Irish

Irish has a long and complicated history, having gone through many different iterations before finally becoming the language it is today. Irish uses a writing system that is very similar to the one used in English; however, the spelling of the language is quite different. Lastly, Irish is still used today and has a thriving culture.

General History

Irish is a part of the Indo-European language family, the Celtic language group, the Insular Celtic branch, and is a Goidelic language. This means that Irish is closely related to languages like Scottish Gaelic and Manx. Irish is relatively, closely related to languages like Welsh, Cornish, and Breton. Irish also tends to have close ties with only Indo-European languages close to it like

English. There is also some evidence that suggests that Irish is related to Arabic.  

Currently, Irish is the official language of Ireland, Northern Ireland, and the European Union. Additionally, the language is spoken in many other countries, including the United States by diaspora. There are four major eras of Irish. The first is Primitive Irish or Archaic Irish, Gaeilge Ársa or Gaeilge Chianach, which is the oldest Goidelic language and was written in the Ogham alphabet. Old Irish or Old Gaelic – Goídelc, where Goidelic is from, in Old Irish; Sean-Ghaeilge in Irish, Seann-Ghàidhlig in Scottish Gaelic, and Shenn Yernish or Shenn Ghaelg in Manx – was spoken from the 6th to 10th centuries, and started to use the Latin alphabet. Middle Irish or Middle Gaelic – An Mheán-Ghaeilge in Irish and Meadhan-Ghàeilge in Scottish Gaelic – was used from 900-1200 and is the parent language of Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Manx. It also used a modified version of the Latin alphabet. The last iteration is Early Modern Irish or Classical Irish  – Gaeilge Chlasaiceach in Irish – was used between the 13th and 18th centuries. Finally, Modern Irish which is used today and uses the standard Latin alphabet. Irish has three main dialects: Ulster Irish in the north, Connacht Irish in the middle, and Muster Irish in the south. Because of the dialectal difference a parliamentary commission standardized the written language in the 1950s creating An Caighdeán Oifigiúil, meaning The Official Standard, using the standard Latin alphabet, with seven to eight letters only being in loan words. 

The Phonology (Sounds) of Irish

Terms

Irish has 33 consonant sounds, 29 of which are shared with English. Every sound has three criteria: voiceless or voiced, placement, and manner. Voiceless refers to when one makes a sound without using the vocal cords. For example, “s,” as in snake. Voiced refers to when one makes a sound with the use of the vocal cords. For example, “z,” as in zoo. Placement is where in the mouth and throat the sound is being made. This can range from the lips to the larynx. In Modern Hebrew, there are eight placements. Finally, manner is how a sound is made. For example, the sound /p/ is called a voiceless bilabial plosive. In layman’s terms, it is a sound made without vocal cords, using only the lips, and a burst of air. However, Irish adds an added layer of complexity by using broad and slender consonants. Broad means the sound is velarised meaning “the back of the tongue is pulled back towards the soft palate”. Slender means the sound is palatalized meaning “the middle of the tongue is pushed up towards the hard palate”.

Plosives

Plosives are sounds made when one stops airflow and then releases it in a burst of air. In Irish there are eight plosives.  First are the voiceless and voiced bilabial plosives /p/ and /b/ which are just like they look. /p/ as in pack or poll (broad) or príosún (slender), and /b/ as in aback or bain (broad) or béal (slender). Next are the voiceless and voiced alveolar plosives /t/ and /d/ which again sound just like they look. /t/ as in tick or Taisce (broad) or tír (slender), and /d/ as in-dash or dorn (broad) or dearg (slender). Then, there are the voiceless and voiced velar plosives /k/ and /g/ which sound how they look /k/ as in kiss or cáis (broad) and /g/ as in good or gasúr (broad). Lastly, are the voiceless and voiced palatal plosives /c/ and /ɟ/. /c/ as in keen or ceist (slender), and /ɟ/ as in geese or geata (slender).

