{"id":1012,"date":"2011-06-26T12:36:15","date_gmt":"2011-06-26T12:36:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/?p=1012"},"modified":"2013-07-04T11:59:24","modified_gmt":"2013-07-04T11:59:24","slug":"ce-mhead-realta-ce-mhead-riabh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/ce-mhead-realta-ce-mhead-riabh\/","title":{"rendered":"C\u00e9 Mh\u00e9ad R\u00e9alta? C\u00e9 Mh\u00e9ad Riabh?"},"content":{"rendered":"

(le R\u00f3isl\u00edn)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Among the many topics we could discuss concerning flags is the actual design of the American flag. \u00a0This will also give us some practice with counting in general and counting items while including adjectives that describe the topic further.\u00a0 Here our additional adjectives will be on color, but of course, almost any other adjective (beag, m\u00f3r, deas<\/strong>, etc.) could be involved.<\/p>\n

The basic phrase for saying \u201cHow many?\u201d is \u201cC\u00e9 mh\u00e9ad<\/strong>?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 Sometimes speakers may say \u201cC\u00e1 mh\u00e9ad<\/strong>?\u201d\u00a0 Both are correct.<\/p>\n

Unlike English, the noun that follows the question \u201cC\u00e9 mh\u00e9ad<\/strong>?\u201d stays in the singular.<\/p>\n

So we can ask:<\/p>\n

C\u00e9 mh\u00e9ad r\u00e9alta?\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

C\u00e9 mh\u00e9ad riabh?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Or to get away from the stars and stripes vocabulary briefly, and use even more basic words:<\/p>\n

C\u00e9 mh\u00e9ad duine at\u00e1 anseo?<\/strong> (not \u201cdaoine<\/strong>\u201d)<\/p>\n

C\u00e9 mh\u00e9ad buachaill at\u00e1 anseo?<\/strong> (not \u201cbuachaill\u00ed<\/strong>\u201d)<\/p>\n

C\u00e9 mh\u00e9ad cail\u00edn at\u00e1 anseo?<\/strong> (not \u201ccail\u00edn\u00ed<\/strong>\u201d)<\/p>\n

To flesh out our original question:<\/p>\n

C\u00e9 mh\u00e9ad r\u00e9alta at\u00e1 ar an mbratach?<\/strong><\/p>\n

C\u00e9 mh\u00e9ad riabh at\u00e1 ar an mbratach?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Remembering the other main word for \u201cstripe,\u201d we could also ask:<\/p>\n

C\u00e9 mh\u00e9ad str\u00edoc at\u00e1 ar an mbratach?<\/strong><\/p>\n

And although we didn\u2019t introduce it earlier, there\u2019s also at least one other word for \u201cstar\u201d in Irish (n\u00ed nach ionadh<\/strong>!), \u201crinn<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n

C\u00e9 mh\u00e9ad rinn at\u00e1 ar an mbratach?\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

For more on \u201crinn<\/strong>\u201d as \u201cstar,\u201d f\u00e9ach th\u00edos ar n\u00f3ta a d\u00f3<\/strong>, but meanwhile, back to comhaireamh<\/strong> (counting).<\/p>\n

To answer our basic questions about the American flag:<\/p>\n

T\u00e1 caoga r\u00e9alta ar an mbratach<\/strong>.\u00a0 The item you\u2019re counting (here \u201cstars\u201d) stays singular in Irish after numbers.<\/p>\n

(lit. Fifty \u201cstar\u201d are on the flag).<\/p>\n

T\u00e1 tr\u00ed riabh d\u00e9ag ar an mbratach<\/strong>.\u00a0 There are 13 stripes on the flag.<\/p>\n

OR: T\u00e1 tr\u00ed str\u00edoc d\u00e9ag ar an mbratach<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

To add color, we could say:<\/p>\n

T\u00e1 seacht riabh dhearga ar an mbratach<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

OR: T\u00e1 seacht str\u00edoc dhearga ar an mbratach<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

