| Manx | |
| Also Known As: | Manx Gaelic |
| Nativename: | Manx: Gaelg Manx: Gailck |
| States: | Isle of Man |
| Ethnicity: | Manx |
| Extinct: | 27 December 1974, with the death of Ned Maddrell |
| Ref: | [1] |
| Familycolor: | Indo-European |
| Fam2: | Celtic |
| Fam3: | Insular Celtic |
| Fam4: | Goidelic |
| Ancestor: | Primitive Irish |
| Ancestor2: | Old Irish |
| Ancestor3: | Middle Irish |
| Dia1: | Northern |
| Dia2: | Midlands (unattested) |
| Dia3: | Southern |
| Nation: | Isle of Man |
| Agency: | Manx: [[Coonceil ny Gaelgey]] (Manx Language Advisory Council) |
| Iso1: | gv |
| Iso2: | glv |
| Iso3: | glv |
| Iso6: | glvx (historical) rvmx (revived) |
| Lingua: | 50-AAA-aj |
| Map: | Idioma manés.png |
| Notice: | IPA |
| Revived-Cat: | nocat |
| Glotto: | manx1243 |
| Glottorefname: | Manx |
| Map2: | Lang_Status_20-CR.svg |
| Language: | Ghlare Vanninagh (Manninish) Ghlare Chowree |
| Country: | Isle of Man (Mannin, Ellan Vannin) |
Manx (Manx: label=[[endonym]]|Gaelg or Manx: Gailck, in Manx pronounced as /ɡilɡ, geːlɡ/ or in Manx pronounced as /gilk/),[2] also known as Manx Gaelic, is a Gaelic language of the insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, itself a branch of the Indo-European language family. Manx is the historical language of the Manx people.
Although few children native to the Isle of Man speak Manx as a first language, there has been a steady increase in the number of speakers since the death of Ned Maddrell in 1974. He was considered to be the last speaker to grow up in a Manx-speaking community environment. Despite this, the language has never fallen completely out of use, with a minority having some knowledge of it as a heritage language, and it is still an important part of the island's culture and cultural heritage.
Manx is often cited as a good example of language revitalization efforts; in 2015, around 1,800 people had varying levels of second-language conversational ability. Since the late 20th century, Manx has become more visible on the island, with increased signage, radio broadcasts and a Manx-medium primary school. The revival of Manx has been made easier because the language was well recorded, e.g. the Bible and the Book of Common Prayer had been translated into Manx, and audio recordings had been made of native speakers.
The endonym of the language is /, which shares the same etymology as the word "Gaelic", as do the endonyms of its sister languages: Irish (Irish: Gaeilge; Irish: Gaoluinn, Irish: Gaedhlag and Irish: Gaeilic) and Scottish Gaelic (Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: Gàidhlig). Manx frequently uses the forms Irish: y Ghaelg/Manx: y Ghailck (with definite article), as do Irish (Irish: an Ghaeilge) and Scottish Gaelic (Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: a' Ghàidhlig).
To distinguish it from the two other forms of Gaelic, the phrases Manx: Gaelg/Gailck Vannin "Gaelic of Mann" and Manx: Gaelg/Gailck Vanninnagh "Manx Gaelic" are also used. In addition, the nickname Manx: Çhengey ny Mayrey "the mother tongue", lit. "the mother's tongue" is occasionally used.
The language is usually referred to in English as "Manx". The term "Manx Gaelic" is often used, for example when discussing the relationship between the three Goidelic languages (Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Manx) or to avoid confusion with Manx English, the form of English spoken on the island. A feature of Manx English deriving from Gaelic is the use of the definite article, e.g. "the Manx", "the Gaelic", in ways not generally seen in standard English.[3]
The word "Manx", often spelled historically as "Manks" (particularly by natives of the island), means "Mannish" and originates from Old Norse Norse, Old: *manskr. The Isle of Man is named after the Irish god Manannán mac Lir, thus Manx: Ellan Vannin ("Mannanán's Island", "Mannanán's Island").[4]
Manx is a Goidelic language, closely related to Irish and Scottish Gaelic. On the whole it is partially mutually intelligible with these, and native speakers of one find it easy to gain passive, and even spoken, competency in the other two.
It has been suggested that a little-documented Brythonic language (i.e. related to modern Welsh, Cornish and Breton) may have been spoken on the Isle of Man before the arrival of Christian missionaries from Ireland in the early Middle Ages. However, there is little surviving evidence about the language spoken on the island at that time.
The basis of the modern Manx language is Primitive Irish (like modern Irish and Scottish Gaelic). The island either lends its name to or takes its name from Manannán, the Brythonic and Gaelic sea god who is said in myth to have once ruled the island. Primitive Irish is first attested in Ogham inscriptions from the 4th century AD. These writings have been found throughout Ireland and the west coast of Great Britain. Primitive Irish transitioned into Old Irish through the 5th century. Old Irish, dating from the 6th century, used the Latin script and is attested primarily in marginalia to Latin manuscripts, but there are no extant examples from the Isle of Man.
Latin was used for ecclesiastical records from the establishment of Christianity in the Isle of Man in the 5th century AD. Many lexical items concerning religion, writing and record keeping entered Manx at this time.
The Isle of Man was conquered by Norse Vikings in the 9th century. Although there is some evidence in the form of runic inscriptions that Norse was used by some of these settlers, the Vikings who settled around the Irish Sea and West Coast of Scotland soon became Gaelic speaking Norse–Gaels. During the 9th century AD, the Gaelic of the inhabitants of the Isle of Man, like those of Scotland and the North of Ireland, may have been significantly influenced by Norse speakers. While Norse had very little impact on the Manx language overall,[5] a small number of modern place names on the Isle of Man are Norse in origin, e.g. Laxey (Laksaa) and Ramsey (Rhumsaa). Other Norse legacies in Manx include loanwords and personal names.
By the 10th century, it is supposed that Middle Irish had emerged and was spoken throughout Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man.
The island came under Scottish rule in 1266, and alternated between Scottish and English rule until finally becoming the feudal possession of the Stanley family in 1405. It is likely that until that point, except for scholarly knowledge of Latin and courtly use of Anglo-Norman, Manx was the only language spoken on the island. Since the establishment of the Stanleys on the Isle of Man, first Anglo-Norman and later the English language have been the chief external factors in the development of Manx, until the 20th century, when Manx speakers became able to access Irish and Scottish Gaelic media.
Manx had diverged considerably from the Gaelic languages of Scotland and Ireland between 1400 and 1900. The 17th century Plantation of Ulster, the decline of Irish in Leinster and the extinction of Galloway Gaelic led to the geographic isolation of Manx from other dialects of Gaelic. The development of a separate orthography also led Manx to diverge from Irish and Scottish Gaelic.
In the 17th century, some university students left the Isle of Man to attend school in England. At the same time, teaching in English was required in schools founded by governor Isaac Barrow. Barrow also promoted the use of English in churches; he considered that it was a superior language for reading the Bible; however, because the majority of ministers were monolingual Manx speakers, his views had little practical impact.[5]
Thomas Wilson began his tenure as Bishop of Mann in 1698 and was succeeded by Mark Hildesley. Both men held positive views of Manx; Wilson was the first person to publish a book in Manx, a translation of The Principles and Duties of Christianity, and Hildesley successfully promoted the use of Manx as the language of instruction in schools. The New Testament was first published in Manx in 1767. In the late 18th century, nearly every school was teaching in English. This decline continued into the 19th century, as English gradually became the primary language spoken on the Isle of Man.[5]
In 1848, J.G. Cumming wrote, "there are ... few persons (perhaps none of the young) who speak no English." Henry Jenner estimated in 1874 that about 30% of the population habitually spoke Manx (12,340 out of a population of 41,084). According to official census figures, 9.1% of the population claimed to speak Manx in 1901; in 1921 the percentage was only 1.1%.[6] Since the language was used by so few people, it had low linguistic "prestige", and parents tended to not teach Manx to their children, thinking it would be useless to them compared with English.[5]
According to Brian Stowell, "In the 1860s there were thousands of Manx people who couldn't speak English, but barely a century later it was considered to be so backwards to speak the language that there were stories of Manx speakers getting stones thrown at them in the towns."[7]
Following the decline in the use of Manx during the 19th century, Manx: [[Manx Gaelic Society|Yn Çheshaght Ghailckagh]] (The Manx Language Society) was founded in 1899. By the middle of the 20th century, only a few elderly native speakers remained (the last of them, Ned Maddrell, died on 27 December 1974), but by then a scholarly revival had begun and a few people had started teaching it in schools. The Manx Language Unit was formed in 1992, consisting of three members and headed by Manx Language Officer Brian Stowell, a language activist and fluent speaker, "which was put in charge of all aspects of Manx language teaching and accreditation in schools."[8] This led to an increased interest in studying the Manx language and encouraged a renewed sense of ethnic identity. The revival of Manx was aided by the recording work done in the 20th century by researchers. Most notably, the Irish Folklore Commission was sent in with recording equipment in 1948 by Éamon de Valera. Also important in preserving the Manx language was work conducted by the late Brian Stowell, who is considered personally responsible for the current revival of the Manx language. The Manx Language Strategy was released in 2017, outlining a five-year plan for the language's continued revitalisation.[9] [10] Culture Vannin employs a Manx Language Development Officer to encourage and facilitate the use of the language.
In 2009, UNESCO's Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger declared Manx an extinct language, despite the presence of hundreds of speakers on the Isle of Man.[11] Since then, UNESCO's classification of the language has changed to "critically endangered".[12]
In the 2011 census, 1,823 out of 80,398 Isle of Man residents, or 2.27% of the population, claimed to have knowledge of Manx,[13] an increase of 134 people from the 2001 census.[14] These individuals were spread roughly uniformly over the island: in Douglas 566 people professed an ability to speak, read or write Manx; 179 in Peel, 146 in Onchan, and 149 in Ramsey.[13]
Traditional Manx given names have experienced a marked resurgence on the island, especially Manx: Moirrey and Manx: Voirrey (Mary), Manx: Illiam (William), Manx: Orry (from the Manx king Godred Crovan of Norse origin), Manx: Breeshey/Breesha (Bridget), Manx: Aalish/Ealish (Alice), Manx: Juan (Jack), Manx: Ean (John), Manx: Joney (Joan), Manx: Fenella (Fionnuala), Manx: Pherick (Patrick) and Manx: Freya (from the Norse goddess) remain popular.[15]
| Year | Manx speakers | Isle of Man population | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Of Manx population | ||||
| 1874 | 16,200 | 30% | 54,000 (1871) | ||
| 1901 | 4,419 | 8.07% | 54,752 | [16] | |
| 1911 | 2,382 | 4.58% | 52,016 | ||
| 1921 | 915 | 1.52% | 60,284 | ||
| 1931 | 529 | 1.07% | 49,308 | ||
| 1951 | 355 | 0.64% | 50,253 | ||
| 1961 | 165 | 0.34% | 48,133 | ||
| 1971 | 284 | 0.52% | 54,481 | ||
| 1974 | Last native speaker dies | ||||
| 1991 | 643 | 0.90% | 71,267 | [17] | |
| 2001 | 1,500 | 1.95% | 78,266 | [18] | |
| 2011 | 1,650 | 1.97% | 84,497 | [19] | |
| 2015 | 1,800 | 2% | 88,000 | ||
| 2021 | 2,223 | 2.64% | 84,069 | [20] | |
Manx is not officially recognised by any national or regional government, although its contribution to Manx culture and tradition is acknowledged by some governmental and non-governmental bodies.
