Athnaíonn ciaróg ciaróg eile...

... agus mar sin de, is é seo áit do na rudaí Éireannacha agus na daoine Éireannach uilig💚

[archaicwonder]

Doagh Holestone, Country Antrim, Northern Ireland

On a hilltop about a mile from Doagh is a Bronze Age whinstone megalith known as The Holestone. Couples used to promise marriage by clasping hands through the hole in the stone, a convention that can be traced back to about 1830. It has been suggested that the stone was used in ancient times for aphrodisiac purposes. Even today, newlyweds, together with the wedding party, will visit the stone in observance of the ancient local custom.

[awed-frog]

A reminder that Irish survived as a ‘national’ language for more than two millennia only to be wiped out by two centuries of brutal dedication.

Rationally, I know it speaks to human resilience but it’s still fucked up how so many of us endured and survived conquests, invasions or downright genocide only to identify 100% with our enemies’ language, culture and religion a few generations down the line.

[azuresunshine]

me: ireland

my irish mutuals:

[orangebug]

[ID: blue button meme with a blurred hand about the push the button. It says “reblog”. End of ID]

[dumbthotsonly-deactivated201908]

look.. when i say i want a Florence and Hozier collab i mean i want a four hour long, 28 song collab album about tearing yourself free of the mortal binds that restrain you, crawling deep into the forest that has called to you for too long, wandering past remnants of past civilizations and eventually sacrificing yourself at an ancient altar which depicts a pair of stone-hewn male and female celtic godly entities with striking familiar features. Your body is never found. 

[chaneladdict]

[hotcommunist-deactivated2019032]

last night I was denouncing some forgettable shitbag to my girlfriend and said “even the ground wouldn’t want him to rot in it” and was instantly projected into the body of a gnarled old irish woman 200 years ago, spinning thread and spitting on the ground as I bitch and look out to sea.

[cuddlingwithsatan]

When you bitch so hard you astral project into one of your past lives

[pangurban01]

"Púca is a spectacular, fun and otherworldly new festival celebrating Ireland as the original birthplace of Halloween. Vibrant and contemporary in feel but strongly rooted in tradition, it will take place in three locations across Meath and Louth from 31 October – 2 November 2019.

The festival has been developed by Fáilte Ireland in partnership with Meath and Louth County Councils to claim ownership of this internationally celebrated event and to tell the story of Halloween’s origins in Irish and Celtic traditions with a view to encouraging more international visitors to visit Ireland during October and November.

In its inaugural year, Ireland’s Ancient East will play host to the newly established contemporary and inspiring Púca Festival which is designed to capture the original and authentic spirit of Samhain across three breath-taking nights of music, food, light and spectacle.

Orla Carroll, Director Product Development in Fáilte Ireland said:

“Festivals play a key role in delivering brilliant visitor experiences and providing international visitors with a unique reason to choose a destination. That is why the development of tourism festivals is a key part of Fáilte Ireland’s strategy to grow domestic and international visitors to Ireland, in particular to areas outside traditional tourism hotspots and peak times.

“Our new festival, Púca, will deliver just that, with its distinctive programme of events that has something for everyone. We are excited to see Púca brought to life in October and are committed to developing it into a world class festival that positions Ireland as the home of Halloween internationally over the next number of years.”

We are very excited to be launching Púca, bringing together some of the best music, food and art in the country at a time of year that is synonymous with fun and celebration. Púca brings together the most breathtaking elements of entertainment and history to create a festival that will be an unforgettable celebration of Ireland as the birthplace of Halloween.”

[kidouyuuto-deactivated20140411]

how did they learn to translate languages into other languages how did they know which words meant what HOW DID TH

[brigwife-deactivated20240426]

English Person: *Points at an apple* Apple

French Person: Non c’est une fucking pomme 

*800 years of war*

[agentverbivore]

Fun fact: There are a lot of rivers in the UK named “avon” because the Romans arrived and asked the Celts what the rivers were called. The Celts answered “avon.” 

“Avon” is just the Celtic word for river.

[thejazzykittykat]

Fan Fact #2: When Spanish conquistadors landed in the Yucatán peninsula, they asked the natives what their land was called and they responded “Yucatán”. In 2015, it was discovered that in those mesoamerican languages, “Yucatán” meant “I don’t understand what you are saying”

[xyxul-deactivated20201020]

W H E E Z E

[phantomrose96]

[libertarirynn-deactivated202006]

I love entomology so much because so many words kind of happened by accident or by a native speaker trying to say “WTF are you saying?“

[thespectacularspider-girl]

Canada has you all beat.

