Grammar of Literary Cumbric

7/25/2019 Grammar of Literary Cumbric

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/grammar-of-literary-cumbric 1/25

ÿr ўaith Gÿmbr à ic parth ẅn

An introduction to revived Cumbric: a modern literary language of

the Old North – part one

Tavotўaith ÿ lhÿver – Literary Dialect

A short guide to a modern, literary Cumbric language

Copyright 201 !inden "acAoidh

#hotos: copyright !inden "acAoidh

Thank you to those around me, who shared their enthusiasm with me for the Brythonic and Gaelic

lands of Europe

Thank you to the characters of Welsh and Gaelic folklore, for inspiring me to remember them

through speaking our traditional languages.

nd thank you to all those people ! ha"e met o"er the years, whilst tra"elling, who made e"en fonder memories in such spectacular places.



$rom #roto%&rittonic to Cumbric

'he evidence for ho( Cumbric might have differed from "iddle )elsh is scant, but there are some

clues from place names and local dialects of *nglish+Northumbrian and cots- Cumbric is ageographic term used for the supposed &rythonic language of North%)estern *ngland and outhern

cotland, and the actual Cumbr. element is preserved, in the name Cumberland, Cumbrae in

cotland, as (ell as many others- o it seems li/ely that these people called themselves Cumbri or

similar, from the same root as the )elsh (ord #ymru. 'his originates in the &rittonic (ord

Combrogi, the first %o% (as replaced to become a sch(a in )elsh, in Cumbric the same change may

have ta/en place, but there is some evidence that this sound had a slightly different uality in the

Cumbric region- ts also (orth pointing out that the modern pronunciation of Cumbria doesnt

contain a sch(a, (hen pronounced by people in Northern *ngland- o the pronunciation of the ÿ in

modern literary Cumbric is not in /eeping (ith local pronunciation-

Cumbria is part of the region referred to as 'he Old North, or 3r 4en Ogledd in early )elsh

literature, and may be associated (ith the /ingdom of 5heged, although the historical basis of there

being an actual /ingdom called 5heged is debated- 'he area /no(n as trathclyde (as once

partially independent from cotland, and there is evidence of the name )allace being uite

common here, presumably used by cots spea/ers to refer to people (ho still spo/e Cumbric, or

had some older non%cots customs in their family-

'rying to e6plain Cumbric as being a single language may not be accurate- 'here is some evidence

of multiple forms of Cumbric, some of (hich are dialectal probably- &ut it could also be that these

variations are do(n to mispronunciation, or more li/ely to historical changes- thin/ that earlier

varieties of pre%Cumbric, associated (ith the &rigantes and Carvetii tribes may have already been

distinct from the pre%)elsh language of )ales, and they (ere they influenced by medieval

e6pansions of spea/ers from 7(ynedd into 'he Old North- o (e may have had more upper class people spea/ing a language similar to Old )elsh, (hilst local people may have had more distinct

varieties, but this is speculative-

8ialects of "odern Cumbric

8oes "odern Cumbric have different varieties and dialects9 3es, in a (ay it does- 'here appear to

be a number of sound changes (hich are common in Cumbric, but sometimes come across

evidence in place%names of (ords containing completely different changes- 'his ma/es it incredibly

difficult to discern (hich of these things might have been genuine features of Cumbric, and (hich

are ust do(n to mispronunciation- "any of these variations are probably do(n to the language

changing over time- "odern Cumbric is not a distinct language, "odern Cumbric is a classificationfor all reconstructions of the &rittonic language of the Old North- *ven though Cumbric is dead and

(e dont even /no( (hat the language (as called, that doesnt mean that modern reconstructions of

the language are not varieties of Cumbric- 'he revived versions of Cumbric are certainly #%Celtic

!anguages (ith a solid basis in the vocabulary, morphology and phonology of #%Celtic grammar-

'his cant be e6act, in fact its probably no%(here near e6act- &ut Cumbric today, is still Cumbric-

'he fe( revivalists (ho have (or/ed on Cumbric arent creating languages from scratch and then

naming them Cumbric, (e try our best to bring the language into the present time from (hat

evidence (e have of its e6istence- &ut e6actly ho( (e bring Cumbric into the present is up to our

o(n interpretation-

8ialects of Cumbric in the medieval period

'here is some evidence of dialectal variations in 'he Cumbric region prior to the language



becoming e6tinct- 'hese are fe( and far bet(een, and some of these variations might also be do(n

to later pronunciations- Or, (e could be loo/ing at earlier periods of Cumbric in some regions, and

its easy to misinterpret these as dialectal variations (hen they could simply be different periods of

pronunciation-

-!enition of &rittonic final %t - 'he &rittonic final %t became voiced in )elsh, hence (e have #roto%

&rittonic kaitos ;forest< giving us coed in )elsh- originally thought that this variation might bedialectal, perhaps confined to more eastern areas- 'his lenition does not appear to ta/e place in

8umfries and 7allo(ay, (hich could be a clear indication of dialectal variation-

-4ardening of =>? to =d?- 'he traditional dialect of Cumbria often replaces =>? (ith =d?- "ost place%

names in the !a/e 8istrict are of Norse or Northumbrian origin, both of these languages had dental

fricatives-

-'he ae in the name Caerlaveroc/ ;8umfries and 7allo(ay<, sho(s that this sound (as probably

pronounced as a diphthong, similar to the )elsh (ord caer- *lse(here in the Cumbric region, this

sound is normally represented by a as in Car- 'his is another piece of evidence (hich might sho(

that the 8umfries and 7allo(ay Cumbric had more in common (ith Old )elsh than (ith Cumbric

else(here-

-"utation after adectives: the place%name Culgaith sho(s ho( the Cumbric (ord for forestundergoes mutation after an adective, (hereas the place%name Culcheth in !ancashire seems to

indicate that this didnt happen in all areas- 'his might be evidence of a north%south divide, or

simply that earlier Cumbric varieties spo/en to the south didnt al(ays incorporate this type of

mutation-

-@ariations in the pronunciation of u: n )elsh, the u can sound li/e ee to *nglish spea/ers- 'his

same change appears to have ta/en place in southern areas, for e6ample in the place%name

Cric/heath in hropshire ;compare )elsh crug <- 4o(ever, an older u sound is found else(here-

"odern dialects of Cumbric

today there are many (ords in my boo/

heddiw ys lhower ô gheir ÿm mÿn lhÿver – !iterary revived Cumbric ;Cÿmbràic<

=he>i( s B DEFG I: eir mn B vJr?

hedhuw is lowar a gheir yn mú lyvar – Cumbric variety A ;Cúmbraic<

=heKL:s louaM a JiM in m liva:M?

heddiw tow lhôar a chairi en ma lhever – Cumbric variety & ;Cẅmraíc<

PQRS TU VDE WBUXG Y ZRXG[ F\ ]^ fleu:r?

