Lá fhéile Vailintín sona duit – Happy Valentine’s Day!

Today many people are celebrating love all around the world. If you happen to find yourself in Dublin it may be fitting to visit Whitefriar Street Church to see the resting place of St. Valentine himself! They were gifted to the church in the 19th century by Pope Gregory XVI. To read a bit more about the history and background of St. Valentine, check out my post from last year.

If you are not lucky enough to be celebrating in the beautiful city of Dublin, hopefully some of these poems and list of vocabulary will help you celebrate the holiday as Gaeilge. ♥

 

 

Tá grá agam duit – I love you

Mo ghrá thú – You are my beloved

Tá mé i ngrá leat – I’m in love with you

A chuisle mo chroí – The pulse of my heart

Is tú mo stóirín* – You are my (little*) sweetheart

*The “-ín” at the end of Stóirín makes the word Stór (sweetheart) diminutive.

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An 18th century poem by Úna Ní Bhroin:

“Ó Thugas Mo Ghrá Dhuit” (Since I gave you my love)

A stórach, bheinn beo, sé mo dhóigh, go cena bliana,

Gan dadamh a ól ná lón ar bith d’iarraidh,

Mo bhéal ar do bhéal-sa ’s mo dhóid ar do cliabh-sa,

Ag éisteacht do ghlóir ghlic do thóigfeadh mo phianta

I could live for a year, I know, my love
Not asking for food or drinking a drop
With my mouth on yours, my hand on your heart,
Hearing your talk would heal my hurt

A 20th century poem by Liam Ó Muirthile:

Teanga An Ghrá (The language of love)

Ní gá di faic na ngrást
is í teanga iomlán an ghrá
gach anáil aici.

She needs nothing at all
The complete language of love
Is her every breath

And finally, perhaps one of the most prolific Irish poets, William Butler Yeats:

When You Are Old

When you are old and grey and full of sleep,
And nodding by the fire, take down this book,
And slowly read, and dream of the soft look
Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;

How many loved your moments of glad grace,
And loved your beauty with love false or true,
But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,
And loved the sorrows of your changing face;

And bending down beside the glowing bars,
Murmur, a little sadly, how Love fled
And paced upon the mountains overhead
And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.