tiomluasocein wrote:
This is my happy place. > Is é seo m'áit an tsonais é.
Errigal wrote:
AFAIK two "definites" - in this case the possessive and the def. article - aren't normally used together, unless 'áit an tsonais' can be considered as a single unit, in which case I think they can be.
The phrase "m'áit an tsonais" does sound off to me as well. It seems similar to saying something like "an ceann an fhir" ("the man's the head") instead of the correct "ceann an fhir" ("the man's head"). This mistake could be described as the use of a double definite. And since the possessive adjective "mo" also has the effect of making a noun definite, the phrase "m'áit an tsonais" could also be described as using a double definite (as Errigal indicated). Maybe instead, "áit mo shonais" (the place of my happiness) would work here.
But, as Errigal suggests, maybe it would be acceptable to use a double definite construct for established phrases that are considered a single unit. Not that I can think of any examples.
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This reminds me of the phrase "Pandora's box" in English. "Pandora" is a personal name, so "Pandora's box" is a definite phrase. Therefore, from a strict grammatical perspective, it might seem incongruous to say the phrase "a Pandora's box", where a definite noun phrase is turned back into an indefinite noun phrase. And yet, the use of the indefinite article here is generally considered acceptable.
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Otoh, I recently came across the following screenshot text on Twitter (apparently from Galway County Council). "
Muna bhfuil tú i d'úinéir an mhadra seo faoi láthair / nó go bhfuil do mhadra tar éis bás a fháil / nó tá do sheoladh athraithe, dean [sic] teagmháil le Comhairle Chontae na Gaillimhe"
The first thing that struck me about this was the use of "
i d'úinéir an mhadra", which also sounded off to me since this is essentially the double definite at play again. I wonder if this is correct Irish. If not correct, I'm not sure what would be correct. Maybe the following would be correct: "
i d'úinéir ar an mhadra seo".