A hexagraph (from the el, ἕξ, ''héx'', "six" and γράφω, ''gráphō'', "write") is a sequence of six letters used to represent a single sound (

phoneme In phonology and linguistics, a phoneme () is a unit of sound that can distinguish one word from another in a particular language. For example, in most dialects of English, with the notable exception of the West Midlands and the north-west o ...

), or a combination of sounds that do not correspond to the individual values of the letters. They occur in

Irish orthography Irish orthography is very etymological which allows the same written form to represent all dialects of Irish and remain regular. For example, ("head") may be read in Mayo and Ulster, in Galway, or in Munster. A spelling reform in the mid- ...

, and many of them can be analysed as a

tetragraph A tetragraph (from the el, τετρα-, ''tetra-'', "four" and γράφω, ''gráphō'', "write") is a sequence of four letters used to represent a single sound (phoneme), or a combination of sounds, that do not necessarily correspond to the indi ...

followed by the

vowel A vowel is a syllabic speech sound pronounced without any stricture in the vocal tract. Vowels are one of the two principal classes of speech sounds, the other being the consonant. Vowels vary in quality, in loudness and also in quantity (leng ...

s or on either side to indicate that the neighbouring

consonant In articulatory phonetics, a consonant is a speech sound that is articulated with complete or partial closure of the vocal tract. Examples are and pronounced with the lips; and pronounced with the front of the tongue; and pronounced wit ...

s are palatalized ("slender"). However, not all Irish hexagraphs are analysable that way. The hexagraph , for example, represents the same sound (approximately the vowel in English "write") as the trigraph '' adh,'' and with the same effect on neighboring consonants.

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

does not have hexagraphs. The six-letter sequence appears in German, for example in the name

Eschscholtz Johann Friedrich Gustav von Eschscholtz (1 November 1793 – 7 May 1831)Sterling (1997) was a Baltic German physician, naturalist, and entomologist. He was one of the earliest scientific explorers of the Pacific region, making significant colle ...

(and thus is the scientific name '' Eschscholtzia'' of the California poppy), but this is a doubling of the trigraph to indicate that the preceding vowel is short rather than itself being a hexagraph.

List of hexagraphs

Irish hexagraphs

is used to write ( in

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...

), e.g. "sortie", "haste, skirmish", "improvement" ( ), "books", "minds". is used to write ( in Ulster), e.g. "troop", "Gormley" (surname), "struck". is used to write , e.g. "garlic" ( ), "I bark", "semiology", "slippery", "tor, hill". and are both used to write ( in Ulster), e.g. "ivy", "penniless", "healing", "soft toys", "will divide". and are both used to write , e.g. "fates", "scourage", "cormorant", "oven", "ice", "(snail)shell". is used to write , e.g. "foggy" (gen.). is used to write , e.g. "edge".

List of hexagraphs

Irish hexagraphs

See also