Irish orthography

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Irish orthography has evolved over many centuries, since Old Irish was first written down in the Latin alphabet in about the 8th century AD. Prior to that, Primitive Irish was written in Ogham. Irish orthography is mainly based on etymological considerations, although a spelling reform in the mid-20th century simplified the relationship between spelling and pronunciation somewhat.

There are three dialects of spoken Irish: Ulster (now predominantly in County Donegal), Connacht (Counties Mayo and Galway), and Munster (Counties Kerry, Cork, and Waterford). Some spelling conventions are common to all the dialects, while others vary from dialect to dialect. In addition, individual words may have in any given dialect a pronunciation that is not reflected by the spelling. (The pronunciations in this article reflect Connacht Irish pronunciation; other accents may differ.)


A sample of traditional Gaelic type.

The alphabet now used for writing the Irish language consists of the following letters of the Latin script, whether written in Roman hand or Gaelic hand:


The acute accent over the vowels is ignored for purposes of alphabetization. Modern loanwords also make use of j k q v w x y z. Of these, v is the most common. It occurs in a small number of words of native origin in the language such as vácarnach, vác and vrác, all of which are onomatopoeic. It also occurs in a number of alternative colloquial forms such as víog instead of bíog and vís instead of bís as cited in Niall Ó Dónaill's Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla (Irish–English Dictionary). It is also the only non-traditional letter used to write foreign names and words adapted to the Irish language (for example, Switzerland, or Helvetia, is Gaelicised as An Eilvéis; Azerbaijan, in contrast, is written An Asarbaiseáin rather than *An Azarbaijáin). The letters j, q, w, x, y and z are used primarily in scientific terminology or direct, unaltered borrowings from English and other languages, although the phoneme /z/ does exist naturally in at least one dialect, that of West Muskerry, Co. Cork, as the eclipsis of s. k is the only letter not to be listed by Ó Dónaill. h, when not prefixed to an initial vowel as an aspirate in certain grammatical functions (or when not used as an indicator of lenition when Roman type is used), occurs primarily in loanwords as an initial consonant. The letters' names are spelt out thus:

á bé cé dé é eif gé héis í eil eim ein ó pé ear eas té ú
along with jé cá cú vé wae eacs yé zae.

Tree names were once popularly used to name the letters. Tradition taught that they all derived from the names of the Ogham letters, though it is now known that only some of the earliest Ogham letters were named after trees.

ailm (pine), beith (birch), coll (hazel), dair (oak), edad/eabhadh (poplar), fern/fearn (alder), gath/gort (ivy), uath (hawthorn), idad/iodhadh (yew), luis (rowan), muin (vine), nin/nion (ash), onn (gorse), peith (dwarf alder), ruis (elder), sail (willow), tinne/teithne (holly), úr (heather)

Irish scripts and typefaces[edit]

Prior to the middle of the 20th century, Irish was usually written using the Gaelic typefaces. This alphabet, together with Roman type equivalents and letter name pronunciations along with the additional lenited letters, is shown below.

Use of Gaelic type is today almost entirely restricted to decorative and/or self-consciously traditional contexts. The dot above the lenited letter is usually replaced by a following h in the standard Roman alphabet [for example, ċ in gaelic type becomes ch in Roman type], . The only other use of h in Irish is for vowel-initial words after certain proclitics (e.g. go hÉirinn, "to Ireland") and for words of foreign derivation such as hata "hat".

Although the Gaelic script remained common until the mid-20th century, efforts to introduce Roman characters began much earlier. Theobald Stapleton's 1639 catechism was printed in a Roman type alphabet, and also introduced simplified spellings such as suí for suidhe and uafás for uathbhás, though these did not become standard for another 300 years.

Uncial alphabet.png


The consonant letters generally correspond to the consonant phonemes as shown in this table. See Irish phonology for an explanation of the symbols used and Irish initial mutations for an explanation of eclipsis. In most cases, consonants are "broad" (velarised) when the nearest vowel letter is one of a, o, u and "slender" (palatalised) when the nearest vowel letter is one of e, i.