am (al/ing to the castle, (hich sa(

i! mi"n mÿnet di"r d#n$ a gwelais mi – !iterary revived Cumbric

=uiv min mned dir di:n g(elJ:smi?uwv mi a múnedh dor din a g%awais mi – Cumbric variety A ;Cúmbraic<

=L: mi a mnJK dr di:n a g(a(as mi?

e&' ve ( mẅndd tar t#n y golais ve – Cumbric variety & ;Cẅmraíc<

PR_X` R Y ]D\S T]D\[ V_G V[X\ R UX`R R

a day (as good

aidd d)dd ÿn dd& – !iterary revived Cumbric

=J:> di:> n >a:?

aidh dydh yn dha – Cumbric variety A

=a:> di:> in >a:?

aidd dedd en t& % Cumbric variety &PRXS TRX SRXS T Y\ V_X



happy ne( year

blidd nowydd dd& – !iterary revived Cumbric

=bloi>+blui> noui> >a:?

bluwdh nowydh dha – Cumbric variety A

=b(L:> noui> >a:?

plẅadd nowdd dd& – Cumbric variety &

=BUX_S T \DE S T_X

(hat is the name of the narro( foest9

p*th ў an! ÿ cẅlgait+ , literary Cumbric

=pJ:K u: anu: /y:lgJ:d?

peth uw anuw y -.wgaidh+ , Cumbric variety A

=peKL: anL: i /y(ga:>?

pett /o eno e culgaid+ , Cumbric variety &

=pJt: enI: /(/J:d?

peth yw an ÿ culc*t+ , Cumbric variety C+outh Cumbric

=pJK iu anu: /:l/e:d?

there is a castle on the mountain

ÿmai càir ar ÿ mÿnydd – literary revived Cumbric

=ma /a:r+/air ar mne>+mni>?

yma càir war y múnydh – Cumbric variety A

=ima /a:M (aM i mni>?

ema c&r er e mẅndd – Cumbric variety &

=ma /^X RG Y ]D\S T

yma caer ar ÿ monidh=ma /eir+/aer+/air ar i moni>? – Cumbric variety 8+North Cumbric

ice and fire

ў&gh a th&n – literary revived Cumbric

=a: a Ka:n?

/a a tan – Cumbric dialect A

=a: a ta:n?

/& a th&n – Cumbric dialect &

=^X Y V T^:n?

fictional Cumbric dialects-

"odern Cumbric has dialects, and one literary language called Cÿmbràic used here, as a

(ormhole into )elsh literature- *vidence on Cumbric is scant, so rather than deciding (hich

features to include in a modern language, it made more sense to me to include all of the features, in

different dialects- One of the obvious differences is a North%outh divide in the pronunciation of ei-n &rigantian Cumbric this is (ritten ai and appears to have been pronounced li/e a short e in the

south, for e6ample, in #en%y%7hent, (hereas (e find the form gant further North- 4o(ever, some

place names near *dinburgh also preserve an e sound, (hich is probably do(n to the e6pansion of

trathclyde and intermi6ing of Old )elsh, represented here by Cÿmbràic, and the original Cumbric

language (hich may have shared things in common (ith #ictish-

8ialect A: l becomes w, many (ords have an y pronounced as =i? as in !iterary Cumbric, for

e6ample nowydh ;ne(<- $inal t undergoes lenition to dh in this dialect- 0 becomes w in



intervocalic position and finally-

8ialect &: many initial consonants are voiced, the mb cluster becomes m or mm- =u? is often

released as =o?, (ritten ẅ- 1d and th are often pronounced as dental forms of d and t- Gw becomes

go or co, wa becomes o- dd is sometimes silent in final position- n certain positions, v and ' are

hardened to ' and p-

8ialect C: outh Cumbric- ch(a sound is common, no dipthongisation of many Old &rittonic

vo(els- 2owr ;big< becomes môr, ceit ;forest< becomes c*t, mail becomes m*l- 3 is pronounced

li/e the North )elsh u, and is (ritten u- Nouns dont undergo mutation after adectives- 4wsometimes becomes aw, for e6ample lhawen ;happy<-

8ialect 8: loss of ,b, in %mb% cluster- 4w often becomes ew, ow sometimes varies (ith aw- ch(a

and other medial vo(els are often dropped for e6ample newdd for nowydd- 1d and th are

pronounced as in dialect &- !ong vo(els tend to become diphthongised, for e6ample mo5r for

mowr, t*ag for tec-

cottish dialect *: similar to !iterary Cumbric, ai is usually pronounced =^:?, and medial and finalconsonants tend to be devoiced in some areas- No lenition of t in the (est, only in the eastern areas-

n the (estern areas, àe is used (here ài is normally (ritten in !iterary Cumbric, for e6ample

màen, càer, instead of màin, càir- 'he name of the (estern dialect is Combraec or Combràec-

8ialect $: an intermediate bet(een dialects C and &, meant to be spo/en in the !a/e 8istrict

National #ar/- n this dialect, !iterary Cumbric i is (ritten wi but (ith the =(? usually silent- 1dis also hardened to d, e6cept for in initial position, but it continues to be (ritten dd- "edial y in

!iterary Cumbric sometimes becomes a, for e6ample mẅnadd for mÿnydd- 1d can medially be

voiced to th, a dental t sound, for e6ample hetti for heddiw- $inal dd and ,ion are absent from this

dialect-

have also given some of these dialects poetic names:

Cÿmbràic ÿ 6rianin – ings Cumbric+literary

Cẅmraíc em 7ran – ravens Cumbric ;)est<

Cúmbraic y 2àinhir – *den+&rigantian Cumbric

Combràec in Ghwocledh – cottish 8ialect

#roto Celtic – #rittani/j – "odern Cumbric ;vo(els and diphthongs<

a $ a – a

akt $ akt – ai% $ & – owe $ e – e' $ ( – e8* ;occasionally 8i<em)en $ em)en – ÿm8ÿn8ekt $ ekt – eithe*t $ e*t – eithi $ i – y8i8ÿ+ $ – i8# o $ o – ool $ al % al- $ – ô8oom)on $ om)on – ÿm8ÿn ;varying pronunciation<

okt)o*t $ okt)o*t – owth ;oa in some cases<



u $ u – ;pronounced o occasionally<

/ $ 0 – i ;slo(er change, may not be a pure =i? sound-<

um)ub $ um)ub % ẅukt)u*t $ ukt)u*t % i8y ;u(, oa in some cases<

ai $ ai)( – ei8aiei $ ( – ei8ai

au $ au – ou $ ou) – ou $ ou – iw8ow ;on occasion<

Consonants:

b $ b – bmedial b – vk $ k – ckk ;medial< – chk medial – g

k final – ckt $ *t – thkw $ p % pd $ d – dd medial – ddd final – dd

g $ g – g g medial – gh+k ;gh is occasionally (ritten for etymological reasons and is not generally

pronounced<

lg)rg $ lg)rg – lgh8rgh g final – g – g

l $ l – lh8l ;initial<l $ l – l ;else(here<

l $ l $ l ;pronounced =(? bet(een vo(els or after a vo(el at the end of a (ord<

m $ m % m ;initial<

m $ m – v ;medial<

m $ m – !8v ;final<- 'his sound is slightly more nasal, and can be pronounced =o:? or =(? optionally-

n $ n – nnd $ nd – nnr $ r – r8hr ;initial<

r $ r – r s $ h – h s1 $ f – ' st $ st % st sw $ sw – chw8hwt $ t – t ;initial<

t $ t – d ;medial<

t $ t – t ;final< ;varying pronunciation<

tt $ tt % th y $ y – ў ;initial<

nusual changes

-medial g to gh can diphthongise surrounding vo(els, e-g- magnos2 – màin$ or maglos ;prince< –màil ;)elsh: maen, mael <

