could somebody please tell what tha word "gur" means, and how it is used in a sentence.

"go" means "that", and is used to start off a subordinate clause. Gur has 2 meanings: "go"+the perfective particle "ro", or "go"+copula.

Let's explain with real examples.
1. The perfective particle was historically "do" or "ro". I don't know enough about Middle Irish to explain why it was sometimes "do" and sometimes "ro". But the preterite tense was preceded by "do", which lenites: "do bhí sé", he was; "do rinne sé", he did etc. The "do" is often left out nowadays, but the lenition remains to show it was there: bhí sé, rinne sé etc.

After "go", the perfective particle becomes "ro", and "go" and "ro" together become "gur".

Dúirt sé gur rinne sé é = he said he did it. [Rinne is part tense, and go becomes gur in front of it]
Dúirt sé go raibh sé anseo= he said he was here. [Just to point out an exception. You have to have go and not gur in front of raibh.]

2. Go+copula.

Deir sé gur maith leis arán tí = he says he likes homemade bread. I like is "is maith liom". Go+is becomes gur.

It means "that".
"gur" is a form of "go".
It is present tense in copula clauses, otherwise it is past tense.

She says that I am a fool: Deir sí gur amadán mé.
She said that I wrote too much: Dúirt sí gur scríobh mé an iomarca.

Lars

Go raidh míle maith agat.

Gur le copail agus an séimhiú:

Deir sí gur buachaill é.
She says that it is a boy.

Deir sí gur bhuachaill (gurbh ea) é.
She says that it was a boy.

Deir sí gur breá an aimsir í.
She says that it is nice weather.

Deir sí gur bhreá an aimsir (gurbh ea) í.
She says that it was nice weather.

"Gurbh ea" is used:
- to emphasize that it actually was, see example above, a boy.
- to emphasize that it is a past (or historic tense) - even if the séimhiú is actually sufficient as a marker to denote the tense (not everyone might agree with this).
- to clarify in the first place that that it is a past (or historic tense) when the noun or adjective cannot be lenited (i.e. take a séimhiú) and the séimhiú cannot therefore be employed as a marker to denote the tense e.g. Deir sí gur nead gurbh ea é.



If you remember:

Sin í an bhean ar múinteoir a mac.
That is the woman whose son is a teacher.

Sin í an bhean ar mhúinteoir a mac.
That is the woman whose son was a teacher.

what is the situation with "gurbh" then? is it used in the past tense?
Also what about "gurb", is that just related to a certain dialect?

"Gurb" is used in the present tense when the noun or the adjective begins with a vowel.

Deir sí gurb éan é.
She says it is a bird.

"Gurbh" is used in the corresponding situation when a historic tense is involved.

Deir sí gurbh éan é.
She says it was a bird.

And "gurbh" is used (also when a historic tense is involved) in the case where the following word begins with "fh" followed by a vowel because the lenition of "f" to "fh" leaves you with no sound at all, not even an aspirate (like a "h", as you get when you lenite "s" or "t", for example) and in Irish phonology you have to have "gur" running into something more "solid" than a mere vowel, or wiped out "f" - ergo "gurbh".

Deir sí gurbh fhuiseog í.
She says it was a lark.*


It's the same in English in ways. I wrote "a historic" because I, like all Irish and Scots people, come from the h-aspirating side of the house. Someone who pronounces "historic" as in "istoric" obviously feels more comfortable with "an historic".

So correct grammar, methinks, is not merely a discipline with an abstract rational logic but has a lot to do with the ease of delivery too.


NB:
Deir sí gurbh fhuiseog í an ghramadach.
She says that grammar was a lark.*

You can't say that!

(Message edited by ormondo on November 08, 2009)

Go raibh maith agat, a Ormond.

Very useful, Ormondo.

quote:

Deir sí gurb éan é.

It is usually Deir sé gur éan é. in Standard Irish.

Gur/gurb is different compared with other copula forms in -r/-rb:
gurb only with adjectives, with pronouns (é, í, iad, ea, éard), with the adverb amhlaidh and with some adjective-like nouns as "eol" or "oth"
gur in all other cases (nouns as "éan", prepositions as "i", prepositional pronouns as "inti", adverbs as "anseo").

Lars

Yes, Lars, that corresponds well to usage in Munster authors too. It's handy to have a neat summary like that though.

Of, course. Thanks for noticing and correcting, Lars. I threw in nouns one place too many.

(Message edited by ormondo on November 08, 2009)

It would be interesting to know the origin of this "b" in gurb. Would it be an analogical development from "b'é" in the past tense, spreading to the present?