gille-brìde (2)==
(The Oystercatcher)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Eòin bhig, eòin bhig, Bi glic, bi glic, Fo dhìon, fo dhìon, Fo dhìon, fo dhìon. || Little bird, little bird, Be smart, be smart, Under shelter, under shelter, Under shelter, under shelter.
|-
|}

==An iolaire ri spògan==
(The Eagle to its claws)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S ciùrrail sibh, 'S ciùrrail sibh, 'S bu dùth sin, 'S bu dùth sin. || You are vicious, You are vicious, And that is how it should be, And that is how it should be.
|-
|}

==An learg-dhubh (1)==
(The Diver/Loon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Deoch, deoch, deoch, An loch air tràghadh, Bùrn, bùrn, bùrn, 'S mo lùth air m' fhàgail. || A drink, a drink, a drink, The lake has dried up, Water, water, water, And my strength has left me.
|-
|}

==An learg-dhubh (2)==
(The Diver/Loon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Mo chreach, mo chreach, M' eòin is m' uighean, Mo dhìth, mo dhìth, Mo linn san tuilinn, M' urragain, m' uilleagain, M' eòin is m' uighean, M' ulaidh, m' eilean! || Oh dear, oh dear, My birds and my eggs, My ruin, my ruin, My brood in the flood, My darlings, my pets, My birds and my eggs, My darling, my island!
|-
|}

==An lon-dhubh (1)==
(The Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Bun a' ghuib, oir a' ghuib, barr a' ghuib, Lon dubh air a nead, Sheinn an lon-dubh, Lon dubh, hó-ró, Gràin air na feannagan! || Base of the beak, edge of the beak, end of the beak, Blackbird on it's nest, The blackbird sang, Hey blackbird, Shame on the crows!
|-
|}

==An lòn-dhubh (2)==
(The Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Dà eun bheag sa choille ud thall, 'S their an dara h-aon ris an aon eile, "'S toil leam thu, is toil leam thu!" 'S their am fear eile "Dearbh e, dearbh e!" || Two little birds in yonder forest, One of them says to the other, "I like you, I like you!" Says the other "prove it, prove it!"
|-
|}

==An sgreuchag==
(The Jay) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada airson sgreuchag ag iarraidh biadh.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Cuiribh rud, cuiribh rud! || Put something, put something!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach is an t-isean (1)==
(The Thrush and the Chick)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| S: 'Ille ruaidh bhig, 'ille ruaidh bhig, trobhad dachaigh, trobhad dachaigh! I: Ciod a thig, ciod a thig? S: Gu do bhiadh, gu do bhiadh! I: Dé 'm biadh, dé 'm biadh? S: Bloigh boiteige, bloigh boiteige! Bloigh bàirnich, bloigh bàirnich! || T: Little red boy, little red boy, come home, come home! C: To what purpose, to what purpose? T: To have your food, to have your food! C: What is the food, what is the food? T: Bits of worm, bits of worm! Bits of limpet, bits of limpet!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach is an t-isean (2)==
(The Thrush and the Chick)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| S: 'Ille ruaidh bhig, 'ille ruaidh bhig, trobhad dachaigh, trobhad dachaigh I: Ciod a thig, ciod a thig? S: Gu do bhiadh, gu do bhiadh! I: Dé 'm biadh, dé 'm biadh? S: Gràinnean cuilgeanach coirce, gràinnean cuilgeanach coirce! 'S boiteagan talmhainn, is boiteagan talmhainn! || T: Little red boy, little red boy, come home, come home! C: To what purpose, to what purpose? T: To have your food, to have your food! C: What is the food, what is the food? T: Bristly grains of oats, bristly grains of oats! And earthworms, and earthworms!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach ris an lon-dubh==
(The Thrush to the Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| An lon-dubh, an lon-dubh, an lon-dubh spàgach! Thug mise dhutsa coille fhasgach fheurach, 'S thug thusa dhomhsa monadh dubh fàsaich. Mo nàir' ort, mo nàir' ort! || The blackbird, the blackbird, the clawed blackbird! I gave you the sheltered, grassy forest, And you gave me the wilderness of the black mountains! Shame on you, shame on you!
|-
|}

==An t-adharcan-luachrach==
(The Lapwing)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Till, till, till, till, Na creach mo nead, na creach mo nead, Imeachd gun teachd dhut, Imeachd gun teachd dhut, A bhraidein, a bhraidein! || Come back, come back, come back, Don't plunder my nest, don't plunder my nest, Go and never return, go and never return, Go and never return, go and never return, Thief, thief!
|-
|}

==An traon==
(The Corncrake)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A Dhia nam feart, a Dhia nam feart, Cuir biadh sa ghart, cuir biadh sa ghart Freagairt na cloinne: An trian-ri-trian sa bhliadhna ri gréine, A' bhliadhna, a' bhliadhna 's am biadh san déis. || Oh God of miracles, oh God of miracles, Put food on the field, put food on the field. Childrens' Answer: The corncrake this year facing the sun, The year, the year and the food ready.
|-
|}

==An uiseag (1)==
(The Lark)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S minic, minic, minic, A thig Crìost an riochd a' choigrich, 'S minic, minic, minic, A thig Crìost an riochd a' choigrich. || Often, often, often, Christ comes in the shape of a stranger, Often, often, often, Comes Christ in the shape of a stranger.
|-
|}

==An uiseag (2)==
(The Lark)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Suas anns na neòil théid mi, théid mi, Le fonn 'nam chridhe gun deireas gun dìth, Dòirtidh mi mo òran le ceilearadh grinn, Air lag is air làidir, air slàn is air tinn, Clann bheaga nan daoine a dh'éisteas ri mo cheòl, Ma thachras mo nead ruibh an lagan an fheòir, Cuiribh le coibhneas dìon air mo linn, 'S seinnidh iad fhathast dhuibh leadanan binn. || Up into the clouds, the clouds I will go, With a song in my heart without want or need, I will sing my song with a happy warble, In weakness and strength, in health and sickness, Little man-children who listen to my song, If you happen upon my little nest in a hollow in the grass Protect my offspring with kindness, And they will live to sing you soft melodies.
|-
|}

==Ris an fhaoileag==
(To the Seagull)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Fhaoileag, fhaoileag taobh an cuan, Na faiceam thu air talamh cruaidh, Air talamh cruaidh ma nì thu fois, Bidh gaoth is dìle tighinn 'na chois. || Seagull, seagull by the ocean, Let me not see you on the ground, If you rest on the ground, Gales and heavy rain in your wake.
|-
|}

{{BeaganGaidhlig}}

Cainnt nan eun

2012-03-10T20:03:09Z

Thrissel: /* A' chearc (2) */

Chan eil na h-eòin ag ràdh dìreach facal no dhà sa Ghàidhlig ach rannan gu léir. Cluinnidh tu na h-eòin a' bìogail ma leughas tu iad os àird - agus cuimhnich dèanadh iad air sgàth seo oir uaireannan that feadhainn ann nach eil ro chiallach. Chan eil fhios againn-e carson a tha uimhir dhiubh ann ach tha iad ann co-dhiù. Fiù feadhainn à Canada fhèin!

Chuala sinn gun robh caoin ris na rannan seo, ach cha bu urrainn dhuinn an lorg - ma tha thusa eòlach orra, nach innis tu dhuinn?

----
Gaelic birds are talkative - they don't only say a word or two but whole rhymes. If you read them aloud, you can almost hear them chatter away - remember that that's why they were made up, since some of them don't make too much sense. We don't know why there are so many - even some which have evolved in Canada!

Allegedly there once were melodies to go with these - if anyone knows of them, do let us know!

==A' bhuidheag-bhealaidh==
(The Yellowhammer)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A ghille bhig chrìn, a ghille bhig chrìn, Till, till, till, till, Na creach mo nead, na creach mo nead, No théid thu dhi, no théid thu dhi. || Mean little boy, mean little boy, Come back, come back, come back, Don't plunder my nest, don't plunder my nest, Or you will be destroyed, or you will be destroyed.
|-
|}

==A' chailleachag==
(The Tit/Chickadee) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Spìd oirbh, spìd oirbh! || Spite you, spite you!
|-
|}

==A' chearc (1)==
(The Hen)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Gog, gog, gog, gog, Gog gog i, Beiridh mise a h-uile latha, 'S cha bheir a' bhó-laoigh! || Cluck, cluck, cluck, Cluck, cluck, I will bear every day, And the cow in calf won't!
|-
|}

==A' chearc (2)==
(The Hen)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Tog, tog, tog, Tog an rud a dh'fhàg mi, Ge beag an t-ugh, ge beag an t-ugh, Tha stà ann, tha stà ann! || Pick, pick pick, Pick up the thing I left behind, Though the egg is small, though the egg is small, It is useful, it is useful.
|-
|}

==A' chuthag==
(The Cuckoo)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| "Gug-gùg" arsa a' chuthag, latha buidhe Bealltainn, "Gug-gùg" arsa ise a-rithis, latha leth an t-samhraidh, Latha leth an t-samhraidh théid a' chuthag gu a taigh-geamhraidh. || "Cuckoo" said the cuckoo, on a golden May-Day, "Cuckoo" he said again, on Midsummers Day, On Midsummers Day the cuckoo will go to the house of winter.
|-
|}

==Am brù-dhearg (1)==
(The Robin)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Big, big, bigean! Có a chreach mo neadan? Mas e gille beag e, Cuiridh mi le creig e, Mas e gille mór e, Cuiridh mi le lòn e! Ach mas fear beag gun chéill e, Gun gléidheadh Dia do a mhàthair fhéin e! || Cheep cheep cheep! Who plundered my little nest? If it is a little boy, I shall throw him over a cliff, If it is a big boy, I shall throw him in a marsh! But if it is a little man without sense, God protect his mother!
|-
|}

==Am brù-dhearg (2)==
(The Robin)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Doire an t-sìthe, Doire an t-sìthe, Doire mo nid, Doire mo nid. || The oak of the hill, The oak of the hill, The oak of my nest, The oak of my nest.
|-
|}

==Am fitheach (1)==
(The Raven)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Earchall, earchall! Càite, càite? San làthaich, san làthaich! Sùil caorach, sùil caorach, 'S e b' fhearr leinn, 's e b' fhearr leinn! || Calamity, calamity! Where, where? In the mire, in the mire! Eye of a sheep, eye of a sheep, Is what we prefer, is what we prefer!
|-
|}

==Am fitheach (2)==
(The Raven) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Cà bheil an còrr, an corr, an corr? || Where is the rest, the rest, the rest?
|-
|}

==An calman==
(The Pigeon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Tha mo chùl riut, tha mo chùl riut, Chan ann de mo chuideachd thu, Chan ann de mo chuideachd thu, Chan itheadh tu siud gun mo chuid a thoirt dhomhsa, Gun mo chuid a thoirt dhomhsa. || I have turned my back on you, etc. You are not of my company, You are not of my company, You won't eat that without giving me my share, Without giving me my share.
|-
|}

==An coileach-fraoich==
(The Red Grouse)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Có bhrathadh, có bhrathadh? Có dh'fhaodadh, có dh'fhaodadh? Có bhagradh, có bhagradh? Mo chlaidheamh, mo chlaidheamh. || Who is spying, who is spying? Who might, who might? Who is threatening, who is threatening? My sword, my sword.
|-
|}

==An coileach mór 's an coileach beag==
(The Big Cockerel and the Wee Cockerel)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| An aithne dhut-sa có mi, a Dhòmhnaill? Mac circe, mac circe! || Do you know who I am, Donald? Son of a chicken, son of a chicken!
|-
|}

==An dreathan-donn==
(The Wren)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Thig, thig, thig a dhìol-deirce, Thig, thig, thig a ghille-bhrìghde, Is gillean-bhrìghde na h-eòin uile, Ach mise leam fhìn, Ach mise leam fhìn, Gillean-bhrìghde, gillean-bhrìghde. || Come, come you object of charity, Come, come, oystercatcher, And all the birds are oystercatchers, But I am on my own, But I am on my own Oystercatchers, oystercatchers.
|-
|}

==An fheadag==
(The Plover)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S mór mo dhìobhail, is mór mo dhìobhail, Tha mi cianail, tha mi cianail, Fàg leam fhìn mi, fàg leam fhìn mi. || My distress is great, my distress is great, I am sad, I am sad, Leave me alone, leave me alone.
|-
|}

==An fheannag ris a h-iseanan==
(The Crow to her chicks)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S greannach sibh, 'S greannach sibh, Is cha b' annasach, Cha b' annasach. || You are ugly, You are ugly, And that is no surprise, And that is no surprise.
|-
|}

==An gille-brìde (1)==
(The Oystercatcher)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A ghille ghuib dheirg, a ghille ghuib dheirg, Dé nì mi? Dé nì mi? Freagairt: Cum rithe, cum rithe, Thig an lìonadh, thig an lìonadh, is leigidh i ás thu, leigidh i ás thu. || Boy of the red beak, boy of the red beak, What will I do, what will I do? Answer: Keep on going, keep on going, The tide will come, the tide will come, And it will release you, and it will release you.
|-
|}

==An gille-brìde (2)==
(The Oystercatcher)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Eòin bhig, eòin bhig, Bi glic, bi glic, Fo dhìon, fo dhìon, Fo dhìon, fo dhìon. || Little bird, little bird, Be smart, be smart, Under shelter, under shelter, Under shelter, under shelter.
|-
|}

==An iolaire ri spògan==
(The Eagle to its claws)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S ciùrrail sibh, 'S ciùrrail sibh, 'S bu dùth sin, 'S bu dùth sin. || You are vicious, You are vicious, And that is how it should be, And that is how it should be.
|-
|}

==An learg-dhubh (1)==
(The Diver/Loon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Deoch, deoch, deoch, An loch air tràghadh, Bùrn, bùrn, bùrn, 'S mo lùth air m' fhàgail. || A drink, a drink, a drink, The lake has dried up, Water, water, water, And my strength has left me.
|-
|}

==An learg-dhubh (2)==
(The Diver/Loon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Mo chreach, mo chreach, M' eòin is m' uighean, Mo dhìth, mo dhìth, Mo linn san tuilinn, M' urragain, m' uilleagain, M' eòin is m' uighean, M' ulaidh, m' eilean! || Oh dear, oh dear, My birds and my eggs, My ruin, my ruin, My brood in the flood, My darlings, my pets, My birds and my eggs, My darling, my island!
|-
|}

==An lon-dhubh (1)==
(The Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Bun a' ghuib, oir a' ghuib, barr a' ghuib, Lon dubh air a nead, Sheinn an lon-dubh, Lon dubh, hó-ró, Gràin air na feannagan! || Base of the beak, edge of the beak, end of the beak, Blackbird on it's nest, The blackbird sang, Hey blackbird, Shame on the crows!
|-
|}

==An lòn-dhubh (2)==
(The Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Dà eun bheag sa choille ud thall, 'S their an dara h-aon ris an aon eile, "'S toil leam thu, is toil leam thu!" 'S their am fear eile "Dearbh e, dearbh e!" || Two little birds in yonder forest, One of them says to the other, "I like you, I like you!" Says the other "prove it, prove it!"
|-
|}

==An sgreuchag==
(The Jay) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada airson sgreuchag ag iarraidh biadh.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Cuiribh rud, cuiribh rud! || Put something, put something!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach is an t-isean (1)==
(The Thrush and the Chick)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| S: 'Ille ruaidh bhig, 'ille ruaidh bhig, trobhad dachaigh, trobhad dachaigh! I: Ciod a thig, ciod a thig? S: Gu do bhiadh, gu do bhiadh! I: Dé 'm biadh, dé 'm biadh? S: Bloigh boiteige, bloigh boiteige! Bloigh bàirnich, bloigh bàirnich! || T: Little red boy, little red boy, come home, come home! C: To what purpose, to what purpose? T: To have your food, to have your food! C: What is the food, what is the food? T: Bits of worm, bits of worm! Bits of limpet, bits of limpet!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach is an t-isean (2)==
(The Thrush and the Chick)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| S: 'Ille ruaidh bhig, 'ille ruaidh bhig, trobhad dachaigh, trobhad dachaigh I: Ciod a thig, ciod a thig? S: Gu do bhiadh, gu do bhiadh! I: Dé 'm biadh, dé 'm biadh? S: Gràinnean cuilgeanach coirce, gràinnean cuilgeanach coirce! 'S boiteagan talmhainn, is boiteagan talmhainn! || T: Little red boy, little red boy, come home, come home! C: To what purpose, to what purpose? T: To have your food, to have your food! C: What is the food, what is the food? T: Bristly grains of oats, bristly grains of oats! And earthworms, and earthworms!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach ris an lon-dubh==
(The Thrush to the Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| An lon-dubh, an lon-dubh, an lon-dubh spàgach! Thug mise dhutsa coille fhasgach fheurach, 'S thug thusa dhomhsa monadh dubh fàsaich. Mo nàir' ort, mo nàir' ort! || The blackbird, the blackbird, the clawed blackbird! I gave you the sheltered, grassy forest, And you gave me the wilderness of the black mountains! Shame on you, shame on you!
|-
|}

==An t-adharcan-luachrach==
(The Lapwing)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Till, till, till, till, Na creach mo nead, na creach mo nead, Imeachd gun teachd dhut, Imeachd gun teachd dhut, A bhraidein, a bhraidein! || Come back, come back, come back, Don't plunder my nest, don't plunder my nest, Go and never return, go and never return, Go and never return, go and never return, Thief, thief!
|-
|}

==An traon==
(The Corncrake)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A Dhia nam feart, a Dhia nam feart, Cuir biadh sa ghart, cuir biadh sa ghart Freagairt na cloinne: An trian-ri-trian sa bhliadhna ri gréine, A' bhliadhna, a' bhliadhna 's am biadh san déis. || Oh God of miracles, oh God of miracles, Put food on the field, put food on the field. Childrens' Answer: The corncrake this year facing the sun, The year, the year and the food ready.
|-
|}

==An uiseag (1)==
(The Lark)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S minic, minic, minic, A thig Crìost an riochd a' choigrich, 'S minic, minic, minic, A thig Crìost an riochd a' choigrich. || Often, often, often, Christ comes in the shape of a stranger, Often, often, often, Comes Christ in the shape of a stranger.
|-
|}

==An uiseag (2)==
(The Lark)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Suas anns na neòil théid mi, théid mi, Le fonn 'nam chridhe gun deireas gun dìth, Dòirtidh mi mo òran le ceilearadh grinn, Air lag is air làidir, air slàn is air tinn, Clann bheaga nan daoine a dh'éisteas ri mo cheòl, Ma thachras mo nead ruibh an lagan an fheòir, Cuiribh le coibhneas dìon air mo linn, 'S seinnidh iad fhathast dhuibh leadanan binn. || Up into the clouds, the clouds I will go, With a song in my heart without want or need, I will sing my song with a happy warble, In weakness and strength, in health and sickness, Little man-children who listen to my song, If you happen upon my little nest in a hollow in the grass Protect my offspring with kindness, And they will live to sing you soft melodies.
|-
|}

==Ris an fhaoileag==
(To the Seagull)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Fhaoileag, fhaoileag taobh an cuan, Na faiceam thu air talamh cruaidh, Air talamh cruaidh ma nì thu fois, Bidh gaoth is dìle tighinn 'na chois. || Seagull, seagull by the ocean, Let me not see you on the ground, If you rest on the ground, Gales and heavy rain in your wake.
|-
|}

{{BeaganGaidhlig}}

Cainnt nan eun

2012-03-10T20:02:56Z

Thrissel: /* A' chearc (1) */

Chan eil na h-eòin ag ràdh dìreach facal no dhà sa Ghàidhlig ach rannan gu léir. Cluinnidh tu na h-eòin a' bìogail ma leughas tu iad os àird - agus cuimhnich dèanadh iad air sgàth seo oir uaireannan that feadhainn ann nach eil ro chiallach. Chan eil fhios againn-e carson a tha uimhir dhiubh ann ach tha iad ann co-dhiù. Fiù feadhainn à Canada fhèin!

