Gaelic Words and Phrases(1), Języki, Gaelicki
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GAELIC WORDS AND PHRASES
FROM WESTER ROSS
Compiled by
ROY WENTWORTH
FACLAN IS ABAIRTEAN
À ROS AN IAR
Air an cur ri chèile le
ROY WENTWORTH
Version: August 2003
Tionntadh: An Lùnastal 2003
"Copyleft" st atement
This document is a draft of work in progress. It is not in
the "public domain". However, I am happy for people to
make use of it for non-profit purposes, and to pass copies
free of charge to other people provided that it remains
unalt ered and that t his not ice remains attached. It may not
be dist ribut ed in any amended format or included in any
for-profit product or websit e without my writt en
permission. For further det ails see:
htt p://www.smo.uhi.ac.uk/gaidhlig/went worth/cead/
Roy Went worth, 30 August 2003
"Copyleft" st atement
'S e dreachd a tha san sgrìobhainn seo de dh'obair a t ha a' dol air adhart . Chan
eil i anns an "raon phoblach". Tha mi toilicht e daoine a bhith a' dèanamh feum
dhith ann an dòighean nach eil a chum prot haid, agus a bhit h a' cur lethbhreac
saor 's an asgaidh gu daoine eile, cho fad agus nach t èid atharrachadh a
dhèanamh oirre, agus gum fuirich an sanas seo an ceangal rit he. Chan fhaod i a
bhith air a sgaoileadh ann an riochd eadar-dhealaichte sam bit h no air a cur
a-st each ann am bathar no là rach-lìn sam bit h a tha a chum prothaid gun chead
sgrìobht e bhuamsa. Airson t uilleadh fios faic:
htt p://www.smo.uhi.ac.uk/gaidhlig/went worth/cead/
Roy Went worth, 30 Lùnast al 2003
Foreword — Facal-toisich
This list of Gaelic words and phrases from Wester Ross is
intended in the first instance to be of help to parents with
children attending cròileagain and Gaelic M edium Units in
this area who are trying to use Gaelic in the home, and who
would like to include some terms from our distinctive dialect
in their conversation. I hope it will also be useful to
playgroup leaders and teachers of children in Gaelic-
medium education in Ross-shire, and indeed to the pupils
themselves as they rise through secondary school, and
perhaps further, in offering them a convenient source of
dialect material if they wish to make use of such. The
general learner with an interest in Wester Ross Gaelic may
also find something here to help her in her progression to
fluency.
Chaidh an liosta seo de dh‘fhaclan is de dh‘abairtean Gidhlig Ros an
Iar a dhèanamh sa chiad à ite gu bhith na cuideachadh do phà rantan aig
am bheil clann anns na cròileagain agus anns na h-Aonadan Gà idhlig
san sgre seo, a tha a‘ feuchainn ri Gidhlig a chleachdadh anns an
dachaigh, agus leis am bu mhiann feum a dhèanamh de bhriathran bhon
dualchainnt shònraichte againn nan còmhradh. Tha mi an dòchas gum bi
i feumail cuideachd do luchd-stiùiridh chròileagan agus do na tidsearan
aig cloinn a tha a‘ faighinn foghlaim tro mheadhan na Gidhlig ann an
Siorrachd Rois, agus don chloinn fhèin fhad ‘s a tha iad a‘ dol tron rd-
sgoil, agus dh‘fhaodadh nas fhaide air adhart, ann a bhith a‘ tairgse
dhaibh dòigh ghoireasach air adhbharrach dualchainnte fhaighinn ma
tha iad airson feum a dhanamh de leithid. Dh‘fhaodadh an neach-
ionnsachaidh sa chumantas aig am bheil ùidh ann an Gà idhlig Rois an
Iar rud a lorg an seo cuideachd a nì feum dhi na dol air adhart gu
fileantachd.
The list given here is a much enlarged version of that
prepared (under the same title) in July 1993 for Comhairle
nan Sgoiltean Àraich, as part of the pre-school Gaelic
development project my wife M agaidh M ackenzie
Wentworth had been carrying out in North West Ross and
North & West Sutherland; this project was jointly funded by
CASE and RACE. As in that earlier version, the material has
been arranged as an English to Gaelic list, as this is probably
the more helpful way for the majority of people. In its
expanded form here, however, phonetic transcriptions are
given of most of the Gaelic words that appear, and a Gaelic
to English index has been added which will enable any
Gaelic word that occurs in the main word-list to be easily
found.
