Irish phonology varies from
dialect to dialect; there is no
standard pronunciation of the language. Irish phonology has been studied as a discipline since the late 19th century, with numerous researchers publishing
descriptive accounts of dialects from all regions where the language is spoken. More recently,
theoretical linguists have also turned their attention to Irish phonology, producing a number of books, articles, and doctoral
theses on the topic. One of the most important aspects of Irish phonology is the fact that almost all
consonants appear in pairs, with one member of each pair being "broad" and the other "slender". Broad consonants are
velarized, that is, the back of the tongue is pulled back and slightly up in the direction of the
soft palate while the consonant is being articulated. Slender consonants are
palatalized, which means the tongue is pushed up toward the
hard palate during the articulation. The contrast between broad and slender consonants is crucial in Irish, because the meaning of a word can change if a broad consonant is substituted for a slender consonant or vice versa. Irish shares a number of phonological characteristics with its nearest linguistic relatives,
Scottish Gaelic and
Manx, as well as with
Hiberno-English, the language with which it is most closely in
contact. (
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