§ 2 The Gender of Nouns
Nouns are of two genders, masculine and feminine. There is no neuter.
There is no rule whereby to tell the gender of a word, except in the case of animate objects, where the gender simply follows the sex.
There are only three grammatical cases in which gender matters at all.
1. When a noun or an adjective preceding a noun is preceded by the article an, the. If the noun or adjective is masculine singular or the noun feminine, or the adjective of either, plural, its initial remains in the first state. If the noun or adjective is feminine singular or the noun is masculine plural, 78 it is changed to the second state.
When a qualifying adjective follows a noun in the masculine or in the plural of either gender, the initial of the adjective remains in the first state. If the noun is feminine singular, the initial of the adjective changes to the second state.
3. The pronoun of the third person singular, used for a feminine noun, even when it signifies an inanimate object, is hŷ, she, not ev, he. Examples:—
tâs, a father; an tâs, the father.
tassow, fathers; an dassow, the fathers.
mergh, a daughter; an vergh, the daughter.
merhes, daughters; an merhes, the daughters.
tâs mas, a good father; mergh vas, a good daughter; an vergh vas, the good daughter.
tassow mas, good fathers; merhes mas, good daughters.
It will be evident, considering that a large number of nouns and adjectives do not begin with mutable letters, that the question of gender only applies to a limited number of nouns and adjectives, and therefore presents but little difficulty. Perhaps the best way to learn the genders of nouns with mutable initials is to get accustomed to their sound with the article prefixed.
The feminine equivalents of certain masculine nouns denoting animate objects are represented, as in other languages, in one of two ways, by the addition of a syllable or by different words.
1. By the addition of es. This is the regular form.
arledh, lord; arledhes, lady.
pestrior, a wizard; pestriores, a witch.
coweth, a companion, masc.; cowethes, a companion, fem.
mow, a boy; mowes, a girl.
sans, a saint; sanses, a female saint.
eneval, an animal, masc.; enevales, an animal, fem.
pehador or pehajor, a sinner, masc.; pehadores, a sinner, fem.
Except in the case of the other class of feminines, of which a list is given below, it may be taken as a general rule that the corresponding feminine of any noun denoting a masculine animate object is formed in this way.
2. By a different word. These are mostly those which denote relationships and familiar animals, and there are in some cases, as in English, further words to denote the young of both sexes, or the neuter.
dên, man; benen, woman; flogh, child.
gour, husband; gwrêg, wife.
mab, son; mergh, daughter.
ewiter, uncle; modreb, aunt.
tâs, father; mam, mother.
sîra, father; dama, mother.
sîra widn, 80 grandfather; dama widn, grandmother.
altrou, godfather; altrewan, godmother.
broder, brother; hoer, sister.
noy, nephew; noys, niece.
tarow, bull; bewgh, cow; ǒjion, ox; lewgh, calf; lǒdn, bullock; lejek, heifer.
hordh or hûr, ram; davas, sheep; mowls, wether; ôn, lamb.
margh, horse; caseg, mare; ebal, colt.
bŏk, he-goat; gavar, goat; min, kid.
baedh, boar; banew, sow; porhal, little pig; gwîs, old sow; ragomogh, hog; mohen, pig (plur. mogh); torgh, hog.
kŷ, dog; gêst, bitch.
gourgath, tom-cat; cath, cat.
carow, stag; ewik, hind; lewgh-ewik, fawn.
kǒtyorgh, roe buck; yorgh, roe doe.
keliok, cock; yar, hen; mabyer, chicken.
keliokwôdh, gander; gôdh, goose.
keliokôs, drake; hôs, duck.