Buns na Gaeilge - Basic Irish Language There is no other way to revive Irish than for a crowd of people to spread

it. - Douglas Hyde Note: The spellings and pronunciations used are based on Aideen's own natural use of Connemara Irish but they have been kept simple, so as to be understood 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 'cfidh'. 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 Irish, but not in English; it's difficult to 'reproduce' them in writing. 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. Lesson #8 - Counting one through ten Of the very few words Bridget learned from her father, she still remembers these: Word: One Irish: Aon Pronuncation: Ay-on Word: Two Irish: D Pronunciation: dhoh Word: Three Irish: Tr Pronunciation: three Word: Four Irish: Ceathair Pronunciation: ka-hir Word: Five Irish: Cig Pronunciation: coo-ig Word: Six Irish:S Pronunciation: shay Word: Seven Irish: Seacht

Pronunciation: shoch-edh Word: Eight Irish: Ocht Pronunciation: uchth Word: Nine Irish: Naoi Pronunciation: knee (or in Munster Irish - nay) Word: Ten Irish: Deich Pronunciation: djeh Note: The use of these words for numbers in actual speech may or may not change grammatically and do when speaking of numbers of people. Some selected examples: Phrase: I'd like five pints of Guinness Irish: Ba mhaith liom cig pionta Guinness Pronunciation: Bah wy li-um coo-ig pyun-thah Guinness Phrase: He's No.1 Irish: Is uimhir a haon Pronunciation: Is iv-ir a hayn ay Phrase: There are three (children) in my family Irish: T triir sa chlann agam Pronunciation: Thaw throor sa chlann ah-gum Phrase: I'll be there at eight o'clock Irish: Beidh m ann ag a hocht a chlog Pronunciation: Bay (or 'bye') may on egg ah huchth ah chlug Lesson #9 - Colours Our translator and enunciator has requested that we use the Anglo-Irish spelling for the word colours. We think this is a perfectly reasonable request. When in Ireland, right? Word: COLOURS Irish: DATHANNA Pronunciation: dhah-annah Word: Red Irish: Dearg Pronunciation: jiarg Word: White Irish: Bn Pronunciation: bawn Word: Pink Irish: Bn-dearg Pronunciation: bawn-jiarg Word: Green Irish: Glass

Pronunciation: gloss Word: Black Irish: Dubh Pronunction: dhuv Word: Blue Irish: Gorm Pronunciation: gurm Word: Brown Irish: Donn Pronunciation: dhown Word: Yellow Irish: Bu Pronunction: wee Phrase: The snow is very white Irish: T an sneachta an-bhn Pronunciation: thaw on shnock-tha on wawn Phrase: I have a red sweater Irish: T geansa bn agam Pronunciation: Thaw gan-see bawn ah-gum Phrase: Ireland (the country) is so green Irish: T tr na hireann chomh ghlass Pronunciation: Thaw cheer na hay-run khoh ghloss Phrase: She wore a red dress Irish: Bh gna dearg uirth Pronunciation: Vee goo-nah jiarg ir-hee Phrase: Guinness, the black drink Irish: Guinness, an deoch dubh Pronunciation: Guinness, on jee-och dhuv Phrase: He has brown eyes Irish: T sile donn aige Pronunciation: thaw soo-leh dhown egg-eh Phrase: She has nice brown hair Irish: T gruaig deas donn aic Pronunciation: thaw groo-ig jias dhown eck-ee Phrase: He sent me pink flowers Irish: Chuir s blthanna bn-dearg agam Pronunciation: qhuir shay blaw-annah bawn-jiarg ah-gum Irish Lesson #10 -Food We seriously doubt that if you're in an Irish restaurant or pub, you'll need to know the following words and phrases; but, you never know. Again, our thanks to our resident translator who sent us these while entertaining house-guests over the Easter weekend.Word: food Irish: bia

