My daughter's best friend and long time irish dance partner has just moved away. As a gift we would like to send her a bracelet engraved in Irish with the sentiment "Keep on Dancing". Can anyone help us with this translation? My mom thought it was "fan i dar rinca" but she hasn't spoken Irish for 40 years and isn't sure.
Thanks so much,
Susan

I'm new at this stuff but here's what I can come up with.

Coinnigh damhsa

or

Coinnigh rince

This would translate "Keep Dancing". "Rince" is another word for "dance" or "dancing" that may be regional ie: Ulster vs Munster vs Connaught. (Note the spelling of rince vs your rinca. My guess is that the mis-spelling is a function of the pronunciation of "rince.")

"Fan" translates to "remain" or "stay" which, in a direct Irish to english sense could be interchangeable with "Keep" but not in this case (at least, not in my opinion).

The "i dar" is another area that I'm not completely convinced is accurate. "i" typically is seen as the preposition "in" but it may also represent the pronoun "she" or "her."

"dar" can mean several things but is usually a combination of two words "do" or "de" and "ar" but it can also mean "by". In any of these cases, I don't see how it fits with "fan" and "rince".

Rinc go deo May be another option which would translate "Dance Forever".

Hope this helps!

Le meas,

James

On second thought there may be some application for your Mom's phrase. I may not be translating correctly, but I would certainly defer to your mother's native recollection over my academic musings.

fan i dar rinca

or

Remain in our dancing

Although it doesn't roll very eloquently in its english translation, it does flow quite poetically in Irish and conveys the intended sentiment. (Keep dancing OUR style of dance)

I would be very curious to see what more seasoned speakers than I would have to say.

Le meas,

James

"Lean ort ag rince" a déarfainn.

Yeah I'm not so sure about Choinnigh in this context although God knows I'm no expert.

I preferred 'Fan 'and 'Lean' even more just by the sound cos it's along time since I learned my Irish.

But if I was asked for mo dhá pingin's worth I would go with

'Lean ar aghaidh ag rince'


alec

Frankly, I went with Coinnigh because it had a recognizable verbal ending. I fully agree that Fan and Lean are easier on the tongue, I just wasn't sure of the necessary verbal manipulation.

I certainly defer to both Dennis and Alec. They have a far better practical grasp of the language than do I.

Go with their suggestions.

Le meas,

James

I just encountered this quite incidentally today. I thought I would post it since it was a topic of recent discussion.

damhsa is more prevalent in Ulster

rince is associated with Munster and Connaught.

Just and FYI addendum.

Le meas,

James