-place name evidence sho(s that the final d in )elsh, from the &rittonic final t, becomes dd



sometimes-

-medial y can develop to(ards d8dd- $or e6mample moniyos $ mÿnydd although in many other

e6amples this change appears to have not ta/en place in Cumbric, perhaps the earlier Cumbric

language didnt present this change- )here the vo(el can be seen to be dropped in this (ord, the ddseems to revert to d, e-g- mond9 $inal %ydd in )elsh has survived as a plural ending, but not in the

C 8ialect, (here it is silent-

-vo(els can occasionally disappear bet(een r and c- $or e6ample )elsh carreg , and Cumbric:crag8carc ;Car/<- 'his also happens bet(een n and r8l for e6ample in the preserved (ord galnys(hich is galanas in )elsh, although this is not included here- 'his is included in the C 8ialect

#roto%Celtic % #roto%Cumbric – !itetary Cumbric – 8ialect A

we*t% – gwecht3 – gwaith , gỽwaithm%ros – m-r4 – mowr , mōr moniyos – monid4s)moni – – mÿnydd , múnydh

*6amples: #roto%Celtic – Cÿmbr à ic – Cúmbraic – *nglish

blidaniy%s ;genitive+accusative: bl'danis< $ blidd – bluwdh – year

l'ris $ lhir – luwr – clear

ankewes $ ancow – ankow – death+dead beings

datu $ d&t – dadh - colour

r+ks $ hri – ri – /ing

kl'bos $ clv – kluwv % bas/et

wolukton $ gwalc – gỽowk - sight woltos $ gwalt – gỽowt – hair

kebnon $ cevan – cain – bac/

esm+5'm+ $ i! – uwv – am

we*t% $ gwaith – gỽaith – (or/, occasion of (or/ w+ros $ gr – guwr – man

sk'ton $ scit – skuwdh – shield

windos $ gwin – gỽin – (hite

wentos $ gint8gwint – gỽint – (ind

wologus $ gwalow – gỽowow – light+bright

at2 % ,ad, , adh – prefi6 ;<

kl%ros $ clowr – klōr – table, board

drukos $ drc – druwk – bad

aktus $ àic – aik – pain

m%ros $ mowr – mōr - big

Comparison of Older literary Cumbric and 8ialect A ;in process of creation<

*nglish Cymbraic Cmbraic )elsh ;collouial<

mi mi fi

you ;singular< ti ti ti

he e! ev ef)fe, of)fo

she hi hi hi

(e ni ni ni

you chwi hwi/chỽi chi

they wint uwi* nhw



big mowr mōr mawr

small bechan bechan bach

long hir hir hir

narro( cẅl kw cul

my mÿ mú fythy dtÿ dhú dy

your àich aich eich

for amb amm am

also achedd8hevydt edha! ache! hevidh hefyd

no( n nuw nawr, r6an

and a8ac a/ack a,ac

(ith cant kant gyda)gan)efo

through tri truw trwy

(hite gwin8gwen gỽin gwyn)gwen

blac/ dẅv dv du

green gwirdd8gwerdd gỽirdh/gỽirth gwyrdd

house t#8t) ti t7

across tros trōs dros

under d&n adh"n dan

to di =d? do i

from ô a# o

(ee/end penithnos$cinithnos

kinuwthnos/saithvain penwythnos

because acows8oherwidd aberri achos

al(ays popgweth $obith pop amser

behind trachevan8olow achevan -l)holau

fish pÿs- $isk pysgod

if os od os

to sail hilet8hilẅ huwedh hwylio

storm tÿmpestal tem$astaw tymestl

here ÿma ym% yma

there ÿna yna yna

(elcome annerchion annarki croeso8

(hat9 p*th $eth beth

(hen9 p"amser $uwr pryd

name an! anuw enwcat cath kat cath



mountain mÿnydd múnydh mynydd

(olf blaidd blaidh blaedd

dog ci ki ci

/ing brianin branin brenin

(oman m*rch8geneth marc/las merch)geneth

&elo(: to be in different #%Celtic languages

*nglish 7aulish &rittonic Cumbric po/en )elsh Cornish

am immi)'mi esem+ i! mi d( i ov vi

thou art esi 'sesi it ti (yt ti os y

he+she+it is esti 'iti)eseti ў y(+ydy y(

(e are immus9 emes)immos ÿm ni dan ni on ni

you are estesuis9 eteswis och chwi dach chi o(gh (hi

they are senti)esont senti)enti ÿnt wint dan nh( yns i

Cÿmbr à ic : "odern !iterary Cumbric

'his short eboo/ is not meant to be a complete (or/- $or those of you (ho havent heard of

Cumbric, Cumbric is the name given to a language once spo/en in North(estern *ngland and

outhern cotland until bet(een 1100 and 100 A8- After this time it (as replaced by a form of

Old *nglish, highly influenced by Norse, and by 7aelic and cots in the North-

Cumbric doesnt e6ist as a distinct language- *vidence does point to the strong possibility that

Cumbric (as a distinct language from )elsh, probably its closest neighbour- use the term )elsh

very carefully here, because the )elsh spo/en during the "edieval period differed greatly from the

spo/en dialects of no(donia, the !leyn, #embro/eshire, and other parts of )ales today-

Cumbric (as certainly a &rythonic language, described in )elsh as C(mbreg, or as Cymraeg yr

4en Ogledd ;'he )elsh of the Old North<- 'o (hat degree the language differed is debatable, and

from the evidence (e have of Cumbric, mostly in place%names and in a couple of dialect (ords, the

actual features of Cumbric (hich made it a language can only be guessed at- 'he evidence is very

contradictory, its possible that different dialects of Cumbric had phonological differences, (hilst

its also possible that (riters spea/ing *nglish or !atin (hen (riting do(n these place names,

added their o(n pronunciation- )hich although not a feature of Cumbric, might represent a

possible basis of a Cumbric conlang such as this one-

A conlang is a constructed language, in this case based on a language spo/en in North%)estern

