§ 1. In later Cornish there was a strong tendency to assimilate the order
of words and the construction of sentences to those of English, but
nevertheless certain idioms persisted throughout.
In English the normal order of words in a simple sentence is:—
Subject—Verb—Complement of Predicate (Object, etc.).
This order is used in Cornish also when the impersonal form of the main
verb or of the auxiliary is used, and the object is not a personal
pronoun. Thus:—
_Dew a gar an bês_, God loveth the world.
_Dew a wra cara an bês_, God doth love the world.
One of these two forms is the most usual in a direct affirmative
principal sentence when the object is not a pronoun.
If the object is a pronoun, the order is:—
Subject—Particle—Object—Verb.
Thus:—
_Dew a’th gar_, God loveth thee.
Or:—
Subject—Particle—Auxiliary—Pronoun in the Possessive Form—Infinitive of
Main Verb.
Thus:—
_Dew a wra dha gara_, God doth love thee.
If the auxiliary verb is _bos_, to be, it often happens that the
inflected form of it is used in an affirmative sentence when the tense is
the continuous present or imperfect. In these cases the order is:—
Auxiliary Verb—Subject—Participle of Main Verb—Complement.
Thus:—
_Thov vî ow môs dhô Loundres_, I am going to London.
_Therough why ow tôs adre_, you were coming home.
But with the preterite tense the simple impersonal form is more usual.
Thus:—
_Mî a vê gennes en Kernow_, I was born in Cornwall.
The same applies to the present and imperfect of _bos_ when it is not an
auxiliary. Thus:—
_Thov vî lowen dhô ’gas gwelas_, I am glad to see you.
The inflected form of the verb is rare in simple direct affirmative
sentences, except when it is used as a Celtic substitute for “yes.” It
may be used in verse, but it is rather affected in prose. In negative,
interrogative, and dependent sentences it is the only form to use, but
even then it is the inflected auxiliaries, parts of _gwîl_, to do,
_menny_, to will, _gally_, to be able, etc., with the infinitive of the
main verb that are more commonly used, rather than the inflected form of
the main verb itself. In the third person singular it is of course only
distinguishable from the impersonal form by the position of the subject,
which in the inflected form would follow the verb. The inflectional form
of the third person plural is only used when the pronoun “they” is the
subject. When the subject is a plural noun the verb is always in the
singular. The inflected form, either of the auxiliary _gwîl_ with the
infinitive of the main verb, or of the main verb itself, is always used
for the imperative. In late Cornish, except in the case of answers for
“yes” and “no,” and of the peculiar forms of the first, second, and third
persons singular in _ma_, _ta_, and _va_, the subject personal pronoun is
almost always expressed, except, of course, when the subject is a noun.
§ 2. Negative and Interrogative Sentences.
For a negative sentence it is never correct to use the impersonal, but
always the inflected form of the verb or of the auxiliary, preceded by
the negative particle _ni_ (older, _ny_) or _nyns_. The order is:—
1. Negative Particle—Verb—Subject—Complement of Predicate.
Or:—
2. Negative Particle—Auxiliary (inflected)—Subject—Infinitive of Main
Verb—Complement.
If the object is a pronoun, in the first case it follows the negative
particle in its third form, in the second case it precedes the infinitive
in the possessive form. Thus:—
1. _Ni welav vî an dên_, I do not see the man.
_Ni wôr dên vîth an êr_, no man knoweth the hour.
2. _Ni wrígav vî gwelas an dên_, I did not see the man.
1. _Ni’th welav vî_, I do not see thee.
2. _Ni wrigav vî dha welas_, I did not see thee.
In the case of the present and imperfect of _bos_, to be, the particle
_nyns_ is often used, and it is sometimes found with other words
beginning with vowels, but its use is rare in late Cornish, and _ni_, or
less correctly _na_ (or _nag_ before a vowel) is more usual.
It is allowable to use the inflected form with the subject-pronoun
preceding the negative particle, but it should only be used for emphasis
on the subject, and is better avoided.