Tha an liosta a gheibhear an seo stèidhichte air tè, le meudachadh mòr
air a dhèanamh oirre, a chaidh a chur ri chèile (fon aon tiotal) san Iuchar
1993 do Chomhairle nan Sgoiltean Àraich, mar phà irt den phròiseact
leasachaidh ro-s goile aig mo bhean M agaidh NicCoinnich Wentworth
ann an Ros an Iar-thuath agus ann an Asainte is Dùthaich M hicAoidh;
tha am pròiseact seo air a mhaoineachadh le IGAC is IRAC còmhla.
Coltach ris an tionntadh roimhe, tha an t -adhbharrach an seo air a
rèiteachadh mar liosta Bheurla gu Gà idhlig, oir is dòcha gur e seo an
dòigh as cuideachail don chuid as motha a shluagh. Am measg na
chaidh a dhèanamh de mheudachadh air an liosta, tha tar-sgrìobhaidhean
fogharach air an sealltainn don mhòr-chuid de dh‘fhaclan Gidhlig, agus
tha clà r-amais Gà idhlig gu Beurla air a chur rithe a bheir cothrom facal
Gidhlig sam bith a tha a‘ nochdadh sa phromh liosta-fhaclan a lorg gu
furasta.
This list is by no means an exhaustive English to Gaelic
dictionary, and is only intended to be used as a dialect
supplement, as it were, to the English to Gaelic dictionaries
presently available (for instance, John Mackenzie‘s
English
to Gaelic Dictionary
, the English to Gaelic section of
Malcolm Maclennan‘s
Pronouncing and Etymological
Dictionary of the Gaelic Language
, Derick Thomson‘s
New
English to Gaelic Dictionary
, and the
Gaelic Terminology
Database
).
Chan e idir faclair iomlan Beurla gu GÃ idhlig a tha san liosta seo, agus
chan eil san amharc ach gum bi i air a cleachdadh mar leasachan de
stuth dualchainnte, mar gum b‘ eadh, a thid a chur ris na faclairean
Beurla gu GÃ idhlig a tha rim faighinn an ceartuair (mar eisimpleir, an
English to Gaelic Dictionary
aig John M ackenzie, an earrann Bheurla
gu GÃ idhlig anns an
Pronouncing and Etymological Dictionary of the
Gaelic Language
aig M alcolm M aclennan,
Am Faclair Ùr Beurla-
GÃ idhlig
aig Derick Thomson, agus
An Stòr-dà ta Briathrachais
GÃ idhlig
).
There is a need for such a word-list as this, I feel, because —
whatever the fate of the Gaelic language as a whole may be
over the next twenty years or so — it would seem clear that
the existing dialects of the language are doomed rapidly to
disappear. In the Wester Ross area, for instance, the Gaelic
dialect, or group of dialects, spoken here is now confined
almost entirely to people over fifty years of age, and as
speakers of the language become ever fewer in number in
the community so their opportunities to talk in Gaelic get
rarer and rarer. Thus in Gairloch for some years Gaelic
speakers have met in a monthly conversation group, in order
to be able to have the pleasure of speaking together in their
native tongue for a couple of hours or so. In the future,
Gaelic speakers in Wester Ross as elsewhere will consist
almost exclusively of those who received Gaelic-medium
education as children; and very little if any dialect features
can survive the changes in the language that, as we are now
beginning to see, are coming about in the Gaelic-medium
classrooms.