Chuala sinn gun robh caoin ris na rannan seo, ach cha bu urrainn dhuinn an lorg - ma tha thusa eòlach orra, nach innis tu dhuinn?

----
Gaelic birds are talkative - they don't only say a word or two but whole rhymes. If you read them aloud, you can almost hear them chatter away - remember that that's why they were made up, since some of them don't make too much sense. We don't know why there are so many - even some which have evolved in Canada!

Allegedly there once were melodies to go with these - if anyone knows of them, do let us know!

==A' bhuidheag-bhealaidh==
(The Yellowhammer)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A ghille bhig chrìn, a ghille bhig chrìn, Till, till, till, till, Na creach mo nead, na creach mo nead, No théid thu dhi, no théid thu dhi. || Mean little boy, mean little boy, Come back, come back, come back, Don't plunder my nest, don't plunder my nest, Or you will be destroyed, or you will be destroyed.
|-
|}

==A' chailleachag==
(The Tit/Chickadee) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Spìd oirbh, spìd oirbh! || Spite you, spite you!
|-
|}

==A' chearc (1)==
(The Hen)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Gog, gog, gog, gog, Gog gog i, Beiridh mise a h-uile latha, 'S cha bheir a' bhó-laoigh! || Cluck, cluck, cluck, Cluck, cluck, I will bear every day, And the cow in calf won't!
|-
|}

==A' chearc (2)==
(The Robin)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Tog, tog, tog, Tog an rud a dh'fhàg mi, Ge beag an t-ugh, ge beag an t-ugh, Tha stà ann, tha stà ann! || Pick, pick pick, Pick up the thing I left behind, Though the egg is small, though the egg is small, It is useful, it is useful.
|-
|}

==A' chuthag==
(The Cuckoo)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| "Gug-gùg" arsa a' chuthag, latha buidhe Bealltainn, "Gug-gùg" arsa ise a-rithis, latha leth an t-samhraidh, Latha leth an t-samhraidh théid a' chuthag gu a taigh-geamhraidh. || "Cuckoo" said the cuckoo, on a golden May-Day, "Cuckoo" he said again, on Midsummers Day, On Midsummers Day the cuckoo will go to the house of winter.
|-
|}

==Am brù-dhearg (1)==
(The Robin)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Big, big, bigean! Có a chreach mo neadan? Mas e gille beag e, Cuiridh mi le creig e, Mas e gille mór e, Cuiridh mi le lòn e! Ach mas fear beag gun chéill e, Gun gléidheadh Dia do a mhàthair fhéin e! || Cheep cheep cheep! Who plundered my little nest? If it is a little boy, I shall throw him over a cliff, If it is a big boy, I shall throw him in a marsh! But if it is a little man without sense, God protect his mother!
|-
|}

==Am brù-dhearg (2)==
(The Robin)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Doire an t-sìthe, Doire an t-sìthe, Doire mo nid, Doire mo nid. || The oak of the hill, The oak of the hill, The oak of my nest, The oak of my nest.
|-
|}

==Am fitheach (1)==
(The Raven)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Earchall, earchall! Càite, càite? San làthaich, san làthaich! Sùil caorach, sùil caorach, 'S e b' fhearr leinn, 's e b' fhearr leinn! || Calamity, calamity! Where, where? In the mire, in the mire! Eye of a sheep, eye of a sheep, Is what we prefer, is what we prefer!
|-
|}

==Am fitheach (2)==
(The Raven) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Cà bheil an còrr, an corr, an corr? || Where is the rest, the rest, the rest?
|-
|}

==An calman==
(The Pigeon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Tha mo chùl riut, tha mo chùl riut, Chan ann de mo chuideachd thu, Chan ann de mo chuideachd thu, Chan itheadh tu siud gun mo chuid a thoirt dhomhsa, Gun mo chuid a thoirt dhomhsa. || I have turned my back on you, etc. You are not of my company, You are not of my company, You won't eat that without giving me my share, Without giving me my share.
|-
|}

==An coileach-fraoich==
(The Red Grouse)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Có bhrathadh, có bhrathadh? Có dh'fhaodadh, có dh'fhaodadh? Có bhagradh, có bhagradh? Mo chlaidheamh, mo chlaidheamh. || Who is spying, who is spying? Who might, who might? Who is threatening, who is threatening? My sword, my sword.
|-
|}

==An coileach mór 's an coileach beag==
(The Big Cockerel and the Wee Cockerel)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| An aithne dhut-sa có mi, a Dhòmhnaill? Mac circe, mac circe! || Do you know who I am, Donald? Son of a chicken, son of a chicken!
|-
|}

==An dreathan-donn==
(The Wren)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Thig, thig, thig a dhìol-deirce, Thig, thig, thig a ghille-bhrìghde, Is gillean-bhrìghde na h-eòin uile, Ach mise leam fhìn, Ach mise leam fhìn, Gillean-bhrìghde, gillean-bhrìghde. || Come, come you object of charity, Come, come, oystercatcher, And all the birds are oystercatchers, But I am on my own, But I am on my own Oystercatchers, oystercatchers.
|-
|}

==An fheadag==
(The Plover)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S mór mo dhìobhail, is mór mo dhìobhail, Tha mi cianail, tha mi cianail, Fàg leam fhìn mi, fàg leam fhìn mi. || My distress is great, my distress is great, I am sad, I am sad, Leave me alone, leave me alone.
|-
|}

==An fheannag ris a h-iseanan==
(The Crow to her chicks)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S greannach sibh, 'S greannach sibh, Is cha b' annasach, Cha b' annasach. || You are ugly, You are ugly, And that is no surprise, And that is no surprise.
|-
|}

==An gille-brìde (1)==
(The Oystercatcher)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A ghille ghuib dheirg, a ghille ghuib dheirg, Dé nì mi? Dé nì mi? Freagairt: Cum rithe, cum rithe, Thig an lìonadh, thig an lìonadh, is leigidh i ás thu, leigidh i ás thu. || Boy of the red beak, boy of the red beak, What will I do, what will I do? Answer: Keep on going, keep on going, The tide will come, the tide will come, And it will release you, and it will release you.
|-
|}

==An gille-brìde (2)==
(The Oystercatcher)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Eòin bhig, eòin bhig, Bi glic, bi glic, Fo dhìon, fo dhìon, Fo dhìon, fo dhìon. || Little bird, little bird, Be smart, be smart, Under shelter, under shelter, Under shelter, under shelter.
|-
|}

==An iolaire ri spògan==
(The Eagle to its claws)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S ciùrrail sibh, 'S ciùrrail sibh, 'S bu dùth sin, 'S bu dùth sin. || You are vicious, You are vicious, And that is how it should be, And that is how it should be.
|-
|}

==An learg-dhubh (1)==
(The Diver/Loon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Deoch, deoch, deoch, An loch air tràghadh, Bùrn, bùrn, bùrn, 'S mo lùth air m' fhàgail. || A drink, a drink, a drink, The lake has dried up, Water, water, water, And my strength has left me.
|-
|}

==An learg-dhubh (2)==
(The Diver/Loon)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Mo chreach, mo chreach, M' eòin is m' uighean, Mo dhìth, mo dhìth, Mo linn san tuilinn, M' urragain, m' uilleagain, M' eòin is m' uighean, M' ulaidh, m' eilean! || Oh dear, oh dear, My birds and my eggs, My ruin, my ruin, My brood in the flood, My darlings, my pets, My birds and my eggs, My darling, my island!
|-
|}

==An lon-dhubh (1)==
(The Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Bun a' ghuib, oir a' ghuib, barr a' ghuib, Lon dubh air a nead, Sheinn an lon-dubh, Lon dubh, hó-ró, Gràin air na feannagan! || Base of the beak, edge of the beak, end of the beak, Blackbird on it's nest, The blackbird sang, Hey blackbird, Shame on the crows!
|-
|}

==An lòn-dhubh (2)==
(The Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Dà eun bheag sa choille ud thall, 'S their an dara h-aon ris an aon eile, "'S toil leam thu, is toil leam thu!" 'S their am fear eile "Dearbh e, dearbh e!" || Two little birds in yonder forest, One of them says to the other, "I like you, I like you!" Says the other "prove it, prove it!"
|-
|}

==An sgreuchag==
(The Jay) 
Tha seo a' tighinn thugainn à Canada airson sgreuchag ag iarraidh biadh.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Cuiribh rud, cuiribh rud! || Put something, put something!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach is an t-isean (1)==
(The Thrush and the Chick)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| S: 'Ille ruaidh bhig, 'ille ruaidh bhig, trobhad dachaigh, trobhad dachaigh! I: Ciod a thig, ciod a thig? S: Gu do bhiadh, gu do bhiadh! I: Dé 'm biadh, dé 'm biadh? S: Bloigh boiteige, bloigh boiteige! Bloigh bàirnich, bloigh bàirnich! || T: Little red boy, little red boy, come home, come home! C: To what purpose, to what purpose? T: To have your food, to have your food! C: What is the food, what is the food? T: Bits of worm, bits of worm! Bits of limpet, bits of limpet!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach is an t-isean (2)==
(The Thrush and the Chick)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| S: 'Ille ruaidh bhig, 'ille ruaidh bhig, trobhad dachaigh, trobhad dachaigh I: Ciod a thig, ciod a thig? S: Gu do bhiadh, gu do bhiadh! I: Dé 'm biadh, dé 'm biadh? S: Gràinnean cuilgeanach coirce, gràinnean cuilgeanach coirce! 'S boiteagan talmhainn, is boiteagan talmhainn! || T: Little red boy, little red boy, come home, come home! C: To what purpose, to what purpose? T: To have your food, to have your food! C: What is the food, what is the food? T: Bristly grains of oats, bristly grains of oats! And earthworms, and earthworms!
|-
|}

==An smeòrach ris an lon-dubh==
(The Thrush to the Blackbird)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| An lon-dubh, an lon-dubh, an lon-dubh spàgach! Thug mise dhutsa coille fhasgach fheurach, 'S thug thusa dhomhsa monadh dubh fàsaich. Mo nàir' ort, mo nàir' ort! || The blackbird, the blackbird, the clawed blackbird! I gave you the sheltered, grassy forest, And you gave me the wilderness of the black mountains! Shame on you, shame on you!
|-
|}

==An t-adharcan-luachrach==
(The Lapwing)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Till, till, till, till, Na creach mo nead, na creach mo nead, Imeachd gun teachd dhut, Imeachd gun teachd dhut, A bhraidein, a bhraidein! || Come back, come back, come back, Don't plunder my nest, don't plunder my nest, Go and never return, go and never return, Go and never return, go and never return, Thief, thief!
|-
|}

==An traon==
(The Corncrake)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| A Dhia nam feart, a Dhia nam feart, Cuir biadh sa ghart, cuir biadh sa ghart Freagairt na cloinne: An trian-ri-trian sa bhliadhna ri gréine, A' bhliadhna, a' bhliadhna 's am biadh san déis. || Oh God of miracles, oh God of miracles, Put food on the field, put food on the field. Childrens' Answer: The corncrake this year facing the sun, The year, the year and the food ready.
|-
|}

==An uiseag (1)==
(The Lark)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| 'S minic, minic, minic, A thig Crìost an riochd a' choigrich, 'S minic, minic, minic, A thig Crìost an riochd a' choigrich. || Often, often, often, Christ comes in the shape of a stranger, Often, often, often, Comes Christ in the shape of a stranger.
|-
|}

==An uiseag (2)==
(The Lark)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Suas anns na neòil théid mi, théid mi, Le fonn 'nam chridhe gun deireas gun dìth, Dòirtidh mi mo òran le ceilearadh grinn, Air lag is air làidir, air slàn is air tinn, Clann bheaga nan daoine a dh'éisteas ri mo cheòl, Ma thachras mo nead ruibh an lagan an fheòir, Cuiribh le coibhneas dìon air mo linn, 'S seinnidh iad fhathast dhuibh leadanan binn. || Up into the clouds, the clouds I will go, With a song in my heart without want or need, I will sing my song with a happy warble, In weakness and strength, in health and sickness, Little man-children who listen to my song, If you happen upon my little nest in a hollow in the grass Protect my offspring with kindness, And they will live to sing you soft melodies.
|-
|}

==Ris an fhaoileag==
(To the Seagull)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Fhaoileag, fhaoileag taobh an cuan, Na faiceam thu air talamh cruaidh, Air talamh cruaidh ma nì thu fois, Bidh gaoth is dìle tighinn 'na chois. || Seagull, seagull by the ocean, Let me not see you on the ground, If you rest on the ground, Gales and heavy rain in your wake.
|-
|}

{{BeaganGaidhlig}}

Numerals or How to write a cheque in Gaelic

2012-03-10T19:37:55Z

Thrissel: /* Notes */

Numbers ... yes, oh what joy, but there's no avoiding them. There are three sets of numbers in Gaelic, just to keep life interesting, plus an old 'new way' they have dug up to make mathematics 'easier' for children in Gaelic Medium Education.

The first set of numbers is the "basic" set of numbers, the one you use for counting things. The second set is used if you're simply counting or giving a phone number - and the third for counting people (the same in both systems). Because we do not have the same space restrictions as books have, we are going to give you both systems up to a hundred (traditional first and further down the new old system) and then plenty of examples above 100. Because we will need to explain a few things half way and again, we have made a break after the 10's and the 20's and stuck in the explanations there and then and then continue with 11/31 etc. There are two examples each, one for masculine and one for feminine nouns.

==Zero to ten==
{| style="width: 55%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="15%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="25%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 0 || a neoini || neoini gob neoini bròg ||
|-
| 1 || a h-aon || aon ghob (m) aon bhròg (f) || a' chiad ghob a' chiad bhròg
|-
| 2 || a dhà || dà ghob dà bhròig || an dàrna gob an dàrna bròg
|-
| 3 || a trì || trì guib trì brògan || an treas gob an treas bròg
|-
| 4 || a ceithir || ceithir guib ceithir brògan || an ceathramh gob a' cheathramh bròg
|-
| 5 || a cóig || cóig guib cóig brògan || an cóigeamh gob a' chóigeamh bròg
|-
| 6 || a sia || sia guib sia brògan || an siathamh gob an t-siathamh bròg
|-
| 7 || a seachd || seachd guib seachd brògan || an seachdamh gob an t-seachdamh bròg
|-
| 8 || a h-ochd || ochd guib ochd brògan || an t-ochdamh gob an ochdamh bròg
|-
| 9 || a naoidh || naoidh guib naoidh brògan || an naoidheamh gob an naoidheamh bròg
|-
| 10 || a deich || deich gob deich bròg || an deicheamh gob an deicheamh bròg
|-
|}
===Notes===
Fun, isn't it? It's going to get even better ... but first the footnotes:

1) Aon and dà lenite the following consonant (bearing the rule about blocked lenition in mind). Is the noun followed by adjectives, dà lenites these as well e.g. dà thaigh mhór bhrèagha.

2) Dà is not followed by the plural, but what appears to be the singular. This isn't as bizarre as it may sound (yet again). Old Irish had something called the 'dual', a special number for counting two's - forms which looked very similar to the singular, so when the dual case went out of the window, pairs of things were grouped with the singular (in grammatical terms anyway). The only thing which is a reminder of this not being the singular case but something else is with feminine nouns, which slenderise after dà i.e. dà bhròig. Today this is mostly restricted to written Gaelic - but not to such a degree that you will sound odd if you do use it in spoken Gaelic, so the choice is yours.
Dà also lenites adjectives following a noun regardless of its gender but does not slenderise e.g. dà ghob mhór, dà bhròig mhór. Is the numeral phrase in the dative or genitive, the adjectives decline normally thus: leis an dà ghob mhór, leis an dà bhròig mhóir and an dà ghuib mhóir, an dà bhròige móire. Notice that an is used in the genitive with feminine nouns rather than na.

3) When preceded by a, dà changes to a dhà. Notwithstanding, you will hear people say things like dhà chù. Also, a prefixes h- to the numbers beginning with a vowel, thus you get a h-aon and a h-ochd.

4) The singular is used with dusan, fichead, multiples of fichead, ceud and mìle, millean etc. The singular is also used with measures (length, monetary units etc) e.g. sgillinn (but not not 'pound' which has a plural, notaichean), mìle, tròigh, pùnnd, clach ... 
Bliadhna, which actually IS an old plural form, does not change either when counting, even though you say things like bliadhnaichean air ais 'years ago'. Other time terms take the plural just as other nouns e.g. uairean, mionaidean, seachdainnean ...

5) Remember to lenite your adjectives after a masculine noun that pluralises by slenderisation e.g. seachd craobhan móra but seachd guib mhóra.

6) Instead of aon, aonan can be used in an emphatic sense, e.g có mheud a bha ann? Aonan!! 'How many were there? One!!'. Alternatively, you could answer ''Dìreach aon!''

7) The ordinal numbers obey the rules for case according to gender i.e. prefix t- in front of s and nothing before vowels for feminine nouns and t- before vowels for masculine nouns. A' chiad however is always a' chiad regardless of the gender of the noun. Deug lenites after feminine nouns as if it were an adjective. Adjectives themselves behave "normally" as if it were a simple noun phrase i.e. an t-siathamh bhròg mhór dheug 'the 16th big shoe' or air an t-siathamh bhròig mhóir dheug 'on the 16th big shoe'. 
EXCEPT that only a' chiad lenites a following noun i.e. even though it may be followed by a feminine noun, a' cheathramh never lenites.

