64
aoghraigh muid, O.Ir. adraim; fʹə⅄riαχt, fʹïꬶəriαχt, ‘countenance, face’, cp. Di. fíoghruighim; fʹə⅄ri꞉, proper name ‘Fewry’; rə⅄ræʃtʹə, rïgræʃtʹə, ‘arrears’, Di. riaraiste; tʹrʹə⅄ꬶαuwnαχ, tʹrʹeꬶαuwnαχ, ‘furry-farry, cow going 2 years without calving’, spelt trao-ghamhanach ZCP. iv 258. J. H. has ə⅄əm as an old form of əgəm but the latter is the one he generally uses. It is well known that Glencolumbkille substitutes əi in this and other words, whilst from an old man in the Croaghs I have once heard αuəm.
18. əi.
§ 171. This diphthong has probably the same sound as Henebry’s î (p. 7) which arises under similar conditions. In stressed syllables it commonly represents O.Ir. accented a followed by palatal g (Mod.Ir. gh). Examples—əi (ö̤i), ‘face’, O.Ir. aged (αiə may also be heard from younger people); ku꞉gʹi꞉ ləiən, ‘Leinster’, M.Ir. coiced Laigen; mwəidʹən, ‘Virgin’, maighden (Four Masters); səidʹu꞉rʹ, ‘soldier’, M.Ir. saigdeoir; səinʹænʹ, ‘aurora borealis’, M.Ir. saignén, cp. Henebry p. 33.
əi occurs further in several cases representing ai, oi, ei usually before O.Ir. d, g (Mod.Ir. dh, gh) which are now quiescent. əi, ‘liver of fish roasted to obtain oil’, plur. əjə, Meyer áe, O.Ir. óa; αvrʹəi, αvrʹəitʹαχ, ‘rough (of land), cross-tempered’, M.Ir. amréid; ərəirʹ, ‘last night’, M.Ir. irráir; bwæNʹtʹrʹəi, gen. sing. of bwæNʹtʹrʹαχ, ‘widow’; fwəidʹə, ‘patience’, fwəidʹαχ, ‘patient’, O.Ir. foditiu; səihαχ, ‘vessel’, M.Ir. soithech; bʹαlαχ fʹəi, ‘Ballybofey’ = bealach féich, also ə Nʹəiç = an eich, gen. sing. of O.Ir. ech; fαdəi, imper. of fαdɔ꞉, ‘to blaze up, kindle’, Di. faduighim, fadóghadh, M.Ir. atúd, fatód, past part. fαdəiʃtʹə (fαdɔiʃtʹə); fαstəi (‑αi, ‑ɔi), past part. of Di. fasdóghadh, M.Ir. astud, fastud. əi may also be heard in bʹəi for bʹei = béidh (this is the pausa form in replies, the allegro form is commonly bʹɛ).
(e) Nasal Vowels.
§ 172. In Donegal any vowel sound is liable to be nasalised in the vicinity of a nasal but there are various degrees. The speech of the older people is altogether somewhat nasal in character and it is therefore not always easy to be certain whether a vowel is nasalised or not. The younger people on the other hand seem to be giving up nasalisation entirely, a state of affairs which according to Pedersen also exists on Aran
