{"id":4863,"date":"2014-01-25T20:53:28","date_gmt":"2014-01-25T20:53:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/?p=4863"},"modified":"2015-08-03T17:06:16","modified_gmt":"2015-08-03T17:06:16","slug":"years-ears-and-donkeys-in-irish-bhuel-not-really-donkeys","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/years-ears-and-donkeys-in-irish-bhuel-not-really-donkeys\/","title":{"rendered":"Years, Ears, and Donkeys in Irish (Bhuel, Not Really Donkeys!)"},"content":{"rendered":"

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

\"Cluasa<\/a>

Cluasa Asail (from H\u00e5kan Dahlstr\u00f6m, http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/2.5\/)<\/p><\/div>\n

This time in January, in between the western New Year (1 Ean\u00e1ir<\/strong>) and Chinese New Year (31 Ean\u00e1ir i 2014<\/strong>) seems like a good time to look again at the word “bliain<\/strong>” (year) in Irish (nasc th\u00edos do bhlag eile faoi seo<\/strong>).\u00a0 In this blog, we’ll look at the basic forms of the word, a few traditional expressions using “year,” and then maybe we’ll mosey on down the garden path (agus an t-asal linn<\/strong>) and see what equivalents we can find for one of my favorite English expressions, “I haven’t seen you in donkey’s years.”<\/p>\n

Let’s start with the basics:<\/p>\n

bliain<\/strong>, a year; this basic form is used to say “one year” (bliain amh\u00e1in<\/strong>) and it also comes after multiples of ten (20: fiche bliain<\/strong>, 30: tr\u00edocha bliain, srl.<\/strong>)<\/p>\n

an bhliain<\/strong> [un VLEE-in], the year<\/p>\n

bhliain<\/strong>: this lenited form is also used after:<\/p>\n

a) “aon<\/strong>,” to say “eleven years” (aon bhliain d\u00e9ag<\/strong>) or to indicate “any year” (aon bhliain<\/strong>)<\/p>\n

b) the number 2 and with numbers like 12, 22, 32, etc.: dh\u00e1 bhliain<\/strong> (2), dh\u00e1 bhliain d\u00e9ag<\/strong> (12), dh\u00e1 bhliain is fiche<\/strong> (22), dh\u00e1 bhliain is tr\u00edocha<\/strong> (32), srl.<\/strong><\/p>\n

c) “sa<\/strong>” and some other prepositions; sa bhliain<\/strong> [suh VLEE-in], in the year, usually followed by the actual date (sa bhliain 2525, mar shampla<\/strong>), but can also mean “per annum”<\/p>\n

bliana<\/strong> [BLEE-uh-nuh], of (a) year; gamhain bliana<\/strong>, a yearling calf; also used in giving people’s ages from 3 to 10 (with eclipsis for ages 7 to 10, see “mbliana<\/strong>” directly below), and for numbers in the teens or higher ending in 3, 4, 5, 6: leanbh bliana<\/strong> (leanbh at\u00e1 bliain d’aois<\/strong>), c\u00faig bliana<\/strong> (t\u00e1 an p\u00e1iste sin c\u00faig bliana d’aois<\/strong>), c\u00faig bliana is fiche<\/strong> (t\u00e1 an fear sin c\u00faig bliana is fiche d’aois<\/strong>)<\/p>\n

mbliana<\/strong> [MLEE-uh-nuh], of a year, following the numbers 7 to 10 (seacht mbliana<\/strong>, seacht mbliana d\u00e9ag, srl.<\/strong>)<\/p>\n

As for the pronunciation of “mbl,” the “b” is silent (“eclipsed”).\u00a0 I don’t think there are any English words that start with the sound “mlee” but the inital “ml” sound does exist in some languages (e.g. Polish: mleko<\/em>, “milk”).\u00a0 I believe we’d get the same sound in the Swahili “Mlilwane<\/em>” but for that, I’d have to defer to lucht labhartha na Svaha\u00edlise (tuilleadh eolais sa n\u00f3ta th\u00edos)<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

If that doesn’t help, think “umlaut” with out the first “u” (‘mlaut!)<\/p>\n

And one more use of “mbliana<\/strong>” outside the numbers context: i mbliana<\/strong> [im-LEE-uh-nuh], this year, as in “T\u00e1 m\u00e9 ag dul ann i mbliana<\/strong>.”<\/p>\n