Pronunciation: bee-yah Word: breakfast Irish: bricfeasta Pronunciation: brick-fas-thah Word: lunch Irish: ln Pronunciation: loan Word: dinner Irish: dinnir Pronunciation: din -air Word: tea Irish: t Pronunciation: thay Word: bread Irish: arn Pronunciation: ah-rawn Word: milk Irish: bainne Pronunciation: bahn-yeh Word: sugar Irish: sicre Pronunciation: shoo-creh Word: meat Irish: feoil Pronunciation: fee-ohl Word: fish Irish: iasc Pronunciation: ee-usk Word: vegetables Irish: glasra Pronunciation: gloss-ree Word: soup Irish: anraith Pronunciation: ahn-ri Word: cake Irish: ciste Pronunciation: kish-che Word: sweets/candy Irish: milsein Pronunciation: mill-shaw-een Phrase: I don't want breakfast Irish: Nl bricfeasta (ag taisteil) uaim Pronunciation: Kneel brick-fas-thah (egg thahs-thoil) wem Phrase: What time will lunch be? Irish: Cn t-am a mbeidh an ln? Pronunciation: Kayn tham ah my an loan?

Phrase: We are going out for dinner Irish: Timd ag dul amach le h-aghaidh an dinnir Pronunciation: Thaw-meed egg dhull ah-mock leh high an din -air Phrase: The team are training hard Irish: T an fhoireann ag trineil go dlis Pronunciation: thaw on ir-unn egg thray-nawl guh jee-lish For More Irish words & phrases please click here: Irish Index Image: Gaeilge Beo from All Posters and Prints. Buns na Gaeilge - Basic Irish Language There is no other way to revive Irish than for a crowd of people to spread it. - Douglas Hyde Note: The spellings and pronunciations used are based on Aideen's own natural use of Connemara Irish but they have been kept simple, so as to be understood 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 'cfidh'. 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 Irish, but not in English; it's difficult to 'reproduce' them in writing. 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. Lesson 1 Starters Unless you can arrange to spend a year or so living in the Gaeltacht - an Irish speaking part of the country - learning the language will probably be nigh on impossible for most people. That said, in our basic Irish section, we have attempted to share with you simple words and phrases we think you will find both fun and useful. Photo credit: Cluiche

Phrase: Thank you Irish: Go raibh maith agat Pronunciation: Guh row mah aguth (row as in cow) Phrase: You're welcome Irish: T filte romhat Pronunciation: Thaw foil-cheh roath Phrase: Hello Irish: Dia dhuit Pronunciation: Djee-ah gwitch Phrase: What is your name? Irish: Cad is ainm duit? Pronunciation: Codh is anam gwitch Phrase: My name is Judith Flynn Irish: Judith Flynn is ainm dom Pronunciation: Judith Flynn is aman dhum Phrase: How are you? Irish: Conas t t? Pronunciation: Kunas thaw thoo Phrase: I am fine Irish: T me go maith Prounciation: Thaw may guh mah Phrase: How old are you? Irish: Cad is aois duit?* Pronunciation: Codh is eesh gwitch *Not a colloquially correct expression. Much better to use Cn aois th? Kayn eesh hoo Phrase: What time is it? Irish: Cn t-am ? Pronunciation: Kayn thom ay Phrase: It's three o'clock Irish: T s a tri a chlog Pronunciation: Thaw shay three a (c)hlug - not 'ch' as in 'chew', the 'c' is almost silent Phrase: Today is Sunday Irish: Inniu an* D Domhnaigh Pronunciation: Djay dhough-knee * Omit 'an' - equivalent to saying Today is the Sunday Word: Monday Irish: D Luain Pronunciation: Djay loo-in Word: Tuesday Irish: D Mirt Pronunciation: Djay moyrch Word: Wednesday

