Articles on the Irish Language » grammar

If-sentences

Eoin — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 10:08:06 +0000

In Irish, if-sentences can be confusing because different types of if-sentences require a different if-word. Let us take the following two English sentences:

1) If you marry him, you will regret it for ever.

2) If you were to marry him, you would regret it for ever.

These 2 sentences, although similar, convey 2 different ideas and, in Irish, they each require a different if-word.

In the first one, there is a sense that the if is likely i.e. there seems to be a reasonable possibility that the marriage is going to go ahead.

In the second one, there is more of a sense that the marriage under discussion is hypothetical or that the likelihood of the marriage going ahead is low.

Similarly, “if I were a rich man….” (as in the song) conveys the idea that the if situation is unlikely to be achieved or attained i.e that the singer is never going to be a rich man.

This type of construction (i.e “if you were to marry her” or “if I were a rich man”) uses what is called the past subjunctive of the verb (i.e were in these examples is the past subjunctive of the verb to be). Thankfully, we do not need to worry ourselves unduly about the past subjunctive in either English or Irish (which is not to suggest for a moment that anyone who wishes to refresh their knowledge of the English past subjunctive before proceeding further would not find it rewarding). However, we do need to understand that, in Irish, the type of if we use depends on whether the if is likely to be achieved or attained or fulfilled or whether the if is unlikely to be achieved, attained or fulfilled.

So, in Irish, the above sentences could be translated as follows:

1) If you marry him, you will regret it for ever.

Má phósann tú é, beidh tú in aiféala air go deo.

2) If you were to marry him, you would regret it for ever.

Dá bpósfá é, bheifeá in aiféala air go deo.

Positive if clauses (má and dá)

From looking at the examples above, we can see that má is the if-word to be used for situations that are likely to be fulfilled or realised (or likely to have been fulfilled or realised) whereas dá is the if-word for more hypothetical situations where the chances of fulfilment are unlikely or remote. We can also make the very important observation that both verbs in the dá sentence were in the conditional mood whereas the verbs in the má sentence were not. No matter how much I unwittingly muddy the waters in what is to follow, we should not lose sight of the simple fact that:

Dá is accompanied by the conditional mood of the verb but má is not.

This article is an attempt to shed some light on when we need to use a particular if-word/construction and when we might need to use a different one. It consists of grammatical ground-rules along with examples of different if-sentences but the former should not be allowed to deflect too much attention from the latter.

Rules for má

Má is used when referring to conditions that are likely to be fulfilled, or to have been fulfilled, whether this fulfilment be in the past, present or future.

Má is used when the verb in the main clause (see note below) is in the present, past or future tenses or is in the imperative mood.

It is placed immediately before the verb.

It generally lenites the following verb (where applicable). The main exception to this is the verb tá (as usual, the past autonomous form of the verb resists lenition).

D’ prefix is required in the past tense with verbs in the past tense that begin with a vowel or with an f (as usual, it is not used with the past autonomous form of the verb).

Má is not followed by the future tense of the verb in the if- clause even when the verb in the main clause is in the future tense. Instead, when referring to future events, má is followed by the present habitual. That is to say that one would not say má bheidh. Instead, one would use má bhíonn when referring to future events. Similarly, one would not say má thiocfaidh, but rather má thagann. This will be discussed again, with examples, below.

Note: The term main clause refers to the principal clause in a sentence on which the if-clause depends for its sense. The main clause could stand alone and make a full sentence but the if-clause cannot – it needs the main clause. In the sentence “If you are still reading this, you have no sense”, the main clause is “you have no sense” and the if-clause is “if you are still reading this”.]

Examples

Má bhí airgead ag an sprionlóir úd, ní bhfuair a chlann cianóg rua de.

If that skinflint had money, his children did not get a brass farthing of it.

This is a likely if-clause. It is likely that the person did indeed have money – indeed, what is being conveyed in this sentence is that this person certainly, or almost certainly, had money even if he was not overly generous towards his children.

Má chuala sé an ráfla sin, níor labhair sé riamh air.

If he heard that rumour, he never spoke of it.

Again, the sense here is that it is likely that the person heard the rumour, or, at the very least, there is a reasonable chance that he heard it.

Má d’ól tú mo phionta, tá ceann úr agam ort.

If you drank my pint, you owe me a fresh one.

The likelihood that a pint has been misappropriated here appears to be high.

Sa lá atá inniu ann, má theastaíonn uait do dhúidín a dheargadh, ní féidir leat é a dhéanamh istigh i dteach an óil.

