<A Dialect of Donegal

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§ 437. When two consonants immediately follow one another the articu­lation of the second is as a rule not antici­pated or in other words the off-glide of the first is distinct­ly heard as in French. In combi­nations such astl,dl,kr,kl,kʹrʹ,gl,gn,tʹrʹ,bʹrʹ,χl,ŋl,mn,vrʹ and medialsr at first one almost fancies one hears a slight vowel-sound between the two conso­nants. Forkʹrʹ cp. Henebry p. 30 and note the spellings in the old Manx Prayer-book gylaghty = Ir. gcleach­dadh; mynayn now mraane (Rhys p. 15). In the following combi­nations, however, where the articu­lations are more or less homo­geneous the glide is not heard –Lt,Nt,rN,rNʹ,sL,sN,Ns,NL, initialsr, and the combi­nations withs mentioned in the next paragraph.

§ 438.t,k,p normally have strong aspiration but in certain positions these sounds together with the cor­respond­ing palatal soundstʹ,kʹ,pʹ are un­mistak­ably lenes and therefore not aspirated. This is the case when they immediate­ly follows,ʃ, as inαspəl, ‘apostle’;αspUk, ‘bishop’;dʹeiʃtʹən, ‘clenching of the teeth with pain’;fαsto꞉jəm, ‘I hire’;hαskər sə, ‘it thawed’;spɔ꞉l, ‘spool’;stærʹ, ‘history’. Similarlyt is a lenis afterχ ino̤χtαn, ‘lapful’;rαχtælʹ, ‘to run’, Di. reachtáil. In these cases Modern Irish ortho­graphy somewhat naturally hesitates between the tenuis and the media. It is quite possible that lenes occur under other condi­tions than those just mentioned, as I have heard thet inbwelʹə tαləv, ‘a farm of land’, distinct­ly pro­nounced in this way.

§ 439. It is perhaps not amiss to point out that the gram­marian’s rule of ‘caol le caol’ is constant­ly broken in the spoken language. This occurs regularly in the case of the privative prefixαn- with uneven stress, e.g.·αnɔ꞉li꞉, ‘an ignorant person’,·αnɔ꞉lαχ, ‘ignorant’, Di. aineólach;·αnɔilʹ, ‘proud flesh’, Di. ainfheoil. The other prefixαn‑, ‘very’, has even stress, e.g.·αn·i꞉ʃəl, ‘very low’;·αn·fʹαtə, ‘a great pet’. The ending of the condition­al passive is‑fʹi꞉, no matter what the quality of the preceding consonant is, e.g.dʹi꞉sfʹi꞉ fromiçə, ‘to eat’;vɛ꞉rfʹi꞉ fromto꞉rtʹ ‘to give’;χαsfʹi꞉ fromkαsuw, ‘to meet’. Similarly in compounds, e.g.stαriəkylʹ, ‘project­ing tooth’, Di. stair­fhiacail, Macbain starr-fhiacail;stαriəri꞉, ‘a stubborn attempt’;drɔχiəri꞉ ​‘attempt to violate’;kαriə, ‘stag’, Di. cairr­fhiadh;bʹrʹiʃkʹꬶlɔ꞉rαχ, ‘lively’, Di. briosc­ghlórach;kũwαnəN, ‘alike’, Di. coimh­ionann;Lʹïnədαχ, ‘linen’, Di. lín-éadach.

§ 440. Metathesis is a frequent phenomenon in Gaelic dialects as will be patent to anyone turning over the leaves of Dinneen’s diction­ary. It is scarcely possible to formulate any general principle but a tendency to place l and r sounds before the stressed vowel is observ­able in a number of instances (cp. Henebry p. 75), e.g.klo̤pwidʹə, ‘wrinkle in cloth, small enclosure’, Di. cluipide < M.Ir. culpait, cp. Meyer clupait;krõ̤χər, ‘Connor’, M.Ir. Conchobar;krö̤꞉rək, ‘light red’, Di. craorac > caor-dhearg;ro̤bəL, ‘tail’, M.Ir. erball;trαsNə, ‘athwart’, M.Ir. tarsnu;tʹrʹïmuw, ‘drying’, Di. tiorm­ughadh;tʹlʹigʹən, ‘vomiting’, Di. teilgim. Cp. further Di. cruadal < comh­luadar.

§ 441. Common to all Gaelic dialects is the substitution ofʃtʹ fortʹʃ in native and old loan-words such aseiʃtʹαχt, ‘to listen’, O.Ir. éitsecht;bwæʃtʹəm, ‘I baptize’, O.Ir. baitsim; as well as in later borrow­ings from English, whereʃtʹ also repre­sentsdʒ, e.g.kαræʃtʹə, ‘carriage’;kʹiʃtʹənαχ, ‘kitchen’;Lɔ꞉ʃtʹi꞉nʹ, ‘lodging’.

§ 442. Further instances of metathesis –αsəlṟiαχt, ‘magic, divina­tion’, Di. asar­luidheacht;αLtuw, ‘grace (before meat)’, O.Ir. atluchur;αskəL, ‘arm-pit’, M.Ir. ochsal;αspəl, ‘apostle’, O.Ir. apstal;dʹi꞉ʃLʹə, gen. sing. fem. ofdʹi꞉lʹiʃ ‘dear’,α χri꞉ Nə dʹi꞉ʃLʹə, a term of great endear­ment, cp. CI. S. 18 vi ’04 p. 5 col. 4;eNʹtʹə, ‘kernel’, Di. eithne, Macbain eite, eitean, M.Ir. ettne;kõhərə, ‘sign’, Di. comhartha;kõ꞉nirʹ, ‘coffin’, < comhrainn inflected form of comhra, ‘chest’, Meyer comra (comhraidh Sg. Fearn. p. 96);ko̤fʹαlαn, ‘crowd’, < M.Ir. comthinól;kɔʃrʹïkəm, ‘I con­secrate’, Di. cois­reacaim, Lat. consecro;rɛəLt, ‘star’, M.Ir. retla.

§ 443. Dissimilation of two nasals –α꞉rNʹαl, ‘sitting up late’, Di. áirneán < M.Ir. airne;iNʹærʹ, ‘anvil’, O.Ir. indéin, for the ending cp.erʹ mə χɔNʹʃærʹ, ‘by my con­science’;ʃαnəmɔrʹ, ‘sermon’, Di. seanmóir, cp.ʃαnəmαNti꞉, ‘preacher’, Di. sean­móntaidhe; note also Kilma­crenan = Cill-mac-nenain, Joyce, Irish Names of Places i 49. One of the nasals may be lost as inbα꞉ri꞉nʹ, ‘queen’, by the side ofbα꞉nṟi꞉nʹ;smwi꞉tʹuw, ‘to think’, ​M.Ir. smuained (§ 199);smʹɛərə didʹ, ‘it is lucky for you’ besidesmʹɛənṟə, Di. méanra, M.Ir. mo-génar;bαnɛ꞉mαtαχ, ‘house-keeper’, cp. Di. feadh­mannta (?). The cases withŋ,ɲ have already been mentioned in § 303. The reason for the loss of the nasal insõ꞉ruw (more commonlyso꞉nṟuw), Craig somh­rughadh, Di. sonn­rughadh, is not clear.do̤gαneilʹə, ‘Dun­kineely’ (the stress and pronun­ciation are against the form Dún Conghaile given by Lloyd in his Post­sheanchas).

