the vowel is palatal but the initial consonant is not, the palatalisation in the majority of cases has affected the vowel which usually appears as ï, for exceptions see § 24. We find ï notably in the inflected forms of monosyllables containing a, o, u, e.g.
- a—glαs, ‘green’, compar. glïʃə; kαm, ‘bent’, compar. kïmʹə; klαN, ‘children’, dat. klïNʹ.
- o—bo꞉r, ‘deaf’, compar. bïvrʹə; ko̤m, ‘waist’, gen. sing. kïmʹ; tro̤m, ‘heavy’, compar. trïmʹə; sɔk, ‘snout’, gen. sing. sïkʹ.
- u—dUw̥, ‘black’, compar. dïvə; klï̃vrʹαχ, ‘feathers’, Lαʹbwi꞉ χlï̃vrʹi꞉, ‘feather bed’, Di. cluimhreach < M.Ir. clúm.
In the same way ï is occasionally the result of the palatalisation of O.Ir. e, e.g. Nʹï̃v, Nʹïfʹ, ‘poison’, O.Ir. neim, cp. § 111.
Further examples—dïvαn, ‘cormorant’, Di. duibhéan; ɛədï̃vnʹə, ‘shallowness’, Di. éadoimhin; gïvnʹə, plur. of go꞉, ‘smith’; kïfʹəlαn, ‘knot of people’, O.Ir. comthinól; kï̃vαd, ‘watch’, O.Ir. comét; kï̃vnʹαχ, ‘mindful’, O.Ir. cuimnech; kïvrʹəN, ‘plot of ground for crops’, M.Ir. comraind; krïn̥ʹαχtə), ‘wheat’, M.Ir. cruithnecht; krïpʹə, ‘button’, Di. cnaipe; rïlʹigʹ, ‘churchyard’, M.Ir. relicc; rïNʹ, ‘share, deal’, Di. roinn; rïtʹə, ‘steep’, Di. ruidhte; rï̃və, rïpʹi꞉, ‘before him, her’, cp. Wi. remi, roime, rempi p. 733; rïχt, ‘state’, O.Ir. richt; sïmʹ, ‘consideration’, Di. suim, Nʹα̃uhïmʹu꞉lʹ, ‘careless’; sLïNʹuw, ‘family name’, M.Ir. slondiud; tïgʹəm, ‘I understand’, O.Ir. tuccim.
This ï also occurs initially, e.g. ïbʹrʹi꞉, ‘workman’, cp. M.Ir. oibriugad; ïlʹə, ‘the wall round a stack of peat’, Meyer aile; ïv, ïfʹ, ‘egg’, uibh (Craig), O.Ir. og. In a few words in which ï comes from o or u, a slight rounding is to be observed, e.g. in glïnʹə, ‘glass’, M.Ir. glaine, gloine but not in glïnʹə, ‘purity’, M.Ir. glaine (so according to J. H. but doubtful); klïnʹəm, ‘I hear’, O.Ir. ro-cluin-ethar; ïlʹkʹ, O.Ir. uilcc, gen. sing. of ɔlk, ‘bad’; ïLʹə (mʹi꞉ Nə hïLʹə), ‘July’; ïNʹə, ‘June’; ïLʹiəm, ‘William’.
§ 99. Strange to say there seems to be an increasing tendency to employ ï (= O.Ir. e, i) at the expense of i between two palatal consonants. J. H. inclines more to i but the younger people prefer ï in a large number of words, e.g. bʹrʹïLʹʃkʹirʹαχt, ‘lightheadedness’, Di. breillsce; dʹïlʹ, ‘lathe’, M.Ir. deil; fʹïlʹə, ‘poet’, O.Ir. fili; gʹïbʹə, gen. sing. of gʹïb, ‘bit’, Di. giob; kʹïnʹαl, ‘kind’, (also kʹïnαl) O.Ir. cenél (but generally ꬶα꞉ çinʹαl); kʹïʃ, ‘piece of repaired path, spot to be mended’, Di. ceis; mʹïnʹ, ‘meal’, O.Ir. men; mʹïlʹ, ‘honey’, O.Ir. mil; mʹïlʹiʃ, ‘sweet’, O.Ir.