Interrogative sentences are formed with the interrogative particle _a_,
or by the use of some interrogative pronoun or adverb. In all cases the
inflected form of the main verb or auxiliary (usually the latter) follows
the particle, pronoun, or adverb, and usually with its initial in the
second state. Thus:—
_A wrîgough why besca gwelas_? Did you ever see?
_A wreugh why agan gwelas_? Do you see us?
_Fatla wreugh why crŷa hedna_? How do you call that?
_Fraga wreugh why gwîl hebma_? Why do you do this?
_A vednough why môs genev vî_? Will you go with me?
The particle _a_ is often omitted colloquially, but its effect is
perceptible in the change of the initial of the verb. If the verb begins
with a vowel, _a_ is always omitted.
With interrogative sentences should come the answers to them. It must be
understood that by nature no Celt can ever say a plain “yes” or “no.”
There are “dictionary words” for “yes” and “no” in Welsh and Cornish, and
they are used a very little in translations from other languages; but
they do not “belong” to be used in speaking or writing Welsh or Cornish.
In Gaelic there are not even “dictionary words” for them. In Breton _ia_
and _nan_ are used freely for “yes” and “no,” as in French, but that is
probably quite modern French influence. The Celtic practice is to repeat
the inflected verb of the question, affirmatively or negatively, in the
necessary person. Thus:—
_’Ellough why cowsa Kernûak_? Can you speak Cornish?
_Gellam_ or _mî ellam_. I can (yes). _Ni ellam_, or (less correctly)
_nag ellam_, I cannot (no).
_A vednough why dôs genev vî_? Will you come with me?
_Mednav_. I will (yes). _Ni vednav_. I will not (no).
_A wrîg ev môs dhô Benzans_? Did he go to Penzance?
_Gwrîg_. He did. _Ni wrîg_. He did not.
_’Esta ajŷ_? Art thou at home?
_Thoma_. I am. _Nynsov_, or _nynsoma_, or (less correctly), _nag ov_.
I am not.
In the case of a negative interrogative sentence the verb is immediately
preceded by _na_=_nî_ + _a_, whether it begins the sentence or is itself
preceded by an interrogative conjunction. Thus:—
_Na wrîsta gwelas_? Didst thou not see?
_Fraga na wrîsta crejy_? Why didst thou not believe?
§ 3. Dependent Sentences or Subordinate Clauses.
These are of three kinds:—
1. Those introduced by conjunctions, such as _if_, _that_, _as_, etc.,
or by a relative pronoun.
2. Those analogous to the “accusative with the infinitive” of Latin.
3. The absolute clause.
1. The ordinary dependent clause introduced by a conjunction has its
verb in the indicative, unless the so-called subjunctive is required to
express uncertainty or contingency, without reference to any preceding
conjunction. The verb is always in the simple inflected or inflected
auxiliary form. The verb which follows the conjunction _mar_ or _mara_,
if, has its initial in the fourth state, and _tre_, _tro_, or _dro_,
that, governs the second state.
A dependent sentence may sometimes precede its principal sentence, as in
English. A very good instance of two sorts of dependent clauses may be
seen in the following sentence from Boson’s _Nebbaz Gerriau_. The
English is:—
“If that learned wise man [John Keigwin] should see this [i.e. this
essay], he would find reason to correct it in orthography, etc.”
Boson’s Cornish, the spelling and division of words assimilated to that
of the present grammar, is:—
_Mar qwressa an dên deskes fîr-na gwelas hemma_,
If should [do] that man learned wise see this,
_ev a venja cavos fraga e ewna en scrîfa-composter_.
he would find why it to amend in writing-correctness.
In this sentence _qwressa_ is for _gwressa_ (third person singular of the
conditional or pluperfect of the auxiliary _gwîl_, to do), with the
initial in its fourth state after _mar_. Boson writes it _markressa_,
all in one word. _Fraga e ewna_ is an example of a variant of the second
form of dependent sentence. The principal verb _ev a venja cavos_ is in
the impersonal auxiliary form, and of the two dependent clause verbs,
one, _qwressa an dên deskes fîr-na gwelas_, is in the inflected auxiliary
form, and the other, _ewna_, is infinitive.