bbroad/bˠ/bain /bˠanʲ/ "take" (imper.), scuab /sˠkuəbˠ/ "broom"
slender/bʲ/béal /bʲeːl̪ˠ/ "mouth", cnáib /kn̪ˠaːbʲ/ "hemp"
bhbroad/w/bhain /wanʲ/ "took", ábhar /ˈaːwəɾˠ/ "material", Bhairbre /ˈwaɾʲəbʲɾʲə/ "Barbara" (genitive), tábhachtach /ˈt̪ˠaːwəxtəx/ "important", dubhaigh /ˈd̪ˠʊwiː/ "blacken" (imper.), scríobh /ʃcrʲiːw/ "wrote", taobh /t̪ˠiːw/ "side", dubh /d̪ˠʊw/ "black", gabh /ɡaw/ "get" (imper.)
slender/vʲ/bhéal /vʲeːl̪ˠ/ "mouth" (lenited), cuibhreann /ˈkɪvʲɾʲən̪ˠ/ "common table", aibhneacha /ˈavʲnʲəxə/ "rivers", sibh /ʃɪvʲ/ "you" (pl.)
See vowel chart for abh, eabh, obh
(eclipsis of f-)
broad/w/bhfuinneog /ˈwɪnʲoːɡ/ "window" (eclipsed)
slender/vʲ/bhfíon /vʲiːn̪ˠ/ "wine" (eclipsed)
(eclipsis of p-)
broad/bˠ/bpoll /bˠoːl̪ˠ/ "hole" (eclipsed)
slender/bʲ/bpríosún /ˈbʲɾʲiːsˠuːn̪ˠ/ "prison" (eclipsed)
cbroad/k/cáis /kaːʃ/ "cheese", mac /mˠak/ "son"
slender/c/ceist /cɛʃtʲ/ "question", mic /mʲɪc/ "sons"
(Always broad before t.)
/x/cháis /xaːʃ/ "cheese" (lenited), taoiseach /ˈt̪ˠiːʃəx/ "chieftain" (also the term for the Prime Minister of Ireland), boichte /bˠɔxtʲə/ "poorer"
/h/ between vowels
cheist /çɛʃtʲ/ "question" (lenited), deich /dʲɛç/ "ten"
oíche /ˈiːhə/ "night"
dbroad/d̪ˠ/dorn /d̪ˠoːɾˠn̪ˠ/ "fist", nead /nʲad̪ˠ/ "nest"
slender/dʲ/dearg /dʲaɾˠəɡ/ "red", cuid /kɪdʲ/ "part"
dhbroad/ɣ/ word-initially
Silent after a long vowel
dhorn /ɣoːɾˠn̪ˠ/ "fist" (lenited)
ádh /aː/ "luck"
slender/j/dhearg /ˈjaɾˠəɡ/ "red" (lenited), fáidh /fˠaːj/ "prophet"
See vowel chart for adh, aidh, eadh, eidh, idh, oidh, odh. See Special pronunciations in verb forms for -dh at the end of verbs.
(eclipsis of t-)
broad/d̪ˠ/dtaisce /ˈd̪ˠaʃcə/ "treasure" (eclipsed)
slender/dʲ/dtír /dʲiːɾʲ/ "country" (eclipsed)
fbroad/fˠ/fós /fˠoːsˠ/ "still", graf /ɡɾˠafˠ/ "graph"
slender/fʲ/fíon /fʲiːn̪ˠ/ "wine", stuif /sˠt̪ˠɪfʲ/ "stuff"
See Special pronunciations in verb forms for -f- in future and conditional tenses
fh (lenition of f-)silentfhuinneog /ˈɪnʲoːɡ/ "window" (lenited), fhíon /iːn̪ˠ/ "wine" (lenited)
gbroad/ɡ/gasúr /ˈɡasˠuːɾˠ/ "boy", bog /bˠɔɡ/ "soft"
slender/ɟ/geata /ˈɟat̪ˠə/ "gate", carraig /ˈkaɾˠəɟ/ "rock"
(eclipsis of c-)
broad/ɡ/gcáis /ɡaːʃ/ "cheese" (eclipsed)
slender/ɟ/gceist /ɟɛʃtʲ/ "question" (eclipsed)
ghbroad/ɣ/ (word-initially)
silent after a long vowel
ghasúr /ˈɣasˠuːɾˠ/ "boy" (lenited)
Eoghan /ˈoːən̪ˠ/ (male name)
slender/j/gheata /ˈjat̪ˠə/ "gate" (lenited), dóigh /d̪ˠoːj/ "way, manner"
See vowel chart for agh, aigh, eigh, igh, ogh, oigh. See Special pronunciations in verb forms for -(a)igh at the end of verbs.
h/h/hata /ˈhat̪ˠə/ "hat", na héisc /nə heːʃc/ "the fish" (plural)
l, llbroad/l̪ˠ/luí /l̪ˠiː/ "lying (down)", poll /poːl̪ˠ/ "hole"
slender/lʲ/leisciúil /ˈlʲɛʃcuːlʲ/ "lazy", coill /kəilʲ/ "woods"
mbroad/mˠ/mór /mˠoːɾˠ/ "big", am /aːmˠ/ "time"
slender/mʲ/milis /ˈmʲilʲəʃ/ "sweet", im /iːmʲ/ "butter"
(eclipsis of b-)
broad/mˠ/mbaineann /ˈmˠanʲən̪ˠ/ "takes" (eclipsed)
slender/mʲ/mbéal /mʲeːl̪ˠ/ "mouth" (eclipsed)
