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[[File:Gaeltachtai le hainmneacha2.svg|thumb|right|The three dialects of the Irish language, with Ulster in the north.]]
[[File:Gaeilig in Uladh.jpg|thumb| The percentage of people in each administrative area in [[Ulster]] who have the ability to speak Irish. (Counties of the Republic of Ireland and District council areas of Northern Ireland.)]]
'''Ulster Irish''' is the [[dialect]] of the [[Irish language]] spoken in the Province of [[Ulster]]. The largest [[Gaeltacht]] region today is in [[County Donegal]], so that the term '''Donegal Irish''' is often used synonymously. Nevertheless, records of the language as it was spoken in other counties do exist, and help provide a broader view of Ulster Irish. When the recommendations of the first Comisiún na Gaeltachta were drawn up in 1926, there were regions qualifying for [[Gaeltacht]] recognition in the [[Sperrin Mountains]] on the border between [[County Tyrone]] and [[County Londonderry]], as well as in the northern [[Glens of Antrim]] around [[Rathlin Island]]. The report also makes note of small pockets of Irish speakers in Northwest [[County Cavan]], Southeast [[County Monaghan]], and the far south of [[County Armagh]]. However, these small pockets vanished early in the 20th century while the Gaeltacht of the [[Sperrin Mountains]] survived until the 1950s and the Glens of Antrim Gaeltacht survived until the 1970s. The last native speaker of Rathlin Island Irish died in 1985.
In the 1960s, six families in [[Belfast]] formed the [[Shaw's Road]] 'Gaeltacht', which has survived and even grown. The Irish-speaking area of the [[Falls Road, Belfast|Falls Road]] in West [[Belfast]] has recently been designated the '[[Gaeltacht Quarter]]'. [[Manx language|Manx]] and the southern dialects of [[Scottish Gaelic]] share similarities with Ulster Irish, due to their historical connections with Ulster.
==Lexicon==
The Ulster dialect contains many words not used in other dialects, or used otherwise only in the west of [[County Mayo]]. In other cases, a semantic shift has resulted in quite different meanings attaching to the same word in Ulster Irish and in other dialects. Some of these words include:
, "look" (elsewhere {{lang|ga|''amharc'', ''breathnaigh'' and ''féach''}}; this latter means rather "try" or "attempt" in Ulster), "minute" (elsewhere {{lang|ga|''nóiméad'', ''nóimint'', ''neómat'', etc.}}) "I hear" (southern {{lang|ga|''cloisim''}}, but {{lang|ga|''cluinim''}} is also attested in South Tipperary). In fact, the initial ''c-'' tends to be lenited even when it is not preceded by any particle (this is because there ''was'' a leniting particle in Classical Irish: {{lang|ga|''do-chluin''}} yielded {{lang|ga|''chluin''}} in Ulster) "cattle" (southern {{lang|ga|''beithíoch'' "one head of cattle", ''beithígh'' "cattle"}}) "calf" (southern {{lang|ga|''lao'' and ''gamhain''}}) "boy" (southern {{lang|ga|''garsún''}}, ''garsún'' means "child" in Connemara) "girl" (southern {{lang|ga|''gearrchaile'' and ''girseach''}}) "road" (southern and western {{lang|ga|''bóthar'' and ''ród'' (cf. Scottish Gaelic ''rathad'', Manx Gaelic ''raad''), and ''bealach'' "way"}}). Note that {{lang|ga|''bealach''}} alone is used as a preposition meaning "towards" (literally meaning '''in the way of''': {{lang|ga|''d'amharc sé bealach na farraige''}} = "he looked towards the sea" is used to mean "to think" as well as "to make" or "to do", ''síleann'', ''ceapann'' and ''cuimhníonn'' is used in other dialects, as well as in Ulster Irish. "close" (southern and western {{lang|ga|''dún''}}; in other dialects {{lang|ga|''druid''}} means "to move in relation to or away from something", thus {{lang|ga|''druid ó rud''}} = to shirk, {{lang|ga|''druid isteach''}} = to close in) "wings" (southern {{lang|ga|''sciatháin''}}) "soap" (standard {{lang|ga|''gallúnach''}}, Connemara {{lang|ga|''gallaoireach''}}), "youth", "young man", "boyfriend" (Southern = "gangly, young lad") "cabbage" (southern {{lang|ga|''gabáiste''}}) "about, under" (standard {{lang|ga|''faoi''}} Munster ''fé'', ''fí'' and ''fá'' is only used for 'under'; ''mar gheall ar'' and ''i dtaobh'' = "about") "Irish" (standard, Western {{lang|ga|''Gaeilge''}}, Southern ''Gaoluinn'', Manx ''Gaelg'', Scottish ''Gàidhlig'') "what is?" ([[Connacht Irish|Connacht]] {{lang|ga|''céard tá''}}; [[Munster Irish|Munster]] {{lang|ga|''cad a thá'', ''cad é a thá'', ''dé a thá'', Scotland ''dé tha''}}) "table" (western and southern {{lang|ga|''bord''}} and {{lang|ga|''clár''}}, Scotland ''bòrd'' "when?" (Connacht {{lang|ga|''cén uair''}}; Munster {{lang|ga|''cathain'', ''cén uair''}}) "seagull" (standard {{lang|ga|''faoileán''}}) "lazy" (southern and western {{lang|ga|''leisciúil''}}, ''fallsa'' = "false, treacherous")
*the word {{lang|ga|''iontach''}} "wonderful" is used as an intensifier instead of the prefix {{lang|ga|''an-''}} used in other dialects.
