The Count/Mass Distinction of Celtic Languages:

Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Welsh

By: Jeffrey Wang and Alice Guo Plurals and Duals
Introduction
Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Welsh all have plural suffixes
• Part of Indo-European language family that can only combine with count nouns. Additionally,
• Consists of six languages Numerals Scottish Gaelic and Welsh indicate plurality through
○ Breton, Cornish, Irish, Manx, Scottish Gaelic, and Welsh phonological mutations.
Traditional Irish and Scottish Gaelic use a vigesimal counting system.
• Irish 1a) cara 1a) gloinne
Conversely, Welsh numerals only utilize a decimal system. 1. ychydig iawn o ffoaduriaid
○ Over 77 000 speakers in the Republic of Ireland All three Celtic languages have monomorphemic numerals for 1 - 10, which ‘a friend’ ‘glass’
few very of refugees
○ Almost 98 000 speakers in Northern Ireland then combine to form larger, multimorphemic numerals. Irish and Scottish b) carad b) gloinneachan
‘very few refugees’
• Scottish Gaelic Gaelic denote larger numbers by stating the cardinal digit followed by the ‘friends’ ‘glasses’
2.ychydig o hunanhyder
○ Over 57 000 speakers in Scotland corresponding base numeral, which consists of multiples of 10 or 20. Count 2a) tae Irish 2a)‘ bainne
a.bit of self-confidence
○ Also speakers in Nova Scotia, Canada nouns are situated between the cardinal number and the base. . ‘tea’ ‘milk’
‘a bit of self-confidence’
• Welsh 1 aon Irish 1 aon Scottish Gaelic b) mo chuid tae b)
. bainneachan
(King 2002; 130)
○ Almost 361 000 speakers in Wales 2 dó 2 dà . ‘my tea’ ‘???’

○ Also speakers in Patagonia, Argentina 3 trí cúig bliana is trí fichid 3 trì naoi N deug air fhichead (Baoill 2010; 177, (MacAulay, 2009; 207)
Welsh
10 deich five year and three twenty 10 deich nine N ten and twenty 187) Scottish Gaelic
13 trí déag ‘sixty-five years’ (65) 13 trì deug ‘thirty-nine N’ (39)
(lit. three teen) (lit. three teen)
Quantifiers
(Baoill 2010; 179-180) (Dochartaigh 2009; 55) (Gillies 2010; 263) Welsh quantifiers do not seem to show a count/mass
Welsh dictates the base numeral, a multiple of 10, followed by the cardinal distinction. However, count nouns will take a plural suffix in
Determiners and DPs a quantified context, while mass nouns will remain
digit. Additionally, all numeral information precedes the count noun.
Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Welsh all allow for bare singulars. singular. 2a cymaint o llanast
Singular count nouns trigger an indefinite interpretation, 1 un 4 pedwar (M) / pedair (F) un deg pump dau ddeg saith o fechgyn so much of mess
while the interpretation of bare mass and plural count nouns 2 dau (M) / dwy (F) 5 pump one ten five two ten seven of boys
No clear Scottish Gaelic or Irish “so much mess”
becomes ambiguous; the English glosses must adhere to 3 tri (M) / tair (F) ‘fifteen’ (15) ‘twenty-seven boys’ (27)
quantification examples were
2b cymaint o kwestignau
English syntax and will thus always remain bare. found with respect to mass nouns.
(Thomas 2010; 419-421) Welsh so many of questions

Both D-quantification and A- “so many questions”

1a) lahm 2a) balaich 2c) am bata mor 3a) y dyn quantification is available in all (King 2002; 130)
The literature does not provide evidence for the direct combination of numerals three languages. Welsh
hand ‘boys’ / ‘a boys?’ the large boat the man
and mass nouns, nor the use of interjecting classifiers, in any of the Celtic
‘a hand’ 2b) na balaich
‘the large boat’ ‘the man’ languages. One example suggests that Irish uses container phrases for
1b) an lamh the boys combining numerals with mass nouns, but more evidence is required to
2d) bata mor 3b) dyn da Count/Mass Distinction
the hand ‘the boys’ substantiate this claim.
large boat man good
‘the hand’ (MacAulay, 2009; We hypothesize that Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Welsh are
(Dochartaigh, 211 - example ‘a large boat’ ‘a good man’ An mbeadh briseadh fiche punt agat? all number-marking languages. This is due to the existence
2009; 54 – 281a) (MacAulay, 2009; 194 (Thomas, 2012; Q be- COND change twenty pound at.you of plural markers in all three languages, which only pattern
examples 133 – examples 218a and 288 - examples 123 ‘Would you have twenty pounds (of) change?’ with count nouns. No conclusive evidence was offered by
218b) and 127) . (Baoill 2010; 203 - example 63) Irish investigating DPs, quantifiers, or numeral phrases.
and 134)
Irish Scottish Gaelic Welsh