The Standing Orders of the House of Keys provide that: "The proceedings of the House shall be in English; but if a Member at any point pronounces a customary term or sentence in Manx Gaelic or any other language, the Speaker may call upon the Member for a translation."[21] An example was at the sitting on 12 February 2019, when an MHK used the expression Manx: boghtnid,[22] stated to mean "nonsense".[23] [24]
Manx is used in the annual Tynwald ceremony and Manx words are used in official Tynwald publications.[25]
For the purpose of strengthening its contribution to local culture and community, Manx is recognised under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages and in the framework of the British-Irish Council.
The Isle of Man comprised the one site for the Manx language in the Atlas Linguarum Europae, a project that compared dialects and languages across all countries in Europe.[26]
Manx is taught as a second language at all of the island's primary and secondary schools. The lessons are optional and instruction is provided by the Department of Education's Manx Language Team which teach up to A Level standard.[27]
The Bunscoill Ghaelgagh, a primary school at St John's, has 67 children, as of September 2016, who receive nearly all of their education through the medium of the language. Children who have attended the school have the opportunity to receive some of their secondary education through the language at Queen Elizabeth II High School in Peel.
The playgroup organisation Mooinjer Veggey, which operates the Manx: Bunscoill Ghaelgagh, runs a series of preschool groups that introduce the language.
Bilingual road, street, village and town boundary signs are common throughout the Isle of Man. All other road signs are in English only.
Business signage in Manx is gradually being introduced but is not mandated by law; however, the 1985 Tynwald Report on the use of Manx states that signage should be bilingual except where a Manx phrase is the norm.
pronounced as /notice/Manx is one of the three daughter languages of Old Irish (via Middle Irish), the other two being Irish and Scottish Gaelic. It shares a number of developments in phonology, vocabulary and grammar with its sisters (in some cases only with certain dialects) and shows a number of unique changes. There are two attested historical dialects of Manx, Northern Manx and Southern Manx.[28] A third dialect may have existed in-between, around Douglas.
See main article: Comparison of Irish, Manx, and Scottish Gaelic. Manx and Scottish Gaelic share the partial loss of phonemic palatalisation of labial consonants; while in Irish velarised consonants pronounced as //pˠ bˠ fˠ w mˠ// contrast phonemically with palatalised pronounced as //pʲ bʲ fʲ vʲ mʲ//.[29] A consequence of this phonemic merger is that Middle Irish unstressed word-final pronounced as /[əβʲ]/ (- in Irish and Gaelic) has merged with pronounced as /[əβ]/ (- in Irish and Gaelic), in Manx; both have become pronounced as /[u]/ (-), e.g. Manx: shassoo "to stand" (Irish Irish: seasamh), Manx: credjue "religion" (Irish Irish: creideamh), Manx: nealloo "fainting" (Early Modern Irish Irish: i néalaibh, lit. in clouds), and Manx: erriu "on you (pl.)" (Irish Irish: oraibh).[30]
Medial and final * have generally become pronounced as //u// and pronounced as //w// in Manx, thus Manx: shiu 'you pl.' (Irish and Scottish Gaelic Sango: sibh; Lewis Gaelic), Manx: sharroo "bitter" (Scottish Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: searbh pronounced as //ˈʃɛɾˠɛv//, Irish Irish: searbh (Northern/Western) pronounced as //ʃaɾˠu//, (Southern) pronounced as //ʃaɾˠəβˠ//), Manx: awin "river" (Scottish Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: abhainn pronounced as //aviɲ//, Irish Irish: abhainn (Northern) pronounced as //oːn̠ʲ//) (Western) pronounced as //aun̠ʲ// (Southern) pronounced as //aunʲ//, Manx: laaue "hand" (Scottish Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: làmh pronounced as //l̪ˠaːvˠ//, Irish Manx: lámh (Northern) pronounced as //l̪ˠæːw//, (Western) pronounced as //l̪ˠɑːw//, (Southern) pronounced as //l̪ˠɑːβˠ//), Manx: sourey "summer" (Scottish Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: samhradh pronounced as //saurəɣ//, Irish Irish: samhradh (Northern) pronounced as //sˠauɾˠu//, (Western/Southern) pronounced as //sˠauɾˠə//). Rare retentions of the older pronunciation of include Manx: Divlyn, Manx: Divlin "Dublin", Middle Irish Duibhlind pronounced as //d̪uβʲlʲin̠ʲː//.
Moreover, similarly to Munster Irish, historical (pronounced as /[βʲ]/) and (nasalised pronounced as /[βʲ]/) tend to be lost word medially or finally in Manx, either with compensatory lengthening or vocalisation as pronounced as /[u]/ resulting in diphthongisation with the preceding vowel, e.g. Manx: geurey "winter" pronounced as /[ˈɡʲeurə, -uːrə]/ (Irish Irish: geimhreadh (Southern) pronounced as /[ˈɟiːɾʲə]/) and Manx: sleityn "mountains" pronounced as /[ˈsleːdʒən]/ (Irish Irish: sléibhte (Southern) pronounced as /[ˈʃlʲeːtʲə]/).[31] Another similarity to Munster Irish is the development of the Old Irish diphthongs pronounced as /[ai oi]/ before velarised consonants (in Irish and Scottish Gaelic) to pronounced as /[eː]/, as in Manx: seyr "carpenter" pronounced as /[seːr]/ and Manx: keyl "narrow" pronounced as /[keːl]/ (Irish and Scottish Irish: saor and Irish: caol).[32]
Like Connacht and Ulster Irish (cf. Irish phonology) and most dialects of Scottish Gaelic, Manx has changed the historical consonant clusters pronounced as //kn ɡn mn tn// to pronounced as //kr ɡr mr tr//, e.g. Middle Irish Irish, Middle (900-1200);: cnáid "mockery" and Irish, Middle (900-1200);: mná "women" have become Manx: craid and Manx: mraane respectively in Manx.[33] The affrication of slender "" sounds is also common to Manx, Northern Irish, and Scottish Gaelic.[34]
Unstressed Middle Irish word-final syllable pronounced as /[iʝ]/ (-) has developed to pronounced as /[iː]/ (-) in Manx, as in Manx: kionnee "buy" (cf. Irish Irish: ceannaigh) and Manx: cullee "apparatus" (cf. Gaelic Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: culaidh),[35] like Northern/Western Irish and Southern dialects Scottish Gaelic (e.g. Arran, Kintyre).
Another property Manx shares with Ulster Irish and some dialects of Scottish Gaelic is that pronounced as //a// rather than pronounced as //ə// appears in unstressed syllables before pronounced as //x// (in Manx), e.g. Manx: jeeragh "straight" pronounced as /[ˈdʒiːrax]/ (Irish Irish: díreach), Manx: cooinaghtyn "to remember" pronounced as /[ˈkuːnʲaxt̪ən]/ (Scottish Gaelic Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: cuimhneachd).[36]
Like Southern and Western Irish and Northern Scottish Gaelic, but unlike the geographically closer varieties of Ulster Irish and Arran and Kintyre Gaelic, Manx shows vowel lengthening or diphthongisation before the Old Irish fortis and lenis sonorants, e.g. Manx: cloan "children" pronounced as /[klɔːn]/, Manx: dhone "brown" pronounced as /[d̪oːn]/ and Manx: eeym "butter" pronounced as /[iːᵇm]/ correspond to Irish/Scottish Gaelic Irish: clann, Irish: donn, and Irish: im respectively, which have long vowels or diphthongs in Western and Southern Irish and in the Scottish Gaelic dialects of the Outer Hebrides and Skye, thus Western Irish pronounced as /[klˠɑːn̪ˠ]/, Southern Irish/Northern Scottish pronounced as /[kl̪ˠaun̪ˠ]/, pronounced as /[d̪ˠaun̪ˠ]/[d̪ˠoun̪ˠ]/, pronounced as /[iːm]/[ɤim]/), but short vowels and 'long' consonants in Ulster Irish, Arran, and Kintyre, pronounced as /[klˠan̪ːˠ]/, pronounced as /[d̪ˠon̪ːˠ]/ and pronounced as /[imʲː]/.[37]
Another similarity with Southern Irish is the treatment of Middle Irish word-final unstressed pronounced as /[əð]/ (- in Irish and Scottish Gaelic). In nouns (including verbal nouns), this became pronounced as /[ə]/ in Manx, as it did in Southern Irish, e.g. Manx: caggey "war" pronounced as /[ˈkaːɣə]/, Manx: moylley "to praise" pronounced as /[ˈmɔlə]/ (cf. Irish Irish: cogadh and Irish: moladh (Southern Irish) pronounced as /[ˈkɔɡə]/ and pronounced as /[ˈmˠɔl̪ˠə]/).[38] In finite verb forms before full nouns (as opposed to pronouns) pronounced as /[əð]/ became pronounced as /[ax]/ in Manx, as in Southern Irish, e.g. Manx: voyllagh pronounced as /[ˈvɔlax]/ "would praise" (cf. Irish Irish: mholfadh (Southern Irish) pronounced as /[ˈβˠɔl̪ˠhəx]/).[39]
Linguistic analysis of the last few dozen native speakers reveals a number of dialectal differences between the North and the South of the island. Northern Manx was spoken from Maughold in the northeast to Peel on the west coast. Southern Manx was spoken in the sheading of Rushen. It is possible that written Manx represents a 'midlands' dialect of Douglas and surrounding areas.
