Re: Irish Gaelic is evil!

Keith Gaughan wrote:
> (After throwing away my own explaination after two excellent ones popped
> up.)
>
> Thomas Leigh wrote:
>
>> Oooh, a Gaelic argument! :-)
>>
>> Sgrìobh Stephen:
>>
>>> First: "Gaelic" or "Scots Gaelic" (pronounced ["galIk]) is the
>>> name of the Goidelic language of Scotland. In Ireland we call
>>> our Goidelic language "Irish", not "Gaelic" or "Irish Gaelic".
>>> The word "Gaelic" is still used (e.g. in the name of the Gaelic
>>> Athletic Association), but it's then pronounced ["gajlIk]).
> Interjection. Where I'm from (Sligo), "Gaelic" is ['ge:lIk] (yup, that's
> an [e:] not an [E:]). I know on the east coast, the long vowel is a
> diphthong ['gejlIk], but I've never heard it pronounce as ['gajlIk].
Oops. Yes, it's a thinko; ['gejlIk] is what I was aiming at :). In any
case, I was aiming at a broad transcription, and it seemed to do the
job of communication (despite the flaw).


>> There is a widespread misconception –- not that Stephen is guilty of
>> this, but his message leans somewhat in this direction -- that
>> /g&lIk/ is the language of Scotland and /gEjlIk/ is the language of
>> Ireland, in other words that /g&lIk/ and /gEjlIk/ are two separate
>> things.
>
>
> Here here! Indeed they're not, and I question classifying them as
> seperate languages too.
I'll join in the Hear hear!ing and drinking to cultural unity, but there's
still a need to have names in English that refer to the two varieties of,
how should I say it, em, Gaedhilg Aontaithe.


> Now, if only we could get the Scots to spell properly... :-)
I was quizzing a Scot recently on being misunderstood by the English (we
were in Birmingham), and the usual ones about "press" and so on came up,
but I did learn on thing, which is possibly true: they don't say "I'm
after doing it" over there to mean "I've just done it". If this information
is true, we should get them to start saying it, too :)


> <various grumblings about the bloody sasanach>
That's a very generic complaint. :-)

s.
--
Stiofán Ó Maoilbreanainn  ataltane@ataltane.net
C'est magnifique, mais ce n'est pas l'Informatique
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