mh(broad)/w/mhór /woːɾˠ/ "big" (lenited), lámha /ˈl̪ˠaːwə/ "hands", léamh /lʲeːw/ "reading"
(slender)/vʲ/mhilis /ˈvʲilʲəʃ/ "sweet" (lenited), uimhir /ˈɪvʲəɾʲ/ "number", nimh /nʲɪvʲ/ "poison"
See vowel chart for amh, eamh, omh
n, nnbroad/n̪ˠ/naoi /n̪ˠiː/ "nine", ceann /caːn̪ˠ/ "head"
slender/nʲ/neart /nʲaɾˠt̪ˠ/ "strength", tinneas /ˈtʲɪnʲəsˠ/ "illness"
ncbroad/ŋk/ancaire /ˈaŋkəɾʲə/ "anchor"
slender/ɲc/rinc /ɾˠɪɲc/ "dance"
(eclipsis of d-)
broad/n̪ˠ/ndorn /n̪ˠoːɾˠn̪ˠ/ "fist" (eclipsed)
slender/nʲ/ndearg /ˈnʲaɾˠəɡ/ "red" (eclipsed)
ngbroad/ŋ/ word-initially (eclipsis of g-)
/ŋɡ/ word-internally and finally
ngasúr /ˈŋasˠuːɾˠ/ "boy" (eclipsed)
long /l̪ˠuːŋɡ/ "ship", teanga /ˈtʲaŋɡə/ "tongue"
slender/ɲ/ word-initially (eclipsis of g-)
/ɲɟ/ word-internally and finally
ngeata /ˈɲat̪ˠə/ "gate" (eclipsed)
cuing /kɪɲɟ/ "yoke", ingear /ˈɪɲɟəɾˠ/ "vertical"
/nʲ/ in final unstressed -ingscilling /ˈʃcilʲənʲ/ "shilling"
pbroad/pˠ/poll /pˠoːl̪ˠ/ "hole", stop /sˠt̪ˠɔpˠ/ "stop"
slender/pʲ/príosún /ˈpʲɾʲiːsˠuːn̪ˠ/ "prison", truip /t̪ˠɾˠɪpʲ/ "trip"
phbroad/fˠ/pholl /fˠoːl̪ˠ/ "hole" (lenited)
slender/fʲ/phríosún /ˈfʲɾʲiːsˠuːn̪ˠ/ "prison" (lenited)
(Always broad word-initially. Always broad in rt, rth, rd, rn, rl, rs, sr.)
/ɾˠ/ /ɾˠiː/ "king", cuairt /kuəɾˠtʲ/ "visit", oirthear /ˈɔɾˠhəɾˠ/ "east", airde /aːɾˠdʲə/ "height", coirnéal /ˈkoːɾˠnʲeːl̪ˠ/ "corner", duirling /ˈd̪ˠuːɾˠlʲənʲ/ "stony beach", sreang /sˠɾˠaŋɡ/ "string"
slender/ɾʲ/tirim /ˈtʲɪɾʲəmʲ/ "dry"
rr/ɾˠ/barr /baːɾˠ/ "tip, point", cairr /kaːɾˠ/ "car" (genitive)
(Always broad word-initially before m, p, r.)
Sasana /ˈsˠasˠən̪ˠə/ "England", tús /t̪ˠuːsˠ/ "beginning", speal /sˠpʲal̪ˠ/ "scythe", sméar /sˠmʲeːɾˠ/ "blackberry", sreang /sˠɾˠaŋɡ/ "string"
slender/ʃ/sean /ʃan̪ˠ/ "old", cáis /kaːʃ/ "cheese"
shbroad/h/Shasana /ˈhasˠən̪ˠə/ "England" (lenited)
/ç/ before /aː, oː, u(ː)/
shean /han̪ˠ/ "old" (lenited)
Sheáin /çaːnʲ/ "John" (genitive), sheol /çoːl̪ˠ/ "sailed", shiúil /çuːlʲ/ "walked", shiopa /ˈçʊpˠə/ "shop" (lenited)
tbroad/t̪ˠ/taisce /ˈt̪ˠaʃcə/ "treasure", ceart /caɾˠt̪ˠ/ "correct"
slender/tʲ/tír /tʲiːɾʲ/ "country", beirt /bʲɛɾˠtʲ/ "two (people)"
See Special pronunciations in verb forms for -t- in verbal adjectives
thbroad/h/thaisce /ˈhaʃcə/ "treasure" (lenited), athair /ˈahəɾʲ/ "father"
/ç/ when lenited from /tʲaː-, tʲoː-, tʲu(ː)-/
theanga /ˈhaŋɡə/ "tongue" (lenited)
theann /çaːn̪ˠ/ "tight" (lenited), theocht /çoːxt̪ˠ/ "heat" (lenited), thiúilip /ˈçuːlʲəpʲ/ "tulip" (lenited), thiocfadh /ˈçʊkəx/ "would come", thiubh /çʊw/ "thick" (lenited)
Silent at the end of a syllablebláth /bˠl̪ˠaː/ "blossom", cith /cɪ/ "shower", cothrom /ˈkɔɾˠəmˠ/ "equal"
See Special pronunciations in verb forms for -th- in verbal adjectives
(special lenition of s- after an 'the')
broad/t̪ˠ/an tsolais /ən̪ˠ ˈt̪ˠɔl̪ˠəʃ/ "of the light"
slender/tʲ/an tSín /ənʲ tʲiːnʲ/ "China"
vbroad/w/vóta /ˈwoːt̪ˠə/ "vote"
slender/vʲ/veidhlín /ˈvʲəilʲiːnʲ/ "violin"


