Irish words in Irish-English

"Thanks a million" ...

There are only a few remnants of the endangered old Gaelic-Irish language in modern Irish-English.

800 years of oppression,* y' know y'rself....

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• Craic [pronounced "crack," and often spelled so] — Good times; general goings-on, or atmosphere (as in, "what's the craic?" or "how's the craic?")

• Crúibín (pronounced "crew bean") — Pig's foot. The term "crew beans" might sound like a euphemism, but it's not.

• Gaeltacht (pronounced [approx.] "gale-takht") — An area in which Gaelic Irish is an important daily language. "The Gaeltacht" refers to the Gaelic-speaking whole, though its components are divided into small enclaves throughout the island, mostly in the west.

• Gaol — Jail. It's pronounced the same, but it's often spelled the Irish way.

• Gards — The police. Say nothin'.

• Sláinte (pronounced "slanchə") — "Cheers" (over a drink.) Literally, "health."

• Sliotar (pronounced "slitter") — The small hard ball used in the Gaelic sport hurling and its women's equivalent camogie.

• Tuig (pronounced "twig") — To grasp, to comprehend. Probably the origin of the beatnik-American "dig."

• Bóithrín (pronounced "boreen") — Small roadway. Diminutive of Bóthar (road.)

• Fáilte (pronounced "falchə" — Welcome. Used in tourism and on doormats.

Contact

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• The phrase "800 years of oppression" is common amongst the Irish, and refers of course to the long domination of the island by the British. Its accuracy is best debated by professional historians.

The Anglo-Normans landed in the southeast in 1169, which was the beginning of the modern-day trouble from across the Irish Sea.

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