Vocative Case (definition)

The vocative case is used when addressing a person by name or calling out to them. It can be used to metaphorically address an object in poetry. In English, the vocative can be unmarked (John! or John, I see you!), or it can be marked with Hey" or "Oh" as in "Hey, John!", or "Oh John!". In poetic forms the "oh" construction is often used with inanimate or animate objects "Oh town of my youth, you are so beautiful" etc.

In Gaelic, the vocative is indicated with a particle a^L (the L is not written, it is listed here to indicate that it triggers lenition). Masculine names are also attenuated. See Vocative Case for more discussion

See Also

• Vocative Case
• Case (definition)
• Nominative Case (definition)
• Accusative Case (definition)
• Genitive Case (definition)
• Dative Case (definition)

External Links

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• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vocative_case

References

• Crystal, D. (2008) Dictionary of Linguistics and Phonetics. 6th Edition. Wiley-Blackwell.
• Lamb, William (2003) Scottish Gaelic. 2nd edition. Munich: Lingcom Europa