*ngland and cotland around one thousand years ago- Over the years, since the year 200q or so,

have tried to create various Cumbric inspired languages, some of (hich are more fantastical than

others- 'he Cumbric am using here, is not by any means a complete language- 'he degree to

(hich (ill develop it as a complete language, depends on ho( many other people are interested inspea/ing a ne( language, coined out of (hat little (e have left- "y previous (or/ on Cumbric uses

different spelling systems, and more haphaard sound changes, (hich (ill need to be rectified over



the course of several months before they are published-

'he purpose of reviving Cumbric is for artistic reasons- !anguage, even those (hich can be

attested to being thousands of years old, such as umerian, (ere all created- o a language created

from scraps of its old self, may not be historically accurate do(n to the finer details no matter ho(

hard (e try- &ut it could serve as a form of personal e6pression about these regions in (hich it (as

spo/en-

first discovered Cumbric (hen (as in my teens, having moved up to Cumbria, from a childhoodrich in visits to this region, and to North )ales- started in around 200, to create my o(n language

phrases, attempting to teach them to a couple of mates at school- based this on (hat read of Old

)elsh on the internet, and applying Cumbrian place%name phonology to them-

'he Cumbric used in this short introduction, and part 1 of three of the (ord list, is meant to be a

safe reconstruction, allo(ing others to apply the changes they (ant to the language based on the

evidence there is of Cumbric- $or e6ample the varied pronunciation of dd and ei8ai, should they

(ant to spea/ it- am currently creating dialects of Cumbric for this very purpose, but (anted to see

(hich /ind of language people (ould be curious about spea/ing-

"odern Cumbric probably (ont ever be a language (hich is ta/en too literally by non%language

enthusiasts or people (ho dont have much interest in history- Cumbric may be a dead language, but

it still seems to e6ist in our minds, some(here in our regions distant memory- o in this sense,(anting to revive the language represents our desire to personalise our relationship (ith our land,

be it Cumbria, !ancashire, or !othian- )ith Cumbric no( being a subect of interest, it sho(s that

the language does have some place in our regions, or (ith anyone (ho shares an interest in them-

)e (ont ever see road signs in Cumbric, or legal documents, but over the past years have

created songs and poems in the language- hope that a language li/e Cumbric might have a place in

the (orld for days to come-

:lease note, the language here does not claim historical accuracy. This book deals purposefully

with what the language may ha"e been like. #umbric is a language in the process of being

re"i"ed)reconstructed, some of the spellings and forms used here might not be found elsewhere.

;ome of the spellings and sound changes may change as the language e"ol"es. There is no standard

form of #umbric, therefore no standard way of writing #umbric e*ists. This is similar to say, <ld

Welsh and =iddle Welsh. The dialect of >"ariety> of #umbric shown here is known as ?e"i"ed

Literary #umbric, but this dialect does not ha"e a strict way of writing and saying things. !t is a

written language, and the indi"idual spelling and pronunciation will "ary from person to person.

Literary #umbric is a collecti"e base of the other dialects, and the pronunciation of literary

#umbric can be influenced by these dialects.

Alphabet and #ronunciation

;a 6b Cc Chch 1d 1ddd <e =' Gg Ghgh >h ?i 0l 2m @n 4o 7p Ar Bs t hthDuEv Fy ÿ ў8/ w ẅ

a: short as in cap- !ong as in father ;Northern *nglish pronunciation<

e: short as in bet- !ong as in the N- *nglish or cottish pronunciation of game-

9i: short as in 'im- !ong as in team-

9o: short as in the N* pronunciation of pot- !ong as in the N* pronunciation of gnome-

9 : short as in N*- mug or long as in soon-

-ẅ: more or less as in 7erman 9y: as in Cumbric i or e9ÿ: a sch(a sound, li/e the )elsh y in Cymraeg, or bet(een the o in pot and the u in the



Northern *nglish pronunciation of cup- 'his may also have been li/e the 7erman or similar- On

the first syllable of a (ord this can be interchangeable (ith y-

-ў: as in *nglish yes-

9w: as in *nglish, sometimes (ritten as % in other forms of Cumbric-

Consonants:

9b: as in *nglish bin-

9c: al(ays hard as in *nglish can- Never as in centimetre-

9ch: as in cottish loch or 7erman auch

9d: as in *nglish, possibly as a Cumbric "dd" in medial position-

9dd: as in *nglish this-

9': as in *nglish

9g: al(ays hard as in get-

9gh: li/e a voiced version of ch, sounds similar to the $rench r- 'his sound (as most li/ely lost,

partially or completely, in Cumbric-

9h: as in *nglish, never dropped as in $rench-

9l: as in *nglish, in some dialects becomes ( at the end of (ords9lh: as in *nglish, possibly pronounced more li/e hl in later periods (hen initial, but not uite li/e

the )elsh ll-

9m: as in *nglish

9! – a nasal v or ( sound, usually simply (ritten as v9n: as in *nglish

9p: as in *nglish

9r: as in *nglish, or trilled-

9hr: a sort of hr sound

9s: as in *nglish, most li/ely a sound (ould not have e6isted in Cumbric

9t: as in *nglish, although possibly a Cumbric th in final position-

9th: as in *nglish thing

9v: as in *nglish, at the end of a (ord some spea/ers may prefer a pronunciation li/e a Cumbric u-

diphthongs:

ài – pronounced igh as in might, or as a short a- 'his is used (here an intervocalic g has been

transformed into a diphthong, but probably (asnt even pronounced as a diphthong any(ay- 4ence

(hy the name Cÿmbraic might also be spent as Cÿmbràic- 'his can also be (ritten ei depending

on dialect+spea/er- n place names such as "acefen, this appears to be have been pronounced as ei-ai – pronounced either as a short a or a short e sound, this is also (ritten ai-

ei – used interchangeably (ith ai sometimes, but usually used to mar/ a plural formiw – an -i follo(ed by an oo sound

ow – as in lo( in N* pronunciation, or as t(o separate sounds o(-

Notes on Cumbric differences in pronunciation:

-t is unclear from place%names (hether the pronunciation of dd as d (as an earlier or later aspect

of the language-

9C – initially became mutated a ch sound as in *nglish chin in some cases, probably through

*nglish influence on the place%name- 'his can be (ritten Hh- *-g- culgeit8culHheit--n )elsh, final c$ p, and t became pronounced as g$ b and d- 'his change may or may not have

occurred in Cumbric, there is evidence to say it may have done in some cases- 4ere advice that thevoiced pronunciation, a/a g$ b and d$ is applied only (hen the follo(ing (ord begins (ith a vo(el-



!ong vo(els may be mar/ed (ith a circumfle6 accent, e-g- &$ *$ #$ ô$ I$ J$ )9

9< (as perhaps pronounced as an a (hen before r- e-g- merch – march9 $inal ch (hen follo(ing an

r appears to have been pronounced as c9 8ialectal spelling as mark! askarn! abar as opposed to

m*rch$ ascern$ aber, is acceptable-

-$inal l tends to be released as w in some place%names, usually after or bet(een vo(els-

9gwa$ gwe can optionally be interchanged (ith go! ge9 #ersonally tend to(ards using the latter in

order to develop Cumbric more as its o(n language, but not in !iterary Cumbric-

8iphthongs:

9ea: rather li/e a long Cumbric e but follo(ed by an i sound- Alternatively this may have sounded

li/e the N* *nglish pronunciation of the (ord air-

1: basic nouns and verb structures

n Cumbric a noun is either masculine or feminine-

gr – a man ;m< =gu:r?, =gu(r?

davat – a sheep ;f< =davat?, =davad?, =da(ad?

