Archive for September, 2013
How To Say ‘Tweet’ and ‘Twitter’ in Irish Posted by róislín on Sep 30, 2013
(le Róislín) Remember when “tweets” and “twittering” mostly referred to birds, especially the “spideog” or the “smólach imirce“? Or perhaps the sound of “caint eachtardhomhandach” (the speech of extra-terrestrials) as in H. G. Wells’ insect-like Selenites? You might recall that they made “a slight elusive twittering,” as observed by Messrs. Bedford and Cavor (The First…
An Dara Grúpa d’Fhocail: Curiosity, Passion, Interest, Heritage, Family (i nGaeilge) Posted by róislín on Sep 28, 2013
(le Róislín) In the previous blog we looked at the Irish for the five most prominent terms in this speech balloon. Seo iad: Eolas, Grá, Cultúr, Spraoi, Cairde. An cuimhin leat an Béarla atá orthu? The translations back into English are below (má tá cuidiú de dhíth ort). Anois, an chéad ghrúpa eile d’fhocail. But wait…
Na Fáthanna Is Mó: Knowledge, Love, Fun, Culture, Friends Posted by róislín on Sep 25, 2013
(le Róislín) By now you’ve all probably noticed Transparent Language’s new “balún cainte,” which shows reasons why people choose to learn a new language. This blog will translate the five most prominent fáthanna (reasons) that show up “sa bhalún cainte” (in the speech balloon). But, bíodh cuimhne agat, there’s not always a one-to-one correspondence as…
Seamus Heaney and the Irish Language (Cuid a Trí as Trí) Posted by róislín on Sep 22, 2013
(le Róislín) The previous two blogs in this “mionsraith” discussed Seamus Heaney’s use of Irish in writing poetry in English. We discussed the Irish titles of some of his poems (e.g. “Aisling,” “Maighdean Mara“) and the implied Irish in “The Backward Look,” where he incorporates folk expressions for “snipe” into the body of a poem…
Seamus Heaney and the Irish Language (Cuid a Dó as Trí) Posted by róislín on Sep 19, 2013
(le Róislín) In the last blog we looked at the Irish titles of two of Heaney’s poems, “Aisling” (Dream/Vision) and “Maighdean Mara” (Mermaid/Sea-maiden). This time we’ll look at a poem which is inspired by some Irish Gaelic words but which doesn’t actually include them in the text. So, by reading this blog, you’ll not only…
Seamus Heaney and the Irish Language (Cuid a hAon as ‘N’Fheadar’) Posted by róislín on Sep 15, 2013
(le Róislín) Continuing a bit longer writing about the late and lamented Seamus Heaney, it occurred to me that it would be interesting and beneficial to learners to write on how he uses the Irish language, given that his medium is, basically, English. Sometimes Heaney uses an Irish word, in its original spelling, either as…
Ag Caint faoi Heaney, a shaol agus a bhás (i nGaeilge) agus gluais Posted by róislín on Sep 11, 2013
(le Róislín) If you click this link, you’ll find a short bio of Seamus Heaney in Irish (“Seamus Heaney marbh in aois 74,” http://www.nuacht24.com/nuacht/seamus-heaney-marbh-in-aois-74/). The writing is quite clear and straightforward, but I thought that some learners on our list might like to have a glossary and some pronunciation tips to go with it, so …