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Appendix:Welsh mutations

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Welsh, like all modern Celtic languages, is characterized by its initial consonant mutations. These mutations affect the initial consonant of a word under specific morphological and syntactic conditions. The mutations are an important tool in understanding the relationship between two words and can differentiate various meanings.

Welsh uses three mutations on consonants: the soft mutation (segment becomes voiced/lenites), the nasal mutation (segment becomes nasal), and the aspirate mutation (also called spirant mutation). Words beginning with a vowel are subject to h-prothesis under certain circumstances. Some sources consider h-prothesis of vowels to be a form of aspirate mutation, but since the environments of the two mutations are different, it is preferable to consider h-prothesis and aspiration two different mutations. In some circumstances mixed mutation is found, with aspirate mutation of c, p, t, and soft mutation of other mutable consonants.

The unmutated form, i.e. the “basic” form that dictionary entries are listed under, is known as the radical.

Mutations are generally not applied to personal names such as Bob or Gwen. Non-Welsh place names such as Birmingham or Berlin do not usually undergo soft mutation, at least in standard Welsh, but nasal and aspirate mutation is possible, for example ym Mharis (“in Paris”), ym Merlin (“in Berlin”); i Berlin a Pharis (“to Berlin and Paris”).

Differences are heard between different dialects, and between formal and informal Welsh (the soft mutation being more common in informal Welsh).

Soft mutation

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Effects of the soft mutation

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When under soft mutation, radical consonants lenite to voiced and/or fricative segments (/v ð/), as shown below:

Radical Soft mutation
c /k/ g /ɡ/
p /p/ b /b/
t /t/ d /d/
g /ɡ/ ∅ (deleted)
b /b/ f /v/
d /d/ dd /ð/
m /m/ f /v/
(ll) /ɬ/ (l) /l/
(rh) /r̥/ (r) /r/

Partial soft mutation

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In some situations c, p, t, g, b, d, m mutate but ll and rh do not. This partial soft mutation applies mainly after r and n:

  • after the definite article y or 'r with feminine singular nouns, e.g. y llaw (“the hand”), y rheol (“the rule”), i'r rhaeadr (“to the waterfall”)
  • after un (“one”), with feminine singular nouns, e.g. un llaw (“one hand”), un rheol (“one rule”)
  • after predicative yn, e.g. mae'n rhyfedd (“it's strange”), mae'n rheolwr da (“he's a good manager”)
  • after cyn (“as”), mor (“so”) and pur (“quite”), e.g. mor rhesymol (“so reasonable”)
  • sometimes after n and r in compounds, e.g. gwinllan (“vineyard”), anrheg (“gift”), morllyn (“lagoon”)

In other circumstances, for example in a noun + adjective or adjective + noun combination, ll and rh mutate even after n and r: cyfran resymol (“a reasonable share”), hen lyfr (“an old book”).

Other Welsh consonants such as ff or s or ch do not undergo mutation. A word which has already undergone mutation (such as beth (“what”), short for pa beth (“what thing?”)) cannot be mutated a second time. Mutation is also not usually used in personal names such as Gwen or Dafydd. The g of recent English borrowings such as gêm (“game”), gerbocs (“gearbox”), golff (“golf”) does not mutate. The b of braf (“fine (of weather)”) also does not change.

The mutation of ts → j sometimes occurs in colloquial language but not in the literary register. It is found only in loanwords from English, e.g. chips is rendered as tsips in Welsh and with the mutated form jips.

Soft mutation and gender

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In some circumstances the soft mutation only applies when the head noun of a noun phrase is feminine singular, but not when it is masculine or plural. These are:

  • after the definite article y or 'r, e.g.
  • after a feminine singular noun when it is qualified by a following adjective or descriptive noun, e.g.
  • after un (“one, same”), e.g.
  • after an ordinal number, e.g.