§ 444. Dissimilation of two liquids –bʹïlər, ‘water-cress’, M.Ir. biror;kɔrNʹαl, ‘corner’ from Engl., cp. gáirtnéal Sg. Fearn.;srUhiLʹ, the name of a waterfall, < sruhair, cp. Joyce, l.c. i p. 48. Loss ofr is not in­frequent when anotherr occurs in the same word, e.g.o̤mərkə, ‘overplus’, Di. iomar­caidh, Atk. imarcraid;o̤rLuw, ‘speech, eloquence’, Di. urlabhra, M.Ir. erlabra;o̤rəχα꞉ krikʹ,o̤. sLuə ʃi꞉, ‘paralytic or apo­plectic stroke’,o̤. gʹrʹeinʹə, ‘sun-stroke’, seems to contain Di. urchrádh which may be changed by popular etymology from urchra, orchra, Wi. erchra; cp. further Craig’s an orthaidh, ‘the day after to-morrow’, for which J. H. hasə Nɔ꞉r̥i꞉rʹ (§ 280).

dʹαləgαn, ‘the white of an egg’, stands for gealacán, Macleod gealagán.

§ 445. In a group of three consonants the middle one is apt to disappear, e.g.do̤mləs, ‘gall’, M.Ir. domblas;eʃəmlɔrʹ, ‘example’, Di. eisiom­pláir. This frequent­ly happens when preterite forms ending in two conso­nants are followed by the subject pronoun, e.g.dα̃uwər sə, ‘he looked’, cp. Sg. Fearn. p. 89 ar amhair’ tú and Larminie p. 245, alsoα̃uwər sən, ‘look at that’;du꞉r sə, ‘he said’;gə dʹα(꞉)r sə, ‘that he did’;ꬶɔ꞉r səd, ‘they spilt’, = dhóirt. This also happens to a single final consonant inhαnə tuw,henʹi ʃə, ‘you, he came’, cp. tháin­eamur in Molloy’s 33rd dialect-list and chunna’ mi ZCP. iv 495.

§ 446. Initial n sometimes disappears from a wrong division of the definite article before the substan­tive, e.g.αhər Nʹï̃və, ‘snake’, O.Ir. nathir;αsɔg, ‘weasel’, O.Ir. ness. Cp. further Manx ashoon Rhys p. 139 and Sc. Gael. eumhann, ‘pearl’.

§ 447. Isolated cases – ïmʹəs, ‘contending, contention’, Di. imreas, O.Ir. imbresan;kαrə·ʃkʹrʹi꞉stə, ‘sponsor’, Di. cairdeas Chríost; thet of the suffix‑αχt as indαirʹiαχ, ‘bulling’, cp. Manx and Farney G. J. 1896 p. 148.

​In proclitics—g ofgαχ inαχ ·dαχərNə Lα, ‘every other day’, alsoαχ dαrə Lα (§ 137),αχ ïlʹə ꬶynʹə, ‘every man’,αχ əN Lα꞉, ‘every day’, = gach aon lá. Similarly the finalt ofαχt, ‘but’, cp.αχ ïrəd, ‘at all’ (§ 59). Then of the definite articleən dis­appears before every consonant, except when the vowel of the article is elided after another vowel, e.g.erʹ ə tα꞉blə, ‘on the table’ butfwi꞉ N tα꞉blə, ‘under the table’. Theꬶ of *ꬶα(꞉), ‘if’ < dia has dis­appeared and we fində,α. Similarly sporadic­ally in such a case asNʹi꞉rʹ vα꞉r ɔ꞉ (>dɔ꞉,ꬶɔ꞉) = níor bh’fhearr dhó. The disappear­ance of finalç andw̥ before another consonant has already been mentioned (§§ 202,345).

§ 448.ə is lost before a form beginning with a vowel and in small words it may be lost after a vowel. Where twoə’s meet the first is generally elided, cp.Finck i 125. do, de, dia, a may be all reduced toə and disappear. Examples –hïs əgəs mʹïʃə, ‘you and I’;ju꞉Lti꞉ ʃi fɔ꞉suw, ‘she refused to marry him’;ju꞉Lti꞉ ʃə mə wɔ꞉ çαNαχ, ‘he refused tobury my cow’;ĩ꞉ç i꞉r, ‘a cold night’, = oidhche fhuar;əs mʹɛ heinʹ ərʹ ꬶinʹ ɔkuw, ‘myself being one of them’;tα mʹɛ gɔl, ‘I am going’;kʹlʹi·ɔrʃtʹə, ‘harrow’ (kʹlʹiə);ərsɛʃən, ‘quoth he’;Nʹi꞉s fwidʹə Nα higʹ lʹïms iNʹʃə, ‘further than I can tell’;tα꞉ gʹαL ko̤r̥ əgəm, ‘I have laid a wager’;ə Nαrəkyʃ, ‘towards him’, = i n‑a aracais;əNsNə dʹɛəg ə vi꞉Lʹtʹə wuiNʹ, ‘in the teens of miles from where we are’;fα Nαm ʃɔ lα꞉, ‘about this time of day’ (the de leaves as only trace the aspira­tion ofL tol).

Occasionally other vowels, even long ones, disappear after another long vowel, e.g.Lα꞉ lʹ pα꞉drikʹ, ‘St Patrick’s day’;ĩ꞉ lʹo꞉nʹ, ‘St John’s eve’ (oidhche fhéile Eóin);tα꞉s əgəm, ‘I know’.

§ 449. In proclitics every vowel may be reduced toə and disappear (§ 136), e.g.dαkə lʹeʃ, ‘as for him’, Di. i dtaca;wαkə tuw, ‘did you see’, an bhfacatuw;χɔrʹ ə və, ‘almost’, = fa, do chomhair. The verbal particle do never appears before the preterite except when the verb commences with a vowel. agus appears asαgəs,ɔgəs,əgəs,əs,s.

Here we may also mentiontɔkrəs ɔrəm, ‘I am hungry’;tïglə ɔrəm, ‘I am afraid’.

§ 450. In a three syllable word the middle vowel ifə dis­appears in a number of cases, e.g.αdruw, Di. eadar­shúdh;α̃ugrαχ, Di. amhgarach,kõ꞉grαχ, ‘near’, Di. comh­garach;ɔkrəs, M.Ir. accorus, occorus.

