Punctuation in Irish
Irish punctuation in terms of capitalisation mostly follows the same set rules as in English, however there are some specific rules in terms of the use of hyphens and special characters that learners must be aware of.
Fleiscín (hyphen)
The hyphen is used in written Irish after the letters n and t when prefixed to a vowel as an initial mutation. Common examples include the definite article an followed by a masculine singular noun or after the plural possessive pronouns, both before words beginning with vowels.
an t-asal
the donkey
ár n-iníon
our daughter
The hyphen is also used in the following contexts …
In compound words:
between two vowels: mí-ádh
between two of the same consonants: droch-chaoi, réamh-mhíosta
when a compound is composed of three or more parts: buan-chomhchoiste
the prefixes fo-, do- and so- before bha-, bhra-, bhla-, dha-, gha-, ghla-, mha-: so-bhlasta, so-ghalaiteacht
in capitalised titles: an Príomh-Aire
After certain suffixes:
an- (very): an-deacair, an-mhór, an-ard
dea- (nice): dea-aimsir, dea-rún
With emphatic possessive pronouns:
when two -s s- come together: mo sheans-sa
when two -n n- come together: ár gcáin-ne
With the emphatic 3rd person masculine pronoun with a double consonat:
leis-sean, as-san, thairis-sean
m’fhear
my husband
d’ith
ate
Uaschamóg (apostrophe)
The apostrophe is used in Irish in various contexts but most notably when a particle or preposition ending in a vowel comes before another noun beginning with a vowel itself.
The apostrophe is used in the following contexts …
The prepositions de and do become d’ before a vowel or fh + vowel:
de/do + fear = d’fhear
do/de + each = d’each
do/de + fógra = d’fhógra
The possessive mo (my) and do (your - sg.) become m’ and d’ respectively before a vowel or fh + vowel:
mo + athair = m’athair
do + ubh = d’ubh
mo + feabhas + m’fheabhas
do + fírinne = d’fhírinne
The particle ‘do’ to mark the past tense :
when two -s s- come together: mo sheans-sa
when two -n n- come together: ár gcáin-ne
With the emphatic 3rd person masculine pronoun with a double consonat:
leis-sean, as-san, thairis-sean