When the noun is masculine singular, or plural of either gender, in any of these situations, there is no mutation of the noun or the adjective:

When an adjective precedes its noun, the soft mutation applies to both masculine and feminine nouns, and to both singular and plural, but the article mutates only the feminine singular adjective:

The number dau, dwy (“two”) is an exception to the above rules, since it mutates after the definite article even when masculine, and it also causes mutation in a following noun of either gender:

The ordinal number ail (“second”) is another exception, since unlike other ordinals it mutates both genders:

The numbers tri, tair (“three”), pedwar, pedair (“four”), pump (“five”) and higher numbers do not mutate after the article or cause soft mutation even when feminine:

"His" and "her"

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Another circumstance where gender affects mutation is with the possessive adjective ei (“his her, its”) (which is sometimes shortened to 'i or 'w). When this word refers to a masculine noun or male person, it triggers the soft mutation, and when to a feminine one, the aspirate mutation:

  • ei gar (e) (“his car”)
  • ei char (hi) (“her car”)

If the noun begins with a consonant other than p/c/t, the soft mutation alone indicates the masculine referent, while the feminine has no mutation:

  • ei fam (“his mother”)
  • ei mam (“her mother”)

When the following word starts with a vowel, the difference between "his" and "her" is shown by the absence or presence of prothetic h-:

Prothetic h- is also found after the possessives ein (“our”) and eu (“their”) but without distinction of gender.

The same rules apply when ei ('i, 'w) is used with a verb-noun as equivalent to the object pronoun "him, her, it":

  • i'w brynu (“in order to buy it”) (e.g. a dog, masculine) (literally, "for his buying")
  • i'w phrynu (“in order to buy it”) (e.g. a cat, feminine) (literally, "for her buying")
  • i'w osgoi (“to avoid him”)
  • i'w hosgoi (“to avoid her”)

When 'i is used as an object pronoun after fe (affirmative particle) or a (“who”) and before a full verb, the gender distinction is neutralised and is shown not by mutation but by adding the pronoun hi (“her”) or e or o (“him”):

Environments of the soft mutation

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After the definite article

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The definite article y, yr, ’r triggers soft mutation of a feminine noun in the singular:

It will also trigger mutation in an adjective describing a feminine noun:

Masculine nouns and adjectives and plural nouns of either gender do not mutate after the article:

The only exception is the feminine word pobl, which mutates even when plural:

  • y bobloedd Germanaidd (“the Germanic peoples”) (feminine plural)

In nouns, ll and rh never undergo soft mutation directly after the article, although they do in adjectives:

  • y llong (“the ship”), although llong is feminine singular
  • i’r rhyd (“to the ford”), although rhyd is feminine singular
  • y lonnaf (“the happiest one”) (referring to a feminine singular noun)

After the article, dau (“two”) mutates even when masculine:

The word y or yr (“that”) introducing a relative clause or indirect speech clause does not cause mutation, however:

Noun + adjective

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A feminine singular noun causes mutation in a following adjective:

If there are two adjectives, they are both mutated:

If the article is added to a feminine noun + adjective, both the noun and adjective are mutated:

The word pobl (“people”) is feminine singular, and so is followed by a mutation, even though the adjective which follows it is plural:

Exceptions:

  • d does not mutate to dd after s, e.g. nos da (“goodnight”)
  • Eglwysbach (a village in North Wales) has no mutation, though eglwys is feminine
  • o mam bach! (“goodness me!”, literally “o little mother”)

Masculine nouns and plural nouns (of either gender) do not usually cause mutation except sometimes in titles such as the following:

There are many exceptions to this rule, e.g. Rhodri Mawr (“Rhodri the Great”)

Head noun + descriptive noun

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When the second of two nouns describes or qualifies the first, there is mutation only if the first noun is feminine singular, and if the two nouns together make a kind of compound noun:

If the head noun is masculine, there is no mutation:

In compound nouns of this kind, the phrase takes on the gender of its head noun. Thus since pen (“head”) is masculine, the compound noun pentre takes a masculine adjective, even though tre(f) (“town”) is feminine:

But since siop is feminine, the following compound takes a feminine adjective:

There is no mutation if the head noun is plural (regardless of gender):

There is also no mutation where the second noun is qualified:

There is also no mutation where the second noun is possessive rather than descriptive, or (usually) when it is a name:

  • merch meddyg (“a doctor's daughter”)
  • siop mam Dafydd (“Dafydd's mother's shop”)
  • Ynys Môn (“the island of Anglesey”)
  • Prifysgol Bangor (“Bangor University”)

The rule is, however, broken occasionally in the case of proper names, in certain traditionally used phrases:

Another exception is:

  • gwraig tŷ (“housewife”), shortened from gwraig y tŷ

Adjective + noun

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An adjective usually follows its noun in Welsh, but when the adjective precedes the noun, both genders and both numbers of the noun usually undergo soft mutation:

When the noun is feminine, and the phrase follows the article, both the adjective and the noun undergo mutation; but if masculine, only the noun mutates:

Superlative and comparative adjectives are an exception: they usually follow their noun; but if they precede a masculine noun, they do not cause mutation:

  • y gorau gŵr (“the best man”)
  • gwell dyn (“a better man”)

The word cyntaf (“first”), being a superlative, similarly usually follows its noun; but if it precedes, it only mutates the following noun when feminine:

The ordinal number ail (“second”) mutates both genders:

After other ordinal numbers, masculine nouns are not mutated, but with feminine nouns the noun is mutated, as well as the ordinal itself if the article precedes:

Other exceptions which cause no mutation in a following noun are:

  • pob (“every”), e.g. bob dydd (“every day”)
  • peth (“some”), e.g. peth Cymraeg (“some Welsh”)
  • rhai (“some (plural only)”), e.g. rhai dynion (“some men”)
  • sawl (“several (+ singular noun)”), e.g. sawl prynhawn (“several afternoons”)

Descriptive noun + head noun

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The second part of a compound noun where the first noun qualifies the second also usually has soft mutation in the second noun, irrespective of gender and number. Such compound nouns are usually written as one word:

The letters ll and rh sometimes mutate after n and r:

  • murlun (“wall-picture, mural”), cf. llun (“picture”)
  • môr-leidr (“pirate”, literally “sea-robber”), cf. lleidr (“robber”)
  • môr-ladron (“pirates”)
  • rhanrif (“fraction”, literally “part-number”), cf. rhif (“number”)

But there is sometimes no soft mutation of ll and rh after n and r:

  • gwinllan (“vineyard”, literally “wine-yard”)
  • morllyn (“lagoon”, literally “sea-lake”), cf. llyn (“lake”)

If the head noun is feminine singular and the article is added, both parts of the compound have mutation:

In the following word, however, instead of a soft mutation, -d t- hardens to t (pronounced tt):

  • bwyty (“restaurant”), cf. bwyd (“food”), tŷ (“house”)

Apposition

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A pronoun + noun or noun + noun in apposition also has soft mutation of the second element:

Possessives "your" and "his"

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The possessives dy, ’th (“your (singular)”) and ei, 'i, 'w (“his/its, referring to a masculine noun”) both trigger soft mutation:

This also applies when these words are used as object pronouns with a verb-noun:

But when ei means "her" or "its" referring to a feminine noun, it is followed by the aspirate mutation.

There is no mutation when a shortened object pronoun such as 'm (“me”), 'th (“you”) or 'i (“him/her/it”) follows the affirmative particle fe or the relative pronoun a (“who”) and precedes a full verb, regardless of gender:

Numbers

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One

Feminine nouns are mutated after un (“one; same”), except for those starting with ll and rh:

The letters ll and rh are not mutated in nouns but do mutate in adjectives:

  • un llaw (“one hand”)
  • un ryfedd (“a strange one”) (referring to a feminine singular noun)

Masculine nouns, plurals, and adjectives do not mutate after un:

When un means “similar” it triggers soft mutation of both masculine and feminine nouns in the singular:

Two

After the definite article y, yr, ’r, both genders of the word dau/dwy (“two”) are mutated, and the noun which follows is also mutated:

  • y ddau ddyn (“the two men”)
  • y ddwy wraig (“the two women”)
  • dau wn (“two guns”), cf. gwn (“gun”), a 15th-century borrowing

But the following have no mutation:

Other numbers

Other numbers are not affected by the article, whether masculine or feminine, nor do they usually cause mutation:

But occasionally saith (“seven”) and wyth (“eight”) cause soft mutation of c, p, t, ll, rh:

In addition, tri (“three (when masculine)”) and chwe (“six”) trigger the aspirate mutation in written Welsh; and certain numbers trigger the nasal mutation when followed by blwyddyn (“year”) or diwrnod (“day”) (see below).

Numbers following a plural noun for literary effect are mutated:

Vocative phrases

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The first letter of a noun or noun phrase used for addressing a person or people usually has soft mutation:

  • Bore da, blant (“Good morning, children!”)
  • Foneddigion a boneddigesau! (“Ladies and gentlemen!”, literally “Gentlemen and ladies!”)

