2.4 Plural Nouns

Nouns in Ulster-Scots almost always change their endings in the same way as in English to indicate if there is only ‘one’ (singular) or ‘more than one’ (plural). As in English, the usual ending for the plural is an –s. However, if the singular noun form ended in a consonant such as the final p, l, g, n, in schip, farl, lug, toun, etc, the early Ulster-Scots literature usually formed the plural by adding -is: e.g. schippis, farlis, luggis, tounis, etc. (Note that in some cases the final consonant in the singular noun is doubled in the plural.)

There are a number of irregular noun forms in Ulster-Scots. Several nouns ending with a vowel, such as ee (‘eye’), trèe, shae, and the noun hoose (‘house’), have their plurals formed by adding an –n. This is similar to the English ‘ox’ (singular) and ‘oxen’ (plural), and so we have in Ulster-Scots een (‘eyes’), treen (‘trees’), schune (‘shoes’) and hoosen (‘houses’). The treen and hoosen forms are both rare and archaic. The irregular plural of coo (‘cow’) is kye, which had a double plural form kyen (‘cattle, kine’) in early documents that was used when a larger quantity was referred to – roughly paralleling the English usages of ‘cows’ and ‘cattle’. The irregular English plural form for ‘child’ – ‘children’ – is not used in Ulster-Scots, where the plural of chile* is childer* (but usually wean/weans).

Starn is the Ulster-Scots word for ‘star’ (singular), and is not an irregular plural. ‘Stars’ would be starns, although these forms also are literary and archaic.

For plural quantities involving nouns of measure, that is, when the plural noun is preceded by a number or quantity, the singular form of the noun is most often used:

Twa pun (two pounds)
A hunner breek (a hundred bricks)
Echt mile (eight miles)
Fowertie fit lang (forty feet long)

The behaviour of plural nouns of measurement or quantity as if they were singular extends beyond the inflection of the noun (twa mile, etc). When using the perfect tense (section 7.13), constructions such as A’m waitin on him this twa hòor (‘I’ve been waiting for him [for] these two hours) are common, where the singular demonstrative adjective is used with a plural noun.

Note: In English, ‘porridge’ (brochan), and ‘soup’ (broth) are treated as singular nouns, but are regarded along with sowans as plural in Ulster-Scots:

Them’s quaer brochan
‘That’s good porridge’
A wheen o broth
‘some soup’
Hae ye them sowans daen?
‘Have you that “sowans” finished?’

‘Stew’ can be steuch in Ulster-Scots (or steuchie if unappetising), but, occasionally, stews (plural) is used. Champ (mashed potatoes with milk and scallions added) is sometimes referred to in the plural: like peppers on champs.

Similarly, ‘coal’ and ‘peat’ (as fuel) can sometimes be made plural – coals or couls*, and peats or paits*:

Thaims guid burnin paits
Pit mair coals on, wud ye.