AN GAODHAL.
79
A nation which allows her language to go to ruin
parting with the best of her intellectual independence,
and testifies to her willingness to cease to exist." — ARCH¬
BISHOP TRENCH.
"The Green Isle contained for more centuries than one,
more learning than could have been collected from the rest
of Europe ... It is not thus rash to say that the Irish
possess contemporary histories of their country, written in
the language of the people, from the fifth century. No
other nation of modern Europe is able to make a similar
boast. — SPALDING'S ENGLISH LITERATURE, APPLETON & Co.,
NEW YORK.
Who are the Scotch? A tribe of Irish Scots who crossed
over in the 6th century, overcome the natives, and gave
their name to the country. — J. CORNWELL, PH.D., F. R. S.'s
Scotch History.
The Saxons Ruled in England from the 5th century and
were so rude that they had no written language until the
14th, when the Franco-Normans formulated the English. —
SPALDING.
The
Gael.
A monthly Journal devoted to the Cultivation
and Preservation of the Irish Language and
the autonomy of the Irish Nation.
Published at 247 Kosciusko st., Brooklyn. N. Y
Editor and Proprietor
M. J. LOGAN,
Terms of Subscription — $1 a year to students, 60
cents to the public, in advance; $1. in arrears.
Terms of Advertising — 20 cents a line, Agate
Entered at the Brooklyn P. O. as 2nd-class matte
Fifteenth Year of Publication.
VOL 11, No. 7. FEBRUARY. 1896.
Remember that the First Irish Book is given free
of charge to every new subscriber.
Subscribers will please remember that subscrip¬
tions are due in advance.
The Gael is very proud to report that there is
excellent Gaelic news this month from all parts
of Ireland — North and South, Gaelic Classes be¬
ing organized by the Gaelic League.
This issue of the Gael is highly interesting. —
Apart from Professor O'Growney's installment of
Part IV. of his Simple Lessons, it contains excel¬
lent poems, Irish and English, on the Venezuelan
Message to Congress by A Lally, and P A Dough¬
er. Also, the conclusion of M McC's Fairy Slip-
pers: the second installment of Goliah of the
Black Feet; the commencement of an English I¬
rish Vocabulary of unusual Irish words, and,
though last not least, O'Donnell Aboo, in Irish
and English — the Irish National anthem, which
is highly appropriate at this time
Can any Irishman with a tint of Irishism run-
ning through his pulse, afford to have the Gael's
place vacant in his library?
SIMPLE LESSONS IN IRISH.
FOURTH SERIES. — Written for the GAEL
BY
Rev. EUGENE O'GROWNEY.
PROF OF KELTIC in Maynooth College
(Continued from page 69.)
LESSON II.
The Gender of Irish Nouns.
9. The rules for the gender of I¬
rish nouns are closely connected
with the rules for their aspiration
and declension. It is impossible to
know any one of these without
knowing all three. We purpose to
have them all together in these
lessons.
10. In the Lessons, Second Series,
Nos. 424-429, the rules for ascer¬
taining the gender of ordinary
words are given as follow: —
Beings having animal life are
divided, as to sex, into male and fe¬
male. The words which are NAMES
for beings of the male sex are said
to be of the masculine gender, and
the words which are names for be¬
ings of the female sex are said to
be of the feminine gender. Thus
the following words are of mascu¬
line gender: fear, a man; capail, a
horse; tarbh, a bull; coileach, a cock;
flaith, a prince; spealadón, (spal'¬
ādh-ōr), a mower. These others
are feminine; bean, a woman; cail¬
leach (Kal'-āCH), an old woman; láir,
a mare; bó, a cow; cearc, a hen etc.
11. But in Gaelic, as in Latin and
most other languages, even things
without life are personified, and
some of them are said to be of the
masculine and others of the femi¬
inine gender.
12. In English, words which are names of things
not having life are said to be of the neuter gen¬
der, that is, neither masculine nor feminine. In
many other languages also there is a neuter gend¬
er, and this was the case in the older Gaelic.
