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The Daltaí Boards » Archive: 2005- » 2007 (November-December) » Archive through December 21, 2007 » Noun simplification « Previous Next »

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Antaine
Member
Username: Antaine

Post Number: 1160
Registered: 10-2004


Posted on Monday, December 17, 2007 - 12:08 am:   Small TextLarge TextEdit Post Print Post

I've been working on trying to memorize the general rules for determining noun gender. Mac Congáil gives them as such:

masculine
-(e)adh
-(a)í
-án
-ch
-éad
-éal
-éan
-eál
-éar
-éir
-eoir / óir
-ín
-(i)úir
-s(broad)
-ún
-úr

feminine
-(a)íl
-(e)áil
-(a)ilt
-(a)int
-áint
-(a)íocht
-aois / -ís
-chan
-(a)irt
-(e)ach
-(e)acht
-úil
-úint
-lann
-eog / -óg

Needless to say, I'll never be able to memorize thirty some-odd abstract endings. I was trying to come up with a way to simplify or "reduce" those examples to some sort of least common denominator. This is what I've come up with:



MASCULINE NOUN ENDINGS...........................FEMININE NOUN ENDINGS

broad + S (men have broad shoulders)................slender + S (women have slender waists)
broad + L (men have broad shoulders)...............slender + L (women have slender waists)

ends in a vowel.........................................................ends in G (like in Girl)
ends in R....................................................................ends in T (mom drinks tea)
ending incorporates an É...................................ending incorporates an Í (but does not end in it or an N)
fada + N

plain CH....................................................................CH + anything else

D and DH (like in Dad).........................................ends in LANN (like “bialann” because women worry about their weight) <-I'm a guy on weight watchers, so I know it's a stereotype, but it works as a mnemonic for me




I'm looking for thoughts, mostly in the form of obvious and major exceptions, but anything you feel like throwing in there is welcome. I understand that noun rules even like the original ones are just guidelines...

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brn (Unregistered Guest)
Unregistered guest
Posted From:
Posted on Monday, December 17, 2007 - 04:22 am:   Small TextLarge TextEdit Post Print Post

gender different for -ach(t) in mono and polysyllables

nouns ending in post-fix with long vowel before a final slender consonant tend to be feminine, except for 'types' (like saighdiuir, or old diminutives like cailin).

Some endings are gender specific (like -lann, lann, a/n) so they do not need to be rationalized.


I might say this; noun gender does not give a whole lot extra information as far as I can see. It is important for pronoun agreement, and genitive mutation, but it does not carry a great deal of weight. Learning/reading from contexts makes it clear what gender the noun is.

As for weight watchers, Americas are too spread out -you have to drive everywhere! Here there are two gyms in walking distance!

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Antaine
Member
Username: Antaine

Post Number: 1161
Registered: 10-2004


Posted on Monday, December 17, 2007 - 10:17 am:   Small TextLarge TextEdit Post Print Post

Haha, very true! I have a gym in walking distance as well, and now I'm at a good weight. In nine months I lost over 50 pounds (23kg), my waist went from 38in (97cm) to 32in (81cm). I even dropped two ring sizes, and I look darn good!

But anyway, yes, I had forgotten about the acht ones. They're in the TY Irish Grammar, but not Mac Congail.

When my brother and I (both Americans) were in Ireland we encountered fat people, but only one guy were we able to classify as "American fat" - there's a certain quality to it that makes it different...couldn't quite put our fingers on it...

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Cionaodh
Member
Username: Cionaodh

Post Number: 629
Registered: 05-2005


Posted on Monday, December 17, 2007 - 07:11 pm:   Small TextLarge TextEdit Post Print Post

Scríobh Antaine:
I've been working on trying to memorize the general rules for determining noun gender.

Have you seen the "noun guesser"?

http://www.nualeargais.ie/foghlaim/nouns.php

Hardly foolproof, but a very good start.

Le meas,
Cionaodh

http://www.gaeilge.org

FRC - Fáilte Roimh Cheartúcháin



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