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Scottish Gaelic (United Kingdom) style guide

Style guide conventions

  • (+) marks a correct example. (-) marks an incorrect one.

Characters

  • Country/region: United Kingdom.
  • Lower case: a, à, b, c, d, e, è, f, g, h, i, ì, (j), (k), l, m, n, o, ò, p, (q), r, s, t, u, ù, (v), (w), (x), (y), (z)
  • Upper case: A, À, B, C, D, E, È, F, G, H, I, Ì, (J), (K), L, M, N, O, Ò, P, (Q), R, S, T, U, Ù, (V), (W), (X), (Y), (Z)
  • Extended Latin characters: à è ì ò ù À È Ì Ò Ù
  • Alphabetical order is not necessarily the sorting order.
  • Total characters: 23 (31), plus one punctuation symbol (Tironian Ampersand).
  • Unicode: covered by Latin-1 except the Tironian Ampersand.
  • Bracketed characters are not strictly part of the Scottish Gaelic character set but occur in foreign personal and place names; hence 23 or 31.
  • Gaelic requires the left-facing Tironian Ampersand at U+204A (⁊). The mathematical operator U+2510 (┐) is also commonly used where there are font issues with U+204A.

Date

  • Calendar/era: Roman (Gregorian). First day of the week: Monday. First week of the year: 1st January.
  • Separator: /
  • Default short date format: dd/MM/yy; example 17/03/11
  • Default long date format: dd MMMM yyyy, d MMMM yyyy; examples 15 An Lùnastal 2011, 5 An Lùnastal 2011
  • Additional short date format 1: dd-MM-yy; example 17-03-11
  • Additional short date format 2: dd/m/yy; example 17/3/11
  • Additional long date format 1: dd-MM-yyyy; example 17-03-2011
  • Additional long date format 2: d MMMM yyyy; example 17 Màrt 2011
  • Leading zero in day field, short date: yes. Leading zero in month field, short date: yes. Digits for year, short date: 2.
  • Leading zero in day field, long date: yes. Leading zero in month field, long date: yes. Digits for year, long date: 4.
  • Correspondence format: any of the above, usually d MMMM yyyy; example 17mh dhen Mhàrt 2011
  • Cardinal number abbreviation is used in Gaelic and changes: 1d for the first day of a month; 2na for the second; 3s for the third; Xmh for any subsequent day, including 11, 12, 13, 21, 22, 23, 31.
  • Month names change morphologically in the correspondence format: citation Màrt becomes dhen Mhàrt; citation Sultain becomes dhen t-Sultain.
  • Format codes: d is day (d digits without leading zero, dd digits with leading zero, ddd abbreviated day name, dddd full day name). M is month (M, MM, MMM abbreviated name, MMMM full name). y is year (yy two digits, yyyy four digits).

Time

  • 24 hour format: yes. Standard time format HH:mm:ss; example 11:26:48
  • Time separator: : (colon); example 11:26:48
  • Hours leading zero: yes; example 01:26:48
  • AM designator: m. PM designator: f
  • Gaelic follows English (UK) time conventions. Strong preference for AM/PM format; the 24 hour clock does not render easily into the language.

Days

  • First day of week: Monday. First letter capitalized: yes.
  • Monday -> Diluain, abbreviation Dil
  • Tuesday -> Dimàirt, abbreviation Dim
  • Wednesday -> Diciadain, abbreviation Dic
  • Thursday -> Diardaoin, abbreviation Diar
  • Friday -> Dihaoine, abbreviation Dih
  • Saturday -> Disathairne, abbreviation Dis
  • Sunday -> Didòmhnaich, abbreviation Did
  • Minor deviation from GOC to give clearer short forms. Forms may lenite under the normal rules: ro DhiCiadain…

Months

  • First letter capitalized: yes, but never capitalize t-.
  • January: Am Faoilleach, Faoi, dhen Fhaoilleach
  • February: An Gearran, Gear, dhen Ghearran
  • March: Am Màrt, Màrt, dhen Mhàrt
  • April: An Giblean, Gibl, dhen Ghiblean
  • May: An Cèitean, Cèit, dhen Chèitean
  • June: An t-Ògmhios, Ògmh, dhen Ògmhios
  • July: An t-Iuchar, Iuch, dhen Iuchar
  • August: An Lùnastal, Lùn, dhen Lùnastal
  • September: An t-Sultain, Sult, dhen t-Sultain
  • October: An Dàmhair, Dàmh, dhen Dàmhair
  • November: An t-Samhain, Samh, dhen t-Samhain
  • December: An Dùbhlachd, Dùbh, dhen Dùbhlachd
  • The definite article is obligatory except in the abbreviated form. Within a phrase do not capitalize the article; it may fuse with the preposition as Gaelic grammar demands: (+) Gheibhear seo sa Mhàrt; Am Faoilleach, an Gearran, am Màrt… (-) Gheibhear seo Sa Mhàrt; Am Faoilleach, An Gearran, Am Màrt…
  • The long date form occurs in the equivalent of 17th March 2011 -> 17mh dhen Mhàrt.
  • Never use formal den instead of dhen.