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§ 451. Apart from the reduction of vowels in proclitics every long vowel in a syllable immediate­ly preceding the stress tends to become short. Finck states that the short vowel under these circum­stances retains its quality. This is not the case in Donegal. Examples –trα·nõ꞉nə, ‘afternoon’, Di. tráthnóna;αr̥uw ·Nʹe꞉, ‘the day before yesterday’, <α꞉r̥uw, Di. ath­rughadh;gə dʹαr sə kʹlʹiuw, ‘that he made a basket’;dʹαnuw gʹrʹiNʹ, ‘to make fun’;dʹαN skαrtʹ erʹ, ‘call him’;rɔʃə ·wα꞉n = Róise bhán;kɔtə mo꞉r, ‘great coat’ (kɔ꞉tə);gɔl çɔ꞉lʹ, ‘singing &c.’, = gabháil cheóil;ə hɔrt lʹïm, ‘to take with me’;tɔrt suəs, ‘giving up’;tər dũw ə, ‘give it me’ (to꞉rʹ);Nʹi꞉ vɛ Lɔχ pʹi꞉Nʹə də rïNʹ əgəm lʹαt, ‘I won’t have anything to do with you’,Lɔχ <Luəχ, cp. § 27;təg ɔrt, ‘get up, on with you’ said to a cow = tóg ort;ꬶɔ Nɔ tʹrʹi꞉ ə χuərtə, ‘two or three visits’, = dhó no^{[A 1]} trí de chuarta;Nʹi꞉ vɛ ʃɛ, ‘he will not be’, pausa formbʹe(꞉)i,bʹəi;ə mʹɛdʹ ïmʹə, ‘the amount of butter’ (mʹeidʹ);ʃɛ də ·vαhə = sé do bheatha;α·heinʹ, ‘himself’;kʹibʹ ꬶUw̥, ‘sedge’ (kʹi꞉bʹ).

We have already seen that long vowels in stressed syllables are commonly shortened before h < th (§ 7). This also seems to have taken place indʹiçəL, ‘strenuous effort’, Di. díchioll, Wi. díchill. In other cases we get double forms due to varying stress, e.g.α꞉tʹ, ‘place’ butə Nætʹ i꞉nʹαχ, ‘in some place or other’;mo꞉rαn, ‘much, many’, butəNə mɔrαn ɔkuw.

§ 452. As words beginning in O.Ir. with e followed by a non-palatal consonant or with u (o) followed by a palatal consonant now begin withα and ï re­spective­ly there is consider­able hesita­tion as to whether the final of the article should be palatal or non-palatal before such forms. Some instances have already been given in § 4. Further examples –ə tʹi꞉vəL = an t‑aoibheall;ə tαbər, ‘the mud’, M.Ir. ebor, besidesə Nʹαbər, ‘in the mud’;lʹeʃ ə NαLαχ, ‘with the cattle’, O.Ir. ellach;bαnəN sə kα꞉s, ‘it was just the same’, forαnəN see § 4;ə Nʹiʃɔilʹ, ‘the game’, = an uis-fheóil;ə Nʹiʃαg, ‘the lark’, = an uiseag but alwaysə tiʃkʹə, ‘the water’;ə tʹedʹə, ‘the teacher’, M.Ir. aite;ə tʹeirʹə, ​‘the heir’, Di. oighre;ə tʹïlʹə, ‘the wall of a turf-stack’, Meyer aile;lʹeʃ ə Nʹəi, ‘with the liver’, O.Ir. óa. Other examples –ə tʹo̤mər, ‘the trough’, Wi. ammor;ꬶαh əwα̃꞉nʹ ə ꬶö̤꞉Ntəs = aon dhath amháin de iongantas;vi꞉ ə tö̤꞉Ntəs αnwo꞉r, ‘the astonish­ment was very great’;kαrtə də jïlʹ, ‘a quart of blood’ but alsoα lʹɛhəd(ʹ)ʃɔ ə ꬶïlʹ, ‘such blood’. With these cases is to be compared the hesi­tation betweent andtʹ (§ 390); andʃ fors inʃi꞉lʹəm (§ 354),fʹ forf infʹjɔ꞉ləmʹ (§ 321).

§ 453. The final consonant of one word and the initial of the next frequent­ly influence one another in rapid speech in much the same way as if they occurred medially in one and the same word. Finck mentions a few cases (i 122–124) but the most important and at the same time most interest­ing cases he has practical­ly left untouched. Change in temper of a consonant is commonly accom­panied by a change in the quality of the preceding vowel. Once and for all it should be stated that when the same consonant occurs twice in succes­sion only one long consonant is pro­nounced. This also holds good in cases of assimi­lation. The sandhi phenomena may be classed under the following heads:

i. A non-palatal consonant becomes palatal before a palatal consonant.

ii. A palatal consonant loses its palatal quality before a non-palatal consonant.

iii. Some consonants cause others to change their articulation in other ways than those described under i and ii.

iv. A voiced consonant before an unvoiced consonant loses its voice.

v. A non-palatal consonant may become palatal before a palatal vowel.

§ 454. FinalL,l,N,n becomeLʹ orNʹ respectively before initialʃ. At the same time the preceding vowel is commonly affected as only certain sounds can stand beforeLʹ,Nʹ. Examples forL,l –dʹæLʹ ʃə ɔrəm, ‘it deceived me, failed me’ (d’fheall);ə stɔ꞉(i)Lʹ ʃɔ, ‘this stool’ (stól);sə fo̤bwiLʹ ʃɔ, ‘in this congre­gation’ (pobal);ji꞉Lʹ ʃə, ‘he sold’ besidedʹiəl mʹə, ‘I sold’;fwiLʹ ʃə, ‘he caught’ butfo̤L mʹə;wo̤Lʹ ʃə, ‘he praised’ (molaim); ​veLʹ ʃə, ‘he ground’, 1st sing.velʹ mʹə;dɔiLʹ ʃə, ‘he drank’;çu꞉Lʹ ʃə, ‘he walked’, 1st sing.çu꞉lʹ mʹə;hyLʹ ʃə, ‘it bulged out’, infin.to̤Luw;skæLʹ ʃə, ‘he scalded’, infin. scalladh;hɔLʹ ʃə, ‘he consented’, 1st sing.hɔlʹ mʹə;ʃkʹïLʹ ʃə, ‘he shelled’;sky꞉Lʹ ʃə, ‘he set free’, = scaoil.

Examples forN,n –əʃ kʹiNʹ ʃïnʹ = os cionn sin;ə Lɔ꞉χriNʹ ʃïnʹ, ‘that lamp’ (Lɔ꞉χrəN);hα꞉i n kαt ə kʹiNʹ ʃi꞉s sə jug, ‘the cat thrust her head down into the jugʹ;LʹαniNʹ ʃïnʹ də Nɔ꞉l, ‘that comes of drink’;ɛəgni꞉Nʹ ʃi꞉, ‘she complains’;stαdiNʹ ʃə, ‘he stops’;elʹiNʹ ʃi꞉, ‘she rears’;friNʹ ʃə, ‘he presented’ (phronn sé);heiNʹ ʃə, ‘he denied’, 1st sing.hɛən mʹə;ə krαpæNʹ ʃïnʹ, ‘that lump’, Di. cnapán;hæNʹ ʃə = theann sé;dʹæNʹ ʃə, ‘he skinned’, = d’fheann;əs mo꞉dʹə di꞉dsa ʃïnʹ ərs iNʹ dʹrɔ꞉lαn Nerʹ ə wu꞉Nʹ ʃə sə Nαrəgʹə = is móide díodsa sin, ars’ an dreólán, nuair do mhún sé anns an fhairrge;spʹi꞉Nʹ ʃi꞉, ‘she teased’, Di. spíon;gədʹe꞉ Nʹ ʃɔ꞉rt, ‘what kind’;əNsə jαræNʹ ʃïnʹ, ‘in that horse’;tα꞉ N spʹeirʹ La꞉Nʹ ʃNʹαχtə, ‘the sky is full of snow’;erʹ α w̥iNʹ ʃïnʹ, ‘on that account’ (son).

