The description of the use of the Old Irish element ol 'said, say(s)' and its origin

What is it about?

This paper gives a systematic description of the use of the short and invariable element ol, which is used in Old Irish as equivalent to English 'said, say(s)' in quotative expressions such as 'said he' (Old Irish ol-s-e), 'said the enemies' (Old Irish ol int namait), and discusses its origin.

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Why is it important?

The interesting aspect of this paper is that ol has all the appearences of being a non verbal element, in spite of the fact that it is translated and understood as if it were a verbal form. The importance of the discussion on its origin is that it offers a case in which a non-verbal element becomes involved in a quotative expression, similar, but not equal to the situation of English like in well-known expressions such as 'He was like, "Now I've seen everything"'.

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