hir-iaith | Grammatical gender in different European languages + focus on WELSH @hiriaith | Uploaded May 2021 | Updated October 2024, 3 hours ago.
BONUS ROUND (ROWND FONWS) to the main video about grammatical gender.
In the main video I explain what grammatical gender is and give you some tips on how to learn the gender of words in Welsh: youtube.com/watch?v=i6LirSH6_UY
In this video I give you some more info about grammatical gender: its history and how it works differently in other European languages. Some more cool facts and curiosities about gender in Welsh!
There are some word endings in Welsh that mark the gender of the word, but this is easier to list in writing than in a video.
MASCULINE NOUNS
a) those ending in -WR -YDD -YN (many refer to people)
cyfreithiwr (lawyer), gwresogydd (heater), mochyn (pig)
b) those (usually abstract) nouns ending in:
-DEB (purdeb, purity)
-DER (balchder, pride)
-DID (glendid, hygiene)
-DOD (plentyndod, childhood)
-DRA (twpdra, stupidity)
-EDD (edmygedd, admiration)
-HAD (mwynhad, enjoyment)
-IAD (ysgariad, separation)
-IANT (hyfforddiant, training)
-NI (culni, narrowness)
-RWYDD (dwyieithrwydd, bilingualism)
-WCH (tristwch, sadness)
FEMININE NOUNS
a) those ending in -EN and -ES
rhaglen (programme), tywysoges (princess)
b) many nouns ending in -AETH and -AS
swyddogaeth (function), priodas (wedding)
EXCEPTIONS: gwasanaeth (service), gwahaniaeth (difference), and hiraeth (longing) are masculine.
c) those ending in -FA
arhosfa (waiting room), swyddfa (office)
GENDER OF NOUNS ACCORDING TO MEANING
a) names of the days, months, seasons and points of the compass are MASCULINE
b) names of countries, rivers and languages are generally FEMININE
c) units of time from second to year alternate between feminine and masculine, starting from feminine:
FEMININE MASCULINE
eiliad (second)
munud (masculine)
awr (hour)
dydd (day)
wythnos (week)
mis (month)
blwyddyn (year)
I apologise for using such traditional colours to represent masculine and feminine. I think colour-coding can be quite useful when classifying things during language learning and, since learners are having to acquire a new system of classification, it makes it easier if the colour coding uses the "familiar" colours.
BONUS ROUND (ROWND FONWS) to the main video about grammatical gender.
In the main video I explain what grammatical gender is and give you some tips on how to learn the gender of words in Welsh: youtube.com/watch?v=i6LirSH6_UY
In this video I give you some more info about grammatical gender: its history and how it works differently in other European languages. Some more cool facts and curiosities about gender in Welsh!
There are some word endings in Welsh that mark the gender of the word, but this is easier to list in writing than in a video.
MASCULINE NOUNS
a) those ending in -WR -YDD -YN (many refer to people)
cyfreithiwr (lawyer), gwresogydd (heater), mochyn (pig)
b) those (usually abstract) nouns ending in:
-DEB (purdeb, purity)
-DER (balchder, pride)
-DID (glendid, hygiene)
-DOD (plentyndod, childhood)
-DRA (twpdra, stupidity)
-EDD (edmygedd, admiration)
-HAD (mwynhad, enjoyment)
-IAD (ysgariad, separation)
-IANT (hyfforddiant, training)
-NI (culni, narrowness)
-RWYDD (dwyieithrwydd, bilingualism)
-WCH (tristwch, sadness)
FEMININE NOUNS
a) those ending in -EN and -ES
rhaglen (programme), tywysoges (princess)
b) many nouns ending in -AETH and -AS
swyddogaeth (function), priodas (wedding)
EXCEPTIONS: gwasanaeth (service), gwahaniaeth (difference), and hiraeth (longing) are masculine.
c) those ending in -FA
arhosfa (waiting room), swyddfa (office)
GENDER OF NOUNS ACCORDING TO MEANING
a) names of the days, months, seasons and points of the compass are MASCULINE
b) names of countries, rivers and languages are generally FEMININE
c) units of time from second to year alternate between feminine and masculine, starting from feminine:
FEMININE MASCULINE
eiliad (second)
munud (masculine)
awr (hour)
dydd (day)
wythnos (week)
mis (month)
blwyddyn (year)
I apologise for using such traditional colours to represent masculine and feminine. I think colour-coding can be quite useful when classifying things during language learning and, since learners are having to acquire a new system of classification, it makes it easier if the colour coding uses the "familiar" colours.
