(le Róislín)

Suíomh: Maolán an Ghogalaí (lit. knob of the gobbler), Pennsylvania iartharach.  (Bhuel, i ndáiríre, mise i mo shuí os comhair mo ríomhaire ach ag smaoineamh ar an áit)

 

Am: breacadh an lae, 7:08 r.n. (ag fanacht go dtí 7:26 r.n.)

 

Teocht: 15 céim Fahrenheit (ca. -9 Celsius) (áthas orm go bhfuil mise taobh istigh os comhair mo ríomhaire!)

 

Réasún: Tairngreacht (aimsir na sé seachtainí seo chugainn)

 

Torthaí: sé seachtainí níos mó de gheimhreadh

 

Atmaisféar (giúmar na ndaoine): gruama (ach ag baint suilt as an lá) 

 

Seo lá mór Philib Phunxsutawney, nó lena ghnáthainm Béarla a thabhairt air, Punxsutawney Phil.  Tá mise agus a lán daoine eile ag fanacht go bhfeice muid cad a déarfaidh sé faoin aimsir atá le teacht.  Sé seachtainí níos mó de gheimhreadh (má fheiceann sé a scáil) nó earrach luath (muna bhfeiceann). 

 

Traidisiún Gearmánach is mó atá i gceist.  Baint ar bith le béaloideas na hÉireann?  Ar bhealach.  Réamhinsint aimsire atá ar siúl ar Lá an Úitsigh agus réamhinsint aimsire atá (a bhíodh?) ar siúl ar Lá Fhéile Bríde chomh maith, agus fad ár n-eolais, ar Imbolc, ceiliúradh a bhí ag na Ceiltigh réamhChríostaí ar an lá céanna.  Ar ndóigh, níl cónaí ar úitsigh san Eoraip ach déanann gráinneoga agus broic an tairngreacht ansin (i ngan fhios dóibh féin, is dócha). 

 

An aspect of the event that language activists might find interesting is that it is supposed to be conducted in Pennsilfaanisch Deitsch.  Anyone speaking English i rith an tsearmanais is supposed to pay a small fine, a quarter, mar shampla, for gach focal a labhraítear (each word that is spoken).  Smaoineamh suimiúil, nach ea? 

 

Bhuel, leis an fhírinne a dhéanamh, deirtear go bhfuil an chéad chuid den searmanas in “Úitseachais” (teanga na n-úitseach) agus nach bhfuil an teanga sin ach ag duine amháin sa domhan, airíoch an úitsigh seo.  Cuireann an t-airíoch Pennsilfaanisch Deitsch (nó Béarla) ar thairngreacht an úitsigh.  

 

Agus cor nua atá ag an traidisiún – “Groundhog” a théacsáil chuig 247365 chun an réamhaisnéis a fháil.  Séanadh: níor bhain mise triail as fós agus níl a fhios agam cé chomh fada is a bheidh sé i bhfeidhm. Slán go fóill — Róislín

 

Nótaí:

1) ar bís [err beesh] in suspense, lit. on (in) a (mechanical) vice.  Aipst (ouch)!  If it sounds a little uncomfortable, so is being “on tenterhooks” actually.  A tenterhook is a hook or bent nail on which cloth is stretched on a tenter (frame).  Somehow, the English phrase doesn’t really imply painful suspense to me these days, although that is part of the dictionary definition.  Rather, it suggests more a fun exciting suspense.  Presumably the same thing has happened with the Irish phrase “a bheith ar bís” (to be in suspense).  I doubt it’s really interpreted literally. 

 

2) úitseach [OOTCH-ukh] woodchuck.  Is ionann “woodchuck” agus “groundhog” agus sin é an fáth go mbainim féin úsáid as “úitseach” sa fhrása “Lá an Úitsigh,” sa tuiseal ginideach ar ndóigh.  Since Punxsutawney Phil really is central here, I’m also keeping woodchuck/groundhog in the singular.  This is unlike other holidays that may use the singular but imply the plural, like “Mother’s Day” in English (singular, as shown by the placement of the apostrophe), generally translated as “Lá na Máithreacha” (plural) in Irish.  IF we were celebrating all woodchucks, we’d have a phrase with the genitive plural, Lá na nÚitseach. 

 

I realize some contenders will say one should just leave well enough alone and say “Lá Groundhog.”  I see their viewpoint, but somehow “Lá an Úitsigh” seems to me to have pleasant resonance for this fun holiday.  I agree that “Lá an Úitsigh” doesn’t have the gravitas to substitute for the phrase “Lá Groundhog” as sometimes used in the political sense.  Just try saying “Lá an Úitsigh” [law un OOCH-ee] and I think you’ll see what I mean.  At any rate, “Lá an Úitsigh” wouldn’t have had the recognition value that “Lá Groundhog” does, so if others want to stick with “groundhog,’’ bíodh acu.  I also toyed with several other phrases for “groundhog.”  In theory, *muc thalún could mean “groundhog,” (lit. pig of the earth), but that sets up some confusion with the existing term “arcán talún,” which means “earth pig” as well as “anteater” and “aardvark.”  Of course, a groundhog isn’t a hog, which we need to keep in mind.  We could also try *borra talún or *collach coillte talún, since borra (barrow, hog) and collach coillte also mean “hog” in the physiological sense (ouch on his behalf!), but I decided these all sounded ró-mhucaí ([roh-WOOK-ee] too porcine).  Listening to the sound of that, Chewbacca, you better watch out!). 

 

3) Úitseachais, “Woodchuckese,” aka “Groundhogese.”  This could also be the possessive form of a word for “Woodchuckness,” if it existed, but let’s not “dul ansin.”

Sin é don bhlag seo, Róislín