> > > "hufen rhew" for ice-cream, but that seems like a literal translation from the > > > English. > > > > Does it sound any more so than "hufen ia"? What does "ia" mean, > > after all? > > > > What's the difference between rhew and ia? I know rhew is 'frost', > > but isn't it 'ice' as well? > > > Yes, you're right - "ia+" means ice, as does "rhew". Its just that, by a > coincidence, I heard someone use "hufen rhew" for "ice-cream" and it sort > of jarred. > > The word "ia+' can be found in "Ynys yr Ia+" (Iceland) and in "Oes yr Ia+" > (The Ice Age). > > I have no academic qualifications in Welsh, so don't rely too much on my > very limited knowledge of Welsh grammar. ;-] > > Michael Morgan It sounds as though "rhew" and "ia" are interchangeable in some general contexts (e.g. if you talk of ice on the roads, perhaps) but that one or the other has become fixed (frozen, ha ha) as the only possibility in certain compounds. So, e.g. "Ynys yr Ia", not *"Ynys y Rhew", but "rhewgell", not *"iagell", and so on. Is that right? What about 'ice skating', 'ice hockey'? Are there any phrases of this kind where either rhew or ia feels equally right to you? Is there any case you can think of where the English definitely has to be ice (not frost), but where the Welsh equally definitely has to be rhew (not ia)? ************************ Nigel Love Linguistics Cape Town NLOVE@BEATTIE.UCT.AC.ZA ************************