Nowadays, if you want to light your pipe, you cannot do it in the pub.

The sense here is that it is likely that someone might well like to spark up in the pub.

The remaining má examples are similar to the ones above – they all deal with if-situations where the if is followed by something in the if-clause that is likely to be the case at the present time or is likely enough to come about at a later date.

Má tá rud éigin le rá agat, caith asat é.

If you have something to say, spit it out.

Má tá ocras ort fós, níl do dhóthain ithe agat.

If you are still hungry, you have not eaten your fill.

It is important to note that the last 2 examples use “má tá” because they refer to circumstances that apply currently or right now:

If you are still hungry (i.e. hungry right now)……

and

If you have something to say (i.e. something to say right now)….

If we want to refer to the future, we do not follow má with the future tense in the if-clause (this was one of our rules, above). Instead, we use the present habitual tense as the following examples should illustrate:

Ullmhóidh mé bricfeasta mór duit amárach, má bhíonn ocras ort.

I will prepare a big breakfast for you tomorrow, if you are hungry.

[i.e. hungry at that future time rather than right now.]

It is worth re-stating that má bhíonn rather than má bheidh is what is used when referring to future events.

To go back to a previous example:

Má phósann tú é, beidh tú in aiféala air go deo.

If you marry him, you will regret it forever.

Once again, even though a possible future occurrence is being considered, má is followed by the present habitual tense pósann tú (with lenition) rather than the future tense i.e má phósfaidh tú is not used.

Rules for dá

Note: To avoid confusion elsewhere, it should be noted that the word dá can be encountered with meanings other than the if conjunction that is being described here.

Dá is used mainly when referring to situations that are hypothetical and unlikely to be fulfilled i.e. when there is considerable doubt about their fulfilment. The term “contrary to fact” is sometimes used to describe such unlikely conditions since the speaker has already made up his/her mind that the if-situation being described is false in that it is not gong to become a reality. Thus, dá would be our if-word if, for some bizarre reason, we wanted to translate the following song-lines to Irish:

“If you were the only girl in the world,

And I were the only boy……”

It is placed immediately before the verb.

It causes eclipsis (where applicable) of the following verb.

The verb in the main clause is always in the conditional mood.

The verb in the if-clause is almost* always in the conditional mood.

*“Almost” because the verb in the if-clause (i.e. the verb immediately following dá) may be in the form of the past subjunctive (yes – him again) – but this is very uncommon in the Irish of today. So, for practical purposes, we can get away with saying that the verb in the if-clause is always in the conditional mood. This means that we can combine the last 2 rules, above, into one very important rule:

In a dá if-sentence, the verb in the if-clause and the main clause are always in the conditional mood.

Note: The conditional remains the same for all tenses – past, present or future. Thus, thiocfadh sé can mean he would come or he would have come and knowing the context may be necessary in order to be able to distinguish between these possible meanings . This will be discussed briefly with one of our examples in a later section [one dealing with unlikely negative-ifs].

Examples

Dá mbuafainn an Crannchur Náisiúnta, ní athródh sé mo shaol.

If I would win the National Lottery, it would not change my life.

We use dá rather than má because the likelihood of winning the lottery is remote.

As stated earlier, it is probably more helpful to translate the if-clause into English as if I were to win rather than if I would win to convey a better sense of the hypothetical nature of the situation.

Dá mbeadh an Ghaeilge ar mo thoil agam, chuirfinn isteach ar phost ag Radio na Gaeltachta.

If I had fluent Irish, I would apply for a job at Radio na Gaeltachta.

[Or - if I were to have fluent Irish/ were I to have fluent Irish/ had I fluent Irish,……i.e. the likelihood of me having fluent Irish is remote.]

Dá mbeadh an t-am agamsa, an mbeadh an fuinneamh agatsa?

If I had the time, would you have the energy?

[Or – if I were to have the time/were I to have the time,……i.e. I am not likely (at all, at all) to have the time.]

Dá n-éireodh sé in am, ní bheadh sé déanach.

If he would get up in time, he would not be late.

[Or – if he were to get up in time/were he to get up in time,…i.e. there is little chance of this person getting up in time.]

In addition to using dá and the conditional to refer to hypothetical events, it can also be used to make a question or suggestion more polite:

Dá ndéanfá an gar seo dom, bheinn faoi chomaoin agat choíche.

If you would [were to] do me this favour, I would be forever in your debt.