After the predicative particle yn

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The predicative particle yn or 'n triggers soft mutation of a noun or adjective except with ll and rh:

  • Rwy’n ddyn rhesymol (“I am a reasonable man”)
  • Roedd y caffi’n wag (“The café was empty”)
  • Mae'r afon yn llydan (“The river is wide”)
  • Mae'n rheolwr da (“He's a good manager”)

The verb form sydd, sy triggers soft mutation of a predicate noun or adjective without using yn:

  • Hynny sydd orau (“that is best”)

But the particle yn before a verb-noun does not usually trigger mutation:

  • Mae hi'n mynd (“She is going”)

There is, however, mutation in a verb-noun if the object comes earlier in the clause, in sentences such as

  • Beth mae e'n werthu? (“What is he selling?”)

After a preposition

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The following prepositions cause mutation in a following noun:

The article blocks the mutation, unless the noun is feminine:

  • ar y bwrdd (“on the table”)

There is no mutation in i ti (“for you”), i mewn (“to inside”), i maes (“to outside”); but both i mi (“for me”) and i fi are used. There is a mutation in o fewn (“within”):

There is also no mutation in:

  • i Parys, short for i Fynydd Parys (“to Parys Mountain”)

Not all prepositions cause soft mutation. The preposition yn (“in”) causes nasal mutation; and â (“with”), gyda (“with”), tua (“towards”) cause aspirate mutation (see below). Other prepositions, such as efo (“with”), cyn (“before”), wedi (“after”), ger (“near”), rhwng (“between”), ar gyfer (“for”), etc. do not cause mutation at all:

Some prepositions incorporate their own initial mutation:

  • dros (“over”)
  • drwy (“through”)
  • dan (“under”)
  • gyda (“with”)
  • gan (“with”)

After the word a (“and”) this mutation can be replaced by an aspirate mutation (mostly in written Welsh):

Adjective phrases

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In adjective phrases, as with noun phrases, the second element tends to have soft mutation:

  • mor deg (“so fair”)
  • cyn wynned â’r eira (“as white as snow”)
  • gorau po gyntaf (“the sooner the better”)
  • croeso go gam (“a somewhat cool welcome”)
  • dynes hollol wahanol (“an entirely different woman”)
  • Roedd yntau’n rhy wan i frwydro’n ôl (“He was too weak to fight back”)
  • pur dda (“quite good”)

There is no soft mutation of ll and rh after cyn (“as”), mor (“so”) and pur (“quite”):

Compound adjectives such as the following also have mutation in the second part:

There is also mutation of an adjective when it follows another adjective adverbially:

There is no mutation after mwy (“more”) and mwyaf (“most”):

After certain conjunctions

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Mutation occurs after the conjunctions neu (“or”) and ynteu (“whether”):

  • dyn neu fenyw (“man or woman”)
  • Ni wyddwn pa un ai chwerthin ynteu grio yr oedd (“I didn’t know if he was laughing or crying”)

However, there is no mutation when neu is followed by a conjugated verb:

Prefixed words

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Words with prefixes frequently show soft mutation following the prefix. Thus soft mutation is found after the prefixes ad-, add-, af-, ail-, all-, am-, ar-, arch-, at-, cam-, can-, cy-, cyd-, cyf-, cyfr-, cyn-, dad-, dat-, dar-, di-, dir-, dis-, dy- (when negative), eil-, en-, go-, gor-, gwo-, gwrth-, gwa-, hunan-, hy-, lled-, prif-, rhag-, rhy-, rhyng-, try-, ym-.

Some examples are:

Occasionally, however, with -n/r- + ll/rh, there is no mutation, for example:

  • cynllun (“plan, pattern”), cf. llun (“picture”)

The prefixes an-/ang- and cym-/cyng- (sometimes cyn-) trigger nasal mutation and the intensive a-, dy-, tra-, also sometimes gor-, gwar-, trigger aspirate mutation (see below).

