I came across your site on the Yahoo Ireland portal. I recently got married
and I am looking for an Irish phrase related to love and/or marriage to
engrave on the inside of my wedding band. Would you have any suggestions
for a phrase or contact information for someone that would?

Any assistance would be appreciated. Thanks for your time and
consideration.

Chris,
Perhaps one of the most famous symbols associated with Ireland is the Claddagh ring(known to some as "the irish wedding band"). It stands for friendship, loyalty, and love (not necessarily in that order).

GRÁ DILSEAGHT CAIRDEAS = LOVE LOYALTY FRIENDSHIP

Riobárd

Gra' ma Chroi
`

THAT LOOKS LIKE A TYPO.
GRÁ MO CHROÍ

If its a large ring, how about
"Gráfaidh mé tú go dti scaradh le bás?"
Let me know it this is incorrect (Was to have been "I shall love you until death do us part, but I'm a novice at translation).

Liam: scaradh le bás would mean to separate from death.
What you wanted to write was "go scaradh an bás sinn."

I would suggest: "Beidh grá agam duit, go scaradh an bás sinn" or simpler: "Beidh grá go bás agam duit"

But generally I dislike translating set phrases in english (till death do us part) to Irish, since they usually sound odd. - Much the same as translating go n-eirí an bóthar leat as "May the road rise with you" (Although that one is just plain wrong!)

I like Roibéard's suggestion

Sliocht sleachta ar shliocht ár shleachta.

Hi there,
I am getting married soon and would like to have a nice Irish phrase engraved in Irish in my fiance's ring. I'm in a bit of a bind though as I don't speak Irish. Are there any stock phrases that are appropriate for this situation? Thank you in advance for your help! Please respond to or on this board. Thank you!
aj

For those of us who are not Irish speakers, what do the below mean?
Sliocht sleachta ar shliocht ár shleachta.
and
GRÁ MO CHROÍ

Thanks.

sliocht means your children
sleachta is the genitive case of sliocht. So it means may our children's children have children.
Usually we say sliocht sleachta ar sliocht bhur sleachta to the bride and groom.
grá mo chroí, means love of my heart.

Thanks!
Are there any differences between:
a ghrá mo chroí
and
grá mo chroí

They have different spelling - which is correct for Irish? And what does the "a" signify? Thank you again!

They are both technically correct. The "a" is the vocative particle and causes lenition with certain consonants only, such as:
b- > bh
c- > ch
d- > dh
f- > fh
g- > gh
m- > mh
p- > ph
s- > sh
t- > th

The consonants h, l, n and r are never lenited.

Larry

huh?

The vocative particle is the bit that lets you know that someone is being addressed and lenition means adding a H so that the pronunciation is changed. You know how in fairy stories, a king is addressed as "O King"? The O is the vocative particle. "Grá mo chroí" means "The love of my heart" and "A ghrá mo chroí" means "(O) Love of my heart."

So they're both correct, but used differently.

Thank you so much!!!!

So one could not say "A grá mo chroí"?

Thanks again!

That's correct. You would say "A ghrá mo chroí".

Sorry if I confused you, a chara :-)

Thanks everyone! You're awesome!!!
:-)

I am starting my own consulting business that will focus on communication skills, conflict management and strategic planning. Is there any Irish/Gaelic word or proverb or saint that would capture any of these? Thanks much for any suggestions!

I'm 15 years old and from Ohio. I'm not Irish but my friends call me a "wanna be Irish." I really want to learn the language... but it's rather hard to learn just on the net. Do you have any idea on books or cassette series or anything I could use? Remeber, I'm 15 so I don't have too much money to spend either.
You can e-mail me at

Thank you,
Kate

I am looking for the translation for "you and no other" in Old Irish for a posey ring. Can anyone help me?

My girlfriend/best friend recently gave me a ring with the inscription (bare with me if it is not totally correct) "Joz sans fyn or fyd". the card that came with it said it meant something like "the ring has no wealth but the love of the giver". I am trying to find out if that is correct and if not what the correct way to say it is or the correct spelling of the phrase on there now. If you know what I am looking for please email me at . I would appreciate any help that anyone has to offer. Thanks in advance.

Hey Chris ,

What about :

"A ghrádh geal mo Chroidhe"

means- the bright love of my heart

Hope this helps,

Hi. I need help. I just left a job for a promotion and the folks in the office gave me a fine gift and engraved upon it was the following:

Fear na mbo fein faoina heiraabaill

They wouldn't tell me what it meant and left it to me to find out. Can you help me out

John Bauer

For the ring why not use "mo spéirbhean" it is used commonly in irish literature meaning the most perfect woman ever.

Pól Ó hAnnagáin

My mother gave me a Claddagh way back and had it engraved, the message is appropriate for many relationships, and I believe the structure is proper.. she wrote:

I mo chroí go deo - In my heart forever.

Alan

I need some help. Seems that the Fiance and I have decided to have our wedding rings tatooed on our fingers ( yes, I did say tatooed!) We are having a hard time trying to find the Irish phrase for " Forever and a Day". Can anyone help with this?

John (Bauer), a chara,

The phrase 'Fear na mbo fein faoin heireaball' literally translates as 'The man who owns the cow under her tail'!! Doesnt really make much sense, so what this means, in English!, is that you shouldn't expect others to take care of you responsibilities. If a cow falls into a hole, the man who owns her has to take her out, or at least has to be under the heavy end (take responsibility) - if it's your cow you look after her; if it's your job you do it!

Tabhair aire,
Tracey

Dear Bill, (A Liam a chara),

Possibly... "Riamh 'is lá" or "Riamh agus lá" (Ever and a day)....?

Others may know better.

Ádh mór leat (Good luck),
Fintan

Bill,
Probably the best Irish translation for 'forever and a day' would be 'go deo na ndeor' (literally means till 'tears do us part').
Beir bua,
Tracey

I am getting married in a few weeks and like many here would like to engrave something inside my husband-to-be's ring. I am embarrassed to say that I have forgotten almost all of my gaeilge....is this correct or the best way of saying..."I will love you forever" "Beidh me in ngra leat go deo". (with fada over "e" in me and "a" in ngra)

Please respond to this page or to

I do hope somebody can help,
Sinead

Sinead, a chara,

Go Maire tú do shaol nua :-)

You could use "i gcónai" instead of "go deo" to mean I will be in love with you always.

Le dea-mhéin agus le meas,
Larry.