In other cases, a semantic shift has resulted in quite different meanings attaching to the same word in Ulster Irish and in other dialects. Some of these words include:
"head" (southern and western {{lang|ga|''ceann''}}; elsewhere, {{lang|ga|''cloigeann''}} is used to mean "skull")
"mare" (southern and western {{lang|ga|''láir''}}; elsewhere, {{lang|ga|''capall''}} means "horse")
==Phonology==
The phonemic inventory of Ulster Irish (based on the dialect of [[Gweedore]]) is as shown in the following chart (see [[International Phonetic Alphabet]] for an explanation of the symbols). Symbols appearing in the upper half of each row are [[velarization|velarized]] (traditionally called "broad" consonants) while those in the bottom half are [[palatalization|palatalized]] ("slender"). The consonants {{IPA|/h, n, l/}} are neither broad or slender.
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"| Consonant
phonemes
! colspan="6" | [[Labial consonant|Labial]]
! colspan="6" | [[Coronal consonant|Coronal]]
! colspan="4" | [[Dorsal consonant|Dorsal]]
! colspan="2" rowspan="2" | [[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|-
! colspan="2" | [[Bilabial consonant|Bilabial]]
! colspan="2" | [[Labiodental consonant|Labio-
dental]]
! colspan="2" | [[Labialized velar consonant|Labio-
velar]]
! colspan="2" | [[Dental consonant|Dental]]
! colspan="2" | [[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
! colspan="2" | [[Alveolo-palatal consonant|Alveolo-
palatal]]
! colspan="2" | [[Palatal consonant|Palatal]]
! colspan="2" | [[Velar consonant|Velar]]
|-
!| [[Stop consonant|Plosive]]
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | {{IPA|pˠ}}
{{IPA|pʲ}} || style="border-left-width: 0;" | {{IPA|bˠ}}
{{IPA|bʲ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | {{IPA|t̪ˠ}}
|| style="border-left-width: 0;" | {{IPA|d̪ˠ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" |
{{IPA|ṯʲ}} || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
{{IPA|ḏʲ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" |
{{IPA|c}} || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
{{IPA|ɟ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | {{IPA|k}}
|| style="border-left-width: 0;" | {{IPA|ɡ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
|-
!| [[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]/
[[Approximant consonant|Approximant]]
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | {{IPA|fˠ}}
{{IPA|fʲ}} || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
{{IPA|vʲ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" | {{IPA|w}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | {{IPA|sˠ}}
|| style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" |
{{IPA|ʃ}} || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" |
{{IPA|ç}} || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
{{IPA|j}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | {{IPA|x}}
|| style="border-left-width: 0;" | {{IPA|ɣ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | {{IPA|h}} || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
|-
!| [[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" | {{IPA|mˠ}}
{{IPA|mʲ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" | {{IPA|n̪ˠ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" | {{IPA|n}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
{{IPA|ṉʲ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
{{IPA|ɲ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" | {{IPA|ŋ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
|-
!| [[Flap consonant|Tap]]
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" | {{IPA|ɾˠ}}
{{IPA|ɾʲ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
|-
!| [[Lateral consonant|Lateral
approximant]]
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" | {{IPA|l̪ˠ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" | {{IPA|l}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
{{IPA|ḻʲ}}
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
| style="border-right-width: 0;" | || style="border-left-width: 0;" |
|}
The [[vowel]]s of Ulster Irish are as shown on the following chart. These positions are only approximate, as vowels are strongly influenced by the palatalization and velarization of surrounding consonants.