In spite of the complex chart below, pronunciation of vowels in Irish is mostly predictable from a few simple rules:

The following chart indicates how written vowels are generally pronounced. Each dialect has certain divergences from this general scheme.

Simple vowels[edit]

Unstressed vowels are generally reduced to schwa (/ə/).

astressed/a/fan /fˠan̪ˠ/ "stay" (imper.)
/aː/ before rl, rn, rd
before syllable-final ll, nn, rr
before word-final m
tarlú /ˈt̪ˠaːɾˠl̪ˠuː/ "happening", carnán /ˈkaːɾˠn̪ˠaːn̪ˠ/ "(small) heap", garda /ˈɡaːɾˠd̪ˠə/ "policeman"
mall /mˠaːl̪ˠ/ "slow, late", ann /aːn̪ˠ/ "there", barr /bˠaːɾˠ/ "tip, point"
am /aːmˠ/ "time"
unstressed/ə/ólann /ˈoːl̪ˠən̪ˠ/ "drink" (present), mála /ˈmˠaːl̪ˠə/ "bag"
estressed/ɛ/te /tʲɛ/ "hot"
unstressed/ə/míle /ˈmʲiːlʲə/ "thousand"
istressed/ɪ/pic /pʲɪc/ "pitch", ifreann /ˈɪfʲɾʲən/ "hell"
/iː/ before syllable-final ll, nn
before word-final m
cill /ciːlʲ/ "church", cinnte /ˈciːnʲtʲə/ "sure"
im /iːmʲ/ "butter"
unstressed/ə/faoistin /ˈfˠiːʃtʲənʲ/ "confession"
ostressed/ɔ/post /pˠɔsˠt̪ˠ/ "post"
/ʊ/ before n, mDonncha /ˈd̪ˠʊn̪əxə/ (man's name), cromóg /ˈkɾˠʊmˠoːɡ/ "hooked nose"
/oː/ before rl, rn, rd
before syllable-final ll, rr
bord /bˠoːɾˠd̪ˠ/ "table", orlach /ˈoːɾˠl̪ˠəx/ "inch"
poll /pˠoːl̪ˠ/ "hole", corr /koːɾˠ/ "odd"
/uː/ before syllable-final nn
before word-final m, ng
fonn /fˠuːn̪ˠ/ "desire, inclination"
trom /t̪ˠɾˠuːmˠ/ "heavy", long /l̪ˠuːŋɡ/ "ship"
unstressed/ə/mo /mˠə/ "my", cothrom /ˈkɔɾˠəmˠ/ "equal"
ustressed/ʊ/dubh /d̪ˠʊw/ "black"
/ɔ/ in English loanwords, corresponds to /ʌ/bus /bˠɔsˠ/, club /kl̪ˠɔbˠ/
/uː/ before rl, rn, rdburla /ˈbˠuːɾˠl̪ˠə/ "bundle", murnán /ˈmˠuːɾˠn̪ˠaːn̪ˠ/ "ankle", urlár /ˈuːɾˠl̪ˠaːɾˠ/ "floor"
unstressed/ə/agus /ˈaɡəs/ "and"

Vowels with an acute accent[edit]

Vowels with an acute accent (known in Irish as a fada or síneadh fada) are always pronounced long. In digraphs and trigraphs containing a vowel with an acute accent, only the vowel with the accent mark is normally pronounced.

á/aː/bán /bˠaːn̪ˠ/ "white"
áidáil /d̪ˠaːlʲ/ "assembly", gabháil /ˈɡawaːlʲ/ "taking"
/iː/maígh /mˠiːj/ "claim" (imper.), gutaí /ˈɡʊt̪ˠiː/ "vowels"
aíonaíonán /ˈn̪ˠiːn̪ˠaːn̪ˠ/ "infant", beannaíonn /ˈbʲan̪ˠiːn̪ˠ/ "blesses"
é/eː/ /ʃeː/ "he"
éadéanamh /ˈdʲeːn̪ˠəw/ "doing", buidéal /ˈbˠɪdʲeːl̪ˠ/ "bottle"
/aː/Seán /ʃaːn̪ˠ/ "John"
caisleán /ˈkaʃlʲaːn̪ˠ/ "castle"
eáimeáin /mʲaːnʲ/ "middles", caisleáin /ˈkaʃlʲaːnʲ/ "castles"
éi/eː/scéimh /ʃceːvʲ/ "beauty", páipéir /ˈpˠaːpʲeːɾʲ/ "papers"
í/iː/gnímh /ɟnʲiːvʲ/ "act, deed" (gen.), cailín /ˈkalʲiːnʲ/ 'girl'
íosíol /ʃiːl̪ˠ/ "seed"
/uː/siúl /ʃuːl̪ˠ/ "walk", bailiú /ˈbˠalʲuː/ "gathering"
iúiciúin /cuːnʲ/ "quiet", inniúil /ˈɪnʲuːlʲ/ "able, fit"
ó/oː/póg /pˠoːɡ/ "kiss", armónach /ˈaɾˠəmˠoːn̪əx/ "harmonic"
óimóin /mˠoːnʲ/ "sod, turf", bádóir /ˈbˠaːd̪ˠoːrʲ/ "boatman"
/iː/croíleacán /ˈkɾˠiːlʲəkaːn̪ˠ/ "core"
oíocroíonna /ˈkɾˠiːn̪ˠə/ "hearts"
ú/uː/tús /t̪ˠuːsˠ/ "beginning"
úisúil /suːlʲ/ "eye", cosúil /ˈkɔsˠuːlʲ/ "like, resembling"
/iː/buígh /bˠiːj/ "turn yellow" (imper.)
uíobuíon /bˠiːn̪ˠ/ "band, troop"

