metathesis of vowel and consonant
Somewhat similar in appearance to the above is the change by which words like cuisle, cuimse, sùiste, oidhirp, become in pronunciation respectively cuisil, cuimis or cumais, sùsait, oidhrip. Certain words ending in rc are in particular subject to this change. Adhrac is heard for adharc, fradhrac for fradharc, amhraic for amhairc, pàiric for pàirce, suairic for suairc. Iomchorc, respects, regards, compliments, is pronounced ‘iomachorac’ and ‘iomacharac’ in Sutherland and Ross, and is written iomacharag (in Rob Dunn) and with more extended metathesis iomachagar. Another example is the word usually written làirig. It is common in place-names in Lochaber, Lorne, and especially about Breadalbane. It occurs ten times in Glenlyon, or rather between that glen and the valleys on either side. One between the heads of Glenlyon and Glenlochay where ‘Allt Learg Mac Bheattie’ is marked in maps, is classical:—
- ‘Tha sliabh na làirig an robh Mac Bhaidi
- ’N a mhothar fàsaich, ’s ’n a stràca trom.’
The term is applied to the ‘col’ or pass connecting two glens whose streams flow in opposite directions. Two are traversed by the Callander and Oban Railway. The first is at the head of Glen Ogle and of a small glen sloping down to the Dochart where the maps have Loch Lairig Eala. The other is to the west of Tyndrum between Strathfillan and the Glen Lochy that runs towards Dalmally. The probable explanation of Finlarig, in Gaelic Fionnlairic, lying low by the side of Loch Tay with no pass near apparently of the usual kind, is that the name originated high in the hills where ‘Coire Fionn Lairige’ and ‘Druim na Lairige’ appear in maps, and add one more to the number on the borders of Glenlyon. The word is properly làirc and is pronounced in that district ‘làiric,’ and, perhaps more frequently, ‘làirichc,’ exactly as suairc is ‘suairic’ and ‘suairichc.’ The one referred to by Duncan Ban Macintyre is locally Làirc (‘Làirichc’)