In Southern Manx, older, and in some cases, became pronounced as /[æː]/. In Northern Manx the same happened, but sometimes remained pronounced as /[aː]/ as well, e.g. Manx: laa "day" (cf. Irish Irish: lá) was pronounced as /[læː]/ in the South but pronounced as /[læː]/ or pronounced as /[laː]/ in the North. Old is always pronounced as /[æː]/ in both dialects, e.g. Manx: aeg "young" (cf. Irish Irish: óg) is pronounced as /[æːɡ]/ in both dialects.[40] and lengthened before became pronounced as //œː//, as in paayrt '"part" pronounced as //pœːrt//, ard "high" pronounced as //œːrd//, jiarg "red" pronounced as //dʒœːrɡ//, argid "money, silver" pronounced as //œːrɡid// and aarey "gold gen." pronounced as //œːrə//.
In Northern Manx, older before in the same syllable is diphthongised, while in Southern Manx it is lengthened but remains a monophthong, e.g. Manx: kione "head" (cf. Irish Irish: ceann) is pronounced as /[kʲaun]/ in the North but pronounced as /[kʲoːn]/ in the South.[41]
Words with, and in some cases, in Irish and Scottish are spelled with in Manx. In Northern Manx, this sound was pronounced as /[iː]/, while in Southern Manx it was pronounced as /[ɯː]/, pronounced as /[uː]/, or pronounced as /[yː]/, e.g. Manx: geay "wind" (cf. Irish Irish: gaoth) is pronounced as /[ɡiː]/ in the north and pronounced as /[ɡɯː]/ in the South, while Manx: geayl "coal" (cf. Irish Irish: gual) is pronounced as /[ɡiːl]/ in the North and pronounced as /[ɡyːl]/, pronounced as /[ɡɯːl]/, or pronounced as /[ɡuːl]/ in the South.[42]
In both the North and the South, there is a tendency to insert a short pronounced as /[d]/ before a word-final pronounced as /[n]/ in monosyllabic words, as in pronounced as /[sleᵈn]/ for Manx: slane "whole" and pronounced as /[beᵈn]/ for Manx: ben "woman". This is known as pre-occlusion. In Southern Manx, however, there is also pre-occlusion of pronounced as /[d]/ before pronounced as /[l]/ and of pronounced as /[ɡ]/ before pronounced as /[ŋ]/, as in pronounced as /[ʃuːᵈl]/ for Manx: shooyl "walking" and pronounced as /[lɔᶢŋ]/ for Manx: lhong "ship". These forms are generally pronounced without pre-occlusion in the North. Pre-occlusion of pronounced as /[b]/ before pronounced as /[m]/, on the other hand, is more common in the North, as in Manx: trome "heavy", which is pronounced as /[t̪roᵇm]/ in the North but pronounced as /[t̪roː(ᵇ)m]/ in the South.[43] This feature is also found in Cornish.
Southern Manx tended to lose word-initial pronounced as /[ɡ]/ before pronounced as /[lʲ]/, which was usually preserved in the North, e.g. Manx: glion "glen" and Manx: glioon "knee" are and pronounced as /[lʲɔᵈn]/ and pronounced as /[lʲuːᵈn]/ in the South but pronounced as /[ɡlʲɔᵈn]/ and pronounced as /[ɡlʲuːn]/ in the North.[44]
In modern times, the small size of the island and the improvement in communications precludes any regional dialect variations.
Stress generally falls on the first syllable of a word in Manx, but in many cases, stress is attracted to a long vowel in the second syllable.[45] Examples include:
The consonant phoneme inventory of Manx:[46]
| Labial | Dental | Alveolar | Post- alveolar | Palatal | Palato- velar | Velar | Glottal | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plosive | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | |||||||
| Fricative | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | ||||||||
| Nasal | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | ||||||||||||
| Trill | pronounced as /ink/ | ||||||||||||||||
| Lateral | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | |||||||||||||||
| Semivowel | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | |||||||||||||||
The voiceless plosives are aspirated. The dental, postalveolar and palato-velar plosives pronounced as //t̪ d̪ tʲ dʲ kʲ// affricate to pronounced as /[t̪͡θ d̪͡ð t͡ʃ d͡ʒ k͡xʲ]/ in many contexts.
Manx has an optional process of lenition of plosives between vowels, where voiced plosives and voiceless fricatives become voiced fricatives and voiceless plosives become either voiced plosives or voiced fricatives. This process introduces the allophones pronounced as /[β ð z ʒ]/. The voiced fricative pronounced as /[ʒ]/ may be further lenited to pronounced as /[j]/, and pronounced as /[ɣ]/ may disappear altogether. Examples include:[47]
Voiceless plosive to voiced plosive:
Voiceless plosive to voiced fricative:
Voiced plosive to voiced fricative:
Voiceless fricative to voiced fricative:
Another optional process is pre-occlusion, the insertion of a very short plosive before a sonorant consonant. In Manx, this applies to stressed monosyllabic words. The inserted consonant is homorganic with the following sonorant, which means it has the same place of articulation. Long vowels are often shortened before pre-occluded sounds. Examples include:[48]
The trill pronounced as //r// is realised as a one- or two-contact flap pronounced as /[ɾ]/ at the beginning of syllable, and as a stronger trill pronounced as /[r]/ when preceded by another consonant in the same syllable. At the end of a syllable, pronounced as //r// can be pronounced either as a strong trill pronounced as /[r]/ or, more frequently, as a weak fricative pronounced as /[ɹ̝]/, which may vocalise to a nonsyllabic pronounced as /[ə̯]/ or disappear altogether.[49] This vocalisation may be due to the influence of Manx English, which is non-rhotic.[50] Examples of the pronunciation of pronounced as //r// include:
The vowel phoneme inventory of Manx:[51]
| Front | Central | Back | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short | Long | Short | Long | Short | Long | ||
| Close | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | |||
| Mid | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | |
| Open | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | pronounced as /ink/ | |
The status of pronounced as /[æ]/ and pronounced as /[æː]/ as separate phonemes is debatable, but is suggested by the allophony of certain words such as Manx: ta "is", Manx: mraane "women", and so on. An alternative analysis is that Manx has the following system, where the vowels pronounced as //a// and pronounced as //aː// have allophones ranging from pronounced as /[ɛ]/[ɛː]/ through pronounced as /[æ]/[æː]/ to pronounced as /[a]/[aː]/. As with Irish and Scottish Gaelic, there is a large amount of vowel allophony, such as that of pronounced as //a/, /aː//. This depends mainly on the 'broad' and 'slender' status of the neighbouring consonants:
| Phoneme | "Slender" | "Broad" | |
|---|---|---|---|
| pronounced as //i/, /iː// | pronounced as /[i], [iː]/ | pronounced as /[ɪ], [ɪː]/ | |
| pronounced as //e/, /eː// | pronounced as /[e]/[eː]/ | pronounced as /[ɛ]/[ɛː]/ | |
| pronounced as //a/, /aː// | pronounced as /[ɛ~æ]/[ɛː~æː]/ | pronounced as /[a]/[aː]/[øː]/ | |
| pronounced as //ə// | pronounced as /[ɨ]/ | pronounced as /[ə]/ | |
| pronounced as //əi// (Middle Gaelic) | pronounced as /[iː]/ | pronounced as /[ɛː], [ɯː], [ɪː]/ | |
| pronounced as //o/, /oː// | pronounced as /[o], [oː]/ | pronounced as /[ɔ], [ɔː]/ | |
| pronounced as //u/, /uː// | pronounced as /[u], [uː]/ | pronounced as /[ø~ʊ], [uː]/ | |
| pronounced as //uə// (Middle Gaelic) | pronounced as /[iː], [yː]/ | pronounced as /[ɪː], [ɯː], [uː]/ |
When stressed, pronounced as //ə// is realised as pronounced as /[ø]/.[52]
Manx has a relatively large number of diphthongs, all of them falling:
| Second element | ||||
| pronounced as //i// | pronounced as //u// | pronounced as //ə// | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First element | Close | pronounced as /ui/ | pronounced as /iə, uə/ | |
| Mid | pronounced as /ei, əi, oi/ | pronounced as /eu, əu/ | ||
| Open | pronounced as /ai/ | pronounced as /au/ |
See main article: Manx grammar.
Like most Insular Celtic languages, Manx is a VSO language.[53] However, most finite verbs are formed periphrastically, using an auxiliary verb in conjunction with the verbal noun. In this case, only the auxiliary verb precedes the subject, while the verbal noun comes after the subject. The auxiliary verb may be a modal verb rather than a form of Manx: bee ("be") or Manx: jannoo ("do"). Particles like the negative Manx: cha ("not") precede the inflected verb. Examples:
When the auxiliary verb is a form of Manx: jannoo ("do"), the direct object precedes the verbal noun and is connected to it with the particle Manx: y:
As in Irish (cf. Irish syntax#The forms meaning "to be"), there are two ways of expressing "to be" in Manx: with the substantive verb Manx: bee, and with the copula. The substantive verb is used when the predicate is an adjective, adverb, or prepositional phrase.[54] Examples:
Where the predicate is a noun, it must be converted to a prepositional phrase headed by the preposition Manx: in ("in") + possessive pronoun (agreeing with the subject) in order for the substantive verb to be grammatical:
Otherwise, the copula is used when the predicate is a noun. The copula itself takes the form Manx: is or Manx: she in the present tense, but it is often omitted in affirmative statements:
In questions and negative sentences, the present tense of the copula is Manx: nee:
Like all modern Celtic languages, Manx shows initial consonant mutations, which are processes by which the initial consonant of a word is altered according to its morphological and/or syntactic environment.[55] Manx has two mutations: lenition and eclipsis, found on nouns and verbs in a variety of environments; adjectives can undergo lenition but not eclipsis. In the late spoken language of the 20th century the system was breaking down, with speakers frequently failing to use mutation in environments where it was called for, and occasionally using it in environments where it was not called for.
