Gaelic consonants

[Nik Taylor]

Douglas Carswell wrote:
> Would ch be considered an allophone of c in this case since it's form
> depends on the preceding word?

No.  Allophones are predictable from purely *phonetic* grounds, such as
the English aspiration rule, that is [t] (as well as [p] and [k], of
course) after /s/ or before approximates or syllable-finally, [t_h]
elsewhere, thus [t_hIl], [stIl], [tr_0Il], [k_h&t].  Since <c> and <ch>
(which isn't a difference of aspiration, IIRC, isn't is [k]/[x]?) can
both occur in the same phonetic environment in Scots Gaelic, they're
separate phonemes.

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