Irish Language Blog
Menu
Search

Tag Archives: IPA

Some Irish Words Starting with the Letter ‘X’ (Part 2 of 2): xileafón agus xifisteirneam Posted by on Sep 18, 2015

(le Róislín) As you might recall, the most recent blagmhír here was “Some Irish Words Starting with the Letter ‘X’ (Part 1 of 2)” (nasc thíos).  Today we’ll look at Part 2, Irish words beginning with “x” where the single letter “x” isn’t a prefix.  In other words, this is not the post dealing with words…

Continue Reading

Some Irish Words Starting with the Letter ‘X’ (Part 1 of 2) Posted by on Sep 14, 2015

(le Róislín) As you might suspect, there are relatively few words in Irish that start with the letter ‘x,’ since it wasn’t part of the traditional original Irish alphabet (which was a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, l, m, n, o, p, r, s, t, and u). We’ve seen something similar for…

Continue Reading

‘Bean’ or ‘Ban’ or ‘Mná’ or “mBan’: How to Say ‘Woman’ (Women) in Irish (just in time for Nollaig na mBan on 6 January) Posted by on Jan 5, 2014

(le Róislín) As the final day of “dhá lá dhéag na Nollag” (6 Eanáir), we recognize “Nollaig na mBan.”  Many other sites online offer some commentary on the day’s activities, typically with women taking some time off for a relaxing afternoon tea or evening out.  One interesting article, by actress and playwright Sheila Flitton, is…

Continue Reading

How to Say ‘2014’ in Irish Posted by on Dec 31, 2013

(le Róislín) Dhá mhíle is a ceathair déag.  Piece o’ cake, right?  Well, maybe, but for anyone new to the language, here is a rough pronunciation guide: [γaw VEEL-yuh iss uh KYA-hirzh djayg].  [Pointe léirithe, 4 Eanáir 2014: ní an litir “y” atá i gceist i “γaw” ach an tsiombail teangeolaíochta “γ” .i. an tsiombail…

Continue Reading

Cait: Cúpla Téarma Eile (Mothchat, Baldúin, Crúbálaí) Posted by on Dec 9, 2013

(le Róislín) A few more cat terms have recently come to my attention.  Let’s start with the rather eye-catching: mothchat [muh-khaht] tomcat Ar dtús báire, ní peata “Leamhanfhir” é.  Nó “peata Fhear an Leamhain,” más fearr leat mar sin é.  So, no, the Mothman of West Virginia (and of “Prophecies” fame) didn’t suddenly become a…

Continue Reading

Gluaisín do ‘Ó Tillich go (Henry) Bemis: Solitude vs. Loneliness agus Dearcadh na Gaeilge’ Posted by on Aug 30, 2013

(le Róislín) Looking over the last blog, ar “uaigneas” agus “aonaracht,” I thought some léitheoirí might welcome a gluaisín ([GLOO-ish-een] little glossary) and cuidiú [KWIDJ-yoo] le fuaimniú [FOO-im-nyoo, with that “-ny-” like the “-ny-” in “canyon”]. If you didn’t get a seans [shanss] to read an blag sin yet, seo an nasc: https://blogs.transparent.com/irish/o-tillich-go-henry-bemis-solitude-vs-loneliness-agus-dearcadh-na-gaeilge/ .  If…

Continue Reading

How To Say Irish Words Like ‘Aghaidh,’ ‘Bhratach,’ and ‘Shaoirse’ (Pronunciation Guide for the Red, White and Blue Blog) Posted by on Jun 20, 2013

(le Róislín) The recurring chorus that I hear in Irish classes, year after year, is “How do you pronounce that?,” or as students get more advanced, and ask it in Irish “Cén chaoi a ndeir tú sin?” (How do you say that?).  In theory, at least, people could be asking, “Cén chaoi a bhfuaimníonn tú…

Continue Reading

Older posts