| Lenition | Eclipsis | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sp. | IPA | Sp. | IPA | Sp. | IPA |
| p | pronounced as //p// | ph | pronounced as //f// | b | pronounced as //b//[56] |
| t(h) | pronounced as //t̪// | h | pronounced as //h/, /x// | d(h) | pronounced as //d̪// |
| çh | pronounced as //tʲ~tɕ// | h | pronounced as //h/, /xʲ// | j | pronounced as //dʲ// |
| c, k | pronounced as //kʲ// | ch | pronounced as //xʲ// | g | pronounced as //ɡʲ// |
| c, k qu | pronounced as //k// pronounced as //kw// | ch wh | pronounced as //x/, /h// pronounced as //hw// | g gu | pronounced as //ɡ// |
| b bw | pronounced as //b// pronounced as //bw// | b w | pronounced as //v// pronounced as //w// | m mw | pronounced as //m// pronounced as //mw// |
| d(h) | pronounced as //d̪// | gh | pronounced as //ɣ/, /w// | n | pronounced as //n// |
| j | pronounced as //dʲ~dʑ// | gh, y | pronounced as //ɣʲ/, /j// | n | pronounced as //nʲ// |
| g | pronounced as //ɡʲ// | gh, y | pronounced as //ɣʲ/, /j// | ng | pronounced as //ŋ//? |
| m mw | pronounced as //m// pronounced as //mw// | v w | pronounced as //v// pronounced as //w// | colspan="2" align="center" | |
| f fw | pronounced as //f// pronounced as //fw// | ∅ wh | ∅ pronounced as //hw// | v w | pronounced as //v// pronounced as //w// |
| s sl sn | pronounced as //s// pronounced as //sl// pronounced as //snʲ// | h l n | pronounced as //h// pronounced as //l// pronounced as //nʲ// | colspan="2" align="center" | |
| sh | pronounced as //ʃ// | h | pronounced as //h/, /xʲ// | ||
In the corpus of the late spoken language, there is also one example of the eclipsis (nasalisation) of pronounced as //ɡ//: the sentence Manx: Ta mee er '''ng'''eddyn yn eayn ("I have found the lamb"), where is pronounced pronounced as //n//. However, probably this was a mis-transcription; the verbal noun in this case is not Manx: geddyn "get, fetch", but rather Manx: feddyn "find".[57]
Manx nouns display gender, number and sometimes case, for instance, for feminine Manx: cass "foot".
| Singular | Plural | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | Manx: cass | Manx: cassyn | |
| Vocative | Manx: chass | Manx: chassyn | |
| Genitive | Manx: coshey | Manx: cassyn |
In addition to regular forms, personal pronouns also have emphatic versions.
| Regular | Emphatic | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | 1st person | Manx: mee | Manx: mish | |
| 2nd person | Manx: oo | Manx: uss | ||
| 3rd person | masculine | Manx: eh | Manx: eshyn | |
| feminine | Manx: ee | Manx: ish | ||
| Plural | 1st person | Manx: shin | Manx: shinyn | |
| 2nd person | Manx: shiu | Manx: shiuish | ||
| 3rd person | Manx: ad | Manx: adsyn | ||
Manx verbs generally form their finite forms by means of periphrasis: inflected forms of the auxiliary verbs Manx: ve "to be" or Manx: jannoo "to do" are combined with the verbal noun of the main verb. Only the future, conditional, preterite, and imperative can be formed directly by inflecting the main verb, but even in these tenses, the periphrastic formation is more common in Late Spoken Manx.[58]
| Tense | Periphrastic form (literal translation) | Inflected form | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | Manx: ta mee tilgey (I am throwing) | – | I throw | |
| Imperfect | Manx: va mee tilgey (I was throwing) | – | I was throwing | |
| Perfect | Manx: ta mee er jilgey (I am after throwing)[59] | – | I have thrown | |
| Pluperfect | Manx: va mee er jilgey (I was after throwing) | – | I had thrown | |
| Preterite | Manx: ren mee tilgey (I did throwing) | Manx: hilg mee | I threw | |
| Future | Manx: neeym tilgey (I will do throwing) | Manx: tilgym | I will throw | |
| Conditional | Manx: yinnin tilgey (I would do throwing) | Manx: hilgin | I would throw | |
| Imperative | Manx: jean tilgey (Do throwing!) | Manx: tilg | Throw! | |
| Past participle | – | Manx: tilgit | thrown |
The fully inflected forms of the regular verb Manx: tilgey "to throw" are as follows. In addition to the forms below, a past participle may be formed using Manx: -it: Manx: tilgit "thrown".
| Preterite | Manx: hilg | (same as independent) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Future | Manx: tilgym[1], Manx: tilgmayd[2], Manx: tilgee[3] | Manx: dilgym<sup>[[Template:Ref label|[1]]]</sup>, dilgmayd<sup>[[Template:Ref label|[2]]]</sup>, dilgee<sup>[[Template:Ref label|[3]]]</sup> | Manx: tilgys | |
| Conditional | Manx: tilgin[1], Manx: tilgagh[3] | Manx: dilgin[1], Manx: dilgagh[3] | ||
| Imperative | Manx: tilg[4], Manx: tilg-jee[5] | (same as independent) |
2.^ First person plural, making the use of a following subject pronoun redundant
3.^ Used with all other persons, meaning an accompanying subject must be stated, e.g. Manx: tilgee eh "he will throw", Manx: tilgee ad "they will throw"
4.^ Singular subject.
5.^ Plural subject.
There are a few peculiarities when a verb begins with a vowel, i.e. the addition of Manx: d' in the preterite and Manx: n' in the future and conditional dependent. Below is the conjugation of Manx: aase "to grow".
There is a small number of irregular verbs, the most irregular of all being Manx: ve "be".
| Form | Independent | Dependent | Relative | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | Manx: ta | Manx: vel, nel | – | |
| Preterite | Manx: va | Manx: row | – | |
| Future | Manx: bee'm, beemayd, bee | (same as independent) | vees | |
| Conditional | Manx: veign, veagh | Manx: beign, beagh | – | |
| Imperative | Manx: bee | (same as independent) | – |
Like the other Insular Celtic languages, Manx has inflected prepositions, contractions of a preposition with a pronominal direct object, as the following common prepositions show. Note the sometimes identical form of the uninflected preposition and its third person singular masculine inflected form.
| 1st person | 2nd person | 3rd person | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| singular | plural | singular | plural | singular | plural | |||
| masculine | feminine | |||||||
| Manx: ayns "in" | Manx: aynym | Manx: ayn, ayndooin | Manx: aynyd | Manx: ayndiu | Manx: ayn | Manx: aynjee | Manx: ayndoo, ayndaue | |
| Manx: da "to" | Manx: dou | Manx: dooin | Manx: dhyt | Manx: diu | Manx: da | Manx: jee | Manx: daue | |
| Manx: ec "at" | Manx: aym | Manx: ain | Manx: ayd | Manx: orroo | Manx: echey | Manx: eck | Manx: oc | |
| Manx: er "on" | Manx: orrym | Manx: orrin | Manx: ort | Manx: erriu | Manx: er | Manx: urree | Manx: orroo | |
| Manx: lesh "with" | Manx: lhiam | Manx: lhien | Manx: lhiat | Manx: lhiu | Manx: lesh | Manx: lhee | Manx: lhieu | |
| Manx: veih, voish "from" | Manx: voym | Manx: voin | Manx: voyd | Manx: veue | Manx: voish, veih | Manx: voee | Manx: voue | |
Numbers are traditionally vigesimal in Manx, e.g. Manx: feed "twenty", Manx: daeed "forty" ("two twenties"), Manx: tree feed "sixty" ("three twenties").
| English | Manx | Irish cognate | Scottish Gaelic cognate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| one | Manx: un in Manx pronounced as /æːn, oːn, uːn/ Manx: nane in Manx pronounced as /neːn/ | Irish: aon in Irish pronounced as /eːnˠ, iːnˠ, (Northwest Ulster) ɯːnˠ/ | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: aon in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /ɯːn/ | |
| two | Manx: daa in Manx pronounced as /d̪æː/, Manx: ghaa in Manx pronounced as /ɣæː/, Manx: jees in Manx pronounced as /dʒiːs/ | Irish: dó in Irish pronounced as /d̪ˠoː/, Irish: d(h)á in Irish pronounced as /ɣaː/d̪ˠaː/,(people only) Irish: dís in Irish pronounced as /dʲiːʃ/* | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: dà in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /t̪aː/ | |
| three | Manx: tree in Manx pronounced as /t̪riː/ | Irish: trí in Irish pronounced as /tʲrʲiː/ | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: trì in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /t̪ʰɾiː/ | |
| four | Manx: kiare in Manx pronounced as /kʲæːə(r)/ | Irish: ceathair in Irish pronounced as /cahərʲ/, Irish: ceithre in Irish pronounced as /ˈcɛɾʲə/ | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: ceithir in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /ˈkʲʰehɪɾʲ/ | |
| five | Manx: queig in Manx pronounced as /kweɡ/ | Irish: cúig in Irish pronounced as /kuːɟ/ | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: còig in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /kʰoːkʲ/ | |
| six | Manx: shey in Manx pronounced as /ʃeː/ | Irish: sé in Irish pronounced as /ʃeː/ | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: sia in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /ʃiə/ | |
| seven | Manx: shiaght in Manx pronounced as /ʃæːx/ | Irish: seacht in Irish pronounced as /ʃaxt̪ˠ/ | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: seachd in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /ʃɛxk/, in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /ʃaxk/ | |
| eight | Manx: hoght in Manx pronounced as /hoːx/ | Irish: ocht in Irish pronounced as /ɔxt̪ˠ/ | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: ochd in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /ɔxk/ | |
| nine | Manx: nuy in Manx pronounced as /nɛi, nøi, niː/ | Irish: naoi in Irish pronounced as /n̪ˠiː (n̪ˠɰiː)/ | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: naoi in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /n̪ˠɤi/ | |
| ten | Manx: jeih in Manx pronounced as /dʒɛi/ | Irish: deich in Irish pronounced as /dʲɛç, -ɛh, -ɛi/* | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: deich in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /tʲeç/ | |
| eleven | Manx: nane jeig in Manx pronounced as /neːn dʒeɡ/ | Irish: aon déag in Irish pronounced as /eːnˠ/iːnˠ dʲeːɡ/* | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: aon deug/diag in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /ɯːn dʲeːk/, in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /ɯːn dʲiək/ | |
| twelve | Manx: daa yeig in Manx pronounced as /d̪eiɡʲ/ | Irish: dó dhéag in Irish pronounced as /d̪ˠoː jeːg/, Irish: d(h)á dhéag in Irish pronounced as /ɣaː/d̪ˠaː jeːɡ/ | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: dà dheug/dhiag in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /t̪aː ʝeːk/, in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /t̪aː ʝiək/ | |
| thirteen | Manx: tree jeig in Manx pronounced as /t̪ri dʒeɡ/ | Irish: trí déag in Irish pronounced as /tʲrʲiː dʲeːɡ/* | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: trì deug/diag in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /t̪ʰɾiː tʲeːk/, in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /t̪ʰɾiː tʲiək/ | |
| twenty | Manx: feed in Manx pronounced as /fiːdʒ/ | Irish: fiche in Irish pronounced as /fʲɪçə, -hə/; Irish: fichid (sing. dat.) in Irish pronounced as /ˈfʲɪçədʲ, -ɪhə-/* | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: fichead in Irish pronounced as /fiçət̪/ | |
| hundred | Manx: keead in Manx pronounced as /kiːəd/ | Irish: céad in Irish pronounced as /ceːd̪ˠ, ciːa̯d̪ˠ/ | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: ceud, ciad in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /kʲʰeːt̪/, in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /kʲʰiət̪/ |
Manx orthography is based on Elizabethan English, and to a lesser extent Middle Welsh, developed by people who had an education in English (and Welsh until the 16th century).[63] The result is an inconsistent and only partially phonemic spelling system, similar to English orthography and completely incomprehensible to readers of Irish and Scottish Gaelic. This is because both Irish and Scottish Gaelic use spelling systems derived from Classical Gaelic, the common literary language of Man, Ireland, and Scotland until the Bardic schools closed down in the 17th century, which makes them very etymological. Both Irish and Scottish Gaelic use only 18 letters to represent around 50 phonemes. While Manx uses 24 letters (the ISO basic Latin alphabet, excluding (x) and (z)), covering a similar range of phonemes, all three make use of many digraphs and trigraphs. In 1932, Celticist T. F. O'Rahilly expressed the opinion that Manx orthography is inadequate, as it is neither traditional nor phonetic. Therefore, if a form of Classical Gaelic orthography adapted to Manx had survived or if one based on the reforms of Theobald Stapleton were to be developed and introduced, the very close relationship between Manx, Irish, and Scottish Gaelic would be obvious to readers at first sight and Manx would be much easier for other Gaels to read and understand.
