Elena's Irish Language Quiz

A short and silly quiz in honor of my hardworking tutors and teachers along the way. Three questions, Irish into English, with multiple choice answers. Away you go.

1. Translate: Síleann fear na buíle gurb é féin fear na céille.
   A. Does a fear of bullies create a fear of cellos?
   B. A madman thinks himself sane.
   C. Whistling women and crowing hens always come to bad ends. Answer



2. Translate: Ar scáth a chéile a mhaireas na daoine.
   A. Scolding the flowers does not bring the turf home.
   B. Androids do not dream of electric sheep.
   C. People live in the shadow of each other. Answer



3. Is this a proper translation of this poem?

   Mise Raifteri an file, lán dóchais agus grádh
   le súilidh gan solus le ciúneas gan chrádh.
   Dul sias ar m'aistear le solus mo chroidhe,
   fann agus tuirseach go deireadh mo shlighe.
   Féach anois mé agus m'aghaidh ar bhalla
   ag seinnm ceóil do phócaidh falamh.

   I am a rafter, a son, lean duchess's grail,
   the pigs go alone, the horses like snail.
   Idle sirs of fair mister sun might think
   fine aged tearsacks his deer 'ead might shrink.
   To me years lie aghast, quite fearful of Baal,
   without cheese oil in pad thai falafel.

   A. This translation has nothing to do with the content.
   B. Dave Lombard's best guess.
   C. This poem is actually about a blind poet lamenting societal changes. Answer

Answers

1. Síleann fear na buíle gurb é féin fear na céille.
   B. A madman thinks himself sane.


2. Ar scáth a chéile a mhaireas na daoine.
   C. People live in the shadow of each other. (Less literally, people are social animals.)


3. Poem translation
   It's all true. Copyright for the translation belongs to Dave, and I have no idea how to locate him, so please don't reproduce this.

Elena O'Malley, elnom@aol.com. [Do not email me about products and services.] Updated: 3 August 2001