Elements of Gaelic Grammar - Alexander Stewart

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      1. Plain. Like p in English; as, poll a pool, pill return.

      2. Aspirated. Like ph or f in English; as, a' phuill of the pool, phill returned[11].

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      1. Plain. Like b in English; as, baile a town, beo alive.

      2. Aspirated. Like v in English, as, bhuail struck. In the end of a syllable the articulation is sometimes feeble, and often passes into the vocal sound of u[12]; as in marbh[13] dead, garbh rough, dabhach a vat.

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      1. Plain. Like m in English; as, mac a son, cam crooked.

      2. Aspirated. Somewhat like v in English, but more feeble and nasal; as, mhathair O mother, lamh the hand. The sound mh has the same relation to that of bh, as the sound of m has to that of b. Sometimes, like bh, it becomes a vocal sound like a nasal u; as, in damh an ox, samhradh summer: and sometimes the articulation becomes so feeble as not to be perceived; as, comhradh speech, domhainn deep.

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      1. Plain. Like f in English, as, faigh to get, fòid a turf.

      2. Aspirated. Quiescent; as, fheara O men. In fhuair found, the aspiration is retained, and the word is pronounced as if written huair. It is probable that it was originally written and pronounced fuair[14]; that huair is but a provincial pronunciation[15]; and that to adapt the spelling in some shape to this pronunciation, the word came to be written fhuair.

      PALATALS AND LINGUALS.

      In treating of the Diphthongs (ai, ea, ei, &c.) notice has been often taken of the powers of certain vowels in modifying the sound of the adjoining consonants. This refers to a twofold mode of pronouncing the Palatal and Lingual consonants, whether plain or aspirated. The difference between these two modes of pronunciation is, in some consonants, abundantly striking; in others it is minute, but sufficiently discernible to an ear accustomed to the Gaelic. The one of these modes of articulation belongs to Palatals and Linguals, chiefly when connected with a broad vowel; the other belongs to them when connected with a small vowel. Hence, the former may be called the broad sound, the latter the small sound of a Palatal or a Lingual.

      These sounds are not distinguished in writing, but may be known, for the most part, by the relative situation of the letters.

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      1. Plain. Broad: like c in come, curb; as, cùl the back, cridhe the heart.

      2. Small: like c in care, cure; as, taic support, circe of a hen[16].

      3. Aspirated. Broad: like the Greek χ, as pronounced in Scotland, in χωρα; as, croch to hang, chaidh went.

      4. Small: like χ in χιων; as, chi shall see, eich horses.

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      1. Plain. Broad: like g in go, rogue; as, gabh to take, glor speech, bog soft.

      2. Small: like g in give, fatigue; as, gin to produce, thig shall come, tilg to throw.

      3. Aspirated. Broad: has no sound like it in English; ghabh took, ghleidh kept.

      4. Small: nearly like y in young; as, ghin produced.

      5. Gh in the end of a syllable is often quiescent; as, righ a king, tiugh thick, fuigheall remainder.

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      1. Plain. Broad: nearly like t in tone, bottom; as, tog to raise, trom heavy, brat a covering.

      2. Small: like ch in cheek, choose; as, tinn sick, caillte lost.

      3. Aspirated. Like h in house; as, thig shall come, throisg fasted, maith good.

      4. Quiescent: in the middle of a polysyllable, in the end of a long syllable, and in certain tenses of a few irregular verbs when preceded by d'; as, snitheach[17] watery, sìth peace, an d' thug e? did he give? also in the pronoun thusa thou.

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      1. Plain. Broad: nearly like d in done; as, dol going, dlù near, close, ciod what.

      2. Small: like j in June, jewel; as, diù refuse, maide a stick, airde height.

      D, after ch, is commonly sounded like c; as, bochd poor, pronounced as if written bochc[18].

      3. Aspirated[19]. Broad: like broad gh, as, dhruid did shut, gradh love.

      4. Small: like small gh; as, dhearc looked.

      5. Quiescent; as, fàidh a prophet, cridhe a heart, radh saying, bualadh striking.

      RULE.—The consonants c, g, t, d, have their SMALL sound, when, in the same syllable, they are preceded, or immediately followed, by a SMALL VOWEL; in all other situations they have their BROAD sound.

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      1. Plain. Broad: like s in sun, this; as, speal a scythe, cas a foot, sùil an eye, scian a knife.

      2. Small: like sh in show, rash; as, bris to break, sèimh quiet, sniomh to twine, stéidh foundation.

      3. Aspirated: like h in him; as, shuidh sat, shrann snorted. Before l and n, it is almost, if not altogether, quiescent; as, shlanuich healed, shniomh twisted. S followed by a mute consonant is never aspirated.

      RULE.—S has its SMALL sound, when, in the same syllable,

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