There is no evidence, however, of Gaelic type ever having been used on the island.
| a | stressed | pronounced as //a// pronounced as //aː// | Manx: Ghaelg'''a'''gh, cooin'''a'''ghtyn<br />p'''a'''djer, c'''a'''bbyl | |
| unstressed | pronounced as //ə// pronounced as //i// pronounced as //a// | Manx: '''a'''rdnieu, bodj'''a'''l<br />coll'''a'''neyn<br />duill'''a'''g | ||
| a...e, ia...e | pronounced as //eː// | Manx: sl'''a'''n'''e''', bugg'''a'''n'''e''', k'''ia'''r'''e''' | ||
| aa, aa...e | pronounced as //ɛː// pronounced as //øː// pronounced as //eːa// pronounced as //eː// pronounced as //aː// (north) | Manx: b'''aa'''tey, '''aa'''shagh <br />f'''aa'''rkey<br />j'''aa'''gh<br />bl'''aa''', '''aa'''n'''e''' | ||
| aai | pronounced as //ɛi// | Manx: f'''aai'''e | ||
| ae | pronounced as //i// pronounced as //ɪ// pronounced as //eː// | Manx: G'''ae'''lg <br />Gh'''ae'''lgagh <br />'''ae'''g, '''ae'''r | ||
| aew | pronounced as //au// | Manx: br'''aew''' | ||
| ah | pronounced as //ə// | Manx: pecc'''ah''' | ||
| ai, ai...e | pronounced as //aː// pronounced as //ai// pronounced as //e// | Manx: m'''ai'''djey <br />'''ai'''le <br />p'''ai'''tçhey | ||
| aiy | pronounced as //eː// | Manx: f'''aiy'''r | ||
| aue | pronounced as //eːw// | Manx: cr'''aue''', fr'''aue''' | ||
| ay | pronounced as //eː// | Manx: '''ay'''r, k'''ay''' | ||
| e | stressed | pronounced as //e// pronounced as //eː// pronounced as //ɛ// pronounced as //i// | Manx: b'''e'''n, v'''e'''ggey<br />m'''e'''ss<br />p'''e'''ccah, '''e'''ddin<br />ch'''e'''ngey | |
| unstressed | pronounced as //ə// | Manx: padj'''e'''r | ||
| ea | pronounced as //ɛː// | Manx: b'''ea'''ghey | ||
| eai | pronounced as //eː// | Manx: '''eai'''rk | ||
| eau, ieau | pronounced as //uː// | Manx: sl'''ieau''' | ||
| eay | pronounced as //eː// pronounced as //iː// (north) pronounced as //ɯː//, pronounced as //uː// or pronounced as //yː// (south) | Manx: '''eay'''st, cl'''eay'''sh<br />g'''eay''', k'''eay'''n | ||
| ee | pronounced as //iː// | Manx: kionn'''ee''', j'''ee'''s | ||
| eea | pronounced as //iːə// pronounced as //iː// pronounced as //jiː// | Manx: y'''eea'''st, k'''eea'''d <br />f'''eea'''ckle, k'''eea'''gh<br />'''eea'''st | ||
| eei, eey | pronounced as //iː// | Manx: f'''eei'''d, dr'''eey'''m, m'''eey'''l | ||
| ei | pronounced as //eː// pronounced as //e// pronounced as //a// | Manx: sl'''ei'''tyn, '''ei'''n<br />qu'''ei'''g<br />g'''ei'''nnagh | ||
| eih | pronounced as //ɛː// | Manx: j'''eih''' | ||
| eoie | pronounced as //øi// | Manx: l'''eoie''' | ||
| eu, ieu | pronounced as //uː// pronounced as //eu// | Manx: g'''eu'''rey <br /> ardn'''ieu''' | ||
| ey | stressed | pronounced as //eː// | Manx: s'''ey'''r, k'''ey'''l | |
| unstressed | pronounced as //ə// | Manx: vegg'''ey''', collan'''ey'''n | ||
| i | unstressed | pronounced as //ə// pronounced as //i// | Manx: edd'''i'''n, rugg'''i'''t <br /> poos'''i'''t | |
| ia | pronounced as //aː// pronounced as //a// pronounced as //iː// pronounced as //iːə// | Manx: çh'''ia'''rn, sh'''ia'''ght <br />tosh'''ia'''ght, sn'''ia'''ghtey<br />gr'''ia'''n<br />sk'''ia'''n | ||
| pronounced as //aɪ// | Manx: m'''ie''' | |||
| io | pronounced as //ɔ// | Manx: gl'''io'''n | ||
| io...e | pronounced as //au// (north) pronounced as //oː// (south) | Manx: k'''io'''n'''e''' | ||
| o, oi | pronounced as //ɔ// or pronounced as //ɑ// pronounced as //ɔː// or pronounced as //ɑː// pronounced as //o// pronounced as //oː// pronounced as //u// | Manx: lh'''o'''ng, t'''o'''shiaght<br />b'''o'''djal, l'''o'''gh, m'''oi'''r <br />v'''o'''ndeish, b'''o'''lg, bunsc'''oi'''ll<br />h'''o'''ght, ree'''oi'''l<br />str'''oi'''n | ||
| o...e | pronounced as //ɔː// pronounced as //oː// | Manx: dh'''o'''n'''e'''<br />tr'''o'''m'''e''' | ||
| oa | pronounced as //ɔː// pronounced as //au// | Manx: cl'''oa'''n<br />j'''oa'''n | ||
| oh | pronounced as //ɔ// | Manx: sh'''oh''' | ||
| oie | pronounced as //ei// or pronounced as //iː// | Manx: '''oie''' | ||
| oo, ioo, ooh | pronounced as //uː// | Manx: shass'''oo''', c'''oo'''ney, gl'''ioo'''n, '''ooh''' | ||
| ooa, iooa | pronounced as //uː// | Manx: m'''ooa'''r | ||
| ooi | pronounced as //u// | Manx: m'''ooi'''njer, c'''ooi'''naghtyn | ||
| ooy | pronounced as //uː// | Manx: sh'''ooy'''l | ||
| oy | pronounced as //ɔ// | Manx: m'''oy'''lley, v'''oy'''llagh | ||
| u, ui, iu | stressed | pronounced as //ʊ// pronounced as //o// pronounced as //ø// | Manx: b'''u'''nscoill<br />r'''u'''ggit, '''u'''shag, d'''ui'''llag, f'''ui'''ll<br />l'''u'''rgey | |
| unstressed | pronounced as //ə// | Manx: b'''u'''ggane | ||
| ua | pronounced as //uːa// | Manx: y Y'''ua'''n | ||
| ue | pronounced as //u// | Manx: credj'''ue''' | ||
| uy | pronounced as //ɛi// or pronounced as //iː// | Manx: n'''uy''' | ||
| wa | pronounced as //o// | Manx: m'''wa'''nnal | ||
| y | pronounced as //ə// pronounced as //i// pronounced as //ɪ// pronounced as //j// | Manx: cabb'''y'''l, sleit'''y'''n<br />'''y'''ngyn<br />f'''y'''s<br />y '''Y'''uan, '''y'''eeast | ||
| Letter(s) | Phoneme(s) | Examples | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| b, bb | usually | pronounced as //b// | Manx: '''b'''unscoill, '''b'''en | |
| between vowels | pronounced as //β// or pronounced as //v// | Manx: ca'''bb'''yl | ||
| c, cc, ck | usually | pronounced as //k// | Manx: buns'''c'''oill, '''c'''loan | |
| between vowels | pronounced as //ɡ// pronounced as //ɣ// | Manx: pe'''cc'''ah, ga'''cc'''an<br />feea'''ck'''le, cra'''ck'''an | ||
| ch | pronounced as //x// | Manx: '''ch'''a | ||
| çh, tçh | pronounced as //tʃ// | Manx: '''çh'''iarn, '''çh'''engey, pai'''tçh'''ey | ||
| d, dd, dh | broad | pronounced as //d̪// | Manx: keea'''d''', ar'''d'''nieu, te'''dd''', '''dh'''one | |
| slender | pronounced as //dʲ// or pronounced as //dʒ// | Manx: feei'''d''' | ||
| broad, between vowels | pronounced as //ð// | Manx: e'''dd'''in, mo'''dd'''ey | ||
| f | pronounced as //f// | Manx: '''f'''ys, '''f'''eeackle | ||
| g, gg | broad | pronounced as //ɡ// | Manx: '''G'''aelg, Ghael'''g'''agh | |
| slender | pronounced as //ɡʲ// | Manx: '''g'''eurey, '''g'''einnagh | ||
| between vowels | pronounced as //ɣ// | Manx: ve'''gg'''ey, ru'''gg'''it | ||
| gh | usually | pronounced as //ɣ// ∅ | Manx: '''Gh'''aelgagh, bea'''gh'''ey<br />sha'''gh'''ey | |
| finally or before t | pronounced as //x// | Manx: jeera'''gh''', cla'''gh''', cooina'''gh'''tyn | ||
| -ght | pronounced as //x// | Manx: toshia'''ght''', ho'''ght''' | ||
| h | pronounced as //h// | Manx: '''h'''oght | ||
| j, dj | usually | pronounced as //dʒ// | Manx: mooin'''j'''er, '''j'''eeragh | |
| between vowels | pronounced as //ʒ// pronounced as //j// | Manx: pa'''dj'''er<br />mai'''dj'''ey, fe'''dj'''ag | ||
| k | broad | pronounced as //k// | Manx: '''k'''eyl, eair'''k''' | |
| slender | pronounced as //kʲ// | Manx: '''k'''ione, '''k'''iare | ||
| l, ll | broad | pronounced as //l// | Manx: Gae'''l'''g, s'''l'''eityn, moy'''ll'''ey | |
| slender | pronounced as //lʲ// | Manx: g'''l'''ion, b'''l'''ein, fei'''ll''', bi'''ll'''ey | ||
| finally, in monosyllabic words (S only) | pronounced as //ᵈl// | Manx: shooy'''l''' | ||
| -le | pronounced as //əl// | Manx: feeack'''le''' | ||
| lh | pronounced as //l// | Manx: '''lh'''ong | ||
| m, mm | normally | pronounced as //m// | Manx: '''m'''ooinjer, dreey'''m''', fa'''mm'''an | |
| finally, in monosyllabic words (N only) | pronounced as //ᵇm// | Manx: eey'''m''', tro'''m'''e | ||
| n | broad | pronounced as //n// | Manx: bu'''n'''scoill, cooinaghty'''n''', e'''nn'''ym | |
| slender | pronounced as //nʲ// | Manx: ard'''n'''ieu, colla'''n'''eyn, dooi'''nn'''ey, gei'''nn'''agh | ||
| finally, in monosyllabic words | pronounced as //ᵈn// | Manx: sla'''n'''e, be'''n''' | ||
| slender, finally, in monosyllabic words | pronounced as //ᵈnʲ// | Manx: ei'''n''' | ||
| ng | usually | pronounced as //ŋ// pronounced as //nʲ// | Manx: y'''ng'''yn<br />che'''ng'''ey | |
| finally, in monosyllabic words (S only) | pronounced as //ᶢŋ// | Manx: lho'''ng''' | ||
| p, pp | usually | pronounced as //p// | Manx: '''p'''eccah, '''p'''adjer | |
| between vowels | pronounced as //v// | Manx: ca'''pp'''an | ||
| qu | pronounced as //kw// | Manx: '''qu'''eig | ||
| r, rr | usually | pronounced as //r// | Manx: geu'''r'''ey, jee'''r'''agh, fe'''rr'''ishyn | |
| finally | pronounced as /[ɹ̝]/ or pronounced as /[ə̯]/ | Manx: ae'''r''', faiy'''r''' | ||
| s, ss | usually | pronounced as //s// pronounced as //z// | Manx: bun'''s'''coill, '''s'''leityn, ca'''ss'''<br />fy'''s''' | |
| initially before n | pronounced as //ʃ// | Manx: '''s'''niaghtey | ||
| between vowels | pronounced as //ð// pronounced as //z// | Manx: sha'''ss'''oo<br /> poo'''s'''it | ||
| sh | usually | pronounced as //ʃ// | Manx: '''sh'''ooyl, vondei'''sh''' | |
| between vowels | pronounced as //ʒ// pronounced as //j// | Manx: aa'''sh'''agh, u'''sh'''ag <br /> to'''sh'''iaght | ||
| -st | pronounced as //s// | Manx: eay'''st''', eea'''st''' | ||
| t, tt, th | broad | pronounced as //t̪// | Manx: '''t'''rome, cooinagh'''t'''yn, '''th'''alloo | |
| slender | pronounced as //tʲ// or pronounced as //tʃ// | Manx: poosi'''t''', ush'''t'''ey, tui'''tt'''ym | ||
| broad, between vowels | pronounced as //d̪// pronounced as //ð// | Manx: bra'''tt'''ag<br />baa'''t'''ey | ||
| slender, between vowels | pronounced as //dʲ// or pronounced as //dʒ// | Manx: slei'''t'''yn | ||
| v | pronounced as //v// | Manx: '''v'''eggey, '''v'''oyllagh | ||
| w | pronounced as //w// | Manx: a'''w'''in | ||
Manx uses only one diacritic, a cedilla, which is (optionally) used to differentiate between the two phonemes represented by (ch):