Cumbric has no indefinite article, that is to say, a (ord for a, an- 'hus:

gr: a man, or ust man

bordd8brdd: table or a table

m*rch: a (oman ;f< =mJ:r6?

lh&t: a lad, or boy ;m<

t#8t): a house

pÿscadr: a fisherman ;m<

gwaith: (or/, an occurrence of (or/ing on a particular thing ;m< PFV T

d)n: a man

#lurals in Cumbric are formed in a variety of different (ays+

gr: gwirbordd: borddetm*rch: merchetlh&t: lhadowt#: teipÿscadr: pÿscadirgwaith: gweithiond)n: dÿnion

As can be seen, plurals in Cumbric are often indicated by adding the suffi6 ,ion to the end of the

noun- t can also occur by altering the medial vo(el, thus a%e- *-g- bardd – beirdd ;bard, bards<-

#erhaps the most common plural ending in Cumbric is ,ow9



mÿnydd – mÿnyddaidd – ;mountain%mountains<

t&t – tadow ;father%fathers<

lhÿver – lhÿverow ;boo/%boo/sw the "e" in this (ord doesnt have to be pronounced<

avon – avonydd ;river – rivers<

Cumbric did possess a definite article, (hich in place names appears as either ÿ, ÿn or ÿr-

9ÿ: occurs before most consonants and is used for singular nouns- Cumbric does not have variation

in the definite article depending on noun gender, ho(ever, the definite article does cause consonant

mutation in feminine nouns, (hich (e (ill come to-

'he man – ÿ gr'he dog% ÿ ci'he table – ÿ bordd'he bed – ÿ gweli'he road – ÿ 'rdd'he bac/ – ÿ cevan'he guest%house – ÿ gwestd)'he copper – ÿ coperthe (riter % ÿ scrivenr

&ut for feminine nouns:

g&rdd ;garden< – ÿ gh&rddm*rch ;(oman< – ÿ v*rchcath ;cat< – ÿ gath

&efore the letters d, and t, ÿn is employed- 'his also causes consonant mutation in the feminine-

ÿn d)n – the man

ÿn ddavat – the sheep

ÿn dderwen – the oa/

ÿn dÿscr8dyscr – the learner ;male<- r is a masculine suffi6

ÿn t#r – the land

ÿn tôn – the (ave

ÿn t) – the house

ÿr is used before vo(els-

ÿr aber – the oining of rivers

ÿr avon – the river

ÿr ascern – the bone

ÿr ynis – the island

ÿr ÿmghwelt – the visit

ÿr is also used in the plural of nouns, e-g-:

ÿr merchet – the (omen

ÿr dÿnion – the men

ÿr gwir – the men

ÿr tei – the housesÿr avonydd – the rivers

ÿr tonnow – the (aves



forming basic sentences:

ÿmai tonnow rth ÿn tràith – there are (aves by the beach

ÿmai gwir ar ÿ mÿnydd – there are men on the mountain +men are on the mountain

ÿmai pÿscadir ÿn àin corrc – there are fishermen in our boats+fishermen are in our boat

ÿmai lhongow ÿn ÿr avon – there are ships are in the river

ÿmai is a Cumbric (ord used to here mean they is, there are, it is+they are, there e6ists-

7enerally spea/ing, verbs come before the nouns in Cumbric- 'he three prepositions here, rth$ arand ÿn mean beside, upon, in respectively- Kmai is used (hen describing (hat e6ists (ithin a

certain place, or at a certain moment, and isnt used for describing more permanent aspects of the

)orld- 'ranslate the follo(ing:

ÿmai derwen rth ÿ lhynn9 ;long moss, narro( la/e, (etland<-

ÿmai gr ar ÿ bordd9ÿmai dÿnion ÿn ÿ gh&rdd9ÿmai gwestd) ÿnÿn trev ;to(n<

ÿmai lhongow ar ÿn dvr ;(ater<

ÿmai avonydd tri"n t#r ;through<

ÿmai lhÿverow ÿn ÿ scol ;college, university<

ÿmai sagow ÿn ÿ lhÿver ;stories<

ÿmai aira ar ÿ mÿnydd ;sno(<

hortly (e shall loo/ at ho( verbs are conuncted in Cumbric, to e6press different tenses and

moods, but first it is important to note that there are other (ays of e6pressing the verb to%be:

ÿmai can also be used to e6press the current action of the third person, (hether specified or non%specified- n the plural this can appear as ÿmeint9 n Cumbric, as in )elsh, (e use the (ord ÿn,

(hich in this conte6t means in the process of- n *nglish (e e6press the present continuous tense

by adding %ing onto the end of the verb, implying that (e are in the process of completing that

action- "odern Celtic languages use a preposition, for e6ample:

ÿmai gr ÿn dÿscẅ8dÿscet– a man is learning, there is a man learning ;dÿscẅ – to learn<

ÿmai lhongow ÿn mÿnet – ships are going, ;mÿnet – to go<

ÿmai"n dyn ÿn scrivẅ8scrivet – the man is (riting ;scrivẅ – to (rite, ÿma"n L ÿma ÿn<

ÿmai lh&t ÿn caret8carẅt– a l man loves+is in the process of loving

ÿmai"r lh&t ÿn caret ÿr lhongow rth ÿ môr – can you translate this9

Of course, if (ere being specific about a certain person, and already have some idea about (ho

they are, (e (ould more li/ely use personal pronouns- n this case, e! and hi$ are the Cumbric

(ords for he and she- All nouns in Cumbric are either masculine or feminine, the neuter pronoun

and gender having long since disappeared from the &rythonic languages- o (e use e! and hi to

describe any noun- 5emember that ÿmai is used e6clusively for temporary aspects of a noun, or

rather, (hat the noun is doing, or its location- Kmai technically means here but has come to be

used as an au6iliary verb-

4ere is a short Cumbric conversation bet(een Cadwal and Cailm9

Cailwm: pa le ÿmai Catharyn+Cadwal: ÿmai hi ar ÿ gwelt ;grass<



Cadwal: a Chailm$ pa le ÿmeint ÿr blodow+ ;flo(ers<

Cailwm: ÿmeint wint rth ÿ bordd ÿnÿ gh&rdd ;par/ in this conte6t<

pa le+ , (here9 !iterally (hich place9

ÿmai hi – she is

a – and, (hich causes mutation of the follo(ing (ord, e-g- c – ch

ÿmeint wint – they are

ys – for meaning is

ys is an archaic (ord, used in Old )elsh, middle )elsh less freuently, and in Cumbric- t comes

from the Old &ritish (ord est#$ (hich has the !atin euivalent of est, #olish: @est, and *nglish is. n