Saoilidh mi gum bheil feum air liosta-fhaclan den t-seòrsa seo oir — ge
b‘ rith d bhitheas an dn don chnan Ghidhlig fhin tron fhichead
bliadhna no mar sin a tha ri teachd — tha e gu math soilleir gum bi na
dualchainntean a bhuineas don chnan an ceartuair a‘ dol bith gu math
aithghearr. Ann an Ros an Iar, mar eisimpleir, tha an dualchainnt
Ghidhlig a thathas a‘ bruidhinn an seo a-nis air a fà gail aig na daoine a-
mhà in a tha co-dhiù seachad air leth-cheud bliadhna a dh‘aois, agus mar
a tha luchd-bruidhne a‘ chnain a‘ sor fhs tearc an ireamh sa
choimhearsnachd, ‘s ann a tha na cothroman a bhitheas aca air labhairt
sa Ghidhlig a‘ sor fhs nas ainmig. Mar sin ann an Gerrloch bho
chionn beagan bhliadhnachan tha daoine aig am bheil a‘ Ghidhlig air a
bhith a‘ coinneachadh uair sa mhos ann am buidheann cmhraidh, gus
cothrom a bhith aca air an toileachadh fhaighinn a thig bho bhith a‘
bruidhinn ri chèile nan cà nan fhèin airson cupall uairean a thìde. Sna
bliadhnachan ri teachd, ann an Ros an Iar mar ann an à iteachan eile,
chan urrainn gum bi duine ann, cha mhòr, le comas-labhairt sa
Ghà idhlig, ach a-mhà in an fheadhainn a fhuair foghlam tro mheadhan na
Gidhlig nan cloinn; agus ‘s e gl bheag de dh‘fheartan dualchainnte a
bhitheas a‘ mairsinn, ma bhitheas gin idir ann, tro na h-atharrachaidhean
sa chnan a tha a‘ tachairt, mar a tha sinn a‘ tiseachadh air fhaicinn, am
meas g na cloinne a tha gan oideachadh tro mheadhan na GÃ idhlig.
ii
Of course one grieves that our distinctive Gaelic of Wester
Ross is going to extinction. This is the dialect of Duncan
M acRae of Inverinate, of John M acKay the blind piper and
of the great William Ross; in it were made the songs of John
M acRae of Kintail and of Alexander Buidhe Campbell of
Gairloch. It is the Gaelic of John M acKenzie the translator,
lexicographer, and editor of
The Beauties of Gaelic Poetry
;
and of the clan historian Alexander M acKenzie who saved
for us so much of tradition and songs. And it is the Gaelic
spoken by Alexander Cameron the Tournaig bard, by
Duncan M acKenzie the Kinlochewe bard, and by that whole
host of local bards, from Loch Broom to Gairloch and Loch
M aree, from Torridon and Applecross, and from Lochcarron
to Kintail, whose wit and skill with words, and whose
perceptiveness and insights so well expressed in their songs,
have been such a large part of the Gaelic culture of the
people of our area.
Gun teagamh ‘s e adhbhar brin a tha ann do neach gum bheil a‘
Ghà idhlig shònraichte a tha againn ann an Ros an Iar a‘ dol bith. Oir ‘s
i seo an dualchainnt a bha aig Donnchadh nam Pìos, aig Iain M acAoidh
am Pìobaire Dall, agus aig Uilleam Ros fhèin; inntese rinneadh na h-
òrain aig Iain M ac M hurchaidh à Cinn Tà ile agus aig Alastair Buidhe
M acÌomhair à Geà rrloch. ‘S i a‘ ghn Ghidhlig a bha aig Iain
M acCoinnich, eadar-theangaiche, faclairiche, agus fear-deasachaidh
SÃ r-Obair nam BÃ rd Gaelach
; agus a bha aig Alastair M acCoinnich,
eachdraiche nam fineachan, a shà bhail dhuinn na h-uibhir de bheul-
aithris is de dh‘rain. Agus ‘s i a labhair Alastair Camshron Brd
Thùrnaig, Donnchadh M acCoinnich Bà rd Cheann Loch Iù, agus a
liuthad bà rd dùthchasach, bho Loch Bhraoin gu Geà rrloch agus Loch
Ma-Ruibhe, Toirbheartan agus s a‘ Chomraich, agus bho Loch
Carrann go Cinn TÃ ile; daoine a tha an eirmseachd is an gibht le faclan,
an lirsinneachd is an tuigse, ‘s iad air an cur an cill cho sgilear nam
bà rdachd, air a bhith riamh nam pà irt mòr den dualchas Ghà idhlig a bha
aig muinntir na s gìre againn.
