Adjectives
Number.
§ 144. The pl. of adjectives is formed from tbe sg. as follows:
i. By change of vowel. The change is the ultimate i-affection § 83 ii; cf. § 117 i. Examples: bychan ‘little’, pl. bychein Ỻ.A. 2, Mn. W. bychain, so llydan ‘broad’, truan ‘wretched’, buan ‘quick’; cadarn ‘strong’, pl. kedeirn w.m. 40, kedyrn do. 51, Mn. W. cedyrn; ieuanc ‘young’, pl. ieueinc w.m. 181, Mn. W. ieuainc; harẟ ‘handsome’, pl. heirẟ; byẟar ‘deaf’ pl. byẟeir r.p. 1196, Mn. W. byddair.
ii. By adding the ending ‑i̯on. Examples: mud ‘mute’, pl. mudẏon r.p. 1196, Mn. W. mudi̯on; coch ‘red’, pl. cochẏon r.p. 1236, Mn. W. cochi̯on; glew ‘bold’, pl. glewi̯on; cul ‘narrow’, pl. culi̯on.
iii. The addition of ‑i̯on causes the following vowel changes:
(1) Mutation § 81: tlawd ‘poor’, pl. tlodyon r.p. 1196, Mn. W. tlodi̯on; trwm ‘heavy’, pl. trymẏon r.m. 14, Mn. W. trỿmi̯on; llwm ‘bare’, pl. llỿmi̯on; llɥm ‘keen’, pl. llỿmi̯on; melɥn ‘yellow’, pl. melỿni̯on; Mn. W. main ‘slender’, pl. meinion,etc.
The comparatively late pl. mawrion is an exception; an older form is perhaps morẏon b.t. 45; but the original form mawr < *mārī (like the sg. mawr < *māros) generally remained: lloppaneu mawr w.m. 23, r.m. 14 ‘big boots’. A similar exception is trawsion m.a. i 544.
(2) Penultimate affection § 83 iii: glas ‘blue’, pl. gleissẏon r.p. 1196, now written gleision; dall ‘blind’, pl. deillẏon ib., Mn. W. deilli̯on; claf ‘sick’, pl. cleivẏon ib., Mn. W. cleifi̯on; gwag, pl. gweigion; cadr, pl. ceidrẏon r.p. 1169 (ceidron iv).
e is not affected: uchel ‘high’ pl. uchelion m.a. i 565a; see gwelwon etc. iv. a is unaffected in the late pl. meddalion; the old pl. is meddal like the sg.: petheu clayr meẟal Ỻ.A. 70 “blanda et mollia”. ae remains unaffected, and the ending in some old forms is written ‑on, as haelon b.b. 3, r.p. 1169, m.a. i 283a, later haelion.
iv. After the groups mentioned in § 36 v–vii, the i̯ drops, so that the ending appears as ‑on: gwelw̯ ‘pale’, pl. gwelw̯on r.p. 1196, gweddw̯ ‘widowed’, pl. gweẟw̯on do. 1236; chw̯erw̯ ‘bitter’, pl. chw̯erw̯on; hoyw̯ ‘sprightly’, pl. hoyw̯on; du ‘black’, pl. duon; teneu ‘thin’, pl. teneuon; budr ‘dirty’, pl. budron; garw̯ ‘rough’, pl. geirw̯on; marw̯ ‘dead’, pl. meirw̯on; llathr ‘bright’,
