Can anybody tell me anything Irish?

Question

What are some common phrases? Some examples of the Irish language. What is the culture like? Is the Celtic lifestyle still around? What is the lifestyle? How different is it from America? What can you tell me about the Tuatha De Dannon? What can you tell me about the myths surrounding fairies (faeries)?
I'm trying to write a book, any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

For everyone else to know, if I could afford a trip to Ireland I wouldn't have to be asking this question. But it appears as though LouLou thinks a $2000 to $5000 dollar trip is readily available to anybody.
Also, my book is not about Ireland, one character is Irish. What I'm most interested in is faery folklore and the Tuatha de Dannan, and how to make my character come to life.
Believe me, if I could just pack up and fly to Ireland, I would in a heart beat.

Thank you for all these great answers! I appreciate them all.

Answer 1

'May the road rise to meet your feet' and 'may the wind at your back be your own' are Irish phrases, but I have never never never heard the mentioned here, and would never say them myself. Only foreigners think that we say these things.
Common phrases are different in each county, we say things in Dublin, that wouldn't be said in say galway or Cork and vice versa. You would need to be more specific on what part of Ireland you are basing your charcater from.
Basic examples of the Irish language are
Cónas áta tú - How are you and you would answer
Tá mé go maith - I am fine.
Slán leat - Goodbye
If you are intent on using correct irish in your book, I'd advise you not to write anything without asking on this website
www.irishgaelictranslator.com
This is a forum where people can ask fluent Irish speakers how to say sentences or words in irish. it is a very complicated language(I studied it every day for 14 years in school, and I struggle with it).Irish word order is different from English, and there are spellings and fádá's(fádá's are the the line above the a)to be entered correctly.
A few websites to help you out with the Tuatha Dé Dannann
www.boudicca.de/tuath-e
www.tuathadedanann.com
www.irishclans.com/articles/
tuathadedannan
www.shee-eire.com/Magic&Mythology/
Races/Tuatha-De-Danann
and to help with the fairies
www.irelandseye.com/
animation/intro
www.create.org/myth/fairy1
Our lifestyle is a lot more relaxed than the one in America, espically over the west coast of the country.but to understand this you would probably have to come over, I used to work in the tourism on the west coast of the country and a lot of Americans would tell me that they couldn't believe how slow, relaxed and chilled the way of life was. Be careful how you write about the Irish people aswell. A lot of Americans that claim to be Irish but have never been here, think we go around all day drinking pints of Guinness and eating corned beef.Only someone that has lived here from America could give you a straight answer about our way of life and habits. I will say though, that the Irish as a whole are a friendly people, with a great sense of humour. You could be sitting in a pub, and someone will just start singing or playing an instrument out of the blue, you dont seem to get that anywhere else.If you have any questions email me, its in my profile.

Answer 2

Hi, i'm irish. The Tuatha De Dannon apparently came from the Western Isles to Ireland many thousands of years ago and when they arrived they found the FIR BOLG, a monstrous race of people very cruel. The Tuatha De Dannon lead the men of Ireland with various magics aginst the Fir Bolg who were located in the North of the country. They won but the Tuatha De Dannon slowly faded over time and the land was left to the people in who the memory endured. The last scared remainder of the Tuatha De Dannon lived furtively in woodlands and these became the fairies (though some who took to mischief were leprechauns).
the Celtic lifestyle is dying rapidly under globalisation and the modernization of the country. But here and there in areas along the western coast it clings. These Gaeltacht areas are were irish is still spoken fluently but they are small enclaves rapidly fading away. It is a sad story. It is like and not like America. We have the same commercial attitude that saturates the Western World but we are more superstitious, more friendly and more honourable in our dealings in a strange sort of way. Cooruption is rife but happily accepted in the "its not what you know but WHO you know" atmosphere. We are dangerously fatalistic people which sometimes affects our relations with other peoples on an individual basis coz they dont understand our way sometimes. And of course there's the alcohol problems-we drink ALOT. Its easy to spend 100euros a night-too easy just on drink alone each person.
Women are cruel and spitelful to the men, the men are hardened and callous as a result (i'm hugely generalizng here you understand).
Anything else you just ask ok. But thats all i got time for at the minute.
Good luck.

Answer 3

If your trying to write a book about ireland do you not think that it would be better to come over here and experience irish life yourself...theres only so much that one can write back to you..youl only get the real irish experience if you experience it yourself...there are different common phrases dependent on what part of the country your from..lifestyle varies across cities as well as across county borders..how different is it frm america?come check it out yourself!

go n'eiri an t-abh leat..it means may the luck be with you..god knows i learnt irish for long enough..12yrs to be exact

Answer 4

I am a writer and I am Irish and you are going entirely the wrong way about this. Use the web to log into Irish radio stations and listen. Or get into those websites young people use to talk to each other across continents The only people who say things like "May the road rise to meet you" and "Top o'the morning, Paddy" are Americans who think they have an Irish background.

The first one comes from a blatent mis-translation of a veritable Irish phrase of goodwill " 'Go n-eiri an t-adh leat". Because Irish is such an ancient language (and it is NOT Germanic) you cannot translate it using a dictionary. You need to be able to speak Irish!

The phrase above could be mis-translated as "May the [road] rise with you" which is how the Americans did it when they mixed up 'ath' and 'adh' both pronounced "Aw" rhyming with 'raw'.

'eiri' taken in isolation means rise (as in get outa bed) but it also means 'increase' and 'improve' and 'go higher' and 'succeed'. So instead of 'the road rising to meet you' the Irish phrase actually means "May every venture you attempt succeed beyond your wildest dreams"

Irish is a language of superlatives. You have heard of "Ceád Míle Fáilte"? [prounounced Kade Meal-ah Fawl -thech]

The Irish would never say "Welcome" [Fáilte] when they can do a hundred [céad] thousand [míle] of them.

Answer 5

lets see, i lived in ireland for a bit and im up on the irish slang. any sca?, is a big one, sca is news in irish. also, hows the craic, craic means fun in irish. life isnt too too much different from america, i wasnt too badly culture shocked while living there, the houses are mostly cement like and are freezing inside in the winter and such so you sleep with a hot water bottle.. you know those rubber like things you pour hot water into also i ate tons of cadbury chocolate, almost every day at tea time (around 7/8 pm in my house)

Answer 6

Ah, to be sure, to be sure. Ireland is known as the Emerald Isle. It looks beautiful. And is one of the few locations in the world where the Gaelic language exists in a form that can be traced back to before Christ. I think Gaelic is one of the Germanic style of languages, but dont know which came first.

Answer 7

I can tell you that there is a common phrase called ":Irish Whisper", and it is when an irish person trys to tell a secret, but we talk so damned loud it gets heard by everyone!!!
Also ,in Ireland, you don't ask for a ride, because that is asking for sex, you ask for a lift (unless, of course, you want sex and not a lift)
French fries are chips.

Answer 8

Slantie!

Welcome/Cheers.

Answer 9

top of the mornin to ya! (good morning)
well whats the craic? (any gossip, hows things, etc)
cad é mar atá tú? (how are you?)
theres plenty more but theres a few to start ya off!

Answer 10

"Failte" Welcome
"Slainnte" Cheers
"Dia duit" Hello or god be with you
"Slan" Goodbye

"He'd put legs under a chicken" an old irish saying refering to someone who talks a lot.