Irish/Déise Irish/Déise Phonology

All phonemic transcriptions will be directly followed by forms with standardised spelling and grammar. Forms in brackets are offered dialectal alternatives.

Vowels

Short Unstressed Monophthongs

The following monophthongs occur in unstressed environments, though a number of exceptions are noted.

/ə/ unstressed central vowel

[ə] mid central vowel

(Breatnach 1947, ə¹)

Between two consonants of velar quality:

• /kuːntəs/ cuntas (cúntas) an account
• /kuːrəm/ cúram care
• /dorəxə/ dorcha dark
• /foləṽ/ folamh empty
• /ɡɑrəv/ garbh rough
• /məˈkɑːntə/ macánta honest, good-natured

Absolute final position following a consonant of velar quality:

• /dorəxə/ dorcha dark
• /məˈkɑːntə/ macánta honest, good-natured
• /molə/ moladh verbal noun of mol praise
• /murkə/ iomarca (murca) too much
• /rəurtə/ rabharta (robharta) a spring tide

[ɘ̟] advanced high-mid central unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, ə²)

Between two consonants of palatal quality:

• /-/ cleith (cileach) a fishing rod

Absolute final position following a consonant of palatal quality:

[ɘ̠] retracted high-mid central unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, ə³)

Short Stressed Monophthongs

The following monophthongs occur in stressed environments, though a number of exceptions are noted.

In particular, non-absolute initial low vowels /a/ and /ɑ/ do not reduce to /ə/ in the unstressed initial syllable where the stressed second syllable contains a high long vowel /iː/, /uː/, /iə/ or /uə/:

• /lʲaˈnuːnʲtʲ/ leanúint verbal noun of lean follow
• /bʲaˈnuː/ beannú verbal noun of beannaigh bless
• /bɑˈlʲuː/ bailiú verbal noun of bailigh gather
• /kɑˈlʲiːnʲ/ cailín a young woman
• /kɑˈhiːrʲ/ cathaoir a chair

In exception to the above, the low vowel /ɑ/ does not reduce to /ə/ in the unstressed initial syllable where the stressed second syllable contains the mid long vowel /eː/ in at least one instance:

• /kɑpˈteːnʲ/ captaen (captaein) a captain

In another exception to vowel reduction, non-absolute initial low vowels /a/ and /ɑ/ do not reduce to /ə/ in the unstressed initial syllable of a verb where the stressed second syllable consists of a verbal ending with the long vowel /oː/:

• /ʃaˈsoː ʃeː/ seasfaidh sé (seasó sé) future masculine singular of seas (seasaigh) stand
• /hʲaˈsoːx ʃeː/ sheasfadh sé (seasóch sé) conditional masculine singular of seas (seasaigh) stand
• /mɑˈroː ʃeː/ maróidh sé (maró sé) future masculine singular of maraigh kill
• /ṽɑˈroːx ʃeː/ mharódh sé (mharóch sé) conditional masculine singular of maraigh kill

Where the stress is contained in the third syllable, the vowel in the first syllable does not reduce to /ə/:

• /bɑləˈvɑːn/ balbhán a dumb person, a silent person
• /koləˈmuːrʲ/ colmóir (colmúir) a hake
• /sbʲaləˈdoːrʲ/ spealadóir a reaper, a scytheman
• /anʲəˈṽʲiː/ ainmhí an animal

In exception to the above, the low vowel /ɑ/ does reduce to /ə/ (and is usually deleted in absolute initial position unless immediately preceded by a word ending in a consonant) in the unstressed initial syllable where the third syllable contains the stress in at least one instance:

• /(ə)məˈdɑːn/ amadán a fool

/a/ low front vowel

[a] low front unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, a¹)

Absolute initial position preceding a consonant of palatal quality:

• /abʲəɡʲ/ aibigh ripen, mature

Following a consonant of palatal quality:

/ɑ/ low back vowel

[ɑ̈] low central unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, a²)

[ɑ] low back unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, a³)

/e/ mid front unrounded vowel

[e̞] mid front unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, e¹)

[ɜ] low-mid central unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, e²)

/o/ mid back rounded vowel

[o̞] mid back rounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, o)

/i/ high front unrounded vowel

[ɪ] near-high near-front unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, i¹)

Absolute word-initial position preceding a consonant of palatal quality:

• /iʃɡʲə/ uisce
• /ihʲəmʲ/ ithim

Between two consonants of palatal quality:

• /mʲinʲəkʲ/ minic
• /mʲiʃə/ mise
• /mʲiʃdʲə/ miste
• /eː ʃinʲ/ é sin
• /ʃiŋʲə/ sinne
• /tʲinʲə/ tine