The following examples are taken from Broderick 1984–86, 1:178–79 and 1:350–53. The first example is from a speaker of Northern Manx, the second from Ned Maddrell, a speaker of Southern Manx.
| Orthography (+ phonetic transcription) | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|
| They used to think if a horse was looking tired and weary in the morning then it had been with the fairies all night and they would bring the priest to put his blessing on it. | ||
| There was a woman here last week and she wanted me to teach her to say the Lord's Prayer. She said that she used to say it when she was a little girl, but she has forgotten it all, and she wanted to learn it again to say it at a class or something. And I said I would do my best to help her and she came here to hear it, and do you want to hear me say it? |
Manx vocabulary is predominantly of Goidelic origin, derived from Old Irish and has cognates in Irish and Scottish Gaelic. However, Manx itself, as well as the languages from which it is derived, borrowed words from other languages, especially Latin, Old Norse, French (particularly Anglo-Norman), and English (both Middle English and Modern English).
The following table shows a selection of nouns from the Swadesh list and indicates their pronunciations and etymologies.
| Manx | IPA[64] | English | Etymology[65] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manx: aane | pronounced as /[eːn]/ | liver | Goidelic; from Mid.Ir. Irish, Middle (900-1200);: ae < O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: óa; cf. Ir. Irish: ae, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: adha | |
| Manx: aer | pronounced as /[eːə]/ | sky | Latin; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: aer < L. Latin: aër; cf. Ir. Irish: aer, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: adhar | |
| Manx: aile | pronounced as /[ail]/ | fire | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: aingel "very bright"; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: aingeal | |
| Manx: ardnieu | pronounced as /[ərd̪ˈnʲeu]/ | snake | Apparently "highly poisonous" (cf. Manx: ard "high", Manx: nieu "poison") | |
| Manx: awin | pronounced as /[aunʲ], [ˈawənʲ]/ | river | Goidelic; from the M.Ir. dative form abainn of Irish, Middle (900-1200);: aba < O.Ir. abaind Irish, Old (to 900);: aba; cf. Ir. abha/abhainn, dative abhainn, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: abhainn (literary nominative abha). | |
| Manx: ayr | pronounced as /[ˈæːar]/ | father | Goidelic; from M.Ir. athair, O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: athir; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: athair | |
| Manx: beeal | pronounced as /[biəl]/ | mouth | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: bél; cf. Ir. Irish: béal, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: beul/Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: bial | |
| Manx: beishteig | pronounced as /[beˈʃtʲeːɡ], [prəˈʃtʲeːɡ]/ | worm | Latin; from M.Ir. Irish, Middle (900-1200);: piast, Irish, Middle (900-1200);: péist < O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: bíast < L. Latin: bēstia | |
| Manx: ben | pronounced as /[beᵈn]/ | woman | Goidelic; from M.Ir and O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: ben; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: bean | |
| Manx: billey | pronounced as /[ˈbilʲə]/ | tree | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: bile | |
| Manx: blaa | pronounced as /[blæː]/ | flower | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: bláth, Ir. bláth, Sc.G. blàth | |
| Manx: blein | pronounced as /[blʲeːnʲ], [blʲiᵈn]/ | year | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: bliadain; cf. Ir. Irish: blian, dat. Irish: bliain, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: bliadhna | |
| Manx: bodjal | pronounced as /[ˈbaːdʒəl]/ | cloud | English/French; shortened from Manx: bodjal niaul "pillar of cloud" (cf. Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: baideal neòil); Manx: bodjal originally meant "pillar" or "battlement" < E. battle < Fr. French: bataille | |
| Manx: bolg | pronounced as /[bolɡ]/ | belly, bag | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: bolg, Ir., Sc.G bolg | |
| Manx: cass | pronounced as /[kaːs]/ | foot | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: cos, cf. Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: cas, Ir.dialect cas, Ir. cos | |
| Manx: çhengey | pronounced as /[ˈtʃinʲə]/ | tongue | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: tengae; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: teanga | |
| Manx: clagh | pronounced as /[klaːx]/ | stone | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: cloch; cf. Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: clach, Ir. cloch | |
| Manx: cleaysh | pronounced as /[kleːʃ]/ | ear | Goidelic; from O.Ir. dative Irish, Old (to 900);: clúais "hearing"; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: cluas, dative Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: cluais, Ir. dialect cluais | |
| Manx: collaneyn | pronounced as /[ˈkalinʲən]/ | guts | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: cáelán; cf. Ir. Irish: caolán, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: caolan, derived from caol "thin, slender", -án nominaliser | |
| Manx: crackan | pronounced as /[ˈkraːɣən]/ | skin | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: croiccenn; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: craiceann, dialect croiceann | |
| Manx: craue | pronounced as /[kræːw]/ | bone | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: cnám; cf. Ir. Irish: cnámh, dative Irish: cnáimh, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: cnàimh | |
| Manx: cree | pronounced as /[kriː]/ | heart | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: cride; cf. Ir. Irish: croí, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: cridhe | |
| Manx: dooinney | pronounced as /[ˈd̪unʲə]/ | person | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: duine, cf. Ir., Sc.G Irish: duine | |
| Manx: dreeym | pronounced as /[d̪riːm], [d̪riᵇm]/ | back | Goidelic; from O.Ir. dative Irish, Old (to 900);: druimm, nominative dromm; cf. Ir. drom, dialect Irish: droim, dative droim, Sc.G. drom, dialect Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: druim, dative druim | |
| Manx: duillag | pronounced as /[ˈd̪olʲaɡ]/ | leaf | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: duilleóg; cf. Ir. Irish: duilleóg, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: duilleag | |
| Manx: eairk | pronounced as /[eːak]/ | horn | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: adarc; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: adharc, Ir. dialect aidhearc | |
| Manx: eayst | pronounced as /[eːs]/ | moon | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: ésca; cf. archaic Ir. Irish: éasca, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: easga | |
| Manx: eeast | pronounced as /[jiːs]/ | fish | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish: íasc; cf. Ir. Irish: iasc, Ul. Irish: /jiəsk/, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: iasg | |
| Manx: ennym | pronounced as /[ˈenəm]/ | name | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: ainmm; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: ainm | |
| Manx: faarkey | pronounced as /[ˈføːɹkə]/ | sea | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: fairrge; cf. Ir. Irish: farraige, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: fairge | |
| Manx: faiyr | pronounced as /[feːə]/ | grass | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: fér; cf. Ir. Irish: féar, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: feur, Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: fiar | |
| Manx: famman | pronounced as /[ˈfaman]/ | tail | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: femm+ -án nominaliser (masculine diminutive); cf. Ir. Irish: feam, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: feaman | |
| Manx: fedjag | pronounced as /[ˈfaiaɡ]/ | feather | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: eteóc; cf. Ir. Irish: eiteog "wing", Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: iteag | |
| Manx: feeackle | pronounced as /[ˈfiːɣəl]/ | tooth | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: fíacail; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: fiacail | |
| Manx: feill | pronounced as /[feːlʲ]/ | meat | Goidelic; from O.Ir. dative Irish, Old (to 900);: feóil; cf. Ir. Irish: feoil, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: feòil | |
| Manx: fer | pronounced as /[fer]/ | man | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: fer; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: fear | |
| Manx: fliaghey | pronounced as /[flʲaːɣə]/ | rain | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: flechud; cf. Ir. Irish: fleachadh "rainwater; a drenching", related to fliuch "wet" | |
| Manx: folt | pronounced as /[folt̪]/ | hair | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: folt, Ir.folt, Sc.G. falt | |
| Manx: fraue | pronounced as /[fræːw]/ | root | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish: frém; cf. Ir. Irish: fréamh, Irish: préamh, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: freumh | |
| Manx: fuill | pronounced as /[folʲ]/ | blood | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: fuil, Ir., Sc.G. fuil | |