So what happened to our basic word \u201cdearg<\/strong>\u201d (red)?\u00a0 It got lenited, because it\u2019s following a noun in a number phrase, and it got the plural ending \u201c-a,\u201d even though the noun itself is grammatically singular.\u00a0 Yes, that singular-plural match-up is strange (grammatically) but true, and could also be the subject of blag beag eile<\/strong>, or perhaps dh\u00e1 bhlag bheaga eile<\/strong>, some day!<\/p>\n

Technically, I should be saying the stripes are \u201cOld Glory Red,\u201d since there\u2019s a specific CAUS formula for that color, but that will also have to wait for blag \u00e9igin eile<\/strong>, and will probably also be a bit speculative.\u00a0 \u2018Cuz how often do we discuss the scientific formula for the shade of red in the American flag in Irish?\u00a0 But it\u2019ll be a good work-out, since the words for \u201cold,\u201d \u201cglory,\u201d and \u201cred,\u201d are certainly useful vocabulary, in whatever context.<\/p>\n

Back to dathanna na riabh (dathanna na str\u00edoc)<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

T\u00e1 s\u00e9 riabh bh\u00e1na ar an mbratach<\/strong>.\u00a0 Same procedure, lenite and pluralize, so \u201cb\u00e1n<\/strong>\u201d (white) changes to \u201cbh\u00e1na<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n

OR: T\u00e1 s\u00e9 str\u00edoc bh\u00e1na ar an mbratach<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

So, more on \u201cOld Glory Red,\u201d and its companion \u201cOld Glory Blue,\u201d and a bit more vexillology coming up (hoping you\u2019re not finding the detail too vexing).\u00a0 At some point, we\u2019ll segue to discussing Bratach na h\u00c9ireann<\/strong>, its color scheme and design, and a bit of its history.<\/p>\n

If readers on the list would like to submit some sentences describing their bratach n\u00e1isi\u00fanta<\/strong> in Irish, that would be more than welcome!\u00a0 The U.S. has been pretty well covered by now, and Ireland will be soon, but there\u2019s always room for more n\u00f3ta\u00ed tr\u00e1chta<\/strong> on those topics as well.\u00a0 Idir an d\u00e1 linn, sl\u00e1n go f\u00f3ill, R\u00f3isl\u00edn<\/strong><\/p>\n

N\u00f3ta a hAon:<\/strong> CAUS, Color Association of the United States<\/p>\n

N\u00f3ta a D\u00f3:<\/strong><\/p>\n

No, this \u201crinn<\/strong>\u201d is not the same \u201crinn<\/strong>\u201d you might know as meaning a \u201cpoint\u201d or a \u201ctip,\u201d as on a weapon or\u00a0a triangle.\u00a0 Examples of the point\/tip usage include \u201crinn saighde<\/strong>\u201d (arrowhead), \u201c\u00f3 rinn go s\u00e1il<\/strong>\u201d (\u201cfrom head to toe,\u201d lit. from tip to heel); and rinn t\u00edre<\/strong> (a headland or promontory) as in An Rinn<\/strong> (Ring, Co. Waterford), or Rinn an Scidigh<\/strong> (Ringaskiddy, Co. Cork).\u00a0 \u201cRinn<\/strong>\u201d for \u201cpoint\u201d and \u201crinn<\/strong>\u201d for \u201cstar,\u201d that\u2019s homagraif ar\u00eds<\/strong>, just as in English, where we have several completely different meanings for \u201cback,\u201d \u201ccan,\u201d \u201cfluke,\u201d \u201ctemple,\u201d and \u201cskate\u201d (fish vs. roller-, ice-skate), and many other words.<\/p>\n

You might be wondering, the same as I have, whether there might not be some connection between a word for a \u201cpoint\u201d and a word for a \u201cstar,\u201d as an example of sineicdic\u00e9<\/strong>.\u00a0 It\u2019s good food for thought, but not readily solvable, at least not i mblag beag amh\u00e1in mar mo bhlagsa<\/strong>.\u00a0 But two key points in that discussion would be that real stars don\u2019t technically have points, at least not anything so clear-cut as our notions of well-balanced five- and six-pointed stars, and, secondly, that \u201crinn<\/strong>\u201d as \u201cstar\u201d used to be spelled \u201creann<\/strong>\u201d and sometimes still is.\u00a0 Further ambiguating the situation!\u00a0 So the two words intertwine again once you start declining them, as follows:<\/p>\n