When explorers first came here, they basically asked what the land was called and the tribal representative said “Canada”, which meant “the village”, thinking they were talking about their immediate location.

This name got expanded out and out and out until it became the name for the entire nation.

Our nation’s name is based on a misunderstanding.

[doktorbarron]

So, Does this mean Canadians are The Village People?

[mrcloudyfun]

Young man, there’s no need to feel down!

[gaeilge101]

Irish language influences how we speak English

It is more common in Ireland to say that you have a language rather than you speak it. This is originally due to Irish’s phrasing of Tá Gaeilge / Fraincis agam (“I have Irish/French”).

Rather than rely on “to have just done” for a recently completed action, we would say “to be after doing”. “I’m after finding a euro on the road!” “You’re after stepping in dog poo!” This is due to tá mé tar éis / i ndiaidh in Irish.

The absolute lack of the words yes or no. In the Irish language this issue is resolved by simply repeating the verb of the question. Can you swim? I can! Do you like tomato juice? I don’t. etc.

Story? or What’s the story? Is a translation of the Irish Aon scéal? / Cad é an scéal? – where “story” means “news”, i.e. What’s going on? / What’s up? Usually used as a greeting.

To give out has nothing to do with distributing leaflets. This is from the Irish tabhairt amach and means to complain.

>source<

[duine-aiteach]

Labhríonn muid Hiberno English agus ceap mé sin an-suimúil

[broomclosetwitches]

Celtic Gods and Goddess

The Celtic world included Ireland, Britain, and a large section of the mainland

Aine: Goddess of love and fertility; encouraged human love; has command over crops and animals; daughter of Eogabail  

Amaethon: God of agriculture 

Anu or Danu/Dana: Mother goddess 

Aonghus: God of love; son of Dagda and Boann

Badb: Irish goddess of battle; could influence the outcome of conflict by inspiring fear or bravery in warriors

Balor: The one-eyed god of death, everyone he looked upon was destroyed

Belenus or Bel: Sun god; appears throughout the Celtic world in different forms; Beltaine celebrates him 

Boann: Water goddess; mother of Aonghus

Brigantia: Chief goddess of Brigantes tribe; associated with water, war and healing

Brigid/Brigit: Goddess of healing and fertility; said to help women during labor; possibly same goddess as Brigantia 

Camulos: God of war mostly worshiped in Belgium areas; said to wield an invincible sword

Ceridwen: Goddess of fertility

Cernunnos: God of wild animals, forest, and plenty; possibly also the god of death; known as the horned one

Cliodhna: Goddess of beauty; her three birds could sing the sick to sleep and heal them 

Dagda: The great god; could restore the dead to life

Dian Cecht: God of healing 

Don: Welsh version of Dana

Donn: God of the dead

Dylan: Sea god

Epona: Horse goddess

The Formorii: Sea gods; violent and misshapen

Goibhniu: Smith god 

Lir: God of sea, healing  and magic 

Lugh: Sun god (Ireland)

Lugus:  Sun god (France and Britain) 

Mac Cecht: God of eloquence

Macha: One of the war goddess

Manannan Mac Lir: Sea god; could stir up or soothe the sea

Manawydan: Welsh sea god, extremely similar to Manannan

Morrigan/Morrigu: Goddess of death on the battlefield 

Nechtan: Water god 

Nemain: Goddess of war

Nemglan: Bird god

Nodens: God of healing; owned magic healing hounds

Ogma: God of eloquence; creating of Ogham, the oldest writing system in Ireland

Taranis: Name means thunderer; Romans equated him to Jupiter; symbol was the wheel

Teutates or Toutatis: Romans equated him to Mars

**Not all inclusive 

All information gathered from “The Illustrated Encyclopedia of World Mythology by Arthur Cotterell and Rachel Storm 

[irishthings]

Got this snap from a work friend

[dutchpagan]

Ogham - an introduction

So I may be Dutch, but there’s interesting things to learn from all over the world and from all kinds of cultures. I’ve always had a love of the Irish ogham letters - probably since they’re strongly connected to popular Celtic paganism, and to tree lore. Here’s an introduction to the Ogham I wrote some years ago, that I think is still pretty accurate. Please let me know if you’ve any comments or questions!

