Negative of "Is"
-
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Sun Sep 15, 2013 11:18 pm
- Language Level: Beginner
- Corrections: Please correct my grammar
- Location: Cill Rìmhinn (St Andrews), Alba
- Contact:
Negative of "Is"
Hi,
Verb constructions with "Tha" can be negated with "Chan eil". I was wondering what is the negative of the verb form "is".
Consider this:
I am Indian - 'S e Innseanach a tha annam
I am Vinodh - 'S mise Vinodh
How do you say the following:
I am not English
I am not John
V
Verb constructions with "Tha" can be negated with "Chan eil". I was wondering what is the negative of the verb form "is".
Consider this:
I am Indian - 'S e Innseanach a tha annam
I am Vinodh - 'S mise Vinodh
How do you say the following:
I am not English
I am not John
V
Gàidhlig a-mhàin | Gàidhlig gu brath |
An Inseannach in Alba learning Gàidhlig Albannach
http://www.virtualvinodh.com
An Inseannach in Alba learning Gàidhlig Albannach
http://www.virtualvinodh.com
-
- Rianaire
- Posts: 1432
- Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 6:58 pm
- Language Level: Fluent (non-native)
- Corrections: I'm fine either way
- Location: Sruighlea, Alba
- Contact:
Re: Negative of "Is"
It's cha/chan -- it's the same as the "negative particle" before the dependent form of the verb.
So "Who was it who killed the goldfish?" "Cha mhise!"
So "Who was it who killed the goldfish?" "Cha mhise!"
-
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Sun Sep 15, 2013 11:18 pm
- Language Level: Beginner
- Corrections: Please correct my grammar
- Location: Cill Rìmhinn (St Andrews), Alba
- Contact:
Re: Negative of "Is"
Thanks.
So would these be correct ?
Chan e Sasannach a th' annam
Cha mhise Iain
V
So would these be correct ?
Chan e Sasannach a th' annam
Cha mhise Iain
V
Gàidhlig a-mhàin | Gàidhlig gu brath |
An Inseannach in Alba learning Gàidhlig Albannach
http://www.virtualvinodh.com
An Inseannach in Alba learning Gàidhlig Albannach
http://www.virtualvinodh.com
-
- Rianaire
- Posts: 4607
- Joined: Mon Sep 17, 2007 11:26 am
- Language Level: Mion-chùiseach
- Corrections: Please correct my grammar
- Location: Dùthaich mo chridhe
- Contact:
Re: Negative of "Is"
Tha sin ceart
And for questions:
Nach e Innseanach a th' annad? An e Sasannach a th' annad?
Nach tusa Vinodh? An tusa Iain?
The verb "is" likes to hide, doesn't it
And for questions:
Nach e Innseanach a th' annad? An e Sasannach a th' annad?
Nach tusa Vinodh? An tusa Iain?
The verb "is" likes to hide, doesn't it
Oileanach chànan chuthachail
Na dealbhan agam
Na dealbhan agam
-
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Sun Sep 15, 2013 11:18 pm
- Language Level: Beginner
- Corrections: Please correct my grammar
- Location: Cill Rìmhinn (St Andrews), Alba
- Contact:
Re: Negative of "Is"
Why is it "tusa" instead of "thusa" ?Nach tusa Vinodh? An tusa Iain?
Tha gu dearbhThe verb "is" likes to hide, doesn't it
V
Gàidhlig a-mhàin | Gàidhlig gu brath |
An Inseannach in Alba learning Gàidhlig Albannach
http://www.virtualvinodh.com
An Inseannach in Alba learning Gàidhlig Albannach
http://www.virtualvinodh.com
-
- Posts: 1486
- Joined: Fri Apr 04, 2008 8:00 pm
- Corrections: I'm fine either way
- Location: Faisg air Gleann Rathais
Re: Negative of "Is"
Did you not mean to say, "The verb 'is' likes to hide, isn't it?"? (or even "innit?")
Well, I s'pose you could say "thusa", but it comes originally from "tusa" and in some usages it tends to stick like that.