Negative if-clauses (If……not)

Whereas with positive if-clauses a different conjunction is used (má or dá) depending on the likelihood of fulfilment of the condition, the same conjunction (mura) is used for negative if-clauses of both types (likely or unlikely). However, when dealing with unlikely negative if-scenarios the verb that follows mura is in the conditional mood (in the same way that dá is followed by the conditional mood when unlikely positive if-scenarios are being discussed).

Rules for mura

It is placed immediately before the verb.

It causes eclipsis (where applicable) of the following verb.

It requires the dependent form of the following verb.

It becomes murar before the past tense of regular verbs in which case the verb is lenited (where applicable) rather than eclipsed.

[The d’ prefix (which precedes verbs beginning with f or a vowel in the past tense) is not required with mura.]

Unlike má, mura may be followed by the future tense of the verb in the if-clause.

Examples of using mura(r) to express likely negative-ifs

[i.e ones where there is a reasonable chance of the if……not condition being fulfilled or attained and where má would have been used if they were positive if-clauses. I know that last sentence is probably as difficult to read as it was to write – but it may be that the examples will make things slightly clearer.]

Mura raibh tú caochta, an raibh tú beagáinín súgach?

If you were not paralytic (blind drunk), were you a little bit tipsy?

There is a reasonable chance that the person was not paralytic. The speaker is saying “if you were not paralytic,…..” and conveying the sense that there is indeed a reasonable chance the person was not paralytic.

Note: We will return briefly to this example when discussing unlikely negative-ifs.

Murar phóg sé í agus í umhal ábalta, ní raibh ciall ar bith aige.

If he didn’t kiss her and her willing and able, he had no sense at all.

What is being conveyed here is that there is a reasonable (or more than reasonable) probability that he did not kiss her.

Mura bhfuil sé briste, ná deisigh é.

If it is not broken, don’t fix it.

There is a reasonable likelihood that it is not broken.

The remaining examples of likely negative if-sentences are similar to the ones above – they all deal with if-situations where the if……not condition has a reasonable probability of being fulfilled.

These examples are continued in A Big If 2

Firstly submitted by: Merryploughbhoy

“Tá” and “Is” – the “to be” verbs

Eoin — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 09:56:56 +0000

In Irish, there are two equivalents to English’s “to be” verb. Those are bí/tá and is.Tá is used when you are expressing something that will most likely change soon. For example:

Tá mé go maith = I am {doing} well.
/taw may guh mah/

But, you use is when explaining something that probably won’t change, for example:

Is Éireannach mé = I am Irish
/iss ay-ron-ock may/

For those of ye who have studied Spanish, Portuguese, or Italian, the difference between ‘tá’ and ‘is’ is similar (but not identical to) the difference between ESTAR / STARE and SER / ESSERE (ESTAR / STARE – SER / ESSERE); in fact, ESTAR / STARE / TÁ are also etymologically related to the word ‘state’ (as in ‘condition’) in English and SER / ESSERE / IS to the English word ‘essence’.

A common mistake beginners make is to use the verb ‘bí’ (tá)’ as an exact translation of the English verb ‘to be’. Beginners learn

tá sé mór – ‘he/it’s big
tá mé anseo – ‘I’m here’
tá tú óg – ‘you’re young’

and they learn that

sé = he/it tú = you mé = I (or ‘me’)

and that

mór = big
anseo = here
óg = young

They deduce (naturally enough) that ‘tá’ is translated as a form of the verb ‘to be’ in the present. They then form clauses such as

*Tá sé múinteoir * = ‘He’s a teacher’ (INCORRECT)

*Tá mé Éireannach * = ‘I’m Irish’ (INCORRECT)

Unfortunately, these structures are incorrect; they’re as incorrect as ‘está profesor’ or ‘estoy irlandés’ are in Spanish (this mistake is commonly referred to as the ‘tá sé fear’ structure). ‘Tá’ is used with adjectives to express a state or condition; it is not used (on its own) for classification or identification sentences, i.e., it can’t be used to answer the question ‘what is he/it?’. For these structures you use ‘is’

Is múinteoir é = ‘He’s a teacher’

Is Éireannach mé = ‘I’m Irish’ (or ‘I’m an Irishman’)

HOWEVER

It is possible to use ‘tá’ in a classification sentence but ONLY with the preposition ‘i’ (‘in’).

*Tá sé múinteoir * = ‘He’s a teacher’ (INCORRECT)

BUT

Tá sé ina mhúinteoir = ‘He’s a teacher’ (CORRECT)

(literally ‘he’s in his teacher’)

‘Tá sé ina mhúinteoir’ normally has the implication of ‘he’s a teacher (now)’ i.e., ‘he has become a teacher’.