8) Instead of aonamh you will see a number of variations such as aon and aona. Some people prefer to use a' chiad instead of aonamh altogether. Tritheamh is a variant of treas (behaves exactly the same way) as is dara of dàrna (behaving the same way too). We recommend the use of the system outlined here, however.

9) Ordinal numbers are "abbreviated" as follows: a' chiad » 1d; an dàrna » 2na; an treas » 3as; -eamh » Nmh. Above 20, however, 1d becomes 1mh, because it changes from a' chiad to an aonamh.

10) a' chiad becomes na ciad in phrases like na ciad eòin 'the first birds', similarly na dàrna, na treas etc. Ordinal numbers can also be lenited, e.g. by the possessive pronouns do dhàrna bean 'your second wife'.

11) There is a strong tendency in the spoken language to neutralise the masc/fem distinction if a numeral occurs between the definite article and the thing being counted. In other words, lots of people say an aonamh gob deug instead of an t-aonamh gob deug.

Ok, enough footnotes ... here's the numbers up to 30

==Eleven to thirty==
{| style="width: 75%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="15%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 11 || a h-aon deug || aon ghob deug aon bhròg dheug || an t-aonamh gob deug an aonamh bròg dheug
|-
| 12 ||a dhà dheug || dà ghob deug dà bhròig dheug || an dàrna gob deug an dàrna bròg dheug
|-
| 13 || a trì deug || trì guib dheug trì brògan deug || an treas gob deug an treas bròg dheug
|-
| 14 || a ceithir deug || ceithir guib dheug ceithir brògan deug || an ceathramh gob deug a' cheathramh bròg dheug
|-
| 15 || a cóig deug || cóig guib dheug cóig brògan deug || an cóigeamh gob deug a' chóigeamh bròg dheug
|-
| 16 || a sia deug || sia guib dheug sia brògan deug || an siathamh gob deug an t-siathamh bròg dheug
|-
| 17 || a seachd deug || seachd guib dheug seachd brògan deug || an seachdamh gob deug an t-seachdamh bròg dheug
|-
| 18 || a h-ochd deug || ochd guib dheug ochd brògan deug || an t-ochdamh gob deug an ochdamh bròg dheug
|-
| 19 || a naoi deug || naoidh guib dheug naoidh brògan deug || an naoidheamh gob deug an naoidheamh bròg dheug
|-
| 20 || fichead || fichead gob fichead bròg || am ficheadamh gob an fhicheadamh bròg
|-
| 21 || a h-aon ar fhichead || aon ghob ar fhichead aon bhròg ar fhichead || an t-aonamh gob ar fhichead an aonamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 22 || a dhà ar fhichead || dà ghob ar fhichead dà bhròig ar fhichead || an dàrna gob ar fhichead an dàrna bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 23 || a trì ar fhichead || trì guib dheug ar fhichead trì brògan deug ar fhichead || an treas gob ar fhichead an treas bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 24 || a ceithir ar fhichead || ceithir guib dheug ar fhichead ceithir brògan deug ar fhichead || an ceathramh gob ar fhichead a' cheathramh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 25 || a cóig ar fhichead || cóig guib dheug ar fhichead cóig brògan deug ar fhichead || an cóigeamh gob ar fhichead a' chóigeamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 26 || a sia ar fhichead || sia guib dheug ar fhichead sia brògan deug ar fhichead || an siathamh gob ar fhichead an t-siathamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 27 || a seachd ar fhichead || seachd guib dheug ar fhichead seachd brògan deug ar fhichead || an seachdamh gob ar fhichead an t-seachdamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 28 || a h-ochd ar fhichead || ochd guib dheug ar fhichead ochd brògan deug ar fhichead || an t-ochdamh gob deug ar fhichead an ochdamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 29 || a naoidh ar fhichead || naoidh guib dheug ar fhichead naoidh brògan deug ar fhichead || an naoidheamh gob deug ar fhichead an naoidheamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 30 ||a deich ar fhichead || fichead gob deug fichead bròg dheug || am ficheadamh gob deug an fhicheadamh bròg dheug
|-
|}
===Notes===
1) Where to start? Slightly contrary to current usage (and of course GOC), we have used ar instead of air. Actually the Gaelic way of saying thirty etc is not <ten on twenty> but <ten over twenty> - deich thar fhichead (thar shortened to ar). Ok, it still doesn't explain the lenition really, but it does explain why many people pronounce air here as /ar/ rather than /ɛrʲ/. Some people do pronounce it with a slender r, probably because of seing it written air all the time.

2) Note that the nouns lenite the numbers as if they were adjectives - so bròg being feminine lenites deug and guib lenites deug because it is an indefinite masculine noun which forms its plural by slenderisation ... don't you just love it?

3) Full multiples of twenty are not preceded by a when counting, thus a deich but fichead, fichead is a deich but dàichead.

Ok, you're bursting for more, yes?

==Thirty to 100+==
{| style="width: 100%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="20%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="35%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 31 || a h-aon deug ar fhichead || aon ghob deug ar fhichead aon bhròg dheug ar fhichead || an t-aonamh gob deug ar fhichead an aonamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 32 || a dhà dheug ar fhichead || dà ghob dheug ar fhichead dà bhròig dheug ar fhichead || an dàrna gob deug ar fhichead an dàrna bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 33 || a trì deug ar fhichead || trì guib dheug ar fhichead trì brògan deug ar fhichead || an treas gob deug ar fhichead an treas bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 34 || a ceithir deug ar fhichead || ceithir guib dheug ar fhichead ceithir brògan deug ar fhichead || an ceathramh gob deug ar fhichead a' cheathramh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 35 || a cóig deug ar fhichead || cóig guib dheug ar fhichead cóig brògan deug ar fhichead || an cóigeamh gob deug ar fhichead a' chóigeamh bhròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 36 || a sia deug ar fhichead || sia guib dheug ar fhichead sia brògan deug ar fhichead || an siathamh gob deug ar fhichead an t-siathamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 37 || a seachd deug ar fhichead || seachd guib dheug ar fhichead seachd brògan deug ar fhichead || an seachdamh gob deug ar fhichead an t-seachdamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 38 || a h-ochd deug ar fhichead || ochd guib dheug ar fhichead ochd brògan deug ar fhichead || an t-ochdamh gob deug ar fhichead an ochdamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 39 || a naoidh deug ar fhichead || naoidh guib dheug ar fhichead naoidh brògan deug ar fhichead || an naoidheamh gob deug ar fhichead an naoidheamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 40 || dàichead || dàichead gob dàichead bròg || an dàicheadamh gob an dàicheadamh bròg
|-
| 41 || dàichead is a h-aon || dàichead gob is a h-aon dàichead bròg is a h-aon || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-aon an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 42 || dàichead is a dhà || dàichead gob is a dhà dàichead bròg is a dhà || an dàicheadamh gob is a dhà an dàicheadamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 43 || dàichead is a trì || dàichead gob is a trì dàichead bròg is a trì || an dàicheadamh gob is a trì an dàicheadamh bròg is a trì
|-
| 44 || dàichead is a ceithir || dàichead gob is a ceithir dàichead bròg is a ceithir || an dàicheadamh gob is a ceithir an dàicheadamh bròg is a ceithir
|-
| 45 || dàichead is a cóig || dàichead gob is a cóig dàichead bròg is a cóig || an dàicheadamh gob is a cóig an dàicheadamh bròg is a cóig
|-
| 46 || dàichead is a sia || dàichead gob is a sia dàichead bròg is a sia || an dàicheadamh gob is a sia an dàicheadamh bròg is a sia
|-
| 47 || dàichead is a seachd || dàichead gob is a seachd dàichead bròg is a seachd || an dàicheadamh gob is a seachd an dàicheadamh bròg is a seachd
|-
| 48 || dàichead is a h-ochd || dàichead gob is a h-ochd dàichead bròg is a h-ochd || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-ochd an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-ochd
|-
| 49 || dàichead is a naoidh || dàichead gob is a naoidh dàichead bròg is a naoidh || an dàicheadamh gob is a naoidh an dàicheadamh bròg is a naoidh
|-
| 50 || dàichead is a deich || dàichead gob is a deich dàichead bròg is a deich || an dàicheadamh gob is a deich an dàicheadamh bròg is a deich
|-
| 51 || dàichead is a h-aon deug || dàichead gob is a h-aon deug dàichead bròg is a h-aon deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-aon deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-aon deug
|-
| 52 || dàichead is a dhà dheug || dàichead gob is a dhà dheug dàichead bròg is a dhà dheug ||an dàicheadamh gob is a dhà dheug an dàicheadamh bròg is a dhà dheug
|-
| 53 || dàichead is a trì deug || dàichead gob is a trì deug dàichead bròg is a trì deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a trì deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a trì deug
|-
| 54 || dàichead is a ceithir deug || dàichead gob is a ceithir deug dàichead bròg is a ceithir deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a ceithir deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a ceithir deug
|-
| 55 || dàichead is a cóig deug || dàichead gob is a cóig deug dàichead bròg is a cóig deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a cóig deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a cóig deug
|-
| 56 || dàichead is a sia deug || dàichead gob is a sia deug dàichead bròg is a sia deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a sia deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a sia deug
|-
| 57 || dàichead is a seachd deug || dàichead gob is a seachd deug dàichead bròg is a seachd deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a seachd deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a seachd deug
|-
| 58 || dàichead is a h-ochd deug || dàichead gob is a h-ochd deug dàichead bròg is a h-ochd deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-ochd deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-ochd deug
|-
| 59 || dàichead is a naoidh deug || dàichead gob is a naoidh deug dàichead bròg is a naoidh deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a naoidh deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a naoidh deug
|-
| 60 || trì fichead || trì fichead gob trì fichead bròg || an trì ficheadamh gob an trì ficheadamh bròg
|-
| 61 || trì fichead is a h-aon ||trì fichead gob is a h-aon trì fichead bròg is a h-aon || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-aon an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 62 || trì fichead is a dhà || trì fichead gob is a dhà trì fichead bròg is a dhà || an trì ficheadamh gob is a dhà an trì ficheadamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 63 || trì fichead is a trì || trì fichead gob is a trì trì fichead bròg is a trì || an trì ficheadamh gob is a trì an trì 20mh bròg is a trì
|-
| 64 || trì fichead is a ceithir || trì fichead gob is a ceithir trì fichead bròg is a ceithir || an trì ficheadamh gob is a ceithir an trì 20mh bròg is a ceithir
|-
| 65 || trì fichead is a cóig || trì fichead gob is a cóig trì fichead bròg is a cóig || an trì ficheadmh gob is a cóig an trì ficheadamh bròg is a cóig
|-
| 66 || trì fichead is a sia || trì fichead gob is a sia trì fichead bròg is a sia || an trì ficheadamh gob is a sia an trì ficheadamh bròg is a sia
|-
| 67 || trì fichead is a seachd || trì fichead gob is a seachd trì fichead bròg is a seachd || an trì ficheadamh gob is a seachd an trì ficheadamh bròg is a seachd
|-
| 68 || trì fichead is a h-ochd || trì fichead gob is a h-ochd trì fichead bròg is a h-ochd || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd
|-
| 69 || trì fichead is a naoidh || trì fichead gob is a naoidh trì fichead bròg is a naoidh || an trì ficheadamh gob is a naoidh an trì ficheadamh bròg is a naoidh
|-
| 70 || trì fichead is a deich || trì fichead gob is a deich trì fichead bròg is a deich || an trì ficheadamh gob is a deich an trì ficheadamh bròg is a deich
|-
| 71 || trì fichead is a h-aon deug || trì fichead gob is a h-aon deug trì fichead bròg is a h-aon deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-aon deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon deug
|-
| 72 || trì fichead is a dhà dheug || trì fichead gob is a dhà dheug trì fichead bròg is a dhà dheug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a dhà dheug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a dhà dheug
|-
| 73 || trì fichead is a trì deug || trì fichead gob is a trì deug trì fichead bròg is a trì deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a trì deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a trì deug
|-
| 74 || trì fichead is a ceithir deug || trì fichead gob is a ceithir deug trì fichead bròg is a ceithir deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a ceithir deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a ceithir deug
|-
| 75 || trì fichead is a cóig deug || trì fichead gob is a cóig deug trì fichead bròg is a cóig deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a cóig deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a cóig deug
|-
| 76 || trì fichead is a sia deug || trì fichead gob is a sia deug trì fichead bròg is a sia deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a sia deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a sia deug
|-
| 77 || trì fichead is a seachd deug || trì fichead gob is a seachd deug trì fichead bròg is a seachd deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a seachd deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a seachd deug
|-
| 78 || trì fichead is a h-ochd deug || trì fichead gob is a h-ochd deug trì fichead bròg is a h-ochd deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd deug
|-
| 79 || trì fichead is a naoidh deug || trì fichead gob is a naoidh deug trì fichead bròg is a naoidh deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a naoidh deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a naoi deug
|-
| 80 || ceithir fichead || ceithir fichead gob ceithir fichead bròg || an ceithir ficheadamh gob an ceithir ficheadamh bròg
|-
| 81 || ceithir fichead is a h-aon || ceithir fichead gob is a h-aon ceithir fichead bròg is a h-aon || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-aon an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 82 || ceithir fichead is a dhà || ceithir fichead gob is a dhà ceithir fichead bròg is a dhà || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a dhà an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 83 || ceithir fichead is a trì || ceithir fichead gob is a trì ceithir fichead bròg is a trì || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a trì an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a trì
|-
| 84 || ceithir fichead is a ceithir || ceithir fichead gob is a ceithir ceithir fichead bròg is a ceithir || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a ceithir an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a ceithir
|-
| 85 || ceithir fichead is a cóig || ceithir fichead gob is a cóig ceithir fichead bròg is a cóig || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a cóig an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a cóig
|-
| 86 || ceithir fichead is a sia || ceithir fichead gob is a sia ceithir fichead bròg is a sia || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a sia an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a sia
|-
| 87 || ceithir fichead is a seachd || ceithir fichead gob is a seachd ceithir fichead bròg is a seachd || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a seachd an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a seachd
|-
| 88 || ceithir fichead is a h-ochd || ceithir fichead gob is a h-ochd ceithir fichead bròg is a h-ochd || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd
|-
| 89 || ceithir fichead is a naoi || ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh ceithir fichead bròg is a naoidh || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a naoidh an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a naoidh
|-
| 90 || ceithir fichead is a deich || ceithir fichead gob is a deich ceithir fichead bròg is a deich || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a deich an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a deich
|-
| 91 || ceithir fichead is a h-aon deug || ceithir fichead gob is a h-aon deug ceithir fichead bròg is a h-aon deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-aon deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon deug
|-
| 92 || ceithir fichead is a dhà dheug || ceithir fichead gob is a dhà dheug ceithir fichead bròg is a dhà dheug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a dhà dheug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a dhà dheug
|-
| 93 || ceithir fichead is a trì deug || ceithir fichead gob is a trì deug ceithir fichead bròg is a trì deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a trì deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a trì deug
|-
| 94 || ceithir fichead is a ceithir deug || ceithir fichead gob is a ceithir deug ceithir fichead bròg is a ceithir deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a ceithir deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a ceithir deug
|-
| 95 || ceithir fichead is a cóig deug || ceithir fichead gob is a cóig deug ceithir fichead bròg is a cóig deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a cóig deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a cóig deug
|-
| 96 || ceithir fichead is a sia deug || ceithir fichead gob is a sia deug ceithir fichead bròg is a sia deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a sia deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a sia deug
|-
| 97 || ceithir fichead is a seachd deug || ceithir fichead gob is a seachd deug ceithir fichead bròg is a seachd deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a seachd deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a seachd deug
|-
| 98 || ceithir fichead is a h-ochd deug || ceithir fichead gob is a h-ochd deug ceithir fichead bròg is a h-ochd deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd deug
|-
| 99 || ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug || ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh deug ceithir fichead bròg is a naoidh deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a naoidh deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a naoidh deug
|-
| 100 || ceud || ceud gob ceud bròg || an ceudamh gob an ceudamh bròg
|-
| 101 || ceud is a h-aon || ceud gob is a h-aon ceud bròg is a h-aon || an ceudamh gob is a h-aon an ceudamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 102 || ceud is a dhà || ceud gob is a dhà ceud bròg is a dhà || an ceudamh gob is a dhà an ceudamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 103 || ceud is a trì || ceud gob is a trì ceud bròg is a trì || an ceudamh gob is a trì an ceudamh bròg is a trì
|-
|}

===Notes===
And the footnotes:

1) 50: Instead of dàichead is a deich, leth cheud can be used, which does not lenite.

2) In spoken Gaelic is a is often shortened to 's a /sə/ - not to be confused with sa 'in the'.

3) Dàichead is a shortened form of dà fhichead. It is not only easier to read, but also reflects the actual stress placement better (only on the dà-) when counting which is why we prefer it.

4) Once you reach ceudamh, no gender distinctions are necessary any more.

5) Sometimes the vigesimal system is used up to 200 i.e. cóig fichead, sia fichead, seachd fichead, ochd fichead, naoi fichead, but never beyond that.

==Higher Still==
Yes, we said we'd only go up to a hundred, but in real life we need to tackle larger numbers too, so here are a few further key numbers so you will get an understanding of how to tackle larger numbers. And yes, many a Gaelic teacher will tell you that most Gaels use English numbers when counting anything complex above 50 or 100, but first of all that is beside the point and secondly that has much to do with the fact that almost all Gaelic speaking adults over 20 have been educated through the medium of English, particularly when it comes to maths, which is not a subject commonly taught in GME, especially not at secondary level. Go on, how good are your number skills in French or German over 50?

So do learn how to express these numbers, but we advise caution as to with whom you can use them. Learners, teachers, very literate native speakers and young people who have had GME. If you feel like doing some language planning, you can always use the Gaelic numbers regardless of with whom you are speaking and then gloss it by following it with the number in English.

