Tag Archives: genitive
Cineálacha Pióg De Réir na nDíochlaontaí Posted by róislín on Nov 21, 2011
(le Róislín) Well, probably only a language blog would mix pies (blasta!) with declensions (a grammar topic typically considered “tirim”), but here goes. It actually will help provide the basics for how to say the names of different kinds of pies in Irish. The key point is that the noun used to describe the pie…
Lámha Leitean (An Cúigiú Díochlaonadh, ar l.) Posted by róislín on Jun 14, 2011
(le Róislín) “Catch!” “Dropped it? Lámha leitean!” Where English invokes the slipperiness of butter to describe someone who can’t catch a ball, Irish invokes, yes, you guessed it, porridge! “Lámha leitean” is a useful phrase for the clós súgartha (playground), and it’s also useful for demonstrating yet another 5th-declension noun in Irish. The “leitean” part…
Díochlaontaí Arís! Posted by róislín on Apr 24, 2011
(le Róislín) Two words that pertain to Easter conveniently fit our next category of nouns, an tríú díochlaonadh (the third declension). One is the word “Cáisc” itself, and the other is “uaineoil.” As you may recall, before we took our “Sos Pónairí Glóthaí” and “Sos Cásca,” we had gotten through the first two declensions of…
What’s the “Tuiseal” of “an Tuiseal Ginideach” Anyway? Posted by róislín on Apr 5, 2011
(le Róislín) By now, you’ve probably heard the term “tuiseal” quite a bit in discussing Irish nouns. It’s generally translated as “case” as in “an tuiseal gairmeach” (“a Shinéad” for “Sinéad” in the “vocative” case) or as in “an tuiseal ginideach” (“cóta Sheáin” for “John’s coat” in the “genitive” case), etc. Of course, this isn’t…
Na hUimhreacha Pearsanta i nGaeilge (Irish Personal Numbers and Cuid a Cúig or the Last Installment of Dhá Lá Dhéag na Nollag) Posted by róislín on Jan 6, 2011
(le Róislín) Fotheideal (perhaps too long for the subject line): Ag comhaireamh na ndaoine san amhrán “Dhá Lá Dhéag na Nollag” Learning to use the numbers in Irish is often considered one of the more challenging aspects of the language. Often you start out with the “maoluimhreacha” (independent numbers) such as “a haon, a dó…
Lá na Máithreacha vs. Lá na Máthar (“Day of the Mothers” or “of the Mother”)? Posted by róislín on May 10, 2009
(le Róislín) I’ve been following this debate in Irish circles for a good 10 or so years now, probably since the first time I wrote on the topic for my Irish language column for children in the Philadelphia-based Irish Edition newspaper (www.irishedition.com). Are we celebrating one mother or all mothers? I should probably qualify that to say…
An Chéad Lá den Earrach (The First Day of Spring) – Not! Posted by róislín on Mar 21, 2009
(le Róislín) Shortly after St. Patrick’s Day, we welcome in an tEarrach (the Spring). Or do we? We may be accustomed to thinking of March 20th or 21st as the beginning of Spring, but there is actually a lot of controversy in English as to whether Spring starts on the first of the month or…