The possibilities for “before” seem almost endless, but given the first seven phrases we discussed in recent blogs (cheana, roimh, sula, thar, os coinne, os comhair, ar tosach), plus the additional “arú,” I’ll wrap up this series with just a few more examples.   A few are new to this series and some are representative expressions with words we’ve already discussed:

New to the series:

ar aghaidh [er^zh ai]: Sheas sé ar aghaidh Shéamais.   He stood before (in front of) Séamas (based on the word “aghaidh,” which means “face” or “front”). 

faoi bhráid: Seo an t-ábhar atá faoinár mbráid.  This is the subject that is before us (i.e. for discussion).  This is actually based on the word “bráid,” which means “neck” or “throat.”  Not that “bráid” is what I’d usually say for “neck” (that’d be “muineál”) or for “throat” (that’d be “scornach”).  But that’s typical of idioms — they’re often based words that are a step removed from the most basic vocabulary. 

Recap (roimh and sula):

roimh Chríost (r.Ch.), before Christ (as in “B.C.”)

roimh nóin (r.n.), ante meridiem (as in “a.m.”); contrasts with “iarnóin” (p.m.)

Mairg nár smaoinigh tú sular labhair tú.  It’s a pity that you didn’t think before you spoke.  And if you find a useful, real-life context for that gem, please do let me know!

Another interesting dimension to this whole discussion is that sometimes a “before” phrase can be expressed with either “roimh” or “sula” (to return to our first two, and primary, examples, from the September 29th blog).  But please note that the two words are not actually interchangeable, as each requires a different verb form (verbal noun vs. conjugated form):

a) Roimh imeacht di, dúirt sí … (Before she left, she said …, lit. before leaving to her, she said …).  This structure uses the preposition “roimh,” which is followed, as prepositions are, by a noun.  In this case, the noun is “imeacht,” which is an ainmfhocal briathartha (verbal noun).  For this phrase to be meaningful, it needs another preposition, “do” (to), to round it off.  Since we’re talking about a woman, we use the form “di,” which is feminine, 3^rd person singular.   So, while translating this phrase as “before she left” makes sense and flows well in English, it does disguise how the word “she” is used in Irish in cases like this.  In English, the word “she” is the subject of its clause but in Irish, “she” is the object of a preposition, becoming “her.”

b) Sular imigh sí, dúirt sí … (Before she left, she said …).  No need for a literal translation here, since the Irish and the English are as similar as possible, structurally.  Remember that we added the final “–r” to “sula” here because we’re dealing with the past tense.  You’ve probably seen that “–r” ending before, as in “Ar imigh sé?” (Did he go/leave?) and “Cár imigh sé?” (Where did he go?). 

And finally, speaking of interchangeability, here’s a case where it really works:

roimh i bhfad [riv ih wahd], before long

sula i bhfad [sul ih wahd], before long.  Note that the unstressed “-a” of “sula” pretty much disappears in pronunciation.  In fact, this is sometimes written “sul i bhfad.”  And, to go ahead and make a short story long, it can also be written as “sar i bhfad.”  A related phrase is “sara fada,” which seems to contradict normal grammar rules, but is used nevertheless.  And then there’s “gan mórán achair,” which also means “before long.”  And “gan mhoill.”  Short story long enough? 

Fuaimniú (Pronunciation):

ar aghaidh: “aghaidh” sounds like “aye” (or “eye” or “I”), since the “g” and the “d” are silent.  I transcribe this sound as “ai,” following the precedent of the International Phonetic Alphabet.  And for those who might be wondering, yes, the preposition “ar” (on) is pronounced with a slender “r” even though it’s written broad – hence the “-^zh” in the transcription.  It’s a noticeably different sound from, say, the broad “–ar” in “gar” (nearness) or in the verb “tar” (come).

do [duh]: just a reminder that this is simply pronounced with the unstressed vowel sound, like the “a-“ of “about” or like “uh, I don’t know.”  It’s not the same as “dó” [doh].  Also, please don’t let the sound of the English word “do” (as in ‘to do”) mislead you here.  They’re completely unrelated, but I mention this because I have heard many beginners pronounce “mo” as “mó” and “do” as “dó” or as [doo]. 

faoi bhráid [fwee vrawdj], faoinár mbráid [FWEEN-awr mrawdj]

roimh Chríost [riv hr^zheest]: the usual “v” sound for “-imh.”  The “C” of “Chríost” is silent, leaving you with a breathy initial “h” and a slender “r,” which is, admittedly a bit of a mouthful.  Key thing, at least, is not to pronounce the “C”.  Ironically, once the basic form “Críost” [kr^zheest] is lenited, becoming “Chríost”

, as happens here, it looks more like the English “Christ.”  The same pronunciation applies in direct address (a Chríost) and in possessive phrases (corp Chríost).