Irish: D Chadaoin Pronunciation: Djay Kay-dheen Word: Thursday Irish: D Dardaoin Pronunciation: Djay Djayr-dheen Word: Friday Irish: D hAoine Pronunciation: Djay-heenah Word: Saturday Irish: D Sathairn Pronunciation: Djay Sah-harn Phrase: Goodnight, see you tomorrow Irish: Oiche mhaith, feicfidh m ar ball t*. Pronunciation: Ee-heh wah,. feck-hee may er boll hoo *This is singular. To make it plural, replace t with sibh'- shiv. The problem here is that 'feicfidh' is used only in Connemara Irish (which is what I speak) but in Leinster, Ulster and Munster the word is 'cfidh', which has two different pronunciations. Leinster/Munster - kee-fee; Ulster - chee-fee. Note: To keep things as simple as possible, we are going to use Aideen's Connemara Irish. Lesson 2 Phrase: Good morning/Good afternoon/Good evening We don't really use specific phrases for greetings on meeting at any particular part of the day. So, for simplification, best not to split them and just use Hello at any time of the day - quite acceptable and widely used. Irish: Dia duit (singular) Pronunciation: djee-ah gwitch Phrase: Dhia dhibh (plural) Pronunciation: djee-ah yeeve Phrase: What will you have? Irish: Card a bhas agat? Pronunciation: kay-rdh a vays aguth Phrase: I'd like a Guinness (please) Irish: Piont (leath-phiont) Guinness/Murphy's/Harp led' thoil Pronunciation: Pionth Guinness/Murphy's/Harp ledh hell Note: 'bar-speak' is a little more specific and people would tend to ask for "a pint" or "half-pint" without always mentioning the brand (means Guinness unless otherwise specified!), so I'm changing this slightly to suit more usually used idioms. We don't usually use the phrase "I'd like" as such (directly translated) but rather simply, give the item and add a shortish "please" Phrase: I'd like an Irish Coffee (please) Irish: Caif Gaelach led' thoil Pronunciation: Cah- fay gwael-och ledh hell Phrase: I'd like a glass of water (please) Irish: Gloinne uisce led' thoil Pronunciation: Glinn-eh ish-geh ledh hell

Lesson 3 Phrase: Where is the nearest ________? (list of locations follows) Irish: C bhfuil an _______ is cngara (or is giorra) is a direct translation. Pronunciation: Caw will on_______ is coan-gar-ee (or is girra) NOTE: I would use 'I'm looking for a ________ " It's less stilted in Irish and probably easier for a beginner. Phrase: I am looking for _______ Irish: Tim ag lorg _______ Pronunciation: Thaw-im a' lurg ___ (The 'g' is usually silent here) Locations: Men's Room Irish: Seomra na bhfear Pronunciation: Shome-reh na varr Ladies' Room Irish: Seomra na mban Pronunciation: Shome-reh na mon (as in 'gone') Hospital Irish: Oispidil Pronunciation: Us -pi-djayl Police Station Irish: Stisin na nGrda Pronunciation: Sthaw-shoon nah ngaw -dhee Post Office Irish: Ofig an phoist Pronunciation: If-ig an fwisht Pharmacy/Chemist Irish: Poiticir Pronunciation: Puth-i-kayr Grocery Store Irish: Siopa grisar Pronunciation: Shup-eh gross-ayr Pub Irish: stlann Pronunciation: oasth-lunn Hotel Irish: stn Pronunciation: oasth-awn Hair Salon/barber Irish: Gruaigeadir Pronunciation: Grew-ig-a-dhoor (as in door) Lesson 4 This was overlooked - The months of the year! As we feel these words would be used sooner rather than later we squeezed them in here. For those who are early visitors, we moved the words of love up to the next Lesson (5). Months of the Year January Irish: Eanir Pronunciation: an-aw-irr February Irish: Feabhra Pronunciation: feow-rah March