In a relative sentence, if the relative pronoun is the subject, the verb
appears to be in the impersonal form. That is to say, it is always in
the form of the third person singular, and does not show any agreement
with its antecedent, whatever person or number that may be in. The other
peculiarities of relative sentences are given in Chapter VII. §4.
2. “Instead of using the conjunction _that_ with another verb in the
indicative mood, as in most European languages, it is usual to put the
second verb in the infinitive preceded by the personal pronoun, as is
common in Latin.” Thus says Norris, speaking in a manner perhaps rather
less clear than usual, of an idiom found in the Dramas. This idiom,
analogous to the “accusative with the infinitive” of Latin, is found down
to the latest period of Cornish literature, though not to the complete
exclusion of a finite clause beginning with _that_. The instances given
by Norris are:—
_Ha cous ef dhe dhasserhy_, and say that he is risen.
_Marth a’m bues ty dhe leverel folneth_, I have wonder that thou
shouldst speak folly.
_Nyns a y’m colon why dhe gewsel_, it goes not into my heart (i.e. I do
not believe) that you have spoken.
_Del won dhe bos_, as I know thee to be.
Here are some later instances:—
_Ny a wel an tîs younk dho e clappya leh ha leh_, {164} we see that the
young people speak it less and less (_Nebbaz Gerriau_).
_Dre wrama crejy hedna dho bos gwîr yu serîfes enna_, {164} that I do
believe that that is true that is written therein (_Nebbaz Gerriau_).
Nevertheless, one finds in the same piece:—
_Ev a lavarras drova gever ǒl_, {164} he said that it was Goats All.
_Bes mî a or hemma_, _dhort e hoer an Kernuak_, _drova talves bes
nebbas_, {164} but I know this, by her sister the Cornish, that it is
worth but little.
And in Keigwin’s translation of _Genesis_ i.:—
_Ha Dew a wellas trova da_, {164} and God saw that it was good.
A somewhat similar construction is sometimes used after _dreven_,
because, and _treba_, until:—
_Dreven tî dhô wîl hemma_, {164} because thou hast done this (Kerew’s
_Genesis_, iii. 14).
_Dreven tî dhô wolsowas dhô dalla dha wrêg_, {165} because thou didst
listen to the voice of thy wife (_Gen_. iii. 17).
_Treba tî dhô draylya dhô’n nôr_, {165} until thou turn again to the
earth (_Gen_. iii. 19).
Yet even there one finds
_Dreven o hy dama a ŏl bewa_, {165} because she was the mother of all
living (_Gen_. iii. 20).
Lhuyd mentions a similar construction after _rag own_, for fear, lest:—
_Rag own whŷ dho gôdha po an rew dho derry ha whŷ dho vos bidhes_,
{165} lest you fall or the ice break and you be drowned (literally, for
fear you to fall or the ice to break and you to be drowned).
With _fraga_, why, one finds a similar form:—
_Ev a venja cavos fraga e ewna_, he would find why to amend it.
But when _fraga_ introduces an interrogative sentence, an ordinary finite
verb is used:—
_Fraga_ (or _rag fraga_, “for why,”) _na grejeth dhô’ m lavarow_? Why
dost thou not believe my words?
When “that” signifies “in order that,” the ordinary finite verb is used
after it.
There is a peculiar construction, found chiefly in Jordan’s _Creation_,
but also in the _Ordinalia_ (e.g. _Pass. Chr._ 1120), for expressing
“that I am.” It consists of the infinitive _bos_, to be, preceded by a
possessive pronoun and followed by a pronominal suffix:—
_Me a vyn mav fo gwellys_ ow bosaf _Dew heb parow_, I will that it may
be seen, that I am God without equals.
And a still more confused one of the second person with the verbal
particle _y_ before _bos_, the pronominal suffix _ta_ and the pronoun
_ge_=_dî_:—
_Me ny allaf convethas_, y bosta ge _ow hendas_, I cannot understand
that thou art my ancestor.
