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Medieval Scotland | Scottish Medieval Bibliography Index | Languages

Pronunciation of Scottish Gaelic Consonants
Draft Edition

by Sharon L. Krossa

This article is a revision of a posting on the subject Consonant Groups that I made to the Gaidhlig-B mailing list on 4 Dec 1996. I've added more English-based explanations of the sounds for the benefit of those unfamiliar with technical phonetic descriptions. Although it is addressing the pronunciation of consonants in modern Scottish Gaelic, it can also reasonably be used as an approximation of the pronunciation of consonants in late medieval/early modern Gaelic in Scotland and Ireland.

Many English speakers have the impression that Gaelic spelling is particularly difficult, unpredictable, even random, but this is mainly because they are trying to interpret it based on their knowledge of English and other languages that they know. And from that perspective it really doesn't make any sense because many Gaelic spelling and pronunciation rules are very different from English or any other language -- they're uniquely Gaelic. But once you learn Gaelic spelling and pronunciation rules, you'll discover that the relationship between spelling and pronunciation is actually much more regular and predictable in Gaelic than in English.

So, here is my little dissertation on modern Scottish Gaelic phonemes, and their relation to Gaelic spelling. Some of it looks scary and technical to people who aren't used to formal phonetics, but don't worry that you have to understand all the jargon if you want to speak Gaelic -- I've included more approachable explanations, as well. However, some people may find the technical stuff helpful -- I know that for me knowing these technicalities has made it a lot easier for me to sound less like a learner (not that I'm totally successful, but still ;-). I'm one of those people for whom it really is easier to be told something is an "aspirated voiceless dental stop" than to be told "it sounds like this [insert demonstration here]". So for people who learn the way I do, I offer this (and people who learn other ways may ignore the jargon!)

First, keep in mind that there is a certain amount of variation depending on dialect, and also that in certain words things don't go according to the "rules" -- language is what people do, not what they "ought" to do! Also, the description below, believe it or not, is actually somewhat simplified, and does not cover all situations. So, if you know a dialect that does something different, I'm not surprised!

Most Gaelic written consonants vary in pronunciation based on whether they are

1. a. broad (nearest <a>, <o>, and/or <u>)
   for example, the <s> in Gaelic <sabhal>, <feusag>, and <crios>
   or
   b. slender (nearest <e> and/or <i>)
   for example, the <s> in Gaelic <seachd>, <càise>, and <aois>
2. a. lenited (usually but not always indicated by following <h> in spelling)
   for example, the <ch> in <seachd> and the <l> in <mo làmh>
   or
   b. unlenited
   for example, the <c> in <càise> and the <l> in <làmh>

So, given that in Gaelic we have twelve consonant letters (ignoring h for the moment) b, c, d, f, g, l, m, n, p, r, s, t, that means theoretically there could be up to 48 different actual sounds -- but luckily, some of them overlap! For example, broad lenited <bh> is pronounced the same as broad lenited <mh> and slender lenited <dh> is pronounced the same as slender lenited <gh>.

In the discussion below, I will put phonetic symbols for the sounds between / /, and the actual spelled letters between < >, since it is important to distinguish between the spelling and the sound, and to associate the sound to the spelling. Keep in mind that the symbols between / / don't necessarily mean the same thing as they do in English! In particular, /b/, /d/, and /g/ are not the same as those symbols/letters in English phonetics (in English they are voiced, while in Gaelic they are unvoiced -- see below for more information). The symbols used between / / are as close as I can get in this computer medium to what was used in the Gaelic linguistics class I took, which is a common system used for representing Gaelic phonetics. But to understand their value, check the verbal description of the sound, not what the symbol would be in English or in any other phonetic symbol system. (Note in particular that the system used is not standard IPA.)

Consonant Sound Description Basics

The two main components of a consonant sound are:

1. Where in the mouth it is made (place of articulation):
   1. bilabial (with both lips)
      for example, like the <p> in English <pill>
      or
   2. labio-dental (with lower teeth to upper lip)
      for example, like the <f> and in English <fill>
      or
   3. dental (with tongue to upper teeth)
      for example, like the <th> in English <thin>
      or
   4. alveolar (with tongue to the alveolar ridge -- the ridge behind your upper front teeth)
      for example, like the <s> in English <sill>
      or
   5. post-alveolar (with tongue to just behind the alveolar ridge)
      for example, like the <sh> in English <shill>
      or
   6. palatal (with tongue to hard part at the front of the roof of your mouth)
      for example, like the <k> in English <keep>
      or
   7. velar (with tongue to soft part at the back of the roof of your mouth)
      for example, like the <k>s in English <kook>
2. How it is made (method of articulation):
   1. stop (the flow of air is halted totally for a moment)
      for example, like the <p> in English <pill>
      or
   2. nasal (the flow of air is halted through the mouth, but allowed to go through the nose)
      for example, like the <m> and <n> in English <mill> and <nil>
      or
   3. fricative (air flows through continuously, with audible friction)
      for example, like the <f> and <v> in English <fill> and <village>
      or
   4. lateral approximate (flow of air is halted through the center of the mouth, but allowed to flow to the sides of the mouth)
      for example, like the <l> in English <lily>
      or
   5. tap or flap, and trill
      (sounds not found in most dialects of American English -- see below for more information)