Well, I s'pose you could say "thusa", but it comes originally from "tusa" and in some usages it tends to stick like that.
-
- Rianaire
- Posts: 1432
- Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 6:58 pm
- Language Level: Fluent (non-native)
- Corrections: I'm fine either way
- Location: Sruighlea, Alba
- Contact:
Re: Negative of "Is"
This is a hangover from the old case system.virtualvinodh wrote:Why is it "tusa" instead of "thusa" ?Nach tusa Vinodh? An tusa Iain?
Modern Irish preserves a distinction between nominative and oblique cases for certain pronouns.
Tú is the nominative, thú is the oblique.
Sé, sí, siad are nominative, é, í, iad are oblique.
Scottish Gaelic has lost the systematic difference entirely, and as you can seem the Scottish Gaelic forms are more or less the same as the Irish oblique.
The old nominative "tusa" remains in a few specific situations. One of them is with the verb "is", which is the situation above; the only other one I'm aware of is with the conditional.
-
- Posts: 6
- Joined: Fri Dec 21, 2012 5:24 am
- Language Level: Meadhonach
- Location: A' Chòrn
- Contact:
Re: Negative of "Is"
I suspect that phonetics is mainly at work here with tusa ~ thusa. Remember that th was pronounced [θ] back in the day. It's near impossible to pronounce s+th [sθ], it naturally assimilates to [st], so this probably blocked the lenition of the original t. A sort of parallel 'blocked mutation' is found with sean-duine rather than *sean-dhuine. Similar exceptions to 'rules' are found in other Celtic languages.
OTOH I say am faca tu sin? Have I remembered that correctly, because clearly the above explanation won't work here.
And also (according to the book) am bu tusa a rinn sin? etc. So maybe just ignore everything I've just written ...
OTOH I say am faca tu sin? Have I remembered that correctly, because clearly the above explanation won't work here.
And also (according to the book) am bu tusa a rinn sin? etc. So maybe just ignore everything I've just written ...
-
- Rianaire
- Posts: 1781
- Joined: Mon Nov 17, 2008 1:26 am
- Language Level: Barail am broinn baraille
- Corrections: Please don't analyse my Gaelic
- Location: Glaschu
- Contact:
Re: Negative of "Is"
bu used to be *bud, yes, it's a sort of phonetic rule which preserves older /t/ (i.e. it prevented the lenition)
Do, or do not. There is no try.
★ Am Faclair Beag ★ iGàidhlig, do charaid airson bathar-bog na Gàidhlig: Firefox, Thunderbird, LibreOffice, Skype is mòran a bharrachd ★
★ Am Faclair Beag ★ iGàidhlig, do charaid airson bathar-bog na Gàidhlig: Firefox, Thunderbird, LibreOffice, Skype is mòran a bharrachd ★
-
- Rianaire
- Posts: 4607
- Joined: Mon Sep 17, 2007 11:26 am
- Language Level: Mion-chùiseach
- Corrections: Please correct my grammar
- Location: Dùthaich mo chridhe
- Contact:
Re: Negative of "Is"
another case and for this are the future and conditional tenses - Bidh tu, bhiodh tu, biodh tu, a bhios tu. But: Cha bhi thu.
Oileanach chànan chuthachail
Na dealbhan agam
Na dealbhan agam
-
- Posts: 7
- Joined: Mon May 05, 2014 11:39 pm
- Language Level: intermediate/advanced
- Corrections: I'm fine either way
- Location: Chan eil fhios
- Contact:
Re: Negative of "Is"
Good for you! Well done!virtualvinodh wrote:Thanks.
So would these be correct ?
Chan e Sasannach a th' annam
Cha mhise Iain
V
-
- Posts: 120
- Joined: Fri Jun 27, 2014 1:16 pm
- Language Level: Fluent
- Corrections: I'm fine either way
- Location: Europe
Re: Negative of "Is"
Is also 'hides' with simple expressions involving 'sin' and 'seo', e.g.
Sin na rinn mi!
An e?
'S e gu dearbh.
Sin na rinn mi!
An e?
'S e gu dearbh.