Adverbs and adverbial phrases

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Adverbial phrases, especially those of time, usually have soft mutation of the first letter:

  • Nid yw ef gartref lawer (“He’s not home much”)
  • Mae e’n galw yma bob dydd (“He calls here every day”)
  • ddim o gwbl! (“not at all!”)
  • dair gwaith (“three times”)
  • Ymwelodd droeon â Gwenfô (“He visited Wenvoe many times”)
  • ddeunaw mis yn ôl (“eighteen months ago”)

Superlative adjectives can be made into adverbs in this way:

  • gweithiwn orau y gallwn (“I worked the best that I could”)
  • Mae hi’n aros gyda ni fynychaf. (“She stays with us usually (most frequently)”)
  • pan welais i hi ddiwethaf (“when I last saw her”)

Other adverbs are formed by adding yn before an adjective, which causes soft mutation (except ll and rh):

  • yn dda (“well”)
  • yn ddigon da (“well enough”)
  • mae hi'n gweithio'n galed (“she's working hard”)

After a full verb

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A direct object directly following a full verb undergoes soft mutation:

  • Agorodd ddrws y tŷ (“He opened the door of the house”)
  • Codais goler fy nghôt (“I raised the collar of my coat”)

This also applies if the subject is added after the verb:

  • Agorodd Alun ddrws y tŷ (“Alun opened the door of the house”)
  • Tynnai'r teithiwr gês (“The traveller was pulling a case”)

But if the direct object is preceded by an article, the mutation is blocked:

  • Agorodd Alun y drws (“Alun opened the door”)

A verb-noun is also mutated after a full verb on which it depends:

The direct object is mutated only after inflected verbs. A direct object following a verb-noun is not usually mutated:

  • Rwy'n gweld cath (“I see a cat”)

The object ti (“you”) is not mutated in:

The word dim (“nothing”) is mutated in sentences such as the following, where it is the object:

  • Disgodd ddim (“He learnt nothing”)

When dim is adverbial (meaning "at all") it has an adverbial mutation:

  • Nes i ddim talu (“I didn't pay”)
  • Dydy Dafydd ddim yn mynd (“Dafydd isn't going”)

Following an interpolated prepositional phrase or adverb

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Sentences such as the following, where the subject or object follows an interpolated prepositional phrase have mutation in the word which follows the inserted phrase:

  • Mae gen i gath (“I have a cat”)
  • Mae yn yr ardd gi (“In the garden there's a dog”)

There is also mutation after an interpolated adverb such as yma (“here”), hefyd (“also”), or or an adverb such as yma (“here”) or hefyd (“also”):

Mutation also occurs after dyma (“here is”), dyna (“there is”), dacw (“there is (yonder)”). Dyma is thought to be derived from a phrase A wely di yma...? (“Do you see here?”), with interpolated yma (“here”):

  • Dyma ddrws (“Here is a door”)

As with the other examples given above, there is no mutation if the definite article is added:

  • Dyma'r drws (“Here's the door”)

The phrase Dyna pam (“That's why”) also has no mutation.

The rule also applies in the following, where a verb-noun follows a prepositional phrase with i (“for”) containing the virtual subject:

  • Rhaid i Alun fynd (“Alun must go”)
  • Rhaid iddo fynd (“He must go”)
  • Wrth i'r wyau ferwi (“While the eggs were boiling”)
  • cyn i fi gwrdd â fe (“before I met him”)
  • Dw i'n gwybod i'r trên fynd ddwy awr yn ôl (“I know that the train went two hours ago”)

There is also mutation of a verb-noun after newydd (“recently”), but not after yn arfer (“used to”):

You (singular) (ti, di)

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The reinforcing pronoun ti (“you”) becomes di after an imperative in sentences such as

  • Aros di! (“Just you wait!”)

It is also di when reinforcing a possessive:

di is also found as subject with the present tense (with future meaning):

In other circumstances ti usually remains unmutated.

Soft mutation in verbs

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The first letter of full verbs mutates after certain words such as the affirmative particles fe and mi:

  • Mi fyddwn i'n falch (“I'll be glad”)
  • Fe ddywed John Davies... (“John Davies says...”)

Often in speech mi or fe is omitted but the mutation remains:

In verbs expressing an opinion or belief used parenthetically, mi is similarly omitted, but the mutation remains:

The verb is mutated after pan (“when”):

There is also mutation after a (particle introducing a yes-no question)

  • A ddaw ef? (“Will he come?”)

In speech the question particle a is usually omitted, but the mutation remains:

  • Ddoi di acw i swper? (“Will you come here for supper?”)

There is also mutation of the verb after a (“which”) (subject or object). This word can be omitted but the mutation remains:

Some particles such as ni and oni cause mixed mutation (see below).

