I always knew it was theoretically possible; we even talked about it at university sometimes, but I have never heard anyone actually say it in a way that has convinced me that they say it all the time until today. Padraig Harrington, an Irish golfer, was being interviewed on the radio and he actually said “amn’t”.
It’s a perfectly logical contraction to make: “am” is the first person singular of the verb “to be”, as in “I am”, “you are”, “he/she is” etc. So why do we say “aren’t I?” instead of “amn’t I?” Some suggest that it’s because the m and the n don’t like being together, making it awkward to say. It’s possible. But then we have words like “amnesty” which cause no problems. It’s probably a bit of the “mn” combination plus the “t”. Like the n, the t is an alveolar consonant differing only in manner of articulation.
The other thing to consider is that “amn’t” is a monosyllabic word with a short vowel, and a heavy coda. A similarly heavy word might be “angst” which feels a little awkward to me, but helped by the fact that the velar nasal (ng) and the “st” are at different positions in the mouth, making it easier to articulate.
The most common syllable structure the world over is “CV” (consonant vowel). English is unusual in that it allows such heavy codas to its syllables (strengths). Except for the “k” sound in “strengths” the rest of the coda is fairly unobstructed with the frictatives of the “th” and “s”, and also they’re unvoiced, thus requiring a little less effort.
All this goes to suggest to me that the reason amn’t isn’t in widespread use is because the phonology is just too tough.
oh!
Yes, “amn’t” is in general usage here in Ireland.
In fact, “aren’t I?” sounds strange to our ears.
Actually, a friend of mine recently pointed out to me that it isn’t Standard English when I wrote it in a letter to him, but despite knowing that it’s Hiberno English, and not Standard, that won’t deter me from continuing to use it. I suppose it’s all a matter of what one is used to. Amn’t I right?
You just go right ahead there Ken, I’m not sure I’ll start using it though – it’d sound odd coming from me.
I am an English teacher in Japan , and I’m from Ireland. Today i told my class of Junior high school students that ”amn’t” is bad grammar. They asked why!! I was stumped and said it was just a rule!! I say ”amn’t” myself but would never write it. They use American English anyway so i think i was correct to say it was wrong but maybe I should have rebelled !!!! But i couldn’t tell them ”why” , i fear the question ”why?” when trying to teach grammar!!!
I love the question “why” because I ask them myself.
Grammar doesn’t exist in books, it exists in each individual’s head. It’s your idiolect. The only thing that makes you intelligible to your neighbour is convention. The further you are away (on all the social and physical levels you can think of) the more likely your idiolect is different. You teach the grammar that is appropriate to the learner’s aspiration.
Thank you for the clarification. This is a very useful piece of information, and as I’m a teacher of English too, I will use it as a good reason in my teaching process in the future.