Re: Leodhasach & Hearasch - Gaelic help please

On Sun, 22 Jul 2007 23:17:48 GMT, Karen McDonald <karen1215@xxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

On Sat, 21 Jul 2007 12:04:11 GMT, Karen McDonald <karen1215@xxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

On Fri, 20 Jul 2007 21:39:29 GMT, The Highlander <micheil@xxxxxxx>
wrote:

This is why I wanted to know the correct plural formats and whether
they could be used when referring to everyone - males and females. I
should also like to indicate in the text how the words Leòdhasaich and
Hearaich are pronounced phonetically in English. The quoted URL gives
fine indications for the singular forms, but now I am wondering about
the plurals. I am obliged to be accurate, because how annoying must it
be to native Gaelic speakers when writers in English don't take proper
care of the language.

Just change the last sound to - eech (ch as in och) and you have it.

Go here http://www.ambaile.com/en/search/subject_id?id=428 and you can
listen to traditional story tellers. My favourites are "A' Ghobhar
Ghlas agus na Trì Minn" (The Grey Goat and the Three Kids) and
"Pàdraig na Beinne" (Peter of the Hill.) Both speakers have beautiful
voices and speak with the accents of the Isle of Lewis.

If you follow the written English version, you will find that the
endings are missing. I can supply them.

You might also go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/alba/

where you can listen to Gaelic live (Click "Èisd beò" (Listen live) or
select from past programs by clicking on "Èisd a-rithist (Listen
again).

I'm a great fan of "A' mire ri Mòir" (Merriment with Mòrag) who is a
dear elderly lady from the Isle of Barra and plays traditional Gaelic
music on her show and is, as they say in Hollywood; a legend in her
own lifetime!

You might also check out "An Litir Bheag" (the little letter) and
"Litir do Luchd-Ionnsachaidh" (Letter to learners) by Ruairidh
MacIlleathain (Roddy Maclean) who writes a weekly series of
stories and observations, along with detailed explanations of the
Gaelic used in each letter.

It's actually a very large site and includes a long list of Gaelic
words and their translations. There are/were audio pronunciations, but
I was unable to find them today. The site is being fixed for some
major problem, so hopefully they will reappear soon.

Use the A-U index to navigate and examine what the site offers.

I am also keen to verify the accuracy of specific comments my friend
made that afternoon about life on Lewis and Harris circa 1970. Thus I
should very much welcome your expert opinions on this too.

I should tell you that I'm no expert - I've been living in Canada for
nearly forty years and so my memories are from WW2. Sad to say, there
are only seven or eight of us still alive here who can speak Gaelic.
However, there are many Gaelic sites on line and here is a listing of
some of them, courtesy of Rampant Scotland.

http://www.rampantscotland.com/gaelic.htm

If you are thinking seriously abour learning Gaelic, here are (in my
opinion) the two best sites on the Net.

http://www.akerbeltz.org/

and

http://www.taic.btinternet.co.uk/

I have started another thread entitled: 'Lewis and Harris in 1970'.

Once again I am extremely obliged for your input. Many thanks indeed.

Karen

Is e do bheatha - You're welcome! (lit. He is thy life - a reference
to God.)

As Jock Thomson said to his bairns, "Aye keep cawin' awa!"

The Highlander
Tilgibh smucaid air do làmhan,
togaibh a' bhratach dhubh agus
toisichibh a' geàrradh na sgòrnanan!

Again I am most grateful for your time and trouble. All the above
noted and filed for future reference. As mentioned before, your
expertise is extremely rare. Thus how fortunate that we are able to
benefit from it so freely.

With regard to learning Gaelic I have been advised to enroll on a
course at Clydebank College where I understand they do Gaelic classes
intensively five mornings per week. I am seriously considering this
for the start of the new session in August.

Meanwhile I am hoping that soon our new Executive in Edinburgh will
come up with the money to permit the teaching of Gaelic in every
primary school throughout Scotland. Not of much use to me granted, but
a great way of perpetuating the language indefinitely. Wee ones learn
so much more easily than do middle-aged wifies like I.

That's true, but you have the advantage of already knowing one
language, so with a little thought, you can compare them and get a
"feel": for the way Gaels speak.

In fact, if you have an opportunity to listen to Highland or Hebridean
English, try to remember any unusual phrases used, because they are
more than likely direct translation from Gaelic, even if the speakers
don't actually speak Gaelic.

For instance, you may someone say, Äye, it's a fine day that's in it!"

"that's in it" is pure Gaelic idiom - Tha latha math a th'ann. The
more stock phrases you can learn, the better, as it's easier to use
Gaelic phrases you know are correct before you start freelancing on
you own!

As a general rule, older Gaels speak better Gaelic than younger ones,
as they have usually not been exposed to English catch phrases early
enough in the lives to have adopted them as part of their daily
speech.

To give you a "leg-up" please go to the URL below and you can download
a *** of 1,288 Gaelic idioms in HTML format that I compiled by
begging, borrowing and stealing until I had a good collection to be
able to give away to people like you who are making a serious effort
to learn the language.

http://members.shaw.ca/rumach/bardachd/media/Gaelic-Idioms.htm

They're not intended to be learned by heart as fast as you can go, but
simply to give a feeling for how the Gaelic mind works. That's why I
Gave you the URLs for Roddy Maclean, so you hear and start recognizing
words you know on paper and follow the spoken Gaelic as he supplies a
completye list of all he says and detailed explanations. You may be
interested to know that he is a self-taught Gaelic speaker and
probably the best known Gaelic broadcaster on the BBC!.

Both the "teach yourself Gaelic" URLs I gave you have audio files so
you can hear how to pronounce words correctly.

Gaelic is not the easiest language to learn, but once you start to
feel competent , you 'll also be able to listen to Irish and follow
it, so already you're getting a Scotswoman's bargain - two for the
price of one!

Once you begin to feel more secure, you should join a Gaelic forum for
learners, like http://31.freebb.com/gaidhlig/ where many of the
people are not even native English speakers, but people of Highland
descent from countries like France, or simply people who are
interested in Gaelic. There are a couple of native or near-native
speakers who are very helpful in the forum above, including a man who
writes a daily Gaelic blog, who was born, raised and lives in Alaska!
http://gaidheal.blogspot.com/

At one point there were some semi-native speakers from Cape Breton in
Canada, who were fascinating as their Gaelic reflected some dialect
pronunciations which can no long can be heard in Gaelic Scotland.

Even if you flee to Argentina, you can join a Gaelic class at the
University of Buenos Aires - South America is crawling with people of
Highland descent, with pipebands and Highland dancers all over the
continent.

There is also a monthly Gaelic podcast at http://www.gaelcast.com/
from which you can download backnumbers. I'm listening to one as I
type - he's an Irish-American who has learned Scots Gaelic - he and
his friends broadcast from Virginia, USA.

As for a Gaelic accent, I wouldn't get stressed out about it. The aim
of language is to communicate and just because you may not sound as if
you've spent your entire life gutting fish on Stornoway pier, so what?

There are so many Gaelic speakers from Lewis on-line - the BBC is
jammed with them - they're nicknamed "The Lewis Mafia", that you'll
probably end up with a Lewis accent anyway!


Mar sin leat an-dràsda

Mar sin leat cuideachd!

Karen


The Highlander
Tilgibh smucaid air do làmhan,
togaibh a' bhratach dhubh agus
toisichibh a' geàrradh na sgòrnanan!
.