§ 455. Finals becomesʃ before initialʃ,tʹ,dʹ,lʹ (which itself frequent­ly becomesLʹ),Nʹ,kʹ. The preceding vowel changes as in the last paragraph. Examples –ə kα꞉ʃ ʃɔ, ‘this case’;kɔ Nʹæʃ ʃïnʹ, ‘so near’;vi꞉ʃ ʃïnʹ əgəm, ‘I knew that’;glæʃ ʃïlʹə, ‘bile’, = glas-seile;əʃ ʃïkirʹ, ‘on account of, = as siocair;χrɔʃ ʃə, ‘he forbade’;lɔʃ ʃə, ‘it blazed’;χæʃ ʃi꞉, ‘she met’;dα꞉ʃ ʃə, ‘he grew’;kɔʃ tʹirʹimʹ, ‘a dry foot’;blæʃ dʹαs, ‘a pleasant taste’;Nʹi꞉ vəu ö̤꞉Ntiʃ Lʹïm, ‘I should not be surprised’;Nʹi꞉ hi꞉lʹəm gə gyNʹαχit(ʹ)ʃə kɔʃ LʹiNʹ, ‘I do not think he would keep pace with us’ (cos linn);əs grα꞉ʃ Lʹeʃ, ‘he is accus­tomed’;kluiʃ Lʹiə, ‘a grey ear’;əNə çriʃ Lʹeʃ, ‘in his girdle with him’;ʃi꞉ʃ Lʹïm, ‘down with me’;tʹαNuw suiʃ Lʹeʃ, ‘drawing close to him’;kɔʃ Nʹï̃vnʹαχ, ‘a sore foot’;əʃ kʹiNʹ ʃïnʹ, ‘above that’, = os cionn;kαrə·ʃkʹrʹi꞉stə, ‘sponsor’, cairdeas Críosta.

§ 456. FinalL,l, orN,n, followed by initiallʹ ornʹ coalesce with the latter and becomeLʹ orNʹ re­spective­ly. For purposes of con­venience we writeLʹ andNʹ twice although only oneLʹ orNʹ is heard. Examples –vi꞉ αsæLʹ Lʹeʃ, ‘there was a donkey along with him’, Di. asal;ərʹ çu꞉Lʹ LʹiNʹ, ‘away with us’, air shiubhal;vi꞉ spʹæLʹ Lʹïm, ‘I had a scythe with me’ (spʹαl);ɔ꞉(i)Lʹ Lʹαt, ‘drink on’, = ól leat;to꞉rʹ ə gαuwəLʹ Lʹαt, ‘bring the fork with you’;kɔ gʹæLʹ Lʹeʃ, ‘as bright as it’;əNæLʹ Lʹeʃ, ‘over he came’; = anall leis;bʹei mwidʹ mæLʹ Lʹɔ꞉fə, ‘we shall be late with them’. ​glu꞉Nʹ Nʹï̃vnʹαχ, ‘a sore knee’;kʹiNʹ Nʹï̃vnʹαχ, ‘a sore head’;riNʹ ʃiəd ə kʹiNʹ Nʹi꞉s mʹαsə, ‘they made her head worse’.

§ 457.n +lʹ givesNʹLʹ, cp. § 254, e.g.bə vi꞉Nʹ Lʹïm, ‘I should like’ = bu mhian liom. Similarlyn,N+dʹ ortʹ giveNʹdʹ,Nʹtʹ, e.g.ꬶα꞉ çiNʹ dʹɛəg, ‘twelve’,ɛən çiNʹ dʹɛəg, ‘eleven’ (kʹïN);əs kʹiNʹ dʹlʹi꞉, ‘above law’;əN əNʹ tʹαχ əwα̃꞉nʹ, ‘in one house’, = i n‑aon teach;tα꞉ mə çiNʹ tʹiNʹ, ‘my head is bad’. Furtherəs kʹiNʹ Lʹαpə, ‘above a bed’. In the same mannerl +dʹ,l +tʹ giveLʹdʹ,Lʹtʹ, e.g.ə gɔ꞉(i)Lʹ dʹɔχ, ‘taking a drink’, = ag ól deoch;ə gɔ꞉(i)Lʹ tʹiLʹuw, ‘drinking more’, = ag ól tilleadh.

§ 458.n may becomenʹ beforeç as ineinʹ çinʹαl əwα̃꞉nʹ, ‘a single kind’.

§ 459. Finalrʹ andlʹ becomer andL respec­tively before initialt,d,N,n,L andl. Examples –fuər tuw, ‘you got’, but 1st sing.fuirʹ mʹə;ər dα꞉rʹ, ‘a-bulling’;pα꞉ʃtʹ ər dʹiunʹəs, ‘an il­legitimate child’;ər to꞉nʹ ə Nα꞉rdʹə, ‘bottom upwards’;tα꞉ ʃɛ ər Nə kʹiəLəNỹ꞉ əNʹUw̥, ‘he is making a black fast to-day’;tyuw hïr di꞉Nʹ, ‘to the east of us’ (herʹ);bə χɔ꞉r dɔ꞉, ‘he ought’, = bu chóir dó;χɔ꞉r Nə Lu꞉NəsNə, ‘towards August’ (chomhair);hïr Nə hiər; ‘east or west’;Nər Nærʹ iərsə mʹə, ‘when he did not ask me’ (Nerʹ);ho̤g ʃə ʃαnəmɔr dɔ꞉, ‘he gave him a lecture’ (ʃαnəmɔrʹ);ərʹɛ꞉r də wαru꞉lə, ‘according to your opinion’ (ərʹeirʹ);tα꞉ ʃïnʹ glαky꞉ ərʹö̤꞉r Nə bʹlʹiəNə, ‘that is taken by the year’ (ərʹeirʹ);αhαr dɔ꞉sən = athair dó-san;mər bwïL tuw, ‘unless you are’;χαL tuw, ‘you lost’, = chaill tú;kα wïL Nə bαh, ‘where are the cows?ʹ;Nʹi꞉r lo꞉rʹ mʹə, ‘I did not speak’.

rʹ also becomesr beforeNʹ,nʹ,Lʹ,lʹ, e.g.χo̤r Nʹiən ə ri꞉ erʹ gu꞉l ə, ‘the king’s daughter put him off’;αbər lʹïm, ‘tell me’;Nʹi꞉r nʹi꞉ mʹə, ‘I did not wash’;Nʹi꞉r lʹiək mʹə, ‘I did not stroke’.

§ 460.rʹ becomesr before initialr, e.g.fʹïr ruə, ‘red men’;fʹïr ri꞉nʹə, ‘tough men’;fʹïr r⅄꞉Ltə, ‘staid men’;uər rï̃və ʃïnʹ, ‘an hour before that’ (uirʹ).

lʹ becomesl beforer, e.g.ko̤r fo̤l ṟo꞉nə, ‘to have nose-bleeding’.