{| style="width: 100%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="20%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="35%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 105 || ceud is a cóig || ceud gob is a cóig || an ceudamh gob is a còig
|-
| 125 || ceud, fichead is a cóig || ceud, fichead gob is a cóig || an ceudamh, cóig guib ar fhichead
|-
| 220 || dà cheud is fichead || dà cheud gob is fichead || an dà cheudamh gob ar fhichead
|-
| 400 || ceithir ceud || ceithir cheud gob || an ceithir cheudamh gob
|-
| 552 || cóig cheud, dàichead is a dhà dheug || cóig cheud, dàichead gob is a dhà dheug || an cóig cheudamh, dàichead gob is a dhà dheug
|-
| 592 || cóig ceud, ceithir fichead is a dhà dheug || cóig ceud, ceithir fichead gob is a dhà dheug || an ceithir ceudamh, ceithir fichead gob is a dhà dheug
|-
| 1,000 || mìle || mìle gob || am mìleamh gob
|-
| 1,238 || mìle, dà cheud, ochd deug ar fhichead || mìle, dà cheud, ochd guib dheug ar fhichead || am mìleamh, dà cheud,
ochd guib dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 4,673 || ceithir mìle, sia ceud, trì fichead is trì deug || ceithir mìle, sia cheud, trì fichead gob is trì deug || an ceithir mìleamh, sia cheud, trì fichead gob is trì deug
|-
| 10,000 || deich mìle || deich mìle gob || an deich mìleamh gob
|-
| 16,745 || sia mìle deug, seachd ceud, dàichead is a cóig || sia mìle deug, seachd ceud, dàichead gob is a cóig || an sia mìleamh deug, seachd ceud, dàichead gob is a cóig
|-
| 56,965 || dàichead mìle is sia deug, naoidh ceud, trì fichead is a cóig || dàichead mìle is a sia deug, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a cóig || an dàichead mìleamh is sia deug, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a cóig
|-
| 200,000 || dà cheud mìle || dà cheud mìle gob || an dà cheud mìleamh gob
|-
| 143,976 || ceud mìle dàichead is a trì, naoidh ceud, trì fichead is a sia || ceud mìle dàichead is a trì, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a sia || an ceud mìleamh dàichead is a trì, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a sia
|-
| 999,999 || naoidh ceud mìle ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug, naoidh ceud, ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug || naoidh ceud mìle ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug, naoidh ceud, ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh deug || naoidh ceud mìleamh ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug, naoidh ceud, ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh deug
|-
| 1,000,000 || millean || millean gob || am milleanamh gob
|-
| 5,867,835 || cóig millean, ochd ceud mìle trì fichead is seachd, ochd ceud, cóig deug ar fhichead || cóig millean, ochd ceud mìle trì fichead is a seachd, ochd ceud, cóig guib dheug ar fhichead || an cóig milleanamh, ochd ceud mìle trì fichead is seachd, ochd ceud, cóig guib dheug ar fhichead
|-
|}

===Notes===
Footnote or ten ...

1) The comma is only "notional" that is, it's a "speech break" you put in when saying the number. You don't actually write it when spelling out numbers - we just put them in here to demonstrate where the breaks would be.

2) The numbers 2-6 lenite ceud, so you get dà cheud, trì cheud, ceithir cheud, cóig cheud and sia cheud. This is NOT completely arbitrary but the last remaining vestiges of something Gaelic lost. Traditionally (well, several hundred years back in Gaelic terms), the number 1-6 lenite while the numbers 7-10 nasalize. Meaning? Well, seeing Irish still does this, let's have a look at how you count boats in Irish: bád, dhá bhád, trí bhád, ceithre bhád, cúig bhád, sé bhád, seacht mbád, ocht mbád, naoi mbád, deich mbád. Cool, isn't it? Gaelic stopped doing this a long time ago - except with the word ceud for whatever reason. In older texts, you might also come across things like trì thaighean occasionally.

3) Between 1001 and 9999, you can employ "splitting" into hundreds as you would with a year, e.g. 1267 as dà cheud dheag, trì fichead is a seachd.

4) As mentioned above, there is the possibility to express numbers up to 200 in twenties e.g. 136 as ceud, sia deug ar fhichead or sia fichead is a sia deug. So 136 ice-creams would be sia fichead reòiteag is a deich.

5) Leth refers to a half of the previous largest round 100, 1.000, 10.000 etc unit. This gives a value of 50, 500, 5.000 etc. These are then combined to give 150, 1.500, 15.000 etc. Enter the "illogical" step. You might imagine that trì cheud gu leth equals 450. Wrong. It equals 350. This principle applies at each level (100, 1.000, 10.000 etc). You can then add the numbers 1-9 to these expressions, but once you hit the next full 10, you have to revert to the "normal" way of counting, e.g. dà mhìle gu leth, dà mhìle gu leth is a h-aon, dà mhìle gu leth is a dhà ... dà mhìle gu leth is a naoi, dà mhìle is trì fichead. Leth cheud, leth mhìle etc work the same way. Alternatively you can just stick to the "normal" numbers

6) Possessives ... the ones that lenite, lenite numbers and the ones that add n- add n- to numbers beginning with vowels: mo dhà shùil, a thrì taighean, ar n-ochd caraidean. An so on.

7) Plurals. Numbers form their plurals 'relatively' regularly by adding -(e)an, -than, -dhean, -tean: aon » aonan, dà » dàthan, trì » trìthean, ceithir » ceithirean, cóig » cóigean, sia » siathan, seachd » seachdan, ochd » ochdan, naoi » naoidhean, deich » deichean, fichead » ficheadan, ceud » ceudan, mìle » mìltean, millean » milleanan. When will you ever need that? Well, try saying "I shook four sixes in a row" without using a plural of six ...

8) And last but not least, there is a tendency to stick the thing being counted at the very end with large numbers, especially with monetary units, so ¥51.655 would be dàichead mìle, sia ceud, trì fichead is a cóig Yen rather than dàichead mìle, sia ceud, trì fichead Yen is a cóig.

Hooray, you've cracked it ... except that Gaelic educationalists have had other plans ....
Oh, and there's a separate page on how to give the date and time in Gaelic.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Numerals or How to write a cheque in Gaelic

2012-03-10T19:37:30Z

Thrissel: /* Notes */

Numbers ... yes, oh what joy, but there's no avoiding them. There are three sets of numbers in Gaelic, just to keep life interesting, plus an old 'new way' they have dug up to make mathematics 'easier' for children in Gaelic Medium Education.

The first set of numbers is the "basic" set of numbers, the one you use for counting things. The second set is used if you're simply counting or giving a phone number - and the third for counting people (the same in both systems). Because we do not have the same space restrictions as books have, we are going to give you both systems up to a hundred (traditional first and further down the new old system) and then plenty of examples above 100. Because we will need to explain a few things half way and again, we have made a break after the 10's and the 20's and stuck in the explanations there and then and then continue with 11/31 etc. There are two examples each, one for masculine and one for feminine nouns.

==Zero to ten==
{| style="width: 55%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="15%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="25%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 0 || a neoini || neoini gob neoini bròg ||
|-
| 1 || a h-aon || aon ghob (m) aon bhròg (f) || a' chiad ghob a' chiad bhròg
|-
| 2 || a dhà || dà ghob dà bhròig || an dàrna gob an dàrna bròg
|-
| 3 || a trì || trì guib trì brògan || an treas gob an treas bròg
|-
| 4 || a ceithir || ceithir guib ceithir brògan || an ceathramh gob a' cheathramh bròg
|-
| 5 || a cóig || cóig guib cóig brògan || an cóigeamh gob a' chóigeamh bròg
|-
| 6 || a sia || sia guib sia brògan || an siathamh gob an t-siathamh bròg
|-
| 7 || a seachd || seachd guib seachd brògan || an seachdamh gob an t-seachdamh bròg
|-
| 8 || a h-ochd || ochd guib ochd brògan || an t-ochdamh gob an ochdamh bròg
|-
| 9 || a naoidh || naoidh guib naoidh brògan || an naoidheamh gob an naoidheamh bròg
|-
| 10 || a deich || deich gob deich bròg || an deicheamh gob an deicheamh bròg
|-
|}
===Notes===
Fun, isn't it? It's going to get even better ... but first the footnotes:

1) Aon and dà lenite the following consonant (bearing the rule about blocked lenition in mind). Is the noun followed by adjectives, dà lenites these as well e.g. dà thaigh mhór bhrèagha.

2) Dà is not followed by the plural, but what appears to be the singular. This isn't as bizarre as it may sound (yet again). Old Irish had something called the 'dual', a special number for counting two's - forms which looked very similar to the singular, so when the dual case went out of the window, pairs of things were grouped with the singular (in grammatical terms anyway). The only thing which is a reminder of this not being the singular case but something else is with feminine nouns, which slenderise after dà i.e. dà bhròig. Today this is mostly restricted to written Gaelic - but not to such a degree that you will sound odd if you do use it in spoken Gaelic, so the choice is yours.
Dà also lenites adjectives following a noun regardless of its gender but does not slenderise e.g. dà ghob mhór, dà bhròig mhór. Is the numeral phrase in the dative or genitive, the adjectives decline normally thus: leis an dà ghob mhór, leis an dà bhròig mhóir and an dà ghuib mhóir, an dà bhròige móire. Notice that an is used in the genitive with feminine nouns rather than na.

3) When preceded by a, dà changes to a dhà. Notwithstanding, you will hear people say things like dhà chù. Also, a prefixes h- to the numbers beginning with a vowel, thus you get a h-aon and a h-ochd.

4) The singular is used with dusan, fichead, multiples of fichead, ceud and mìle, millean etc. The singular is also used with measures (length, monetary units etc) e.g. sgillinn (but not not 'pound' which has a plural, notaichean), mìle, tròigh, pùnnd, clach ... 
Bliadhna, which actually IS an old plural form, does not change either when counting, even though you say things like bliadhnaichean air ais 'years ago'. Other time terms take the plural just as other nouns e.g. uairean, mionaidean, seachdainnean ...

5) Remember to lenite your adjectives after a masculine noun that pluralises by slenderisation e.g. seachd craobhan móra but seachd guib mhóra.

6) Instead of aon, aonan can be used in an emphatic sense, e.g có mheud a bha ann? Aonan!! 'How many were there? One!!'. Alternatively, you could answer ''Dìreach aon!''

7) The ordinal numbers obey the rules for case according to gender i.e. prefix t- in front of s and nothing before vowels for feminine nouns and t- before vowels for masculine nouns. A' chiad however is always a' chiad regardless of the gender of the noun. Deug lenites after feminine nouns as if it were an adjective. Adjectives themselves behave "normally" as if it were a simple noun phrase i.e. an t-siathamh bhròg mhór dheug 'the 16th big shoe' or air an t-siathamh bhròig mhóir dheug 'on the 16th big shoe'. 
EXCEPT that only a' chiad lenites a following noun i.e. even though it may be followed by a feminine noun, a' cheathramh never lenites.

8) Instead of aonamh you will see a number of variations such as aon and aona. Some people prefer to use a' chiad instead of aonamh altogether. Tritheamh is a variant of treas (behaves exactly the same way) as is dara of dàrna (behaving the same way too). We recommend the use of the system outlined here, however.

9) Ordinal numbers are "abbreviated" as follows: a' chiad » 1d; an dàrna » 2na; an treas » 3as; -eamh » Nmh. Above 20, however, 1d becomes 1mh, because it changes from a' chiad to an aonamh.

10) a' chiad becomes na ciad in phrases like na ciad eòin 'the first birds', similarly na dàrna, na treas etc. Ordinal numbers can also be lenited, e.g. by the possessive pronouns do dhàrna bean 'your second wife'.

11) There is a strong tendency in the spoken language to neutralise the masc/fem distinction if a numeral occurs between the definite article and the thing being counted. In other words, lots of people say an aonamh gob deug instead of an t-aonamh gob deug.

Ok, enough footnotes ... here's the numbers up to 30

==Eleven to thirty==
{| style="width: 75%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="15%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 11 || a h-aon deug || aon ghob deug aon bhròg dheug || an t-aonamh gob deug an aonamh bròg dheug
|-
| 12 ||a dhà dheug || dà ghob deug dà bhròig dheug || an dàrna gob deug an dàrna bròg dheug
|-
| 13 || a trì deug || trì guib dheug trì brògan deug || an treas gob deug an treas bròg dheug
|-
| 14 || a ceithir deug || ceithir guib dheug ceithir brògan deug || an ceathramh gob deug a' cheathramh bròg dheug
|-
| 15 || a cóig deug || cóig guib dheug cóig brògan deug || an cóigeamh gob deug a' chóigeamh bròg dheug
|-
| 16 || a sia deug || sia guib dheug sia brògan deug || an siathamh gob deug an t-siathamh bròg dheug
|-
| 17 || a seachd deug || seachd guib dheug seachd brògan deug || an seachdamh gob deug an t-seachdamh bròg dheug
|-
| 18 || a h-ochd deug || ochd guib dheug ochd brògan deug || an t-ochdamh gob deug an ochdamh bròg dheug
|-
| 19 || a naoi deug || naoidh guib dheug naoidh brògan deug || an naoidheamh gob deug an naoidheamh bròg dheug
|-
| 20 || fichead || fichead gob fichead bròg || am ficheadamh gob an fhicheadamh bròg
|-
| 21 || a h-aon ar fhichead || aon ghob ar fhichead aon bhròg ar fhichead || an t-aonamh gob ar fhichead an aonamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 22 || a dhà ar fhichead || dà ghob ar fhichead dà bhròig ar fhichead || an dàrna gob ar fhichead an dàrna bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 23 || a trì ar fhichead || trì guib dheug ar fhichead trì brògan deug ar fhichead || an treas gob ar fhichead an treas bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 24 || a ceithir ar fhichead || ceithir guib dheug ar fhichead ceithir brògan deug ar fhichead || an ceathramh gob ar fhichead a' cheathramh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 25 || a cóig ar fhichead || cóig guib dheug ar fhichead cóig brògan deug ar fhichead || an cóigeamh gob ar fhichead a' chóigeamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 26 || a sia ar fhichead || sia guib dheug ar fhichead sia brògan deug ar fhichead || an siathamh gob ar fhichead an t-siathamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 27 || a seachd ar fhichead || seachd guib dheug ar fhichead seachd brògan deug ar fhichead || an seachdamh gob ar fhichead an t-seachdamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 28 || a h-ochd ar fhichead || ochd guib dheug ar fhichead ochd brògan deug ar fhichead || an t-ochdamh gob deug ar fhichead an ochdamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 29 || a naoidh ar fhichead || naoidh guib dheug ar fhichead naoidh brògan deug ar fhichead || an naoidheamh gob deug ar fhichead an naoidheamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 30 ||a deich ar fhichead || fichead gob deug fichead bròg dheug || am ficheadamh gob deug an fhicheadamh bròg dheug
|-
|}
===Notes===
1) Where to start? Slightly contrary to current usage (and of course GOC), we have used ar instead of air. Actually the Gaelic way of saying thirty etc is not <ten on twenty> but <ten over twenty> - deich thar fhichead (thar shortened to ar). Ok, it still doesn't explain the lenition really, but it does explain why many people pronounce air here as /ar/ rather than /ɛrʲ/. Some people do pronounce it with a slender r, probably because of seing it written air all the time.

2) Note that the nouns lenite the numbers as if they were adjectives - so bròg being feminine lenites deug and guib lenites deug because it is an indefinite masculine noun which forms its plural by slenderisation ... don't you just love it?

3) Full multiples of twenty are not preceded by a when counting, thus a deich but fichead, fichead is a deich but dàichead.

Ok, you're bursting for more, yes?