| Manx: geay | pronounced as /[ɡiː]/ | wind | Goidelic; from O.Ir. dative Irish, Old (to 900);: gaíth; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: gaoth, dative gaoith | |
| Manx: geinnagh | pronounced as /[ˈɡʲanʲax]/ | sand | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: gainmech; cf. Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: gainmheach, Ir. gaineamh | |
| Manx: glioon | pronounced as /[ɡlʲuːnʲ]/ | knee | Goidelic; from O.Ir. dative Irish, Old (to 900);: glúin; cf. Ir. Irish: glúin, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: glùn, dative glùin | |
| Manx: grian | pronounced as /[ɡriːn], [ɡriᵈn]/ | sun | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: grían; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: grian | |
| Manx: jaagh | pronounced as /[ˈdʒæːax]/ | smoke | Goidelic, from M.Ir. Irish, Middle (900-1200);: deathach < O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: dé; cf. Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: deathach | |
| Manx: joan | pronounced as /[dʒaun]/ | dust | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: dend; cf. Ir. Irish: deannach | |
| Manx: kay | pronounced as /[kʲæː]/ | fog | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: ceó; cf. Ir. Irish: ceo, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: ceò | |
| Manx: keayn | pronounced as /[kiᵈn]/ | sea | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: cúan; cf. Ir. Irish: cuan "harbor", Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: cuan "ocean" | |
| Manx: keeagh | pronounced as /[kiːx]/ | breast | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: cíoch; cf. Ir. Irish: cíoch, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: cìoch | |
| Manx: keyll | pronounced as /[kiːlʲ], [kelʲ]/ | forest | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: caill; cf. Ir. Irish: coill, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: coille | |
| Manx: kione | pronounced as /[kʲaun], [kʲoːn]/ | head | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: cend, dative ciond; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: ceann, dative cionn | |
| Manx: laa | pronounced as /[læː]/ | day | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: láa; cf. Ir. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: lá, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: latha, Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: là | |
| Manx: laue | pronounced as /[læːw]/ | hand | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish: lám; cf. Ir. Irish: lámh, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: làmh | |
| Manx: leoie | pronounced as /[løi]/ | ashes | Goidelic; from O.Ir. dative Irish, Old (to 900);: lúaith; cf. Ir. Irish: luaith, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: luath | |
| Manx: logh | pronounced as /[lɒːx]/ | lake | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: loch | |
| Manx: lurgey | pronounced as /[løɹɡə]/ | leg | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: lurga "shin bone"; cf. Ir. Irish: lorga | |
| Manx: maidjey | pronounced as /[ˈmaːʒə]/ | stick | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: maide, Ir., Sc.G. maide | |
| Manx: meeyl | pronounced as /[miːl]/ | louse | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: míol; cf. Ir. Irish: míol, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: mial | |
| Manx: mess | pronounced as /[meːs]/ | fruit | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: mes; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: meas | |
| Manx: moddey | pronounced as /[ˈmaːðə]/ | dog | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish: matrad; cf. Ir. madra, N.Ir. mada,madadh [madu], Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: madadh | |
| Manx: moir | pronounced as /[mɒːɹ]/ | mother | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: máthir; cf. Ir. máthair, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: màthair | |
| Manx: mwannal | pronounced as /[ˈmonal]/ | neck | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: muinél; cf. Ir. Irish: muineál, muinéal, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: muineal | |
| Manx: oie | pronounced as /[ei], [iː]/ | night | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: adaig (accusative Irish, Old (to 900);: aidchi); cf. Ir. Irish: oíche, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: oidhche | |
| Manx: ooh | pronounced as /[au], [uː]/ | egg | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: og; cf. Ir. Irish: ubh,Irish: ugh, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: ugh | |
| Manx: paitçhey | pronounced as /[ˈpætʃə]/ | child | French; from E.M.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: páitse "page, attendant" < O.Fr. French, Middle (ca.1400-1600);: page; cf. Ir. Irish: páiste, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: pàiste | |
| Manx: raad | pronounced as /[ræːd̪], [raːd̪]/ | road | English; from Cl.Ir. Irish, Middle (900-1200);: rót,Irish, Middle (900-1200);: róat< M.E. English, Middle (1100-1500);: road; cf. Ir. Irish: ród, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: rathad | |
| Manx: rass | pronounced as /[raːs]/ | seed | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish: ros | |
| Manx: rollage | pronounced as /[roˈlæːɡ]/ | star | Goidelic; from M.Ir. Irish, Middle (900-1200);: rétlu < O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: rétglu + feminine diminutive suffix -óg; cf. Ir. Irish: réaltóg, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: reultag | |
| Manx: roost | pronounced as /[ruːs]/ | bark | Brythonic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: rúsc Brythonic (cf. Welsh Welsh: rhisg(l); cf. Ir. Irish: rúsc, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: rùsg | |
| Manx: skian | pronounced as /[ˈskiːən]/ | wing | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: scíathán; cf. Ir. Irish: sciathán, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: sgiathan | |
| Manx: slieau | pronounced as /[slʲuː], [ʃlʲuː]/ | mountain | Goidelic, from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: slíab; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: sliabh | |
| Manx: sniaghtey | pronounced as /[ˈʃnʲaxt̪ə]/ | snow | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: snechta; cf. Ir. Irish: sneachta, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: sneachd | |
| Manx: sollan | pronounced as /[ˈsolan]/ | salt | Goidelic; from O.Ir., Ir., Sc.G. Irish, Old (to 900);: salann | |
| Manx: sooill | pronounced as /[suːlʲ]/ | eye | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: súil; cf. Ir. súil, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: sùil | |
| Manx: stroin | pronounced as /[st̪ruᵈnʲ], [st̪raiᵈnʲ]/ | nose | Goidelic; from O.Ir. dative Irish, Old (to 900);: sróin; cf. Ir. srón, dialect sróin, dative sróin, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: sròn, dative sròin | |
| Manx: tedd | pronounced as /[t̪ed̪]/ | rope | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: tét; cf. Ir. Irish: téad, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: teud, Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: tiad | |
| Manx: thalloo | pronounced as /[ˈtalu]/ | earth | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: talam; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: talamh | |
| Manx: ushag | pronounced as /[ˈoʒaɡ]/ | bird | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: uiseóg "lark"; cf. Ir. Irish: fuiseog, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: uiseag | |
| Manx: ushtey | pronounced as /[ˈuʃtʲə]/ | water | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish: uisce; cf. Ir. uisce, Sc.G. Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: uisge | |
| Manx: yngyn | pronounced as /[ˈiŋən]/ | fingernail | Goidelic; from O.Ir. Irish, Old (to 900);: ingen; cf. Ir., Sc.G. Irish: ionga, dative iongain, plural Ir. iongna, Sc.G. iongnan, etc. |
See Celtic Swadesh lists for the complete list in all the Celtic languages.
| Manx (Manx: Gaelg) | English (Manx: Baarle) | |
|---|---|---|
| Manx: Moghrey mie | Good morning | |
| Manx: Fastyr mie | Good afternoon/evening | |
| Manx: Oie vie | Good night | |
| Manx: Kys t'ou? ("tu" form) Manx: Kys ta shiu? (plural) Manx: Kanys ta shiu? ("vous" form) | How are you | |
| Manx: Feer vie | Very well | |
| Manx: Gura mie ayd ("tu" form) Manx: Gura mie eu ("vous" form) | Thank you | |
| Manx: As oo hene? Manx: As shiu hene? | And yourself | |
| Manx: Slane lhiat Manx: Slane lhiu | Goodbye | |
| Manx: Whooiney | Yessir (Manx English equivalent of "man" (US: "dude"), as an informal term of address; found as a dhuine in Irish and Scottish Gaelic) | |
| Manx: Ellan Vannin | Isle of Man |
Loanwords are primarily Norse and English, with a smaller number coming from French. Some examples of Norse loanwords are Manx: garey "garden" (from "enclosure") and Manx: sker "sea rock" (from). Examples of French loanwords are Manx: danjeyr "danger" (from French: danger) and Manx: vondeish "advantage" (from French: avantage).
English loanwords were common in late (pre-revival) Manx, e.g. Manx: boy "boy", Manx: badjer "badger", rather than the more usual native Gaelic Manx: guilley and Manx: brock. In more recent years, there has been a reaction against such borrowing, resulting in coinages for technical vocabulary. Despite this, calques exist in Manx, not necessarily obvious to its speakers. To fill gaps in recorded Manx vocabulary, revivalists have referred to modern Irish and Scottish Gaelic for words and inspiration.