But faced with the demise in the near future of a dialect like
this, one can only follow the advice of linguists like Joshua
Fishman and Colin Baker. In Fishman‘s work on the
reversal of language decline, a language (or in our case a
dialect) in the situation of Wester Ross Gaelic would be
placed at Stage 8 of his Graded Intergenerational Disruption
Scale for Threatened Languages, in which we have social
isolation of the few remaining speakers of the minority
language, and the need to record the language for later
possible reconstruction. As Colin Baker, researcher into
bilingual education at the University of Wales at Bangor,
explains in his
Foundations of Bilingual Education and
Bilingualism
: ―[Fishman‘s] Stage 8 represents the ‗worst
case‘ for a language. A few of the older generation will still
be able to speak the language but probably not to each other
because they are socially isolated. The few remaining
speakers of a language are scattered such that minority
language interaction is rarely possible. At this stage it is seen
as important that folklorists and linguists collect as much
information as they can from these few survivors of the
language community. The folk-tales and sayings, grammar
and vocabulary, need to be collected on tape and paper as a
permanent record of that language. Since the language
building is in ruins and the foundations have crumbled, can
anything be done to save the language? The one ray of hope
is that the records of the language can be used by a younger
generation to revive the language. With Australian
Aboriginal languages and Cornish in England, this has been
attempted. Thus the remnants of the foundations can be
reused to start to reconstruct the language‖. I hope that this
word-list, then, may carry out for our Wester Ross dialect of
Gaelic a little of the work of collection that Joshua Fishman
and Colin Baker ask us to do.
Ach seach gum bheil sinn a‘ faicinn gum bheil an dualchainnt againn gu
bhith a‘ teireachdainn gu h-aithghearr, chan urrainnear ach a‘
chomhairle a gheibhear bho chà nanaichean mar Joshua Fishman agus
Colin Baker a leantainn. Anns an obair a rinn Fishman air leasachadh do
chnanan a tha a‘ dol sos, tha cnan (no, mar a tha againne,
dualchainnt) anns an t-suidheachadh anns am bheil GÃ idhlig Rois an Iar
air a chur aig ÃŒre 8 den
Graded Intergenerational Disruption Scale
a
dheilbh e do chà nanan a tha ann an cunnart: aig an ìre seo tha am beagan
dhaoine a tha fhathast a‘ bruidhinn sa mhion-chà nan sgapte bho chèile;
feumaidh an cà nan a bhith air a chlà radh airson gum bi e comasach ath-
thogail a dhanamh air, dh‘fhaodadh e a bhith, san m ri teachd. Mar a
tha Colin Baker, rannsaiche ann am foghlam dà -chà nanach ann an
Oilthigh na Cuimrigh aig Bangor, a‘ mneachadh na leabhar
Foundations of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism
: ―[Fishman‘s]
Stage 8 represents the ‗worst case‘ for a language. A few of the older
generation will still be able to speak the language but probably not to
each other because they are socially isolated. The few remaining
speakers of a language are scattered such that minority language
interaction is rarely possible. At this stage it is seen as important that
folklorists and linguists collect as much information as they can from
these few survivors of the language community. The folk-tales and
sayings, grammar and vocabulary, need to be collected on tape and
paper as a permanent record of that language. Since the language
building is in ruins and the foundations have crumbled, can anything be
done to save the language? The one ray of hope is that the records of the
language can be used by a younger generation to revive the language.
With Australian Aboriginal languages and Cornish in England, this has
been attempted. Thus the remnants of the foundations can be reused to
start to reconstruct the language‖. Tha mi an dchas, mar sin, gum bheil
an liosta-fhaclan seo a‘ toirt gu buil airson na dualchainnt Ghidhlig a
tha againn ann an Ros an Iar beagan den obair thionail a tha Joshua
Fishman agus Colin Baker ag iarraidh oirnn a dhèanamh.
M ost of the Gaelic words that appear in the list are given
with examples of their usage in a phrase or sentence. These
are almost all put down just as I heard them spoken, or as
they occur in, for instance, a song or a proverb. Occasionally
I have changed a phrase slightly from what was actually said
to make the sense clearer; and names of persons referred to
in the examples of usage have sometimes been changed. The
examples of usage have been chosen in order to indicate not
only how the words are actually used in conversation, but
also to illustrate idioms, turns of phrase, and witty or
amusing speech. Some words and phrases have been taken
from dictionaries and other word-lists; in addition, I have
also included a number of examples of use of words in
songs, in proverbs and sayings, in place-names, and in
people‘s nicknames; and I hope to expand this kind of
material in a future version of this list.