Modern usage:<\/p>\n

rinn, <\/strong>star, reanna <\/strong>(of a star), reanna <\/strong>(stars), reann <\/strong>(of stars)<\/strong><\/p>\n

rinn, <\/strong>point, tip, rinne <\/strong>(of a point), reanna <\/strong>(points), reann<\/strong> (of points)<\/p>\n

Older usages:<\/p>\n

reann<\/strong>, star, reanna <\/strong>or rinne <\/strong>(of a star), reanna or reannta <\/strong>(stars)<\/strong><\/p>\n

rinn, <\/strong>point, tip, rinne <\/strong>or reanna <\/strong>(of a point), rinne <\/strong>or reanna <\/strong>(points, tips)\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

Ceist do lucht na SeanGhaeilge, is d\u00f3cha.\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

If nothing else, we could at least discuss a \u201crinn rinneach<\/strong>\u201d (pointed star!), but actually, in general, I really do prefer the least ambiguous vocabulary I can think of, at least for most cases, so I\u2019d tend to say \u201cr\u00e9alta rinneach<\/strong>\u201d if it comes to that.\u00a0 Or to totally disambiguate, \u201cr\u00e9alta biorach<\/strong>,\u201d which also means \u201cpointed star.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hmm, we\u2019ve gone from a simple description of the American flag (tr\u00ed riabh d\u00e9ag, caoga r\u00e9alta)<\/strong> to r\u00e9alta\u00ed<\/strong>, r\u00e9ilt\u00edn\u00ed, reanna<\/strong>, and reannta<\/strong>, and we could add reann\u00e1in, reann\u00f3ga, r\u00e9ilteoga<\/strong>, and r\u00e9alt\u00f3ga<\/strong>, to name just a few more variations on these words. Not to mention \u201cr\u00e9alta reatha<\/strong>,\u201d \u201cscead<\/strong>\u201d (a star on a horse\u2019s forehead), etc.\u00a0 Enough to make mo mhaoth\u00e1n uisinneach cl\u00e9<\/strong> see stars, which, curiously enough is expressed with an entirely different word in Irish, l\u00e9asp\u00e1in<\/strong>, as in the sentence, \u201cT\u00e1 l\u00e9asp\u00e1in ag teacht ar mo sh\u00faile<\/strong>\u201d (I\u2019m seeing stars).\u00a0 \u201cL\u00e9asp\u00e1in<\/strong>\u201d more specifically means \u201cdancing colored lights before one\u2019s eyes,\u201d and no, this isn\u2019t the same as \u201cgeal\u00e1in<\/strong>\u201d as in \u201cna Geal\u00e1in Thuaidh<\/strong>\u201d and \u201cna Geal\u00e1in Theas<\/strong>,\u201d which are another type of \u201cdancing colored lights,\u201d technically \u201cbefore our eyes\u201d (as is anything we see, except in our mind\u2019s eye), but on a ginormous scale.\u00a0 An Ghaeilge ar<\/strong> \u201cginormous\u201d? \u00a0Bar\u00fail agatsa<\/strong>?<\/p>\n

Gluais don N\u00f3ta: cl\u00e9<\/strong>, left; l\u00e9as,<\/strong> bright spot, ray of light, also a blister, a welt, or a stripe (if we want to start that over again!); maoth\u00e1n,<\/strong> lobe (of brain); sineicdic\u00e9<\/strong>, synecdoche; uisinneach<\/strong>, temporal (cf. uisinn\u00ed<\/strong>, temples, angles, gills, etc.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(le R\u00f3isl\u00edn) Among the many topics we could discuss concerning flags is the actual design of the American flag. \u00a0This will also give us some practice with counting in general and counting items while including adjectives that describe the topic further.\u00a0 Here our additional adjectives will be on color, but of course, almost any other…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[3898],"tags":[89881,82455,33048,82625,8495,289950],"class_list":["post-1012","post","type-post","status-publish","hentry","category-irish-language","tag-flag","tag-realta","tag-riabh","tag-riabha","tag-stars","tag-stripes"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1012","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/36"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1012"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1012\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4156,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1012\/revisions\/4156"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1012"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1012"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1012"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}