Irish: Mrta Pronunciation: mawr-thah April Irish: Aibren Pronunciation: ab-rawn May Irish: Bealtaine Pronunciation: bahl-theh-neh June Irish: Meitheamh Pronunciation: meh-huv July Irish: Iil Pronunciation: oo-il August Irish: Lnasa Pronunciation: loo-nah-sah September Irish: Men Fomhair Pronunciation: mahn foh-ir October Irish: Deireadh Fomhair Pronunciation: djeh-reh foh-ir November Irish: Samhain Pronunciation: sow (as in cow) -in December Irish: Nollaig Pronunciation: null-ig For More Irish words & phrases please click here: Irish Index Image: Gaeilge Beo from All Posters and Prints. Buns na Gaeilge - Basic Irish Language

There is no other way to revive Irish than for a crowd of people to spread it. - Douglas Hyde Note: The spellings and pronunciations used are based on Aideen's own natural use of Connemara Irish but they have been kept simple, so as to be understood 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 'cfidh'. 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 Irish, but not in English; it's difficult to 'reproduce' them in writing. 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. Lesson #11 - Beverages & Drinks Just so you know, the Irish refer to anything that isn't alcoholic as a beverage. Beverages: Word: Tea Irish: T Pronunciation: tay Word: Coffee Irish: Caif Pronunciation: cah-fay Phrase: I'd like a cup of tea Irish: Ba mhait liom cupn T Pronunciation: bah wah ly-um cup-awn tay Phrase: I'd like a cup of coffee Irish: Ba mhait liom cupn Caif Pronunciation: bah wah ly-um cup-awn cah-fay Phrase: We'd like a pot of tea Irish: Ba mhaith linn pota T Pronunciation: bah wah linn puh-tha tay Phrase: We'd like a pot of coffee Irish: Ba mhaith linn pota Caif Pronunciation: bah wah linn puh-tha cah-fay Word: Milk Irish: Bainne Pronunciation: bann-yeh Word: Lemonade Irish: liomanide Pronunciation: lim-un-aw-idje

Word: Water Irish: uisce Pronunciation: ish-geh Phrase: I'd like a glass of milk Irish: Ba mhaith liom gloinne bainne Pronunciation: bah wah ly-um glinne-eh bann-yeh Phrase: I'd like a glass of lemonade Irish: Ba mhaith liom gloinne liomainide Pronunciation: bah wah ly-um glinne-eh lim-un-ay-dje Phrase: I'd like a glass of water Irish: Ba mhaith liom gloinne uisce Pronunciation: bah wah ly-um glinne-eh ish-geh Phrase: I'd like a glass of cider Irish: Ba mhaith liom gloinne siodre Pronunciation: bah wah ly-um glinne-eh she-dreh Phrase: I'd like ice with my drink, please* Irish: Ba mhaith liom oighear san deoch sinn led' thoil Pronunciation: bah wah ly-um eye-er san djee-uch shin ledh hell *Literally translated for Irish idiom - I'd like ice in that drink please. Drinks Word: Drinks Irish: Deochanna Pronunciation: dee-yuch-ahnnah Word: Whiskey Irish: Uisce Beatha Pronunciatiion: ish-ge bah-hah Word: Beer Irish: Beoir Pronunciation: bee-oh-ir Word: Wine Irish: Fon Pronunciation: fee-un Phrase: Red Wine Irish: Fon dearg Pronunciation: fee-un djearg Phrase: White Wine Irish: Fon bn Pronunciation: fee-un bawn Phrase: I'd like a glass of beer Irish: Ba mhaith liom gloinne beoir Pronunciation: bah wah ly-um glinn-eh bee-oh-ir Phrase: I'd like a pint of beer Irish: Ba mhaith liompiontae beoir Pronunciation: bah wah ly-um pee-yun-thah bee-oh-ir Phrase: A bottle of red wine please Irish: buidal fon dearg led' thoil

