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faighnich dha v faighnich dheth

Posted: Sun Apr 29, 2012 9:48 pm
by snathdag
Halo,

I've come across a couple of phrases in some prose I'm reading:

1. dh'fhaighnich mi dha càit an robh e dol

2. dh'fhaighnich i dheth dè thachair

and I'd be grateful if someone could tell me whether there's a difference in meaning between "dha" and "dheth" when used with "faighnich". As a learner, I would say that a literal tr*nsl*t**n would/could be:

1. I asked him where he was going

2. she asked _of_ him what happened

As the "a'" has been dropped from "a' dol" in the first example, I thought "dha" might be more colloquial?

Apologies if this has been asked before.

Cheers,

Craig

Re: faighnich dha v faighnich dheth

Posted: Sun Apr 29, 2012 11:12 pm
by Níall Beag
Sometimes it's not about a difference in "meaning" but rather in implication. If there's any difference, it's more about putting a bit more focus on one or other party.

Re: faighnich dha v faighnich dheth

Posted: Mon Apr 30, 2012 11:48 am
by Thrissel
It can also be a matter of dialect. Colin Mark's dictionary says "in some areas dha and dhi, and the other forms of do, rather than the forms of dhe, are used".

Re: faighnich dha v faighnich dheth

Posted: Wed May 02, 2012 9:54 pm
by snathdag
Sometimes it's not about a difference in "meaning" but rather in implication. If there's any difference, it's more about putting a bit more focus on one or other party.
t can also be a matter of dialect. Colin Mark's dictionary says "in some areas dha and dhi, and the other forms of do, rather than the forms of dhe, are used".
Thanks for replying. You're right of course, I should have asked about a difference in register/emphasis/dialect rather than in meaning. Anyone know which of dha/dheth (do/de) is more emphatic or to which dialects they belong?