did you say? ar úirt tú? (without a d)

is this correct?

also, how would you ask, didn't you say?

thanks

Deirtear é sin cinnte. Ach ní dóigh liom go scríobhtar é.

nár 'úirt tú?

When Michael D Higgins (Labour Party TD for Galway West and former government minister) was a regular voice on R na G it was his habit to put a sheimhiú on "dúirt" when making a negative statment, for example "Ní dhúirt mé". It sounded to me like "gúirt". I often wondered was it grammatically correct, was it a local Cois Fharraige thing or was he just on a frolic of his own.

Éinne amuigh ansin in ann é a soiliriú dhúinn?

quote:

did you say? ar úirt tú? (without a d)

is this correct?

Yes, that's what people say in Connachta and Ulster.

quote:

Deirtear é sin cinnte. Ach ní dóigh liom go scríobhtar é.

Braitheann sé... ní ghlactar leis sa chaighdeán (ach nach cuma?), ach tuighe nach scríobhfaí é, ó tharla go n-abrann an chuid is mó do na Gaeilgeoirí dúchais é?

quote:

When Michael D Higgins (Labour Party TD for Galway West and former government minister) was a regular voice on R na G it was his habit to put a sheimhiú on "dúirt" when making a negative statment, for example "Ní dhúirt mé". It sounded to me like "gúirt". I often wondered was it grammatically correct, was it a local Cois Fharraige thing or was he just on a frolic of his own.

Depends... is he a native speaker (I mean a Gaeltacht one) ?
So far I never heard or read anything about that form, but it may exist anyway...

Sé an chaoi nach cuimhin liom é a fheiscint scríofa.

Maidir le Michael D, ní dóigh liom gur fear Gaeltachta é, agus tá blas ar leith aige i nGaeilge agus i mBéarla.

quote:

Sé an chaoi nach cuimhin liom é a fheiscint scríofa.

Ach amháin agam féin agus i gcupla leabhar fá na canúintí, is dócha.
S iomaí duine i gConnachta agus in Ultaibh a scríobhas "gur dhúirt" in áit "gur úirt", cé go n-abrann siad "gur úirt", siocair nach bhfuil's acu dé tharla ann (ie. gur thuig na hUltaigh agus na Connachtaigh gur d'úirt a bhí ann), siocair nach bhfacaidh siad an "d'úirt" scríofaí, agus siocair go bhfuil siad ag iarraidh foirm chóngarach don ChO a dh'úsáid (is dócha go mbeadh foghlaimeoirí ann nach n-aithneochadh "gur úirt").
Níltear cleachtaí go fóill leis na foirmeacha sin. Ach tá súileas agam go mbeifear, roimh i bhfad.

thank you
the book i am reading from is written by A.J Hughes. he states "úirt is a general ulster usage", i was just wondering how widespread it's use is.

Aye, A.J.Hughes is one of the specialists of Ulster Irish.

what's the difference between "a deir" and "a rá"?

Cor blimy!, I don't think I can put the answer into words. Maybe an example would suffice.

Deir a athair gur gá leis Béarla a fhoghlaim. "Breast sin mar Bhéarla!", a deir Seán. His father says he has to learn English. "Bugger that for a lark!", says Seán. A loose translation, I know!

"An rud a bhí mé ag iarraidh a rá ná gur...." "The thing I was trying to say was that..."

Both "deir" and "rá" are parts of the very irregular verb "abair". Deir is present indicative tense like "say" and "rá" is ? present participle like "saying".

Oh! someone else might be able to explain it better.

so "a deir" would be similar to "arsa" ó dónaill gives "said, says" for "arsa"?

I thought deir was for indirect quotation, and arsa for direct quotation.

No, they are just synonyms

"Bhí sé deas", a deir Seán
=
"Bhí sé deas", arsa Seán

But "arsa" is more used in stories, for example when a seanchaí is telling a story etc.

Hmm. I thought "arsa" was purely past tense. "Céard a tharla?", arsa Seán. "What happened?", said Seán

I think the "says" is the English historical present, used so often in the Thomas the Tank Engine stories , and the older Bibles. I think this is what Seán_Óg meant by "said, says".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_present

"arsa" can be translated both by the (historical) present or by the past tense. It's a deponent verb...