If the other grandmother is “Grandma,” what Irish term can you use? Posted by róislín on Oct 24, 2016
(le Róislín) Inspired by a recent comment from reader Rita C., who noted that Irish has “so many choices for Irish grandmother names,” I thought this would be a good time to review some of the terms. This blogpost will deal with grandmothers, and we’ll probably have a companion piece for the grandfathers. Go raibh…
To Be or To Wear: Which Irish Verb for Halloween Costumes (agus éadaí go ginearálta) Posted by róislín on Oct 22, 2016
(le Róislín) The Irish language offers two main verbs for saying you are wearing an item of clothing. One is the verb “to be,” combined with the word “on,” essentially saying “A hat is on me,” for “I am wearing a hat.” The second is the verb “caith,” which can literally mean “wear,” but which…
Arbhar Candaí agus Cúpla Cainíneach Cúláilte Gléasta i gcomhair Oíche Shamhna Posted by róislín on Oct 17, 2016
(le Róislín) According to the National Retail Federation (nasc thíos), this year’s most popular pet costume for Halloween is a pumpkin (puimcín). But the two dogs in this picture are sporting a different edible Halloween theme, arbhar candaí. As far as I know, arbhar candaí is only sold i Meiriceá Thuaidh. If anyone is aware…
Cultacha Banphrionsa vs. Cultacha Sárlaoich: Costume Wars — Princesses vs. Superheroes Posted by róislín on Oct 11, 2016
(le Róislín) Every year around this time I like to check out the articles on the best-selling Halloween costumes (cultacha Oíche Shamhna sárdhíola). Then it’s both fun and, hopefully, informative, to translate them into Irish. Some of them, like “garda” or “comhraiceoir dóiteáin” may also prove to be useful words (focail úsáideacha) for everyday conversation…
Téarmaí Oíche Shamhna: Cineálacha Cultacha (Halloween Terms: ‘Kinds of Costumes’ in Irish) Posted by róislín on Oct 6, 2016
(le Róislín) By early October, the maisiúcháin and cultacha are already in full force sna siopaí. Céard atá pleanáilte agatsa faoi choinne Oíche Shamhna? We’ve talked about cultacha (costumes) previously in this blog, but this would be a good time to review some of the traditional ones. And to find out if you’ve got any…
Um, um, nasturtiums, geraniums, and chrysanthemums — oh my! (Ainmneacha Plandaí 5) Posted by róislín on Sep 30, 2016
(le Róislín) Three more flower names this time around. And what do they have in common? Simply the fact that they end in “-um” in English. So we’ll see if this gives us any sort of pattern for words borrowed from Latin, or do they all end up with different ending in Irish? It’s actually…
Drúchta, Drúchtáin agus Drúchtíní — A Thiarcais! (Dewdrops, Little Dewdrops and Slugs — Definitely an ‘Oh-My’) [Ainmneacha Plandaí 4] Posted by róislín on Sep 27, 2016
(le Róislín) Another occasion for a three-part lions-tigers-and- bears-ish meme. In this blogpost, we’ll look at the following words: drúcht, drúchtán, drúchtín, and móin (and its genitive case, móna) and the plant, drúchtín móna. First let’s do “dew” drúcht, usually meaning dew or a drop of a liquid (although the latter general usage is more…