[ɪ̈] near-high central unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, i²)

/u/ high back rounded vowel

[ʊ] near-high near-back rounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, u¹)

[ʊ̈] near-high central rounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, u²)

Long Monophthongs

/ɑː/ long low back unrounded vowel

[ɑː] long low back unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, a:)

/eː/ long mid front unrounded vowel

[eː] long high-mid front unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, e:¹)

[ɘː] long high-mid central unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, e:²)

[ɜː] long low-mid central unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, e:³)

/oː/ long mid back rounded vowel

[oː] long high-mid back rounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, o:¹)

[o̞ː] long mid back rounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, o:²)

[ɵː] long high-mid central rounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, o:³)

/iː/ long high front unrounded vowel

[iː] long high front unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, i:¹)

[i̠ː] long high near-front unrounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, i:²)

/uː/ long high front unrounded vowel

[uː] long high back rounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, u:¹)

[u̟ː] long high near-back rounded vowel

(Breatnach 1947, u:²)

Diphthongs

/iə/

[iˑə]

(Breatnach 1947, iə¹)

[i̠ˑə]

(Breatnach 1947, iə²)

[iˑɘ]

(Breatnach 1947, iə³)

/ia/

[i̞ˑæ̈]

(Breatnach 1947, ia)

/uə/

[uˑɘ]

(Breatnach 1947, uə¹)

[uˑə]

(Breatnach 1947, uə²)

/ua/

[u̞ˑɑ̈]

(O'Rahilly 1932, ua)

Nasalisation

All vowels undergo varying degrees of allophonic nasalisation when neighbouring a consonant of nasal quality.

Where a historical consonant of nasal quality has since become lost in a word while the vowel has retained its nasalisation, that vowel has since phonemicised as a nasal vowel and should be marked as such in phonemic transcription.

Elision

In pretonic environments, /ə/ usually undergoes apheresis, reducing the number of syllables in a word, including in sentence-initial position; though, when immediately preceded by a word ending in a consonant, the vowel remains:

• /(ə)ˈnʲiːn/ iníon daughter
• /(ə)ˈmʲiːn/ imíonn present analytic of imigh depart
• /(ə)ˈnʲuːlʲ/ inniúil (iniúil) capable

In prepositional forms where the stress has shifted to the second syllable, absolute-initial vowels are prone to apheresis as described above:

• /(ə)ˈɡum/ agam (agum)
• /(ə)ˈɡut/ agat (agut)
• /(ə)ˈɡʲe/ aige
• /(ə)ˈɡiŋʲ/ againn
• /(ə)ˈɡivʲ/ agaibh
• /(ə)ˈku/ acu
• /(ə)ˈdʲirʲ/ idir

There is at least one case of permanent apheresis where the vowel has been lost entirely:

• /rʲɑːn/ arán (reán) bread

In an initial closed pretonic syllable preceding a coronal sonorant, /ə/ usually undergoes syncope, reducing the number of syllables in a word:

Consonants

Coronal Sonorants

/rʲ/

There is at least one a case of permanent palatalisation in absolute initial position being pronounced in all environments:

• /rʲɑːn/ arán (reán) bread

Stress

Stress in Simple Words

1. Stress generally occurs on the first syllable.
2. Where -ach /ɑx/ or -each /ax/ occurs in the second syllable and no other syllable contains a long monophthong or diphthong, the second syllable takes the stress.
   1. Exceptions are -(e)ach /əx/ in cuideachta (cuileachta) /kilʲəxdə/ ("company"), ceathach /kʲahəx/ ("showery") and daitheacha (dathacha) /dɑhəxə/ ("rheumatism").
   2. The -(e)adh /əx/ ending in active verbs does not take the stress, e.g. dheineadh (dhineach) /jinʲəx/ (past habitual of déin), dhéanfadh (dhéanthach) /jianhəx/ (conditional of déin).

Allomorphs

Prepositions

• /erʲ/ ar
  • can be pronounced as /rʲ/ when directly preceding a word that begins with a vowel, becoming the onset of the first syllable of that word:
    • /rʲ əˈlʲɑːn/ ar oileán
• /(ə)ˈdʲirʲ/ idir
  • can be pronounced as /(ə)ˈdʲerʲ/ in any environment
• /əɡ/ ag used with verbal nouns
  • pronounced as /gʲ/ when directly preceding a word that begins with a vowel, becoming the onset of the first syllable of that word:
    • /gʲ əˈmʲɑxd/ ag imeacht