The first is analogous to the Welsh “infinitive construction,” as Rowland
calls it, e.g. _gwyr_ fy mod i _yn dyfod_, he knows that I am coming
(lit. he knows my being in coming), only the Cornish form uses the
pronominal suffix instead of the redundant personal pronoun.
3. The Absolute Clause. This construction, which answers more or less
to the ablative absolute of Latin, and the genitive absolute of Greek, is
common to all the Celtic languages. It is translated into English by a
sentence introduced by _when_, _while_, _whilst_, or _though_, with a
verb generally in the continuous form of the present or past tense, or by
a participle. In the Celtic languages the absolute clause has two forms.
_a_. The affirmative, generally consisting of the conjunction _and_, a
subject, noun or pronoun, and generally a participle. Rowland calls the
conjunction, _a_, _ac_, of the Welsh form “the absolute particle,” and
Professor Anwyl identifies it with _a_, _ag_, with, in an archaic form.
But in Cornish _ha_ or _hag_ is used, and in Gaelic _agus_, and, in
exactly the same way. The following are examples in Cornish, Welsh, and
Gaelic:—
Cornish. _An jy a ve gwarnes gan Dew_, _ha ’n jy ow cusca_, {166} they
were warned by God, and they sleeping, or, while they slept (Kerew’s
translation of _St. Matth._ ii. 12, Gwav. MS.).
_El a’n leverys dethy haneth_, _ha hy yn gwely pur thyfun_, an angel
said it to her this night, and she in her bed quite awake (_Pass. Chr._
2202-4).
Welsh. _Pa ham_, _a mi yn disgwyl iddi dwyn grawn-win_, _y dug hi rawn
gwylltlon_? Wherefore, and I looking to it to bring forth grapes
[Auth. Vers., when I looked that it should bring forth grapes], brought
it forth wild grapes? (_Isaiah_ v. 4).
Gaelic. _Do chonnaic Seaghán an duine_, _agus é ag teacht a-bhaile_,
John saw the man, and he coming home, i.e. when he was coming home.
_b_. The negative, in which _not_ is expressed in Welsh and Cornish by
_heb_, and in Gaelic by _gan_, both meaning _without_, followed by an
infinitive:—
_An delna ema stel ow tegy warnodha_, _heb wara dhodha teller vîth_,
{167} so it is still closing in upon it without leaving it any place
(Boson’s _Nebbaz Gerriau_).
In many such cases this negative clause can be translated literally into
English, and it is the usual form of negation with an infinitive or
present participle.
A somewhat similar absolute clause of a descriptive character occurs
occasionally:—
_An golom_, _glas hy lagas_, _yn mes gura hy delyfre_, the dove, blue
her eyes, do set her free (_Origo Mundi_, 1105-6).
_Un flogh yonk_, _gwyn y dhyllas_, a young child, white his raiment
(_Passion_, 254, 3).
In a similar construction in Welsh the adjective here agrees with the
first noun, and the translation would be rather “The dove blue [as to]
her eyes,” but in Cornish this is not so, for in this sentence _golom_
(second state of _colom_) is feminine, so that the adjective would be
_las_, not _glas_, if it agreed with it.
§ 4. The Infinitive or Verbal Noun.
The infinitive of a verb is treated almost exactly like a noun. If its
object is a pronoun, this precedes the infinitive in the possessive form
and governs its initial as it would that of a noun. If the object is not
a pronoun, it follows the infinitive without change of initial, after the
manner of an appositional genitive.
Very often the infinitive is governed by _dhô_, to, as in English, and
under much the same circumstances, except that it is not so governed when
it comes as the subject of another verb, and of course _dhô_ is not used
after auxiliary verbs. It is especially used after verbs implying
motion.
_Mî a vedn môs dhô ’gas gwelas_, I will go to see you.
_Mî eth dhô vetya an trên_, I went to meet the train.
_Lowen on ny dhô ’gas gwelas why_, we are glad to see you.
When the sense of “to” is “in order to,” or the preceding verb implies an
intention, the infinitive is generally preceded by _rag_ or _rag dhô_,
“for to,” or by _a dhô_, “of to.”