‘Bí (tá)’ is also used in Connacht and Ulster with ‘i’ in strutures which replace the copula ‘is’ (but without the implication of ‘become’)

X + ‘bí’ + ‘i’ (+ pronoun)

Muinteoir atá ann. = Is múinteoir é. (= ‘He’s a teacher’)

Banaltra atá inti. = Is banaltra í. (= ‘She’s a nurse’)

To recap – you can say

Is múinteoir é.

Múinteoir is ea é. (more about this structure later – it’s used in Munster Irish)

Tá sé ina mhúinteoir.

Muinteoir atá ann.

but you can NOT say

*Tá sé múinteoir.

Written by Tadhg.

Prepositions and Pronouns

Eoin — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 09:56:15 +0000

Conjugated Prepositions

Fifteen of the “simple” Irish prepositions are conjugated for pronoun they refer to. For example, to say “to me,” you can’t just have “do mé.” You use the conjugated form “dom.”

Not also that since Irish has no neuter pronoun for “it,” the forms for “he” and “she” also refer to “it” depending on whether the noun is masculine or feminine.

Here are prepositions and their forms:

ag – at (used also to indicate “have”)

agam — at me
agat — at you (s)
aige — at him
aici — at her
againn — at us
agaibh — at you (p)
acu — at them

ar — on (used often with feelings and emotions)

orm — on me
ort — on you (s)
air — on him
uirthi — on her
orainn — on us
oraibh — on you (p)
orthu — on them

as — out of

asam — out of me
asat — out of you
as — out of him
aisti — out of her
asainn — out of us
asaibh — out of you
astu — out of them

chuig/chun — toward

chugam — toward me
chugat — toward you
chuige — toward him
chuici — toward her
chugainn — toward us
chugaibh — toward you
chucu — toward them

de — of (expression removal, and all partition)

díom — of me
díot — of you
de — of him
di — of her
dínn — of us
díbh — of you
díobh — of them

do — to/for (indirect object, recipient)

dom — to me
duit — to you
dó — to him
di — to her
dúinn — to us
daoibh — to you
dóibh — to them

faoi — under; about, concerning

fúm — under me
fút — under you
faoi — under him
fúithi — under her
fúinn — under us
fúibh — under you
fúthu — under them

i — in

ionam — in me
ionat — in you
ann — in him
inti — in her
ionainn — in us
ionaibh — in you
iontu — in them

idir — between

eadrainn — between us
eadraibh — between you
eatarthu — between them

le — with

liom — with me
leat — with you
leis — with him
léi — with her
linn — with us
libh — with you
leo — with them

ó — from (origin, space), also used to express “wanting”

uaim — from me
uait — from you
uaidh — from him
uaithi — from her
uainn — from us
uaibh — from you
uathu — from them

roimh — before

romham — before me
romhat — before you
roimhe — before him
roimpi — before her
romhainn — before us
romhaibh — before you
rompu — before them

thar — over, past

tharam — over me
tharat — over you
thairis — over him
thairsti — over her
tharainn — over us
tharaibh — over you
tharstu — over them

trí — through; by means of

tríom — through me
tríot — through you
tríd — through him
tríthi — through her
trínn — through us
tríbh — through you
tríothu — through them

um — around about

umam — around me
umat — around you
uime — around him
uimpi — around her
umainn — around us
umaibh — around you
umpu — around them.

Masculine and Feminine

Eoin — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 09:51:11 +0000

Common mistakes that learners should avoid.
The distinction between masculine and feminine (grammatical gender) is important in Irish. One of the ways it is expressed is through ‘lenition.’

Lenition means adding an “h” after the first consonant of a word.

bean mhór = big woman
/ban wore/

It seems to me that failing to aspirate after definite feminine nouns (feminine nouns following ‘the’) is one of the most common mistakes that beginners make.

Failing to aspirate the adjective modifying a feminine singular noun is even more common. For those of you who know French or Spanish, ‘oíche maith’ or ‘bean mór’ (for example) look and sound as bad in Irish as say, ‘un beau femme’ or ‘une bonne chanteur’ do in French or ‘una chica guapo’ or ‘buenos noches’ do in Spanish.

I’d say that most of the time when people don’t aspirate in these cases it’s probably because they don’t realise that the noun in question is in fact feminine.

Tadhg’s advice

Unless you’re 100% certain of the gender of an Irish noun, check its gender in an Irish dictionary.

What if you don’t know whether a noun is masculine or feminine and you haven’t got an Irish dictionary handy?

