In the Goidelic languages, dependent and independent verb forms are distinct verb forms; each tense of each verb exists in both forms. Verbs are often preceded by a particle which marks negation, or a question, or has some other force. The dependent verb forms are used after a particle, while independent forms are used when the verb is not subject to a particle. For example, in Irish, the past tense of the verb Irish: feic ("to see") has two forms: the independent form Irish: chonaic and the dependent form Irish: faca. The independent form is used when no particle precedes the verb, as in Irish: <u>Chonaic</u> mé Seán ("I saw John").[1] The dependent form is used when a particle such as Irish: ní ("not") precedes the verb, as in Irish: Ní <u>fhaca</u> mé Seán ("I did not see John").[2]
The distinction between dependent and independent forms originates with two distinct but related phenomena in Old Irish: the contrast between absolute and conjunct verb endings, and the contrast between prototonic and deuterotonic forms.
Old Irish verbs that have no prefixes, called "simple verbs", have two sets of endings, absolute and conjunct. The conjunct endings are used after a variety of grammatical particles, including among others the negative particle Irish, Old (to 900);: ní ("not"), the interrogative particle Irish, Old (to 900);: in, and prepositions combined with the relative pronoun (e.g. Irish, Old (to 900);: lasa "with which"). Where no such "conjunct particle" is present, the absolute endings are used. For example, "he calls" is Irish, Old (to 900);: gairid (absolute), while examples of conjunct forms are Irish, Old (to 900);: ní·gair "he does not call" and Irish, Old (to 900);: lasa·ngair "with which he calls". (An interpunct "·", hyphen "-", or colon ":" is usually used to indicate conjunct forms in pedagogical and analytical works on Old Irish. Actual manuscripts do not use such punctuation marks.) When a particle is present, stress falls on the first syllable of the verb itself, i.e. the syllable after the "·" mark.
In most verbs, distinct absolute and conjunct endings are found in the present indicative, present subjunctive, future, and preterite, and most persons. For example, a partial paradigm of Irish, Old (to 900);: gaibid ("take") is as follows:
| Person | Present indicative | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Absolute | Conjunct | ||
| 1 sg. | Irish, Old (to 900);: (·)gaibiu, (·)gaibim | ||
| 2 sg. | Irish, Old (to 900);: (·)gaibi | ||
| 3 sg. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gaibid | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gaib | |
| 1 pl. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gaibmi | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gaibem, Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gabam | |
| 2 pl. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gaibthe | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gaibid | |
| 3 pl. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gaibit | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gaibet | |
| Person | Present subjunctive | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Absolute | Conjunct | ||
| 1 sg. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gaba | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gab, Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gaib | |
| 2 sg. | Irish, Old (to 900);: (·)gabae | ||
| 3 sg. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gabaid | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gaba | |
| 1 pl. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gabmai | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gabam | |
| 2 pl. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gabthae | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gabaid | |
| 3 pl. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gabait | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gabat | |
| Person | Future | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Absolute | Conjunct | ||
| 1 sg. | Irish, Old (to 900);: géba | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·géb | |
| 2 sg. | Irish, Old (to 900);: (·)gébae | ||
| 3 sg. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gébaid | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·géba | |
| 1 pl. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gébmai | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gébam | |
| 2 pl. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gébthae | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gébaid | |
| 3 pl. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gébait | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gébat | |
| Person | Preterite | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Absolute | Conjunct | ||
| 1 sg. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gabsu | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gabus | |
| 2 sg. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gabsai | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gabais | |
| 3 sg. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gabais | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gab | |
| 1 pl. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gabsaimmi | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gabsam | |
| 2 pl. | (unattested) | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gabsaid | |
| 3 pl. | Irish, Old (to 900);: gabsait | Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gaibset | |
Verbs that have one or more prefixes, called "compound verbs", always take conjunct endings. In this case, stress generally falls on the syllable after the first prefix. Where only one prefix is present, that means stress falls on the verb root, but where two or more prefixes are present, stress then falls on the second prefix.
| No. of prefixes | Underlying form | Surface form | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | /to- + gair/[3] | Irish, Old (to 900);: do·gair | "he summons" | |
| 2 | /for- + com- + gair/ | Irish, Old (to 900);: for·congair | "he commands" | |
| 3 | /to- + air- + com- + gair/ | Irish, Old (to 900);: do·airngir | "he promises" |
Because these verb forms are stressed on the second syllable, they are called deuterotonic (from Greek Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: δεύτερος deuteros "second" + Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: τόνος tonos "tone, stress"). As can be seen in the above examples, the phonological effects of stress placement can be significant; for example, when the prefix com- follows the stressed syllable, it is reduced to just n. These phonological changes become even more apparent when a conjunct particle like Irish, Old (to 900);: ní ("not") is added. In this case, stress shifts to the first prefix, which has phonological consequences for the rest of the verbal complex.
| No. of prefixes | Underlying form | Surface form | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | /ní + to- + gair/ | Irish, Old (to 900);: ní·togair | "he doesn't summon" | |
| 2 | /ní + for- + com- + gair/ | Irish, Old (to 900);: ní·forngair | "he doesn't command" | |
| 3 | /ní + to- + air- + com- + gair/ | Irish, Old (to 900);: ní·tairngir | "he does not promise" |
Because these forms are stressed on the first syllable of the verb proper (i.e. the syllable after the particle), they are called prototonic (Greek Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: πρῶτος prōtos "first", proto- prefix). The relationship between prototonic and deuterotonic compound verb forms is thus analogous to that between simple verb forms with conjunct and absolute endings: the one group is used after a conjunct particle like Irish, Old (to 900);: ní, the other group without such a particle.
| Without particle (independent) | With particle (dependent) | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Irish, Old (to 900);: gairid (abs.) | Irish, Old (to 900);: ní·gair (conj.) | "he calls/does not call" | |
| Irish, Old (to 900);: do·gair (deut.) | Irish, Old (to 900);: ní·togair (prot.) | "he summons/does not summon" | |
| Irish, Old (to 900);: do·airngir (deut.) | Irish, Old (to 900);: ní·tairngir (prot.) | "he promises/does not promise" |
The distinction between absolute and conjunct endings is believed to have originated with the placement of a particle *(e)s in Proto-Insular Celtic; see Insular Celtic languages#Absolute and dependent verb for discussion.