Tha a‘ chuid as motha de na faclan Gidhlig a tha a‘ nochdadh san liosta
air an sealltainn cuide ri eisimpleirean den cleachdadh ann an abairt no
ann an seantans. Tha iad uile, cha mhòr, air an cur sìos dìreach mar a
chuala mi a bhith gan rà dh, no mar a gheibhear iad, mar eisimpleir, ann
an òran no ann an seanfhacal. Bho à m gu à m tha mi air abairt
atharrachadh rud beag bho mar a chaidh a rdh gus a‘ bhrìgh aice a
shealltainn nas soilleire; agus tha ainmeannan dhaoine, air a bheil
iomradh sna h-eisimpleirean air cleachdadh, uaireannan air an
atharrachadh. Chaidh na h-eisimpleirean de chleachdadh san liosta a
thaghadh gus comharrachadh chan ann a-mhà in mar a thathas a‘ cur
nam faclan am feum ann an còmhradh, ach cuideachd gus gnà thasan-
cainnte, dòighean-labhairt, agus cainnt eirmseach is abhcaideach a
shealltainn. Tha beagan fhaclan is abairtean air an toirt à faclairean agus
à liostachan-fhaclan eile; a bharrachd air an seo, tha mi air à ireamh de
dh‘eisimpleirean a chur innte air cleachdadh fhaclan ann an rain, ann
an seanfhaclan is ann an gnà th-fhaclan, ann an ainmean-à ite, agus ann
am frith-ainmean dhaoine; agus tha mi an dòchas leudachadh a
dhèanamh air an t-seòrsa adhbharrach seo ann an tionntadh eile air an
liosta sam à m ri teachd.
iii
Descriptions of the Gaelic dialect of Wester Ross are found
in:
Rev C M Robertson, ―The Gaelic of the West of Ross-
shire‖,
Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness
vol. 24 (1899-1901).
Carl Hj Borgstrøm,
The Dialects of Skye and Ross-shire
,
Oslo 1941.
E Ternes,
The Phonemic Analysis of Scottish Gaelic
,
Second edition, Hamburg 1989.
Gheibhear tuairis geulan air dualchainnt Ghà idhlig Rois an Iar ann an:
Rev C M Robertson, ―The Gaelic of the West of Ross-shire‖,
Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness
vol. 24 (1899-1901).
Carl Hj Borgstrøm,
The Dialects of Skye and Ross-shire
, Oslo 1941.
E Ternes,
The Phonemic Analysis of Scottish Gaelic
, Dara
deasachadh, Hamburg 1989.
I would like to thank everyone who said to me the words
and phrases in this list; I hardly need say that without their
help its production would not have been possible. Thanks
also for the generosity and hospitality, not to mention
patience, which has been so freely shown to me on so many
occasions. It is often the case that people have given me not
only the Gaelic words and phrases which appear here, but
also the most suitable English (and occasionally Scots)
equivalents for them, and this of course has made the task of
compiling the word-list so much the easier. Any
mistranslations that occur in the list are entirely due to my
own lack of grasp of the sense of the Gaelic word given me.
Bu mhath leam taing a thoirt don h-uile duine a thubhairt rium na faclan
is na h-abairtean san liosta seo; cha ruigear a leas a rà dh nach gabhadh i
danamh mur b‘ e a‘ chobhair a thug iad dhomh. Taing cuideachd airson
na h-aoidheachd a sheall iad dhomh, gun luaidh air an fhoighidinn a bha
aca. A thaobh nam faclan fhin, ‘s e a thachair tric chan e a-mhà in gun
tug daoine dhomh na faclan is na h-abairtean Gidhlig a tha a‘ nochdadh
an seo, ach cuideachd na h-eadar-theangachaidhean a bu fhreagarraiche
sa Bheurla (agus uaireannan ann am Beurla na h-Alba), agus gun
teagamh
rinn seo an obair ann a bhith a‘ cur ri chile na liosta-fhaclan
gu math na b‘ fhasa. A thaobh eadar-theangachaidhean mearachdach is
lochdach a gheibhear san liosta, ‘s e mi fhn as coireach riutha air fad,
seach nach do thog mi ceart brìgh an fhacail Ghà idhlig a chaidh a rà dh
rium.
