School: Taobh Breac (roll number 15227)

On this page

1. Tracing Irishisms in the Planted Finn Valley (continued)

   

   Share Share Post

   (continued from previous page)

   word spoken by the families. In conversing with them, I noticed a decided rustiness, hesitancy, and even, a total loss of ability to say more than a few trivial things like greetings, comments on weather etc., and a quick return to “Béarla” as if embarrased. They are not wholly to blame as their environment made them ‘more English than the English themselves! Happily, their outlook on Ireland is unchanged.

   Even here, one can trace ‘where the lighter blue fades into a deeper blue! A graph could illustrate where the richness in Irish idiom meets a less rich, and so on. The focus point of ‘Galldachas’ would point to Strabane, along the verge of the Finn, until one comes to Killygordon. But a mile from either bank, one finds, words phrases that are decidedly Irish, still further into Tievebrack, Cornaskesk, Baywood and into the Glen, we almost meet Gaelic speakers.

   I shall attempt to give what I’ve heard

   (1) “are you going to ‘Dearg’ (to Castlederg) a distinctly perfectly sounding Irish Dearg ?

   (2) “Rake up the Gríosach" i.e. put the ashes over the coals to kindle the following morning’s fire.

   (3) “Teely – teanny on you!” I have convinced

   (continues on next page)

   

   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. genre
      1. glossaries (~227)
   2. objects
      1. man-made structures
         1. buildings
            1. schools (~4,094)

   Languages

   Irish

   English

   Collector

   Donnachadh E. Mac Congáile

   Gender

   Male

   Occupation

   Múinteoir