§ 461.rʹ +ʃ givesrs, e.g.vɛr sə, ‘he gives’;dʹɛr sə, ‘he says’;du꞉r sə, ‘he said’;ər su꞉l, ‘away’, alsoerʹ çu꞉l;dɔ꞉r sə dŨw̥, ‘it suited me’ (d’fhóir);lo꞉r sə, ‘he spoke’. In two instancesrʹ ​becomesr butʃ remains. These areko̤r ʃi꞉s tʹinʹi, ‘put some fire on’;ər ʃαχrαn, ‘astray’.

Similarlyr +ʃ givesrs as inə fʹαr sən, ‘that man’.

§ 462.nʹ,Nʹ becomeN beforet,d. Examples –bʹïN tiə, ‘gable’ (bʹiNʹ);ʃïN tαluw gα꞉fʹαχ, ‘that is spongy land’;kï̃vnʹαχə mʹə ʃïN didʹ, ‘I shall remember that of you’;rïN tuw ʃïnʹ əs kɔs ə dαkə, ‘you did that without any provo­cation’, = rinne tú sin as cos i dtaca, Di. taca (?);wo̤N de α χydʹ ɛədi꞉, ‘he pulled off his clothes’ (bhain).

§ 463.nʹ,Nʹ becomen beforeṟ, e.g.ʃαχtən ṟï̃və hα̃uwinʹ, ‘a week before All-hallows’;o꞉n ṟuə, ‘the Red River’ (name of a stream) = abhainn ruadh.

§ 464.tʹ,dʹ becomet,d beforet,d, e.g.gən bo̤Nt dɔ꞉, ‘without touching it’ (bwiNʹtʹ);vi꞉ ʃɛ α heʃαNt dŨw̥, ‘he was shewing it to me’ (tʹeʃæNʹtʹ);α꞉t tiə, ‘site for a house’ (α꞉tʹ);ærʹə ə hɔrt dŨw̥, ‘to take care of myself (to꞉rtʹ);hït tuw, ‘you fell’ (hitʹ),ko̤d de, ‘a part of it’ (kydʹ);əs mʹihid didʹ, ‘it is high time for you’ (mʹihidʹ).

§ 465.n becomesN beforeL,N,t andd, e.g.əNʹei N Lα꞉ Nʹe꞉, ‘after yesterday’;dʹerʹuw N Le꞉, ‘the end of the day’;əN Lα꞉ əwα̃꞉nʹ, ‘one day’, = aon lá;fα wo̤N Nə to̤ləχə, ‘around the bottom of the hill’ (bun);dαN tuw, ‘you remained’, = d’fhan tú;dʹαN də jiçəL, ‘do your utmost’.

§ 466.rʹ becomesr beforeLʹ,lʹ,Nʹ, e.g.ər Lʹeç, ‘apart’;ər Lʹαr, ‘in a fix, astray’;kʹïN ə Nʹïr lʹei, ‘the head of the grey man’;to꞉r lʹαt, ‘take with you’;bʹi꞉ o̤bər lʹɔ꞉fə, ‘they require attention’ (obair);Nʹi꞉r lʹɛ꞉r lʹïm ə dUw̥, ‘the black was not clear to me’;αhər Nʹï̃və, ‘serpent’.

§ 467.lʹ +lʹ givesLʹ, e.g.ə fʹαr ə çu꞉Lʹ LʹiNʹ, ‘the man who walked with us’, = an fear a shiubhail linn;tα꞉ ʃïnʹ kɔsu꞉LʹLʹef, ‘that is like it’.

Similarlynʹ +nʹ givesNʹ, e.g.ʃiNʹ NʹαhəNỹ꞉, ‘those are things...’.

§ 468.nʹ +lʹ givesNʹLʹ, e.g.Nʹi꞉ hα꞉Nʹ Lʹïm, ‘I do not like’, = ní h‑áin liom, cp. G. J. 1896 p. 146 col. 2. For other examples see § 254.

§ 469.lʹ,nʹ +ʃ giveLʹʃ,Nʹʃ e.g.mʹi꞉ Nə su꞉Lʹ ʃiər, ‘the ​weeks from July 15 to August 15’, = mí na súil síar because the last year’s crop has come to an end (also calledmʹi꞉ Nə su꞉lʹ bwiə)^{[A 2]}.

§ 470. In the case of bh + bh the result in a few cases isb, e.g.dïbʹiNʹ, ‘Dibbin’ (place name), < dubh-bhinn;ti꞉bo̤s, ‘on this side’, = taobh ’bhus. The latter form leads toti꞉b hαL, ‘on the further side’, alsoti꞉pαL,ti꞉bαL;ti꞉puəs, ‘on the upper side’;ti꞉pʹiər, ‘on the west side’. Cp. Pedersen p. 161.

§ 471. A. voiced final loses its voice before the pronounsʃə,ʃi꞉,ʃiəd &c, e.g.ꬶyt(ʹ)ʃə, ‘he stole’;ꬶrït(ʹ)ʃə, ‘he closed’;də χyt(ʹ)ʃə ‘your share’;iətsən, ‘they’, = iadsan;dα꞉k tuw, ‘you left’;ho̤k ʃə, ‘he took’. Compareɛəksα̃uwilʹ, ‘wonderful’, Di. éag­samhail.

§ 472. Proclitics ending in a non-palatal consonant are frequent­ly affected by an initial palatal vowel, e.g.dʹαr, ‘your husband’, < do + fhear^{[A 3]};mʹαr, ‘my husband’, < mo + fhear;mʹïpʹ, ‘my whip’ (§ 452);dʹæLʹ ʃə < do + fheall;Nʹi꞉ bʹα꞉r, ‘better’, = ní ba fhearr;bʹo̤mwi꞉tαχ Nə mɔχt ə ro tα꞉rLαχ əN, ‘Charles was in many a poor-house’, = bu + iomaidh butNʹi꞉ bɔ꞉li꞉ = ní b’eólaighe;αχ mər bʹe꞉, ‘had it not been for him’;se꞉,ʃi꞉, ‘it is he, she’, butəs mʹe꞉, ‘it is I’. Here the case of the article may also be mentioned,də Nʹαr, ‘to the man’;ə Nʹi꞉rʹiNʹə, ‘the truth’.

§ 473. In Donegal there seem to be four degrees of length in vowels, viz. short, half-long, long and overlong. Long vowels occur mostly in syllables with strong stress. When they occur in other syllables they are very frequent­ly due to contrac­tion. For the appear­ance of half-long vowels I can un­fortunate­ly give ​no rule. They occur inLʹĩ꞉wαn, ‘porpoise’, Di. líomhán gréine;əsti꞉ç (alsoəstiç), ‘indoors, inside’, similarlyəmwi꞉ç (əmwiç), ‘outside’, Di. istigh, amuigh;sö̤꞉, ‘tang’ (§ 70);tõ꞉s, ‘to measure, guess’, Di. tomhas. Further in the preterite of certain verb-forms ending in th, dh, gh, e.g.dʹi꞉ mʹə, ‘I ate’,hi꞉ mʹə, ‘I sat’,nʹi꞉ mʹə, ‘I washed’; also in the futuresi꞉hə mʹə, ‘I shall sit’. For these forms cp. § 112.