[[Image:Ulster Irish vowel chart.png|center|300px]]
The [[vowel length|long vowels]] have short [[allophone]]s in [[stress (linguistics)|unstressed]] syllables and before {{IPA|/h/}}.
In addition, Ulster has the [[diphthong]]s {{IPA|/ia, ua, au/}}.
Some characteristics of the [[phonology]] of Ulster Irish that distinguish it from the other dialects are:
* The only broad [[labial consonant|labial]] [[continuant]] is the [[approximant consonant|approximant]] {{IPA|[w]}}. In other dialects, [[fricative consonant|fricative]] {{IPA|[vˠ]}} is found instead of or in addition to {{IPA|[w]}}. No dialect makes a [[phoneme|phonemic]] contrast between the approximant and the fricative, however.
*Often in Ulster dialects, {{IPA|[tʲ]}} can become {{IPA|[tʃ]}} as in "teach" (Pronounced as the English "ch"). Likewise {{IPA|[dʲ]}} can become {{IPA|[dʒ]}} as in "dearg" (Pronounced as the English "j"). This is particularly evident in younger speakers of this dialect. Such pronunciation of the slender "t" and "d" is also the case in [[Scottish Gaelic]] and [[Manx]].
* There is a three-way distinction among coronal nasals and laterals: {{IPA|/n̪ˠ ~ n ~ ṉʲ/}}, {{IPA|/l̪ˠ ~ l ~ ḻʲ/}}, and there is no lengthening or diphthongization of short vowels before these sounds and {{IPA|/m/}}. Thus, while {{lang|ga|''ceann''}} "head" is {{IPA|/cɑːn/}} in Connacht and {{IPA|/caun/}} in Munster, in Ulster it is {{IPA|/can̪ˠ/}} corresponds to the {{IPA|/oː/}} of other dialects. The Ulster {{IPA|/oː/}} corresponds to the {{IPA|/au/}} of other dialects.
* Long vowels are shortened when in unstressed syllables. is realized as {{IPA|[r]}} (or is replaced by {{IPA|/r/}}) after consonants other than {{IPA|[s]}}. This happens in Connacht as well.
* Orthographic {{lang|ga|''-adh''}} in unstressed syllables is always {{IPA|[u]}} (this includes verb forms).
* Unstressed orthographic {{lang|ga|''-ach''}} is pronounced {{IPA|[ax]}}, {{IPA|[ah]}}, or {{IPA|[a]}}.
===Initial mutations===
Ulster Irish has the same two [[Irish initial mutations|initial mutations]], lenition and eclipsis, as the other two dialects and the standard language, and mostly uses them the same way. There is, however, one exception: in Ulster, a [[dative case|dative]] singular [[noun]] after the [[definite article]] is lenited (e.g. {{lang|ga|''ar an chrann''}} "on the tree") (as is the case in Scottish and Manx), whereas in Connacht and Munster, it is eclipsed ({{lang|ga|''ar an gcrann''}}), except in the case of ''den'', ''don'' and ''insan'', where lenition occurs in literary language. Both possibilities are allowed for in the standard language.
===Verbs===
[[Irish verbs]] are characterized by having a mixture of ''analytic'' forms (where information about [[grammatical person|person]] is provided by a [[pronoun]]) and ''synthetic'' forms (where information about number is provided in an ending on the verb) in their conjugation. In Ulster and North Connacht the analytic forms are used in a variety of forms where the standard language has synthetic forms, e.g. {{lang|ga|''molann muid''}} "we praise" (standard ''molaimid'', ''muid'' being a back formation from the verbal ending {{lang|ga|''-mid''}} and not found in the Munster dialect, which retains {{lang|ga|''sinn''}} as the first person plural pronoun as does Scots Gaelic and Manx Gaelic) or {{lang|ga|''mholfadh siad''}} "they would praise" (standard {{lang|ga|''mholfaidís''}}). The synthetic forms, including those no longer emphasised in the standard language, may be used in short answers to questions.
