there be languages here

Long & Short Vowels

síneadh fada indicates a vowel is long (and changes pronunciation)

a (tap) | á (aw)

e (get) | é (like french é)

i (sin) | í (meet)

o (boy) | ó (like french au)

Caol le caol agus leathan le leathan (Slender with slender and broad with broad)

Slender vowels: i, e

Broad vowels: a, o, u

consonants can be made slender or broad depending on the vowels preceding or following it

a consonant in the middle of a word must be surrounded by only slender or only broad vowels

the broadening or slendering of a consonant can change the meaning of a word

Slendering and Broadening Consonants

a consonant is made slender by placing i before it

amhrán -> amhráin

a consonant is made broad by removing preceding i

athair -> athar

sometimes one or two other vowels will be affected

slendering: fear -> fir

Lenition/Séimhiú means softening

occurs to consonants

h, l, n, r cannot be lenited

b -> bh (v)

c -> ch (kh)

d -> dh (gh)

f -> fh (silent)

g -> gh (gh)

m -> mh (v)

p -> ph (f)

s -> sh (h)

t -> th (h)

Eclipsis/Urú means the initial consonant sound is being overtaken by the new consonant value that now precedes it

occurs to consonants and vowels

most consonants are eclipsed when they follow the word i (in)

h, l, m, n, r, s cannot be eclipsed

b -> mb (m)

c -> gc (g)

d -> nd (n)

f -> bhf (v)

g -> ng (ng)

p -> bp (b)

t -> dt (d)

t can be placed before initial vowels. It is followed by a hyphen, unless the vowel is capital

there is never a hyphen between t and initial s

t-a -> tA

t-e -> tE

t-i -> tI

t-o -> tO

t-u -> tU

h can be placed before initial vowels, and is never hyphenated

ha

he

hi

ho

And, it has changed my idea about how I should be learning Gaeilge, resulting in no longer punishing myself for maybe being a bit slow to get something, or getting something wrong.

In Welsh, stress is usually placed on the penultimate syllable. however, there are exceptions:

a few verbs with "ym" in the first syllable

a number of adverbs and prepositions

a few English borrowed words (which, these occasionally are also stressed on the antepenultimate syllable)

Sidenote:

penultimate - next to last

In Irish, stress is usually put on the first syllable of the word.

Languages have seasonal vibes.

I mean, Greek gives me the biggest Summer vibes. So, I know I'm going to be primarily focusing on Greek in Summer, whether I plan to or not!

Irish gives Autumn vibes.

Japanese gives Winter vibes.

Brazilian Portuguese gives Spring vibes (which works out perfectly for my October goals!)

Seasons

an fómhar - autumn

an geimhreadh - winter

an t-earrach - spring

an samhradh - summer

Weather

ceo - fog

báisteach - rain

sneachta - snow

bionn sé ag cur sneachta - it is snowing

grian - sun

teocht - temperature

gaoth - wind

leac oighir - ice

Days of the Week

Dé Domhnaigh - sunday

Dé Luain - monday

Dé Mairt - tuesday

Dé Céadaoin - wednesday

Déardaoin - thursday

Dé hAoine - friday

Dé Sathairn - saturday

Months of the Year

Eanáir - january

Feabhra - february

Márta - march

Aibreán - april

Bealtaine - may

Meitheamh - june

Iúil - July

Lúnasa - august

Meán Fómhair - september

Deireadh Fómhair - october

Samhain - november

I've done a productive procrastination thing (you know when you have a thing you really need to do and instead you do a thing that doooes need doing but not as immediately as that other thing? yeah, that). But, I think it is quite helpful, and thought perhaps others might also find it helpful, particularly in the language tracking department. So, here goes:

A1

~700 words

Can understand and use very basic expressions to satisfy concrete needs.

Can introduce self and ask others questions about personal details.

Can interact simply as long as the other person speaks slowly and clearly.

A2

~1, 500 words

Can understand frequently used expressions in most intermediate areas, such as shopping, family, employment, etc.

Can complete tasks that are routine and involve a direct exchange of information.

Can describe matters of immediate need in simple terms.

B1

~2, 500 words

Can understand points regarding family, work, school, or leisure-related topics.

Can deal with most travel situations in areas where the language is spoken.

Can create simple texts on topics of personal interest.

Can describe experiences, events, dreams, and ambitions, as well as opinions or plans in brief.

B2

~4, 000 words

Can understand the main ideas of a complex text, such as a technical piece related to one's field.

Can spontaneously interact without too much strain for either the learner or the native speaker.

Can produce a detailed text on a wide range of subjects.

C1

~8, 000 words

Can understand a wide range of longer and more demanding texts or conversations.

Can express ideas without too much searching.

Effectively use the language for social, academic, or professional situations.

Create well-structured and detailed texts on complex topics.

C2

~10, 000 words (active vocabulary), ~20, 000 words (passive vocabulary)

Can understand almost everything read or heard with ease.

Can summarise information from a variety of sources into a coherent presentation.