ANSWER:

A GOOD RULE OF THUMB:

IF A NOUN ENDS IN A BROAD CONSONANT, IT’S PROBABLY MASCULINE;

IF IT ENDS IN A SLENDER CONSONANT, IT’S PROBABLY FEMININE.

Before anybody jumps on me, I have to make the disclaimer that there are many exceptions to this rule of thumb .The masculine 3rd declension endings –óir, -éir, úir, etc. that are used in words having to do with profession come immediately to mind and also the feminine endings –óg/-eog; -lann; -(e)ach (in the 2nd declension, with genitive ending in –(a)í); and -(e)acht (abstract words).

(Obviously, the word ‘bean’ used as an example above is also an exception).

Let me put it this way: if you guess that a noun ending in a broad consonant is masculine or one ending in a slender noun is feminine, the percentages are in your favour. Don’t quote me on this, but I would say that this rule probably holds true at least 70% of the time and possibly even 80-90% of the time (leaf through the Irish-English section of an Irish dictionary and draw your own conclusions).

What about nouns that end in vowels (I hear you asking)?
Well, I’m inclined to believe that the broad = masculine and slender = feminine rule probably also holds true to a certain extent (I would hazard a guess that the majority of Irish nouns ending in the letter ‘e’ are feminine) but to a far, far lesser extent than in the case of final consonants and I would be more cautious about giving it to you as a rule of thumb because there are far too many cases to the contrary (masculine nouns that end in –(a)í and –aire immediately spring to mind) so I won’t.

That said, if you’re stuck and you have to take a wild guess, it might be worth considering the broad = masculine and slender = feminine rule of thumb.

Again, I would emphasise that if you’re not sure and you’ve got access to a dictionary, CHECK IT IN THE DICTIONARY.

Another IMPORTANT thing to remember:

ADJECTIVES ARE MARKED FOR NUMBER AS WELL AS FOR GENDER

(by adding an ‘a’ or an ‘e’ to the adjective depending on whether it’s broad or slender)

Example 1.

Singular
bean mhór = a big woman
/ban wore/
(Mór, big, is the adjective here)

an bhean mhór = the big woman
/on ban wore/

Plural
mná móra = big women
/mraw MORE-uh/

na mná móra = the big women
/na mraw MORE-uh/

Example 2.

Singular
oíche mhaith = good evening
/ee-ha wah/
(Maith, good, is the adjective here. Remember oíche, night, is a feminine noun)

Plural
oícheanta maithe = good evenings
/EE-han-ta mah-ha/

Article written by Tadhg.

Lenition

Eoin — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 09:50:28 +0000

Lenition is one of the two mutations that Irish words undergo, and it can be a very tricky topic for many people.
Anciently, lenition marks where a word was preceded by another word that ended in a vowel. Over time, being stuck between two vowels caused a weakening or “lightening” of the sound of the consonant. In linguistic terms, the consonant became a “spirant.” Rather than being a stop, where the teeth, tongue and lips stop air from leaving your mouth as you make the sound, the form of the sound changed to allow air through.

Nowadays, lenition happens in a variety of places where once the word being lenited was (and sometimes still is) preceded by another word that ends in a vowel.

Take the word “grá,” for example. If you want to say “my love,” you have to add the possessive adjective “mo” before “grá.” “Mo,” quite obviously, ends in a vowel, so that lenites the first consonant of “grá” to “mo ghrá.”

Modern Irish marks lenition by putting an “h” after the lenited consonant. Each combination of consonants with “h” represents a new sound–related to the original, but significantly different. Lenited consonants appear in the middle and the end of Irish words, too, and for the same reason: in earlier forms of the language, they all followed vowels.

These are the sound changes that occur with lenition at the beginning of a word:

b -> bh pronounced like W before A, O, or U; like V before E or I

c -> ch prounced like German “ch” (a light, guttural sound) before A, O, U; like German “Ich” (a lighter, breathy, hissy H) before E or I

d -> dh this is a deep, guttural, throat clearing sound that doesn’t exist in English or many other languages. If you can make the “ch” sound, try to vibrate your vocal cords. The result will be how “ch” is pronounced before A, O, U.

Before E or I, it is pronounced like “y”

f -> fh silent

g -> gh exactly like “dh”

m -> mh exactly like “bh”

p -> ph -> just like in English

s -> sh this is prounced just like English “h”

t -> th just like “sh,” this is pronounced like English “h”

Article written by Oisín.