Di- and trigraphs[edit]

A vowel or digraph followed by i is usually pronounced as that vowel. The i is not pronounced in that case, and just indicates that the adjacent consonants are slender. However, it may be pronounced in the digraphs ei, oi, ui.

ae(i)/eː/Gaelach /ˈɡeːl̪ˠəx/ "Gaelic", Gaeilge /ˈɡeːlʲɟə/ "Irish (language)"
aistressed/a/baile /ˈbˠalʲə/ "home"
/aː/ before rl, rn, rd
before syllable-final ll, nn, rr
airne /aːɾˠnʲə/ "sloe"
caillte /ˈkaːlʲtʲə/ "lost, ruined", crainn /kɾˠaːnʲ/ "trees"
unstressed/ə/eolais /ˈoːl̪ˠəʃ/ "knowledge" (genitive)
ao(i)/iː/saol /sˠiːl̪ˠ/ "life, world", gaois /ɡiːʃ/ "shrewdness"
ea(i)stressed/a/bean /bʲan̪ˠ/ "woman", veain /vʲanʲ/ "van"
/aː/ before rl, rn, rd
before syllable-final ll, nn, rr
bearna /ˈbʲaːɾˠn̪ˠə/ "gap"
feall /fʲaːl̪ˠ/ "treachery", feanntach /ˈfʲaːn̪ˠt̪ˠəx/ "severe"
unstressed/ə/seisean /ˈʃɛʃən̪ˠ/ "he" (emph.)
ei/ɛ/ceist /cɛʃtʲ/ "question"
/ɪ/ before m, mh, ncreimeadh /ˈcɾʲɪmʲə/ "corrosion, erosion", geimhreadh /ˈɟɪvʲrʲə/ "winter", seinm /ˈʃɪnʲəmʲ/ "playing"
/eː/ before rl, rn, rdeirleach /ˈeːɾˠlʲəx/ "destruction", ceirnín /ˈceːɾˠnʲiːnʲ/ "record album", ceird /ceːɾˠdʲ/ "trade, craft"
/əi/ before syllable-final llfeill- /fʲəilʲ/ "exceedingly"
/iː/ before syllable-final nn and word-final mgreim /ɟɾʲiːmʲ/ "grip"
eo(i)/oː/ceol /coːl̪ˠ/ "music", baileofar /ˈbˠalʲoːfˠəɾˠ/ "one will gather", dreoilín /ˈdʲɾʲoːlʲiːnʲ/ "wren", baileoimid /ˈbˠalʲoːmʲədʲ/ "we will gather"
ia(i)/iə/Diarmaid /dʲiərmədʲ/ "Dermot", bliain /bʲlʲiənʲ/ "year"
io/ɪ/ before coronals and thfios /fʲɪsˠ/ "knowledge", bior /bʲɪɾˠ/ "spit, spike", cion /cɪn̪ˠ/ "affection", giota /ˈɟɪt̪ˠə/ "bit, piece", giodam /ˈɟɪd̪ˠəmˠ/ "restlessness", friotháil /ˈfʲɾʲɪhaːlʲ/ "attention"
/ʊ/ before noncoronalssiopa /ˈʃʊpˠə/ "shop", liom /lʲʊmˠ/ "with me", tiocfaidh /ˈtʲʊkiː/ "will come", Siobhán /ˈʃʊwaːn̪ˠ/ "Joan", briogáid /ˈbʲɾʲʊɡaːdʲ/ "brigade", tiomáin /ˈtʲʊmaːnʲ/ "drive" (imper.), ionga /ˈʊŋɡə/ "(finger)nail"
/iː/ before syllable-final nnfionn /fʲiːn̪ˠ/ "light-haired"
iu/ʊ/fliuch /fʲlʲʊx/ "wet"
oistressed/ɛ/scoil /sˠkɛlʲ/ "school", troid /t̪ˠɾˠɛdʲ/ "fight" (imper.), toitín /ˈt̪ˠɛtʲiːnʲ/ "cigarette", oibre /ˈɛbʲɾʲə/ "work" (gen.), thoir /hɛɾʲ/ "in the east", cloiche /ˈkl̪ˠɛhə/ "stone" (gen.)
/ɔ/ before s, cht, rs, rt, rthcois /kɔʃ/ "foot" (dat.), cloisfidh /ˈkl̪ˠɔʃiː/ "will hear", boicht /bˠɔxtʲ/ "poor" (gen. sg. masc.), doirse /ˈd̪ɔɾˠʃə/ "doors", goirt /ɡɔɾˠtʲ/ "salty", oirthear /ˈɔɾˠhəɾˠ/ "east"
/ɪ/ next to n, m, mhanois /əˈn̪ˠɪʃ/ "now", gloine /ˈɡl̪ˠɪnʲə/ "glass", cnoic /kn̪ˠɪc/ "hills", roimh /ɾˠɪvʲ/ "before", coimeád /ˈkɪmʲaːd̪ˠ/ "keep" (imper.), loinge /ˈl̪ˠɪɲɟə/ "ship" (gen.)
/əi/ before syllable-final llcoill /kəilʲ/ "forest, woods", coillte /ˈkəilʲtʲə/ "forests"
/iː/ before syllable-final nn and word-final mfoinn /fˠiːnʲ/ "wish" (gen.), droim /d̪ˠɾˠiːmʲ/ "back"
/oː/ before rl, rn, rdcoirnéal /ˈkoːɾˠnʲeːl̪ˠ/ "corner", oird /oːɾˠdʲ/ "sledgehammers"
unstressed/ə/éadroime /eːdrəmʲə/ 'lightness'
ua(i)/uə/fuar /fˠuəɾˠ/ "cold", fuair /fˠuəɾʲ/ "got"
uistressed/ɪ/duine /ˈd̪ˠɪnʲə/ "person"
/ʊ/ before cht, rs, rttuirseach /ˈt̪ˠʊɾˠʃəx/ "tired", cluichte /ˈkl̪ˠʊxtʲə/ "harassment" (gen.)
/iː/ before syllable-final ll, nn
before word-final m
tuillteanach /ˈt̪ˠiːlʲtʲən̪ˠəx/ "deserving", puinn /pˠiːnʲ/ "much"
suim /sˠiːmʲ/ "interest"
/uː/ before rl, rn, rdduirling /ˈd̪ˠuːɾˠlʲənʲ/ "stony beach", tuirne /ˈt̪ˠuːɾˠnʲə/ "spinning wheel"
unstressed/ə/aguisín /ˈaɡəʃiːnʲ/ "addition"