If anyone with an interest in our dialect, whether she be a
parent, pupil, or teacher, learner or fluent speaker, has any
suggestions as to additional words or phrases for the list, or
feels a word had been incorrectly put down or translated,
please get in touch with me:
M a tha beachd aig neach sam bith, bitheadh i na pà rant, na neach-
cloinne san s goil, na neach- ionnsachaidh no na fileantach, air faclan no
air abairtean a bharrachd a thèid don liosta, no ma tha neach a‘
smaoineachadh gun deach facal a chur sìos no eadar-theangachadh gu
mearachdach, cuireadh i fios thugam:
Roy G Wentworth
25 South Erradale
Gairloch
Ross-shire
IV21 2AU
Scotland
Roy G Wentworth
25 EÃ rradal a Deas
Geà rrloch
Siorrachd Rois
IV21 2AU
Alba
Tel. 01445 741204
Fòn 01445 741204
October 2003
An DÃ mhair 2003
iv
How To Use The Word List — Mar A Chleachdar An Liosta-Fhaclan
Sources of Material
Bunan do Stuth
Although entitled ―Gaelic word and Phrases from Wester
Ross‖, the great bulk of the material in this word-list
actually belongs to a more limited area, that around
Gairloch. It has been collected by me over the past thirty
years, mainly orally from speakers of the local Gaelic dialect
there. Some few written sources of material have also been
used, and these are listed under ―Abbreviations and Sources‖
on pp. x-xii.
Ged as e ―Faclan is Abairtean Ros an Iar‖ an tiotal a tha air an liosta-
fhaclan seo, ‘s ann a bhuineas an fhor mhr chuid den stuth a gheibhear
innte do sgìre nas cumhainge, mu thimcheall Gheà rrloch. Chaidh a
thionail leamsa anns na deich bliadhna fichead a chaidh seachad, sa
chumantas tro bhith a‘ cmhradh ri luchd-bruidhne na dualchainnt
Ghà idhlig dhùthchasach a sin. Chaidh feum a dhèanamh de bheagan
bhunan sgrìobhte cuideachd, agus gheibhear liosta dhiubh seo fo
―Giorrachaidhean agus Bunan‖ air ttd. x-xii.
In most cases my procedure is to note down Gaelic words
and phrases of interest, as they are spoken to me or from
tape-recordings, generally along with the relevant part of the
utterance in which they occur. This serves to set the words
and phrases in context, and gives what I call ―examples of
usage‖ for the word-list. The words, phrases, and examples
of usage are then translated into the English that seems to
me to bring out best their meaning for the purposes of the
word-list. In some cases I ask people for a Gaelic translation
of an English word or phrase; but I usually avoid doing this
as I feel the Gaelic forms thus elicited are sometimes not
those that would be naturally used in conversation.
Mar as tric ‘s e an digh-obrach a tha agam nota a ghabhail de
dh‘fhaclan is de dh‘abairtean Gidhlig anns am bheil ùidh agam, mar a
thèid an rà dh rium neo bho chlà raidhean-teip, am bitheantas cuide ris a‘
phà irt a tha iomchaidh den ghnìomh-labhairt anns am bheil iad. Tha seo
a‘ toirt gu buil gum bheil na faclan is na h-abairtean gan cur ann an
coitheacsa, agus gheibhear mar seo cuideachd ―eisimpleirean de
chleachdadh‖, mar a tha agam orra, don liosta-fhaclan. Thèid na faclan,
na h-abairtean, agus na h-eisimpleirean de chleachdadh an uair sin
eadar-theangachadh gu Beurla san digh a b‘ fherr a shaoileas mi a n
soilleir a‘ bhrgh aca a chum feum na liosta-fhaclan. Uaireannan iarraidh
mi air daoine eadar-theangachadh Gà idhlig a dhèanamh air facal no air
abairt Bheurla; ach sa chuid as tric bithidh mi a‘ seachnadh seo a
dhèanamh, oir saoilidh mi a thaobh nan riochdan Gà idhlig a gheibhear
san dòigh seo uaireannan nach e feadhainn a tha annta a rachadh a
chleachdadh gu nà darrach ann an còmhradh.
