Part III - Syntax

Chapter 1

§56. — The Article

The Irish language has no indefinite article corresponding to the English a or an; but this is expressed either by the absence of the definite article an, or sometimes in the mode mentioned in § 61.

Tlje definite article an has the following syntactical peculiarities.

When one noun governs another in the genitive, the article is used before the genitive case, and not with the governing noun, as in English the sense would require ; as, mac an duine, the son of man ; but if a possessive pronoun be used with the governed noun, or if the governed noun be such a proper noun as would not take the article, the article is omitted ; as, obair a láime, the work of his hand ; Mac Dé, the Son of God.

But if the noun governed should merely stand in the place of an adjective, then the governing noun, if it has no adjective, may take the article ; as, na madraiḋ cnoic, the mountain dogs; an fear corráin, the reaper ; lit., the man of a hook.

The article is used in Irish in some instances where in English it would be omitted ; viz. — (a) Before a noun which would take, at the same time, a demonstrative pronoun ; (6) Before a noun preceded by its adjective and the assertive present if ; (c) Before the names of certain places ; as, riġ na hÉireann, &c. ; (d) Abstract nouns also take the article, or nouns used as abstracts; as, an t-ocrus, hunger; tháiniġ an peacaḋ air an saoġal, sin entered the world. — Rom. v., 12 ; . do ṫreasgair an bás, death laid low.

§57. — The Noun

The same concords of Noun, Adjective, Pronoun, and Verb, which occur in other languages, occur also in Irish.

One noun governs antoher in the genetive, as in other languages, the two nouns requently forming a compound expression; as fear corráin, a man of a hood, i.e., a reaper.

"When, in the absence of the article, the latter of two substantives in the genetive case is the proper name of a man, woman, or place, its initial is aspirated, as ó aimsir Phádruig, from the time of St. Patrick"—O'Donovan.