The Outlandish Companion - Diana Gabaldon [136]
Aspirated B, Bh, pronounced as “V.” Aspirated C, Ch, pronounced as the
“Ch” in “L’chaim.” Aspirated D, Dh,
Aspirated G, Gh, both of these have no equivalent sound in the English language. Try to imitate a baby gurgling. (However, Gh followed by I is pronounced as “Y.”) Aspirated M, Mh, pronounced as “V” Aspirated P, Ph, pronounced as “F” Aspirated S, Sh, the “S” is silent. Pronounce the “H” only. Aspirated T, Th, the “T” is silent. Pronounce the “H” only.
Grammar
Gender. Gaidhlic words have a gender, though this does not necessarily correspond with the gender of the person a given word describes. For example, duine (man) is masculine. Boireanach (woman) is also masculine. Bean (wife), however, is feminine. The easy way to find gender in reading is to see whether the associated adjective is aspirated. Adjectives describing feminine nouns are aspirated, adjectives describing masculine nouns are not. Example: Boireanach Math (Good woman). Bean Mhath (Good Wife).
The adjective always follows the noun. Duine math Man good (Good man) Latha math Day good (Good day) Madain mhath Morning good (Good morning)
Oidhche mhath Night good (Good night) The adjective follows the adverb. Tha e gle mhath. It is quite good. The noun or pronoun follows the verb. Ruinn mi. Did I. Ruinn thu. Did you. Ruinn e. Did he.
The adverb follows the noun or pronoun.
Ruith e luath. Ran he quickly. Ruith Iain luath. Ran John quickly. Possessive Case.
Some possessed subjects are aspirated. Examples:
Mo mhéthair (My mother)
Do mhéthair (Your mother) singular
A mhéthair (His mother)
Some are not: A méthair (Her mother) Ar méthair (Our mother) Am méthair (The mother) Bhur méthair (Your mother) plural
When the spelling for the possessed subject starts with a vowel, as in athair (father):
“My father” is spoken and written as
M’athair. “Your father” singular is spoken and written as D’athair Your father plural is spoken and written as Bhur’n athair.
“His father” is spoken and written as ’athair.
“Her father” is spoken and written as A h’athair.
“Our father” is spoken and written as Ar ’n athair. Exception.
“Their father” is spoken and written as An athair.
The pronoun “you” or “your” is used in the plural form when addressing an elder, as recognition of seniority or a form of respect. Examples:
Ciamar a tha thu? becomes Ciamar a tha sibh? (How are you?)
Bheir ghomh do chéta becomes Bheir ghomh bhur chéta. (Give me your coat.)
Vocative case.
A bhalaich. O boy (This is a form of address, not an exclamation.)
A dhuine. O man
A bhoireanaich. O woman
A nighean. O girl
A choin. O dog
A charaid. O friend
Proper names starting with a vowel don’t get the preceding A.
A Thearlaich. O Charles
A Sheaumais. O James
Iain. O Iain
Anna. O Ann
Ealasaid. O Elizabeth
Accents
Generally, vowels are pronounced:
A as in Arm
E as in End
I as in Ingot
O as in On or Onward
U as in Ooze
“Accents” slanting up to the left over a vowel denote a long vowel. (A E I O U). An accent slanting up to the right over the vowel 6, indicates a pronunciation of O as in motor.
COMPREHENSIVE GLOSSARY OF FOREIGN TERMS
(including British slang)
hoovering (English)—vacuuming
Sassenach (Gaelic) [Sass-uh-nak]—out-lander, or foreigner; more specifically an English person; usage generally derogatory. There are multiple spellings of this term: Sassunach, Sassenaich, etc.; I picked one, and stuck with it.
baragh mhor (Pseudo-Gaelic)6—a large Baragh.
uillean pipes (Gaelic) [OOlain]—a small bagpipe, literally, “elbow pipes,” as air is supplied by an elbow-pressed bellows, rather than by a mouthpiece. Uillean pipes are generally used for musical entertainments (as opposed to the Great Northern Pipes—the traditional “bagpipe” most often seen in films—which was used almost exclusively outdoors, and was considered [by the English] a weapon of war)
hurley (Scots) “Hurley, hurley round the table …” A “hurl” is a short, impromptu journey; “hurly” means either a noise