Now for some plurals.<\/p>\n

But wait!\u00a0 Did you notice that in many of the examples just given we have plurals in English (two years, three years), but that the noun is still singular in Irish? \u00a0That’s the typical pattern in Irish (singular after numbers), as in: leabhar<\/strong> (book), leabhar amh\u00e1in, dh\u00e1 leabhar, tr\u00ed leabhar, seacht leabhar, fiche leabhar, c\u00e9ad leabhar, srl.\u00a0<\/strong> — all singular (the plural is either “leabhair<\/strong>” or “leabhartha<\/strong>“).<\/p>\n

None of the examples of “bliain<\/strong>” listed above are plural, as such.<\/p>\n

The plurals are:<\/p>\n

blianta<\/strong> [BLEE-un-tuh], years<\/p>\n

na blianta<\/strong>, the years<\/p>\n

blianta<\/strong>, of years<\/p>\n

na mblianta<\/strong>, of the years<\/p>\n

And some additional examples:<\/p>\n

sna blianta sin<\/strong>, in those years,<\/p>\n

blianta fada \u00f3 shin<\/strong>, a long time ago, lit. long years ago<\/p>\n

A couple related words:<\/p>\n

bliant\u00fail<\/strong>, annual, yearly (adjective)<\/p>\n

bliant\u00f3g<\/strong>, an annual plant<\/p>\n

Here are a few fun phrases for when you feel like casting aspersions or otherwise criticizing things or people:<\/span><\/p>\n

Bliain mhaith ina ndiaidh<\/strong>!\u00a0 Good riddance to them!, lit. a good year after them (presumably the idea is that the year will be good now that they’ve left)<\/p>\n

Chuir an fh\u00e9as\u00f3g sin deich mbliana air<\/strong>.\u00a0 That beard put ten years on him (made him look 10 years older than he actually was).<\/p>\n

and finally, coming on the heels (or hind paws) of the recent “rats” blog (https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/ghost-ship-or-not-how-to-say-rats-in-irish\/), let’s not forget “Bliain na bhFrancach<\/strong>,” referring to 1798. Remember, this “Francach<\/strong>” is upper case, so it means “Frenchman,” not “rat”!\u00a0 Lower-case “francach<\/strong>” means “rat.”\u00a0 Of course, here, “na bhFrancach<\/strong>” here is plural, meaning “of the Frenchmen,” but that eclipsis will have to be \u00e1bhar blag eile<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

And what about donkeys and ears? Again, these words are often learned quite early on in Irish ach seo s\u00fail siar<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

an t-asal<\/strong>, the donkey<\/p>\n

an asail<\/strong>, of the donkey<\/p>\n

na hasail<\/strong>, the donkeys<\/p>\n

na\u00a0 n-asal<\/strong>, of the donkeys<\/p>\n

And ears:<\/p>\n

an chluas<\/strong> [un KHLOO-uss], the ear<\/p>\n

na cluaise<\/strong> [nuh KLOO-ish-uh], of the ear, or just “cluaise<\/strong>” for “of ear” as in, a choice example, “sail <\/strong>(or “sal<\/strong>“) chluaise<\/strong>” (earwax)<\/p>\n

na cluasa<\/strong> [nuh KLOO-uss-uh], the ears<\/p>\n

na gcluas<\/strong> [nuh GLOO-uss], of the ears<\/p>\n

And if we want to talk about the ear or ears of a donkey or donkeys, we’d have:<\/p>\n

cluas an asail<\/strong> (the ear of the donkey) and cluasa an asail<\/strong> (the ears of the donkey)<\/p>\n

cluasa na n-asal<\/strong>, the ears of the donkeys<\/p>\n

And when might you need those phrases? \u00a0Bhuel, b’fh\u00e9idir:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Seo seanhata don asal ach caithfidh t\u00fa dh\u00e1 pholl a chur ann d\u00e1 chluasa<\/strong> (or “d\u00e1 cluasa<\/strong>“, if it’s a jenny, i.e. a “l\u00e1ir asail<\/strong>“).<\/p>\n

And if there’s more than one donkey, we’ve got the plural, but with a few strategically placed “bearna\u00ed<\/strong>” for you to fill in (freagra\u00ed th\u00edos faoin n\u00f3ta<\/strong>):<\/p>\n

Seo seanhata\u00ed do na \u00a0________ ach caithfidh t\u00fa \u00a0_____ a chur iontu d\u00e1<\/strong> \u00a0\u00a0________.<\/p>\n

As for “donkey’s years,” as an expression, it’s not really traditional in Irish, as such.\u00a0 Phrases like “le blianta fada<\/strong>” or “le fada<\/strong>” or “leis na cianta<\/strong>,” usually suffice.<\/p>\n