Cumbric the usage is more fluid than in Old )elsh, but in generally is used (hen stating (hat one

is, (hat one e6ists as-

$or e6ample:

ys e! d)n d& – he is a good man ;is-he-man-good<

ys hi ben thec – she is a beautiful (oman ;is-she-(oman-beautiful<

ys mi a gwelodd 1ow – it is me that sa( 7od

ys wint a"i hairch – it is them that she searches

ў & ac ÿnt

ўw and ynt are the respective, general (ords for is and are, (hen tal/ing about more permanent

ualities of people and inanimate obects- 'he (ord order can be uite fluid- 4ere are some

e6amples:

ben thec ў hi – she is a pretty (oman

lhch lhown ў e! – it is a full la/e

t) mowr ў e! – it is a big house

h*n bÿsc ў e! – it is an old fish

lhchow hir ÿnt wint – they are narro( la/es

neintydd dÿvnion ÿnt wint – they are deep valleys

Cÿmbràic ў ўaith or ўaith ў Cÿmbràic – Cumbric is a language

'armr ў e! or e! ў 'armr – he is a farmer gwin ў ÿ hrow or ÿ hrow ў gwin – the frost is (hite

eis

eis is another (ay of saying is+are but is used more in interrogative sentences, e-g-:

t is also possible that ys8eis (ere interchangeable-

eis pobel agos di"n trev+ Are there people near to the to(n9

eisM , yes ;yes, there are<

eis ynisow ÿn 0hynn Gwinader+ % are there islands in !a/e )indermere9

eis meinion d&n ÿr eglis+ , Are there roc/s under the church9



n reply one can say:

eis – yes there is

nit8nac eis – there is no(

$or e6ample:

Nÿr eis aira ar ÿ mÿnydd+O – is there sno( on the mountain9

eis – yes there is

nit8nac eis – there is not

n Cumbric there is no (ord for yes, or no- 7enerally, the verb is repeated bac/ to the uestioner in

the affirmative or negative form-

Kr aiddech chwiPn lhaveret Cÿmbràic ÿng Gàirln+ – (ere you spea/ing Cumbric in !ancaster9

aiddem , yes (e (ere

nac8nit aiddem – (e (ere not

'ssit

yssit means there is or there e6ists- $or e6ample:

pwi yssit ÿnÿr nevaidd+ , (ho is in the heavens9

ai th) yssit rth ÿr avon – her house (hich e6ists by the river

"utations

all living Celtic languages have a phenomena /no(n as initial consonant mutation, (hich has been

preserved in Cumbric-

$or e6ample:

càir – a castle

di gàir – to a castle

ÿng gàir – in a castle

pont a chàir – a bridge and a castle

t&t – father

dtÿ d&t – to a father

ai d&t – his father m&m a t&t – mother and father

blain – a mountain summit

di vlain – to a summit

ÿm blain – in+at a summit

alt a blain – hillside and summit

pont – bridge

di bont – to a bridge

ÿm bont – in a bridge

dvr a phont – (ater and bridge

e6amples of Cumbric mutations after certain prepositions:

di: ;to<- 'he letters b$ c$ d$ g$ p$ t change to v$ g$ dd$ gh$ v$ ph$ d



ÿn: ;in< becomes ÿm before b$ m$ p and ÿng before c$ g$ n- t changes d to dda: % and, changes c$ p$ t to ch$ ph$ thmÿn: % my- Changes to mÿng before c$ g$ n-

'he Negative

s nit9

$or e6ample:

nit aidd lhower – there (as not a lot

lhower – a lot

nit i! ÿn d)n – (as not the man

nit carav ÿ mÿnydd , do not love the mountain

Alternatively the final t can be dropped, causing mutation, e-g- ni charav ÿ mÿnyddamdinnav ÿ ci – defend the dog

nit amdinnav ÿ mÿnydd – do not defend the mountainÿr ў e! ÿ pÿscadr+ – is he the fisherman9

nac8nit ў , no, he is not

Kr byddav mi ar ÿ 'rdd di Gymbru+ , )ill be on the road to )ales9

nit byddav8ni vyddav – no

Kr ghwelaist ti ÿr annddvnr ÿm 6ghddol+ – did you see the shaman in &orro(dale9

)e also have the (ord nai$ (hich is related to nac9Kn d)n naPaidd – the man (ho (as not-

'he non%negative form of this is a8 ÿi! ÿr annddvnr a gwelaist ti – am the shaman (hich you sa(

"utations and their prepositions

oft%mutation, /no(n as lenition in rish literature, occurs follo(ing certain prepositions- )e have

already loo/ed at ho( this also occurs in adectives after a feminine noun, for e6ample:

d)n d& but

ben dd&

oft%mutation occurs after the follo(ing:

ai – his, its

amb – aboutar – on, upon

d&n , belo(

di – to

dow$ dẅw , t(o

dtÿ – thy+your

cant – (ith

cen – as

hep – (ithout

ni – nor

now – or

ô – of, from

rth – beside, ne6t to

pa , (hich



pan – (hen

p*th – (hat

pwi – (ho

hrẅ – too

tr& – (hile

tri – through

val8mal8mar – as, li/eÿ$ ÿr – interrogative prefi6 used to ma/e uestions

$or e6ample:

ÿmai ai gath ar ÿ bôrdd – his cat is on the table

ÿ garasym ÿr ynis+ , 8id (e love the island9

aidd ÿ nôs hr ẅ dÿwil – the night (as too dar/

tri geit – through a forest

*6amples

pen mÿm ben dtÿ ben ai ben ai phentonn mÿn tonn dtÿ donn ai donn ai thonnceit mÿng ceit dtÿ geit ai geit ai cheitg&rdd mÿng g&rdd dtÿ gh&rdd ai gh&rdd ai g&rddblain mÿm blain dtÿ vlain ai vlain ai blainmàin mÿ màin dtÿ vàin ai vàin ai màin

dol mÿn dol dtÿ ddol ai ddol ai dolgwelt mÿng gwelt dtÿ ghwelt ai ghwelt ai gwelt

radical soft nasal aspirate

p b ,m pht d ,n thc g %ng chg gh ,ng

b v ,mm v %m



d dd ,n

Above: verb to be in Cumbric- 'enses are, in order: present ;progressive<, preterite

