The book I am learning from has a word "coimeád" in, as in "b'fhéidir go bhfuilim ad choimeád", "maybe I am keeping you?" However, I am a bit confused, as O Donall's dictionary has a distinction betweeen coimeád meaning keep, retain, and coimheád meaning watch over, attend to. But Dinneen's does not indicate that the lenition or otherwise of the m affects the meaning of the word, but gives both forms. Is there a genuine difference between coimeád and coimheád? Is such a distinction dreamed up by the CO-compilers? Do any of the real dialects maintain a 2-way distinction?

This might be similar to the way in which I pronounce the verb "lower" normally in all contexts, except for when I mean to lower down the audio volume of a television or stereo, in which case I pronounce it as "lore", i.e. "Lore it down!". Whether I'm saying the same word is debatable!

There are two separate words. "coimheád" is used almost exclusively in Ulster (and confused me for a year or two).

I'd say "coimheád" mainly means "to watch" in Donegal. To keep is "coinnigh", I think.

Thank you both for the information.

Josh, have you considered getting a copy of the C.O. (from your library even) and familiarizing yourself with what's in it and what isn't? I think you'll be surprised how much freedom it actually allows. I know I was.

I'm suggesting this because frankly, you seem a touch paranoid about the whole thing really. Not everything you find strange or historically suspect in Irish was made up by the invidious caighdeánizers.

I am not paranoid, Abigail, but just trying to work out what is proper Irish in the circumstances where the Irish government has deliberately messed everything up. If only you knew how difficult is it to dig out some of the forms. It is easy for you if you are studying Conamara. Firstly, it is privileged as the main source of the CO. Second, it has a large number of speakers. And third, you have a good book by Ó Siadhail setting out a great deal of the nuances. But for me: well, I want to speak what people like O Nolan would have regarded as correct Irish, and the Irish govt is not catering to me. True, as the type of Irish I am looking for was standard up to the 1940s, I can look in old books, but those old books are actually written atrociously! Not user-friendly at all. I am still not convinced that there distinction between coimeád and coimheád is a genuine one - it would be news to Dinneen anyway.

Abigail, cur amú ama é caint a choinneáil leis an gcanrán seo.

A Dhennis! Táim ag tabhairt urraim dom shinnsearaibh!

quote:

leis an gcanrán seo

"le canrán an chancráin seo" ba chirte dom a rá! D'fhág mé 'c' ar lár sa chéad iarracht.