Gramadach/Grammar

  An Aibítir/The Alphabet

The Irish alphabet is as follows:

a, á, b, c, d, e, é, f, g, h, i, í, l, m, n, o, ó, p, r, s, t, u, ú

The letters j, k, q, v, w, x, y, and z appear in loan words.

Vowels are either long or short. A stroke ("síneadh fada," or simply "fada") indicates that it is long. This distinction is important, as the meaning of a word can change depending on the vowel:

fear (fahr, as in "cat") / man
féar (fair) / grass, hay

maidin (MAH-jin) / morning
maidín (MAH-jeen) / a little stick

Vowels are also considered either broad (leathan) or slender (caol). The vowels a, á, o, ó, u, and ú are broad, while e, é, i, and í are slender.

This distinction affects the pronunciation of every consonant in Irish. For example:

súil (sool) / eye
siúil (shool) / to walk

gall (gawl) / foreigner
geall (gyawl) / pledge

For more on the pronunciation of Irish, see the sound files in our online lessons.

  Séimhiú/Lenition

Lenition, or aspiration, causes a change to (or silences) the pronunciation of a letter. It is marked in Gaelic type by placing a dot over the aspirated consonant and in Roman type by placing an 'h' after the aspirated consonant.

In written Irish, the following nine consonants are liable to lenition:

b, c, d, f, g, m, p, s, t

Aspiration may be more easily understood if we consider some examples of a similar process in English:

big, blight; fig, fight; pig, plight

The pronunciation of lenited consonants may vary, depending on whether the adjacent vowel or vowels are broad or slender (see above):

b (aspirated) - bh
slender vowel - v ; broad vowel - w
an bhean bhocht (un van wokt)

c (aspirated) - ch
slender vowel - h in Hugh
broad vowel - ch of loch
Co. Chiarraí, Cú Chulainn

d (aspirated) - dh
slender vowel - y
broad vowel - gutteral 'g' but speech organs are in position of ch for loch (one of the most difficult sounds for learners but it comes with practice)
In the middle or end of a word, dh is normally silent.
ar dheis (air YESH),
Dia dhuit (see sound file, lesson 1),
deireadh (JEIR-ah)

f (aspirated) - fh
always silent
fhios (iss), an fhuinneog (un IN-yeog)

g (aspirated) - gh
slender vowel - y
broad vowel - gutteral 'g' but speech organs are in position of ch for loch (one of the most difficult sounds for learners but it comes with practice)
an ghealach (un YAL-ach)
an ghaoth (un ghee)

m (aspirated) - mh
slender vowel - v ; broad vowel - w
cé mhéad (kay vayd)
maidin mhaith (MAH-jin wah / why)

p (aspirated) - ph
pronounced as 'f'
do phócaí (duh FO-kee)

s (aspirated) - sh
pronounced as 'h' after vowels
usually unchanged before consonants
a Shéamais (a HAY-mush) *

t (aspirated) - th
pronounced as 'h' at beginning or middle of a word ; silent at end of word
ní thuigim (nee HIG-gum)
orthu (UR-huh)
go maith (guh MAH / mayee)

* One important instance of lenition is the vocative case, used when addressing a person or people (or pets or even your car if you talk to it.) When a proper or improper noun in placed in the vocative case, the particle 'a' is placed before the noun and the initial consonant is lenited. In addition, broad consonants at the end of masculine nouns are made slender:

Séamas > a Shéamais
mac (son) > a mhic
Sinéad > a Shinéad

Lenition may be caused by a variety of other things (e.g., prepositions and/or the definite article, the genitive case, some possessive adjectives, certain numbers, etc.) For more information on some of these instances, see our online lessons. Otherwise, consult a grammar book such as Christian Brothers New Irish Grammar (C.J. Fallon, Dublin: 1994) for a more complete analysis.

  Urú/Eclipsis

Certain particles and prepositions cause the initial consonant (or vowel) of a word to be "eclipsed" by another consonant. The original letter remains in the written form, but in speech it is totally replaced by the sound of the eclipsing letter.

Each consonant that can be eclipsed has its own eclipsing letter:

'b' is eclipsed by 'm'
i mbliana (ih MLEE-uh-nuh), this year

'c' is eclipsed by 'g'
i gcónaí (ih GO-nee), always

'd' is eclipsed by 'n'
ar ndóigh (air NO), indeed

'f' is eclipsed by 'bh'
i bhfolach (ih VULL-ach), hidden*
*an eclipsed 'f' is usually pronounced as 'v'; the dependent forms of the verb 'bí' in the present tense — an bhfuil, nach bhfuil — are an exception.

'g' is eclipsed by 'n'
ar an ngaoth (air un NEE), on the wind*
*an eclipsed 'g' is slightly nasalized (like English 'sung')

'p' is eclipsed by 'b'
tríd an bpáirc (treedge un bawrk),
through the park

't' is eclipsed by 'd'
ar dtús (air DOOSE), at first

Vowels are eclipsed by 'n', 'h', or 't':

ár nÁthair (our NAW-hur), our Father
go hálainn (guh HAW-ling), beautiful
an t-am (un TOM), the time

For more information on the rules governing eclipsis, see our online lessons. Otherwise, consult a grammar book such as Christian Brothers New Irish Grammar (C.J. Fallon, Dublin: 1994) for a more complete analysis.