;past<, pluperfect, imperfect past, future

a short Cumbric conversation:

>aloM>alo$ p*th ўPch an!+Gwaspatric ў mÿn an!$ a thi+6laiddgwen ў mÿn an!9 7yth yssit pethow cantoch chwi+ўown$ brav ài$ a thi+ 7aPssit pethow cantoch chwi+Qi$ brav diolwch7a le och chwiPn biw+

Kn drev bechan$ agos di 0ch Rlvr9 ; thi+ ў hnnedd Sch t) ÿma+Qi$ ў9 ) mÿn h)ntadow$ ys ÿn t#r ÿma cantav ÿng galown pop d)dd9

p*th+ – (hat9

an! % name

ўPch – is%your- Sch is àich ;your plural< after a vo(el-

a thi+ – and you9

p*th yssit pethow cantoch chwi+ – (hat are things (ith you9 or ho( are you9

ўown – alright

brav – fine

Qi , aye

diolwch – than/ youpaPssit pethow cantoch chwi+ – (hich ;(ay< are things (ith you+ho( are you9

pa le och chwiPn biw+ – (hich place are you living9 ;(here do you live<

ÿn drev bechan$ agos dÿ 0ch Rlvr ,n to(n small to(n near to lls(ater

ў hnnedd Sch ti ÿma+ – is that your house there9

Qi$ ў , yes it is

t) mÿn h)ntadow – house%my%old%fathers ;house of my family+ancestors<

ys ÿn t#r ÿma cantav ÿng galown pop d)dde6ists the land here (ith us, in ;the< heart every day – this land is al(ays in our hearts

diolwch ÿn vowr – a thousand than/s

ample sentences:

ÿ m ô rgi a"r earlesterion – the sea monster and the aeroplanes

ÿmai morgi d&n ÿ môr – there is a sea monster under the sea

pen ÿ morgi – head of the sea monster

nerthoc ў e! – he is strong

pa le ÿmai gogov ÿ môrgi+ , (here is the cave of the sea monster9e! ў"r ithvet môrgi a gwelais mi – he is the eighth sea monster (hich sa(

ÿ môrgi cÿvwythoc – the po(erful sea monster



pa le ÿmeint ÿr earlesterion+ , (here are the airoplanes9

tros ÿ Glasddvr ÿmeint ailwath – they are over the rish ea again

ailwath – again

ÿr earlesterion – the aeroplanes

ÿ Glasddvr – the rish ea

tros – acrossnerthoc – strong

môrgi – sea serpent ;m<

gogov – cave ;f<

cÿvwythoc – po(erful, strong

ÿn tavern – the pub

ÿmddycodd ÿ ci en tavern – the dog behaved in the pub

ÿma aghÿvnerth cantav – have (ea/ness

pam "r eis aghÿvnerth cantav+ , (hy do have (ea/ness9

acows ў ÿ gaiv hair ÿn vowr – because the (inter is very coldegiddav di"r tavern pop cinithnos – travel to the pub every (ee/end

eis ÿveny ÿn mÿng grv – there is butter in my beer

aiddn mi varddowl en tavern – (as poetic in the pub

ÿvgarr ў mÿng garr – my friend is a drin/er+drin/ing friend

lhown i! – m full

ÿmai tavern ÿmpenn – there is a pub up ahead

ni"n mÿnet adrev$ cin ni"n mÿnet di"r tavern arbryt – (ere going home, although (ere going to

the pub after(ards-

mi"n ÿmgÿhddẅ"r t#r ÿ"m calown – am accepting the land in my heart

gaiv – (inter ;m<

ÿveny – butter ;m<

egiddẅ – to travel

crv – beer ;m<

ÿn vowr – very

cinithnos – (ee/end ;m<

barddowl – poetic =bar>oul?

aghÿvnerth – strength 1=a:nerK?

ÿn tr à ith – the beach

lhitghlasoc ў ÿn tràith – the beach is the colour of estuary mud

ÿmai cranc ar ÿn tràith – there is a crab on the beach

ÿmai"n marchoc ÿn cerddet ar ÿn tràith – the /night is (al/ing on the beach

ÿ cÿndràith o"r môr – the neap tide from the sea

ÿmeint cÿsoltow ÿdder dÿnion a"r môr – there are connections bet(een peope and the sea

ÿ cÿmber agos di Aavenglas – the estuary+oining of rivers near 5avenglass

ÿr amrawt gwirdd – the green spirit xinny 7reenteeth

ÿ ven ghwerdd – the green (oman

ÿnsceth mowr ÿn tràith – the big ghost of the beach



ÿmai e! avrwith di ghwelet tros ÿn tràith – it is difficult to see across the beach

calavennow ÿn tràith – the reeds of the beach

cÿvarghwith ÿ môr i! – am an e6pert of the sea

damcirchinnow cÿmber Aavenglas – the circular movement of tide of the 5avenglass estuary

cloddva ÿ gallister– the flint+a6e mine

ÿ cÿvegyd – the a6e ;for stone<

cÿvegyd ÿ cloddvr – the miners a6e

cÿvlown cant meinion ў"r h*n gloddva – the old mine is full of stones

ys lhch agos di"r cloddva – there is a tarn near to the mine+it is the tarn near to the mine

ac ÿmai mowrr ÿnÿ lhch – and there is a mighty man in the tarn

@erbs

have tried to include here some e6amples of Cumbric verbs in their respective tenses-

bôt – to be

#resent tense: i!$ it$ ў$ ÿm$ och$ ÿnt permanent charictaristics ;present<: ys$ yssitlocational forms: ÿmai$ ÿmeint

preterite: bẅm$ bẅost$ bẅ$ bẅon$ bẅch$ bẅont pluperfect: bẅson$ bẅsit$ bẅ$ bẅsem$ bẅsech$ bẅsentimperfect: aiddn$ aiddet$ aidd$ aiddym$ aiddech$ aiddyntfuture: byddav$ byddit$ bydd$ byddym$ byddoch$ byddynt

*6amples of present tense:

0inden i! – am !inden

;lecs ў hi – she is Alecs

mÿng gariat ў hi – she is my love

dÿnion ÿm ni – (e are men

lhẅchi ÿnt – they are tarns

e6amples of ys

ys =reyaM , its $reya

ys =reya ÿ v*rch – $reya is the (oman

ys d& ÿn t) – the house is goodys lhẅch hir – it is a long tarn



e6amples of yssit

pwi ÿnt ÿr dÿnion yssit en tavern+ , (ho are the men (ho are in the pub9

7wi yssit ÿn lhaveret+ , (ho is spea/ing9

e6amples of eis

eis creirrow ÿn ÿr eglis+ , are there idols in the church9

eis – there are

e6amples of ÿmai

ÿmai dowl cantav – have a share

ÿmai ÿ cÿvidd ÿng galon – the po(er is in the heart

ÿmai e! dam – he is around here

ÿmeint cẅdinow ar ÿr borddet – there are loc/s on the tables

ÿmeint milot agos di"r Gwyddva – there are animals near no(don

e6amples of b ô t (hen used in the present continuous tense:

i! mi"n mÿnet – am going

ÿmai hi"n cerddet – she is (al/ing

ÿmai =reya ÿn dÿscet – $reya is learning

ÿmeint lhwinnow ÿn lhaveret – fo6es are spea/ing ;final ,et is normally dropped<

'o go % mÿnet

present tense: av$ eidd$ &$ own$ owch$ ant preterite: eithẅm$ eithest$ eith$ eithem$ eithech$ eithentimperfect: own$ owt$ ow$ owm$ owch$ ownt

to love – caret8carẅ

present tense: carav$ ceridd$ car$ carym$ ceroch$ carynt preterite: carais$ ceraist$ carodd$ carasym$ carasoch$ carasyntimperfect: carẅn$ carẅt$ carai$ caraim$ carowch$ carint

pluperfect: carasn$ carast$ carrasai$ carasem$ carasowch$ carasant

'e6ts in Cumbric:

av mi di Ghinedd pop cinithnos cant ddÿnion ô EanHair9 Fs d& cantav cloddvion h)n ac yslhower ô gloddvion lhechmàin ÿng Gÿmbrẅ9 3n ô"r cloddvion yssit agos di 0anberis ўCwari 1inorwig$ ÿmai lhower di ghwelet ar ÿ mÿnydd hnnedd9

8escription of Cumbria

>eddiw$ lhaverynt ÿ hran miav o Gÿmbroi Baisnaic$ ÿng G&rdd Cenedlaithowl Glat3rian9 >evydt$ lhaverynt wint ÿn tavotўaith grtaithiaddowl ÿn lheiow gledic ÿn t#r9 @

n"eis geir/ow lhower celtaidd now vrythonaic ÿnÿn tavotўaith$ ÿ hriv miav ô >*n0chlannaic$ ÿr ўaith a aidd cantym TUUU blÿddedd ÿn ais cÿtgant Cÿmbràic ac ;nglaic9



heddiw - today

lhaverynt % they spea/

lhaverynt ÿ hran m&iav - spea/ the part%most

( )ÿmbroi - of Cumbrians+Celts+people

aisnaic - *nglish ;modern<

thus ztoday, most Cumbrian people spea/ *nglishz-

ÿng )%rdd +enedlaithowl )&lat ,rian - in garden%national%land%rien, my rendering of the !a/e8istrict National #ar/, or literally, 'he #eoples !and of rien, a Cumbrian ing-

hevydt - also

ÿn tavotўaith g&rtaithiadowl - the traditional dialect

ÿn lheiow g&ledic ÿn tr - in places local the land, in local areas to the land, appro6imately

.& neis geir0ow lhower celtaidd now vrythonaic ÿnÿn tavotўaith - no( not%e6ists (ords manyCeltic or &rittish in%the dialect

ÿ hriv m&iav o 12n 3&chlannaic - the part most from Old Nor(egian, most of the (ords fromOld Norse-

ÿr ўaith a aidd cantym 4555 blÿddydd ÿn ais - the language (hich e6isted (ith%us 1000 years in%age, zthe language that (e had a thousand years agoz

cÿtgant +ÿmbr6ic ac 7nglaic - together (ith Cumbric and Northumbrian+Anglic

#eis 8inogat

#eis 8inogat is an ancient )elsh poem, one of the first e6amples of )elsh literature- t is believedto have come from 'he Old North and possibly describes 8er(ent(ater- 4ere is the original:

:eis Dinogat e "reith, "reith< grwyn balaot ban wreith#hwit, chwit, chwidogeithGochanwn, gochenyn wythgeith

:an elei dy dat ty ei helya Llath ar y ysgwyd, llory en y law Ef gelwi gwn gogyhwcGiff, gaff, dhaly dhaly, dhwc, dhwc

Ef lledi bysg yng corwg =al ban llad llew llywywc :an elei dy dat ty e "ynyd Dydygei ef penn ywrch, penn gwythwch penn hydd :enn grugyar "reith o "enyd :enn pysc o rayadyr Derwennyd <r sawl yt gyrhaedei dy dat ty ae gicwein< wythwch a llewyn a llwyuein

Ayt anghei oll ny "ei oradein



And in Cumbric:

ys pais dinogat braith$ braithô grin belit ban wraithchwit$ chwit$ chwitẅgeith

gochanym$ gochenyn ithgeithpan elai dtÿ d&t di helghlhath ar ÿ scit$ lhorgh ÿn ai la!e! geli cÿn gogÿccgi'$ ga'$ ddalgh ddalgh$ ddrc ddrce! lheddi pÿsc ÿng gorrcval ban lhadd lhow lhÿwycpan elai dtÿ d&t di vÿnydddÿddygai e! pen ÿwrch$ pen githch pen h)ddpen grẅgiar vraith ô vÿnyddpen pÿsc ô Aaider 1erwentyddôr sowl a cÿhraiddai dtÿ d&t a"i gicweinô ghithch a lhowyn a lhiwainni hangai oll ni owradain

#lurals in 'he ings Cumbric+!iterary Cumbric (as formed in a number of different (ays- nCumbric the plural forms are currently very fluid, and believe that it (ould be (rong to say thatsome forms are more correct than others because Cumbric is still a redeveloping language- Oftenthe change happens medially and appears as the follo(ing:

a – ei8e- *6ample: bardd – beirdd$ davat – deveit ;sheep<

ài – ei e6ample: màin – meinion

ai , ViWo – i

i ,

– ÿ

'he plural endings are: ,ow$ ,iow$ ,/osX$ ,et$ ,it$ ,ydd$ ,ion

!anguage names

Cumbric recognises *urope in a more traditional (ay, hence rather than there being an *nglish!anguage, there are three: Baisnaic$ ;nglaic$ Bcotaic-

!anguages of the ;n Cumbric<:

Baisnaic – *nglish

;nglaic – Northumbrian

Bcotaic – cots

Cÿmràic$ Cymraeg – )elsh

Cernowaic – Cornish

6rythonaic – &rittonic ;#roto !anguage<



7rithenaic – #ictish

?werddaic – rish

Gwailaic – cottish 7aelic

Gweilaic – 7allo(egian 7aelic

Cw&laic – Northern 7aelic

Gailc – "an6 7aelic

'he future of Cumbric

'his document is not the entirety of the (or/ have done on Cumbric by any means, but hopes togive a good introduction to (hat Cumbric (as, and (asnt- No doubt the Cumbric included here(ill be changed, and improved over time- After *aster (ill ta/e on the tas/ of:

-7athering more accurate phonemic information

-$urthering the creation of !iterary Cumbric, only using vocabulary from Old )elsh, dialect (ordsin Cumbria and place names-

Documents

Grammar of Literary Cumbric