Final short vowels in stressed syllables are very short indeed. They may be compared with finall,lʹ,n,nʹ,r andrʹ. To call attention to this the grave accent is sometimes employed in this book.

§ 474. Finck quotes a large number of forms for Aran with overlong vowels and such vowels are frequent in Donegal. In stressed mono­syllables overlongi꞉ may appear instead ofiə before a non-palatal consonant (§ 164), e.g.dʹi꞉g, ‘dyke’, Di. díog but dat. sing.dʹi꞉gʹ with ordinary length;fʹi꞉r, ‘true’, O.Ir. fír but gen. sing.fʹi꞉rʹ with ordinary length;fʹrʹi꞉m, ‘through me’ (§ 320);kʹi꞉r, ‘comb’, Di. cíor but dat. sing.kʹi꞉rʹ with ordinary length;pʹi꞉b, ‘throat’, besidepʹiəb, Di. píob;ʃi꞉s, ‘down’;ʃkʹrʹi꞉b, ‘furrow’, Di. scríob. This may also sometimes be heard in dis­syllables, e.g.spʹlʹi꞉nαχ, ‘a tough, wizened beast’, Di. splíonach;ʃLʹi꞉kuw, ‘to stroke’, Di. slíogaim. Overlongu꞉ = i. O.Ir. ú inglu꞉n, ‘knee’, O.Ir. glún;ru꞉n, ‘secret’, O.Ir. rún;dʹu꞉l, ‘to suck’ (§ 52). ii. O.Ir. ua, e.g.u꞉n, ‘lamb’, O.Ir. úan;ku꞉n, ‘harbour’, M.Ir. cúan.⅄꞉ is overlong in⅄꞉l, ‘lime’, Di. aol. Any vowel tends to be overlong as the final of a stressed mono­syllable, e.g.bʹjɔ꞉, ‘alive’.

§ 475. More frequently however overlong vowels are due to contrac­tion, e.g.blα꞉χ, ‘butter­milk’, Di. blathach;bri꞉n, ‘quarrel’, Di. bruighean;bwi꞉, compar. ofbwiαχ, ‘thankful’, Di. buidheach (also gen. sing. masc. and fem.);bo꞉r, ‘deaf’, Di. bodhar but gen. sing.bo꞉rʹ and denomi­nativebo꞉ri꞉m with normal length;bʹα꞉χ, ‘beast, horse’, Di. beathaidh­each, butʃαnvα꞉χ with ordinary length;fα꞉χ, ‘giant’, Di. fathach;fʹi꞉m, ‘I weave’, Di. fighim;ku꞉N, ‘narrow’, Di. cumhang;Lu꞉hə, gen. sing. ofLui, ‘ashes’, Di. luaith, luatha;Lʹi꞉m, ‘I lick’, Di. lighim;rα꞉χ, ‘drift of snow’ (§ 19);sLα꞉χ, ‘slush’, Di. sláthach;sy꞉m, ‘I sit’, infin.sy꞉, Di. suidhe;su꞉w, ‘to suck’, < sughadh but not insuw, ‘juice’, Di. súgh;ʃu꞉l, ‘to walk’, Di. siubhal;ti꞉dɔrʹ, ‘thatcher’, Di. tuigh­eadóir;trα꞉, gen. sing. oftrα꞉i, ‘strand’, Di. tráigh, trágha.

​§ 476. They꞉ of the plural endingəNỹ꞉ is generally overlong as also a preceding long vowel if theə is absorbed, e.g.α꞉Nỹ꞉, plur. ofα꞉, ‘luck’, Di. ádh;eirʹi꞉Nỹ꞉, ‘Irishmen’;fʹα꞉Nỹ꞉, ‘fathoms’, fromfʹα꞉, Di. feadh;gʹrʹɛəsi꞉Nỹ꞉, ‘shoe­makers;krα꞉Nỹ꞉, plur. ofkrα꞉, ‘torment’, Di. cradh;kyNʹʃkʹlʹɔ꞉Nỹ꞉, ‘distur­bances’, Di. coinsgleo;kʹɔ꞉Nỹ꞉, ‘mists’, Di. ceó;kʹαləgu꞉Nỹ꞉, ‘lullabies’, Di. cealgadh;sNũ꞉Nỹ꞉, plur. ofsNũw,sNũə, ‘com­plexion’, Di. snuadh;ʃLʹi꞉Nỹ꞉, plur. ofʃLʹi꞉, Di. slighe. The ending of the first person sing. of the pres. ind. of verbs of the second conju­gation (‑i꞉m) has an overlongi꞉ asm has been substi­tuted formʹ.

§ 477. Word-stress always falls upon the first syllable of a simple word, e.g.·drαNtαn, ‘droning’, Di. dranntán, infin.·drαNtαnαχt;go̤r, ‘sitting of a hen’, Di. gor,·go̤rαχəs, ‘cuddling round the fire’;spʹαl, ‘scythe’, M.Ir. spel,·spʹαlədɔrʹ, ‘mower’,·spʹαlədαrαχt, ‘mowing’;to꞉nʹ, ‘podex’,·to꞉nαkαn, ‘a short stumpy fellow’, also the gait of such a person, cp. Cl. S. 30 vii ’04 p. 5 col. 3. The suffixes‑αn < ‑án,‑αχ,‑αχt < ‑ach, ‑acht have very strong secondary stress as also all syllables contain­ing long vowels or vowels that were original­ly long. The relative stress of syllables may be denoted by figures under the syllables,^[1] 1 = chief stress. When we have two syllables with strong secondary stress, the first of the two is usually the stronger. Examples –α₁nα₂s, ‘sore straits’,α₁nα₂stə, ‘dis­tressed’, Macbain has anasta, ‘stormy’, < anfhadh;α꞉₁rNʹɛ₂ʃ, ‘furniture’, Di. áirnéis;bα₁tæ₂Lʹtʹə, ‘wap’ (§ 9);bwi₁α₂χəs, ‘thankful­ness’, Di. buidh­eachas;bα꞉₁tʹi꞉₂nʹ, ‘a mossy pool of water on a bog’, = báitín from M.Ir. bádud, ‘to drown’;bʹα₁Nα₂χti꞉₃, ‘blessings’, = bean­nachtaí;bʹα₁rα₂d, ‘cap’, Di. birréad, plur.bʹα₁rα₂di꞉₃;bʹɛə₁ləstα₂n, ‘big foolish talker’, = béalastán;bʹrʹi₁ŋlɔ₂dʹαχ₃, ‘dreaming’ (subst.), cp. Di. brion­glóideach;dα₁məNtα₂n,dα₁məNtɔ₂rʹ, ‘seducer’, = damantán, ‑óir;du꞉₁r̥α₂χtα₃χ, ‘earnest, zealous’, Di. dúth­rachtach;dʹiə₁gα₂Ntə, ‘devout’, Di. diaganta;dʹrʹəu₁wlα₂s, ‘licen­tiousness’,dʹrʹəu₁wlα₂sα₃χ, ‘licen­tious’, Di. dreabhlas;iə₁sα₂χtα₃χ, ‘given to borrowing’, Di. iasach​tach;kõ꞉₁rα꞉₂, ‘conver­sation’,kõ꞉₁rα꞉₂tʹα₃χ, ‘conversa­tionalist’, Di. cómhrádh, cómhráidh­teach;ky₁gʹα₂l, ‘distaff’, Di. cuigeal, coigéal;Lʹα₁tro̤₂mα₃χ, ‘pregnant’, Di. leath­tromach;ɔ꞉₁gα₂nα₃χ, ‘rogue’, Di. ógánach;ri₁dʹα₂gα₃χ, ‘a small bush on which the Saviour is said to have been crucified and which in con­sequence never grows to any size, wild myrtle (?)’, Di. raideog, Hogan raideóg, raiteóg. Oc­casional­ly however we get 1 3 2 as infα₁dα₃lα₂χ, ‘slow’, Di. fadálach;Lα꞉₁nũ꞉₃nα₂χə, ‘couples’, plur. ofLα꞉nũ꞉nʹ, Di. lánamhain.

