Leis an, ar an urú

Irish162018

Hi there,

Although I attended an Irish school, I’m now doubting my ability. While watching “Bliain in Inis Mór”, I noticed that one resident said “ar an oileán”, should it not be “ar an t-oileán”? What about “leis an t-aire stát” or “leis an aire stát”?.

Thanks

Insect Overlord

Ag an, ar an, as an, chuig an, faoin, ón, leis an, roimh an, thar an, tríd an - dative case, no urú, so "ar an oiléan", "leis an aire", etc.

An + masculine nouns beginning with vowels (aire, oileán, arán, úl) take "t-" when the noun starts with a small letter, and no dash when it's a capital letter.
For example, an t-oileán = the island, an tAire Stáit = the Government Minister.

deirdremf

Insect Overlord wrote: »

Ag an, ar an, as an, chuig an, faoin, ón, leis an, roimh an, thar an, tríd an - dative case, no urú, so "ar an oiléan", "leis an aire", etc.

Of course there's usually an urú, except not in this case because the word starts with a vowel.
Not in Donegal though, where they use a séimhiú.