(le Róislín)

 Any help from readers in unraveling this tattoo phrase mystery would be appreciated.  Here’s the mystery phrase: “Tá seomra se domhan seo damdiste do god duine mar sin tá tú ag teacht mar” [sic].

Dála an scéil, the illustration is just a general reference to tattooing.  It doesn’t illustrate the mystery phrase per se.  Here’s the background to the request:

Scríobh fear isteach chuig an liosta le déanaí agus ceist aige faoin abairt (thuas) a chonaic sé i dtatú.  Deir sé nach bhfuil na litreacha uilig soiléir agus mar sin tá a fhios aige go bhfuil cuid de na focail mícheart.  Sílim go dtuigim cuid de na rudaí atá mícheart ach ní thuigim gach rud.  Seo dréacht a haon de leagan ceartaithe:

”Tá seomra sa domhan seo [damáiste?] do [gach?] duine mar sin tá tú ag teacht [air? aniar? anoir?].(dréacht, ar ndóigh)

So that’s a bit clearer as to the possible words, but it still doesn’t completely make sense, and of course, that’s just a dréacht (draft), so the words in brackets might still be reinterpreted.  A literal translation would be: There is a room in this world [damage?] for [every] person (,) therefore you are coming [upon it? from the west? from the east?].

Either “aniar” or “anoir” would be a bit of a stretch, but I’m at a dead end trying to think of anything else that world work, where the word would look sort of like “m-a-r.”  Unless perhaps, there’s a word missing at the end, for example, “seo,” which would give us “… mar sin tá tú ag teacht mar seo” (therefore you are coming like this/here)

I’ve Googled parts of this phrase, both with the original spelling and with my adjustments, but it doesn’t lead me to any recognizable quotes.  Cuidiú ó dhuine ar bith?  Barúil ag duine ar bith?  Bheadh muid go léir buíoch díot.  

And as for the word “tattoo” in Irish, did you notice the lenition and the eclipsis?

faoi thatú [fwee HAT-oo], about a tattoo

i dtatú [ih DAT-oo], in a tattoo

A few other forms of this word: “tatúnna,” tattoos, and “ár dtatúnna,” our tattoos

btw, the word “tattoo” is based on the focal Polainéiseach “tatau.”  You might also be familiar with the “military tattoo” (drumming, or a military pageant).  That “tattoo” apparently comes from a completely different source, an frása Ollainnise “taptoe,” which means “the tap(room) is to (shut).”  The specific Irish phrase for the drumming/military tattoo is “dord na hoíche,” although “tatú” can also be used, with the same homonym factor as in English.  The Scottish Gaelic for a military tattoo might also be of interest: drumadh shaighdearan dhachaigh, lit. drumming soldiers home.

And finally, ar ábhar na dtatúnna [erzh AW-ur nuh DAT-oo-nuh], what’s your favorite tattoo phrase in Irish?  Ar ndóigh, we’re talking about ones that would be publishable here i mblag teaghlaigh (in a family blog).  The recent téamaí Vailintín could no doubt provide some ideas (grá, srl.), but of course there’s a stór mór focal out there to choose from.

And as a final dúshláinín [DOO-HLAWN-een, silent “s”], how would you describe the image being tattooed on the arm in the picture?  Freagra sa chéad bhlag eile, mar tá cuidiú de dhíth ormsa!  D’fhéadfainn cur síos ar an long sin go ginearálta ach níl mé fíorchinnte cén sórt loinge í.  Trí chrann, is féidir liom sin a rá.  An féidir le duine ar bith cur síos níos beaichte a dhéanamh uirthi, i mBéarla fiú?    

Tá súil agam gur chuidigh sé seo, a 555rodham, agus go bhfaighidh muid cuidiú.  SGF, Róislín

Gluais: ábhar, subject, topic; crann, mast (more generally, tree); cuidiú, help; go bhfaighidh [“guh wee” or “guh wai,” as we recently discussed], that (we) will get; le déanaí, recently; níos beaichte, more precise; soiléir, clear; súil, eye, hope

Agus go raibh maith agat, a http://www.wpclipart.com, as an bpictiúr.