Blair Collection > Elements of Gaelic grammar

Part II.] OF srEECM. ^9
Dative. The dative singular is like the nominative ; as
*duine' m. a f/ta/i, d. s. 'duine', 'madaìnn' f. moaning, d. s.
*rnadainn.'
Vocative. The vocative singular is like the nominative ;
as 'caraid' va. friend^ v. s. 'charaid'; 'mathair' f. mot/jcr, v.
s. *mhatliair.'
Plural Number.
Nominative. — Genera/ Rule. The nominative plural Is
formed by adding to the nominative singular a or an^ writ-
ten e or ean to correspond to a preceding small vowel ; as
'piobair' m. a. piper., n. p. 'plobairean'; 'aimsir' f. time., sea-
souy n. p. 'aimsirean.' — rSome nouns suffer a contraction in
the nominative plural ; as 'caraid' m. :x friend., n. p. *caird-
ean'; *namhaid' m. an enemy, n. p. 'naimhdean'; *fiacail' f.
a toothy n. p. *fiaclan.'
Particular Rules. 1. Some nouns, whose last consonant
is / or n, insert t in the nominative plural ; as 'tuil' f. a
Jlood., n. p. 'tuilte'; 'smuain' f. thought., n. p. 'smualntean';
'coille' f. a wood, n. p. 'coilltean'; 'àithne' f. a commandy n.
p, 'àlthnte.' The t is aspirated in *dair f. 2i plain., n. p.
*dailthean'; 'sail' f. a heam^ n. p. 'sailthean.'
2. Some nouns in air, chiefly such as form their geni-
tive singular in ach., retain the same syllable in the nomina-
tive plural, and insert i after a ; as
Cathair, f. a seat., g. s. cathrach, n. p. cathraichean.
Lasair, f. ^Jlame., g. s. lasrach, n. p. lasraichean.
Nathair, f. a jf-r^fw? g. s. nathrach, n. p. nathraichean.
So also 'cuid' f. a part., from the g. s. 'codach', has the n.
p. 'codaichean'; 'athair' m. 2i father, n. p. *aithrichean';
'mathair' f. a mother.^ n. p. *malthrichean.' To which add
'amhainn' f. a river, n. p. *aimhnichean'; 'ulsge' m. water,
n. p. 'uisgeachan'; 'cridhe' m. the hearty n. p. *cridheachan.>
The following nouns form their nominative plural irre-
gularly ; Muine' m. a. man, n. p. Maoine'; *righ' m. a h'ng,
n.