Go mbeannaí Dia daoibh agus bhur gcéad fáilte isteach chuig the Bluffer’s Guide to Irish.
Cáisc shona daoibh - Happy Easter. Well, the Bluffer hopes you are having a fantastic Easter, whether spiritual or secular.
An Cháisc - is Easter in Irish (related to the Latin word Pascha) but the Irish word changes to Cásca in many situations.
For instance you might have been stuffing your gob with uibheacha Cásca - Easter eggs for the past 24 hours.
Yesterday was Domhnach Cásca - Easter Sunday and today is Luan Cásca - Easter Monday.
The change is called the genitive case but you needn’t worry about it at the minute.
The Bluffer remembers when Easter was when the extended family would visit the zoo and roll eggs down the hill. Ah, the innocence of it all!
Now that An Carghas - Lent is over, you are now permitted to partake of some liquid refreshment, smoke a toitín - a cigarette or two or break the bank as you re-stock up on milseáin - sweets and brioscaí - biscuits.
Of course, Easter is a religious celebration to celebrate the aiséirí - the resurrection of Jesus after his céasadh - crucifixion on Good Friday.
In Ireland, however, Easter has another significance especially this year as it is 100 years since Éirí Amach na Cásca - the Easter Rising.
It is fair to say that opinion on the Rising is divided it seems that an ghnáthmhuintir - ordinary people are getting enthused by it.
Over the Easter weekend but today, RTÉ - whose record in reflecting the Rising thus far has been, let’s say, chequered - is organising a whole day of imeachtaí - events, with a wonderfully broad brush.
To say what is going to happen you would say, for example, beidh léachtaí ann - there will be lectures; beidh ceol ann - there will be music, beidh Bob Geldof ann - no, only joking.
Among the multifarious cainteanna - talks will be one entitled The Car and the 1916 Rising another on the Rising from Irish language sources, female doctors who take part in the action and an intriguing talk entitled The Women were worse than the Men, based on the Dublin Metropolitan Police Files of 1916.
There will also be lots of imeachtaí teaghlaigh - family events so it should be a fabulous day in Dublin today.
The Bluffer had the pleasure of seeing Brassneck Theatre Company’s play Belfast Rising which gave the lie to the idea that Belfast wasn’t involved in the events of 1916.
With stirring oratory including Pearse’s aitheasc - speech at the grave of O’Donovan Rossa, we also got a glimpse of the lives of other northerners who did their bit in the fight for independence.
Now, the Bluffer is not against athbhreithniúchas - revisionism as long as it takes into account all the fíricí - facts but too often there seems to be a clár polaitiúil - a political agenda that gets the better of historical accuracy.
But I suppose it’s all about how you interpret the historical facts before you.