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Bunús na Gaeilge - Basic Irish Language
There is no other way to revive Irish than for a crowd of people to spread it.
- Douglas Hyde
On these pages, we will make a valiant effort to provide you with useful words and phrases. One of our subscribers, Aideen, grew up speaking Irish at her mother's knee. She has generously agreed to help us with our lessons. We have put her comments and pronunciations in green.
Note: The spellings and pronunciations used by Aideen are based in her own natural use of Connemara Irish but they have been kept simple, so as to be readily understood in any part of Ireland where there are differences in the language.
For example, the word 'feicfidh' is used only in Connemara Irish; in Leinster, Ulster and Munster the word is 'cífidh'. There are two pronunciations; Leinster/Munster - kee-fee; Ulster - chee-fee.
The biggest problem for people whose native language is English is that the soft 't' and 'd' are in the Irish language, but not in the English language; it's difficult to 'reproduce' them in writing in English. Where I use 'th' and 'dh' here, they are best achieved by putting your tongue gently behind your front upper teeth."
Click here for our words & phrases Index.
So, it's late and dark. You are in a Gaeltacht in your rental car. The car has a flat tyre. You look in the boot and there is no spare. From out of the gloom comes a voice. Whatever you heard was in gaeilge and now he is asking you if you need help (but you don't know that's what he said). You studied well but you don't know many who speak Irish and you are now talking to the only non-English speaking Irishman for twenty miles. You will need the following phrases.
How we came to forget them, we can't say. To make amends we will leave them here; no matter what the latest offering may be.
Note: In case you think I am taking shortcuts with some of these, I am! These phrases would be used as very simple responses by a person who had little Irish, therefore, they would not generally use full sentences. So, 1, 3, 5 and 6 are pithy phrases which are easy to use, are 'conversationally correct' and would be immediately understood. Much better for a person to use these rather than struggling with a full grammatical sentence.
Phrase: I don't speak Irish
Irish: Níl Gaeilge agam
Pronunciation: kneel gway-il-geh ah-gum (literally 'I don't have Irish')
Phrase: I only speak a little/very little Irish
Irish: Níl ach beagán/beagáinín Gaeilge agam
Pronunciation: kneel okh bweeuh-gawn/bweeuh-gawn-een gway-il-geh ah-gum
Phrase: Please speak a little more slowly
Irish: Níos moille led thoil
Pronunciation: kneess mwell-eh ledh hell (literally 'more slowly please')
Phrase: I don't understand you
Irish: Ní thuigim thú
Pronunciation: knee hig-im hoo
Phrase: Could you say that in English please?
Irish: As Béarla led thoil?
Pronunciation: oss bayr-lah ledh hell? (literally 'in English please?)
Phrase: Could you repeat that?
Irish: Arís?
Pronunciation: ah-reesh? (literally 'again?')
Phrase: Did I say that right?
Irish: An raibh sin i gceart agam?
Pronunciation: ah row (as in cow) shin ih gih-ah-rth ah-gum?
 Lesson 38: Golf - Part One
Ever played golf in Ireland? It's no idle boast that the Emerald Isle has some of the most picturesque courses in the world. And they're challenging as well. Which is why movie stars like Mike Douglas fly in from the states just to play a round. In this week's lesson, Aideen offers words and phrases related to what one wag described as the greatest excuse for a walk. We especially like the phrase for Golf Club - as in the one you might belong to - sounds suspiciously close to Come and Golf!
Word: Golf
Irish: Galf
Pronunciation: golf
Phrase: Playing golf
Irish: ag imirt gailf
Pronunciation: egg im-irtch golf
Phrase: Golf Club ('implement')
Irish: maide gailf
Pronunciation: mah-djeh golf
Phrase: Golf Club ('society')
Irish: cumann gailf
Pronunciation: kum-ahn golf
Phrase: Golf course
Irish: machaire gailf
Pronunciation: mahkh-err-eh gailf
Phrase: Putting Green
Irish: plásóg amais
Pronunciation: plaw-sohg om-ish
Word: Golfer
Irish: galfaire
Pronunciation: golf-err-eh
Word: Member
Irish: ball
Pronunciation: bahl
Word: Ball
Irish: liathróid
Pronunciation: lee-roh-idj
Word: Bag
Irish: mála
Pronunciation: maw-lah
Word: Hole
Irish: poll
Pronunciation: puhl
Word: Flag
Irish: brat
Pronunciation: brah-th
Word: Caddie
Irish: giolla
Pronunciation: gih-ull-ah
Word: Score
Irish: scór
Pronunciation: score
Word: Card
Irish: cárta
Pronunciation: kawr-thah
Word: Practise/Practice
Irish: cleachtadh
Pronunciation: klihah-kh-thah
Note: Same word for noun and verb
Phrase: Round of golf
Irish: dreas gailf
Pronunciation: dhr-ahs golf
Word: Competition/Tournament
Irish: comórtas
Pronunciation: kum-ohr-thahs
Phrase: Will you be free to caddie for me tomorrow?
Irish: An mbeidh tú saor giollaíocht a dhéanamh dom amárach?
Pronunciation: on my thoo seer gih-ull-ee-ukth ah yay-nuv dhum ah-mawr-ahkh
Phrase: I like to go to watch a big tournament
Irish: is breá liom dul ag breathnú ar ilchomórtas mór
Pronunciation: iss brah li-um dhul egg brah-noo err ill-khum-ohr-thahs more
Phrase: You are a very good golfer
Irish: tá údarás maith agat ar an ngalf**
Pronunciation: thaw oo-dhah-raws my ah-guth err on ngolf.