§ 5. Some Idioms and Expressions.
1. _To have_ is expressed in three ways.
_a_. By the verb _bos_, to be, with the thing possessed as subject and
the possessor in the dative form, i.e. preceded by _dhô_, to; cf. _est
mihi_ in Latin.
Affirmative. _Ema levar dhem_, there is a book to me.
Negative. _Nynsyu levar dhem_, there is not a book to me.
Interrog. _’Es levar dhem_? Is there a book to me?
This is the common form in late Cornish.
_b_. By the verb _cafos_ or _cavos_, to find, to obtain, used as an
ordinary transitive verb with the possessor as subject and the thing
possessed as object. This is not used for the present tense. Lhuyd
gives a past tense, _mî a gavaz_ or _mî ’rig gavaz_, I had, and a future,
_mî ven gavaz_, I will have, but he, Norris, and Williams are all
inclined to confuse this with the third form.
_c_. By a peculiar idiom compounded of a form of the verb _bos_, to be,
and the third form of the personal (or else the possessive) pronouns.
The explanation, as far as it goes, of this verb is to be found in
Breton. Even there it has been confused a good deal, though its use is
plain enough. Legonidec calls it “le verbe _kaout_ [=Cornish _cavos_],
avoir,” which he distinguishes from _kavout_ or _kaout_, trouver;
Maunoir, whose Breton, according to a picture in Quimper Cathedral, was
received miraculously from an angel, wisely does not commit himself, but
calls the verb, Latin fashion, after the first person singular of the
present. Prof. Loth rightly speaks of it as “le verbe dit avoir,” and M.
Ernault calls it “Verbe _beza_ [to be] au sens de ‘avoir,’” and he
explains it to be the verb _to be_, combined with the “pronoms régimes,”
which is just what it is. In Breton it is not only used as the ordinary
verb _to have_=to possess, but also as an auxiliary verb in the same
manner as _avoir_, _have_, _haben_, are used in French, English, and
German. This verb came to be used in Breton with or without the
nominative pronoun being expressed. In Cornish the expressed nominative
pronoun is less usual, except in the second person singular, where it is
the rule. That it should be used at all in either language is a sign
that in practice the original formation of the verb has been forgotten.
Occasionally in Cornish this oblivion has resulted even in the
application of pronominal inflections to the verb.
This form is found frequently in the _Ordinalia_ and in the _Poem of the
Passion_; it is fairly common in the _Life of St. Meriasek_, it is rarer
in the _Creation_, and is not found at all in Cornish of the latest
period (except in a doubtful and muddled form in Keigwin’s version of the
Commandments), though Lhuyd gives a fragment of it in his Grammar,
evidently taken from the earlier Dramas and not from oral tradition, for
he takes the _g_ of _geffi_ and _gefyth_ to be a hard _g_, whereas it is
plainly a soft _g_ for a _d_, as the analogy of _tevyth_, and of the
Breton _deveuz_, _devez_, etc., shows. Moreover, it is sometimes written
_ieves_, which is intended to represent _jeves_.
It will be well, by way of making this form clearer, to give not only the
Cornish but also the corresponding Breton.
The tenses that are found are as follows:—
I. THE PRESENT.
Singular.
CORNISH. BRETON.
1. [_mî_] _am bes_ [_bus_, _bues_, [_me_] _em euz_.
_bues_].
2. [_tî_] _ath ĕs_ (_thues_). [_te_] _ec’h euz_.
3. m. [_ev_] _an jeves_ (for [_hen_] _en deuz_ or _deveuz_.
_deves_).
3. f. [_hy_] _as teves_. [_he_] _e deuz_.
Plural.
1. [_ny_] _an bes_. [_nî_] _hon euz_.
2. [_why_] _as bes_. [_c’houi_] _hoch euz_.
3. [_y_] _as teves_. [_hî_] _ho deuz_ or _deveuz_.
