(le Róislín)
If you’ve made your way through all four verses of “An Bhratach Gheal-Réaltach,” both i mBéarla agus i nGaeilge, perhaps you’d also like to test your knowledge of other translations. Can you match up the year in which the anthem was translated into the following languages? Their names are given in Irish, to the extent that the Irish term are available (not, for example for O’odham, fad m’eolais, at any rate). The dates are given sequentially, in some cases noting that later renditions were also published in the same language. A few are marked as “ca.” since the original date of publication is elusive, or unavailable online. But typically there was some kind of press release around the time of the translation.
So see if you can match Colún A with Colún B. Freagraí thíos.
| Colún A |
Colún B |
| 1850/51 (+1861, +1864) |
O’odham |
| 1898 |
Eabhrais |
| 1919 (+2006) |
Gaeilge |
| 1931 |
Seiricíoch |
| 1936 (+1943) |
Giúdais |
| 1999 |
Navachóis |
| 2000 |
Laidin |
| 2004 (ca.) |
Spáinnis |
| 2006 (ca.) |
Samóis |
| 2006 (ca.) |
Gearmáinis |
| 2007 (ca.) |
Acaidis |
So the real Irish language challenge here is how would you translate the names of these different languages. A few are quite straightforward (Spáinnis, I imagine) and others are less so (Eabhrais, mar shampla). The language names also translated below. As a base line, you might remember from the most recent blogs that the Irish version is from 1898.
If anyone has any further information about other languages and could send it in, that would be go hiontach. That eolas could be worked into another blog. I’ve seen a leagan Polainnise but without even an approximate date, so haven’t worked it into this chronology. Tá súil agam go mbaineann tú sult as seo! SGF, Róislín
Freagraí
1850/51 (+1861 and +1864) Gearmáinis (German: “O, Sagt, Könnt Ihr Sehen?”)
1898 Gaeilge (Irish)
1919 (+2006) Spáinnis (Spanish)
1931 Eabhrais (Hebrew)
1936 (+1943) Giúdais (Yiddish)
1999 Laidin (Latin, but only the 3rd verse? Na véarsaí eile? Áit ar bith?)
2000 Navachóis (Navaho, first recorded version I can find)
ca. 2004 O’odham
ca. 2006 Seiricíoch (Cherokee)
ca. 2006 Samóis (Samoan: “Aue! se’i e vaai?“)
ca. 2007 Acaidis, .i. Fraincis Acadach (Acadian French)
Suimiúil, nach ea? Leagan Tliongáinise in áit ar bith? Muna bhfuil, sin tionscadal daoibh, a lucht labhartha na Tliongáinise!
Comments:
Walter Kamphoefner:
“O, Sagt, Könnt Ihr Sehen?” ws written and sung already in 1850 or 1851, as a Galveston German-language newspaper reported. The translator was Hermann Seele, leader of the New Braunfels Gesangverein and its future mayor. The Civil War era broadside was published in 1862 or 1863, the only two years the publisher was at the listed address, but the translation is older.
Incidentally, there is also a Scots Gaelic version from around the turn of the 20th century.
róislín:
@Walter Kamphoefner An-suimiúil, a Ualtair, agus go raibh míle maith agat as scríobh isteach. Very interesting, Walter, and thank you very much for writing in. I hope you continue to enjoy the blog.
PS: I updated the blog to reflect the new dates.