The sound is also affected by being either:

1. voiced (if you put your hand on your throat at the voice box, it is vibrating)
   for example, like the <v> and <z> in English <village> and <zillion>
   or
2. unvoiced or voiceless (no vibration)
   for example, like the <f> and <s> in English <fill> and <sill>

(So, the difference between <f> and <v> in English is that <f> is unvoiced, while <v> is voiced; likewise with English <s> and <z>.)

Stops are also affected by being either:

1. aspirated (there is an audible little puff of air, either before or after)
   or
2. unaspirated (there is no audible puff of air)

And finally, some consonants can also be palatalized (in addition to the main place of articulation, part of the tongue is also pressed to the hard part at the front of the roof of your mouth) and some consonants can also be velarized (in addition to the main place of articulation, part of the tongue is also pressed to the soft part at the back of the roof of your mouth).

Scottish Gaelic Phonemes

I'm going to organize these phonemes by Gaelic spelling, and leave it as an exercise to sort it out in ways helpful to yourself by either location or method of articulation ;-). The place of articulation (where the sound is made) is the second to last term in each verbal description. The method of articulation (how it is made) is the last term in each verbal description. Additional information (voiced/voiceless, aspirated/unaspirated, palatalized, etc) on how and sometimes where it is made comes in the other terms in each verbal description.

<B> & <BH>

• broad unlenited <b> = unaspirated voiceless bilabial stop /b/
  for example, in Gaelic <bàs>, <obair>, and <pìob>
  pronounced similarly to the <p>s in English <pope>, only without any puff of air
  (as a consequence, to English speakers at the start of a word or syllable it seems to sound like an English <b>, but at the end of a word or syllable they recognize that it is voiceless like an English <p>)
• slender unlenited <b> = unaspirated voiceless bilabial stop /b/
  for example, in Gaelic <beag>, <caibe>, and <glàib>
  pronounced similarly to the <p>s in English <peep>, only without any puff of air
  (as a consequence, to English speakers at the start of a word or syllable it seems to sound like an English <b>, but at the end of a word or syllable they recognize that it is voiceless like an English <p>)
• broad lenited <bh> = voiced labio-dental fricative /v/
  [sometimes broad <bh> in the middle or at the end of a word is silent]
  pronounced like the <v>s in English <vote> and <move>
• slender lenited <bh> = voiced labio-dental fricative /v/
  [sometimes slender <bh> in the middle or at the end of a word is silent]
  pronounced like the <v>s in English <veer> and <peeve>

<C> & <CH>

• broad unlenited <c> = aspirated voiceless velar stop /k/
  pronounced like the <k>s in English <kook> (with a puff of air – though note that in Gaelic the puff of air comes between the vowel and the consonant)
• slender unlenited <c> = aspirated voiceless palatal stop /k'/
  pronounced like the <k>s in English <keep> and <peek> (with a puff of air – though note that in Gaelic the puff of air comes between the vowel and the consonant)
• broad lenited <ch> = voiceless velar fricative /x/
  not commonly found in English, a rasping sound pronounced like the <ch>s in Scottish <loch> and German <ach> and <Bach>
• slender lenited <ch> = voiceless palatal fricative /ç/ (c with a cedilla) also /k'/
  not commonly found in English, a rasping sound pronounced like the <ch>s in Scots <bricht muinlicht nicht the nicht> and German <ich>