§ 478. The syllables have close stress after a short vowel and open stress after a long vowel. In forms likedo̤nə,bʹαNαχt,bʹαrαd,bαtə the syllable-division is in the consonant but after a long vowel the consonant belongs to the following syllable, e.g.dα꞉-nə,dõ꞉-nαχ. When there are two conso­nants separat­ing the vowels the division comes between the two, e.g.mαs-Lαχ,ʃitʹ-rʹi꞉, ïŋ-lαχ. Hence the articu­lation of the second consonant is not generally antici­pated in the first. See further § 437.

§ 479. In proper compounds as a rule the first element receives the stress, e.g.·bαnəLtrə, ‘nurse’;·iʃɔilʹ, ‘game’, = oss + feóil;·kʹïNtα꞉rNαχt, ‘bare­headed’;·Lʹïnədαχ, ‘linen’, = líon-éadach;·Lʹαsenʹəm, ‘nickname’;Lʹαχɔrænʹ, ‘half-crown’;·mw⅄꞉χriαχ, ‘tender-hearted’;·ruəvirʹigʹ, ‘iron deposits in water’. Under this head come the prefixesα‑, ‘re‑’, O.Ir. ath‑;α꞉rd‑, ‘arch‑’, O.Ir. árd;dʹe꞉‑, ‘good’, O.Ir. deg‑;sɔ‑,dɔ‑, O.Ir. so‑, do‑, e.g.·αχαgnuw, ‘to chew the cud’;·αχli꞉, ‘relapse’, = ath + claoidh;·ælʹïguw, ‘relapse’, = ath + leagadh;·α꞉rdαspo̤k, ‘arch­bishop’;·α꞉rdæɲəl, ‘archangel’;·dʹe꞉lo꞉r̥ə, ‘eloquent’;·dʹe꞉wɔluw, ‘sweet smell’;·sɔçrʹetʹə, ‘credible’; cp. the proverbbʹi꞉ dinʹə so̤nə ·sɔχo꞉rLʹαχ, bʹi꞉ dinʹə do̤nə ·dɔχo꞉rLʹαχ, ‘a lucky man is easy to counsel, an unlucky man difficult’.

§ 480. When the second member of a compound stands in genitival relation to the first it receives the stress, e.g.αhər ·Nʹï̃və, ‘serpent’;αrk ·ʃLʹeivə, ‘lizard’;bwæLʹ ·ʃeirʹə, ‘laughing­stock’;bʹïN ·tiə, ‘gable’;i꞉çəN ·fʹeilʹə, ‘the eve of a festival’, < oidhche cheann féile;kαrəʃ ·kʹrʹi꞉stə, ‘sponsor’;mαk ·aLə, ‘echo’;mʹi꞉ ·αuwrə, ‘the month of February’.

​§ 481. Foreign words which retain the foreign stress may come to be regarded as compounds, e.g.dʹi·ɔ꞉ʃi꞉, ‘diocese’;ʃkʹi·æɲkʹiʃ, ‘quinsy’, < Engl. squinansy. Several obscure words with stress on the second syllable were probably once compounds, e.g.gæ·ʃα꞉, ‘panting’ (note however the inter­jectionpα·pα = ‘don’t, don’t touch’);mo·ru꞉χiLʹ, ‘scald-crow’, O’R. moruadh, moruach, Di. mur­thuidhe;pʹlʹei·ʃαm, ‘bother, nuisance’ (?);rə·fɔ꞉rʹi꞉nʹ, ‘a small shower after a squall’.

§ 482. The second member seems to receive the stress in verb-forms witho̤n‑, e.g.o̤n·χo̤r̥ə, ‘a match for’, = ion­chorrtha Cl. S. 25 vi ’04 p. 6 col. 1.ku꞉gʹə ·mũ꞉n, ‘Munster’,ku꞉gʹi(꞉)·χo̤Nαχtə, ‘Connaught’ andku꞉gʹi(꞉)·ləiən, ‘Leinster’, are regular but one generally hears·ku꞉gʹ o̤luw, ‘Ulster’. Adjec­tives contain­ingNʹα̃u‑, O.Ir. neph‑, neb‑, have the stress on the second element, e.g.Nʹα̃u·αswiαχ, ‘in­dependent’.

§ 483. Even stress occurs but not exclusively with the prefixesαn‑, ‘very’,drɔχ‑, ‘bad’,dʹi꞉‑, ‘un‑, in‑’,mʹi꞉‑, ‘un‑’,rɔ꞉‑, ‘too’, e.g.·an·i꞉ʃəl, ‘very low’;·αn·ɔkrəs, ‘great hunger’;·αN·Lũ꞉χər, ‘very active’;·drɔχ·wu꞉nuw, ‘bad manners’;·drɔχ·i꞉v, ‘bad appear­ance’;·drɔχ·iəri꞉, ‘attempt to violate’;·dʹi꞉·ji꞉lʹɛαuw, ‘in­digestion’;·mʹi꞉·αNtrα꞉χ, ‘untimely’;·mʹi꞉·α꞉, ‘mis­fortune’;·mi꞉·eidʹαχ, ‘impatient’;·mʹi꞉·hα꞉stə, ‘dis­satisfied’ (but also·mʹihα꞉stə);·mʹi꞉rʹəN has uneven stress because the etymology (mí-ghreann) is obscured;·rɔ꞉·wαL, ‘too late’. Further inə ·jɛəN·tɔʃkʹ, ‘on purpose’;·kũ꞉·jαs, ‘ambi­dexter’, Di. coimh­dheas.

§ 484. In this particular the Gaelic dialects do not seem to differ very widely, cp. Henderson, ZCP. iv 264 ff. andFinck i 127 ff. The chief cases have been well summar­ised by Finck and we adopt his arrange­ment. · before a syllable is employed to denote strong stress, : medium stress and - weak stress. Where necessary special emphasis may be denoted by ;.

§ 485. A noun as subject is stressed more strongly than the verb, e.g. :henikʹ ·mα꞉rʹə, ‘Mary came’; :ro̤g ə ·wɔ꞉, ‘the cow calved’; :tα꞉ ·LUχærʹ ɔrəm, ‘I rejoice’; ·tɔkrəs ɔrəm, ‘I am hungry’; :Nʹï꞉lʹ ·ɔkrəs ɔrəm, ‘I am not hungry’. But ·tα꞉s əgəm, ‘I know’, ·Nʹïlʹ əs əgəm, ‘I do not know’,Nʹi꞉ ·ro꞉s əgəm, ‘I did not know’,ə ·mʹəwəs əgəm, ‘if I had known’, cp. further (ə) ·gʹəNʹïstə, ‘unawares’.