==Thirty to 100+==
{| style="width: 100%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="20%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="35%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 31 || a h-aon deug ar fhichead || aon ghob deug ar fhichead aon bhròg dheug ar fhichead || an t-aonamh gob deug ar fhichead an aonamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 32 || a dhà dheug ar fhichead || dà ghob dheug ar fhichead dà bhròig dheug ar fhichead || an dàrna gob deug ar fhichead an dàrna bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 33 || a trì deug ar fhichead || trì guib dheug ar fhichead trì brògan deug ar fhichead || an treas gob deug ar fhichead an treas bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 34 || a ceithir deug ar fhichead || ceithir guib dheug ar fhichead ceithir brògan deug ar fhichead || an ceathramh gob deug ar fhichead a' cheathramh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 35 || a cóig deug ar fhichead || cóig guib dheug ar fhichead cóig brògan deug ar fhichead || an cóigeamh gob deug ar fhichead a' chóigeamh bhròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 36 || a sia deug ar fhichead || sia guib dheug ar fhichead sia brògan deug ar fhichead || an siathamh gob deug ar fhichead an t-siathamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 37 || a seachd deug ar fhichead || seachd guib dheug ar fhichead seachd brògan deug ar fhichead || an seachdamh gob deug ar fhichead an t-seachdamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 38 || a h-ochd deug ar fhichead || ochd guib dheug ar fhichead ochd brògan deug ar fhichead || an t-ochdamh gob deug ar fhichead an ochdamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 39 || a naoidh deug ar fhichead || naoidh guib dheug ar fhichead naoidh brògan deug ar fhichead || an naoidheamh gob deug ar fhichead an naoidheamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 40 || dàichead || dàichead gob dàichead bròg || an dàicheadamh gob an dàicheadamh bròg
|-
| 41 || dàichead is a h-aon || dàichead gob is a h-aon dàichead bròg is a h-aon || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-aon an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 42 || dàichead is a dhà || dàichead gob is a dhà dàichead bròg is a dhà || an dàicheadamh gob is a dhà an dàicheadamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 43 || dàichead is a trì || dàichead gob is a trì dàichead bròg is a trì || an dàicheadamh gob is a trì an dàicheadamh bròg is a trì
|-
| 44 || dàichead is a ceithir || dàichead gob is a ceithir dàichead bròg is a ceithir || an dàicheadamh gob is a ceithir an dàicheadamh bròg is a ceithir
|-
| 45 || dàichead is a cóig || dàichead gob is a cóig dàichead bròg is a cóig || an dàicheadamh gob is a cóig an dàicheadamh bròg is a cóig
|-
| 46 || dàichead is a sia || dàichead gob is a sia dàichead bròg is a sia || an dàicheadamh gob is a sia an dàicheadamh bròg is a sia
|-
| 47 || dàichead is a seachd || dàichead gob is a seachd dàichead bròg is a seachd || an dàicheadamh gob is a seachd an dàicheadamh bròg is a seachd
|-
| 48 || dàichead is a h-ochd || dàichead gob is a h-ochd dàichead bròg is a h-ochd || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-ochd an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-ochd
|-
| 49 || dàichead is a naoidh || dàichead gob is a naoidh dàichead bròg is a naoidh || an dàicheadamh gob is a naoidh an dàicheadamh bròg is a naoidh
|-
| 50 || dàichead is a deich || dàichead gob is a deich dàichead bròg is a deich || an dàicheadamh gob is a deich an dàicheadamh bròg is a deich
|-
| 51 || dàichead is a h-aon deug || dàichead gob is a h-aon deug dàichead bròg is a h-aon deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-aon deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-aon deug
|-
| 52 || dàichead is a dhà dheug || dàichead gob is a dhà dheug dàichead bròg is a dhà dheug ||an dàicheadamh gob is a dhà dheug an dàicheadamh bròg is a dhà dheug
|-
| 53 || dàichead is a trì deug || dàichead gob is a trì deug dàichead bròg is a trì deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a trì deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a trì deug
|-
| 54 || dàichead is a ceithir deug || dàichead gob is a ceithir deug dàichead bròg is a ceithir deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a ceithir deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a ceithir deug
|-
| 55 || dàichead is a cóig deug || dàichead gob is a cóig deug dàichead bròg is a cóig deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a cóig deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a cóig deug
|-
| 56 || dàichead is a sia deug || dàichead gob is a sia deug dàichead bròg is a sia deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a sia deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a sia deug
|-
| 57 || dàichead is a seachd deug || dàichead gob is a seachd deug dàichead bròg is a seachd deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a seachd deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a seachd deug
|-
| 58 || dàichead is a h-ochd deug || dàichead gob is a h-ochd deug dàichead bròg is a h-ochd deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-ochd deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-ochd deug
|-
| 59 || dàichead is a naoidh deug || dàichead gob is a naoidh deug dàichead bròg is a naoidh deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a naoidh deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a naoidh deug
|-
| 60 || trì fichead || trì fichead gob trì fichead bròg || an trì ficheadamh gob an trì ficheadamh bròg
|-
| 61 || trì fichead is a h-aon ||trì fichead gob is a h-aon trì fichead bròg is a h-aon || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-aon an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 62 || trì fichead is a dhà || trì fichead gob is a dhà trì fichead bròg is a dhà || an trì ficheadamh gob is a dhà an trì ficheadamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 63 || trì fichead is a trì || trì fichead gob is a trì trì fichead bròg is a trì || an trì ficheadamh gob is a trì an trì 20mh bròg is a trì
|-
| 64 || trì fichead is a ceithir || trì fichead gob is a ceithir trì fichead bròg is a ceithir || an trì ficheadamh gob is a ceithir an trì 20mh bròg is a ceithir
|-
| 65 || trì fichead is a cóig || trì fichead gob is a cóig trì fichead bròg is a cóig || an trì ficheadmh gob is a cóig an trì ficheadamh bròg is a cóig
|-
| 66 || trì fichead is a sia || trì fichead gob is a sia trì fichead bròg is a sia || an trì ficheadamh gob is a sia an trì ficheadamh bròg is a sia
|-
| 67 || trì fichead is a seachd || trì fichead gob is a seachd trì fichead bròg is a seachd || an trì ficheadamh gob is a seachd an trì ficheadamh bròg is a seachd
|-
| 68 || trì fichead is a h-ochd || trì fichead gob is a h-ochd trì fichead bròg is a h-ochd || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd
|-
| 69 || trì fichead is a naoidh || trì fichead gob is a naoidh trì fichead bròg is a naoidh || an trì ficheadamh gob is a naoidh an trì ficheadamh bròg is a naoidh
|-
| 70 || trì fichead is a deich || trì fichead gob is a deich trì fichead bròg is a deich || an trì ficheadamh gob is a deich an trì ficheadamh bròg is a deich
|-
| 71 || trì fichead is a h-aon deug || trì fichead gob is a h-aon deug trì fichead bròg is a h-aon deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-aon deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon deug
|-
| 72 || trì fichead is a dhà dheug || trì fichead gob is a dhà dheug trì fichead bròg is a dhà dheug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a dhà dheug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a dhà dheug
|-
| 73 || trì fichead is a trì deug || trì fichead gob is a trì deug trì fichead bròg is a trì deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a trì deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a trì deug
|-
| 74 || trì fichead is a ceithir deug || trì fichead gob is a ceithir deug trì fichead bròg is a ceithir deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a ceithir deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a ceithir deug
|-
| 75 || trì fichead is a cóig deug || trì fichead gob is a cóig deug trì fichead bròg is a cóig deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a cóig deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a cóig deug
|-
| 76 || trì fichead is a sia deug || trì fichead gob is a sia deug trì fichead bròg is a sia deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a sia deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a sia deug
|-
| 77 || trì fichead is a seachd deug || trì fichead gob is a seachd deug trì fichead bròg is a seachd deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a seachd deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a seachd deug
|-
| 78 || trì fichead is a h-ochd deug || trì fichead gob is a h-ochd deug trì fichead bròg is a h-ochd deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd deug
|-
| 79 || trì fichead is a naoidh deug || trì fichead gob is a naoidh deug trì fichead bròg is a naoidh deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a naoidh deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a naoi deug
|-
| 80 || ceithir fichead || ceithir fichead gob ceithir fichead bròg || an ceithir ficheadamh gob an ceithir ficheadamh bròg
|-
| 81 || ceithir fichead is a h-aon || ceithir fichead gob is a h-aon ceithir fichead bròg is a h-aon || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-aon an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 82 || ceithir fichead is a dhà || ceithir fichead gob is a dhà ceithir fichead bròg is a dhà || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a dhà an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 83 || ceithir fichead is a trì || ceithir fichead gob is a trì ceithir fichead bròg is a trì || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a trì an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a trì
|-
| 84 || ceithir fichead is a ceithir || ceithir fichead gob is a ceithir ceithir fichead bròg is a ceithir || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a ceithir an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a ceithir
|-
| 85 || ceithir fichead is a cóig || ceithir fichead gob is a cóig ceithir fichead bròg is a cóig || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a cóig an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a cóig
|-
| 86 || ceithir fichead is a sia || ceithir fichead gob is a sia ceithir fichead bròg is a sia || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a sia an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a sia
|-
| 87 || ceithir fichead is a seachd || ceithir fichead gob is a seachd ceithir fichead bròg is a seachd || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a seachd an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a seachd
|-
| 88 || ceithir fichead is a h-ochd || ceithir fichead gob is a h-ochd ceithir fichead bròg is a h-ochd || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd
|-
| 89 || ceithir fichead is a naoi || ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh ceithir fichead bròg is a naoidh || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a naoidh an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a naoidh
|-
| 90 || ceithir fichead is a deich || ceithir fichead gob is a deich ceithir fichead bròg is a deich || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a deich an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a deich
|-
| 91 || ceithir fichead is a h-aon deug || ceithir fichead gob is a h-aon deug ceithir fichead bròg is a h-aon deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-aon deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon deug
|-
| 92 || ceithir fichead is a dhà dheug || ceithir fichead gob is a dhà dheug ceithir fichead bròg is a dhà dheug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a dhà dheug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a dhà dheug
|-
| 93 || ceithir fichead is a trì deug || ceithir fichead gob is a trì deug ceithir fichead bròg is a trì deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a trì deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a trì deug
|-
| 94 || ceithir fichead is a ceithir deug || ceithir fichead gob is a ceithir deug ceithir fichead bròg is a ceithir deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a ceithir deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a ceithir deug
|-
| 95 || ceithir fichead is a cóig deug || ceithir fichead gob is a cóig deug ceithir fichead bròg is a cóig deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a cóig deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a cóig deug
|-
| 96 || ceithir fichead is a sia deug || ceithir fichead gob is a sia deug ceithir fichead bròg is a sia deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a sia deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a sia deug
|-
| 97 || ceithir fichead is a seachd deug || ceithir fichead gob is a seachd deug ceithir fichead bròg is a seachd deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a seachd deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a seachd deug
|-
| 98 || ceithir fichead is a h-ochd deug || ceithir fichead gob is a h-ochd deug ceithir fichead bròg is a h-ochd deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd deug
|-
| 99 || ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug || ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh deug ceithir fichead bròg is a naoidh deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a naoidh deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a naoidh deug
|-
| 100 || ceud || ceud gob ceud bròg || an ceudamh gob an ceudamh bròg
|-
| 101 || ceud is a h-aon || ceud gob is a h-aon ceud bròg is a h-aon || an ceudamh gob is a h-aon an ceudamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 102 || ceud is a dhà || ceud gob is a dhà ceud bròg is a dhà || an ceudamh gob is a dhà an ceudamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 103 || ceud is a trì || ceud gob is a trì ceud bròg is a trì || an ceudamh gob is a trì an ceudamh bròg is a trì
|-
|}

===Notes===
And the footnotes:

1) 50: Instead of dàichead is a deich, leth cheud can be used, which does not lenite.

2) In spoken Gaelic is a is often shortened to 's a /sə/ - not to be confused with sa 'in the'.

3) Dàichead is a shortened form of dà fhichead. It is not only easier to read, but also reflects the actual stress placement better (only on the dà-) when counting which is why we prefer it.

4) Once you reach ceudamh, no gender distinctions are necessary any more.

5) Sometimes the vigesimal system is used up to 200 i.e. cóig fichead, sia fichead, seachd fichead, ochd fichead, naoi fichead, but never beyond that.

==Higher Still==
Yes, we said we'd only go up to a hundred, but in real life we need to tackle larger numbers too, so here are a few further key numbers so you will get an understanding of how to tackle larger numbers. And yes, many a Gaelic teacher will tell you that most Gaels use English numbers when counting anything complex above 50 or 100, but first of all that is beside the point and secondly that has much to do with the fact that almost all Gaelic speaking adults over 20 have been educated through the medium of English, particularly when it comes to maths, which is not a subject commonly taught in GME, especially not at secondary level. Go on, how good are your number skills in French or German over 50?

So do learn how to express these numbers, but we advise caution as to with whom you can use them. Learners, teachers, very literate native speakers and young people who have had GME. If you feel like doing some language planning, you can always use the Gaelic numbers regardless of with whom you are speaking and then gloss it by following it with the number in English.

{| style="width: 100%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="20%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="35%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 105 || ceud is a cóig || ceud gob is a cóig || an ceudamh gob is a còig
|-
| 125 || ceud, fichead is a cóig || ceud, fichead gob is a cóig || an ceudamh, cóig guib ar fhichead
|-
| 220 || dà cheud is fichead || dà cheud gob is fichead || an dà cheudamh gob ar fhichead
|-
| 400 || ceithir ceud || ceithir cheud gob || an ceithir cheudamh gob
|-
| 552 || cóig cheud, dàichead is a dhà dheug || cóig cheud, dàichead gob is a dhà dheug || an cóig cheudamh, dàichead gob is a dhà dheug
|-
| 592 || cóig ceud, ceithir fichead is a dhà dheug || cóig ceud, ceithir fichead gob is a dhà dheug || an ceithir ceudamh, ceithir fichead gob is a dhà dheug
|-
| 1,000 || mìle || mìle gob || am mìleamh gob
|-
| 1,238 || mìle, dà cheud, ochd deug ar fhichead || mìle, dà cheud, ochd guib dheug ar fhichead || am mìleamh, dà cheud,
ochd guib dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 4,673 || ceithir mìle, sia ceud, trì fichead is trì deug || ceithir mìle, sia cheud, trì fichead gob is trì deug || an ceithir mìleamh, sia cheud, trì fichead gob is trì deug
|-
| 10,000 || deich mìle || deich mìle gob || an deich mìleamh gob
|-
| 16,745 || sia mìle deug, seachd ceud, dàichead is a cóig || sia mìle deug, seachd ceud, dàichead gob is a cóig || an sia mìleamh deug, seachd ceud, dàichead gob is a cóig
|-
| 56,965 || dàichead mìle is sia deug, naoidh ceud, trì fichead is a cóig || dàichead mìle is a sia deug, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a cóig || an dàichead mìleamh is sia deug, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a cóig
|-
| 200,000 || dà cheud mìle || dà cheud mìle gob || an dà cheud mìleamh gob
|-
| 143,976 || ceud mìle dàichead is a trì, naoidh ceud, trì fichead is a sia || ceud mìle dàichead is a trì, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a sia || an ceud mìleamh dàichead is a trì, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a sia
|-
| 999,999 || naoidh ceud mìle ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug, naoidh ceud, ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug || naoidh ceud mìle ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug, naoidh ceud, ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh deug || naoidh ceud mìleamh ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug, naoidh ceud, ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh deug
|-
| 1,000,000 || millean || millean gob || am milleanamh gob
|-
| 5,867,835 || cóig millean, ochd ceud mìle trì fichead is seachd, ochd ceud, cóig deug ar fhichead || cóig millean, ochd ceud mìle trì fichead is a seachd, ochd ceud, cóig guib dheug ar fhichead || an cóig milleanamh, ochd ceud mìle trì fichead is seachd, ochd ceud, cóig guib dheug ar fhichead
|-
|}

===Notes===
Footnote or ten ...

1) The comma is only "notional" that is, it's a "speech break" you put in when saying the number. You don't actually write it when spelling out numbers - we just put them in here to demonstrate where the breaks would be.

2) The numbers 2-6 lenite ceud, so you get dà cheud, trì cheud, ceithir cheud, cóig cheud and sia cheud. This is NOT completely arbitrary but the last remining vestiges of something Gaelic lost. Traditionally (well, several hundred years back in Gaelic terms), the number 1-6 lenite while the numbers 7-10 nasalize. Meaning? Well, seeing Irish still does this, let's have a look at how you count boats in Irish: bád, dhá bhád, trí bhád, ceithre bhád, cúig bhád, sé bhád, seacht mbád, ocht mbád, naoi mbád, deich mbád. Cool, isn't it? Gaelic stopped doing this a long time ago - except with the word ceud for whatever reason. In older texts, you might also come across things like trì thaighean occasionally.

3) Between 1001 and 9999, you can employ "splitting" into hundreds as you would with a year, e.g. 1267 as dà cheud dheag, trì fichead is a seachd.

4) As mentioned above, there is the possibility to express numbers up to 200 in twenties e.g. 136 as ceud, sia deug ar fhichead or sia fichead is a sia deug. So 136 ice-creams would be sia fichead reòiteag is a deich.

5) Leth refers to a half of the previous largest round 100, 1.000, 10.000 etc unit. This gives a value of 50, 500, 5.000 etc. These are then combined to give 150, 1.500, 15.000 etc. Enter the "illogical" step. You might imagine that trì cheud gu leth equals 450. Wrong. It equals 350. This principle applies at each level (100, 1.000, 10.000 etc). You can then add the numbers 1-9 to these expressions, but once you hit the next full 10, you have to revert to the "normal" way of counting, e.g. dà mhìle gu leth, dà mhìle gu leth is a h-aon, dà mhìle gu leth is a dhà ... dà mhìle gu leth is a naoi, dà mhìle is trì fichead. Leth cheud, leth mhìle etc work the same way. Alternatively you can just stick to the "normal" numbers

6) Possessives ... the ones that lenite, lenite numbers and the ones that add n- add n- to numbers beginning with vowels: mo dhà shùil, a thrì taighean, ar n-ochd caraidean. An so on.

7) Plurals. Numbers form their plurals 'relatively' regularly by adding -(e)an, -than, -dhean, -tean: aon » aonan, dà » dàthan, trì » trìthean, ceithir » ceithirean, cóig » cóigean, sia » siathan, seachd » seachdan, ochd » ochdan, naoi » naoidhean, deich » deichean, fichead » ficheadan, ceud » ceudan, mìle » mìltean, millean » milleanan. When will you ever need that? Well, try saying "I shook four sixes in a row" without using a plural of six ...

8) And last but not least, there is a tendency to stick the thing being counted at the very end with large numbers, especially with monetary units, so ¥51.655 would be dàichead mìle, sia ceud, trì fichead is a cóig Yen rather than dàichead mìle, sia ceud, trì fichead Yen is a cóig.

Hooray, you've cracked it ... except that Gaelic educationalists have had other plans ....
Oh, and there's a separate page on how to give the date and time in Gaelic.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Numerals or How to write a cheque in Gaelic

2012-03-10T19:35:57Z

Thrissel: /* Notes */

Numbers ... yes, oh what joy, but there's no avoiding them. There are three sets of numbers in Gaelic, just to keep life interesting, plus an old 'new way' they have dug up to make mathematics 'easier' for children in Gaelic Medium Education.

The first set of numbers is the "basic" set of numbers, the one you use for counting things. The second set is used if you're simply counting or giving a phone number - and the third for counting people (the same in both systems). Because we do not have the same space restrictions as books have, we are going to give you both systems up to a hundred (traditional first and further down the new old system) and then plenty of examples above 100. Because we will need to explain a few things half way and again, we have made a break after the 10's and the 20's and stuck in the explanations there and then and then continue with 11/31 etc. There are two examples each, one for masculine and one for feminine nouns.

==Zero to ten==
{| style="width: 55%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="15%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="25%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 0 || a neoini || neoini gob neoini bròg ||
|-
| 1 || a h-aon || aon ghob (m) aon bhròg (f) || a' chiad ghob a' chiad bhròg
|-
| 2 || a dhà || dà ghob dà bhròig || an dàrna gob an dàrna bròg
|-
| 3 || a trì || trì guib trì brògan || an treas gob an treas bròg
|-
| 4 || a ceithir || ceithir guib ceithir brògan || an ceathramh gob a' cheathramh bròg
|-
| 5 || a cóig || cóig guib cóig brògan || an cóigeamh gob a' chóigeamh bròg
|-
| 6 || a sia || sia guib sia brògan || an siathamh gob an t-siathamh bròg
|-
| 7 || a seachd || seachd guib seachd brògan || an seachdamh gob an t-seachdamh bròg
|-
| 8 || a h-ochd || ochd guib ochd brògan || an t-ochdamh gob an ochdamh bròg
|-
| 9 || a naoidh || naoidh guib naoidh brògan || an naoidheamh gob an naoidheamh bròg
|-
| 10 || a deich || deich gob deich bròg || an deicheamh gob an deicheamh bròg
|-
|}
===Notes===
Fun, isn't it? It's going to get even better ... but first the footnotes:

1) Aon and dà lenite the following consonant (bearing the rule about blocked lenition in mind). Is the noun followed by adjectives, dà lenites these as well e.g. dà thaigh mhór bhrèagha.