The oral material reflects, I believe, the speech of people
born, broadly between 1900 and 1940, into a bilingual
community in which Gaelic was still strong (―We were
surrounded by Gaelic‖, people tell me, ―when we were
children‖), being the language of the home and that used
habitually by local people with each other in social or work
situations. English during that earlier part of the century was
restricted to being the language of education and
officialdom, including however almost all reading and
writing (excepting the Bible and some religious books). Yet
the people born during these years are also the last fluent
speakers of this dialect, for around the time of the Second
World War parents ceased here to speak Gaelic to their
children, and there are virtually no local people able to
converse in it who are now under the age of fifty.
Tha an t-adhbharrach seo a fhuaradh tro chmhradh a‘ sealltainn,
saoilidh mi, na cainnte aig daoine a rugadh, an ìre mhath eadar 1900 is
1940, ann an coimhearsnachd dhà -chnanach anns an robh a‘ Ghidhlig
fhathast lidir (―Bha sinne air na cuairteachdainn leis a‘ Ghidhlig‖,
bidh daoine ag innse dhomh, ―nuair a bha sinn nana cloinn‖), oir b‘ i
fhathast cnain na dachaigh, agus ‘s i bha daoine a‘ cleachdadh am
meas g a chèile ann an conaltradh sòisealta agus a thaobh obrach. Anns
a‘ phirt sin a bu thrithe den linn cha robhar a‘ cleachdadh na Beurla
ach ann an suidheachaidhean foghlaim agus ann an gnothaichean
oifigeil a- mhà in, ged as i a bhitheadh aig daoine air fad airson leughaidh
is sgrìobhaidh (saor on Bhìoball agus cuid a leabhraichean crà bhaidh).
Ach tha na daoine a rugadh sna bliadhnachan seo cuideachd air an
fheadhainn mu dheireadh a tha fileanta san dualchainnt, oir mu à m an
Dara Cogaidh s guir pà rantan a bhruidhinn rin cuid chloinn sa Ghà idhlig
an seo, agus cha mhòr gu faighear a-nis duine a bhuineas don à ite fo
aois leth-cheud aig am bheil comas labhairt innte.
Words and phrases and examples of usage given
without any
attribution of source
have been collected from speakers of
the local dialect who grew up in the crofting villages on the
south side of Loch Gairloch (these are Porthenderson,
Opinan, South Erradale, and Redpoint). Very occasionally,
if a word or phrase seems to me to be distinctive to a
particular one of these villages I have indicated this.
A thaobh fhaclan agus abairtean agus eisimpleirean de chleachdadh a
tha air an sealltainn
gun bhun idir a bhith air a chur às an leth
, chaidh
iad seo a thionail bho luchd-bruidhne na dualchainnt dhùthchasach a
dh‘fhs suas sna bailtean croitearachd air taobh a deas Loch Gherrloch
(‘s iad seo Portaigil, na h-Òbaidhnean, Eà rradal a Deas, agus an Rubha
Dearg). Gu fìor ainmig, ma tha mi am beachd gum bheil facal no abairt
à raidh ri faighinn ann am fear snraichte de na bailtean sin, tha mi a‘
comharrachadh seo.
All other words and phrases and examples of usage are
attributed as to their source. For material collected orally
this will generally be the name of the village or area in
which the p erson I heard using the expression grew up (eg
M elvaig, Diabaig), if it seemed to me that her usage differed
from that of the south side of Loch Gairloch. In the case of
written material the printed book, typescript, or manuscript
in which it was found is given for each example that appears
in the word-list.
Tha bun air a chur às leth a h-uile facal agus abairt eile, agus a h-uile
eisimpleir eile de chleachdadh. M as stuth e a chaidh a thionail tro
chmhradh, mar as trice ‘s e ainm a‘ bhaile no na sgre anns an d‘fhs
an neach suas a chuala mi ag rà dh an fhacail a bhitheas ann (m.e.
M ealabhaig, Dìobaig), ma bha mi am beachd gu robh cleachdadh an
fhacail eadar-dhealaichte ris a‘ chleachdadh air taobh a deas Loch
Gheà rrloch. A thaobh stuth sgrìobhte, tha an leabhar clò-bhuailte, an
clò-sgrìobhadh, no an là mh-sgrobhainn anns an d‘fhuaradh e air innse
airson a h-uile eisimpleir a tha san liosta-fhaclan.
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