One interesting rule of #Irish #grammar that many people struggle with, but it seems well alive in native Irish. A 🧵.
If a proper name (of person or place) is referring to the name itself, & not to a specific person, it’s treated as indefinite after the copula.
This means that there is a difference between:
is Séamus ainm a mhic ‘Séamus is the name of his son’
and
is é Séamus a rinne é ‘it’s Séamus who did it’
sub-predicate pronoun is only put before (definite) name referring to a specific person.
This rule is well-established and commented upon in Graiméar Gaeilge na mBráithre CrÃostaà (the most authoritative Standard Irish grammar), by O’Nolan in his books, in Gnás na Gaedhilge by Cormac Ó Cadhlaigh.
My Guide to Irish to be also has a section (I hope clearly and correctly) explaining the rule: https://www.celtic-languages.org/Guide_to_Irish_to_be#Personal_names_%E2%80%93_identification_versus_classification
It’s in the language at lest since Middle Ir. period. In his dissertation on the historical syntax of the copula Kuninao Nashimoto mentioned it for Middle and Early Mod. Irish.
But he makes it sound like it’s limited to placename lore and not productive since EMI.
But seems even advanced learners and scholars of Irish are often unaware of it. See prof. Nashimoto above downplaying its importance.
Or this mistake in notes on the Léamh.org website (should be ‘ba Bheistea…’ or ‘badh Beistea…’).
I’ve seen this mistake made in several other teaching materials (both for modern and historical Irish), and see it frequently online. Hence this thread, in hope to maybe make a few more people aware of it and interested in it. :)
CrÃoch.
PS I’ve just realized Scottish Gaelic keeps the same distinction (but it’s only visible in feminine):
’s i Catrìona a mhà thair, ’s i Catrìona a rinn e (referring to person)
but:
’s e Catrìona [an t-ainm] a th’ oirre, ’s e Catrìona a b’ ainm dhi (referring to name)
silmeth 🇺🇦