If you speak to someone with an Irish background, they’ll tell you that no one they know has ever used the phrase, “Top of the morning.”
It would be even more awkward to say, “Top of the morning to yourself.” That’s because using a reflexive pronoun in that situation would be inappropriate in the modern language.
What you get with this phrase is an expression that equates to “Good morning.” Some writers and historians think it might be a callback to dairy farming when the cream rises to the top of the pail.
Others believe it is merely a component of dialogue invented by poets and authors.
If you hear someone say this phrase to you, the most appropriate response would be to say “thank you.”
Top of the Morning to Yourself
“Top of the morning to you!” was a 19th-century greeting offered primarily in Ireland. Although some people still use this expression to say hello, the country has moved away from reflexive pronouns. That’s why the traditional phrase is likely, “Top of the mornin’ to yourself.”
Reflexive pronouns are words that end in “self” or “selves.” They are helpful whenever the object and subject of a sentence are the same, such as in the example below.
“I love taking care of myself.”
When reflexive pronouns are included in a sentence, they act as either objects or indirect objects.
The current structure of the English language allows for nine reflexive pronouns in common dialogue.
- Myself
- Yourself
- Himself / Herself
- Oneself
- Itself
- Ourselves
- Yourselves
- Themselves
Reflexive pronouns have this name because of how they reflect back to the subject in the sentence.
A Reflexive Pronoun Can Be Intensive
An intensive pronoun is a reflexive one that emphasizes the antecedent or subject in a sentence. It’s often used to create a sense that the person involved is involved and not someone else.
When a word ends in “self” or “selves,” it is intensive because the sentence meaning doesn’t change when it’s removed.
“Amelia made her lunch herself.”
“I closed the restaurant on Wednesday myself.”
“We ourselves had to drive the car back to Sacramento.”
When an intensive pronoun is present in a sentence, it is up to the writer or speaker to determine its value. Here’s how the phrases would look when the reflexive content gets removed.
“Amelia made her lunch.”
“I closed the restaurant on Wednesday.”
“We had to drive the car back to Sacramento.”
The goal of an intensive pronoun is to add more specificity to the dialogue. It’s a subtle component that says, “I did this, and no one else helped.”
That phrasing is implied without the intensive pronouns, but it isn’t guaranteed. Including the reflexive component eliminates any doubt about the statement.
Common Problems with Reflexive Pronouns
The issue that develops in the English language with reflexive pronouns is that they become substitutes in compound subjects or compound objects.
You might have seen a sentence like this one before.
“Robert and myself will be writing today’s paper.”
If you’re unsure if the reflexive pronoun is correct, you can check on it by removing the other subject in the sentence. Using the example above, it would turn into this expression.
“Myself will be writing today’s paper.”
Although that phrasing might work for old Irish dialogue in some situations, it isn’t considered an appropriate expression in today’s grammar. The correct expression would be “I” instead of “Myself.”
Since we know that “I” must be used to express the subject appropriately, we can add the other subject to the sentence.
“Robert and I will be writing today’s paper.”
This error occurs in business writing and emails all the time. The same rules apply if you’re unsure of the precise phrasing.
“You can submit your papers to Robert or myself before Thursday.”
Although the above sentence might sound correct, it is not. You can tell when we remove the named subject from the phrase.
“You can submit your papers to myself before Thursday.”
Since the sentence’s subject is “you,” the speaker and Robert become the indirect objects. Once you take out the first one, it’s revealed that “myself” is no longer a viable option.
That means the sentence requires an object pronoun alternative. In this situation, that would be “me.”
“You can submit your papers to Robert or me before Thursday.”
The Problem with “They” and Reflexive Pronouns
In the past, writers were using “he” and “she” instead of “they” when an indefinite singular pronoun was in a sentence. The only problem with that stance is that “they” is useful as a singular pronoun throughout history. When you refer to a single group of people, the most precise expression is “they.”
What makes this choice unique for reflexive pronouns is that you can write the expression in three different ways.
The first uses the direct relationship between “they” and “themselves.”
“Every parent must take a vacation for themselves every so often.”
Since a parent can be of any gender, the English language lets the writer or speaker include both pronoun options without violating grammatical rules.
“Every parent must take a vacation for himself or herself every so often.”
If you decide to use a “self” reflexive for this statement, you can avoid repetition by hyphenating the first pronoun.
“Every parent must take a vacation for him- or herself every so often.”
You still get the option to remove the reflexive pronouns entirely.
“Every parent must take a vacation every so often.”
If you get the opportunity to take a vacation with everything happening with your schedule, you might say, “Top of the morning!” as a cheerful greeting!
Although the “top of the morning meme” and other greetings or expressions have become common outside of Ireland, this phrase is still something that would be considered an Irish stock greeting.
If you travel to the Emerald Isle, you’ll be more likely to hear someone say, “Dia duit,” which literally means “May God be with you.”