Followed by bh, dh, gh, mh[edit]

When followed by the lenited consonants bh, dh, gh or mh, a stressed vowel usually forms a diphthong.

For aidh, aigh, adh, eadh, idh and igh, see also Special pronunciations in verb forms.

abh(a(i))stressed/əu/abhainn /əunʲ/ "river", cabhrach /ˈkəuɾˠəx/ "helpful"
eabh(a(i))leabhair /lʲəuɾʲ/ "books"
Feabhra /ˈfʲəuɾˠə/ "February"
amh(a(i))Samhain /sˠəunʲ/ "November", amhantar /ˈəun̪ˠt̪ˠəɾˠ/ "venture", ramhraigh /ˈɾˠəuɾˠiː/ "fattened"
eamh(a(i))sleamhain /ʃlʲəunʲ/ "smooth", leamhnacht /ˈlʲəun̪ˠəxt̪ˠ/ "new milk"
obh(a(i))lobhar /l̪ˠəuɾˠ/ "leper"
odh(a(i))bodhar /bˠəuɾˠ/ "deaf"
ogh(a(i))rogha /ɾˠəu/ "choice"
omh(a(i))stressed/oː/tomhail /t̪ˠoːlʲ/ "consume" (imper.), Domhnach /ˈd̪ˠoːn̪ˠəx/ "Sunday"
adh(a(i))stressed/əi/adhairt /əiɾˠtʲ/ "pillow", Tadhg /t̪ˠəiɡ/ (man's name)
aidhaidhm /əimʲ/ "aim"
eadh(a(i))meadhg /mʲəiɡ/ "whey"
eidh(i/ea)feidhm /fʲəimʲ/ "function"
oidh(i/ea)oidhre /əirʲə/ "heir"
agh(a(i))aghaidh /əij/ "face", saghsanna /ˈsˠəisˠən̪ˠə/ "sorts, kinds"
aighsaighdiúir /ˈsˠəidʲuːrʲ/ "soldier"
eigh(i/ea)leigheas /lʲəisˠ/ "healing"
oigh(i/ea)loighic /l̪ˠəic/ "logic"
adhunstressed/ə/margadh /ˈmˠaɾˠəɡə/ "market"
eadhbriseadh /ˈbʲɾʲɪʃə/ "breaking"
idhunstressed/iː/tuillidh /ˈt̪ˠɪlʲiː/ "addition" (gen.)
aidhcleachtaidh /ˈclʲaxt̪ˠiː/ "practice" (genitive)
ighcoiligh /ˈkɛlʲiː/ "rooster" (gen.)
aighbacaigh /ˈbˠakiː/ "beggar" (genitive)

