All Things Irish: Day 1....



Throwback Thursday; March 17, 2013
Somebody partied a little hard on his first St. Patty's Day, lol

You may have noticed that St. Patrick’s Day is coming up. I look forward to March 17th every year. Yes, I was the schoolgirl who handed out paper clovers and gold coins every year. I’m also the mom who doesn’t let anyone come or go from her home without some stitch of green. (I’m allowed to cheat, by the way – my eyes are green. Hee, hee.) When I leave the house on St. Paddy’s Day, I’m in full Irish dress – green from top to toe, and I may be wearing a shamrock headband. Even before I found out at least one branch of my family tree has strong Irish ties, I felt the call to the Emerald Isle. The culture, the heritage, the music, the history…it all appeals to me. One of my life goals is to learn more than a little Irish Gaelic – in addition, of course, to standing on Irish soil.

 

If you ever meet anyone by the name Whiteside in or around Antrim County in Northern Ireland, chances are they’re a distant cousin of mine. I also may or may not have some mighty McClure cousins in Ireland as well…. Bearing this in mind, last year my family and I celebrated St. Patrick’s Day with a traditional Irish feast – cornbeef, cabbage, cornbread, and, of course, some green beer. It was such a hit, I plan on doing it again this year. Last year also marked my son’s first St. Patrick’s Day, another reason to celebrate. I’m looking forward to teaching him about his Irish heritage (along with his strong German, Scottish, Native American, and Bohemian heritage as well).

Every day for the next five days leading up to Monday’s celebration, I’ll be posting about All Things Irish here at the ol’ blog. For the next five days, be sure to stop in for everything Irish – long-standing Irish traditions, toe-tapping Irish music, great Irish literature, sexy Irish men, yummy Irish foods, and more!

Here’s today’s Irish starter kit for you….
 

Since words are some of my favorite things, here’s a fun little lesson in Irish language: There are two types of Gaelic – Irish and Scottish. The Irish Gaelic (Gaeilge) is known simply as “Irish.” While it does share similarities to Scottish Gaelic (Gaidhlig), an Irish Gaelic speaker would probably only recognize a few words from Scottish Gaelic and vice versa. The Gaelic language is descended from Primitive Irish through Old Irish. Though most of the population in Ireland and Northern Ireland is English-speaking nowadays, it is estimated that 1,656,790 people can speak competently in Irish and 538,574 even use it on a daily basis. So it’s safe to say that Irish Gaelic isn’t fading out completely despite the changing of the times.

Some of my favorite Irish Gaelic phrases/sayings, some of which might be quite useful as you go about your business on St. Patrick's Day....

Eist moran agus can beagan.

Hear much and say little.

Is minic a gheibhean beal oscailt diog dunta!

An open mouth often catches a closed fist

De reir a cheile a thogtar na caisleain.

It takes time to build castles.

Slainte!

Health/Cheers!

O m'anam.

From my heart.

Saol fada chugat.

Long life to you.

Cuimhnigh i gconai.

Always remember.

Is fearr Gaeilge briste, na Bearla cliste.

Broken Irish is better than clever English.

Ta suil agam go bhfuil tu i mbarr na slainte.

I hope you are in the best of health.

Mo anam cara.

My soulmate.

Beannachtai na Feile Padraig!

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Tá grá agam duit! 

I love you!

Cá bhfuil an teach pobail?

Where is the Pub?

A chuisle mo chroí.

My dear darling/treasure.

A ghrá mo chroí.

Love of my heart.

Dia dhuit.

God be with you. (This phrase is the equivalent of 'Hello'.)

Go n-éirí on bóthar leat

May the road rise with you.

 

I love to hear the Irish speak even in English. The Irish brogue is very distinctive. Here's a lesson in how to speak with an Irish accent....

I hope you enjoyed Day 1 of All Things Irish! Check back in tomorrow for more….