—

History About ten years ago I came across a book called Celtic Tree Mysteries by Steve Blamires. Now, I’m interested in Celtic stuff, and I love tree and mysteries, so this was the right book for me. Through this book (which in my humble opinion is quite a good start if you want to learn more about this subject) I learned about the Ogham alphabet. This early medieval Irish alphabet has become quite popular in modern Celtic Pagan and Druid circles, mostly as a means of divination, but also for other magical purposes.

As I said, the alphabet is early medieval Irish. It might have been developed when the first Christians came to Ireland and brought the concept of writing with them, but there is no actual proof of that. We have about 400 known inscriptions on stones, most of them names. The functions of these stones is unclear, but most researchers are of the opinion that they mark borders. Other uses of Ogham have been found in manuscripts, and these provide more insight.

Contemporary information on the Ogham is sparse; what has been written about it can be read in high medieval and late medieval manuscripts. These manuscripts are: The Book of Leinster (12th century) The Book of Ballymote (1391) The Book of Lecan (1416)

These manuscripts refer to older sources: The Scholar’s Primer, The Values of the Forfeda and the Book of Ogham. The Scholar’s Primer says that Ogham was only to be used by learned men – would they be monks or druids? The act of reading and writing was very elite in the early Middle Ages, so we can be sure that the average Irish farmer wouldn’t have been very familiar with Ogham.

The exact origin of Ogham isn’t known, but there some interesting myths and stories have been written down. In one of the manuscripts we find a legend about the origin of the Ogham: it was developed by Fenius Farsaidh, with the help of Goidel Mac Etheoir and Iar Mac Nema and a whole host of scholars. After the destruction of the Biblical Tower of Babel, Fenius went to search for the letters all over the world that together would make the most perfect language. Each letter was named after a linguist who best devoted his time to this task. Note that ‘Gaelic’ or ‘Goidelic’ (the name of the Irish language) comes from Goidel Mac Etheoir, one of the scholars that developed Ogham.

Apart from this legend, another link has been made by modern scholars with the Celtic Irish god Ogma, who may be compared to the Celtic Gallic god Ogmios. The names of these gods seem connected to Ogham (which, by the way, means something like ‘idea’ or ‘notion’). The Romans liked to compare foreign gods with their own gods and they dubbed Ogmios the ‘Celtic Hercules’, or at least an older version of their Hercules. According to these Roman sources, Ogmios was depicted as an old but strong man with one end of a chain through his tongue, the other end being attached to the ears of an eager public. This has been explained as the power of eloquence, or the power of words, in which the strength of this god lies. There is no direct connection between Ogham and Ogma/Ogmios, but could there be a divine element to the development of Ogham, keeping this part of mythology in mind?

Purpose and meaning The ancient Celts were mostly an illiterate people. It was the Roman world, and Christianity after that, that brought the written word to those parts in Europe that apparently had no use for it before. This is also the reason why we use the letters we have today instead of systems like the Ogham. Our letters are derived from Roman scripture, and more directly from the letters in medieval manuscripts (especially those made under Charlemagne). To be honest, Ogham isn’t a very practical script – so what was it used for?

Based on where the Ogham has been found, it appears that this alphabet had a few specific uses. First of all, as has already been noted above, Ogham has been found on standing stones, or monoliths. They are said to mark borders, and by doing that they also marked someone’s property. This might also be the reason why mostly names and short phrases (‘of the clan of x’, etc.) are found on these stones, instead of actual texts. There could also be some cryptic message in all this, since not many people were actually able to read Ogham, even in that time – but as far as I know this has been lost. Ogham that has been found in manuscripts seems to have a different function. It has mostly the purpose of learning, remembering and making connections.

But there are also certain stories in which the Ogham has a more magical purpose. From these old sagas we learn that Ogham was not only written down on stone, but also on wood. This is a material that doesn’t last, so there is no physical evidence, but it seems plausible that this was actually done in reality. There is even one instance where Ogham is written on metal. In the Book of Leinster we find an medieval legend in which an Ogham text on an iron ring around a stone says: ‘Whoever comes to this meadow, if he is armed, he is forbidden to leave this meadow without requesting single combat.’ The only thing stopping someone from simply leaving the meadow without a fight is the text itself – therefore it must hold some magical power. The semi-divine hero Cú Chulainn has another solution; he throws the stone away, with ring and all. In another instance, Cu Chulainn gives a small wooden spear to the king of Alba (Scotland) inscribed with Ogham – it says that the king is allowed to take Cú Chulainn’s seat at the court of Ulster.