Speaking of “ears,” here’s yet another aspersion to cast, if you’re so inclined: C\u00e1 raibh t\u00fa aimsir na gcluas?<\/strong>\u00a0 Where were you in the time of the ears? (when ears were being “given out”), implying that someone is not a good listener.<\/p>\n

And speaking of long<\/i> ears, if not necessarily those of donkeys, some traditional words of wisdom:<\/p>\n

Cluas fhada agus teanga ghearr<\/strong>, a long ear and (implying “but”) a short tongue, i.e. Speak little, listen much.<\/p>\n

Bhuel<\/strong>, here’s to years, ears, and New Year’s cheers, whichever way you celebrate “an bhliain \u00far,” an d\u00f3igh “iartharach” n\u00f3 an d\u00f3igh Sh\u00edneach, n\u00f3 an d\u00e1 dh\u00f3igh. — R\u00f3isl\u00edn<\/strong><\/p>\n

N\u00f3ta: <\/b>I can’t find a sound file for “Mlilwane<\/em>” online and the following comment makes me wonder about it further: “I\u2019m sitting right now on a slightly moist park bench (and that\u2019s after trying my best to wipe it down with my\u00a0mittens) and looking out across a beautiful Lion King-esque\u00a0(no joke) landscape at the Mlilwane Game Reserve.\u00a0 (And don\u2019t even bother trying to pronounce \u201cMlilwane\u201d\u2013Tessa and I\u00a0have\u00a0been trying for two days and are both still incredibly unsuccessful.)”\u00a0(http:\/\/old.owlsbeyondborders.rice.edu\/swaziland\/archives\/18.html, June 4th, 2007 at 3:29 pm)<\/p>\n

Sounds like a beautiful place, even if we can’t pronounce it.\u00a0 Svaha\u00edlis<\/strong>, anyone?\u00a0 Where are you, a Sh\u00e9amais U\u00ed Dhire\u00e1in<\/strong>, when we need you?\u00a0 He’s the only person I know who’s fluent in both Swahili and Irish, not to mention some other languages. (Agallamh suimi\u00fail ar Sh\u00e9amas \u00d3 Dire\u00e1in anseo<\/strong>: http:\/\/www.beo.ie\/alt-seamas-o-direain.aspx, Beo! Nollaig 2010)<\/p>\n

Freagra<\/strong>: \u00a0Seo seanhata\u00ed do na hasail ach caithfidh t\u00fa poill a chur iontu d\u00e1 gcluasa<\/strong>. \u00a0Of course, if we know exactly how many donkeys, we could say exactly how many holes were needed, and we’d be back to the singular of the word for hole (“poll<\/strong>“).\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>or example, seacht n-asal, ceithre pholl d\u00e9ag<\/strong>.\u00a0 Here “poll<\/strong>” is lenited (“ph-“) but still singular (no “i”).<\/span><\/p>\n

Nasc<\/strong>: Blianta Go Leor \u2014 Years Galore, Except the Donkey\u2019s!<\/a> Posted on 29. Jun, 2009 by r\u00f3isl\u00edn<\/a> in Irish Language<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

(le R\u00f3isl\u00edn) This time in January, in between the western New Year (1 Ean\u00e1ir) and Chinese New Year (31 Ean\u00e1ir i 2014) seems like a good time to look again at the word “bliain” (year) in Irish (nasc th\u00edos do bhlag eile faoi seo).\u00a0 In this blog, we’ll look at the basic forms of the…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":4868,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[3898],"tags":[229757,33010,307112,307111,307113,307115,307117,13547,211719,211718,307118,211717,8166,4705,229801,307120,8160,211722,229795,307119,307121,307114,307116,229796,6659,384235,365351,254983,7626],"class_list":["post-4863","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-irish-language","tag-asail","tag-asal","tag-bhliain","tag-bliain","tag-bliana","tag-blianta","tag-blianta-fada","tag-chinese-new-year","tag-chluaise","tag-chluas","tag-cianta","tag-cluaise","tag-cluas","tag-cluasa","tag-donkey","tag-donkeys-ears","tag-ear","tag-gcluasa","tag-hasail","tag-le-fada","tag-long-time","tag-mbliana","tag-mblianta","tag-n-asal","tag-sail","tag-sal","tag-t-asal","tag-wax","tag-year"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4863","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=4863"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4863\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6997,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4863\/revisions\/6997"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4868"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4863"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4863"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/irish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4863"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}