Genitive Case

Eoin — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 09:49:48 +0000

Use of the Genetive Form

The genitive case, in general, is used to take Noun A and use it to describe, define, limit, or modify Noun B. The genitive case is a signal that Noun A is related to Noun B in a close and intimate way: in English we express the relation in terms of possession, origin, material, belonging and membership, and the like.

madra an bhuachalla – the boy’s dog.

bosca adhmaid – a wooden box (a box of wood)

Teachta Dála – representative of the Dáil

báidín Fheilimidh — Feilimidh’s little boat.

An indefinite noun in the genitive can also be used like an adjective, to describe a noun:

seomra folctha — room of washing (bathroom)

laoch cogaidh — war hero

dochtúir mná — a female doctor (a woman doctor)

In Irish, the genitive has two other major uses:

1.) It marks the direct of object of verbal nouns when they are used with “tá.”

Tá na mná ag déanamh na hoibre – the women are doing the work (the women are at the doing of the work

Bhí mé ag scríobh litreach – I was writing a letter (I was at the writing of a letter)

2.) It links a noun with a “compound preposition.” A compound preposition is a “simple preposition” (ag, i, le, etc.) and a noun, that forms a new idea, and is linked to the noun it modifies by the genitive case:

in aghaidh na naimhde — against the enemies (in the face of the enemies)

os cionn na gcrann — above the trees (over the head of the trees).

How the Genetive is Formed

In Irish, the basic form of a noun is called the nominative. The nominative singular is the form you look us in the dictionary. There are five main ways to form the genitive singular from the nominative singular, and these are the five “declensions.” (any good dictionary should tell you how to do it):

First Declension:These are generally masculine nouns that end in a broad consonant. The genitive singular is formed by making that final consonant slender, usually by adding an “i” just before it. This may cause the vowels to change:

bád -> báid
leabhar -> leabhair
fear -> fir
mac -> mic
iasc -> éisc

Most nouns that end in -(e)ach take the ending -(a)igh:

Éireannach -> Éireannaigh

Second Declension: these are mostly feminine nouns that end in either a broad or slender consonant. The genitive singular is formed by adding an “e” to the end of the nominative. If the nominative ends in a broad consonant, that consonant must be made slender by adding an “i” before it, and this may change the vowels like in the first declension:

fuinneog -> fuinneoige
muc -> muice
long -> loinge
scian -> scéine
eaglais -> eaglaise

Feminine nouns ending in -(e)ach become -(a)í:

báisteach -> báistí

Third Declension: These are both masculine and feminine, and their nominatives end in either broad or slender consonant. The genitive singular is formed by adding an “a” to the end of the nominative. If the ending is originally slender, it becomes broad:

rud -> ruda
múinteoir -> múinteora

Fourth Declension: The genitive singular is identical to the nominative singular, and you can only tell the case by the context:

an cailín -> ainm an chailín
Garda -> carr Garda mhóir

Fifth Declension: These are mostly feminine nouns, and they follow one of two patterns: they either end in a vowel and form the genitive singular by adding a consonant, or they end in -ir, -il, -in, and form the genitive by adding a broad “-ach.”

comharsa -> comharsan
cathair -> cathrach
cara -> carad

There are also a handful of irregulars that don’t fit in any declension.

Counting Objects

Eoin — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 09:46:55 +0000

When counting objects, the words for numbers change.

Dó (Two) becomes Dhá
Ceathair (Four) becomes Ceithre

Example: Counting the Number of Boats (Báid)

Bád amháin – One boat
Dhá bhád – Two boats
Trí bhád – Three boats
Ceithre bhád – Four boats
Cúig bhád – Five boats
Sé bhád – Six boats
Seacht mbád – Seven boats
Ocht mbád – Eight boats
Naoi mbád – Nine boats
Deich mbád – Ten boatsAon bhád déag – Eleven boats
Dhá bhád déag – Twelve boats
Trí bhád déag – Thirteen boats
Ceithre bhád déag – Fourteen boats
Cúig bhád déag – Fifteen boats
Sé bhád déag – Sixteen boats
Seacht mbád déag – Seventeen boats
Ocht mbád déag – Eightenn boats
Naoi mbád déag – Nineteen boats

Fiche bád – Twenty boats
Aon bhád is fiche – Twenty-one boats
Dhá bhád is fiche – Twenty-two boats
Trí bhád is fiche – Twenty-three boats
Ceithre bhád is fiche – Twenty-four boats
Cúig bhád is fiche – Twenty-five boats
Sé bhád is fiche – Twenty-six boats
Seacht mbád is fiche – Twenty-seven boats
Ocht mbád is fiche – Twenty-eight boats
Naoi mbád is fiche – Twenty-nine boats

