Page:Simple Lessons in Irish, Part 1 - O'Growney.pdf/28

 short before, , or before , the vowel is lengthened in sound.

§ 76. This lengthening of vowels is noticeable from Waterford (where the lengthened vowels have a very peculiar sound) up to Galway, where the lengthening is much less marked, Curiously enough, the same lengthening is to be noticed at the opposite extreme of the Gaelic-speaking district, the north and north-west of Scotland.

77. In all districts there is a perceptible lengthening of vowel sound before,, at the end of monosyllables. Thus, the vowel sounds in, , are everywhere longer than those in  (like mil in milt),  (like shin in shinty),  (like cur in curt). Compare the vowel sounds in the English words—weld, welt; curd, curt; grand, grant.

78. What the effect of the Munster lengthening of vowel sounds is, can be seen from the following table. We do not pretend to give all the shades of pronunciation of various parts of Munster.