This tense is formed on _us_, _eus_, _es_ (Breton _euz_), one of the
forms of the third person singular of the verb substantive. To this is
prefixed the verbal particle _a_, with the letter which is the third form
of the personal pronoun, _’m_, _’th_, _’n_, _’s_, _’n_, _’s_, _’s_, with
the peculiar addition of _jev_ and _tev_ to the third persons and _b_ to
the others. The _’th_ of the second person singular is found written in
this but not always in the other tenses, for it was probably often silent
before _f_ by a sort of assimilation. Its effect is observable in the
initial mutation. Of this tense the first, second, and third persons
singular and the second person plural are found. But for the existence
of the form _as bes_ [_bues_] for the last, one might suppose, with
Williams, that the _b_ of _am bes_ was only the addition of a cognate
letter to the _m_. But cf. the addition of _b_ to _oa_ and _oe_ of the
same verb in Breton.
II. THE FUTURE.
Singular.
CORNISH. BRETON.
1. [_mî_] _am bedh_ (_byth_, _beth_). [_me_] _em_ (or _am_) _bez_.
2. _tî a_ [_th_] _fedh_ (_fyth_). [_te_] _ez_ (or _az_) _pez_.
3. m. [_ev_] _an jevedh_ (for [_hen_] _en devez_.
_devedh_).
3. f. [_hy_] _as tevedh_. [_he_] _e devez_.
Plural.
1. [_ny_] _an_ (or _agan_) [_ni_] _hor bez_.
_bedh_.
2. [_why_] _as_ (or _agas_) [_c’houi_] _ho pez_.
_bedh_.
3. [_y_] _as tevedh_. [_hî_] _o devez_.
It will be seen here and in the other tenses that the pronouns in Breton
do not produce exactly the same mutations as in Cornish. The _dh_ of
Cornish is always written _z_ in Breton, though that is pronounced _dh_
in some dialects. The whole of this tense is found in the MSS.
III. THE PRETERITE.
Singular.
CORNISH. BRETON.
1. [_mî_] _am bê_ [_me_] _em_ (or _am_) _boe_.
[_bue_].
2. _tî ath fê_. [_te_] _ez_ (or _az_) _poe_.
3. m. [_ev_] _an jeve_. [_hen_] _en devoe_.
3. f. [_hy_] _as teve_. [_he_] _e devoe_.
Plural.
1. [_ny_] _an_ (or _agan_) [_ni_] _hor boe_.
_bê_.
2. [_why_] _as_ (or _agas_) [_c’houi_] _ho poe_.
_bê_.
3. [_y_] _as teve_. [_hî_] _o aevoe_.
Only part of this tense is found in the MSS., but the rest is easily
formed by analogy.
IV. THE SUBJUNCTIVE (OR OPTATIVE).
Singular.
CORNISH. BRETON.
1. [_mî_] _am bo_. _r’ am bezo_, _bo_.
2. _tî ath fo_, _fetho_. _r’ az pezo_, _po_.
3. m. [_ev_] _an jevo_ (for _devo_, _r’ en devezo_, _devo_.
written _gefo_ or _geffo_).
3. f. [_hy_] _as tevo_. _r’ e devezo_, _devo_.
Plural.
1. [_ny_] _an_ (or _agan_) _bo_. _r’ hor bezo_, _bo_.
2. [_why_] _as_ (or _agas_) _bo_. _r’ ho pezo_, _po_.
3. [_y_] _as tevo_ (written _teffo_, _r’ o devezo_, _devo_.
_tefo_).
In this tense the Breton does not use the nominative personal pronoun,
except when it is a form of the future, but prefixes _r’_ (_ra_). In
Cornish _re_ is used to make the optative and perfect, and in this case
the _’th_ of the second person singular is not omitted, for _re’ th fo_
and _re ’th fê_ are the forms found.
A rather doubtful second tense (secondary present or imperfect),
equivalent to the Breton _am boa_, may be conjectured in _am beua_ (_St.
Mer._ 47, 1686), _am bethe_ may be the equivalent of the Breton imperfect
subjunctive, _am bize_, _bije_, _befe_, and the third person singular of
this may be the _an geffa_ of _St. Mer._ 20, 159. Dr. Whitley Stokes
gives both these forms as secondary presents. There is also a possible
pluperfect _te ny vea_, and _nyn gyfye_, found in the second and third
persons singular.