Tríocha bád – Thirty boats
Aon bhád is tríocha – Thirty-one boats
Cúig bhád is tríocha – Thirty-three boats
Naoi mbád is tríocha – Thirty-nine boats

Daichead bád – Forty boats
Seacht mbád is daichead – Forty-seven boats

Caoga bád – Fifty boats
Aon bhád is caoga – Fifty-one boats

Seasca bád – Sixty boats
Ocht mbád is seasca – Sixty-eight boats

Seachtó bád – Seventy boats
Ceithre bhád is seachtó – Seventy-four boats

Ochtó bád – Eighty boats
Ocht mbád is ochtó – Eighty-eight boats

Nocha bád – Ninety boats
Trí bhád is nocha – Ninety-three boats
Céad bád – One hundred boats

You’ll see the pattern

You use the singular of the word for the object
Aon –> Sé (Numbers 1 to 6, like 3, 23, 33, 43, etc.) = Aspirate the object.
This means placing the séibhiú, or the h, just after the first consanant.
e.g. Trí bhád = Three boats
Seacht –> Naoi (Numbers 7 to 9) = Eclipsis.
An extra consantant is placed at the beginning of the object’s word.
e.g. Seacht mbád = Seven boats
If it’s a multiple of ten (20, 40, 60) except 10 you just leave the object’s word as it is.
e.g. Fiche bád = Twenty boats

Written by Conor.

Copulating with the Copula 3

Eoin — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 09:43:41 +0000

The next major use of the copula is what we call fronting

Irish sentences have a pretty fixed word order. In each clause, the verb comes first, followed by the subject, usually then the direct object, and the other elements after that.

Thug mé an nóta do Shéamus ag an teach tábhairne aréir.
I gave the note to Séamus at the pub last night

If you wanted to place emphasis on any of these elements of the sentence–I gave the note, not you. I gave it to Séamus, not to Liam–you would use the copula to “front” that word element, bringing it to the front of the sentence and creating a relative clause. The fronted element then gets put into an identity or classification sentence depending on whether the element is a definite noun (identification) or anything else (classification). The only real difference is that definite nouns get a pronoun stuck between them and the copula.

Is mise a thug an nóta do Shéamus ag an teach tábhairne aréir.
I gave the note to Séamus at the pub last night.

Is é an nóta a thug mé do Shéamus ag an teach tábhaire aréir
I gave the note to Séamus at the pub last night

Is do Shéamus a thug mé an nóta ag an teach tábhaire aréir
I gave the note to Séamus at the pub last night

Is é Séamus ar thug mé an nóta dhó ag an teach tábhairne aréir
I gave the note to Séamus at the pub last night

(***note the slight change in structure!)

Is ag an teach tábhaire a thug mé an nóta do Shéamus aréir
I gave the note to Séamus at the pub last night

Is aréir a thug mé an nóta do Shéamus ag an teach tábhairne
I gave the note to Séamus at the pub [b]last night

Fronting is fun!

Copulating with the Copula 2

Eoin — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 09:43:16 +0000

Perhaps one of the most frustrating features of Irish to the beginner is the two different verbs for “to be.”

Most people start out learning tá and get comfortable with it. It’s not too difficult, and behaves pretty much the same as the English verb “be.” Tá mé go maith, tá an lá fuar inniu, tá an bheoir sa chuisneoir, and so forth.

It would be logical, then, that some people might then try to say Tá mé Éireannach or Tá mé mac léinn. Logical, maybe, but not quite correct.

Irish grammar makes a distinction between two different ways of “being”: how something is and what something is.

Tá is used for the how: condition, location, size, color, quality. Tá an cat anseo. Tá ocras air. Tá sé mór. Tá sé dubh.

But if you want to say what something is, or who someone is, what particular specimen of things you’re talking about, you need to use the funky little semi-verb that Irish calls The Copula

The Copula (not to be confused with the director of Apocalypse Now and The Godfather) is actually like a grammatical equals sign. It tells you that the two items it links are equal to each other in one of two principal ways:

1.) Classification

The is also referred to as a definition sentence. If you want to say “what” something or someone is, how to define something, or what class or category of things it belongs to, you use the copula. In these types of sentences, the copula links a pronoun or a noun with an indefinite noun.

Cad é seo? — what is this?
Is leabhar é — It is a book (a book is it’s definition. It belongs to the class of entities called “books.”)

