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Tag Archives: Scottish

How to say ‘How are you?” in Irish — not quite 100 ways but maybe 50-ish.  And which are the top 5(-ish)? Posted by on Jan 4, 2015

(le Róislín) Some of you may have seen the recent article “Did you know there are 100 ways to say ‘How are you?’ as Gaeilge?” in The Daily Edge, based on a dialect map posted on Twitter (naisc thíos).  As comments to the Daily Edge article pointed out, about half of the examples are from Scotland…

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Looking at the ‘aon’ in ‘aontaithe’ (united) Posted by on Sep 23, 2014

(le Róislín) Well, the Scottish Referendum has come and gone and I find myself wondering what will happen sa todhchaí (in the future). But meanwhile, it might be useful to look at the Irish word for “united,” since it shows up in many other phrases and terms, aside from “An Ríocht Aontaithe.” “Aontaithe” is based…

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How to say “Yes Vote” and “No Vote” in Irish (with a nod to the Gàidhlig) Posted by on Sep 8, 2014

(le Róislín) So I’ve been listening and listening to the coverage of the Scottish independence vote.    While this blog is not really a platform for polaitíocht, it does give us an opportunity to look at the words “yes” and “no” in Irish, with a brief comparison to Scottish Gaelic (Gàidhlig). With most languages I’ve studied…

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Eolaithe Eile (agus Eolaíochtaí Eile) Posted by on Aug 5, 2014

(le Róislín) While we’re on a roll with occupations, especially “-ologists,” I thought we could add a few more.  This time, they’ll be a mix and match, just to add a little more … what’s that great compound word again … “dúshlán.”  Understanding “dúshlán” as a compound word (originally “dubh” + “slán,” becoming “shlán” [hlawn]…

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You Just Call Out My Name (sa Tuiseal Gairmeach, of course, in Irish) (Pt. 1) Posted by on May 31, 2013

(le Róislín)   “Dia duit, a …” — hmm, what’s next, after “hello”?  We could ask the same question for “Slán agat, a (ainm duine),” when saying “goodbye”!   In most other languages I’ve studied, once you learn the words for “hello” and “goodbye,” putting people’s names into the phrase presents no particular challenge.  That is…

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Téarmaí Nollag: Nollaig Shona duit! Nollaig Shona daoibh! srl. Posted by on Dec 24, 2009

(le Róislín) Here are some of the basic terms for this holiday season: Oíche Nollag, Christmas Eve, but Oíche Lá Nollag, the night of Christmas Day An Nollaig, Christmas (note the use of the definite article, “the” Christmas) Lá Nollag, Christmas Day Nóta 1: Irish doesn’t really have a separate word for “eve” to distinguish “the…

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Logainmneacha Ceilteacha agus Náisiúntachtaí a Trí: Celtic Place Names and Nationalities – Wales and the Welsh Posted by on May 3, 2009

We’ve recently discussed the place names Albain (Scotland) and Éire (Ireland).  Now we’ll turn to ”An Bhreatain Bheag” (Wales).  Since “Breatain” is a feminine noun, the adjective that modifies it, “beag” (little) becomes “bheag.”  And since this country name includes the definite article “an” (the), it also causes “Breatain” to change to “Bhreatain,” pronounced with…

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