One finds such forms as _am buef_, _as bethough_, _may ’stefons_, etc.,
as instances of pronominal inflections added to this verb, showing how
completely its derivation was forgotten, and it is further confused by
being perhaps mixed up with the verb _pewa_ (Welsh _piau_, Breton
_piaoua_), to possess, a verb which in all three languages requires
rather more disentangling than it has as yet received.
There are very full examples of this verb in Zeuss’s _Grammatica Celtica_
(ed. 1871, p. 565).
2. Besides _to have_, certain other verbs are expressed with _bos_ and
the preposition _dhô_. Thus:—
_Ma cov dhem_ [pron. _ma códhem_], I remember, lit. there is
remembrance to me.
_Ma whans dhem_, I want, lit. there is want to me.
_Ma whêr dhem_, I am sorry, lit. there is grief to me.
_Ma own dhem_, I fear, lit. there is fear to me.
_Ma dout dhem_, I doubt, lit. there is doubt to me.
_Ma reys dhem_, or _reys yw dhem_, I must, lit. there is need to me.
Another expression for “to remember” is _perthy cov_, to bear memory.
The imperative was sometimes written _perco_ in one word. _Perthy_ is
used similarly with other nouns: _na berth medh_, be not ashamed, _na
berth own_, be not afraid, _na berth whêr_, be not sorry, _an vuscogyon
orto a borthas avy_, the fools hated him (_Passion_, 26, 3), _na berth
dout_, do not doubt. The literal meaning is to bear shame, fear, sorrow,
envy, doubt, etc.
Similarly nouns and adjectives are used with _gan_, with, as in Welsh, to
represent states of mind. Thus:—
_Da yu genev_, I like, lit. it is good with me.
_Drôg yu genev_, I am sorry, lit. it is bad with me.
_Gwell yu genev_, I prefer, lit. it is better with me.
_Marth yu genev_, I am astonished, lit. wonder is with me.
_Cas yu genev_, I hate, lit. hate is with me.
The verbs _dal_ and _goth_, signifying _ought_, _it behoves_, are used
either impersonally or, though this is a late corruption, as ordinary
verbs.
_Ni dal dhen ny_ / _Ni goth dhen ny_ } we ought not.
Or:—
_Mî a dal_ / _Mî a goth_ } I ought.
3. _Gwyn an bês_. This poetical expression is common to Cornish, Welsh,
and Breton. It signifies, “fair the world,” i.e. happy, and is used with
possessive pronouns and appositional genitives.
_Gwyn ow bês_, fair my world, happy I.
_Gwyn dha vês_, happy thou.
_Gwyn e vês_, happy he.
_Gwyn bês an den na wrîg cerdhes en cŏsŏl an gamhin-segyon_, blessed is
the man who hath not walked in the counsel of the ungodly.
In Welsh, when the possessor of this “fair world” is expressed by a noun,
there is a redundant possessive pronoun before _byd_ (_bês_). Thus Psalm
i. begins _Gwyn ei fyd y gwr_, fair his world of the man. But this is
not the Cornish form, which uses the simple appositional genitive in such
cases. There is a contrary expression, _drôg pês_, found in the
_Ordinalia_ (_Passio Christi_, 3089), _drok pys of_, unhappy am I. In
this case _drôg_ seems to put the initial of _bês_ in its fourth state.
4. The following phrases are in common use, and are generally run into
one or two words in pronunciation.
_Mêr ’ras dhô Dhew_ (pron. _merásthadew_). Great thanks be to God.
_Mêr ’ras dheugh why_ (pron. _merásdhawhy_). Great thanks to you.
_Dew re dala dheugh why_ (pron. _Durdladhawhy_). God repay to you.
_Dew re sona dheugh why_ (pron. _Dursónadhawhy_). God sain you.
_Bennath Dew genough why_ (pron. _Bénatew génawhy_). The blessing of
God be with you.
_Dew genough why_ (pron. _Dew génawhy_). God be with you.