There is slight evidence of the use of Ogham as divination in Irish myth, and this is what Ogham is used for today by many Celtic Pagans and Druids. In an Irish legend, a druid writes down Ogham letters on yew sticks and then uses them for divination, but it gives no further details.   Nowadays, what is most popular is to make a branch for every letter and then use this set of branches in several ways. This can be done by blindly drawing one or several sticks and then interpret the meaning of the letter(s). Another way is to throw the branches on ‘Finn’s Window’ (based on the round diagram that can be seen on the parchment page from the Book of Ballymote here depicted) and draw a meaning from how the branches fall.

The technical details So, after reading all this, you’re probably wondering what this Ogham alphabet actually looks like. I’m not a linguist, but I’ll give you an outlining that’ll hopefully give you more insight. The Ogham Alphabet doesn’t have the sort of letters that we are familiar with. Its essence is lines; smaller lines that are placed in a series across a longer line. Ogham can be found on standing stones, where this line goes from bottom to top (and from top to bottom on the other side) . It can also be found in parchment manuscripts, where it goes from left to right. The notches on the long line, the actual letters, are called feda, which means ‘wood’. Is this just a figural way of speaking, since the long vertical line on a stone with the notches on each side does sort of look like a tree?  Or is there more behind this? I don’t know this – then again, I can’t actually read Old Irish, excepts for the few words that are needed to understand the Ogham alphabet, so perhaps someone else can help me out here. On to the letters and their order:

B  L  F  S  N  H  D  T  C  Q  M G  nG St R A  O  U  E  I  EA  Oi  Ui  iO  AE

That makes 25 letters, of which the last five letters (the so called forfeda) were added at later times – so it appears the oldest version of Ogham had twenty letters.

Keeping these twenty letters in mind, there are four families/series, or aicmí (plural of aicme), that each contain five letters: Aicme Beithe, Aicme hÚatha, Aicme Muine, and Aicme Ailme. Note also that a neat quarter of these letters is a vowel and three quarters exits of consonants.

There is some confusion about the order of the first five letters. In many texts it says BLFSN, but in some other text it says BLNFS. As far as I know, it was Robert Graves in his famous book The White Goddess, who used the sequence of BLNFS first. This has probably to do with the poetic and mythological value he added to each letter, and also with his introduction of the so-called Ogham Tree Calendar. [The tree calendar gives a certain period or time of the year for each letter, e.g. 24 December – 20 January for Beithe. This is a strictly modern invention, though that shouldn’t say everything about its value.] The White Goddess has had a huge influence on many modern pagan and witchcraft traditions, and I think that it’s from this source that the BLNFS-sequence has seeped into the modern use of the Ogham alphabet. However, it seems that more historically authentic sources stick to BLFSN, so that’s the sequence I’m sticking with, too.

Some note about individual letters: iO was original P – for some reason this letter was replaced in later times, leaving the alphabet without a proper P-sound. AE was originally X or CH.

The ‘Tree Alphabet’ So what about the name ‘tree alphabet’? Actually, the Ogham was also a bird alphabet, colour alphabet, river alphabet, etc. It appears that there were many systems that were used for remembering the letters of the Ogham alphabet. Of all these systems (several hundreds, they say), the tree system has been most popular since early times. So, every letter got a tree attached to it, and by memorizing the trees, one was able to memorize the letters. A mnemonic aid of some sorts. Then again, we can’t rule out a deeper, perhaps even magical, meaning for using such a system.

The meaning of the letters connected to the trees was further developed in the uses of kennings, or phrases, known as the Bríatharogham. Three of these lists are known: Bríatharogham Morainn Mac Moín (who was a human judge) Bríatharogham Mac Oengus (god) Bríatharogham Cú Chulainn (semi-divine hero, we’ve already noted him in connection to the Ogham) The translations of these kennings can be found below, under each individual letter.

The separate letters

Beithe Literal meaning: birch, (a) being Letter: B Tree: birch (beithe) Book of Ballymote: Now Beithe has been named from the Birch owing to its resemblance to the trunk of that tree. Of withered trunk, fair-haired the Birch. Word Ogham of Morainn: Faded trunk and fair hair/withered foot with fine hair. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Browed beauty, worthy of pursuit/beauty of the eyebrow. Word Ogham of Oengus: Most silver of skin/greyest of skin.