The 2nd conjugation future stem suffix in Ulster is {{lang|ga|''-óch-''}} (pronounced {{IPA|[ah]}}) rather than {{lang|ga|''-ó-''}}, e.g. {{lang|ga|''beannóchaidh mé''}} {{IPA|[bʲan̪ˠahə mʲə]}} "I will bless" (standard {{lang|ga|''beannóidh mé''}} {{IPA|[bʲanoːj mʲeː]}}).
Some irregular verbs have different forms in Ulster from those in the standard language. For example: ([[Dependent and independent verb forms|independent form]] only) "I do, make" (standard {{lang|ga|''déanaim''}}) and {{lang|ga|''rinn mé''}} "I did, made" (standard ''rinne mé'') {{IPA|[t̠ʲʃiːm]}} (independent form only) "I see" (standard {{lang|ga|''feicim''}}, Southern ''chím'', ''cím'' (independent form only)) "I give" (standard {{lang|ga|''tugaim''}}, southern ''bheirim'' (independent only)), {{lang|ga|''ní thabhram''}} or {{lang|ga|''ní thugaim''}} "I do not give" (standard only {{lang|ga|''ní thugaim''}}), and {{lang|ga|''bhéarfaidh mé''/''bheirfidh mé''}} "I will give" (standard {{lang|ga|''tabharfaidh mé''}}, southern ''bhéarfad''(independent form only))
===Particles===
In Ulster the [[Negation (linguistics)|negative]] [[particle (grammar)|particle]] {{lang|ga|''cha''}} (before a vowel {{lang|ga|''chan''}}, in past tenses {{lang|ga|''char''}} - Scottish/Manx Gaelic ''chan'', ''chan do'') is sometimes used where other dialects use {{lang|ga|''ní''}} and {{lang|ga|''níor''}}. The form is more common in the north of the Donegal Gaeltacht. {{lang|ga|''Cha''}} cannot be followed by the future tense: where it has a future meaning, it is followed by the habitual present.{{Fact|date=October 2007}} It triggers a "mixed mutation": {{IPA|/t/}} and {{IPA|/d/}} are eclipsed, while other consonants are lenited. In some dialects however (Gweedore), ''cha'' eclipses all consonants, except b- in the forms of the verb 'to be', and sometimes f- :
{|class="wikitable"
! Ulster || Standard || English
|-
| {{lang|ga|Cha dtuigim}} || {{lang|ga|Ní thuigim}} || "I don't understand"
|-
| {{lang|ga|Chan fhuil sé}} || {{lang|ga|Níl sé}} (contracted from {{lang|ga|''ní fhuil sé''}})|| "He isn't"
|-
| {{lang|ga|Cha bhíonn sé}} || {{lang|ga|Ní bheidh sé}} || "He will not be"
|-
| {{lang|ga|Cha phógann muid}}/{{lang|ga|Cha bpógann muid}} || {{lang|ga|Ní phógaimid}} || "We do not kiss"
|-
| {{lang|ga|Chan ólfadh siad é}} || {{lang|ga|Ní ólfaidís é}} || "They wouldn't drink it"
|-
| {{lang|ga|Char thuig mé thú}} || {{lang|ga|Níor thuig mé thú}} || "I didn't understand you"
|}
==Syntax==
The Ulster dialect uses the present tense of the [[subjunctive mood]] in certain cases where other dialects prefer to use the future indicative:
:{{lang|ga|''Suigh síos anseo aige mo thaobh, a Shéimí, go dtugaidh (dtabhairidh, dtabhraidh) mé comhairle duit agus go n-insidh mé mo scéal duit.''}}
:Sit down here by my side, Séimí, till I give you some advice and tell you my story.
The verbal noun can be used in subordinate clauses with a subject different from that of the main clause:
:{{lang|ga|''Ba mhaith liom thú a ghabháil ann.''}}
:I would like you to go there.
==External links==
{{Wikisource|A Dialect of Donegal}}
*[http://www.smo.uhi.ac.uk/~oduibhin/ Gaelic resources focusing on Ulster Irish] {{ga icon}}
*[http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/ulsteririshstudy/ A yahoogroup for learners of Ulster Irish]
{{Irish linguistics}}