Page:The Celtic Review volume 4.djvu/193

180 squatting on the top, is called Carn nam fir fréig (bhréig), Cairn of the False Men. MacBride, in Kintyre Mac Ille Bhrìde, is Mac Bhrìdeinn and occasionally Mac Frìdeinn at Shiskine in Arran. Mac Figeinn, which is the Gaelic in Kintyre for the surname Littleson, is obviously for Mac Bhigein, from beag, little.

Medially, f occurs in Arran in cabhag, siabhrach, ‘sìofrag,’ siobhag; with MacAlpine in siobhag, tabhann, etc.; in West Ross in creubhag, daobhaidh, inbhe; in Skye in sìobhalta. Cabhag, which is ‘cavag’ in Kintyre, North Argyll, Perth, and Skye, and ‘cavaig’ in Sutherland, is ‘cafaig’ in West Ross, and ‘cavfag' with MacAlpine. Siobhag, which is ‘siofag’ in Kintyre and North Argyll also, is siofhag (‘sihag’) in West Ross.

Finally, f is heard in Arran in craobh, dèabh, and taobh, and in West Ross in faobh.

MacAlpine gives vf for bh in several instances, as abh, bark, abhag, terrier, cabhlaiche, an admiral, etc.

u

For bh before a and e sounds u is heard, especially in North Argyll and West Ross, e.g. abhag, ‘a-ug,’ arbhar, ‘ara-ur’ (first r long), faobhar ‘fao-ur’ in Argyll and ‘fû-ur’ in Ross, labhair, slabhag. So diubhair, ‘di-u’r,’ leabhair, rabhairt, ‘re-u’rt,’ sàbhadh (sawing), sàbhaidh (will saw), ‘sa-ui,’ sabhal, siubhal, tabhann, ubhall, in North Argyll; and cràbhach, dabhach, dubhach, fàbhar, tàbhachd, a few infinities like leubhadh, ‘lia-ug,’ craobh, ‘crûu,’ dèabh, ‘dèu’ (taobh is ‘tù’), and dearbh, ‘derahu’ (long r), and one or two others in West Ross. It is heard sometimes in Sutherland, e.g. in treabhair, treabh, sgrìobh, etc., and in Perth, e.g. in abhag, rabhadh, slabhag, tabhann, craobh, leubh, sgrìobh, taobh, treabh. The place-name Fìobh, Fife, which in Rannoch is Fìou and Fìv, is in East Perth Fìu. Fìu and Fìou indeed sound like two syllables Fì-u and Fì-ou, as do also leubh, ‘lè-u,’ sgriobh, ‘sgrì-u,’ and some other words with a long vowel in Perth.