Celtic (Irish, really) is impenetrable to me. There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason—no connection between how words are spelled and how they're pronounced. Kinda' makes me want to try to tackle the language and experience another aspect of my roots. Here's a snippet from an Irish pronunciation guide I found online a few minutes ago:
Siobhan — “sheh-VAWN”Aoife – “EE-fa”
Aislin – “ASH-linn”
Bláithín - “BLAW-heen”
Caoimhe - “KEE-va”
Eoghan - Owen (sometimes with a slight “y” at the beginning)
Gráinne - “GRAW-nya”
Iarfhlaith - “EER-lah”
Méabh - “MAYV”
Naomh or Niamh - “NEEV”
Oisín - OSH-een or USH-een
Órfhlaith - OR-la
Odhrán - O-rawn
Sinéad - shi-NAYD
Tadhg - TIEG (like you’re saying “tie” or “Thai” with a G and the end)
I knew "Siobhan" already, and I attended grad school with a "Grainne" ("Pronounce it 'groan-ya,'" she said), so I could already say those names. I know "Sinéad," and I also know "Saoirse" (not listed), thanks to the movie star. Everything else, though, is a shit-show.
No comments:
Post a Comment
READ THIS BEFORE COMMENTING!
All comments are subject to approval before they are published, so they will not appear immediately. Comments should be civil, relevant, and substantive. Anonymous comments are not allowed and will be unceremoniously deleted. For more on my comments policy, please see this entry on my other blog.
AND A NEW RULE (per this post): comments critical of Trump's lying must include criticism of Biden's or Kamala's or some prominent leftie's lying on a one-for-one basis! Failure to be balanced means your comment will not be published.