Samples of Spoken Irish

Statistics: Locations
Statistics: Gender spread
Statistics: Recording types

Background to the project

Samples of Spoken Irish is a project which the author started a few years ago. The goal was to collect a represent amount of linguistic data on the Irish language as spoken today by native speakers in the Gaeltacht areas. To this end the author spent several weeks in each area and collected over 500 recordings from more than 200 speakers. All individuals did one or more of the following recordings (in various combinations):

Set of sample sentences	Second set of sentences
Word list	Translation from English

Sample text (a different version for each of the three main dialect areas)

Test sentences used in recordings

The following sentences were used when gathering phonological data. Speakers were asked to read the sentences in their normal accent, using their local dialect where appropriate, at their usual speed. Because there considerable differences in morphology and lexis between the dialects, three different versions of the set of sentences (both sets) and of the word lists were used. For instance, in the south the word for ‘fairly’ is cuíosach whereas in the west and north sách is found. In the south tig is used for ‘house’ in the nominative whereas teach is the form in the west and north. In the north iontach is used for ‘very’ and bealach mhór is used for ‘road’ whereas bothar in characteristic of the west and south. Different verb forms are also common, e.g. dhein ‘did’ occurs in the south whereas rinne is typical of the west and north.

The words illustrating the lexical sets were not highlighted. After this reading, some speakers were then asked to read a list of words – illustrating morphological alternations with changing vowel values. In some cases speakers also read a small number of further sentences with words illustrating further key pronunciations of Irish.

1)    Consonant lexical sets
2)    Vocalic lexical sets
3)    Vowels before former geminate sonorants, /-m/ and /-rd/
4)    Morphologically conditioned vowel alternations
5)    Phonological processes and phonetic realisations

Consonant lexical sets

/p/	/pʲ/
Bhí sé ag iarraidh POST a fháil.	Tá siad amuigh ag PIOCADH úllaí.
‘He was trying to get a job’	‘They are out picking apples’
/b/	/bʲ/
D’ól siad BUIDÉAL fíona.	Tá a sean-athair BEO fós.
‘They drank a bottle of wine’	‘Her grandfather is still alive’
/f/	/fʲ/
Ní fhaca sé le FADA iad.	Níor tháinig siad FIÚ amháin ar maidin.
‘He didn’t see them for a long time’	‘They didn’t even come in the morning’
/v/	/vʲ/
Níor BHOG sé as an áit.	BHÍ sí níos boichte ná a comharsa.
‘He didn’t move from the place’	‘She was poorer than her neighbour’
/t/	/tʲ/
TÓG go deas bog é.	Tá siad le TEACH a thógáil.
‘Take it easy’	‘They are going to build a house’
/d/	/dʲ/
Carr DUBH atá aici.	Ba mhaith liom DEOCH a bheith agam anois.
‘She has a black car’	‘I would like a drink now’
/s/	/sʲ/
Tá SÚIL agam go bhfuil sé réidh.	Téann muid amach ag SIÚL gach maidin.
‘I hope that he is ready’	‘We go out walking every morning’
/k/	/kʲ/
CÁ bhfuil do mháthair ina cónaí?	CEART go leor, a dúirt an múinteoir.
‘Where does your mother live?’	‘Right so, said the teacher’
/g/	/gʲ/
Chuaigh GACH duine thar sáile.	Ná GEARR an féar fós.
‘Everyone went abroad’	‘Don’t cut the grass yet’
/x/	/xʲ/
Tá a CHARR briste.	Bhí an chéad CHEANN níos deacra.
‘His car is broken’	‘The first one was more difficult’
/ɣ/	/ɣʲ/
Tá DHÁ ghairdín leis an teach.	Bhí pian aige ina GHIALL.
‘There are two gardens with the house’	‘He had a pain in his jaw’
/m/	/mʲ/
Is i MÁLA gorm a bhí na leabhair.	Tá MEALL mór millteach ansin.
‘The books were in a blue bag’	‘There’s a huge pile there’
/n/	/nʲ/
D’imigh sé abhaile ar a NAOI.	Bhí a NEART ag imeacht uathu.
‘He left for home at nine’	‘Their strength was fading’
/ŋ/	/ŋʲ/
Bhí a NGLÓR caillte acu.	Bhris siad a NGEALL.
‘They had lost their voice’	‘They broke their promise’
/l/	/lʲ/
Chuir sí an fear ina LUÍ.	Bhí sí ag LÉAMH léi.
‘She put the man lying down’	‘She was reading away’
/r/	/rʲ/
Tá sé ROINNT fuar inniu.	Tabhair AIRE mhaith dhuit féin.
‘It is quite cold today’	‘Take good care of yourself’
/h/ before low vowel	/h/ before high front vowel
Rinne sé dearmad ar A HAINM.	Tá aithne acu ar A HINÍON.
‘He forgot her name’	‘They know her daughter’