_Pandráma_ (i.e. _pa’n dra wrama_). What shall I do?
_Pandréllen_ (i.e. _pa’n dra wrellen_). What should I do?
_Pándres_ (i.e. _pa’n dra es_). What is there?
_Pandryu_ (i.e. _pa’n dra yu_). What is?
_Pandresses_ (i.e. _pa’n dra wresses_). What shouldst thou do?
_Fatla genough why_ (pron. _fatla génawhy_). How are you?
_Trova_ (i.e. _tre o-va_), that he was.
§ 6. Rules for Initial Mutations.
1. _The Second State_.
_a_. _A feminine singular_ or _masculine plural_ noun (or adjective
used as a noun) preceded by the definite article _an_, the, or the
numeral _idn_, one, has its initial in the second state.
_b_. An adjective which follows and qualifies a _feminine singular_
noun, has its initial in the second state.
_c_. A noun preceded by an adjective qualifying it, of whatever gender
or number, has its initial in the second state.
_d_. If the adjective preceding and qualifying a _feminine singular_
noun follows the article _an_, the, the initial of the adjective is
also in the second state.
_e_. A noun in the vocative preceded by the particle _a_, O (expressed
or omitted for the sake of verse), has its initial in the second state.
_f_. The possessive pronouns _dha_, thy, and _e_, his, are followed by
words, whether nouns, adjectives, or verbal nouns (infinitives) in the
second state. The form _’th_, thee or thy, generally puts the word
which follows in the second state, but sometimes in the fourth, or
changes _b_ to _f_, not _v_.
_g_. The verbal prefix _ă_ (older _y_, _yth_), is generally followed
by a verb in the second state.
_h_. The verbal particles _a_ and _re_ and the interrogative particle
_a_ are followed by a verb in the second state.
_i_. The prepositions _a_, _der_ or _dre_, _dhô_, _heb_, _re_, and
_war_, and compound prepositions ending in any of them, are followed by
words in the second state.
_k_. The conjunctions _tre_, _tro_, that, _pan_, when, _erna_, until,
_hedre_, whilst, are followed by the second state.
_l_. The adverbial particle _en_ is followed generally by an adjective
in the second state.
_m_. The adverbs _pŭr_, very, _ni_, _na_, not, _fraga_, why, _fatla_,
how, are followed by initials in the second state.
2. _The Third State_.
_a_. The possessive pronouns _ow_, my, _î_, her, and _aga_, their, are
followed by words in the third state.
_b_. _Ma_, _may_, that, are sometimes followed by verbs in the third
state, and sometimes by a variant, _g_ becoming _h_, and _gw_ becoming
_wh_.
3. _The Fourth State_.
_a_. The particle _ow_, which forms the present participle, is
followed by a verbal noun (or infinitive) in the fourth state.
_b_. The conjunctions _a_, _mar_, _mara_, if, are followed by verbs in
the fourth state.
_c_. The adverb _maga_, as (in “as well,” etc.) is followed by an
adjective in the fourth state.
_d_. Sometimes an adjective beginning with _d_, when preceded by the
adverbial particle _en_, has its initial in the fourth state, and
rarely a noun beginning with _d_, when it follows in the appositional
genitive a word ending in _th_.
_e_. The verbal prefix _ă_ (_y_), when followed by verbs whose radical
initial is _d_, often changes that initial to the fourth state, and in
the case of those beginning with _gw_ to _wh_. The conjunction _ken_,
though, does the same.
_f_. The third form of the second personal pronoun singular _’th_ not
infrequently changes the initial of a verb beginning with _d_ to the
fourth state, and that of one beginning with _g_ or _gw_ to _wh_. It
also sometimes changes _b_ to _f_.
The exact usage of the mutations is not very clear, for even the older
writers used them rather wildly, but the above rules are the general
principles of them. There are valuable notes on their phonetic
principles in Dr. Whitley Stokes’s notes to _St. Meriasek_, and in a
paper of additional notes which he published later. In the latest
Cornish there was a tendency to use the second state after nearly
anything, especially prepositions, except the few words which govern the
other two mutations.