The conjunction tra (“while”) sometimes causes mutation in bod but not in other verbs:

  • tra fo (bo) gobaith (“while there's hope”)

After a focussed word or phrase

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A full verb undergoes mutation when it follows pwy (“who?”) or beth (“what?”) or any focussed subject:

This also applies after other interrogative words or other fronted phrases such as yn anad neb (“more than anyone”):

Verb-nouns preceded by a focussed or interrogative object also often have mutation, even though they have predicative yn. This is because the verb-noun follows an omitted object pronoun:

  • Pwy rwyt ti'n gredu? (“Who do you believe?”)
  • Beth mae e'n werthu? (“What is he selling?”)
  • Trefor rwy'n weld (“It's Trevor that I see”)

Verb-nouns in a relative clause where the object pronoun is omitted similarly usually undergo mutation:

  • Pris rydyn ni'n ofyn amdano (“The price we are asking for it”)

The word pam (“why”) also usually triggers soft mutation:

  • Pam fod siarad Cymraeg yn bwysig? (“Why is it that speaking Welsh is important?”)
  • Pam ddylwn i boeni? (“Why should I worry?”) (but pam dylwn i boeni is also found)

Soft mutation after pam is also found in the phrases:

  • pam lai or pam ddim (“why not?”)

The equative used exclamatorily

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Soft mutation is found in exclamatory sentences such as the following using the equative form of the adjective:

  • Fyrred yw bywyd! (“How short life is!”)

Forms of bod (“to be”) after a stylistically fronted predicate

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After a stylistically fronted predicate, tenses of bod (“to be”) starting with b are mutated:

  • Crwydryn fu Gwilym (“William was a wanderer”)
  • Ofer fai ceisio... (“It would be vain to try...”)
  • Rhy ddrud fyddai hi (“It would be too expensive”)

Indirect clauses with bod or fod

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Either bod or fod may be used in sentences such as the following, where bod or fod introduces an indirect clause:

  • Gobeithio bod (fod) pawb yn iawn (“I hope everyone is OK”)
  • Dywedodd bod (fod) yr athro yn dda (“He said that the teacher is good”)

The choice is also possible in sentences such as the following:

When bod is followed by a subject pronoun, however, it changes in the same way as a noun with a possessive adjective, thus: mod i, fod ti, fod e/o, bod hi, bod ni, bod chi, bod nhw (“that I/you/he/she/we/you (plural)/they”):

  • Mae'n deud mod i fan hyn (“He says that I am here”) (nasal mutation)
  • Mae'n deud fod e fan hyn (“He says that he is here”) (soft mutation)
  • Mae'n deud bod hi fan hyn (“He says that she is here”) (aspirate mutation)
  • Mae'n deud bod nhw fan hyn (“He says that they are here”) (no mutation)

In the future tense similarly, both bydd and fydd are found:

Nasal mutation

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Effects of nasal mutation

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A voiceless stop becomes a voiceless nasal, while a voiced stop becomes a voiced nasal.

Radical Nasal mutation
p /p/ mh /m̥/
b /b/ m /m/
t /t/ nh /n̥/
d /d/ n /n/
c /k/ ngh /ŋ̊/
g /ɡ/ ng /ŋ/

The other consonants and the vowels do not change under nasal mutation, although colloquially m and n are sometimes mutated, e.g. fy mham (“my mother”).

In most cases, only nouns (including verbal nouns) can undergo nasal mutation. The only exception is adjectives that are placed before the noun they modify:

But there is no mutation of the possessive adjective dy (“your”):

Environments of nasal mutation

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After fy ("my")

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The possessive determiner fy (“my”) triggers nasal mutation:

This also applies when fy is used with a verb-noun as equivalent to an object pronoun:

  • Dw i wedi fy mrifo (“I have hurt myself”)

Colloquially, fy may be reduced to ’y or deleted altogether (but still marked with an apostrophe); in both cases, the nasal mutation remains:

  • Diolch am ’y nhynnu i allan (“Thanks for pulling me out”)
  • Huw, ’nghariad i (“Huw, my love”)

After the preposition yn (“in”)

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The preposition yn assimilates to ym before a bilabial consonant and to yng before a velar consonant.

  • yn nyfnder gaeaf (“in the depths of winter”)
  • ym mhoced ei gôt (“in the pocket of his coat”)
  • yng Nghymru (“in Wales”)

Exception:

But:

In the first of the above phrases, Gymraeg, standing for yr iaith Gymraeg (“the Welsh language”), is feminine and takes a soft mutation; in the third example, it is masculine, and so da has no mutation.