​§ 486. Subject pronouns have much weaker stress than the verb apart from the forms of the copulaəs &c., e.g.·hi꞉Nʹ ʃə, ‘he stretched’;·henʹi mʹə, ‘I saw’.

§ 487. A dependent genitive or attributive adjective is more strongly stressed than the sub­stantive, e.g.mαdə ·ruə, ‘fox’;pʹαdər Nə ·bʹi꞉Nʹαχə, ‘Peter of the pence’ (the name of a beggar);rɔʃə ·wα꞉n, ‘fair Rose’;tαluw ·mαiç, ‘good land’.

The numerals however also have strong stress, e.g.·dʹɛ ·bo̤Ntə, ‘ten pounds’;·ku꞉gʹ ·fʹi꞉pə, ‘five pipes’. But whendʹɛəg follows the sub­stantive the latter loses its strong stress, e.g.·ɔχ(t)bʹi꞉Nʹ ·dʹɛəg, ‘eighteen pence’. Note also·ꬶαiçəd, ‘forty’.

§ 488. Adjectives and substantives used predicatively withəs (= is) and the negativesNʹi꞉,Nαχ &c. have stronger stress than the subject, e.g.əs ·mo꞉r ə fʹαr ə, ‘he is a big man’;Nαχ ·bʹrʹɛ꞉ N Lα꞉ ə, ‘is it not a fine day?’

Similarly withtα꞉, e.g.tα꞉ ʃɛ ·dɔrəχə, ‘it is dark’. Buttα꞉ may have the stress in an emphatic reply, e.g.·tα꞉ ʃɛ dɔrəχə = ‘you are right, itis dark’ (locally ‘it’s jest dark, ’tis jest, jest’).

§ 489. A substantival object is more strongly stressed than the governing verb, e.g.du꞉rsə ·ɔ꞉rαn, ‘he sang a song’;kαihəm to̤·bαkə, ‘I smoke tobacco’.

A pronominal object has weak stress, e.g.·krαkə mʹə huw, ‘I shall strike you’;tər ·dũw ə, ‘give it to me’.

§ 490. Adverbs and adverbial expressions have generally stronger stress than the verbs or ad­jectives they qualify, e.g.glαk gə ·sɔkyrʹ ə, ‘take it easy’;Nα kyrʹ kɔ ·tʹUw̥ iəd, ‘do not set them so close’.

§ 491. Prepositions, pronouns, conjunctions and the negative particles have weak stress, e.g.‑Nə ‑Nαχ ·wαkə ‑tuw ‑mʹə, ‘did you not see me?’;‑mαs ·mαi ‑lʹαt, ‘if you please’;gə‑dʹe꞉ ‑mər ·tα꞉ ‑tuw, ‘how are you?’

§ 492. Emphasis is denoted either by the construction withəs or by stressing a word which would otherwise not have the strong stress, e.g.·Nʹïlʹəs əgəm ·kα wiLʹ ʃə, ‘I do not knowwhere it is’.

Sentence-stress is marked in the first few lines of the taleAn Chevalier agus na tri daill p. 241. ​

§ 493. Donegal intonation does not differ very widely from that of English and German. The most strongly stressed syllables frequent­ly have the highest pitch and the tone falls towards the end of a statement. Whilst fully aware of the im­possi­bility of accurate­ly represent­ing intervals in speech by the ordinary musical notation I give the following examples for what they are worth. The examples represent some of the most ordinary forms of statement and question, to which I have had to limit myself, as I do not speak the dialect as a native. I have to thank Dr Charles Wood for kindly assisting me with my examples.

i.	tα꞉	mʹɛ	gə	mαiç.
	g	g	g	e.

ii.	əs	bʹrʹɛ꞉	N	Lα꞉ ə.
	f	g	g	d⁀c♯.

iii.	Lα꞉	bʹrʹɛə	(the ordinary salutation on the road).
	f♯	e⁀d.

iv.	Nʹïlʹ	mʹə	gə	mαiç.
(a)	f	f	f	d	(sadly).
(b)	a⁀f	f	f	d	(emphatic).

v.	tα꞉	Lʹo꞉gə.
	e	g d.

vi.	mæʃə	Lʹo꞉gə	heinʹ	ətα꞉.
	g e	f e	f	fe⁀d.

i.	gə	dʹe꞉	mər	tα꞉	tuw?
	e	g	g	f	c.

ii.	wïL	tuw	gɔL	Nə	welʹə?
	f	f	f	f	d c.

iii.	wïL	tuw	tʹiNʹ?
(a)	d♭	d♭	B♭	(expressing sympathy).
(b)	d♭	d♭	d♮⁀e♭.

iv.	Nə	Nαχ	wïL	tuw	gə	mαiç?
	d♭	d♭	d♭	c	B♭	a	(surprise).

v.	gədʹe꞉ N	ʃɔrt	Le꞉	tα꞉ əN	əNʹUw̥?
	e f	d	g♭	c	c B.

​

§ 494. Lip-articulation in the case of the vowels is not well-marked. There is slight pro­trusion in the case ofp,b,m, re­traction inp′,b′,m′. Rounded front vowels are entirely absent. The tongue is advanced and artic­ulates forcibly against the top teeth (L,N,t,d). In the case of the palatal sounds the tongue rests against the lower teeth, also in the case ofs. l occurs in four varieties, r in three, the latter is generally slightly rolled. The con­sonants, par­ticular­ly the stops, seem to be much tenser than the vowels. All consonants occur both voiced and unvoiced excepts,ʃ andɲ.b,d,g are voiced;p,t,k,s are aspirated; un­aspiratedp,t,k andp′,t′,k′ occur with lax articu­lation afters,ʃ,χ. Nasal resonance is par­ticular­ly strong. The glottal catch is al­together wanting. Palatal and non-palatal con­sonants are con­trasted, the quality of the con­sonants being apparent­ly of greater relative im­portance than vowel-quality. Whilst the numerous consonant-types are well articu­lated, many of the vowels are remark­ably ill defined, two vowels being frequent­ly inter­change­able. The back vowels are much better represent­ed than the front and include peculiar high-back-unrounded sounds. Low vowels are also represent­ed and every vowel may occur nasalised. The quality of the vowels often depends on the environ­ment. There is a tendency to make all short vowels wide and lowered and all long vowels narrow. Long vowels in stressed mono­syllables are apt to become overlong and diph­thongisation occurs in the case ofɛ꞉ andi꞉. Long vowels appear chiefly in syllables with strong stress. In weak syllables the vowel is generallyə butα is not rare and long vowels due to con­traction are often found. Close stress after short vowels. As­simila­tion is frequent par­ticular­ly in sandhi. Most con­sonants tend to be long or half-long butl,r,n,l′,r′,n′,ç,w̥ are always short and at the end of stressed mono­syllables are clipped or over-short. There is a great dif­ference between strong and weak stress. The tradition­al stress always falls on the first syllable. Unity stress plays a great part. Pitch much as in English and German.