Fricatives

Fricatives are defined by closing the mouth to the point where only a small airstream can be pushed out, creating friction and therefore a sound. The first two sounds are the voiceless and voiced labiodental fricatives /f/ and /v/. These are pronounced just like in English. /f/ can be seen in the words fill or fós (broad) or fíon (slender), and /v/ can be seen in words like vote or veidhlín. The next sound is the voiceless alveolar fricative /s/. Ding! Ding! You are correct that it is also in English. /s/ can be seen in words like sit or Sasana (broad). Then there is the voiceless postalveolar fricative /ʃ/. This is the “sh” sound in English. /ʃ/ can be seen in sheep or sean (slender). Next are the voiced and voiceless velar fricatives /ɣ/ and /x/. /ɣ/ makes ‘γ’ sound like in γάλα or dhorn (broad). /x/ makes the ‘ch’ sound like in loch or cháis (broad). The voiceless palatal fricative /ç/ makes the ‘h’ sound in the Australian pronunciation of hue or cheist (slender). Lastly is the voiceless glottal fricative /h/. This is the “h” sound in English. /h/ can be heard in words like high or hata. 

Nasals

Next are the nasal sounds, which are defined as the air stream passing through the nose to make the sound. The nasal sounds are the voiced bilabial nasal sound /m/ and the voiced alveolar nasal sound /n/. Both sound like how they look in English. /m/ can be seen in words like him or mór (broad) or milis (slender). /n/ can be found in words like nice or naoi (broad) or neart (slender). There is also the voiced velar nasal /ŋ/ and the voiced palatal nasal /ɲ/. /ŋ/ makes the ‘ng’ sound like in sing or ancaire (broad), really /ŋk/. /ɲ/ makes ‘ñ’ sound in Spanish like español or rinc (slender), really /ɲk/.

Approximants 

The next group is the approximants. This is more of a catch-all term for anything that does not nicely fit into the other categories. The first sound is the palatal approximant /j/. This sound is not pronounced like the English “j’ but instead the English “y”. It is seen in words like you or dhearg (slender). The other sound is the voiced labial-velar approximant /w/. /w/ sounds like the ‘w’ in weep or vóta (broad).

Taps and Laterals

A tap is a sound created from rapidly touching the tongue to the roof of the mouth. A lateral is a sound created by splitting the mouth with the tongue and blowing air around it. The voiced dental tap /ɾ/ makes the ‘tt’ sound like in better or ruán (broad) or tirim (slender). The voiced alveolar lateral approximant /l/ makes the ‘l’ sound like in let or luí (broad) or leisciúil (slender).

Interactive Pulmonic Consonant IPA Chart

We have gotten to the point where we need to answer the question: what about vowels? Irish works on a eleven-vowel system: /iː/, /ɪ/, /uː/, /ʊ/, /eː/, /ɛ/, /oː/, /ɔ/, /aː/, /a/, /ə/ all of which are in English. Irish also has four diphthongs /əi/, /əu/, /iə/, and /uə/.

We have gotten to the point where we need to answer the question: what about vowels? Irish works on a eleven-vowel system: /iː/, /ɪ/, /uː/, /ʊ/, /eː/, /ɛ/, /oː/, /ɔ/, /aː/, /a/, /ə/ all of which are in English. Irish also has four diphthongs /əi/, /əu/, /iə/, and /uə/.

Interactive Vowel IPA Chart   

The Orthography (Writing) of Irish

Alphabet – Aibítir

As talked about earlier every letter in Irish has two sounds. A broad and slender sound. One can determine whether a sound is broad or slender by looking at the vowels that surround the constant. If it is surrounded by ‘a’, ‘o’, or ‘u’ then it makes its broad sound, if it is surrounded by ‘e’ or ‘i’ then it makes its slender sound.  

Consonant Digraphs

Vowel Digraphs

Ní dhéanfadh an saol capall rása d’asal

Useful Phrases

1. What’s up – Aon scéal, a chara?

2. Hello/Good-bye – Dia duit/Slán
3. I’m Sorry – Tá brón orm
4. My name is _____ – _____ is ainm dom
5. How much is this? – Cé mhéad é seo?
6. I don’t speak Irish – Níl Gaeilge agam 
7. Do you speak English? – An labhraíonn tú Béarla?
8. What time is it? – Cén t-am é?
9. Yes – Tá 
10. No – Níl
11. Good morning– Maidin mhaith
12. Good evening – Dea-tráthnóna
13. One – A haon
14. Two – A dó
15. Three – A trí
16. Four – A ceathair
17. Five – A cúig
18. Six – A sé
19. Seven – A seacht
20. Eight – A hocht
21. Nine – A naoi
22. Ten – A deich