17 Comments
So could you wind up in some comedic spiral if the person's name was actually Beth? "Beth yw eich enw chi?" "Beth." "Beth ye eich enw chi?" "Beth." (etc...)
Consider that "Beth" and "Pam" are both question words. You could build your own little Who's On First.
943
Can yw and ydy be used one for the other? For instance, would beth ydy eich enw chi be correct?
Yep. Yw is found mostly in the south and also in more formal contexts, ydy elsewhere.
- 943
Thanks a lot.
I'm gradually becoming familiar with the yw / ydy 'identification' construction.
- 943
I hope you won't mind me asking one more detail about this contruction.
I understand that the noun that comes before yw or ydy takes some emphasis. So:
Caerdydd yw prifddinas Cymru = Cardiff (not another city) is the capital of Wales
but reversing positions:
prifddinas Cymru yw Caerdydd = Cardiff is the very capital city of Wales (not a minor city).
Is this correct?
Yes, that's it. We often move the emphatic phrase to the end of the sentence in English. So another way of phrasing it would be:
Caerdydd yw prifddinas Cymru
"The capital of Wales is Cardiff"
Speak up/shout/emphasise where you see the word in bold!
Prifddinas Cymru yw Caerdydd
"Cardiff is the capital of Wales"
They're often the natural answer to questions like:
Beth yw prifddinas Cymru?
Caerdydd yw prifddinas Cymru
and
Beth yw Caerdydd? / Prifddinas ble yw Caerdydd?
Prifddinas Cymru yw Caerdydd
And don't apologise for asking good questions. Ask away!
- 943
Thanks again!
This was extremely clear.
Most sources refer to this as the "identification construction", or "emphatic construction", but without specifying which of the two parts takes the emphasis, and identifies the other. This is not so obvious, because in some other languages the emphasized part stands at the end.
Beth YW fy enw i !!!! :) With all the talk of emphasis, how do I use word order to emphasise IS ?
Exactly as you suggest. If you want to emphasise the linking verb (yw "is" in this case) in an identification sentence, you can't put it to the front. Just use your voice.
- 272
Does the yw eich elide into yw'ch ? That's how it sounds. Any feedback for the questions on whether ydy could have been used instead?
Eich often shortens to just 'ch after a vowel, yes. So you often see and hear yw'ch or ydy'ch.
