[Spellyans] Abbreviating Ordinal Numbers

[Michael Everson]

On 24 Mar 2009, at 14:38, <ajtrim at msn.com> <ajtrim at msn.com> wrote:

> I have been looking at ways to represent abbreviated ordinal  
> numbers, in dates for example. Nicholas in Clappya Kernowek gives  
> éthves warn ügans as 28es. That is, the ordinal ending is attached  
> to the number. Wella Brown, on the other hand, in A Grammar of  
> Modern Cornish gives ethves warn ugans as 28ans. That is, the ending  
> of the final element of the ordinal number is attached to the  
> number. Which, if either, is correct?

Either is a convention, but I can't see how 28ans makes any sense.  
Compare Brown (using his UC grammar):

21ans kensa warn ugans
22ans nessa warn ugans
31ans unnegves warn ugans
71ans unnegves ha tryugans
72ans deudhegves ha tryugans

with Roparz Hemon's Breton for the same (taken from my translation of  
the grammar, http://www.evertype.com/books/breton-grammar.html if you  
haven't got a copy of this splendid book):

21vet unanvet warn-ugent
22vet eilvet warn-ugent
31vet unanvet ha tregont
71vet unnekvet ha tri-ugent
72vet daouzekvet ha tri-ugent

The abbreviation belongs to the ordinal, not the the phrase as  
pronounced.

Interestingly, Breton has some options:

1añ  kentañ
1vet unanvet
2l - eil
2vet eilvet
3e - trede
3vet trivet/teirvet
4e - pevare
4vet pevarvet/pedervet

Michael Everson * http://www.evertype.com