Luis Literal meaning: flame, herb Letter: L Tree: rowan (caertheand) Book of Ballymote: Luis is named from Mountain Ash (caertheand) as it is the old Gaelic name for rowan. [Delightful] for eyes is Mountain Ash owing to the beauty of its berries. Word Ogham of Morainn: Delight of eye, quicken-tree; to whit, the flame/luster of the eye. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Strength of cattle/sustenance of cattle. Word Ogham of Oengus: Friend of cattle.

Fearn Literal meaning: alder Letter: F Tree: alder (fearn) Book of Ballymote: Fearn, Alder, the van of the warrior band for thereof are the shields. Word Ogham of Morainn: Shield of warrior bands, owing to their redness/vanguard of warriors. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Protection of the heart, a shield/protection of the heart. Word Ogham of Oengus: Guarding of milk, or milk bucket/milk container.

Saille Literal meaning: willow Letter: S Tree: Willow (saille) Book of Ballymote: Tthe colour of a lifeless one that is, it has no colour, owing to the resemblance of the colour to a dead person. Word Ogham of Morainn: Hue of the lifeless/pallor of a lifeless one. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Beginning of loss, willow/beginning of honey. Word Ogham of Oengus: Strength of bees/sustenance of bees.

Nion Literal meaning: branch fork, loft Letter: N Tree: ash (uinnius) Book of Ballymote: Nion, Ash-tree, a check on peace is Nion for of it are made the spear-shafts by which the peace is broken. Word Ogham of Morainn: Checking of peace/establishing of peace. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Flight of beauty, a weaver’s beam/boast of beauty. Word Ogham of Oengus: The flight of women/boast of women.

hUuath Literal meaning: horror, fear Letter: (silent) H Tree: white thorn Book of Ballymote: A meet of hounds is Huath (whitethorn), or because it is formidable owing to its thorns. Word Ogham of Morainn: Pack of wolves/assembly of pack of hounds. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Difficult night, hawthorn/most difficult at night. Word Ogham of Oengus: Whitening of face/blanching of faces.

Duir Literal meaning: oak Letter: D Tree: oak (duir) Book of Ballymote: Duir, Oak, higher than bushes is an oak. Word Ogham of Morainn: highest of bushes/highest tree Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Kneeling work, bright and shining work/most carved of craftmanship Word Ogham of Oengus: Craft work/handicraft of a craftsmanship.

Tinne Literal meaning: metal bar, ingot. Letter: T Tree: holly (cuileand) Book of ballymote: A third of a wheel is Tinne, because holly is one of the three timbers of the chariot wheel. Word Ogham of Morainn: Third of a wheel/one of three parts of a wheel. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: A third of weapons, an iron bar/one of three parts of a weapon. Word Ogham of Oengus: Fires of coal/marrow of (char)coal.

Coll Literal meaning: hazel Letter: C Tree: hazel (coll) Book of Ballymote: Coll, that is everyone is eating of its nuts. Word Ogham of Morainn: Fairest of trees/fairest tree. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Sweetest of woods, a nut/sweetest tree. Word Ogham of Oengus: Friend of cracking/friend of nutshells

Quert Literal meaning: bush Letter: Q Tree: apple (aball) Book of Ballymote: Shelter of a wild hind is is Quert, that is, an apple tree. Word Ogham of Morainn: Shelter of a hind, lunatic or death/sense [the time when a lunatic’s sense comes back to him]/shelter of a lunatic. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Excellent emblem, protection/dregs of clothing. Word Ogham of Oengus: Force of a man/substance of an insignificant person.

Muin Literal meaning: not certain – neck, ruse/trick, love/esteem Letter: M Tree: vine (finemhain) Book of Ballymote: Highest of beauty is Muin, that is, because it grows aloft. That is, a vine-tree. Word Ogham of Morainn: Highest of beauty, strongest of effort, Muin equals back of man or ox for it is they in existence that are strongest as regards effort./strongest in exertion. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Pack of wolves with spears, three vines/path of the voice. Word Ogham of Oengus: The condition of slaughter/proverb of slaughter.

Gort Literal meaning: field (as in: garden) Letter: G Tree: ivy (edind) Book of Ballymote: Gort, that is ivy, greener than pastures is ivy. Word Ogham of Morainn: Greenest of pastures, sweeter than grasses, due to associations with corn fields/sweetest grass. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Pleasing oil, corn/sating of multitudes. Word Ogham of Oengus: Size of a warrior/suitable place for cows.

nGetal Literal meaning: slaying Letter: nG Tree: broom (cilcach) Book of Ballymote: nGetal, broom or fern, a physician’s strength is broom. Word Ogham of Morainn: A physician’s strength, panacea equals broom/sustenance of a leech. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: beginning of heroic deeds, healing/beginning of slaying. Word Ogham of Oengus: Robe of physicians/raiment of physicians.