** (literally: you have 'authority' over the golf)
Phrase: Have you ever thought of turning professional?
Irish: ar smaoinigh tú riamh ar é a ghlacadh mar ghairm?
Pronunciation: err smwee-nee thoo reev err ay ah ghlokh-ah mahr ghah-rim?
Phrase: He lost the game on the (putting) green
Irish: chaill sé an chluiche ar an bplásóg (amais)
Pronunciation: khah-ill shay on khlikh-eh err on blaw-sohg (om-ish)
Phrase: She has a handicap of 14
Irish: tá buntáiste de cheatheir-déag aicí
Pronunciation: thaw bun-thaw-ish-the dheh khiah-hir-djayg ek-ee
Note: The Irish word for a golf 'handicap' - 'buntáiste' - is the same word for 'advantage' when used in other contexts!
Phrase: How many members does that Club have?
Irish: an mó baill atá sa Chlub sin?
Pronunciation: ah moh bweel ah-thaw sah khlub shin?
Phrase: We (will) have to get up early in the morning to go out to practise
Irish: ní mór dúinn éirí go luath ar maidin chun chleachtadh
Pronunciation: knee mohr dhoo-inn eye-ree guh loo-ah err mah-djin khun khlihah-kh-thah
Phrase: I was really surprised to take (win) that round from him
Irish: Bhí sár-íonadh orm an dreas sin a chur air
Pronunciation: vee sawr-een-ah urm on dhr-ahs shin ah khur err
Phrase: I'll have to buy a new cabinet in which to keep all my trophies*
Irish: beidh orm almóir nua a cheannach lem chomhraimh go léir a choinneáil
Pronunciation: bye urm ahl-more noo-ah a khih-ahn-ahkh lem khoh-riv guh lay-ir ah khuin-oil
*Aideen couldn't resist putting in this last phrase. And we concur. May all your shots be straight and accurate - in Ireland, or anywhere else.
For More Basic Irish please click here: Irish Index
 Note: This caught our eye. Yes, we know it isn't gaeilge, but it is fascinating. If nothing else, it is certainly language (and Irish language as well.)
Slanguage
by Bernard Share
...for all 'decent skins', 'crawthumpers', horse-protestants', 'hard chaws' and 'strong farmers'...a dictionary of Irish slang that's as amusing as it is informative.
Click here for Slanguage
For More Basic Irish please click here: Irish Index
Image: Gaeilge Beo from All Posters and Prints.
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Sun, May 29, 2011
Listen and Learn Irish
Some phrases are free to learn and listen to, but with a gold membership to Irish Sayings, you can hear well over 450 commonly used words and phrases spoken in the Munster, Ulster and Connacht dialects for a one-time fee of just $22.95. Impress your friends and astound your Irish relatives!
For complete details, please click Irish Sayings.
Image Credit: Gaelscoil Osraí
Irish Grammar
by Noel Mogonagle
This book is excellent for beginners who are wanting a book that gives basic grammar without all the extra information that confuses beginners. The book is well laid out, with information very easy to find. Amazon Reviewer
Here is a good follow-on to our words and phrases.
Click for Irish Grammar.
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Love the aroma of a turf fire? Experience the next best thing with Irish Incense, the peaceful, nostalgic scent that will transport you back in time and place. The perfect gift for Christmas or any other occasion, order now. A special offer for Irish Culture and Customs visitors: 10% discount on all
products! Just enter the Coupon Code ICC200 in the Check out section of
the web site.
Click here for Irish Incense.
Irish - English
English - Irish
Dictionaries
Note: We have yet to see a dictionary with phonetic pronunciations for each word. We suspect this is partly due to the variations. Providing for all four 'green fields' (Connacht, Leinster, Ulster and Munster), would be cumbersome at best. Still, someone may do it some day. Until then, these are all very good and recommended. Serious students will have more than one; they are inexpensive.
These two (either or both) are the handy-references needed to go with a good grammar or 'teach yourself' course.
We would need both (and some other help) if found wandering in a Gaeltacht late at night.
Amazon has an offer of either one combined with a grammar for a reduced price.
Click for Collins Gem
Click for Oxford Pocket.
As a total beginner in Irish, this has taught me quite a few words. The illustrations are beautifully done, and best of all, each word is given a rough English spelling of its pronunciation. Edited from an amazon review.
Click here for Kid's Irish Dictionary.
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While I wouldn't recommend you use many of these phrases, this is a terribly funny book. I picked it up after leafing through it at the store and finding phrases about sheep and inns and the hazards of driving in Ireland without insurance. Each little section starts out innocuously enough, then quickly degenerates into truly funny comments. If you like Monty Python or BlackAdder, this will really make you laugh. If you liked the Father Ted tv show, this little book will make you keel over giggling. Ah, go on, ya eejit, buy it already! Amazon Reviewer
(We want this, you may see a few on these pages - watch out).
Click for Wicked Irish
An easy-to-use program for learning on your own, or can be used as supplemental material for your classes. These new editions have been thoroughly revised and updated to include the engaging dialogues and helpful exercises you have come to expect from the Teach Yourself series.
Click for Teach Yourself
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The Best Irish Course Available! Three years ago I decided to learn Irish, and in the next two years I bought three different courses. The first two were simply useless, (that's the obvious reason for my buying new courses) you could learn some phrases, but not construct sentences yourself. Learning Irish, on the other hand, is an excellent book, which gives you a thorough vocabulary and grammatical knowledge. It consists of 36 lessons, all containing vocabularies, grammar instructions, texts and excercises. Amazon Reviewer.
Click for Learning irish
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