do lá breithe
The Irish phrase for "your birthday" is do lá breithe.
This phrase refers to the anniversary of the day on which a person was born.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of do (your), lá (day) and breithe (of birth).
Which one should you use?
The form used depends on whether you are speaking to one person or many, and whether the phrase is the direct object of a verb. Use do lá breithe for a single person, but if the phrase is the direct object of a verb, the form changes to a lá breithe. To address more than one person, use bhur lá breithe.
How does it change in a sentence?
The form do lá breithe uses the singular informal possessive adjective do. When referring to the birthday of multiple people, the plural form bhur lá breithe is used.
Did you know?
- The word do meaning 'your' is a cognate of the Welsh word dy, the Cornish dha and the Breton da.
- The word breithe in this phrase is a form of the word for 'birth', which is an adjective-like form of the verb 'to be born'.
- The word lá meaning 'day' is used in Irish to denote not only a calendar date but also a specific period of time or a particular 'day's work'.
Example conversation
Conor and Aoife are chatting about upcoming plans.
- ConorAoife, ká do lá breithe?Aoife, when is your birthday?
- AoifeTá sé ar an 12ú Meánna.It is on June 12th.
- ConorGo hiontach, déanaim NósGreat, I'll make a note.
- AoifeGo raibh maith agat, a Chonaire!Thank you, Conor!
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries do, lá, CC BY-SA 4.0.