Straiph, Literal meaning: sulphur Letter: St Tree: blackthorn (draighin) Book of Ballymote: The hedge of a stream is straiph, that is, blackthorn. Word Ogham of Morainn: Careful effort, strongest of red, straiph equals sloe which gives strong red dye on metal/strongest reddening (dye). Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: An arrow’s mist, smoke drifting up from the fire/seeking of clouds. Word Ogham of Oengus: Increasing of secrets/increase of secrets.

Ruis Literal meaning: red Letter: R Tree: elder (trom) Book of Ballymote: The redness of shame is Ruis, that is, elder. Word Ogham of Morainn: intensest of blushes, it I reddening of a man’s face through the juice of the herb being rubbed on it/most intense blushing. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Arduous anger, punishment/glow of anger. Word Ogham of Oengus: redness of faces/reddening of faces.

Ailm Literal meaning: pine (?) Letter: A Tree: fir or pine Book of Ballymote: Ailm, a fir tree, a pine tree. Word Ogham of Morainn: Loudest of groanings, that is, wondering. Ailm or A for that is what a man says while groaning in disease or wonder/loudest groan. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Beginning of the weaver’s beams, ahh/beginning of calling. Word Ogham of Oengus: Beginning of answers/beginning of an answer.

Onn Literal meaning: ash-tree Letter: O Tree: furze (aiten) Book of Ballymote: Onn that is furze. Word Ogham of Morainn: Helper of horses, wheels of a chariot, equally wounding; whin/wounder of horses. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Strength of warriors, fierceness/[equipment]  of warriorbands. Word Ogham of Oengus: Gentlest of work/smoothest of craftsmanship.

Ur Literal meaning: earth, clay, soil Letter: U Tree: heather (fraech) Book of Ballymote: Ur, that is heath. Word Ogham of Morainn: Terrible tribe, in cold dwellings; mould of the earth, or heath/in cold dwellings. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Completion of lifelessness, the grave/shroud of a lifeless one. Word Ogham of Oengus: Growing of plants/propagation of plants.

Edhad Literal meaning: unknown Letter: E Tree: aspen (crithach) Book of Ballymote: Horrible grief, that is, test tree or aspen. Word Ogham of Morainn: Distinguished man or wood/discerning tree. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Kinsman to the birch, aspen/brother of birch (?) Word Ogham of Oengus: Additional name for a friend/exchange of friends.

Idhad Literal meaning: yew-tree (?) Letter: I Tree: yew (idhad) Book of Ballymote: Yew. Word Ogham of Morainn: Oldest of woods, service tree, yes/oldest tree Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: strength or colour of a sick man, people or an age/energy of an infirm person. Word Ogham of Oengus: Abuse for an ancestor or pleasing consent/fairest of the ancients.

Ebad Literal meaning: unknown Letter: EA Tree: apsen (critchach) Word Ogham of Morainn: Fair-swimming letter. Word Ogham of Cú Chulainn: Fairest fish. Word Ogham of Oengus: [admonishing?] of an infirm person.

Óir Literal meaning: gold Letter: OI Tree: spindle-tree or ivy (feorus, edind) Word Ogham of Morainn: Most venerable substance. Word Ogham of Oengus: Splendour of form.

Uillen Literal meaning: elbow Letter: UI Tree: honeysuckle (edleand) Word Ogham of Morainn: Fragnant tree. Word Ogham of Oengus: Great elbow/cubit.

Iphín Literal meaning: spine, thorn (?) Letter: IO Tree: gooseberry or thorn (spinan, ispin) Word Ogham of Morainn: Sweetest tree. Word Ogham of Oengus: Mostwonderful taste.

Emancholl Literal meaning: twin of hazel Letter: AE Word Ogham of Morainn: Groan of a sick person. Word Ogham of Oengus: Groan of a sick person

[audreynickel]

No More Bad Irish Tattoos!

Tri-colour pre-St. Patrick’s Day ad for The Irish Gaelic Tattoo Handbook and The Scottish Gaelic Tattoo Handbook from Bradan Press, Nova Scotia, Canada.

It’s almost ready!