In addition to the above-mentioned forms, Old Irish also has one dependent verb form that is neither a regular conjunct form nor a prototonic form: the word Irish, Old (to 900);: fil functions in many cases as the dependent equivalent of Irish, Old (to 900);: at·tá "is", e.g. Irish, Old (to 900);: nicon·fil nach rainn "there is no part", where Irish, Old (to 900);: fil follows the conjunct particle Irish, Old (to 900);: nicon "not". This form survives in Modern Irish as Irish: fuil, in Gaelic as Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: (bh)eil, and in Manx as Manx: nel/Manx: vel, all of which are used as the dependent equivalent of the verb for "is".
Scottish Gaelic retains traces of both the absolute/conjunct distinction and the deuterotonic/prototonic distinction. The absolute/conjunct distinction is retained in the habitual present tense (also used as, and often referred to as, the future tense) of regular and many irregular verbs. In these cases, the independent form of the verb ends in -(a)idh (cf. Old Irish Irish, Old (to 900);: gaibid above), while the dependent form drops this ending (cf. Old Irish Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gaib above). For example:
| Independent | Dependent | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: glacaidh | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: glac | will grasp | |
| Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: òlaidh | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: òl | will drink | |
| Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: cluinnidh | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: cluinn | will hear | |
| Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: ruigidh | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: ruig | will reach |
In other irregular verbs, the independent/dependent distinction (found in both the habitual present and in the past) is inherited from the Old Irish deuterotonic/prototonic distinction. For example:
| Independent | Dependent | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: chì | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: faic | will see | |
| Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: chunnaic | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: faca | saw | |
| Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: gheibh | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: faigh | will get | |
| Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: chaidh | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: deachaidh | went |
The situation in Manx is very similar to that in Scottish Gaelic. The future tense has the ending -ee in the independent form, which in many verbs is dropped in the dependent form. In addition, dependent forms undergo various initial mutations in Manx. For example:
| Independent | Dependent | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manx: tilgee | Manx: dilg | will throw | |
| Manx: faagee | Manx: n'aag / Manx: v'aag | will leave | |
| Manx: eeee | Manx: n'ee | will eat | |
| Manx: cluinnee | Manx: gluin | will hear |
In Manx too, remnants of the deuterotonic/prototonic distinction of Old Irish are found in the independent/dependent distinction in some irregular verbs, for example:
| Independent | Dependent | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manx: va | Manx: row | was | |
| Manx: nee | Manx: jean | will do | |
| Manx: honnick | Manx: naik / Manx: vaik | saw | |
| Manx: hie | Manx: jagh | went |
In Early Modern Irish, the absolute/conjunct distinction was on the wane. It was less thoroughgoing than in Old Irish, but more than in the modern languages. In the conjunct of the present tense, endingless forms like Old Irish Irish, Old (to 900);: ·gair (cf. Gaelic Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: glac and Manx Manx: dilg above[4]) were gradually being replaced by forms with the ending -(e)ann. The distinction was found not only in the 3rd person singular, but also in the 1st and 3rd persons plural. Thus in Early Modern Irish, distinctions like the following were made:
| Independent | Dependent | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Irish: molaidh | Irish: mol / Irish: molann | praises | |
| Irish: molmaoid | Irish: molam | we praise | |
| Irish: molaid | Irish: molad | they praise |
The distinction was also found in the 1st and 3rd persons of the future tense:
| Independent | Dependent | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Irish: molfad | Irish: molabh | I will praise | |
| Irish: molfaidh | Irish: molfa | s/he will praise | |
| Irish: molfamaoid | Irish: molfam | we will praise | |
| Irish: molfaid | Irish: molfad | they will praise |
In Modern Irish, all of these distinctions have been lost. Sometimes it is the independent form that was generalized (e.g. Irish: molfaidh "will praise"), sometimes the dependent form (e.g. Irish: molann "praises").
However, the deuterotonic/prototonic distinction is still found in many irregular verbs, for example:
| Independent | Dependent | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Irish: bhí | Irish: raibh | was | |
| Irish: rinne | Irish: dearna | made | |
| Irish: gheobhadh | Irish: faigheadh | would find | |
| Irish: chonaic | Irish: faca | saw | |
| Irish: chuaigh | Irish: deachaigh | went |
Irish has two types of relative clause: direct and indirect (see Irish syntax#Relative clauses for details). The distinction between them is shown firstly by the fact that the relative particle Irish: a triggers lenition of the following verb in direct relatives but eclipsis of the verb in indirect relatives, and secondly (where the distinction is made) it takes the independent form of the verb in direct relatives and the dependent form in indirect relatives. For example:
Irish also has two types of conditional clause, which are introduced by two different words for "if": Irish: má introduces realis clauses, and Irish: dá introduces irrealis clauses. Realis clauses indicate conditionals with a possible fulfillment (e.g. "if he is agreeable", which leaves open the possibility that he is), while irrealis clauses indicate purely hypothetical conditionals (e.g. "if it were a nice day", but it isn't). The realis particle Irish: má triggers lenition of the following verb and takes the independent form, while the irrealis particle Irish: dá triggers eclipsis and takes the dependent form. For example: