Ade wrote:
I certainly wouldn't infer from this that you could substitute an for ab.
In Connemara you can. In fact, they rarely use 'an' at all. Ar/ab is what's used in the present tense, though 'an mba' is used often in the past. It also looks to be that way in Corca Dhuibhne. From Diarmuid Ó Sé's
Gailge Chorca Dhuibhne:
O Sé wrote:
ab roimh ghuta (uaireanta ib' roimh ghuta tosaigh), m.sh. əb i:asg mah e: ab iasc maith é? (10), əb e:n van'i f'r'ijail't' e: ab aon bhainnefriseáilte é? (1), əb e:n eb'r'ihi mah i:əd ab aon oibrithe maithe iad? (10), n'adərsə b er' ə m ír'i:g' i v'i: JI: n'fheadarsa ab ar an Muirigh a bhi si (6), n'adər ab o: hra: l'i: ə va:hir' nf’headr ab ó Thrá Li a mháthair? (1), n'adər ib' in'əlto:r' e: n f’headar ab innealtóir é? (1).
In fact, as you can see from the next to last example, 'n'fheadar ab ó Thrá Li a mháthair', 'ab' is used for 'an' before vowels, and 'ó' is used instead of 'as'.