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the “a” in Maggie (i.e., the long sound of the first caol vowel, § 12 (a)). The “e” shows that the preceding consonant must be slender.
| sleán | oileán | milleán |
| ciseán | caisleán | cineál |
| milseán (§ 144) | Seán | |
| coimeád=cimád (§ 12). | ||
104. When eá is followed by ḋ or ġ it is pronounced á (§ 12) or á.
| breáġ | breáġṫaċt | meáḋon |
| meáḋċaint | spleáḋcas | cneaḋ |
ÉA or EU.
105. Both these digraphs represent the same sound, and the first one (i.e., éa) has been adopted by the Gaelic League as it represents the sound of the digraph in Connaught and in Ulster—viz., é followed by a broad glide; and as eu does not denote the Munster sound better than éa, éa should be accepted as the standard spelling.
(a) In Munster the sound is generally i-ea—i.e., the long sound of í followed by the sound of ea in fear, lean, bean, &c. There is practically equal stress on the two vowels í-ea.
| méar | féar | léas |
| éadaċ | déan | éadan |
| féad | béas | bréan |
(b) Before gutturals, labials, and l, the sound varies between í-ea and í-a (second a in capall), while there
