Go mbeannaí Dia daoibh agus bhur gcéad míle fáilte isteach chuig the Bluffer’s Guide to Irish.
Well, we’ve looked at it before but let’s look at the weather again because it is everywhere!
Saturday was a not untyptical day in Belfast.
An aimsir is the Irish for the weather and in Irish like in English, it also means a period of time as in cad é tá tú á dhéanamh ar an aimsir seo? What are you doing this weather, mucker?
Aimsir an Ghorta would mean during the Famine or at the time of the Famine.
But what about the phenomenon that gets us soaked to the skin or gives us a suntan or blows us off our feet, sometime all in the one day.
It’s always a good conversation opener to talk about the weather.
“Brrr, tá sé fuar amuigh,” - “Brrr, it’s cold outside” is a common phrase during all four seasons here in Ireland.
(Btw, the seasons are an tEarrach - Spring, an Samhradh - Summer, an Fómhar - the Autumn (or the Fall if you are American) and an Geimhreadh - winter.)
To say our weather is changeable is a bit of an understatement. In Irish we refer to cith is dealán - sunshine and showers while in Gaoth Dobhair you might hear it called breac-lá - literally a speckled day or a day of changeable weather.
Tá mé siocaithe - I’m frozen is what you can say before bursting into Let it Go.
But it’s not always cold here – sometimes it’s cold and gaofar - windy.
Tá gaoth mhór ann - means it is windy and that’s probably what people said when they were hit in the face by a fish even though they were six miles inland.
Oíche na Gaoithe Móire or Night of the Big Wind happened in 6 January 1839.
The Dublin Evening Post claimed that “every field, every town, every village in Ireland {had} felt its dire effects.” while the Catholic Herald wrote that: “… all along the west coast for many days afterwards herrings were found six miles inland.”
Scadáin are herrings, by the way and luckily the wind hasn’t been as strong as it was that day in 1839 so we haven’t been in danger of bring hit by a flying fish since then. although with Trump pulling out of the Paris climate accord, who knows what’s round the corner.
Weather is what we have every day but aeráid - climate is what happens over a period of time.
Athrú aeráide is climate change and it is perhaps one example that during the Great Frost of 1740, Ireland’s ports were frozen (Let it go, Let it Go!) for almost a month.
That’s more than a little bit parky, speaking of which it was reported that fourteen individuals were arrested for felling trees in the Phoenix Park alone as they sought material to burn to keep themselves warm.
Tá an domhan ag éirí níos teo - the world is getting hotter, sea levels are rising which would mean that Dublin could be twinned with Exploris in Portaferry.
David McNarry of UKIP probably thinks the water would be stopped coming north by a teorainn chrua - a hard border made out of re-inforced blotting paper.
CÚPLA FOCAL
An aimsir(un iymsher) - the weather
cad é tá tú á dhéanamh ar an aimsir seo? (cadge ay taa too aa yanoo er an iymsher shaw) What are you doing this weather?
Aimsir an Ghorta (iymshir an gorta) - during the Famine
tá sé fuar amuigh - (taa shay foor amwee) - “it’s cold outside”
an tEarrach(un charrakh) - Spring an Samhradh(un saowroo) - Summer
an Fómhar(un fower) - the Autumn
an Geimhreadh(un gevroo) - winter
cith is dealán(keeh is jalaan) - sunshine and showers
breac-lá(brack-laa) - a day of changeable weather
tá mé siocaithe(brack-laa) - I’m frozen
gaofar(geefer) - windy
tá gaoth mhór ann (taa gee wore un) - it is windy
oíche na Gaoithe Móire - (eeha na geeha mora) Night of the Big Wind
scadáin(scadaan) - herrings
athrú aeráide (ahroo ayraadgea) - climate change
Tá an domhan ag éirí níos teo (taa un down eg eeree nees chaw) - the world is getting hotter
teorainn chrua(chroran khrooa) - a hard border