Numbers

  • Same numberset as English UK. Watch for morphological problems with placeholders that could be a number.
  • Spell numbers out in full text with the decimal system.

Phone numbers

  • UK: international dialing code +44; area codes used: yes; area code digits 5, 6; separator hyphen or space; domestic digits 11, 12; domestic groupings (#####) ######, (### ###) ######
  • Scotland: local digits 6, 8; local groupings ###### for 6-figure numbers, #### #### for 8-figure numbers; mobile digits 11; mobile groupings ## ### ### ###, ###########; international digits 12; international groupings +44 #### ######, +44 # ### ######

Addresses

  • Never use the information in this entry as fictitious information in examples.
  • Format: [Title] First Name LastName, [CompanyName], Address1, [IslandName], County, [City PostCode], [Country]
  • Example: Mgr Calum MacDhòmhnaill, Hebridean Haulage, 3 Rathad Shanndabhaig, Cnoc Mhoire, Stròmaigh, Inbhir Nis, IV3 8GH, Alba
  • Local postal code format: ZZXX XZZ (Z = letter, X = number).
  • The address line varies. The most common patterns in Scotland are FlatNumber + StreetNumber Street, or HouseName + StreetNumber Street.

Currency

  • Same as United Kingdom. Currency name: UK Pound Sterling. Symbol: £, before the number: £10
  • Positive currency format £2.50. Negative sign -. Negative currency format -£2.50
  • Decimal symbol .; digits after decimal 2. Digit grouping symbol ,; digits in grouping 3.
  • Positive example £654,345.99. Negative example -£654,345.99. ISO code GBP.
  • Currency subunit name sgillinn, symbol sg; example 50 sgillinn / 50sg

Digit groups

  • Decimal separator . (full stop); example 2.50
  • Thousand separator , (comma); example 10,300

Measurement units

  • Metric system commonly used: no. Temperature: Celsius and Fahrenheit.
  • Linear measure: Kilometer -> Cileameatair, km
  • Meter -> Meatair, m
  • Decimeter -> Deicheameatair, dm
  • Centimeter -> Ceudameatair, cm
  • Millimeter -> milimeatair, mm
  • Capacity: Hectoliter -> ceudaliotair, hl
  • Liter -> liotair, l
  • Deciliter -> deichealiotair, dl
  • Centiliter -> ceudaliotair, cl
  • Milliliter -> mililiotair, ml
  • Mass: Ton -> tunna, t
  • Kilogram -> cileagram, kg
  • Pound -> punnd, p
  • Gram -> grama, g
  • Decigram -> deicheagrama, dg
  • Centigram -> ceudagrama, cg
  • Milligram -> miligrama, mg
  • English units: Inch -> òirleach, òirl
  • Feet -> troigh, tr
  • Mile -> mìle, mì
  • Gallon -> gallan, gl
  • Use only English abbreviations for the decimal units; Gaelic forms would overlap, for example ceudameatair (*cm) and cileameatair (*cm).

Percentages

  • Format: number, space, percent: 66.60 %

Sorting

  • Capital and lowercase letters are equal; no distinction.
  • à, è, ì, ò, ù are equivalents of a, e, i, o, u and sort as variants of them.
  • Non-alphabetical characters (@ ! #) sort before the letters.
  • Digits sort after non-alphabetical characters and before the letters.
  • Never use the acute accent (é ó á), though it occurs in older and some contemporary texts. Sort these like their grave counterparts.
  • Character sorting order: a 0097, A 0065, à 0224, À 0192, b 0098, B 0066, c 0099, C 0067, d 0100, D 0068, e 0101, E 0069, è 0232, È 0200, f 0102, F 0070, g 0103, G 0071, h 0104, H 0072, i 0105, I 0073, ì 0236, Ì 0204, j 0106, J 0074, l 0108, L 0076, m 0109, M 0077, n 0110, N 0078, o 0111, O 0079, ò 0242, Ò 0210, p 0112, P 0080, r 0114, R 0082, s 0115, S 0083, t 0116, T 0084, u 0117, U 0085, ù 0249, Ù 0217, v 0118, V 0086, x 0120, X 0088, z 0122, Z 0090
  • Sorted words example: @, 1, Aaron, andere, ändere, chaque, chemin, cote, côte, côté, coté, čučēt, Czech, hiša, irdisch, lävi, lie, lire, llama, lòza, Löwen, lõug, luck, Lübeck, luč, lye, màšta, Männer, mîr, möchten, myndig, pint, piña, pylon, sämtlich, šàran, savoir, Šerbūra, Sietla, ślub, subtle, symbol, väga, verkehrt, vox, waffle, wood, yen, yuan, yucca, žal, žena, Ženēva, zoo, Zürich, Zviedrija, zysk, zzlj, zzlz, zznj, zznz

Geopolitical concerns

  • Check maps, flags, country/region, city and language names, art and graphics, and cultural content for sensitive or offensive material.
  • Check maps and other graphic representations for accuracy and political restrictions. Re-check country/region, city and language names each release, even if previously approved.
  • Check the appropriateness of cultural content, clip art, religious symbols, body and hand gestures.
  • Use the most up-to-date Scottish Gaelic name list for every release.

Adjectives

  • Dative case: no slenderisation. (+) san uinneag mhòr, air an sgrìn mhòr, ron dà àireamh shlàn (-) san uinneig mhòir, air an sgrìn mhòir, ron dà àireimh shlàin
  • Dual number: no slenderisation. (+) dà uinneag mhòr, dà sgrìn ghorm, dà àireamh shlàn (-) dà uinneig mhòir, dà sgrìn ghuirm, dà àireimh shlàin
  • Multiple nouns qualified by one adjective: inflect the adjective according to the final noun. Open in hidden window or tab (+) Fosgail ann an uinneag no taba falaichte (-) Fosgail ann an uinneag no taba fhalaichte, Fosgail ann an uinneag no taba f(h)alaichte
  • Prefixed adjectives (droch, deagh, fìor) take a hyphen. (+) droch-shusbaint, deagh-bheachd, fìor-bhathar (-) droch shusbaint, deagh bheachd, fìor bhathar

Possessives

  • Use the periphrastic possessive consistently for alienable possession. Use it sparingly only where space does not allow the longer construction. (+) an sgrìn agad, am brabhsair agad, a' chairt agad, na h-uinneagan agad (-) do sgrìn, do bhrabhsair, do chairt, d' uinneagan
  • Use simple possessive pronouns (mo (m'), do (d'), a, a (h-), ar (n-), ur (n-), an) for inalienable possession. The periphrastic form is acceptable in the third person for clarity. Never use t', ar h-, ur h-, bhur n-, bhur h-. The third person masculine is fully elided before a vowel.
  • (+) d' ainm, do shloinneadh, do dhùthaich (-) an t-ainm agad, an sloinneadh agad, an dùthaich agad
  • (+) àrainn, an àrainn aige (both for his domain)
  • Exception: special folder names such as My Computer, My Documents take the simple possessive: Mo choimpiutair, Mo sgrìobhainnean.

Articles

  • English may omit or imply the definite article (Increase (the) resolution). Avoid this in Scottish Gaelic; it gives unnatural language and ambiguity.
  • Increase resolution (+) Meudaich an dùmhlachd-bhreacaidh (-) Meudaich dùmhlachd-bhreacaidh
  • Close window (+) Dùin an uinneag (-) Dùin uinneag
  • Disable Script (+) Cuir an sgriobt à comas (-) Cuir sgriobt à comas
  • Unlocalized feature names: retain English use or non-use of the definite article. (+) Fosgail ann an Internet Explorer; Dùin PowerPoint; Cha deach Excel a shuidheachadh (-) Fosgail san Internet Explorer; Dùin am PowerPoint; Cha deach an Excel a shuidheachadh
  • Lenite names under the normal rules if the word begins with a letter in the Scottish Gaelic letter set, except acronyms and trademarked names, which may not be modified. (+) Cuir a-steach do PowerPoint; Ion-phortaich o Microsoft Office; o MS-DOS (-) Cuir a-steach do PhowerPoint; Ion-phortaich o Mhicrosoft Office; o MhS-DOS
  • Localized feature names follow the normal rules of lenition and case marking: ScreenTip -> GliocasSgrìn: Na seall dhomh na GliocasanSgrìn tuilleadh
  • For an English loan word already used in products, follow the general pattern of feminine words ending in a slender vowel or consonant. A consonant-only acronym is grammatically masculine.
  • Never switch gender. (+) an XML droch-chumte; WebCal bunaiteach; a' Phantone seo ┐ taghadh na Pantone seo (-) an XML dhroch-chumte; WebCal bhunaiteach; am Pantone seo ┐ taghadh a' Phantone seo

Capitalization

  • English overuses capitalization. Do not follow it.
  • Retain capitals only for proper nouns, acronyms, product names. Never capitalize whole sentences. (+) Microsoft Office, Outlook, XML, URL, Arabais, Seapanach
  • View Encryption Certificate (+) Seall an teisteanas dubh-cheilidh (-) Seall Teisteanas Dubh-Cheilidh
  • Message Character Set Conflict (+) Còmhstri seata caractairean na teachdaireachd (-) Còmhstri Seata Caractairean Teachdaireachd
  • Never capitalize prefixed t-, h-, n-, even in an all-capitals string. (+) Na h-URLichean seo; POBLACHD NA h-ÈIREANN (-) Na H-URLichean seo; POBLACHD NA H-ÈIREANN
  • For a command string capitalized in English, use a single capital at the start. If the string is longer than one word, use single quotes.
  • Mail Merge is made up of three parts. (+) Tha trì pàirtean ann an ‘Co-aonadh a' phuist’ (-) Tha trì pàirtean ann an Co-Aonadh Puist
  • Click Finish (+) Briog air Crìochnaich (-) Briog air ‘Crìochnaich’
  • Never inflect such command-string references: no lenition, no case marking.
  • Observe internal capitalization marking stress shift. Switching off parts of AutoCorrect may be necessary. (+) MacGriogair, NicDhòmhnaill, MacNèill, Crois MoLiubha (-) Macgriogair, Nicdhòmhnaill, Macnèill, Crois Moliubha
  • Retain internal capitalization in product internal strings: ScreenTip, AutoShape (+) GliocasSgrìn, FèinChumadh

Compounds

  • Keep compounds understandable and clear. Avoid overly long or complex compounds.
  • Noun compounds of more than two or three nouns need breaking up with the definite article to avoid ambiguity. Choose a more periphrastic translation if necessary.
  • Office Online Community-Submitted Calendars (+) Mìosachain a chuir a' choimhearsnachd a-steach gu Office air loidhne (-) Mìosachain Coimhearsnachd Office Air Loidhne
  • Mail Merge Recipients (+) Faightearan co-aonadh a' phuist (-) Faightearan Co-Aonadh Puist

Dialect forms

  • Never use highly marked dialect features.
  • Avoid dialectal case marking with the suffixes -(a)idh, -(e)adh. (+) ceàrn, sa bhùth, sa choille, na cloiche, na gaoithe, na làimhe… (-) ceàrnaidh, sa bhùthaidh, sa choillidh, na cloicheadh, na gaoitheadh, na làimheadh…
  • Avoid dialectal lenition of dentals after cha and bu. (+) cha seas, cha dùin, cha tog, bu tana… (-) cha sheas, cha dhùin, cha thog, bu thana…
  • Avoid dialectal plural possessives in h-. (+) ar n-ainm, ur n-ainm, ar n-aois, ur n-aois (-) ar h-ainm, ur h-ainm, ar h-aois, ur h-aois

Gender

  • For animate nouns in the third person, observe the male/female distinction. Observe it also in key categories where it holds for inanimates (countries, planets). (+) ban-chleachdaiche > i; cleachdaiche > e; Alba > i; Èirinn > i
  • For inanimate objects, level to e. (+) chan eil an sgrìn co-cheangailte > chan eil e co-cheangailte (-) chan eil i co-cheangailte (+) 'S urrainn do dh'IE an uinneag aiseag > 'S urrainn do dh'IE aiseag (-) 'S urrainn do dh'IE a h-aiseag
  • Common nouns may take a feminine prefix (ban-dia, banrigh) but this is rare except for salient entities such as queens and goddesses. Common nouns for the user (cleachdaiche, reiceadair) carry no gender bias.

Genitive

  • Observe genitive marking as appropriate.
  • Never modify trademarked product names; modification could be read as altering the name. PowerPoint Features; Microsoft Office Applications (+) Feartan PowerPoint; Prògraman Microsoft Office (-) Feartan PhowerPoint; Prògraman Mhicrosoft Office

Modifiers

  • Lenition applies as in the other Celtic languages. Prefer phrasing that keeps a placeholder out of a leniting position. Otherwise use a colon. (+) cuir às dhan rud seo: %s (-) cuir às do %s

Nouns

  • Many nouns vary in gender by region. Use the gender that fits the rule broad nouns masculine, slender nouns feminine. (+) bùth mòr, dealbh mòr (-) bùth mhòr, dealbh mhòr
  • Follow the same broad/slender convention when Gaelicizing a loanword with no native gender ending. (+) brabhsair mòr (-air native ending), sgrìn bheag (no native ending, slender final), leibheil mhòr (no native ending, slender final)
  • English strings do not always mark parts of speech clearly (Install Wizard, Open, Print Status). Infer from neighbouring strings, otherwise ask the team.
  • Normal inflection applies (nominative, genitive, vocative).
  • Dual number: no slenderisation. (+) dà uinneag mhòr, dà sgrìn ghorm, dà àireamh shlàn (-) dà uinneig mhòir, dà sgrìn ghuirm, dà àireimh shlàin
  • Dative case: no slenderisation. (+) san uinneag mhòr, air an sgrìn mhòr, ron dà àireamh shlàn (-) san uinneig mhòir, air an sgrìn mhòir, ron dà àireimh shlàin
  • Use conservative suffixes for feminine nouns in the genitive. (+) Stoidhle na h-uinneige (-) Stoidhle na h-uinneig, Stoidhle na h-uinneag
  • Use plurals as normal. For space, the plural genitive with nan plus a singular noun may be used more freely than in everyday language, especially where English uses a singular implying a plural. With NOUN nan/nam NOUN this is usually not needed; the likely setting is NOUN nan/nam NOUN-NOUN.
  • Toolbar Manager, Address books file (+) Manaidsear nam bàr-inneal, Faidhle nan leabhar-seòlaidh
  • Color model, Customize address list (+) Modail nan dath, Gnàthaich liosta nan seòladh (space restrictions)

Orthography

  • Follow GOC 2009 with the tweaks below.
  • Use either the unformatted or the left curling apostrophe, except for opening and closing single quotes. Disable smart quotes or set a shortcut via Insert > Symbol to the left curling apostrophe. Never use the non-combining grave or the right curling apostrophe. (+) ’S, ’s, 'S, 's (-) ‘S, ‘s, \S, `s`
  • Write the copula consistently: (+) ’S e, ’S i, ’S iad, B’ e, B’ iad (-) ’Se, ’Si, ’Siad, Be, Biad
  • Never elide the vowel in the definite article or the final vowel of a verb. (+) an uinneag, …a tha ann, …a bha ann, …a chuala ann (-) ’n uinneag, …a th’ ann, …a bh’ ann, …a chual’ ann
  • Preposition plus possessive pronoun: the traditional two-word forms are mandatory. (+) ri an, ri d’, dhe d’, o m’… (-) rin, rid, dhed, om…
  • Use str rather than sdr. If the initial can lenite, spell it sr in the unlenited form; if it cannot, spell it str (mostly obvious loanwords such as strì, stràbh). (+) ro strì > strì, dà stràbh > stràbh, dà stràc > stràc, dà shrath > srath, dà shreath > sreath (-) srì, sràbh, sràc
  • GOC writes no grave where vowel length is set by a following ll, nn, rr or m. Apply this consistently, including a before rr. (+) cearr, gearr, as fhearr, cunntas, binn, cill… (-) ceàrr, geàrr, as fheàrr, cùnntas, bìnn, cìll…
  • Never apply it where ll, nn, rr or m is followed by a vowel, except for inherently long vowels. (+) cearra, gearradh, binne, cille BUT fèille, gèilleadh, dìlleachdan (-) ceàrra, geàrradh, bìnne, cìlle
  • The only exceptions are the two-letter words ìm (genitive ime) and àm (ama, amannan).

Prepositions

  • Use the correct preposition. Do not omit prepositions or copy English word order.
  • Similar -> Coltach ris; not Coltach
  • Mouse Over -> Luchag thairis air; not Luchag thairis
  • Tag -> Cuir taga ris; not Cuir taga or Taga
  • Do not overuse the partitive preposition de to break up long noun phrases. Prefer the genitive article, even where English only implies it, airson, or splitting the phrase in two.
  • PivotChart Wizard Setup File (+) Am faidhle suidheachaidh airson CairtPivot
  • Gu: use the definite forms (gun a’ plus genitive) and avoid gun plus nominative. Shrink to fit (+) Crùb chun a’ mheud cheart (-) Crùb gun mheud cheart
  • do and de: (+) dhan, dhen BUT do na, de na (-) don, den, dha na, dhe na
  • Do not use traditional roimh instead of ro, except in fixed compounds. (+) ron ath-cheum, roimhe, roimhear (-) roimh ’n ath-cheum

Pronouns

  • Avoid the polite plural sibh, including plural verb endings and conjugated prepositions; it is too formal for computing. Use the thu forms. (+) sàbhail am faidhle, bu chòir dhut, nach cuir thu fios (-) sàbhailibh am faidhle, bu chòir dhuibh, nach cuir sibh fios

Punctuation

  • Same conventions as British English.
  • Comma: as in British English, except strings of adjectives, which take no commas. (+) Uinneag bheag liath, clàr beag sgapte (-) Uinneag bheag, liath, clàr beag, sgapte
  • Colon: as in British English. (+) Mearachd: Tha an clàr cruaidh làn
  • Hyphen: divides words between syllables, links parts of a compound, connects parts of an inverted or imperative verb form. It mainly marks stress shift in Gaelic; do not carry English hyphen conventions over. Hyphenate adverbs, a minor deviation from GOC, to increase recognition and legibility.
  • Online, send-for-review, machine-readable (+) air loidhne, cur airson athbhreithneachadh, a leughas inneal (-) air-loidhne, cur-airson-ath-bhreithneachadh, so-leughte-le-inneal
  • (+) an-diugh, an-seo (-) an diugh, an seo
  • Use non-breaking hyphens in adverbs (an-diugh, an-seo) and after t-, h-, n- to stop breaks across lines. Access via Insert > Symbol > Special Characters, where a shortcut can also be set. (+) ... a chuireas cairt an-seo (-) ... a chuireas cairt anseo
  • En dash: minus sign, usually with spaces before and after. In number ranges, no spaces. Gaelic follows English. (+) Eadar aois 3–5; duilleagan 22–128
  • Em dash: only to emphasize an isolated element or introduce a non-essential element. Gaelic follows English. (+) Agus am measg nan rudan iongantach a fhuair mi — a bharrachd air croit mo sheanmhar — bha crogan mòr de dh’òr.
  • Ellipses: same conventions as English. (+) Roghainnean …; gheibhear seo air Sràid …
  • Period: same conventions as English. (+) Tha an stàladh deiseil.
  • Quotation marks mark direct speech. Gaelic follows British English for software references that US source strings put in quotation marks. (+) Agus thuirt e: “Fàilte ort gun draoidh seo”
  • Use single quotation marks for a menu item longer than one word, to show its extent. Do not capitalize menu items for this purpose unless the item is generally capitalized. (+) Tagh ‘Sàbhail agus lean air adhart’ fo na Roghainnean agus an uairsin briog air ‘Dùin agus tòisich an siostam’
  • Parentheses: no space between the parentheses and the text inside. (+) (a stàlaich thu roimhe)

Singular and plural

  • Observe 4 plural forms: 1, 11 take Form 1; 2, 12 take Form 2; 3-10, 13-19 take Form 3; 0 and above 20 take Form 4.
  • Insert %s page;Insert %s pages (+) Cuir a-steach % duilleag;Cuir a-steach %s dhuilleag;Cuir a-steach %s duilleagan;Cuir a-steach %s duilleag

Split infinitive

  • Does not apply to Scottish Gaelic.

Subjunctive

  • Does not apply to Scottish Gaelic.

Symbols and non-breaking spaces

  • Unless instructed otherwise, use the mathematical operator U+2510 (┐) where English has &. Access it via Insert > Symbol, or copy and paste.
  • Copy & Paste (+) Dèan lethbhreac ┐ cuir ann
  • Non-breaking spaces as in UK English, most commonly to stop a line break between a number and the measure. (+) 100 m; 25 m2

Syntax

  • Within the predicate, order expressions of time and place as MAIN CLAUSE + Predicate + PLACE + TIME. Never put expressions of time sentence-initially or phrase-initially. (+) Stàlaich am prògram sa phasgan an-dràsta (-) An-dràsta stàlaich am prògram sa phasgan
  • Where English procedural strings put the predicate before the verb, avoid that order. To install ActiveX, click Install Now (+) Briog air ‘Stàlaich an-dràsta’ gus ActiveX a stàladh (-) Gus ActiveX a stàladh, briog air ‘Stàlaich an-dràsta’
  • Where that is impossible, retain the odd word order. (+) Gus ActiveX a stàladh: (+) 1) Briog air ‘Stàlaich an-dràsta’ (+) 2) Ath-thòisich an coimpiutair agad

Verbs

  • English strings often omit the verb. If space permits, include it.
  • Access denied (+) Chaidh inntrigeadh a dhiùltadh (-) Inntrigeadh air a dhiùltadh
  • Macro installed (+) Chaidh am macro a stàladh (-) Macro air a stàladh
  • Translate English present tense statements with the future habitual (habitual, or a one-off in the future) or the present tense (a one-off in the present).
  • When you are finished selecting your assistant (+) Nuair a bhios tu air cuidiche a thaghadh (one-off with implied future) (-) Nuair a tha thu air cuidiche a thaghadh
  • If you are using Internet Explorer (+) Ma bhios tu a’ cleachdadh Internet Explorer (habitual implied) (-) Ma tha thu a’ cleachdadh Internet Explorer
  • If you live outside the UK… (+) Ma tha thu a’ fuireach taobh a-muigh na RA… (-) Ma bhios tu a’ fuireach taobh a-muigh na RA…

Word order

  • Scottish Gaelic follows Verb-Subject-Object/Predicate. The title of the page is displayed (+) Tha tiotal na duilleige ga shealltainn

Style

  • Target users: people with strong linguistic dedication, native speakers and learners; Gaelic organizations; schoolchildren.
  • Gaelic-language technical support does not exist, so translations should be overly puristic: the user must be able to report an issue to English-language support staff.
  • Do not be overly conservative. Neologisms should not be opaque. (+) Cleachd progsaidh (-) Cleachd inneal-ionaid
  • Keep constructions simple. Prefer the periphrastic passive over synthetic passives. (+) Chaidh an liosta seo a chruthachadh… (-) Chruthaicheadh an liosta seo…

Tone

  • Aim between conservative and colloquial. Avoid strong dialect features such as faotainn, ’s caomh, cha thog, sa bhùthaidh.
  • Where the English source is colloquial, translate the tone, which may need a freer translation such as a change of verb. You've got mail! (+) Fhuair thu post ùr! (-) Tha thu air post-d ùr fhaighinn!
  • Avoid sentences that are too long or hold too many subclauses. Split sentences if necessary.
  • Avoid noun phrases of more than 3 nouns. Use prepositions or syntactic techniques to split them.
  • Address the user directly with thu, not sibh. Avoid impersonal verb forms.
  • Use native grammar, syntax and idiom.
  • Use common sense with technical language. The end user has not seen the English string. Do not oversimplify.

Voice

  • Never use forms of sibh, including conjugated prepositions and imperative verb forms. Keep the tone moderately informal. (+) ’S urrainn dhut (-) Is urrainn dhuibh, ’S urra dhu’
  • You are now connected to the Internet. (+) Tha thu co-cheangailte ris an lìon a-nis.
  • Paste name (+) Cuir ann ainm
  • ... that you want to consolidate? (+) ... a tha thu airson a cho-dhaingneachadh

Abbreviations

  • Abbreviate in the UI (mainly buttons, options) only for lack of space. Avoid abbreviations; they work poorly in Scottish Gaelic. First consider a different translation, exceptionally a shorter synthetic verb form, or a slightly freer translation that keeps the message.
  • Otherwise shorten the word by eliding syllables at the end, with a full stop marking the elision.
  • Crìochnaich -> (+) Crìoch.
  • etc. -> (+) ┐c
  • i.e. -> (+) .i.
  • mar eisimpleir -> (+) m.e.
  • mar sin air adhart -> (+) msaa.
  • tabaichean -> (+) tab.
  • Taobh-duilleig -> (+) td.
  • Do not abbreviate any other word. Where an abbreviation is unavoidable, drop vowels rather than consonants. Lenited consonants (bh ch dh fh gh mh ph sh th) and double consonants (ll nn rr ng) count as one unit.
  • billean: (+) bill.; bll. (-) bil; bl
  • Always check with the linguistic lead if an abbreviation is needed.

Acronyms

  • Acronyms are words made from the initial letters of the major parts of a compound term: WYSIWYG, OLE, RAM.
  • Acronyms work poorly in Scottish Gaelic. If localisation matters, build an abbreviation from the initial (or first two) letters of the words. Avoid consonant clusters.
  • Localize an acronym only if it is common enough in everyday speech to spread into general use. Otherwise retain the English acronym.
  • EU: An t-Aonadh Eòrpach -> (+) AE
  • FAQ: Ceistean Àbhaisteach -> (+) CÀBHA
  • ID: Dearbh-aithne -> (+) DA
  • IT: Teicneolas Fiosrachaidh -> (+) TF
  • ICT: Teicneolas Fiosrachaidh is Conaltraidh -> (+) TFC
  • UK: Rìoghachd Aonaichte -> (+) RA
  • US(A): Stàitean Aonaichte Aimeireaga -> (+) SA
  • Virtually all acronyms stay in English. Never localize or spell out: ANSI, ASCII, CD, DOS, DSL, DVD, IMAP, ISDN, ISO, POP3, VCD.

Applications, products, and features

  • Application and product names are rarely translated. Some feature names are trademarked (IntelliSense™). Verify a name is translatable and unprotected before translating it.
  • Very few applications have localized Scottish Gaelic names. Retain the original name, especially in doubt or if marked ©™. Some program internal features may be open for localisation; verify.

Frequent errors

  • Scottish Gaelic has no single words for Yes/No and repeats a verb form instead. Unless the surrounding strings make the pairing obvious, make every question answerable by Tha/Chan eil.
  • Recommended format: A bheil thu airson…? (+) A bheil thu airson gach taba agad a dhùnadh? > Tha/Chan eil (-) An dùinear gach taba agad? > Tha/Chan eil
  • Would you like to see see these tools every time? / Yes I would / No thank you (+) Am toigh leat na h-innealan seo fhaicinn a-rithist gach turas? (+) Bu toigh l’ (+) Cha bu toigh ’

Glossaries

  • Determine terminology in this order: existing approved glossary; Faclair Beag, the main terminology repository for software terminology in existing applications; put the question to the team; other resources such as Stòr-dàta Briathrachais.

Politeness

  • Gaelic encodes politeness differently and not through politeness phrases. Never use a calque of please: (-) mas e do thoil e/mas e ur toil e
  • A non-forceful but direct statement is polite enough, so please may simply be left out. (+) Cuir a-steach an CD stàlaidh (-) Cuir a-steach an CD stàlaidh le do thoil
  • Imperative verbs are acceptable with a respectful, not overly formal tone.
  • For a higher level of politeness, frame the command as a question with saoil, or exceptionally use sibh. (+) Nach cuir thu a-steach an CD a-rithist? (+) Saoil an cuir thu a-steach an CD a-rithist?

Recurring patterns

  • Impersonal modal constructions take the verb gabh.
  • File could not be opened (+) Cha do ghabh am faidhle fhosgladh
  • Link could not be openend (+) Cha ghabh an ceangal seo fhosgladh

User interface

  • Buttons, check boxes, commands, menu items and headings are typically imperatives. (+) Cuir ris (< Add) (+) Atharraich na roghainnean (< Change settings)
  • Main menus can contain nouns, noun phrases, or phrases with verbal nouns. (+) Innealan (+) Uinneag
  • Keep ToolTips consistent with the commands or buttons they are linked to.

Status messages

  • A status bar message informs about the active document, a selected command, or an active or selected interface item, and refers to actions being performed or already complete.
  • Where the English string has a present tense verb form, use the future habitual.
  • Avoid contracted question formats; give the full question form. If space is tight, shorten the question in line with Gaelic syntax. Save changes (+) (A bheil thu) airson na dh’atharraich thu a shàbhaladh? (-) Sàbhail na h-atharrachaidhean?
  • Edit (menu) (+) Deasaich; Contains editing commands (+) Tha àitheantan deasachaidh an-seo
  • Copy to Folder... (menu) (+) Cuir lethbhreac dheth ann am pasgan...; Copies the selected items to a new location (+) Cuiridh seo lethbhreac dhe na rudan a thagh thu ann an àite ùr
  • New (command) (+) Ùr; Creates a new document (+) Cruthaichidh seo sgrìobhainn ùr
  • Make object visible? (+) A bheil thu airson an nì seo a dhèanamh follaiseach?
  • Word is converting the document. Press Esc to stop. (+) Tha Word ag iompachadh na sgrìobhainne. Put Esc gus casg a chur air.
  • Datasheet View (+) Sealladh an t-siota-dàta
  • Done (+) Deiseil
  • Standardize messages that the US product phrases differently for the same meaning.
  • Press F1 to get Help, If you want Help press F1, To get Help press F1 (+) Put F1 airson cuideachadh
  • Not enough memory, Insufficient memory, There is not enough memory (+) Chan eil cuimhne gu leòr ann
  • Save changes to %1?, Do you want to save changes to %1? (+) A bheil thu airson na dh’atharraich thu a shàbhaladh ann an %1?

Error messages

  • Error messages inform the user of an error that must be corrected for the program to keep running, and may prompt an action or a reboot.
  • Keep terminology and style consistent; do not just translate the US string. Never sound patronising or condescending.
  • Standardize standard phrases. The US sometimes uses different forms for the same thing.
  • For impersonal negatives (Cannot, could not) use cha ghabh/cha do ghabh. Avoid unnatural modal verb forms and forms conveying a different sense. (+) cha ghabh am faidhle seo a lorg, cha deach ceangal ris an lìon a lorg (-) chan fhaodar am faidhle seo a lorg, cha b’ fheudar cheangal ris an lìon a lorg
  • Cannot …, Could not … -> Cha ghabh …, Cha do ghabh …: (+) Cha ghabh am faidhle a shàbhaladh. (+) Cha do ghabh am pasgan fhosgladh. These are two different tenses/moods in Gaelic and must be kept separate.
  • Failed to …, Failure of … -> Dh’fhàillig …: (+) Dh’fhàillig sàbhaladh an fhaidhle
  • Cannot find … -> Cha deach ... a lorg: (+) Cha deach am pasgan a lorg
  • Could not find …, Unable to find …, Unable to locate … -> Cha ghabh ... a lorg: (+) Cha ghabh am faidhle a log
  • Not enough memory, Insufficient memory, There is not enough memory, There is not enough memory available -> Gainnead cuimhne, Chan eil cuimhne gu leòr ann: (+) Gainnead cuimhne (+) Chan eil cuimhne gu leòr ann
  • ... is not available, ... is unavailable -> Chan eil … ri fhaighinn: (+) Chan eil am pasgan ri fhaighinn
  • Find out what replaces a placeholder so the sentence stays grammatical.
  • %d, %ld, %u, %lu mean <number>; %c means <letter>; %s means <string>.
  • "Checking Web %1!d! of %2!d!" means "Checking Web <number> of <number>".
  • "INI file "%1!-.200s!" section" means "INI file "<string>" section".
  • Reorder multiple placeholders to fit Gaelic syntax.
  • With number placeholders, check whether plural formulae are available; otherwise give the singular with plural suffixes and lenition in brackets.
  • No plural formulae: (+) %d là(ithean), %d m(h)ìos(an), %d b(h)liadhna, %d t(h)ura(i)s
  • Plural formulae in place: (+) %d latha;%d latha; %d làithean;%d latha (+) %d mhìos;%d mhìos;%d mìosan;%d mìos

Keys

  • Key names, including arrow keys, function keys and numeric keys, appear in normal text, not small caps.
  • Most users have British English or Canadian keyboards, so do not localize keys, except the arrow keys and the spacebar.
  • Alt -> Alt
  • Backspace -> Backspace
  • Break -> Break
  • Caps Lock -> Caps Lock
  • Ctrl -> Control
  • Delete -> Delete
  • Down Arrow -> An t-saighead sìos
  • End -> End
  • Enter -> Enter
  • Esc -> Esc
  • Home -> Home
  • Insert -> Insert
  • Left Arrow -> An t-saighead chlì
  • Num Lock -> Num Lock
  • Page Down -> Page Down
  • Page Up -> Page Up
  • Pause -> Pause
  • Right Arrow -> An t-saighead dheas
  • Scroll Lock -> Scroll Lock
  • Shift -> Shift
  • Spacebar -> Am bàr bàn
  • Tab -> Tab
  • Up Arrow -> An t-saighead suas
  • Windows key -> Iuchair Windows
  • Menu Key -> Iuchair a' chlàir-thaice
  • Print Screen -> Print Screen

Access keys and hot keys

  • Underlined or highlighted letters in menu options, commands or dialog boxes are access keys (hot keys) for running commands and tasks quickly.
  • The Scottish Gaelic alphabet has only 18 letters, so retain English hotkey combinations unless the process is automated. Never localize hotkeys manually.
  • Slim characters I, l, t, r, f: allowed.
  • Downstroke characters g, j, y, p, q: allowed.
  • Extended characters: not allowed.
  • An additional letter in brackets after the item name: allowed.
  • A number in brackets after the item name: allowed.
  • A punctuation sign in brackets after the item name: allowed; unknown in Scottish Gaelic but workable if necessary.
  • Duplicate hotkeys when no other character is available: not allowed.
  • No hotkey assigned when no characters remain (minor options only): allowed.

Titles

  • English chapter titles begin with How to …, Working with …, Using …. Scottish Gaelic titles usually begin with a preposition, not an interrogative, or with a verbal noun: Ag obair le ..., A’ cleachadh …. Translate How to … as Mar a …
  • Competitions legal in the US may be illegal elsewhere.
  • Privacy and data protection rules for websites are country specific.
  • Check whether these need modifying or deleting for the UK: prices, special offers, product support services and offers, mail and email addresses, phone numbers, accessibility services, competitive comparisons.

Local usage

The companion Gaelic PDF covers spelling, accents, hyphens, typography, and software terminology. Preserve meaningful accents and consult its orthographic examples when checking a translation; do not strip diacritics to fit labels.