with ỿ. In b.ch. it is regularly written ed, e (implying ỿẟ, ỿ, § 16 iii); see a.l. i 2, 4, 6, 12, etc. But in the 15th cent. and later it was often written ir, i, as I'r tri oessawl ir a’r teirswyẟ, L.G.C. r.p. 1412, o Vran i deuan do. 1411. J.D.R. and D. regularly write it with y (≡ ɥ); but Dr. Davies later in his D.D. (opp. p. 1) says that the sound is ỿ. The explanation doubtless is that it was originally ɥ and ỿ according to the accent; and both survived, the ɥ becoming i (like the preposition, § 16 ii (3)). It is often non-syllabic after a vowel in poetry; if its vowel is written it must be read as i or ɥ forming a diphthong with the preceding vowel, § 33 v.
- Hen(e)iddio ir wy’, hyn oedd reid.—I.G., p 53/91 r.
- Ac yno y trîc enaid Rrys.—H.D. (auto. ?), p 67/149 r.
But it is most commonly elided, in which case we have to assume that the lost vowel was ỿ, § 44 vii (1).
- Astudio ’dd wyf, was didwyll.—An., p 54/27 r. (15th cent.).
- Meddylio ’r wyf, mau ddolur.—G.C., p 64/122 r. (Auto. S.V.).
- Thomas ddulas, lle ’dd elwyf.—H.D. (auto. ?), p 67/212 r.
- Ac yno ’trîc enaid R(h)ys.—R.C. (auto.), p 68/19 r.
ys as a proclitic is ỿs, as ỿs gwir ‘it is true’, often ’s gwir § 221 iii; when accented it is ŷs ‘there is, people are’.
- Llenwi, dros yr holl ýnɥs,
- Dagrau ar ruddiau yr ŷs.—Gut.O., a 14967/120.
‘Over the whole island, there is a shedding of tears on cheeks.’
(2) The old forms ɥmɥ, ɥttɥ, ɥmi, ɥtti, etc. of imi, iti, etc. had ɥ in the penult, § 212 ii. gɥda also has ɥ; but this is for gɥd â, Ml. W. ẏ gyt a, § 216 ii (2). G.R. writes it gida and J.D.R. gyda (his y ≡ ɥ); both these pronunciations survive.
(3) Non-ultimate y before a vowel is now mostly ɥ; but originally it was ỿ regularly, for it may come from o as in dỿ‑, rhỿ‑, or was followed by ᵹ so that at first there was no hiatus. In many cases the ỿ was assimilated to the following vowel § 16 iv (4), and contraction took place; thus Early Ml. W. deodreven (≡ dỿodrevɏn) a.l. i 80 > doodreven do. 94 > Mn. W. dodrefn ‘furniture’; r͑ỿodres b.a. 5 > r͑ootdres r.b.b. 195 > rhodres ‘pomp’; kỿoeẟ r.p. i 206 > *cooeẟ > coeẟ § 41 v; gwelỿeu > gwelỿau > gwelâu Ps. cxlix 5, Can. vi 2 (1588 and 1620), b.cw. 23 ‘beds’; *cỿd-dỿ-un > Ml. W. cỿt-tu-un > Mn. W. cỿtū́n § 33 iv; dỿlỿed > *dỿleed > dỿlḗd § 199 ii (2). But it also remained unassimilated, as in hundyeu r.m. 4, dylyet do. 5, camlyeu r.p. 1297. In that case it tended to become e § 16 iv (2), thus deun r.p. 1217, deall beside dallt I.D. 12, N.W. dial. dâllt; godreon beside godryon § 65 ii (3); darlleaf § 203 iv (3); or was raised to ɥ, which broke up later into əɥ (written eu); thus godreuon J.D.R. [xxi] for godryon, lletteuodd Gen. xxxii 21, dyleuaf so printed in d.g. 35, beside gwelyeu J.D.R. (whose y ≡ ɥ) [xiv, xix], dhỿlyei [xix, xxi], dhỿlyedic [xvi, xix]. Cf. rhɥ < rhỿ § 65 iv (2). (But hɥawdl is a misspelling of huawdl, Ml.W.
