An Old Gaelic conjunction rediscovered. Old Gaelic ceni, Scottish Gaelic gar an and related concessive conjunctions in Gaelic

Abstract

The meaning 'although not' has been expressed by a variety of conjunctions in the Gaelic languages over many centuries. This article considers the history and evolution of these forms and their variants, focusing in particular on gar an 'although not', and considers some related aspects of the historical development of the closely related conjunction mani 'if not', later muna, mura. The origin and significance of the Scottish Gaelic negative concessive conjunction gar an and its variants have not been satisfactorily explained to date. This article illustrates that gar an can be derived straightforwardly from the Old Gaelic conjunction ceni 'although not', previously thought to have disappeared completely from the language in the early medieval period. The survival of reflexes of Old Gaelic ceni as gar an and other variant forms in modern Scottish Gaelic represents a remarakable survival, which has hitherto been misunderstood and undetected. This new identification underlines the importance of Scottish Gaelic for gaining a deeper and nuanced understanding of the historical development of the Gaelic languages.