It’s hard to believe it, but after all the time and planning, we’re in the editing homestretch for The Irish Gaelic Tattoo Handbook! Copy edits are pretty much done, the index has been compiled, the glossary will soon be on its way to two professional Irish-speaking proofreaders, and we’re looking at a publication date of May 1 (Lá Bealtaine).

With tomorrow being St. Patrick’s Day (a day when I normally go into hiding, because one can only take so many green beers, “begorrahs” (no, the Irish really don’t say that) and requests to sing “Danny Boy” in a lifetime without going insane), I thought I’d take this opportunity to answer some questions people have been asking me about the book.

What, exactly, is a “tattoo handbook”?

Put simply, The Irish Gaelic Tattoo Handbook is a guide for people who want to incorporate the Irish language into a tattoo design.

In the 13+ years that I’ve been studying Irish, I’ve seen thousands of requests for tattoo translations. I’ve also seen an awful lot of really, really bad Irish tattoos. 

Most of these “tattoo fails” have come about because people didn’t understand just how complicated translations between languages can be, or because they trusted the wrong sources. The aim of this book is to give you the resources you need to get a tattoo you can be proud of.

The handbook consists of three basic parts. The center section is the “meat” of the book: a glossary of more than 400 Irish words, phrases, mottoes, and proverbs commonly requested for tattoo designs. The glossary is organized into categories, such as “Family and Relationships” “Religion and Spirituality,” and “Traditional Irish Proverbs.”

The glossary is also indexed by keyword. So, for example, if you know you want a particular phrase, or a quote built around a particular concept, but don’t know what category it would fall under, you could look up the words in the index, which would guide you to the listing or listings in the glossary.

And, as I mentioned above, the glossary is being proofed for accuracy by two professional Irish-speaking editors.

The section preceding the glossary provides you with the kind of background you need to make a sound tattoo decision (and to have fun sharing your tattoo with family and friends!)

This section includes chapters on the language itself (its history, its status in Ireland today, its relationship with other Celtic languages, and some of its more interesting features, such as the lack of words for “yes” and “no”), as well as on traditional Irish writing and authentic symbols.

For example, this is an authentic  Irish symbol:

This, on the other hand, is not:

(If you want to know more, you’ll need to read the book!)

It also talks about tattoo “fails,” using real-life tattoo mistakes to illustrate exactly what can go wrong if you try to translate into Irish without knowing what you’re doing. It describes the translation process, and gives you some very important advice on what to do if the translation you want isn’t in the glossary, or if you want to adapt something in the glossary to make it more personal.

The third section of the book is a directory that offers listings for everything from finding a professional translator to learning how to pronounce the words of your translation, and even information to help you begin learning Irish yourself!

Why Irish?

People give various reasons for wanting tattoos in Irish, but the majority boil down to pride, either in one’s own Irish heritage or a loved one’s.

Doesn’t this, well…cheapen the language, somehow?

Not the way I see it, no. Any good example of Irish out there in the world helps support the language (and, just as important, bad examples do it nothing but harm). 

Tattoos are an extremely popular form of self-expression. People are going to get tattoos in Irish regardless of what anyone else may say or think. My goal is to support the language by helping them to get it right (and if doing so also encourages them to explore learning the language, so much the better!)

OK, but what if I don’t want to get a tattoo?

The nice thing about this book is that it’s useful for just about anything for which you may want an Irish translation. 

As it happens, many of the most common tattoo requests are also frequently requested for other purposes: engravings for gifts, wedding bands, or (yes) headstones; T-shirts for family reunions; to be incorporated into other forms of artwork; etc.

The advice for getting accurate tattoo translations applies for other kinds of translations as well. If you ever need a good translation from English to Irish, you will find it extremely useful.

Will it be available on Amazon?

Yes! You’ll find it on Amazon, both as a paperback and for the Kindle. It will also be available in all different DRM-free ebook formats from Smashwords,  and through Apple iTunes ebooks, as well as for Kobo, Nook, etc.

What about my local bookstore or library?

I certainly hope so! If you can’t find it, you can ask your local bookseller and/or library to stock it. They can order it directly from Ingram. 

In fact, here’s a link to a sell sheet with all the information they’ll need that you can print out and give to them: The Irish Gaelic Tattoo Handbook Sell Sheet

How will I know for sure when the book is available?

If you’d like to be among the first to know when The Irish Gaelic Tattoo Handbook is available for purchase, the best way is to subscribe to Bradan Press’s email list:

http://eepurl.com/b3MRqH

The publisher will also be doing a paperback and e-book giveaway via a random drawing of list members, so there are definite perks for joining!