2) Dà is not followed by the plural, but what appears to be the singular. This isn't as bizarre as it may sound (yet again). Old Irish had something called the 'dual', a special number for counting two's - forms which looked very similar to the singular, so when the dual case went out of the window, pairs of things were grouped with the singular (in grammatical terms anyway). The only thing which is a reminder of this not being the singular case but something else is with feminine nouns, which slenderise after dà i.e. dà bhròig. Today this is mostly restricted to written Gaelic - but not to such a degree that you will sound odd if you do use it in spoken Gaelic, so the choice is yours.
Dà also lenites adjectives following a noun regardless of its gender but does not slenderise e.g. dà ghob mhór, dà bhròig mhór. Is the numeral phrase in the dative or genitive, the adjectives decline normally thus: leis an dà ghob mhór, leis an dà bhròig mhóir and an dà ghuib mhóir, an dà bhròige móire. Notice that an is used in the genitive with feminine nouns rather than na.

3) When preceded by a, dà changes to a dhà. Notwithstanding, you will hear people say things like dhà chù. Also, a prefixes h- to the numbers beginning with a vowel, thus you get a h-aon and a h-ochd.

4) The singular is used with dusan, fichead, multiples of fichead, ceud and mìle, millean etc. The singular is also used with measures (length, monetary units etc) e.g. sgillinn (but not not 'pound' which has a plural, notaichean), mìle, tròigh, pùnnd, clach ... 
Bliadhna, which actually IS an old plural form, does not change either when counting, even though you say things like bliadhnaichean air ais 'years ago'. Other time terms take the plural just as other nouns e.g. uairean, mionaidean, seachdainnean ...

5) Remember to lenite your adjectives after a masculine noun that pluralises by slenderisation e.g. seachd craobhan móra but seachd guib mhóra.

6) Instead of aon, aonan can be used in an emphatic sense, e.g có mheud a bha ann? Aonan!! 'How many were there? One!!'. Alternatively, you could answer ''Dìreach aon!''

7) The ordinal numbers obey the rules for case according to gender i.e. prefix t- in front of s and nothing before vowels for feminine nouns and t- before vowels for masculine nouns. A' chiad however is always a' chiad regardless of the gender of the noun. Deug lenites after feminine nouns as if it were an adjective. Adjectives themselves behave "normally" as if it were a simple noun phrase i.e. an t-siathamh bhròg mhór dheug 'the 16th big shoe' or air an t-siathamh bhròig mhóir dheug 'on the 16th big shoe'. 
EXCEPT that only a' chiad lenites a following noun i.e. even though it may be followed by a feminine noun, a' cheathramh never lenites.

8) Instead of aonamh you will see a number of variations such as aon and aona. Some people prefer to use a' chiad instead of aonamh altogether. Tritheamh is a variant of treas (behaves exactly the same way) as is dara of dàrna (behaving the same way too). We recommend the use of the system outlined here, however.

9) Ordinal numbers are "abbreviated" as follows: a' chiad » 1d; an dàrna » 2na; an treas » 3as; -eamh » Nmh. Above 20, however, 1d becomes 1mh, because it changes from a' chiad to an aonamh.

10) a' chiad becomes na ciad in phrases like na ciad eòin 'the first birds', similarly na dàrna, na treas etc. Ordinal numbers can also be lenited, e.g. by the possessive pronouns do dhàrna bean 'your second wife'.

11) There is a strong tendency in the spoken language to neutralise the masc/fem distinction if a numeral occurs between the definite article and the thing being counted. In other words, lots of people say an aonamh gob deug instead of an t-aonamh gob deug.

Ok, enough footnotes ... here's the numbers up to 30

==Eleven to thirty==
{| style="width: 75%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="15%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 11 || a h-aon deug || aon ghob deug aon bhròg dheug || an t-aonamh gob deug an aonamh bròg dheug
|-
| 12 ||a dhà dheug || dà ghob deug dà bhròig dheug || an dàrna gob deug an dàrna bròg dheug
|-
| 13 || a trì deug || trì guib dheug trì brògan deug || an treas gob deug an treas bròg dheug
|-
| 14 || a ceithir deug || ceithir guib dheug ceithir brògan deug || an ceathramh gob deug a' cheathramh bròg dheug
|-
| 15 || a cóig deug || cóig guib dheug cóig brògan deug || an cóigeamh gob deug a' chóigeamh bròg dheug
|-
| 16 || a sia deug || sia guib dheug sia brògan deug || an siathamh gob deug an t-siathamh bròg dheug
|-
| 17 || a seachd deug || seachd guib dheug seachd brògan deug || an seachdamh gob deug an t-seachdamh bròg dheug
|-
| 18 || a h-ochd deug || ochd guib dheug ochd brògan deug || an t-ochdamh gob deug an ochdamh bròg dheug
|-
| 19 || a naoi deug || naoidh guib dheug naoidh brògan deug || an naoidheamh gob deug an naoidheamh bròg dheug
|-
| 20 || fichead || fichead gob fichead bròg || am ficheadamh gob an fhicheadamh bròg
|-
| 21 || a h-aon ar fhichead || aon ghob ar fhichead aon bhròg ar fhichead || an t-aonamh gob ar fhichead an aonamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 22 || a dhà ar fhichead || dà ghob ar fhichead dà bhròig ar fhichead || an dàrna gob ar fhichead an dàrna bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 23 || a trì ar fhichead || trì guib dheug ar fhichead trì brògan deug ar fhichead || an treas gob ar fhichead an treas bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 24 || a ceithir ar fhichead || ceithir guib dheug ar fhichead ceithir brògan deug ar fhichead || an ceathramh gob ar fhichead a' cheathramh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 25 || a cóig ar fhichead || cóig guib dheug ar fhichead cóig brògan deug ar fhichead || an cóigeamh gob ar fhichead a' chóigeamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 26 || a sia ar fhichead || sia guib dheug ar fhichead sia brògan deug ar fhichead || an siathamh gob ar fhichead an t-siathamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 27 || a seachd ar fhichead || seachd guib dheug ar fhichead seachd brògan deug ar fhichead || an seachdamh gob ar fhichead an t-seachdamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 28 || a h-ochd ar fhichead || ochd guib dheug ar fhichead ochd brògan deug ar fhichead || an t-ochdamh gob deug ar fhichead an ochdamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 29 || a naoidh ar fhichead || naoidh guib dheug ar fhichead naoidh brògan deug ar fhichead || an naoidheamh gob deug ar fhichead an naoidheamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 30 ||a deich ar fhichead || fichead gob deug fichead bròg dheug || am ficheadamh gob deug an fhicheadamh bròg dheug
|-
|}
===Notes===
1) Where to start? Slightly contrary to current usage (and of course GOC), we have used ar instead of air. Actually the Gaelic way of saying thirty etc is not <ten on twenty> but <ten over twenty> - deich thar fhichead (thar shortened to ar). Ok, it still doesn't explain the lenition really, but it does explain why many people pronounce air here as /ar/ rather than /ɛrʲ/. Some people do pronounce it with a slender r, probably because of seing it written air all the time.

2) Note that the nouns lenite the numbers as if they were adjectives - so bròg being feminine lenites deug and guib lenites deug because it is an indefinite masculine noun which forms its plural by slenderisation ... don't you just love it?

3) Full multiples of twenty are not preceded by a when counting, thus a deich but fichead, fichead is a deich but dàichead.

Ok, you're bursting for more, yes?

==Thirty to 100+==
{| style="width: 100%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="20%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="35%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 31 || a h-aon deug ar fhichead || aon ghob deug ar fhichead aon bhròg dheug ar fhichead || an t-aonamh gob deug ar fhichead an aonamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 32 || a dhà dheug ar fhichead || dà ghob dheug ar fhichead dà bhròig dheug ar fhichead || an dàrna gob deug ar fhichead an dàrna bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 33 || a trì deug ar fhichead || trì guib dheug ar fhichead trì brògan deug ar fhichead || an treas gob deug ar fhichead an treas bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 34 || a ceithir deug ar fhichead || ceithir guib dheug ar fhichead ceithir brògan deug ar fhichead || an ceathramh gob deug ar fhichead a' cheathramh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 35 || a cóig deug ar fhichead || cóig guib dheug ar fhichead cóig brògan deug ar fhichead || an cóigeamh gob deug ar fhichead a' chóigeamh bhròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 36 || a sia deug ar fhichead || sia guib dheug ar fhichead sia brògan deug ar fhichead || an siathamh gob deug ar fhichead an t-siathamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 37 || a seachd deug ar fhichead || seachd guib dheug ar fhichead seachd brògan deug ar fhichead || an seachdamh gob deug ar fhichead an t-seachdamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 38 || a h-ochd deug ar fhichead || ochd guib dheug ar fhichead ochd brògan deug ar fhichead || an t-ochdamh gob deug ar fhichead an ochdamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 39 || a naoidh deug ar fhichead || naoidh guib dheug ar fhichead naoidh brògan deug ar fhichead || an naoidheamh gob deug ar fhichead an naoidheamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 40 || dàichead || dàichead gob dàichead bròg || an dàicheadamh gob an dàicheadamh bròg
|-
| 41 || dàichead is a h-aon || dàichead gob is a h-aon dàichead bròg is a h-aon || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-aon an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 42 || dàichead is a dhà || dàichead gob is a dhà dàichead bròg is a dhà || an dàicheadamh gob is a dhà an dàicheadamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 43 || dàichead is a trì || dàichead gob is a trì dàichead bròg is a trì || an dàicheadamh gob is a trì an dàicheadamh bròg is a trì
|-
| 44 || dàichead is a ceithir || dàichead gob is a ceithir dàichead bròg is a ceithir || an dàicheadamh gob is a ceithir an dàicheadamh bròg is a ceithir
|-
| 45 || dàichead is a cóig || dàichead gob is a cóig dàichead bròg is a cóig || an dàicheadamh gob is a cóig an dàicheadamh bròg is a cóig
|-
| 46 || dàichead is a sia || dàichead gob is a sia dàichead bròg is a sia || an dàicheadamh gob is a sia an dàicheadamh bròg is a sia
|-
| 47 || dàichead is a seachd || dàichead gob is a seachd dàichead bròg is a seachd || an dàicheadamh gob is a seachd an dàicheadamh bròg is a seachd
|-
| 48 || dàichead is a h-ochd || dàichead gob is a h-ochd dàichead bròg is a h-ochd || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-ochd an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-ochd
|-
| 49 || dàichead is a naoidh || dàichead gob is a naoidh dàichead bròg is a naoidh || an dàicheadamh gob is a naoidh an dàicheadamh bròg is a naoidh
|-
| 50 || dàichead is a deich || dàichead gob is a deich dàichead bròg is a deich || an dàicheadamh gob is a deich an dàicheadamh bròg is a deich
|-
| 51 || dàichead is a h-aon deug || dàichead gob is a h-aon deug dàichead bròg is a h-aon deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-aon deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-aon deug
|-
| 52 || dàichead is a dhà dheug || dàichead gob is a dhà dheug dàichead bròg is a dhà dheug ||an dàicheadamh gob is a dhà dheug an dàicheadamh bròg is a dhà dheug
|-
| 53 || dàichead is a trì deug || dàichead gob is a trì deug dàichead bròg is a trì deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a trì deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a trì deug
|-
| 54 || dàichead is a ceithir deug || dàichead gob is a ceithir deug dàichead bròg is a ceithir deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a ceithir deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a ceithir deug
|-
| 55 || dàichead is a cóig deug || dàichead gob is a cóig deug dàichead bròg is a cóig deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a cóig deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a cóig deug
|-
| 56 || dàichead is a sia deug || dàichead gob is a sia deug dàichead bròg is a sia deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a sia deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a sia deug
|-
| 57 || dàichead is a seachd deug || dàichead gob is a seachd deug dàichead bròg is a seachd deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a seachd deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a seachd deug
|-
| 58 || dàichead is a h-ochd deug || dàichead gob is a h-ochd deug dàichead bròg is a h-ochd deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-ochd deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-ochd deug
|-
| 59 || dàichead is a naoidh deug || dàichead gob is a naoidh deug dàichead bròg is a naoidh deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a naoidh deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a naoidh deug
|-
| 60 || trì fichead || trì fichead gob trì fichead bròg || an trì ficheadamh gob an trì ficheadamh bròg
|-
| 61 || trì fichead is a h-aon ||trì fichead gob is a h-aon trì fichead bròg is a h-aon || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-aon an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 62 || trì fichead is a dhà || trì fichead gob is a dhà trì fichead bròg is a dhà || an trì ficheadamh gob is a dhà an trì ficheadamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 63 || trì fichead is a trì || trì fichead gob is a trì trì fichead bròg is a trì || an trì ficheadamh gob is a trì an trì 20mh bròg is a trì
|-
| 64 || trì fichead is a ceithir || trì fichead gob is a ceithir trì fichead bròg is a ceithir || an trì ficheadamh gob is a ceithir an trì 20mh bròg is a ceithir
|-
| 65 || trì fichead is a cóig || trì fichead gob is a cóig trì fichead bròg is a cóig || an trì ficheadmh gob is a cóig an trì ficheadamh bròg is a cóig
|-
| 66 || trì fichead is a sia || trì fichead gob is a sia trì fichead bròg is a sia || an trì ficheadamh gob is a sia an trì ficheadamh bròg is a sia
|-
| 67 || trì fichead is a seachd || trì fichead gob is a seachd trì fichead bròg is a seachd || an trì ficheadamh gob is a seachd an trì ficheadamh bròg is a seachd
|-
| 68 || trì fichead is a h-ochd || trì fichead gob is a h-ochd trì fichead bròg is a h-ochd || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd
|-
| 69 || trì fichead is a naoidh || trì fichead gob is a naoidh trì fichead bròg is a naoidh || an trì ficheadamh gob is a naoidh an trì ficheadamh bròg is a naoidh
|-
| 70 || trì fichead is a deich || trì fichead gob is a deich trì fichead bròg is a deich || an trì ficheadamh gob is a deich an trì ficheadamh bròg is a deich
|-
| 71 || trì fichead is a h-aon deug || trì fichead gob is a h-aon deug trì fichead bròg is a h-aon deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-aon deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon deug
|-
| 72 || trì fichead is a dhà dheug || trì fichead gob is a dhà dheug trì fichead bròg is a dhà dheug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a dhà dheug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a dhà dheug
|-
| 73 || trì fichead is a trì deug || trì fichead gob is a trì deug trì fichead bròg is a trì deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a trì deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a trì deug
|-
| 74 || trì fichead is a ceithir deug || trì fichead gob is a ceithir deug trì fichead bròg is a ceithir deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a ceithir deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a ceithir deug
|-
| 75 || trì fichead is a cóig deug || trì fichead gob is a cóig deug trì fichead bròg is a cóig deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a cóig deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a cóig deug
|-
| 76 || trì fichead is a sia deug || trì fichead gob is a sia deug trì fichead bròg is a sia deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a sia deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a sia deug
|-
| 77 || trì fichead is a seachd deug || trì fichead gob is a seachd deug trì fichead bròg is a seachd deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a seachd deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a seachd deug
|-
| 78 || trì fichead is a h-ochd deug || trì fichead gob is a h-ochd deug trì fichead bròg is a h-ochd deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd deug
|-
| 79 || trì fichead is a naoidh deug || trì fichead gob is a naoidh deug trì fichead bròg is a naoidh deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a naoidh deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a naoi deug
|-
| 80 || ceithir fichead || ceithir fichead gob ceithir fichead bròg || an ceithir ficheadamh gob an ceithir ficheadamh bròg
|-
| 81 || ceithir fichead is a h-aon || ceithir fichead gob is a h-aon ceithir fichead bròg is a h-aon || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-aon an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 82 || ceithir fichead is a dhà || ceithir fichead gob is a dhà ceithir fichead bròg is a dhà || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a dhà an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 83 || ceithir fichead is a trì || ceithir fichead gob is a trì ceithir fichead bròg is a trì || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a trì an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a trì
|-
| 84 || ceithir fichead is a ceithir || ceithir fichead gob is a ceithir ceithir fichead bròg is a ceithir || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a ceithir an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a ceithir
|-
| 85 || ceithir fichead is a cóig || ceithir fichead gob is a cóig ceithir fichead bròg is a cóig || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a cóig an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a cóig
|-
| 86 || ceithir fichead is a sia || ceithir fichead gob is a sia ceithir fichead bròg is a sia || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a sia an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a sia
|-
| 87 || ceithir fichead is a seachd || ceithir fichead gob is a seachd ceithir fichead bròg is a seachd || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a seachd an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a seachd
|-
| 88 || ceithir fichead is a h-ochd || ceithir fichead gob is a h-ochd ceithir fichead bròg is a h-ochd || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd
|-
| 89 || ceithir fichead is a naoi || ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh ceithir fichead bròg is a naoidh || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a naoidh an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a naoidh
|-
| 90 || ceithir fichead is a deich || ceithir fichead gob is a deich ceithir fichead bròg is a deich || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a deich an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a deich
|-
| 91 || ceithir fichead is a h-aon deug || ceithir fichead gob is a h-aon deug ceithir fichead bròg is a h-aon deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-aon deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon deug
|-
| 92 || ceithir fichead is a dhà dheug || ceithir fichead gob is a dhà dheug ceithir fichead bròg is a dhà dheug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a dhà dheug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a dhà dheug
|-
| 93 || ceithir fichead is a trì deug || ceithir fichead gob is a trì deug ceithir fichead bròg is a trì deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a trì deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a trì deug
|-
| 94 || ceithir fichead is a ceithir deug || ceithir fichead gob is a ceithir deug ceithir fichead bròg is a ceithir deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a ceithir deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a ceithir deug
|-
| 95 || ceithir fichead is a cóig deug || ceithir fichead gob is a cóig deug ceithir fichead bròg is a cóig deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a cóig deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a cóig deug
|-
| 96 || ceithir fichead is a sia deug || ceithir fichead gob is a sia deug ceithir fichead bròg is a sia deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a sia deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a sia deug
|-
| 97 || ceithir fichead is a seachd deug || ceithir fichead gob is a seachd deug ceithir fichead bròg is a seachd deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a seachd deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a seachd deug
|-
| 98 || ceithir fichead is a h-ochd deug || ceithir fichead gob is a h-ochd deug ceithir fichead bròg is a h-ochd deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd deug
|-
| 99 || ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug || ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh deug ceithir fichead bròg is a naoidh deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a naoidh deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a naoidh deug
|-
| 100 || ceud || ceud gob ceud bròg || an ceudamh gob an ceudamh bròg
|-
| 101 || ceud is a h-aon || ceud gob is a h-aon ceud bròg is a h-aon || an ceudamh gob is a h-aon an ceudamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 102 || ceud is a dhà || ceud gob is a dhà ceud bròg is a dhà || an ceudamh gob is a dhà an ceudamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 103 || ceud is a trì || ceud gob is a trì ceud bròg is a trì || an ceudamh gob is a trì an ceudamh bròg is a trì
|-
|}

===Notes===
And the footnotes:

1) 50: Instead of dàichead is a deich, leth cheud can be used, which does not lenite.

