Archive for April, 2009
Karros, Carrus, and Today’s “Carr” Posted by róislín on Apr 27, 2009
(le Róislín) You might have noticed “carr” as a recent Word of the Day at blogs.transparent.com. It could be easy to assume that this is a recent borrowing from English, dating to the era of, well, motor-cars. Ach a mhalairt, a chara! (but the opposite, my friend). The word “carr” was in use in…
Logainmneacha Ceilteacha agus Náisiúntachtaí a Dó: Celtic Place Names and Nationalities – Ireland and the Irish Posted by róislín on Apr 24, 2009
We recently discussed the place name “Albain” (Scotland) and now will turn to ”Éire” (Ireland).. Here are some examples of the nationality, the place name, and related phrases: Éireannach, an Irishman or person. This can be made feminine, “Éireannach mná,” but, the same as my experience with “Albanach mná,” most people…
Terms for Grandchildren “as Gaeilge” (in Irish): Garmhac, Gariníon and Other Compounds with “Gar” Posted by róislín on Apr 21, 2009
(le Róislín) Unlike English, where the prefix “grand-“ is used with “mother,” “father,” “parent,” “son,” “daughter,” and “child,” in Irish, there is a major shift in the qualifier used for “grandchildren.” As you may recall from the previous blog on grandparents, there are three widely used options: seanathair / seanmháthair, athair mór / máthair…
The Many Meanings of “Oireachtas” Posted by róislín on Apr 18, 2009
(le Róislín) For the week of April 5 to 12, 2009, many Philadelphians probably saw more samples of the Irish language in the media than ever before in the city’s history. Why? This year, Philadelphia hosted the first Oireachtas Rince na Cruinne (World Irish Dance Championship) to be held outside Ireland or the U.K. Over 6000…
Logainmneacha Ceilteacha agus Náisiúntachtaí a hAon: Celtic Place Names and Nationalities – Scotland and the Scots Posted by róislín on Apr 15, 2009
We recently saw “Albain” (Scotland) as one of Transparent Language’s Word of the Day features. This is based on the word “Alba,” which is what the Scots call their country in their own Celtic language, Gàidhlig. Why not a word that sounds something like “Scotland” (like Italian “Scòzia” or French “Ecosse” or German “Schottland”)? …
An Cháisc (Easter) is a Cognate of … Pascha and Pesach Posted by róislín on Apr 12, 2009
(le Róislín) It may seem straightforward enough that Pascha (Latin for Easter) and Pesach (Passover) are linguistically related to each other. Several of the other Celtic words for Easter are also clearly connected, Y Pasg (Welsh), Pask (Cornish, Breton), as are the English adjective, Paschal, and the Romance words, Pâques, Pascua, and Pasqua. Their connection…
Mór? Críonna? or Sean? — Grandparents By Any Other Name! Posted by róislín on Apr 9, 2009
(le Róislín) I frequently get asked about the Irish word for “grandmother” or “grandma,” so children in Irish-American families can start using it as a pet name. Sometimes the basic term “Grandma” has already been taken by one side of the family, so the other side may look for a different name, like “Nana” in…