Vocalic lexical sets

/ɪ/	/ɛ/
Chuir mé FIOS air.	Beidh sé an-TE amáireach.
‘I sent for it’	‘It will be very hot tomorrow’
/a/ after palatals	/a/ after non-palatals
Tá na mná ag TEACHT abhaile.	Chuir mé SLACHT ar an obair.
‘The women are coming home’	‘I polished off the work’
/a/ before long low vowel	/ɔ/ ?
Is maith liom SCADÁN úr.	Ní raibh aon CHOR aisti.
‘I like fresh herring’	‘She didn’t budge’
/ʌ/ after palatals	/ʌ/ after non-palatals
Tháinig an SIOC go luath i mbliana.	Is TURAS fada é as seo go Gaillimh.
‘Frost came early this year’	‘It’s a long journey from here to Galway’
/i:/ after palatals	/i:/ after non-palatals, in South: /e:/
LÍON sé an buicéad.	Níl aon BHAOL ann faoi láthair.
‘He filled the bucket’	‘There’s no danger at the moment’
/e:/	/a:/
Tá ÉAN an-bheag ar an gcrann.	D’fhan sé san ÁIT ar rugadh é.
‘There’s a very small bird in the tree’	‘He stayed in the place where he was born’
/o:/	/u:/
Bhí siad ag ÓL ar feadh an lae.	GÚNA nua a chaith sí inné.
‘There were drinking all day’	‘She had a new dress on yesterday’
/ai/	/au/
Níl amhras dá LAGHAD faoi.	Léigh sé an LEABHAR nua.
‘There’s no doubt about it’	‘He read the new book’
/iə/	/uə/
Bhí an ghráin aici ar an mBIA.	Bhí muid ag obair an-CHRUA.
‘She didn’t like the food’	‘We were working very hard’

Vowels before former geminate sonorants, /-m/ and /-rd/

Níl FONN air é a scríobh.	Shroich siad an GLEANN roimh oíche.
‘He has no desire to write it’	‘They reached the valley before night’
Chuaigh siad suas go BINN an tsléibhe.	Chonaic sé LONG mhór ar an bhfarraige.
‘They climbed the peak of the mountain’	‘They saw a big ship on the sea’
Chíor sí MOING an chapaill.	Bhí an beart TROM go leor.
‘She combed the horse’s mane’	‘The parcel was heavy enough’
An tAM a ndeachaigh siad go Sasana.	Ghearr sí an tIM le scian.
‘The time they went to England’	‘She cut the butter with a knife’
Leag mé pota tae ar an mBORD.	Níl aon AIRDE ann.
‘I put a pot of tea on the table’	‘He is not very tall’
Bíonn ort tiomáint go MALL.	Níor thig sé ach CORRfhocal.
‘You have to drive slowly’	‘He only understood the occasional word’
Bhí POLL mór ar an mbóthar.	Beidh siad ag teacht gan MHOILL.
‘There was a large hole in the road’	‘They will be coming without delay’