Cén tslí beatha atá ag Dónal? — What does Dónal do for a living (lit. what way of life does he have?)

Is daor tuarascail é — He is a wage slave (Being a wage slave is part of Dónal’s idenity. It contributes to the total picture of who he is, sadly )

Cén sórt madra iad sin? — What kind of dogs are those?
Is pocadáin iad — They are beagles (the belong to the category of beagle, beagle is what they are).
Is iasc é an bradán — the trout is a fish.

An gunna é sin i do phóca, nó an bhuil áthas ort mé a fheiceáil? — Is that a gun in your pocket, or are you happy to see me?

Is oileán í Éire — Ireland is an island.

Is ceann de na háiteanna is áille sa tsaoil í Éire — Ireland is one of the most beautiful places in the world.

Is fear é – He is a man
Is bean í – She is woman
Is mac léinn mé – I am a student
Is múiteoir thú – you are a teacher
Is banríon í Méabh – Méabh is a queen
Is pocadáin iad Barney and Jed – Barney and Jed are beagles
Is Éireannach é Pól — Pól is Irish (lit. Pól is an Irishman)
Is Méiriceánach mé — I am (an) American
Is Caitliceach é Tomás — Tom is (a) Catholic
Is Giúdach mé — I am Jewish (a Jew)

A classification or definition sentence is formed as follows:

[the copula] + [what something is] + [the thing or person you’re talking about]

2.) Identification

The other major usage of the copula is in identification sentence. If a classification sentence tells you what a person or thing is, an identification sentence tells you who a person is and what particular thing you’re talking about.

Is é Seán an fear ina shuí ag an mbeair. — John is the man sitting at the bar. (See that one particular man over there? That’s John).

Is í Úna an bhean ag obair ar an ríomhaire — Úna is the woman working on the computer (That specific woman we’re talking about is Úna)

Is mise Dónal — I am Dónal

Is é Peadar cathaoirleach an chomhairle — Peter is the chairman of the council

Sin iad na sagairt a raibh mé ag caint fúthu — Those are the priests I was talking about.

Is é Jameson an t-uisce beatha is fearr liom — Jameson is the whisky I like best.

Haigh! Stadaigí! Sin é mo charrsa! — Oi! Stop! That’s my car!

Is é Eoin riarthóir an fhoraim seo — Eoin is the administrator of this forum

Is í Méabh banríon Chonnachta — Méabh is the Queen of Connaught.

Is iad Barney agus Jed mo mhadraí — Barney and Jed are my dogs

Identification sentences are formed in the following manner:

[the copula] + [pronoun] + [the thing being identified] + [what you are identifying it as]

When you have demonstratives involved–seo or sin–the word order can switch around a little:

Is é sin mo nuachtánsa. Faigh do cheann féin. — This is my newspaper. Get your own.

Sin é mo nuachtánsa… get it?

Is é seo = Seo é
Is í sin = Sín í

Both are acceptable and mean the same thing.

Copulating with the Copula 1

Eoin — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 09:42:32 +0000

The typical way of expressing “I am a teacher” (for example) would be to use the copula: Is múinteoir mé – iss MOON-chore may

You would use this form if you are a teacher, if teaching is your career, your profession, and part of how you define yourself and your life. That is part of what the copula does: it defines what a person or thing is (think of it like a linguistic equals sign =).

I am an administrative assistant. It is not what I want to be doing; it is simply a job that I have, a position that I currently find myself in. I would thus use the fancy “tá (subj) i (poss.pron.) (positon) construction.

Tá mé i mo chuntóir riarthach. - taw may imoh KHOON-tore REE-ur-hukh- I am an administrative assistant.

You would also use this construction to describe your current position in comparison to your past or future:

Tá Seán ina fhreastalaí anois, ach lá amháin beidh sé ina aisteoir

Taw shawn inuh RASS-tuh-ee uh-NISH, ukh law a-WAWN bayshay in ASH-chore
John is a a waiter now, but one day he will be an actor.

Chríochnaigh mé sé bliana staidéir, agus is anois atá mé i mo dhochtúir

KHREEKH-nuh may shay BLEE-uh-nuh STAH-jayr, ogus iss uh-NISH uh-TAW may imuh GHOKH-toor
I finished six years of study, and now I am a doctor.

To get a feel of how this construction is formed, here are the sentences above translated literally:

I am in my administrative assistant
John is in his waiter now, but one day he will be in his actor
I finished six years of study, and it is now that I am in my doctor

People with dirty minds might start imagining several naughty scenarios at this point, but this is how the Irish language expresses these ideas. >:D