(le Róislín)

_{‘Sea, an t-am sin den bhliain arís, aimsir na ndea-rún don bhliain nua.  In the word cloud (néal focal) above we see some common topics for “dea-rúin na hAthbhliana,” many of which have to do with health (sláinte).  How many of them do you recognize?}

_{Here they are again, with a few pronunciation tips.  Can you match them up with the English?  Freagraí thíos.}    

_{1)) neart [tip: the “n” is like the “n” in English “canyon”]}

_{2)) corpacmhainn [tip: this is a compound word, so “corp” and the “ac-” of “acmhainn” have equal stress; in the theory the broad “mh-” could be a “w” sound, but I’ve always heard it more like a “v” or even an “f”,” like “ACK-vun” or “ACK-fun”)}

_{3)) aclaíocht [tip: for the “-aí” combination, only the long i (í) is actually pronounced; the “ch” is as in German “Achtung” or Welsh “bach.”  Say: AK-lee-ukht]}

_{4)) fuinneamh [tip: the n’s are also like the “n” of  “canyon” and the final ‘-mh” is usually pronounced like a “v.”  The initial “f” is very broad, as in the Irish “faoi”–in other words, it’s more like the French “fois” than a typical English “f.”  It’s also the same sound as in Myles na gCopaleen’s immortal quote “Phwat is yer nam?” to which, as you may recall, every child was supposed to answer “Jams O’Donnell.”  But more  on Myles’s masterpiece , An Béal Bocht, (The Poor Mouth) will have to wait for another blogpost.  Anyway, the pronunciation is like “FwIN-yuv.”]}

_{5)) sláinte [quite well-known so probably no tips needed, but just in case, remember the ”-ái” is basically “aw” (not like “train” or “drain”) and the “t” is close to a “tch.”} 

_{6)) aiste bia [tip: the “s” is pronounced like an English “sh” and “bia” is two syllables, like Irish “Dia” or Italian “Mamma Mia” or “Tia Maria.”} 

_{7)) folláine [tip: this word has three syllables, with the final “-e” pronounced. albeit unstressed]}

_{8)) cothú cothrom [tip: both “t’s” are lenited, so only the “h” is pronounced, not the “t”; note the nice, if coincidental, alliteration]}

_{9)) saol sláintiúil [tip: “saol” can be pronounced like “sayl” or “seel” but it’s not like the Italian “Paola” or “Paoli”]}

_{And here are a few more phrases, not in the graphic above (since they’re a little bit “rófhada” for a typical “néal focal“).  I give them here as infinitives; note that for the negative ones, we’re literally saying something like “without to be binge-drinking,” etc., not literally using a word like “not.”  Translations are also given below.} 

_{10)) éirí as na toitíní  OR toitíní a thabhairt suas}

_{11)) gan craos a dhéanamh ar mhilseáin}

_{12)) gan a bheith ag dul ar bhabhtaí óil}

_{13)) gan ól trom a dhéanamh}

_{Tá súil agam go mbeidh tú ábalta cloí le do chuid dea-rún don Athbhliain.  Go deireadh na míosa, ar a laghad.  :  )} 

_{SGF – Róislín}

_{1)) strength neart}

_{2)) fitness corpacmhainn}

_{3)) exercise aclaíocht}

_{4)) stamina fuinneamh; I’ve also seen “teacht aniar” (lit. “coming from the west” for this but I do find it to be a bit cryptic for this application — any thoughts, anyone?} 

_{5)) health sláinte; “sláinte” is also often used for “good health” when making toasts}

_{6)) diet aiste bia, lit. scheme of food}

_{7)) wellness folláine; this word is related to the adjective “folláin,” as in the well-known expression “chomh folláin le breac,” as healthy as a trout}

_{8)) balanced nutrition – cothú cothrom}

_{9)) a healthy life, saol sláintiúil}

_{10)) to give up cigarettes: éirí as na toitíní OR toitíní a thabhairt suas}

_{11)) not to binge-eat sweets: gan craos a dhéanamh ar mhilseáin (lit. “to be without doing gullet/maw/gluttony on sweets”)}

_{12)) not to binge-drink: gan a bheith ag dul ar bhabhtaí óil (lit. “to be without going on bouts of drinking”)}

_{13)) not to binge-drink: gan ól trom a dhéanamh (lit. “to be without doing heavy drinking”)}

BTW, here are some previous blogs (iarbhlaganna) on New Year’s topics, which might be of interest:

Five New Year’s Resolutions a Leprechaun Would Make (and How to Say Them in Irish) Posted by róislín on Jan 10, 2013 in Irish Language

You Say You Want a Resolution, bhuel, tá ‘fhios ‘ad … Úúps, “Revolution” a Bhí i gCeist ag na Beatles Posted by róislín on Jan 17, 2013 in Irish Language

Dea-Rúin na hAthbhliana 2013 (New Year’s Resolutions for 2013)Posted by róislín on Dec 31, 2012 in Irish Language

and there’s a passing reference (tagairt fhánach) to “dea-rúin” here:

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 róislín on Jan 4, 2015 in Irish Language