Irish/Déise Irish

The main page for describing the Déise dialect of Irish

Initial Mutations

Nouns

Following Simple Prepositions

Without the Article

Lenition

The following simple prepositions cause lenition:

• ar
• de
• do
• fé
• idir
• mar
• ó
• thear
• trí
• um

Eclipsis

The following simple prepositions cause eclipsis:

• in

h-Prothesis

The following simple prepositions cause h-prothesis:

• le
• go

No Mutation

The following simple prepositions cause no mutation:

• age
• as
• go dtí, dtí
• roimh, roimhig

With the Singular Article

Non-verbal nouns are affected by one of two forms of mutation, lenition or eclipsis, or no mutation, following a combination of a simple preposition and the singular article.

Simple Preposition and Article Combinations

The following simple prepositions with singular articles are found in Déise Irish:

• age ‘n,
• ar an,
• as an,
• de ‘n,
• do ‘n,
• fé ‘n,
• ó ‘n,
• roimh ‘n,
• (go) dtí ‘n,
• leis an,
• thear an,
• tríd an,
• and ins an.

Lenition

Under this context, the following consonants are affected by lenition:

• b to bh,
• p to ph,
• g to gh,
• c to ch,
• and s to ts.

Eclipsis

Under this context, the following consonants are affected by eclipsis:

• b to mb,
• p to bp,
• g to ng,
• c to gc,
• and f to bhf.

No Mutation

Under this context, the following consonants which can appear as unmutated initials in nouns are not affected by mutation:

• d,
• t,
• m,
• n,
• l,
• r
• or h.

Contributing Factors

The following factors contribute towards determining the type of mutation used on the initial of the noun:

• The form of the preposition when used with the article, whether it ends in a vowel or a consonant.
• The initial consonant of the noun:
  • b, g or f
  • p or c
  • s

General Rules

1. b, g and f undergo eclipsis following all preposition and article combinations.
2. s, only in the case of feminine nouns, undergoes lenition following all preposition and article combinations. It does not mutate if the noun is masculine.
3. p and c undergo lenition following ins a’ (or sa).
4. p and c undergo eclipsis following all other preposition and article combinations where the prepositional form ends in a consonant.
5. p and c undergo lenition following all preposition and article combinations where the prepositional form ends in a vowel.

Initial mutations caused by preposition + singular article

	Noun Initial
	b	g	f	p	c	s
age ‘n	E	E	E	L	L	L
de ‘n	E	E	E	L	L	L
do ‘n	E	E	E	L	L	L
fé ‘n	E	E	E	L	L	L
ó ‘n	E	E	E	L	L	L
roimh ‘n	E	E	E	L	L	L
dtí ‘n	E	E	E	L	L	L
ar a’	E	E	E	E	E	L
as a’	E	E	E	E	E	L
leis a’	E	E	E	E	E	L
thear a’	E	E	E	E	E	L
tríd a’	E	E	E	E	E	L
ins a’	E	E	E	L	L	L

Deviations to the Rules

• Contrary to rule #1, a speaker in South Tipperary had a tendency to lenite initial b and g, but his usage of lenition in this context was inconsistent and he regularly used eclipsis instead.
• Contrary to rule #3, ins an (or sa) had a greater tendency to cause eclipses on initial p and c in South Tipperary, but lenition among the speakers from this area was also noted. Eclipsis has also been noted among speakers from Waterford, but this isn’t typical and might only occur with certain words and as an alternating pronunciation.
• Contrary to rule #5, p has a tendency to not undergo lenition, but this can be a case of alternating pronunciations as recorded among native Déise Irish speakers.

Bibliography

• Breatnach, R. B. (1960-61). "Initial Mutation of Substantives after Preposition + Singular Article in Déise Irish". Éigse: A Journal of Irish Studies. IX (IV)
• Breatnach, R. B. (1984). Seana-Chaint na nDéise II: Studies in the Vocabulary and Idiom of Déise Irish based mainly on material collected by Archbishop Michael Sheehan (1870-1945). Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies.
• Ó Maolchathaigh, S. (1974). An Gleann agus a Raibh Ann (1974 edition). An Clóchomhar Tta. Dundalgen Press.
• Sheehan, Most Rev. M. (1944). Sean-Chaint na nDéise: the Idiom of Living Language (second edition). The Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies.
• Ward, Alan (1974). The Grammatical Structure of Munster Irish. University of Dublin.