<D> & <DH>

• broad unlenited <d> = unaspirated voiceless dental stop /d/
  pronounced similarly to the <t>s in English <tote>, only without any puff of air
  (as a consequence, to English speakers at the start of a word or syllable it seems to sound like an English <d>, but at the end of a word or syllable they recognize that it is voiceless like an English <t>)
• slender unlenited <d> = unaspirated voiceless palatalized dental stop /d'/
  not normally found in English, the closest English comes is the sound of the <j> and <dg> in English <judge>
• broad lenited <dh> = voiced velar fricative /γ/ (lowercase gamma)
  [sometimes broad <dh> in the middle or at the end of a word is silent]
  not normally found in English, except in some dialects as the drawn out sound of the <gh> in <Ugh!> or <Ughgh!>, it is the voiced version of the rasping sound of the <ch>s in Scottish <loch> and German <ach> and <Bach>
• slender lenited <dh> = voiced palatal fricative /j/ (symbol should really have a curlier tale)
  pronounced roughly like the <y> in English <yes>

<F> & <FH>

• broad unlenited <f> = voiceless labio-dental fricative /f/
  pronounced like the <f>s in English <food> and <roof>
• slender unlenited <f> = voiceless labio-dental fricative /f/
  pronounced like the <f>s in English <fief>
• broad lenited <fh> = (normally silent) / /, (sometimes) voiceless glottal fricative /h/
  normally silent, sometimes pronounced like the <h> in English <hoop>
• slender lenited <fh> = (normally silent) / /, (sometimes) voiceless glottal fricative /h/
  normally silent, sometimes pronounced like the <h> in English <heap>

<G> & <GH>

• broad unlenited <g> = unaspirated voiceless velar stop /g/
  pronounced like the <k>s in English <kook>, only without any puff of air
  (as a consequence, to English speakers at the start of a word or syllable it seems to sound like an English "hard" <g>, but at the end of a word or syllable they recognize that it is voiceless like an English <k>)
• slender unlenited <g> = unaspirated voiceless palatal stop /g'/
  pronounced like the <k>s in English <keep> and <peek>, only without any puff of air
  (as a consequence, to English speakers at the start of a word or syllable it seems to sound like an English "hard" <g>, but at the end of a word or syllable they recognize that it is voiceless like an English <k>)
• broad lenited <gh> = voiced velar fricative /γ/ (lowercase gamma) (sometimes broad <gh> in the middle or at the end of a word is silent)
  not normally found in English, except in some dialects as the drawn out sound of the <gh> in <Ugh!> or <Ughgh!>, it is the voiced version of the rasping sound of the <ch>s in Scottish <loch> and German <ach> and <Bach>
• slender lenited <gh> = voiced palatal fricative /j/ (should really have a curlier tale ;-)
  pronounced roughly like the <y> in English <yes>

<M> & <MH>

• broad unlenited <m> = voiced bilabial nasal /m/
  pronounced like the <m>s in English <moon> and <room>
• slender unlenited <m> = voiced bilabial nasal /m/
  pronounced like the <m>s in English <mean> and <ream>
• broad lenited <mh> = voiced labio-dental fricative /v/ (sometimes broad <mh> in the middle or at the end of a word is silent)
  pronounced like the <v>s in English <vote> and <move>
• slender lenited <mh> = voiced labio-dental fricative /v/ (sometimes slender <mh> in the middle or at the end of a word is silent)
  pronounced like the <v>s in English <veer> and <leave>

<P> & <PH>

• broad unlenited <p> = aspirated voiceless bi-labial stop /p/
  pronounced similarly to the <p>s in English <pope> (with a puff of air – though note that in Gaelic the puff of air comes between the vowel and the consonant)
• slender unlenited <p> = aspirated voiceless bi-labial stop /p/
  pronounced similarly to the <p>s in English <peep> (with a puff of air – though note that in Gaelic the puff of air comes between the vowel and the consonant)
• broad lenited <ph> = voiceless labio-dental fricative /f/
  pronounced like the <f>s in English <food> and <roof> (so, pronounced like the <ph> in English <phooey>)
• slender lenited <ph> = voiceless labio-dental fricative /f/
  pronounced like the <f>s in English <fief> (so, pronounced like the <ph> in English <phoenix>)

<S> & <SH>

• broad unlenited <s> = voiceless alveolar fricative /s/
  pronounced like the <s>s in English <soon> and <noose>
• slender unlenited <s> = voiceless post-alveolar fricative /∫ / (integral symbol)
  pronounced like the <sh> in English <sheep> and <leash>
• broad lenited <sh> = voiceless glottal fricative /h/
  pronounced like the <h> in English <hoop>
• slender lenited <sh> = voiceless glottal fricative /h/
  pronounced like the <h> in English <heap>