Certain time words after certain numbers

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The words blynedd (“year”), blwydd (“years old”), and sometimes diwrnod (“day”) undergo nasal mutation after the numbers pum (“5”), saith (“7”), wyth (“8”), naw (“9”), deng (“10”), deuddeng (“12”), pymtheng (“15”), deunaw (“18”), ugain (“20”), can (“100”), and their compound forms:

Blynedd and blwydd also undergo nasal mutation after un (“one”) in composite numerals (i.e. where another number follows the noun to complete the meaning):

In expressions such as the following, the nasal mutation affects not only the noun but also the numeral:

The number deg (“ten”) also changes to deng in the following, but since these nouns begin with m, which is unaffected by nasal mutation, only the numeral changes:

After prefixes

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The prefixes an-/ang-/am- (“not”) and cyn-/cyng-/cym- (“together”) trigger nasal mutation. For example:

Following an accented syllable, the h is dropped, so that ngh becomes ng, nh becomes nn and so on:

  • angof (“forgetfulness”); cf. cofio (“remember”)
  • cynnes (“warmth”), cf. tes (“warmth, sunshine”)
  • cyngerdd (“concert”); cf. cerdd (“music, song”)
  • cymar (“companion, mate”), from Latin compar

But before m and gw the prefix an- causes soft mutation:

Before ll, rh, gl or a vowel these prefixes take the form af- and cyf-, with soft mutation:

  • afraid (“unnecessary”), cf. rhaid (“need”)
  • aflan (“unclean”), cf. glân (“clean, beautiful”)
  • afiach (“unhealthy”), cf. iach (“healthy”)
  • cyflog (“wages”), cf. llog (“interest, profit”)

Before suffixes

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Nasal mutation is also found before suffixes when these are added to words ending in -nc, -mp, or -nt. Since suffixes usually follow an accented syllable, the h is dropped:

"They"

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The pronoun nhw (“they, them”) is formed by nasal mutation:

Aspirate mutation

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Effects of the aspirate mutation

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Under aspirate mutation, voiceless plosives become voiceless fricatives:

Radical Aspirate mutation
p /p/ ph /f/
t /t/ th /θ/
c /k/ ch /χ/

The other consonants do not change under the aspirate mutation.

Vowel-initial words are sometimes said to undergo aspirate mutation by adding a prothetic h, but since the environments are different for vowels than for consonants, h-prothesis will be discussed separately below.

Environments of the aspirate mutation

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After ei (“her”)

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The possessive determiner ei, 'i, ’w (“her”) triggers aspirate mutation (distinguishing it from ei (“his”), which triggers soft mutation):

  • ei thad (“her father”)
  • a’i phlant (“and her children”)
  • i’w thŷ (“to her house”)
  • Nid oes yma neb i’w chlywed (“There is no one here to hear her”)

Contrast:

  • ei dad (“his father”)
  • a'i blant (“and his children”), etc.

But in the expression fe'i + full verb, there is no mutation or distinction of gender:

After other modifiers

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The numerals tri (“three”) (masculine) and chwe (“six”) trigger aspirate mutation, but mostly only in written Welsh:

  • tri thŷ (“three houses”)
  • chwe chath (“six cats”)

The adverb tra (“very”) triggers aspirate mutation:

  • cylchgrawn tra phwysig (“a very important journal”)

After certain conjunctions

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Aspirate mutatation follows certain conjunctions, of which the most common is a (“and”):

  • llyfrau a phamffledi (“books and pamphlets”)
  • mor hen â phechod ei hun (“as old as sin itself”)
  • ci na chath (“dog nor cat”)
  • mwy na thebyg (“more than likely”)
  • o cherwch fi, cedwch fy ngorchmynion (“If ye love me, keep my commandments”)

Mostly in the written language, a (“and”) can be followed by aspirate mutation when it precedes the prepositions and adverbs gan, gyda, ger, dros, tros, drwy, trwy, drosodd, dan, tan and draw. For example:

After certain prepositions

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Aspirate mutation is found after â (“with”) and its compounds tua (“towards”) and gyda (“with”):

  • paid â phoeni (“don't worry!”)
  • tua phum punt ar hugain (“about twenty-five pounds”)
  • gyda chaniatâd (“with permission”)

But gyda fi (“with me”) usually has the soft mutation in colloquial Welsh (contrasting with aros gyda mi (“abide with me”) in more formal Welsh in the well-known hymn).

