(le Róislín)

Usually I write these blogs bilingually, but the imaginary conversation with Nola, the 4th-last Northern White Rhinoceros in the world, took on a life of its own in Irish.  So, for the benefit of newcomers to the language, I’ll do an interlinear translation here, with some vocabulary notes and pronunciation interspersed.  This blog will be part one; the translation will continue in the next blog.

The original blog post is at: https://blogs.transparent.com/irish/comhra-samhlaitheach-le-nola-an-sronbheannach-an-imaginary-conversation-in-irish-with-nola-the-rhinoceros/ (Comhrá (samhlaitheach) le Nola, an Srónbheannach: An Imaginary Conversation in Irish with Nola, The Rhinoceros, Posted on 23. Nov, 2015 by róislín in Irish Language)

I’ve also added a few introductory notes like you might find in the script of a play: suíomh, dáta, pearsana.

suíomh: i mo shamhlaíocht ach sin ráite, sa Pháirc Safari de chuid Zú San Diego, mar dhea (nóta: mar dhea, as it were)

dáta: am éigin idir 14 Mí na Samhna 2014 agus 21 Mí na Samhna 2015

pearsana: mise agus Nola

 

R: Dia dhuit, a Nola.

Hello, Nola.

 

N: Dia ‘s Muire dhuit.  Cad is ainm duit?

Hello.  What is your name?

 

R: Mise Róislín.  Agus ‘s é Nola an t-ainm atá ort, nach é?

I’m Róislín.  And your name’s Nola, isn’t it?

 

N: ‘S é, mise Nola.  Tá áthas orm bualadh leat.

Yes, I’m Nola.  I’m happy to meet you.

 

Nóta: “bualadh” [BOO-uh-luh], to hit or strike .  This can be used in many ways that don’t have to do with literal hitting or striking.  So we have “bualadh leat” (bualadh + le + tú) for “to meet you.”  To actually say “to hit you” or “to strike you” (hopefully not really happening), it would be “thú a bhualadh” [hoo uh WOO-uh-luh]

 

R: Agus tá áthas ormsa bualadh leatsa.   Is onóir é.  Ba mhaith liom cúpla ceist a chur ort, mura mhiste leat, mar tá mé ag scríobh ailt fút.

And I’m happy to meet you.  It’s an honor.  I would like to ask you a couple of questions, if you don’t mind, because I’m writing an article about you.

 

Nóta: “ormsa” and “leatsa” are “contrast forms,” used here to show how the conversation flips back and forth between the two speakers.

 

N: Ceart go leor.  Fadhb ar bith.

OK.  No problem.

 

Nóta: remember the pronunciation of “fadhb,” which, for a lot of people, is unusual-looking, with the “dhb” consonant cluster.  “Fadhb” rhymes with “tribe” and “vibe;” the “d” is silent.

 

R: Cén sórt luath-óige a bhí agat?

What sort of childhood did you have?

 

N: Ag rith an méid a bhí i mo chraiceann is mó a rinne mé.   Fuaim na ngunnaí i ngach áit agus daoine ag screadach agus ag béicíl i ngach treo.

Running for my life is mostly what I did.  The sound of the guns everywhere and people yelling and screaming in every direction.

 

R: Mar gheall ar …?

Because of …?

 

N: Mar gheall ar na póitseálaithe, drochíde orthu!  Mharaigh siad mo mháthair agus bhí siad sa tóir orm.  Ach tháinig lucht an zú agus shábháil siad mé.  Sheol siad go zú sa bhaile Dvůr Králové nad Labem mé.  Ag an am sin, thart fá 1976, bhí sé sa tSeicslóvaic ach anois is é “Poblacht na Seice” ainm na tíre.  Sa bhliain 1989 seoladh go Meiriceá mé, go dtí an Pháirc Safari de chuid Zú San Diego, an áit a bhfuil muid ann anois.

Because of the poachers, bad scran to them!  They killed my mother and they were chasing me.  But the zoo folks came and they saved me.  They sent me to a zoo in the town of Dvůr Králové nad Labem.  At that time, around 1976, it was in Czechoslovakia but now “the Czech Republic” is the name of the country.  In the year 1989, I was sent to America, to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, where we are now.

 

R: An dtaitníonn sé leat a bheith i do chónaí anseo?

Do you like (to be) living here?

 

N: Taitníonn, tá na coimeádaithe zú an-chineálta. Tugann siad an bia is fearr liom dom, rudaí mar chairéidí agus úlla.  Agus an rud is fearr, tugann siad cuimiltí boilg agus cuimiltí muiníl dom, agus bíonn siad sin go hálainn.

I do, the zookeepers are very kind.  They give me the food I like the best, things like carrots and apples.  And the best thing, they give me belly rubs and neck rubs, and those are beautiful.

 

R: An bhfuil mórán cairde agat sa zú?

Do you have many friends here?

 

N: Tá, ainmhithe eile agus na coimeádaithe.  Bhí srónbheannach eile, Angalifu, ina chónaí anseo go dtí le déanaí.  Fuair sé bás ar an 14ú lá de mhí na Nollag, 2014.

Yes, other animals and the keepers.  There was another rhinoceros, Angalifu, living here until recently.  He died on the 14th (day) of December in 2014

 

R: Tá an-bhrón orm sin a chluinstin.

I’m very sorry to hear that.

 

N: Is brónach an scéal é.  Níl mórán dár sórt fágtha.  B’eisean an t-aon srónbheannach bán tuaisceartach fireann amháin a bhí ina chónaí sa leathsféar thiar.  Nuair a d’éag sé, d’fhág sin srónbheannach fireann amháin inár bhfospeiceas beo.  Tá seisean san Afraic, sa Chéinia.

It’s a sad story.  There aren’t many of our type left.  He was the only male Northern White Rhinoceros that was living in the western hemisphere.  When he died, that left one male rhinoceros of our subspecies alive.  He’s in Africa, in Kenya.

 

R: Mar sin níl lao srónbheannaigh (lao srónbheannach bán tuaisceartach) ann áit ar bith ar domhan?

So there is no rhinoceros calf (northern white rhinoceros calf) anywhere in the world?

(tuilleadh le teacht sa chéad bhlagmhír eile: Aistriúchán den Chomhrá le Nola, An Srónbheannach (A Translation of the Irish Dialogue with Nola)–Cuid 2/2 Posted by róislín on Dec 7, 2015 in Irish Language)

Tá súil agam gur chuidigh sé seo.  Hope this helped. — Róislín