2) In spoken Gaelic is a is often shortened to 's a /sə/ not to be confused with sa 'in the'.

3) Dàichead is a shortened form of dà fhichead. It is not only easier to read, but also reflects the actual stress placement better (only on the dà-) when counting which is why we prefer it.

4) Once you reach ceudamh, no gender distinctions are necessary any more.

5) Sometimes the vigesimal system is used up to 200 i.e. cóig fichead, sia fichead, seachd fichead, ochd fichead, naoi fichead, but never beyond that.

==Higher Still==
Yes, we said we'd only go up to a hundred, but in real life we need to tackle larger numbers too, so here are a few further key numbers so you will get an understanding of how to tackle larger numbers. And yes, many a Gaelic teacher will tell you that most Gaels use English numbers when counting anything complex above 50 or 100, but first of all that is beside the point and secondly that has much to do with the fact that almost all Gaelic speaking adults over 20 have been educated through the medium of English, particularly when it comes to maths, which is not a subject commonly taught in GME, especially not at secondary level. Go on, how good are your number skills in French or German over 50?

So do learn how to express these numbers, but we advise caution as to with whom you can use them. Learners, teachers, very literate native speakers and young people who have had GME. If you feel like doing some language planning, you can always use the Gaelic numbers regardless of with whom you are speaking and then gloss it by following it with the number in English.

{| style="width: 100%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="20%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="35%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 105 || ceud is a cóig || ceud gob is a cóig || an ceudamh gob is a còig
|-
| 125 || ceud, fichead is a cóig || ceud, fichead gob is a cóig || an ceudamh, cóig guib ar fhichead
|-
| 220 || dà cheud is fichead || dà cheud gob is fichead || an dà cheudamh gob ar fhichead
|-
| 400 || ceithir ceud || ceithir cheud gob || an ceithir cheudamh gob
|-
| 552 || cóig cheud, dàichead is a dhà dheug || cóig cheud, dàichead gob is a dhà dheug || an cóig cheudamh, dàichead gob is a dhà dheug
|-
| 592 || cóig ceud, ceithir fichead is a dhà dheug || cóig ceud, ceithir fichead gob is a dhà dheug || an ceithir ceudamh, ceithir fichead gob is a dhà dheug
|-
| 1,000 || mìle || mìle gob || am mìleamh gob
|-
| 1,238 || mìle, dà cheud, ochd deug ar fhichead || mìle, dà cheud, ochd guib dheug ar fhichead || am mìleamh, dà cheud,
ochd guib dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 4,673 || ceithir mìle, sia ceud, trì fichead is trì deug || ceithir mìle, sia cheud, trì fichead gob is trì deug || an ceithir mìleamh, sia cheud, trì fichead gob is trì deug
|-
| 10,000 || deich mìle || deich mìle gob || an deich mìleamh gob
|-
| 16,745 || sia mìle deug, seachd ceud, dàichead is a cóig || sia mìle deug, seachd ceud, dàichead gob is a cóig || an sia mìleamh deug, seachd ceud, dàichead gob is a cóig
|-
| 56,965 || dàichead mìle is sia deug, naoidh ceud, trì fichead is a cóig || dàichead mìle is a sia deug, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a cóig || an dàichead mìleamh is sia deug, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a cóig
|-
| 200,000 || dà cheud mìle || dà cheud mìle gob || an dà cheud mìleamh gob
|-
| 143,976 || ceud mìle dàichead is a trì, naoidh ceud, trì fichead is a sia || ceud mìle dàichead is a trì, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a sia || an ceud mìleamh dàichead is a trì, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a sia
|-
| 999,999 || naoidh ceud mìle ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug, naoidh ceud, ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug || naoidh ceud mìle ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug, naoidh ceud, ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh deug || naoidh ceud mìleamh ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug, naoidh ceud, ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh deug
|-
| 1,000,000 || millean || millean gob || am milleanamh gob
|-
| 5,867,835 || cóig millean, ochd ceud mìle trì fichead is seachd, ochd ceud, cóig deug ar fhichead || cóig millean, ochd ceud mìle trì fichead is a seachd, ochd ceud, cóig guib dheug ar fhichead || an cóig milleanamh, ochd ceud mìle trì fichead is seachd, ochd ceud, cóig guib dheug ar fhichead
|-
|}

===Notes===
Footnote or ten ...

1) The comma is only "notional" that is, it's a "speech break" you put in when saying the number. You don't actually write it when spelling out numbers - we just put them in here to demonstrate where the breaks would be.

2) The numbers 2-6 lenite ceud, so you get dà cheud, trì cheud, ceithir cheud, cóig cheud and sia cheud. This is NOT completely arbitrary but the last remining vestiges of something Gaelic lost. Traditionally (well, several hundred years back in Gaelic terms), the number 1-6 lenite while the numbers 7-10 nasalize. Meaning? Well, seeing Irish still does this, let's have a look at how you count boats in Irish: bád, dhá bhád, trí bhád, ceithre bhád, cúig bhád, sé bhád, seacht mbád, ocht mbád, naoi mbád, deich mbád. Cool, isn't it? Gaelic stopped doing this a long time ago - except with the word ceud for whatever reason. In older texts, you might also come across things like trì thaighean occasionally.

3) Between 1001 and 9999, you can employ "splitting" into hundreds as you would with a year, e.g. 1267 as dà cheud dheag, trì fichead is a seachd.

4) As mentioned above, there is the possibility to express numbers up to 200 in twenties e.g. 136 as ceud, sia deug ar fhichead or sia fichead is a sia deug. So 136 ice-creams would be sia fichead reòiteag is a deich.

5) Leth refers to a half of the previous largest round 100, 1.000, 10.000 etc unit. This gives a value of 50, 500, 5.000 etc. These are then combined to give 150, 1.500, 15.000 etc. Enter the "illogical" step. You might imagine that trì cheud gu leth equals 450. Wrong. It equals 350. This principle applies at each level (100, 1.000, 10.000 etc). You can then add the numbers 1-9 to these expressions, but once you hit the next full 10, you have to revert to the "normal" way of counting, e.g. dà mhìle gu leth, dà mhìle gu leth is a h-aon, dà mhìle gu leth is a dhà ... dà mhìle gu leth is a naoi, dà mhìle is trì fichead. Leth cheud, leth mhìle etc work the same way. Alternatively you can just stick to the "normal" numbers

6) Possessives ... the ones that lenite, lenite numbers and the ones that add n- add n- to numbers beginning with vowels: mo dhà shùil, a thrì taighean, ar n-ochd caraidean. An so on.

7) Plurals. Numbers form their plurals 'relatively' regularly by adding -(e)an, -than, -dhean, -tean: aon » aonan, dà » dàthan, trì » trìthean, ceithir » ceithirean, cóig » cóigean, sia » siathan, seachd » seachdan, ochd » ochdan, naoi » naoidhean, deich » deichean, fichead » ficheadan, ceud » ceudan, mìle » mìltean, millean » milleanan. When will you ever need that? Well, try saying "I shook four sixes in a row" without using a plural of six ...

8) And last but not least, there is a tendency to stick the thing being counted at the very end with large numbers, especially with monetary units, so ¥51.655 would be dàichead mìle, sia ceud, trì fichead is a cóig Yen rather than dàichead mìle, sia ceud, trì fichead Yen is a cóig.

Hooray, you've cracked it ... except that Gaelic educationalists have had other plans ....
Oh, and there's a separate page on how to give the date and time in Gaelic.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}

Numerals or How to write a cheque in Gaelic

2012-03-10T19:34:59Z

Thrissel: /* Notes */

Numbers ... yes, oh what joy, but there's no avoiding them. There are three sets of numbers in Gaelic, just to keep life interesting, plus an old 'new way' they have dug up to make mathematics 'easier' for children in Gaelic Medium Education.

The first set of numbers is the "basic" set of numbers, the one you use for counting things. The second set is used if you're simply counting or giving a phone number - and the third for counting people (the same in both systems). Because we do not have the same space restrictions as books have, we are going to give you both systems up to a hundred (traditional first and further down the new old system) and then plenty of examples above 100. Because we will need to explain a few things half way and again, we have made a break after the 10's and the 20's and stuck in the explanations there and then and then continue with 11/31 etc. There are two examples each, one for masculine and one for feminine nouns.

==Zero to ten==
{| style="width: 55%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="15%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="25%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 0 || a neoini || neoini gob neoini bròg ||
|-
| 1 || a h-aon || aon ghob (m) aon bhròg (f) || a' chiad ghob a' chiad bhròg
|-
| 2 || a dhà || dà ghob dà bhròig || an dàrna gob an dàrna bròg
|-
| 3 || a trì || trì guib trì brògan || an treas gob an treas bròg
|-
| 4 || a ceithir || ceithir guib ceithir brògan || an ceathramh gob a' cheathramh bròg
|-
| 5 || a cóig || cóig guib cóig brògan || an cóigeamh gob a' chóigeamh bròg
|-
| 6 || a sia || sia guib sia brògan || an siathamh gob an t-siathamh bròg
|-
| 7 || a seachd || seachd guib seachd brògan || an seachdamh gob an t-seachdamh bròg
|-
| 8 || a h-ochd || ochd guib ochd brògan || an t-ochdamh gob an ochdamh bròg
|-
| 9 || a naoidh || naoidh guib naoidh brògan || an naoidheamh gob an naoidheamh bròg
|-
| 10 || a deich || deich gob deich bròg || an deicheamh gob an deicheamh bròg
|-
|}
===Notes===
Fun, isn't it? It's going to get even better ... but first the footnotes:

1) Aon and dà lenite the following consonant (bearing the rule about blocked lenition in mind). Is the noun followed by adjectives, dà lenites these as well e.g. dà thaigh mhór bhrèagha.

2) Dà is not followed by the plural, but what appears to be the singular. This isn't as bizarre as it may sound (yet again). Old Irish had something called the 'dual', a special number for counting two's - forms which looked very similar to the singular, so when the dual case went out of the window, pairs of things were grouped with the singular (in grammatical terms anyway). The only thing which is a reminder of this not being the singular case but something else is with feminine nouns, which slenderise after dà i.e. dà bhròig. Today this is mostly restricted to written Gaelic - but not to such a degree that you will sound odd if you do use it in spoken Gaelic, so the choice is yours.
Dà also lenites adjectives following a noun regardless of its gender but does not slenderise e.g. dà ghob mhór, dà bhròig mhór. Is the numeral phrase in the dative or genitive, the adjectives decline normally thus: leis an dà ghob mhór, leis an dà bhròig mhóir and an dà ghuib mhóir, an dà bhròige móire. Notice that an is used in the genitive with feminine nouns rather than na.

3) When preceded by a, dà changes to a dhà. Notwithstanding, you will hear people say things like dhà chù. Also, a prefixes h- to the numbers beginning with a vowel, thus you get a h-aon and a h-ochd.

4) The singular is used with dusan, fichead, multiples of fichead, ceud and mìle, millean etc. The singular is also used with measures (length, monetary units etc) e.g. sgillinn (but not not 'pound' which has a plural, notaichean), mìle, tròigh, pùnnd, clach ... 
Bliadhna, which actually IS an old plural form, does not change either when counting, even though you say things like bliadhnaichean air ais 'years ago'. Other time terms take the plural just as other nouns e.g. uairean, mionaidean, seachdainnean ...

5) Remember to lenite your adjectives after a masculine noun that pluralises by slenderisation e.g. seachd craobhan móra but seachd guib mhóra.

6) Instead of aon, aonan can be used in an emphatic sense, e.g có mheud a bha ann? Aonan!! 'How many were there? One!!'. Alternatively, you could answer ''Dìreach aon!''

7) The ordinal numbers obey the rules for case according to gender i.e. prefix t- in front of s and nothing before vowels for feminine nouns and t- before vowels for masculine nouns. A' chiad however is always a' chiad regardless of the gender of the noun. Deug lenites after feminine nouns as if it were an adjective. Adjectives themselves behave "normally" as if it were a simple noun phrase i.e. an t-siathamh bhròg mhór dheug 'the 16th big shoe' or air an t-siathamh bhròig mhóir dheug 'on the 16th big shoe'. 
EXCEPT that only a' chiad lenites a following noun i.e. even though it may be followed by a feminine noun, a' cheathramh never lenites.

8) Instead of aonamh you will see a number of variations such as aon and aona. Some people prefer to use a' chiad instead of aonamh altogether. Tritheamh is a variant of treas (behaves exactly the same way) as is dara of dàrna (behaving the same way too). We recommend the use of the system outlined here, however.

9) Ordinal numbers are "abbreviated" as follows: a' chiad » 1d; an dàrna » 2na; an treas » 3as; -eamh » Nmh. Above 20, however, 1d becomes 1mh, because it changes from a' chiad to an aonamh.

10) a' chiad becomes na ciad in phrases like na ciad eòin 'the first birds', similarly na dàrna, na treas etc. Ordinal numbers can also be lenited, e.g. by the possessive pronouns do dhàrna bean 'your second wife'.

11) There is a strong tendency in the spoken language to neutralise the masc/fem distinction if a numeral occurs between the definite article and the thing being counted. In other words, lots of people say an aonamh gob deug instead of an t-aonamh gob deug.

Ok, enough footnotes ... here's the numbers up to 30

==Eleven to thirty==
{| style="width: 75%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="15%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 11 || a h-aon deug || aon ghob deug aon bhròg dheug || an t-aonamh gob deug an aonamh bròg dheug
|-
| 12 ||a dhà dheug || dà ghob deug dà bhròig dheug || an dàrna gob deug an dàrna bròg dheug
|-
| 13 || a trì deug || trì guib dheug trì brògan deug || an treas gob deug an treas bròg dheug
|-
| 14 || a ceithir deug || ceithir guib dheug ceithir brògan deug || an ceathramh gob deug a' cheathramh bròg dheug
|-
| 15 || a cóig deug || cóig guib dheug cóig brògan deug || an cóigeamh gob deug a' chóigeamh bròg dheug
|-
| 16 || a sia deug || sia guib dheug sia brògan deug || an siathamh gob deug an t-siathamh bròg dheug
|-
| 17 || a seachd deug || seachd guib dheug seachd brògan deug || an seachdamh gob deug an t-seachdamh bròg dheug
|-
| 18 || a h-ochd deug || ochd guib dheug ochd brògan deug || an t-ochdamh gob deug an ochdamh bròg dheug
|-
| 19 || a naoi deug || naoidh guib dheug naoidh brògan deug || an naoidheamh gob deug an naoidheamh bròg dheug
|-
| 20 || fichead || fichead gob fichead bròg || am ficheadamh gob an fhicheadamh bròg
|-
| 21 || a h-aon ar fhichead || aon ghob ar fhichead aon bhròg ar fhichead || an t-aonamh gob ar fhichead an aonamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 22 || a dhà ar fhichead || dà ghob ar fhichead dà bhròig ar fhichead || an dàrna gob ar fhichead an dàrna bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 23 || a trì ar fhichead || trì guib dheug ar fhichead trì brògan deug ar fhichead || an treas gob ar fhichead an treas bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 24 || a ceithir ar fhichead || ceithir guib dheug ar fhichead ceithir brògan deug ar fhichead || an ceathramh gob ar fhichead a' cheathramh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 25 || a cóig ar fhichead || cóig guib dheug ar fhichead cóig brògan deug ar fhichead || an cóigeamh gob ar fhichead a' chóigeamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 26 || a sia ar fhichead || sia guib dheug ar fhichead sia brògan deug ar fhichead || an siathamh gob ar fhichead an t-siathamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 27 || a seachd ar fhichead || seachd guib dheug ar fhichead seachd brògan deug ar fhichead || an seachdamh gob ar fhichead an t-seachdamh bròg ar fhichead
|-
| 28 || a h-ochd ar fhichead || ochd guib dheug ar fhichead ochd brògan deug ar fhichead || an t-ochdamh gob deug ar fhichead an ochdamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 29 || a naoidh ar fhichead || naoidh guib dheug ar fhichead naoidh brògan deug ar fhichead || an naoidheamh gob deug ar fhichead an naoidheamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 30 ||a deich ar fhichead || fichead gob deug fichead bròg dheug || am ficheadamh gob deug an fhicheadamh bròg dheug
|-
|}
===Notes===
1) Where to start? Slightly contrary to current usage (and of course GOC), we have used ar instead of air. Actually the Gaelic way of saying thirty etc is not <ten on twenty> but <ten over twenty> - deich thar fhichead (thar shortened to ar). Ok, it still doesn't explain the lenition really, but it does explain why many people pronounce air here as /ar/ rather than /ɛrʲ/. Some people do pronounce it with a slender r, probably because of seing it written air all the time.

2) Note that the nouns lenite the numbers as if they were adjectives - so bròg being feminine lenites deug and guib lenites deug because it is an indefinite masculine noun which forms it's plural by slenderisation ... don't you just love it?

3) Full multiples twenty are not preceded by a when counting, thus a deich but fichead, fichead is a deich but dàichead.

Ok, you're bursting for more, yes?