Morphologically conditioned vowel alternations

GEARR ‘cut’	GEARRADH ‘cutting’
PEANN ‘pen’	PEANNA ‘pen-GEN’
AM ‘time’	AMA ‘time-GEN’
TINN ‘sick’	TINNE ‘sicker’
TONN ‘wave’	TONNTA ‘waves’

With change of palatality in syllable coda

FIOS ‘knowledge’	FEASA ‘knowledge-GEN’
MUIR ‘sea’	MARA ‘sea-GEN’
FUIL ‘blood’	FOLA ‘blood-GEN’
TROID ‘fight’	TRODA ‘fight-GEN’

LEANBH ‘child’	LINBH ‘child-GEN’
BLAS ‘taste’	BLAIS ‘taste-GEN’
BOLG ‘stomach’	BOILG ‘stomach-GEN’

OLC ‘evil’	OILC ‘evil-GEN’
SIOC ‘frost’	SEACA ‘frost-GEN’
MUC ‘pig’	MUICE ‘pig-GEN’
CRANN ‘tree’	CRAINN ‘tree-GEN’

With syncope on addition of inflection

RAMHAR ‘fat’	RAIMHRE ‘fatter’
OBAIR ‘work’	OIBRE ‘work-GEN’
SAIBHIR ‘rich’	SAIBHREAS ‘richness’

Phonological processes and phonetic realisations

Nasal raising

     NÓS ‘custom’     MÓ ‘more’     AMHRÁN ‘song’     DÉANAMH ‘doing’

Lowering in the environment of /r/

     TIRIM ‘dry’     CRUIMH ‘maggot’

Fricative vocalisation (only non-palatals)

     GARBH ‘rough’     GAIRBHE ‘rougher’      MARBH ‘dead’     MEIRBH ‘sultry’

Palatal assimilation to following lexically marked vowel

     AN IOMARCA ‘excess, too much’     AN EOCHAIR ‘the key’     SAN EARRACH ‘in the spring’

Devoicing of palatalised velars

     NOLLAIG ‘Christmas’     TÁIRG ‘manufacture’

Realisation of /h/ as [ç] before /ɑ:/

     Hata SHEÁIN  ‘John’s hat’
     Dhíol sé a THEACH.  ‘He sold his house’

Possible lenition of sonorants

     Dúirt sé go NÍONN sé é féin go moch ar maidin.
     ‘She washes herself every morning’

     Nuair a NÍGH sí í féin d’ith sí a bricfeasta.
     ‘She washed herself before breakfast yesterday’

     Thug sé a LEABHAR dúinn. ‘He gave us his book’

     Thug sí a LEABHAR dúinn. ‘She gave us her book’

Off-glide from front vowel to non-palatal consonant

     Tharraing siad ar an DTÉAD
     ‘They pulled on the rope’.

Sequence two long vowels

     Dúirt an cailín go bhfaca sí SIÓG
     ‘The girl said that she saw a fairy’.

Lenited /s/ before sonorant

     Ghortaigh sé a SHRÓN.
     ‘He injured his nose’

Shift of /xʲ/ to [f]

     Tháinig sé abhaile tar éis an CHLUICHE.
     ‘He came home after the match’

Realisation of /h/ or Ø as [x] in comparative

     Tá an ceann sin níos BRÉATHA.
     ‘This one is better’
     Bhí sé ag obair níos CRUAØ ná a deartháir.
     ‘He works harder than his brother’

Shift of /n/ to /r/ in post-sonorant position

     Bíonn sí ag déanamh IMNÍ faoi na leanaí.
     ‘She worries about the children’

Diphtongisation of historical /u/ to /au/ before /rl/ cluster

     Ghlan sé an t-URLÁR.
     ‘He cleaned the floor’

Realisation of <ao>

     Bhí sé an-GHAOFAR inné.
     ‘It was very windy yesterday’

Statistics on informants in survey

Numbers of informants by location.