Some religious terms come ultimately from Latin, Greek and Hebrew, e.g. Manx: casherick "holy" (from Latin Latin: consecrātus), Manx: agglish "church" (from Greek Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: ἐκκλησία/ "assembly") and Manx: abb "abbot" (from Hebrew Hebrew: אבא/ "father"). These did not necessarily come directly into Manx, but via Old Irish. In more recent times, Manx: ulpan has been borrowed from modern Hebrew. Many Irish and English loanwords also have a classical origin, e.g. Manx: çhellveeish "television" (Irish Irish: teilifís) and Manx: çhellvane "telephone". Foreign language words (usually via English) are used occasionally especially for ethnic food, e.g. chorizo and spaghetti.
Going in the other direction, Manx Gaelic has influenced Manx English (Anglo-Manx). Common words and phrases in Anglo-Manx originating in the language include tholtan "ruined farmhouse",[66] quaaltagh "first-foot", keeill "(old) church", cammag, traa-dy-liooar "time enough", and Tynwald (tinvaal), which is ultimately of Norse origin, but comes from Manx. It is suggested that the House of Keys takes its name from Kiare as Feed (four and twenty), which is the number of its sitting members.
| Manx | Irish | Scottish Gaelic | Welsh | English | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manx: Moghrey mie | Irish: Maidin mhaith | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: Madainn mhath | Welsh: Bore da | good morning | |
| Manx: Fastyr mie | Irish: Tráthnóna maith | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: Feasgar math | Welsh: Prynhawn da Welsh: Noswaith dda | good afternoon/evening | |
| Manx: Slane lhiat, Manx: Slane lhiu | Irish: Slán leat, Irish: Slán libh | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: Slàn leat, Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: Slàn leibh | Welsh: Hwyl fawr | goodbye | |
| Manx: Gura mie ayd, Manx: Gura mie eu | Irish: Go raibh maith agat, Irish: Go raibh maith agaibh | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: Tapadh leat, Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: Tapadh leibh | Welsh: Diolch | thank you | |
| Manx: baatey | Irish: bád | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: bàta | Welsh: cwch | boat | |
| Manx: barroose | Irish: bus | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: bus | Welsh: bws | bus | |
| Manx: blaa | Irish: bláth | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: blàth | Welsh: blodyn | flower | |
| Manx: booa | Irish: bó | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: bò | Welsh: buwch/bo | cow | |
| Manx: cabbyl | Irish: capall | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: each | Welsh: ceffyl | horse | |
| Manx: cashtal | Irish: caisleán, caiseal | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: caisteal | Welsh: castell | castle | |
| Manx: creg | Irish: carraig | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: carraig, creag | Welsh: carreg, craig | crag, rock | |
| Manx: eeast | Irish: iasc | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: iasg | Welsh: pysgodyn | fish [sg.] | |
| Manx: ellan | Irish: oileán | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: eilean | Welsh: ynys | island, eyot | |
| Manx: gleashtan | Irish: gluaisteán, Irish: carr | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: càr | Welsh: car | car | |
| Manx: kayt | Irish: cat | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: cat | Welsh: cath | cat | |
| Manx: moddey | Irish: madra, Irish: madadh | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: cù | Welsh: ci | dog, hound | |
| Manx: shap | Irish: siopa | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: bùth | Welsh: siop | shop | |
| Manx: thie | Irish: tigh, Irish: teach | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: taigh | Welsh: tŷ | house | |
| Manx: eean | Irish: éan | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: eun, Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: ian | Welsh: aderyn, Welsh: edn | bird | |
| Manx: jees, daa | Irish: dá, dhá, dó; (people) beirt, dís | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: dà, dhà; (people) dithis | Welsh: dau (m.)/Welsh: dwy (f.) | two | |
| Manx: oik | Irish: oifig | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: oifis | Welsh: swyddfa | office | |
| Manx: ushtey | Irish: uisce | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: uisge | Welsh: dŵr, Welsh: dwfr | water |
The Lord's Prayer has been translated into all of the Gaelic languages (and Old Irish). Although not direct, it is a good demonstration of the differences between their orthographies.
The standard version of the Lord's Prayer in Manx
Manx version of 1713[67]
The prayer in Old Irish[68]
The Prayer in modern Irish
The Prayer in Scottish Gaelic
Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Manx:
See also: List of Celtic-language media. Two weekly programmes in Manx are available on medium wave on Manx Radio: Manx: Traa dy liooar on Monday and Manx: Jamys Jeheiney on Friday. The news in Manx is available online from Manx Radio, who have three other weekly programmes that use the language: Manx: Clare ny Gael; Manx: Shiaght Laa and Manx: Moghrey Jedoonee. Several news readers on Manx Radio also use a good deal of incidental Manx.
The Isle of Man Examiner has a monthly bilingual column in Manx.
The first film to be made in Manx, 22-minute-long "The Sheep Under the Snow", premiered in 1983 and was entered for the 5th Celtic Film and Television Festival in Cardiff in 1984. It was directed by Shorys Y Creayrie (George Broderick) for Foillan Films of Laxey, and is about the background to an early 18th-century folk song. In 2013, a short film, Solace in Wicca, was produced with financial assistance from Culture Vannin, CinemaNX and Isle of Man Film.[71] A series of short cartoons about the life of Cú Chulainn which was produced by BBC Northern Ireland is available[72] as are a series of cartoons on Manx mythology.[73] Most significant is a 13-part DVD series Manx translation of the award-winning series Friends and Heroes.[74]
See main article: Manx literature and Gaelic literature. Manx never had a large number of speakers, so it would not have been practical to mass-produce written literature. However, a body of oral literature did exist. The "Fianna" tales and others like them are known, including the Manx ballad Manx: Fin as Oshin, commemorating Finn MacCumhail and Oisín.[75] With the coming of Protestantism, Manx spoken tales slowly disappeared, while a tradition of carvals, Christian ballads, developed with religious sanction.
There is no record of literature written distinctively in Manx before the Reformation. By that time, any presumed literary link with Ireland and Scotland, such as through Irish-trained priests, had been lost. The first published literature in Manx was The Principles and Duties of Christianity (Manx: Coyrie Sodjey), translated by Bishop of Sodor and Man Thomas Wilson.
The Book of Common Prayer was translated by John Phillips, the Welsh-born Anglican Bishop of Sodor and Man from 1605 to 1633. The early Manx script has some similarities with orthographical systems found occasionally in Scotland and in Ireland for the transliteration of Gaelic, such as the Book of the Dean of Lismore, as well as some extensive texts based on English and Scottish English orthographical practices of the time. Little secular Manx literature has been preserved.
The New Testament was first published in 1767. When the Anglican church authorities started to produce written literature in the Manx language in the 18th century, the system developed by John Philips was further "anglicised"; the one feature retained from Welsh orthography was the use of to represent pronounced as /link/ (e.g. Manx: cabbyl pronounced as /[kaːβəl]/ "horse" and Manx: cooney pronounced as /[kuːnə]/ "help" as well as pronounced as //ɪ// (e.g. Manx: fys pronounced as /[fɪz]/ "knowledge"), though it is also used to represent pronounced as /[j]/, (e.g. Manx: y Yuan pronounced as /[ə juːan]/ "John" (vocative), Manx: yeeast pronounced as /[jiːəst]/ "fish").
Other works produced in the 18th and 19th centuries include catechisms, hymn books and religious tracts. A translation of Paradise Lost was made by Rev. Thomas Christian of Marown in 1796.[76]
A considerable amount of secular literature has been produced in the 20th and 21st centuries as part of the language revival. In 2006, the first full-length novel in Manx, Manx: Dunveryssyn yn Tooder-Folley ("The Vampire Murders") was published by Brian Stowell, after being serialised in the press. There is an increasing amount of literature available in the language, and recent publications include Manx versions of the Gruffalo and Gruffalo's Child.[77]
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's The Little Prince was translated into Manx by Rob Teare in 2019.[78]
See main article: Bible translations into Manx.
The Bible was first produced in Manx by a group of Anglican clergymen on the island. The Gospel of Matthew was printed in 1748. The Gospel and Manx: [[New Testament|Conaant Noa]] nyn Jiarn as Saualtagh [[Jesus|Yeesey Creest]] were produced in 1763 and 1767, respectively, by the Society for the Propagation of Christian Knowledge (SPCK). In 1772 the Old Testament was printed, together with the Wisdom of Solomon and Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) from the Apocrypha.
Manx: Yn Vible Casherick "The Holy Bible" of the Old and New Testaments was published as one book by the SPCK in 1775, effectively fixing the modern orthography of Manx, which has changed little since. Jenner claims that some bowdlerisation had occurred in the translation, e.g. the occupation of Rahab the prostitute is rendered as Manx: ben-oast "a hostess, female inn-keeper." The bicentenary was celebrated in 1975 and included a set of stamps from the Isle of Man Post Office.
There was a translation of the Manx: Psalmyn Ghavid ("Psalms of David") in metre in Manx by the Rev John Clague, vicar of Rushen, which was printed with the Book of Common Prayer of 1768. Bishop Hildesley required that these Metrical Psalms were to be sung in churches. These were reprinted by Manx: [[Yn Çheshaght Ghailckagh]] in 1905.
The British and Foreign Bible Society (BFBS) published the Manx: Conaant Noa "New Testament" in 1810 and reprinted it in 1824. Manx: Yn Vible Casherick "The Holy Bible" of the Old Testament and New Testament (without the two books of the Apocrypha) was first printed as a whole in 1819. BFBS last printed anything on paper in Manx in 1936 when it reprinted Manx: Noo Ean "the Gospel of St John"; this was reprinted by Manx: Yn Çheshaght Ghailckagh in 1968. The Manx Bible was republished by Shearwater Press in July 1979 as Manx: Bible Chasherick yn Lught Thie (Manx Family Bible), which was a reproduction of the BFBS 1819 Bible.
Since 2014 the BFBS 1936 Manx Gospel of John has been available online on YouVersion and Bibles.org.
Manx has not been used in Mass since the late 19th century, though holds an annual Christmas service on the island.[79]
In a move towards the Catholic Church in the Isle of Man having a Bishop of its own, in September 2023 St. Mary of the Isle Church in Douglas was granted Co-Cathedral status by Pope Francis. During the Mass of dedication by Malcolm McMahon, the Archbishop of Liverpool, the Lord's Prayer was recited in Manx and the Manx National Anthem was also performed.[80] [81] [82]