Archive for 'Irish Language'
Na Focail “Beoir” agus “Leann” i nGaeilge (Beer and Ale) Posted by róislín on Mar 16, 2012
(le Róislín) I’m sure lots of people have lots of thoughts about beer and ale at this festive time of year. Probably most folks aren’t “declining” those nouns at the moment. That’s “declining” as a grammatical term, of course, not literally turning down or rejecting. But if you’re reading this blog, that’s what we’re in…
Deir an Dúmheidic (Black Medick): “Ba mhaith liomsa a bheith i m’iomaitheoir freisin!” Posted by róislín on Mar 13, 2012
(le Róislín) In the last blog (blogs.transparent.com/irish/an-tseamrog-the-shamrock/), I noted that there were at least eight contenders for the title of “shamrock,” including seamsóg (wood-sorrel) and various types of seamair (clover). The blog I cited (www.naturalistsalmanac.com/0317stpat.html) mentioned there being eight possibilities, but only elaborated on six (five types of clover and the wood-sorrel). So what are the other…
An tSeamróg (The Shamrock) Posted by róislín on Mar 10, 2012
(le Róislín) Today’s theme, as we approach Lá Fhéile Pádraig, is “What exactly is a shamrock?” The “Naturalist’s Almanac,” by Gale Lawrence, refers to eight contenders, of which five are actually types of clover (seamair), and one is wood sorrel (seamsóg); the site is: http://www.naturalistsalmanac.com/0317stpat.html. She doesn’t specify the other two contenders, so that will…
Súgach go Deargmheisce: From “Tipsy” to “Dead-drunk” in Irish Posted by róislín on Mar 7, 2012
(le Róislín) From “súgach” to “ar deargmheisce,” the Irish language has numerous ways to indicate stages of intoxication. This is, once again, just the tip of the vocabulary iceberg, but one has to start somewhere! Here are some phrases to help get you ready for Lá Fhéile Pádraig (aka Lá ‘Éile Pádraig aka St. Patrick’s…
Croí Lorcán Uí Thuathail (The Heart of St. Laurence O’Toole) Posted by róislín on Mar 4, 2012
(le Róislín) Bhuel, mí an Mhárta may be the “sure-they’d-steal-your-heart-away” month, as “Irish Eyes” is sung over and over and over again, but I doubt it was ever meant to be taken literally. But that’s exactly what has happened recently. The theft of St. Laurence O’Toole’s heart apparently occurred on the morning of March 3rd…
“Leaplings?” An Téarma As Gaeilge? Posted by róislín on Feb 29, 2012
(le Róislín) Just when I thought I had a pretty good handle on the vagaries of stórfhocal an Bhéarla, another word popped up. Maybe I should I say it entered mo bhandaleithead, or it came isteach i mo radar, or some other trendier expression. At any rate, it caught my eye. Or really, mo chluas, since…
What’s So “Leap” about “Leap Year” and Is It “Leap” in Irish (Bliain Bhisigh)? Posted by róislín on Feb 26, 2012
(le Róislín) Looking at the terminology for “leap” in Irish got me thinking, why exactly do we call it “leap” year? Now don’t get me wrong, this isn’t going to be a discussion of the space-time continuum, if that’s even relevant, and it’s not going to be about how time really works (which I leave…