<T> & <TH>

• broad unlenited <t> = aspirated voiceless dental stop /t/
  pronounced similarly to the <t>s in English <tote> (with a puff of air – though note that in Gaelic the puff of air comes between the vowel and the consonant)
• slender unlenited <t> = aspirated voiceless palatalized dental stop /t'/
  not normally found in English, the closest English comes is the sound of the <ch>s in English <cheep> and <beach>
• broad lenited <th> = voiceless glottal fricative /h/ (sometimes broad <th> is silent)
  normally pronounced like the <h> in English <hoop>, sometimes silent
• slender lenited <th> = voiceless glottal fricative /h/ (sometimes slender <th> is silent)
  normally pronounced like the <h> in English <heap>, sometimes silent

<L>, <N> & <R>

<L>, <n>, and <r> are a little different from the other consonants. How they are pronounced depends on being:

1. a. broad
   or
   b. slender
2. a. single (<n>)
   or
   b. double (<nn>) (only a factor in medial or final position)
3. a. in initial position (<n-> at the start of a word )
   or
   b. in medial position (<-n[n]-> in the middle of a word)
   or
   c. in final position (<-n[n]> at the end of a word)
4. a. unlenited
   or
   b. lenited (not shown in spelling, only a factor in initial position)

This could make for a lot of different sounds, but luckily most dialects confine themselves to only three each (with some dialects having only one or two for <r>). Again, keep in mind this is simplified and does not apply to all dialects. I'm going to organize this by sound, rather than spelling.

<L>

For <l>, we have three sounds:

1. /l/ voiced alveolar lateral approximate
   pronounced like to the <l>s in English <low> and <lean>
   found:
   1. broad single initial lenited
      for example, in Gaelic <mo làmh>
   2. slender single initial lenited
      for example, in Gaelic <mo leabhar>
   3. slender single medial
      for example, in Gaelic <baile>
   4. slender single final
      for example, in Gaelic <mil>
2. /L/ voiced velarized dental lateral approximate
   not found in English, it can be described as saying an "l" sound while the tip of the tongue is sticking out and pressed up against the upper front teeth (that is, with the tongue in the position used for the <th> in English <thought> and <booth>, saying an "l" sound)
   found:
   1. broad single initial unlenited
      for example, in Gaelic <làmh>
   2. broad single medial
      for example, in Gaelic <balach>
   3. broad single final
      for example, in Gaelic <càl>
   4. broad double medial
      for example, in Gaelic <balla>
   5. broad double final
      for example, in Gaelic <dall>
3. /L'/ voiced palatal lateral approximate
   not normally found in English, it is pronounced like the <ll>s in Spanish <tortilla> and French <fille>; the closest English usually comes is the <lli> in English <million> and the like
   found:
   1. slender single initial unlenited
      for example, in Gaelic <leabhar>
   2. slender double medial
      for example, in Gaelic <cailleach>
   3. slender double final
      for example, in Gaelic <till>

<N>

For <n>, we have three sounds:

1. /n/ voiced alveolar nasal
   pronounced like to the <n>s in English <noon>, <near>, and <keen>
   found:
   1. slender single initial lenited
      for example, in Gaelic <mo neart>
   2. broad single initial lenited
      for example, in Gaelic <mo nàbaidh>
   3. broad single medial
      for example, in Gaelic <manach>
   4. broad single final
      for example, in Gaelic <ròn>
2. /N/ voiced velarized dental nasal
   not found in English, it can be described as saying an "n" sound while the tip of the tongue is sticking out and pressed up against the upper front teeth (that is, with the tongue in the position used for the <th> in English <thought> and <booth>, saying an "n" sound)
   found:
   1. broad single initial unlenited
      for example, in Gaelic <nàbaidh>
   2. broad double medial
      for example, in Gaelic <beannachd>
   3. broad double final
      for example, in Gaelic <donn>
3. /N'/ voiced palatal nasal
   not normally found in English, it is pronounced like the <ñ> in Spanish <señor> and the <gn>s in French <montagne> and Italian <lasagna>; the closest English usually comes is the <ny> in English <canyon>, the <ni> in English <minion>, and the like
   found:
   1. slender single initial unlenited
      for example, in Gaelic <neart>
   2. slender single medial
      for example, in Gaelic <teine>
   3. slender single final
      for example, in Gaelic <min>
   4. slender double medial
      for example, in Gaelic <bainne>
   5. slender double final
      for example, in Gaelic <beinn>

<R>

For <r>, there are a ton of different realizations, depending on dialect. I learned using a single alveolar tap for all <r>s except slender single medial/final, for which I use a voiced dental fricative. I'm not even sure if this maps to a real dialect -- it could be a hybrid! Anyway, the upshot of this is for the moment I'm not even going to try to write out an <r> scheme because I need to do some more research first!

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