Pronunciation: bwi-jail fee-un djerg ledh hell Phrase: Please let me get the next round* Irish: Beidh seo ormsa Pronunciation: Bye shuh urm-sa *I've not translated this directly, as it is not usually said in that way. When it's time for the next round, we would say, "I'll get these" and that's what I've translated. Lesson #12 - ClothingWord: Clothes Irish: ada Pronunciation: ay-dhee Word: Coat Irish: cta Pronunciation: coh-tha Word: Sweater Irish: geansa Pronunciation: gan-zee Word: Skirt Irish: sciorta Pronunciation: skerr-thah Word: Shoes: Irish: brga Pronunciation: broh-geeh Word: Dress Irish: gna Pronunciation: goo-nah Word: Pants Irish: brst Pronunciation: breesh-thee Word: Hat Irish: hata Pronunciation: hah-tha Word: Cap Irish: caipn Pronunciation: kop-een Phrase: What should I wear today? Irish: Card ba chir dom a chaitheamh inniu? Pronunciation: kay-erdh bah koh-ir dhum ah chah-iv inn-you? Phrase: Bring a raincoat Irish: Tg cta bist leat Pronunciation: thohg coh-tha baw-shtee lee-ath Phrase: Isn't she wearing a lovely dress? Irish: Nach aoibeann an gna sin uirthi? Pronunciation: Noch eeven an goo-nah shin ir-hee? Phrase: You should dress warmly Irish: N mr duit ada nos troime a chaiteamh Pronunciation: Knee more dhitch ay-dhee knees thrim-eh ah chah-iv Phrase: I'd like to

buy an Aran sweater Irish: Ba mhaith liom geansa ran a cheannach Pronunciation: Bah whye li-um gan-zee aw-ran a khian-ock Phrase: Is it necessary to wear a hat for the wedding? Irish: Ar g dom hata a chaiteamh ag an mbainis? Pronunciation: Err gaw dhum hah-tha ah chah-iv egg on mon-ish? Phrase: These shoes are not comfortable Irish: T na brga seo m-chompirdeach Pronunciation: Thaw nah broh-geeh shuh mee-khum-pohr-dhuch Irish Lesson #13 - Entertainment Heading out on the town for entertainment, Irish-style? Here are a few Irish words and phrases to add to your vocabulary. We had to grin when our Irish translator gave up on bowling and line-dancing. She says: "Just couldn't find suitable translations for them. I suspect that the English words are just slotted into Irish conversation, like the French "Le Weekend"! May be so.Word: Theatre Irish: Amharclann Pronunciation: our-chlann Word: Cinema Irish: Pictrlann Pronunciation: pick-thoor-lan Word: Nightclub Irish: Club Oche Pronunciation: club ee-heh Word: Pub/Bar Irish: stin Pronunciation: oh-sth-law-een Word: Hotel Irish: stlann Pronunciation: Oh-sth-lawn Word: Concert Irish: ceolchoirm Pronunciation: kee-ohl-quirm Word: Play or drama Irish: dhraw-mah Pronunciation: dhraw-mah Word: Film/movie Irish: scannn Pronunciation: scan-awn Word: Dancing Irish: Rince Pronunciation: rin-keh Word: Television Irish: telefs Pronunciation: tell-eh-feesh Word: Traditional Music

Irish: Ceol traidisinta Pronunciation: Kee-ohl thrad-ish-oon-tha Word: Museum Irish: iarsmalann Pronunciation: ears-mah-lan Word: Art Gallery Irish: Gaileara Pronunciation: Gaileara Word: Park Irish: Parc Pronunciation: paw-rc Phrase: There will be good traditional music at the pub tonight Irish: Beidh ceol traidisinta maith ag an stin anocht Pronunciation: bye kee-ohl thrad-ish-oon-tha my egg on oh-sth-law-een ah-nucht Phrase: What is showing at the cinema now? Irish: Card t ar sil ag an bpictrlann faoi lthair? Pronunciation: Kay-erdh that er shool egg on bip-thoor-lan fwee law-hir For More Irish words & phrases please click here: Irish Index Image: Gaeilge Beo from All Posters and Prints.