Epenthetic vowel[edit]

In a sequence of short vowel + /l, r, n/ + labial or velar consonant (except for voiceless stops) an unwritten /ə/ gets pronounced between the /l, r, n/ and the following consonant:


There is additionally no epenthesis after long vowels and diphthongs:

Special pronunciations in verb forms[edit]

In verb forms, some letters and letter combinations are pronounced differently from elsewhere.

In the imperfect, conditional, and imperative, -dh is pronounced /tʲ/ before a pronoun beginning with s-:

Otherwise it is pronounced /x/:

In the preterite impersonal, -dh is pronounced /w/:

-(a)idh and -(a)igh are pronounced /ə/ before a pronoun, otherwise /iː/:

In the future and conditional, f (broad or slender) has the following effects:

  1. After vowels and sonorants (/l̪ˠ lʲ mˠ mʲ n̪ˠ nʲ ɾˠ ɾʲ/) it is pronounced /h/:
    • molfaidh /ˈmˠɔl̪ˠhiː/ "will praise"
    • dhófadh /ˈɣoːhəx/ "would burn"
    • déarfaidh /ˈdʲeːɾˠhiː/ "will say"
  2. It makes a voiced obstruent (/bˠ bʲ vʲ d̪ˠ ɡ/) or /w/ voiceless:
    • scuabfadh /ˈsˠkuəpəx/ "would sweep"
    • goidfidh /ˈɡɛtʲiː/ "will steal"
    • leagfadh /ˈlʲakəx/ "would lay"
    • scríobhfaidh /ˈʃcɾʲiːfˠiː/ "will write"
    • shnámhfadh /ˈhn̪ˠaːfˠəx/ "would swim"
  3. It is silent after a voicless obstruent (/k c x ç pˠ pʲ sˠ ʃ t̪ˠ tʲ/)
    • brisfidh /ˈbʲɾʲɪʃiː/ "will break"
    • ghlacfadh /ˈɣl̪ˠakəx/ "would accept"
  4. But in the future and conditional impersonal f is often /fˠ, fʲ/
    • molfar /ˈmˠɔl̪ˠfˠəɾˠ/ "one will praise"
    • dhófaí /ˈɣoːfˠiː/ "one would burn"
    • scuabfar /ˈsˠkuəbˠfˠəɾˠ/ "one will sweep"
    • brisfear /ˈbʲɾʲɪʃfʲəɾˠ/ "one will break"

In the past participle th (also t after d) is silent but makes a voiced obstruent voiceless:


Irish spelling makes use today of only one diacritic, and formerly used a second. The acute accent (Irish: síneadh fada "long sign") is used to indicate a long vowel, as in bád /bˠaːd̪ˠ/ "boat". However, there are some circumstances under which a long vowel is not indicated by an acute accent, namely:

Road sign in the Donegal Gaeltacht: Note Comhaırle, obaır, maoınıú, Roınn, Oıdhreachta and Oıleán with dotless lowercase i's.

The overdot (Irish: ponc séimhithe "dot of lenition", buailte "struck", or simply séimhiú, "lenition") was formerly used, especially in Gaelic script, to indicate the lenited version of a consonant; currently a following letter h is used for this purpose. Thus the letters ḃ ċ ḋ ḟ ġ ṁ ṗ ṡ ṫ are equivalent to bh ch dh fh gh mh ph sh th. In Old Irish orthography, the dot was used only for ḟ ṡ, while the following h was used for ch ph th; lenition of other letters was not indicated. Later the two systems spread to the entire set of lenitable consonants and competed with each other. Eventually the standard practice was to use the dot when writing in Gaelic script and the following h when writing in Roman letters.

As with most European languages such as French, Spanish or German, Irish diacritics must be preserved in uppercase forms. If diacritics are unavailable (for example, on a computer using ASCII), there is no generally accepted standard for replacing it (unlike some languages like German, where the umlaut is replaced by a following "e" and ß is replaced by "ss"), and so it is generally just omitted entirely.

Lower-case "i" has no tittle in Gaelic script, and road signs in the Republic of Ireland, which use a typeface based on Transport, also use a dotless lowercase "i" (as well as a Latin alpha glyph for "a"). However, the tittle is generally included in printed material like books and newspapers and in electronic media like the Internet and CD-ROMs. Irish makes no graphemic distinction between dotted i and dotless ı (i.e. they are not different letters), as languages like Turkish and Azeri do.


A pay and display sign in Dublin with the Tironian et for agus ("and").