==Thirty to 100+==
{| style="width: 100%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="20%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="35%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 31 || a h-aon deug ar fhichead || aon ghob deug ar fhichead aon bhròg dheug ar fhichead || an t-aonamh gob deug ar fhichead an aonamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 32 || a dhà dheug ar fhichead || dà ghob dheug ar fhichead dà bhròig dheug ar fhichead || an dàrna gob deug ar fhichead an dàrna bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 33 || a trì deug ar fhichead || trì guib dheug ar fhichead trì brògan deug ar fhichead || an treas gob deug ar fhichead an treas bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 34 || a ceithir deug ar fhichead || ceithir guib dheug ar fhichead ceithir brògan deug ar fhichead || an ceathramh gob deug ar fhichead a' cheathramh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 35 || a cóig deug ar fhichead || cóig guib dheug ar fhichead cóig brògan deug ar fhichead || an cóigeamh gob deug ar fhichead a' chóigeamh bhròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 36 || a sia deug ar fhichead || sia guib dheug ar fhichead sia brògan deug ar fhichead || an siathamh gob deug ar fhichead an t-siathamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 37 || a seachd deug ar fhichead || seachd guib dheug ar fhichead seachd brògan deug ar fhichead || an seachdamh gob deug ar fhichead an t-seachdamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 38 || a h-ochd deug ar fhichead || ochd guib dheug ar fhichead ochd brògan deug ar fhichead || an t-ochdamh gob deug ar fhichead an ochdamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 39 || a naoidh deug ar fhichead || naoidh guib dheug ar fhichead naoidh brògan deug ar fhichead || an naoidheamh gob deug ar fhichead an naoidheamh bròg dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 40 || dàichead || dàichead gob dàichead bròg || an dàicheadamh gob an dàicheadamh bròg
|-
| 41 || dàichead is a h-aon || dàichead gob is a h-aon dàichead bròg is a h-aon || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-aon an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 42 || dàichead is a dhà || dàichead gob is a dhà dàichead bròg is a dhà || an dàicheadamh gob is a dhà an dàicheadamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 43 || dàichead is a trì || dàichead gob is a trì dàichead bròg is a trì || an dàicheadamh gob is a trì an dàicheadamh bròg is a trì
|-
| 44 || dàichead is a ceithir || dàichead gob is a ceithir dàichead bròg is a ceithir || an dàicheadamh gob is a ceithir an dàicheadamh bròg is a ceithir
|-
| 45 || dàichead is a cóig || dàichead gob is a cóig dàichead bròg is a cóig || an dàicheadamh gob is a cóig an dàicheadamh bròg is a cóig
|-
| 46 || dàichead is a sia || dàichead gob is a sia dàichead bròg is a sia || an dàicheadamh gob is a sia an dàicheadamh bròg is a sia
|-
| 47 || dàichead is a seachd || dàichead gob is a seachd dàichead bròg is a seachd || an dàicheadamh gob is a seachd an dàicheadamh bròg is a seachd
|-
| 48 || dàichead is a h-ochd || dàichead gob is a h-ochd dàichead bròg is a h-ochd || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-ochd an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-ochd
|-
| 49 || dàichead is a naoidh || dàichead gob is a naoidh dàichead bròg is a naoidh || an dàicheadamh gob is a naoidh an dàicheadamh bròg is a naoidh
|-
| 50 || dàichead is a deich || dàichead gob is a deich dàichead bròg is a deich || an dàicheadamh gob is a deich an dàicheadamh bròg is a deich
|-
| 51 || dàichead is a h-aon deug || dàichead gob is a h-aon deug dàichead bròg is a h-aon deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-aon deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-aon deug
|-
| 52 || dàichead is a dhà dheug || dàichead gob is a dhà dheug dàichead bròg is a dhà dheug ||an dàicheadamh gob is a dhà dheug an dàicheadamh bròg is a dhà dheug
|-
| 53 || dàichead is a trì deug || dàichead gob is a trì deug dàichead bròg is a trì deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a trì deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a trì deug
|-
| 54 || dàichead is a ceithir deug || dàichead gob is a ceithir deug dàichead bròg is a ceithir deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a ceithir deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a ceithir deug
|-
| 55 || dàichead is a cóig deug || dàichead gob is a cóig deug dàichead bròg is a cóig deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a cóig deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a cóig deug
|-
| 56 || dàichead is a sia deug || dàichead gob is a sia deug dàichead bròg is a sia deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a sia deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a sia deug
|-
| 57 || dàichead is a seachd deug || dàichead gob is a seachd deug dàichead bròg is a seachd deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a seachd deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a seachd deug
|-
| 58 || dàichead is a h-ochd deug || dàichead gob is a h-ochd deug dàichead bròg is a h-ochd deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a h-ochd deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a h-ochd deug
|-
| 59 || dàichead is a naoidh deug || dàichead gob is a naoidh deug dàichead bròg is a naoidh deug || an dàicheadamh gob is a naoidh deug an dàicheadamh bròg is a naoidh deug
|-
| 60 || trì fichead || trì fichead gob trì fichead bròg || an trì ficheadamh gob an trì ficheadamh bròg
|-
| 61 || trì fichead is a h-aon ||trì fichead gob is a h-aon trì fichead bròg is a h-aon || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-aon an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 62 || trì fichead is a dhà || trì fichead gob is a dhà trì fichead bròg is a dhà || an trì ficheadamh gob is a dhà an trì ficheadamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 63 || trì fichead is a trì || trì fichead gob is a trì trì fichead bròg is a trì || an trì ficheadamh gob is a trì an trì 20mh bròg is a trì
|-
| 64 || trì fichead is a ceithir || trì fichead gob is a ceithir trì fichead bròg is a ceithir || an trì ficheadamh gob is a ceithir an trì 20mh bròg is a ceithir
|-
| 65 || trì fichead is a cóig || trì fichead gob is a cóig trì fichead bròg is a cóig || an trì ficheadmh gob is a cóig an trì ficheadamh bròg is a cóig
|-
| 66 || trì fichead is a sia || trì fichead gob is a sia trì fichead bròg is a sia || an trì ficheadamh gob is a sia an trì ficheadamh bròg is a sia
|-
| 67 || trì fichead is a seachd || trì fichead gob is a seachd trì fichead bròg is a seachd || an trì ficheadamh gob is a seachd an trì ficheadamh bròg is a seachd
|-
| 68 || trì fichead is a h-ochd || trì fichead gob is a h-ochd trì fichead bròg is a h-ochd || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd
|-
| 69 || trì fichead is a naoidh || trì fichead gob is a naoidh trì fichead bròg is a naoidh || an trì ficheadamh gob is a naoidh an trì ficheadamh bròg is a naoidh
|-
| 70 || trì fichead is a deich || trì fichead gob is a deich trì fichead bròg is a deich || an trì ficheadamh gob is a deich an trì ficheadamh bròg is a deich
|-
| 71 || trì fichead is a h-aon deug || trì fichead gob is a h-aon deug trì fichead bròg is a h-aon deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-aon deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon deug
|-
| 72 || trì fichead is a dhà dheug || trì fichead gob is a dhà dheug trì fichead bròg is a dhà dheug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a dhà dheug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a dhà dheug
|-
| 73 || trì fichead is a trì deug || trì fichead gob is a trì deug trì fichead bròg is a trì deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a trì deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a trì deug
|-
| 74 || trì fichead is a ceithir deug || trì fichead gob is a ceithir deug trì fichead bròg is a ceithir deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a ceithir deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a ceithir deug
|-
| 75 || trì fichead is a cóig deug || trì fichead gob is a cóig deug trì fichead bròg is a cóig deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a cóig deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a cóig deug
|-
| 76 || trì fichead is a sia deug || trì fichead gob is a sia deug trì fichead bròg is a sia deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a sia deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a sia deug
|-
| 77 || trì fichead is a seachd deug || trì fichead gob is a seachd deug trì fichead bròg is a seachd deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a seachd deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a seachd deug
|-
| 78 || trì fichead is a h-ochd deug || trì fichead gob is a h-ochd deug trì fichead bròg is a h-ochd deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd deug
|-
| 79 || trì fichead is a naoidh deug || trì fichead gob is a naoidh deug trì fichead bròg is a naoidh deug || an trì ficheadamh gob is a naoidh deug an trì ficheadamh bròg is a naoi deug
|-
| 80 || ceithir fichead || ceithir fichead gob ceithir fichead bròg || an ceithir ficheadamh gob an ceithir ficheadamh bròg
|-
| 81 || ceithir fichead is a h-aon || ceithir fichead gob is a h-aon ceithir fichead bròg is a h-aon || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-aon an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 82 || ceithir fichead is a dhà || ceithir fichead gob is a dhà ceithir fichead bròg is a dhà || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a dhà an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 83 || ceithir fichead is a trì || ceithir fichead gob is a trì ceithir fichead bròg is a trì || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a trì an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a trì
|-
| 84 || ceithir fichead is a ceithir || ceithir fichead gob is a ceithir ceithir fichead bròg is a ceithir || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a ceithir an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a ceithir
|-
| 85 || ceithir fichead is a cóig || ceithir fichead gob is a cóig ceithir fichead bròg is a cóig || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a cóig an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a cóig
|-
| 86 || ceithir fichead is a sia || ceithir fichead gob is a sia ceithir fichead bròg is a sia || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a sia an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a sia
|-
| 87 || ceithir fichead is a seachd || ceithir fichead gob is a seachd ceithir fichead bròg is a seachd || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a seachd an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a seachd
|-
| 88 || ceithir fichead is a h-ochd || ceithir fichead gob is a h-ochd ceithir fichead bròg is a h-ochd || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd
|-
| 89 || ceithir fichead is a naoi || ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh ceithir fichead bròg is a naoidh || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a naoidh an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a naoidh
|-
| 90 || ceithir fichead is a deich || ceithir fichead gob is a deich ceithir fichead bròg is a deich || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a deich an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a deich
|-
| 91 || ceithir fichead is a h-aon deug || ceithir fichead gob is a h-aon deug ceithir fichead bròg is a h-aon deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-aon deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-aon deug
|-
| 92 || ceithir fichead is a dhà dheug || ceithir fichead gob is a dhà dheug ceithir fichead bròg is a dhà dheug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a dhà dheug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a dhà dheug
|-
| 93 || ceithir fichead is a trì deug || ceithir fichead gob is a trì deug ceithir fichead bròg is a trì deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a trì deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a trì deug
|-
| 94 || ceithir fichead is a ceithir deug || ceithir fichead gob is a ceithir deug ceithir fichead bròg is a ceithir deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a ceithir deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a ceithir deug
|-
| 95 || ceithir fichead is a cóig deug || ceithir fichead gob is a cóig deug ceithir fichead bròg is a cóig deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a cóig deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a cóig deug
|-
| 96 || ceithir fichead is a sia deug || ceithir fichead gob is a sia deug ceithir fichead bròg is a sia deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a sia deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a sia deug
|-
| 97 || ceithir fichead is a seachd deug || ceithir fichead gob is a seachd deug ceithir fichead bròg is a seachd deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a seachd deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a seachd deug
|-
| 98 || ceithir fichead is a h-ochd deug || ceithir fichead gob is a h-ochd deug ceithir fichead bròg is a h-ochd deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a h-ochd deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a h-ochd deug
|-
| 99 || ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug || ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh deug ceithir fichead bròg is a naoidh deug || an ceithir ficheadamh gob is a naoidh deug an ceithir ficheadamh bròg is a naoidh deug
|-
| 100 || ceud || ceud gob ceud bròg || an ceudamh gob an ceudamh bròg
|-
| 101 || ceud is a h-aon || ceud gob is a h-aon ceud bròg is a h-aon || an ceudamh gob is a h-aon an ceudamh bròg is a h-aon
|-
| 102 || ceud is a dhà || ceud gob is a dhà ceud bròg is a dhà || an ceudamh gob is a dhà an ceudamh bròg is a dhà
|-
| 103 || ceud is a trì || ceud gob is a trì ceud bròg is a trì || an ceudamh gob is a trì an ceudamh bròg is a trì
|-
|}

===Notes===
And the footnotes:

1) 50: Instead of dàichead is a deich, leth cheud can be used, which does not lenite.

2) In spoken Gaelic is a is often shortened to 's a /sə/ not to be confused with sa 'in the'.

3) Dàichead is a shortened form of dà fhichead. It is not only easier to read, but also reflects the actual stress placement better (only on the dà-) when counting which is why we prefer it.

4) Once you reach ceudamh, no gender distinctions are necessary any more.

5) Sometimes the vigesimal system is used up to 200 i.e. cóig fichead, sia fichead, seachd fichead, ochd fichead, naoi fichead, but never beyond that.

==Higher Still==
Yes, we said we'd only go up to a hundred, but in real life we need to tackle larger numbers too, so here are a few further key numbers so you will get an understanding of how to tackle larger numbers. And yes, many a Gaelic teacher will tell you that most Gaels use English numbers when counting anything complex above 50 or 100, but first of all that is beside the point and secondly that has much to do with the fact that almost all Gaelic speaking adults over 20 have been educated through the medium of English, particularly when it comes to maths, which is not a subject commonly taught in GME, especially not at secondary level. Go on, how good are your number skills in French or German over 50?

So do learn how to express these numbers, but we advise caution as to with whom you can use them. Learners, teachers, very literate native speakers and young people who have had GME. If you feel like doing some language planning, you can always use the Gaelic numbers regardless of with whom you are speaking and then gloss it by following it with the number in English.

{| style="width: 100%;" border="0"
! scope="col" width="5%" align="left" | №
! scope="col" width="20%" align="left" | counting
! scope="col" width="30%" align="left" | cardinal numbers (one beak, two beaks ...)
! scope="col" width="35%" align="left" | ordinal numbers (first, second ...)
|- valign="top"
| 105 || ceud is a cóig || ceud gob is a cóig || an ceudamh gob is a còig
|-
| 125 || ceud, fichead is a cóig || ceud, fichead gob is a cóig || an ceudamh, cóig guib ar fhichead
|-
| 220 || dà cheud is fichead || dà cheud gob is fichead || an dà cheudamh gob ar fhichead
|-
| 400 || ceithir ceud || ceithir cheud gob || an ceithir cheudamh gob
|-
| 552 || cóig cheud, dàichead is a dhà dheug || cóig cheud, dàichead gob is a dhà dheug || an cóig cheudamh, dàichead gob is a dhà dheug
|-
| 592 || cóig ceud, ceithir fichead is a dhà dheug || cóig ceud, ceithir fichead gob is a dhà dheug || an ceithir ceudamh, ceithir fichead gob is a dhà dheug
|-
| 1,000 || mìle || mìle gob || am mìleamh gob
|-
| 1,238 || mìle, dà cheud, ochd deug ar fhichead || mìle, dà cheud, ochd guib dheug ar fhichead || am mìleamh, dà cheud,
ochd guib dheug ar fhichead
|-
| 4,673 || ceithir mìle, sia ceud, trì fichead is trì deug || ceithir mìle, sia cheud, trì fichead gob is trì deug || an ceithir mìleamh, sia cheud, trì fichead gob is trì deug
|-
| 10,000 || deich mìle || deich mìle gob || an deich mìleamh gob
|-
| 16,745 || sia mìle deug, seachd ceud, dàichead is a cóig || sia mìle deug, seachd ceud, dàichead gob is a cóig || an sia mìleamh deug, seachd ceud, dàichead gob is a cóig
|-
| 56,965 || dàichead mìle is sia deug, naoidh ceud, trì fichead is a cóig || dàichead mìle is a sia deug, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a cóig || an dàichead mìleamh is sia deug, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a cóig
|-
| 200,000 || dà cheud mìle || dà cheud mìle gob || an dà cheud mìleamh gob
|-
| 143,976 || ceud mìle dàichead is a trì, naoidh ceud, trì fichead is a sia || ceud mìle dàichead is a trì, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a sia || an ceud mìleamh dàichead is a trì, naoidh ceud, trì fichead gob is a sia
|-
| 999,999 || naoidh ceud mìle ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug, naoidh ceud, ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug || naoidh ceud mìle ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug, naoidh ceud, ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh deug || naoidh ceud mìleamh ceithir fichead is a naoidh deug, naoidh ceud, ceithir fichead gob is a naoidh deug
|-
| 1,000,000 || millean || millean gob || am milleanamh gob
|-
| 5,867,835 || cóig millean, ochd ceud mìle trì fichead is seachd, ochd ceud, cóig deug ar fhichead || cóig millean, ochd ceud mìle trì fichead is a seachd, ochd ceud, cóig guib dheug ar fhichead || an cóig milleanamh, ochd ceud mìle trì fichead is seachd, ochd ceud, cóig guib dheug ar fhichead
|-
|}

===Notes===
Footnote or ten ...

1) The comma is only "notional" that is, it's a "speech break" you put in when saying the number. You don't actually write it when spelling out numbers - we just put them in here to demonstrate where the breaks would be.

2) The numbers 2-6 lenite ceud, so you get dà cheud, trì cheud, ceithir cheud, cóig cheud and sia cheud. This is NOT completely arbitrary but the last remining vestiges of something Gaelic lost. Traditionally (well, several hundred years back in Gaelic terms), the number 1-6 lenite while the numbers 7-10 nasalize. Meaning? Well, seeing Irish still does this, let's have a look at how you count boats in Irish: bád, dhá bhád, trí bhád, ceithre bhád, cúig bhád, sé bhád, seacht mbád, ocht mbád, naoi mbád, deich mbád. Cool, isn't it? Gaelic stopped doing this a long time ago - except with the word ceud for whatever reason. In older texts, you might also come across things like trì thaighean occasionally.

3) Between 1001 and 9999, you can employ "splitting" into hundreds as you would with a year, e.g. 1267 as dà cheud dheag, trì fichead is a seachd.

4) As mentioned above, there is the possibility to express numbers up to 200 in twenties e.g. 136 as ceud, sia deug ar fhichead or sia fichead is a sia deug. So 136 ice-creams would be sia fichead reòiteag is a deich.

5) Leth refers to a half of the previous largest round 100, 1.000, 10.000 etc unit. This gives a value of 50, 500, 5.000 etc. These are then combined to give 150, 1.500, 15.000 etc. Enter the "illogical" step. You might imagine that trì cheud gu leth equals 450. Wrong. It equals 350. This principle applies at each level (100, 1.000, 10.000 etc). You can then add the numbers 1-9 to these expressions, but once you hit the next full 10, you have to revert to the "normal" way of counting, e.g. dà mhìle gu leth, dà mhìle gu leth is a h-aon, dà mhìle gu leth is a dhà ... dà mhìle gu leth is a naoi, dà mhìle is trì fichead. Leth cheud, leth mhìle etc work the same way. Alternatively you can just stick to the "normal" numbers

6) Possessives ... the ones that lenite, lenite numbers and the ones that add n- add n- to numbers beginning with vowels: mo dhà shùil, a thrì taighean, ar n-ochd caraidean. An so on.

7) Plurals. Numbers form their plurals 'relatively' regularly by adding -(e)an, -than, -dhean, -tean: aon » aonan, dà » dàthan, trì » trìthean, ceithir » ceithirean, cóig » cóigean, sia » siathan, seachd » seachdan, ochd » ochdan, naoi » naoidhean, deich » deichean, fichead » ficheadan, ceud » ceudan, mìle » mìltean, millean » milleanan. When will you ever need that? Well, try saying "I shook four sixes in a row" without using a plural of six ...

8) And last but not least, there is a tendency to stick the thing being counted at the very end with large numbers, especially with monetary units, so ¥51.655 would be dàichead mìle, sia ceud, trì fichead is a cóig Yen rather than dàichead mìle, sia ceud, trì fichead Yen is a cóig.

Hooray, you've cracked it ... except that Gaelic educationalists have had other plans ....
Oh, and there's a separate page on how to give the date and time in Gaelic.

 
 
{{BeaganGramair}}