Bradan Press is a small, independent press that specializes in Celtic-themed publications, so if this is an interest of yours, I strongly recommend signing up for the list. You’ll be supporting a small business and keeping yourself abreast of new offerings. Win win!

My cousin’s an Outlander fan. Is there something like this for Scottish Gaelic?

Yes, there is! The Scottish Gaelic Tattoo Handbook (see the picture at the top of this post) is already out and available for purchase from the same places that will carry the Irish book: Amazon, Ingram, etc. Check it out here: http://www.bradanpress.com/gaelic-tattoo-handbook/

Lá Fhéile Pádraig Sona Daoibh!

Well, for now I’m off to spend some quality time with my harps (Turlough O’Carolan is calling my name!). I’ve been neglecting them shamefully while I’ve been working in writer mode! 

Have a wonderful St. Patrick’s Day, all you who celebrate!

Beannachtaí,

GG

[damaramegido]

Guys, signal boost this!

[stcrlghts]

latin phrases worth knowing:

(in case you wanted to know because i fucking love this language) 

ad astra per aspera - to the stars through difficulties 

alis volat propriis - he flies by his own wings 

amantium irae amoris integratio est - the quarrels of lovers are the renewal of love 

ars longa, vita brevis - art is long, life is short 

aut insanity homo, aut versus facit - the fellow is either mad or he is composing verses 

dum spiro spero - while I breathe, I hope 

ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem - with the sword, she seeks peace under liberty 

exigo a me non ut optimus par sim sed ut malis melior - I require myself not to be equal to the best, but to be better than the bad

experiential docet - experience teaches 

helluo librorum - a glutton for books (bookworm) 

in libras libertas - in books, freedom 

littera scripta manet - the written letter lasts 

mens regnum bona possidet - an honest heart is a kingdom in itself 

mirabile dictu - wonderful to say 

nullus est liber tam malus ut non aliqua parte prosit - there is no book so bad that it is not profitable in some part 

omnia iam fient quae posse negabam - everything which I used to say could not happen, will happen now 

poeta nascitur, non fit - the poet is born, not made 

qui dedit benificium taceat; narrat qui accepit - let him who has done a good deed be silent; let him who has received it tell it 

saepe ne utile quidem est scire quid futurum sit - often, it is not advantageous to know what will be 

sedit qui timuit ne non succederet - he who feared he would not succeed sat still 

si vis pacem, para bellum - if you want peace, prepare for war 

struit insidias lacrimis cum feminia plorat - when a woman weeps, she is setting traps with her tears 

sub rosa - under the rose 

trahimir omnes laudis studio - we are led on by our eagerness for praise

urbem latericium invenit, marmoream reliquit - he found the city a city of bricks; he left it a city of marble 

ut incepit fidelis sic permanet - as loyal as she began, so she remains

[for-the-western-record-deactiva]

I feel like I’m constantly posting Latin phrases

[gendernihilistanarchocommunist]

Irish Prime Minister Visits Choctaw Nation to Thank Them for Famine Donation Made 172 Ago

Published March 17, 2019 Editor’s Note: This article was originally published a year ago. It was so popular, Native News Online is posting it again today in celebration of St. Patrick’s…

In his closing remarks, Taoiseach Varadkar stunned and elated those present with the announcement that Ireland is starting a scholarship program for young Choctaws to study in Ireland.

“It will begin in the fall of 2019,” he said. 

woah this rules

[oh-go-deas]

Everytime I see someone say Gaelic instead of Gaeilge a piece of my soul leaves my body

[cailin-na-gaillimhe-deactivated]

Some Internet lingo as Gaeilge

So in Gaeilge in university, we were shown some lingo as Gaeilge, and I just had to share it with you guys :’)

GOA (LOL) : Gáire Os Ard 

NASAA (YOLO) : Níl Ach Saol Amháin Agat

CW (Exactly) : Cinnte Winnte (It rhymes so it’s cool)

GRMA (Thanks) : Go Raibh Maith Agat

An8 (Tonight) : Anocht

Abmtag (LMAO) : Ag Briseadh Mo Thóin Ag Gáire

and my favourite:

Dáiririously? (Seriously?) : A mix between Irish and English, Dáiríre and seriously

If anyone else knows any others please add to this! I want to know more :D

[teslatarasova]

Sabháiste Cabáiste is savage cabbage and means ‘that’s great’