In general, punctuation marks are used in Irish much as they are in English. One punctuation mark worth noting is the Tironian et which is generally used to abbreviate the word agus "and", much as the ampersand is generally used to abbreviate the word and in English.

The hyphen (Irish: fleiscín) is used in Irish after the letters t and n when these are attached to a vowel-initial word through the rules of the initial mutations, as in an t-arán "the bread", a n-iníon "their daughter". However, the hyphen is not used when the vowel is capitalised, as in an tAlbanach "the Scotsman", Ár nAthair "Our Father". No hyphen is used with the h that is attached to a vowel-initial word: a hiníon "her daughter".

The hyphen is also used in compound words under certain circumstances:

The apostrophe (Irish: uaschama) is used to indicate an omitted vowel in the following cases:


Bilingual sign in Ireland. The eclipsis of P to bP uses lowercase in an otherwise all-caps text

Capitalisation rules are similar to English. However, a prefix letter remains in lowercase when the base initial is capitalised (an tSín "China"). For text written in all caps, the prefix letter is often kept in lowercase, or small caps (STAIR NA HÉIREANN "THE HISTORY OF IRELAND").[1] An initial capital is used for:[2]


Irish has a number of abbreviations, most of which, like lch. for leathanach ("p."/"page") and for mar shampla ("e.g."/"for example" "exempli gratia") are straightforward. Two that may require explanation are .i. (which begins and ends with a full stop) for eadhon ("i.e."/"that is") and ⁊rl. or srl. for agus araile ("etc."/"and so forth" "et cetera").

Spelling reform[edit]

The literary Classical Irish which survived till the 17th century was already archaic and its spelling reflected that; Theobald Stapleton's 1639 catechism was a first attempt at simplification.[6] The classical spelling represented a dialect continuum including distinctions which had been lost in all surviving dialects by the Gaelic revival of the late 19th century. The issue of simplifying spelling, linked to the use of Roman or Gaelic type, was controversial in the early decades of the 20th century.[7] The Irish Texts Society's 1904 Irish–English bilingual dictionary by Patrick S. Dinneen used traditional spellings.[7] After the creation of the Irish Free State in 1922, all Acts of the Oireachtas were translated into Irish, initially using Dinneen's spellings, with a list of simplifications accruing over the years.[7] When Éamon de Valera became President of the Executive Council after the 1932 election, policy reverted to older spellings, which were used in the enrolled text of the 1937 Constitution.[7] In 1941, de Valera decided to publish a "popular edition" of the Constitution with simplified spelling and established a committee of experts, which failed to agree on recommendations.[7][8] Instead, the Oireachtas' own translation service prepared a booklet, Litriú na Gaeilge: Lámhleabhar an Chaighdeáin Oifigiúil, published in 1945.[8] The following are some old spellings criticised by T. F. O'Rahilly and their simplifications:[7]

old spellingnew spelling

The booklet was expanded in 1947, and republished in 1957 combined with the standard grammar of 1953.[9] It attracted initial criticism as unhistorical and artificial; some spellings fail to represent the pronunciation of some dialects, while others preserve letters not pronounced in any dialect.[9] Its status was reinforced by use in the civil service and as a guide for Tomás de Bhaldraithe's 1959 English–Irish dictionary and Niall Ó Dónaill's 1977 Irish–English dictionary.[9] A review of the written standard, including spelling, was initiated in 2010, with a view to improving "simplicity, internal consistency, and logic".[10]

See also[edit]


  1. ^ Graiméar Gaeilge na mBráithre Críostaí (in Irish). Dublin: An Gúm. 1999. pp. §3.2. ISBN 1-85791-327-2. 
  2. ^ Graiméar Gaeilge na mBráithre Críostaí, §3.1
  3. ^ Graiméar Gaeilge na mBráithre Críostaí, §§ 3.1, 7.6, 10.2-10.3
  4. ^ Graiméar Gaeilge na mBráithre Críostaí, §§ 3.1, 3.4
  5. ^ Graiméar Gaeilge na mBráithre Críostaí, §3.5
  6. ^ Crowley, Tony (2005). "Encoding Ireland: Dictionaries and Politics in Irish History". Éire-Ireland 40 (3): 119–139. doi:10.1353/eir.2005.0017. ISSN 1550-5162. 
  7. ^ a b c d e f Ó Cearúil, Micheál; Ó Murchú, Máirtín (1999). "Script and Spelling". Bunreacht na hÉireann: a study of the Irish text. Dublin: Stationery Office. pp. 27–41. ISBN 0-7076-6400-4. Archived from the original on 21 July 2011. 
  8. ^ a b Dáil debates Vol.99 No.17 p.3 7 March 1946
  9. ^ a b c Ó Laoire, Muiris (1997). "The Standardization of Irish Spelling: an Overview". Journal of the Spelling Society 22 (2): 19–23. 
  10. ^ Central Translation Unit. "The Scope of the Process". Review of Caighdeán Oifigiúil na Gaeilge. Department of Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs. Retrieved 2012-02-12.