· Leathan le leathan agus caol le caol- broad with broad and slender with slender
· Some vowels are considered broad, some are considered slender. They make the consonants next to them also slender or broad. This has to do with how your mouth is positioned when saying them.
o Broad: A O U
o Slender: I E
· They usually pair up in the syllable, this is what is mean by them being with one another.
o Madra= dog (m)
o Abhainn= river (f)
o Saibhir= rich (adj)
Séimhiú
· Initial Mutation: this means the beginning of a word changes in response to something:
o Putting a verb into the past tense, using posession, making adjectives feminine, and many more.
· “h” added to certain consonants: a dot above the letter in the old script, seanchló.
o It changes the sound, making it softer. It helps the mouth transition from sound to sound. The language is made to be easily spoken and to flow, this helps the flow. How it changed depends on the consonant it modifies:
· Only certain letters can recieved a séimhiú: b c d f g m p t s
o B> bh “w” or “v” sound
§ Connacht bh and broad = w
§ Connacht bh and slender= v
§ Other dialects= always v
o M>mh “w” or “v” sound
§ Connacht mh and broad = w
§ Connacht mh and slender= v
§ Other dialects= always v
o C>ch “shh” or “scraping sound” (like making spit in your mouth)
§ Connacht, slender = sssh like German “ich“
§ Broad = like German Brauch
o T>th= silences the t is “thar lear”=har lar
o S>sh- sliences the s
o F>fh-sliences both f and h
o D>dh “y” if slender or “gh” if broad
§ Dhuit
§ Dhéanamh
o G>gh Like d: “y” if slender or “gh” if broad
o P>ph- like English, f sound
· If you see a dh, mh, etc it’s not always the result of a séimhiú. Sometimes they are pronounced the same as we’ve discussed, but sometimes these clusters are pronounced differently if they’re encountered in the middle or end of a word. This may also depend on the dialect.
o Dh in the middle of a word, after a vowel can often serve the purpose of a fada, lenghtens the vowel
§ Maedhbh (f, the Queen Maeve) Maeve
o Bh, Mh, etc in the center of the word can be pronounced the same as if séimhiú.
§ Tabhachtach- important (adj) “v” or “w” depending on dialect
o Bh, Mh at the end of the word changes depending on dialect, can be silent in Conamara, can be a v as in Munster, can be an “oo” as in Ulster
Videos:
· https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hW1pWl6jqo8 WTF!? What’s a séimhiú? Ciara Ní É
· https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bucXo6zaw_M How to pronounce LENITION in Irish, Gaeilge i mo chroí
· https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViMCW7iMljU Broad and Slender Consonants in Irish, Language Learning Life (theory, why to learn, tips for monolingual speakers)
· https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIokUII7LX0 Sounds and Spelling of Irish, stwidgie (North American English references)
· https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbSKWDyaYWU Pronounciation Guide Irish Language – Mh, Ph, Sh, Fh, Th, Bh, Learn Irish (Munster)
· https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aj45ma-qh2I WTF!? Slender R in Irish, Ciara Ní É
· https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMZkF0Y1PEA How to ACTUALLY pronounce broad and slender consonants in Irish Gaelic (L, D, T, N, G, C), Dave Learns Irish
· https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuTIB7zGJrg Irish Language Dialects Explained, Learn Irish
· https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3rzcjnAxQs Irish Language Dialects – Some Differences Clearly Explained, Learn Irish
· https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBU3ec87lrU The 3 Main Irish Gaelic Dialects, Bitesize Irish