After prefixes

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Aspirate mutation is found after the intensive prefixes a-, dy-, gor-, gwar-, tra-:

But some words with gor- and gwar- have soft mutation (see above).

Mixed mutation

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Verbs after ni (“not”), na (“that not”) and oni (“if not”)

In some circumstances aspirate mutation is found with c, t, p, but soft mutation with other mutable consonants. (This is called "mixed mutation".)

Thus aspirate mutation occurs after the negative words ni (“not”), na (“that not”) and oni (“if not”) when the following word begins with c, p, or t:

  • ni chaf i (“I won't have”)
  • y din na chafodd (“the man who didn't have”)
  • Ni fwytâf hyd oni thraethwyf fy negesau (“I will not eat until I have told my errands”)

But before other letters there is soft mutation, for example:

  • Ni feiddiai wnïo na gwau ar y Sul (“she did not dare to sew or knit on Sunday”)
  • Na feddylier na welsom chwarae llachar gan Bontypridd (“Don’t think that we didn’t see some sparkling play by Pontypridd”)
  • Oni ddylem ofyn pam... (“should we not ask why...”)

The particle ni may be omitted, but the aspirate mutation remains:

  • Chododd o mo’i ben o’r croesair (“He did not raise his head from the crossword”)
  • Chreda i ddim fod y stori'n wir

But na (equivalent to mai) meaning "that" followed by a focussed word does not cause mutation:

  • Dw i’n siwr na breuddwydio o’n i (“I'm sure that I was dreaming”)

H-prothesis

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H-prothesis is the addition of h to a word starting with a vowel, including sometimes before i when it is pronounced /j/, but not before w when it is pronounced /w/.

The possessive determiners and infixed pronouns ’m (“my, me”); ei, ’i, ’w (“her”); ein, ’n (“our, us”), and eu, ’u, 'w (“their, them”) trigger h-prothesis.

My:

  • a'm hathro (“and my teacher”)
  • i’m henaid (“to my soul”)

Her:

  • Edrychodd ar ei horiawr (“She looked at her watch”)
  • Saesneg oedd ei hiaith gyntaf (“English was her first language”)
  • a’i harian (“and her money”)
  • i’w henw (“to her name”)
  • Mae e wedi’i hosgoi (“He has avoided her”)

Our:

  • ein heglwys (“our church”)
  • Y mae hyn yn ein hatgoffa o’r syniad (“This reminds us of the idea”)
  • o’n henwau (“from our names”)
  • ein Hiesu anwyl ni (“our dear Jesus”) (or: ein Iesu anwyl ni)

Their:

  • eu hunig plentyn (“their only child”)
  • Fe fu amser pan fyddai drysau trên yn eu hagor i chi (“There was a time when train doors would be opened for you”)
  • Cwynent am eu blinder a’u hafiechyd (“They complained of their weariness and their illness”)
  • i'w hwyneb nhw (“to their face”)

These words are usually followed by a noun or noun phrase or verb-noun, but after the affirmative particle fe they can be followed by a full verb:

After fe, 'i can refer to either gender:

  • Bu farw Morgan fis Medi 1604 ac fe’i holynwyd gan Richard Parry (“Morgan died in September 1604 and he was succeeded by Richard Parry”)

The preposition ar (“on”) triggers h-prothesis of ugain (“twenty”) in complex numerals:

  • un ar hugain (“twenty-one”)
  • saith ceffyl ar hugain (“twenty-seven horses”)

The word (h)oll (“all”) is another in which h- is sometimes present and sometimes not. When it comes between the article and a noun it always has h-:

In other uses, for example after a superlative adjective, historically it is always oll:

References

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  • Gruffudd, Heini (2003), Welsh Rules, Talybont, Ceredigion: Y Lolfa Cyf., →ISBN
  • King, Gareth (2003), Modern Welsh: A Comprehensive Grammar (2nd Edition), London and New York: Routledge, →ISBN
  • Rhys Jones, T.J. (1991), Welsh – (Teach Yourself Books), Sevenoaks: Hodder and Stoughton, →ISBN
  • Thorne, David A. (1993), A Comprehensive Welsh Grammar, Oxford: Blackwell, →ISBN
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