35
ᴇ is umlauted to Ī by tho following slender consonant. Both ᴇ and Ī are broad guttural vowels, ᴇ being broad throughout, Ī only at the beginning as it tapers to slender at the end. Hence the former stands between broad consonants the latter between a broad and a slender. Western usage does not make this distinction and perhaps goes back to the umlaut form. After a labial=ᴡᴇ, faobhar ꜰᴡᴇʀ. The word laogh a calf makes pl. ʟĪg, where g is an instance of Dēsi auslaut g fondness.
2. ao in caora=Ī ᴋĪʀə, gen. however ᴋᴇʀᴜᴄ.
§ 24,1. aoi is a trigraph the technical phonetic sign for Ī. It arises from O. I. ai, oi, slender, or is the umlaut of ao before a slender consonant. It may also come from ī in sentence sandhi after a broad consonant. Wherever possible in the Dēsi the timbres of auslaut and inlaut vowels and consonants are accommodated to each other. Cf. aoin neach aiŋə, from aon neach, an bhean sin ɴ′ vaɴ sɴ′, but na bainbhidhe sin ɴ′ vaɴ sɴ′ (with loss of v before -idhe of new pl.). So iad súd but í siúd. Hence the writing of í the pron. of 3 per. sing. fem. as uí after a broad consonant. baois ʙᴡīs go maoilin an tsléibhe ɢᴜ ᴍᴡĪlīn ṇ tlē. aoi stands for -adh in accented auslaut in the word claoi ᴋʟĪ, from claidhe, pl. ᴋʟahᴜᴄɔ, dlaoi (?) a lock of hair, dlathach adj.
2. aoi=ē in faoi O. I. fo. Sometimes fī in songs. Com. Killown.
3. aoi=ai before y of nn in aoin neach aiŋɔ though the combination is open.
4. aoi is used as an orthographic device to express Ī the broad-slender yowel in a difficulty arising from a merciless use of the caol-leathan rule, dreachtaoin for drechtín, cht always resists palatalization, atámaoid for atáimid, O. I. ataam.
5. The group au does not occur. Older au in such words as auctardhas, audhacht is now written u. ughdarthás, uadhacht. *avios, cf. Lat. avos, became aue and finally the
