Let's try this again. Thank you, Lughaidh, for the international Phonetic alphabet translation of "Be Thou My Vision." What I need, however, is something akin to Bí sounds like Be. I'm only learning to read gaelic and I don't have any experience with the international phonetic alphabet. My only Linguistics course in college left me in dread of Chomsky. Please, pretty please, is there anyone out there who can give me an approximation of how the gaelic words to this song would sound to an english speaking reader?
Original Message:
My neice and I want to sing the old gaelic hymn, "Be Thou My Vision,"at a program that we are doing. We would like to use the following gaelic version, but although we are beginning to try to learn gaelic, we are unsure of our pronunciation and would appreciate it if someone could give us a phonetic pronunciation of the gaelic hymn below:
Bí Thusa mo shúile a Rí mhór na ndúil
Líon Thusa mo bheatha, mo chéadfaí 's mo stuaim
Bí Thusa i m'aigne gach oíche 's gach lá
Im chodladh nó im dhúiseacht líon mé le do grá

Bí Thusa mo threorú i mbriathar is i mbeart
Fan Thusa go deo liom is coinnigh mé ceart
Glac cúram mar Athair is éist le mo ghuí
Is tabhair domhsa áit cónaí istigh i do chroí
Thanks, Kathleen

I've been getting a lot of help from Aonghus' recordings of the stories from Anseo 's Ansiúd. Perhaps he can be persuaded to record Bí Thusa for us and to post the link here.

I was thinking of that. But I'm squatting on Cionadh's webspace.

I don't suppose he'll object too much.

I've uploaded it as BiThusa.mp3



http://aia.gaeilge.org/audiofiles/BiThusa.mp3


Hope it helps.

BTW, I stumbled over the line "Glac cúram mar Athair is éist le mo ghuí" - I'll fix it when I get a chance.

OK Kathleen, but it'll probably get me thrown off this board! Please ONLY use this as an aid to following the beautiful Irish in Aonghus's mp3 file. Nach álainn an blas atá aige agus é ag caint as Gaeilge?

Right. Ar aghaidh linn:

Bee husa muh shule a ree vor na nool
leeon husa muh vaha, muh (k)haedfee s my stooim
Bee husa i m'agna gach eeha 's gach la
Im kuhlah noo im gushacht leeon may leh doh graw

Bee husa muh hrowrhoo i mreehar iss im byart
Fawn husa guh dyo lum is cinnig may cyart
Glac cooram mar aher is eysht leh muh gwee
Is toor dumsah ayt cownee ishtig i duh cree

Aonghus - ta brón orm...

Scríobh Aonghus:

>>I was thinking of that. But I'm squatting on
>>Cionadh's webspace.
>>
>>I don't suppose he'll object too much.

Not a problem, though its presence might confuse folks who're looking for AIA audio files. I might move it & give you a different directory for such odds & ends -- if I do, I'll let folks here know about the new location.

Le meas,
Cionaodh

Again:

Ok:
- KH = guttural German ch or Spanish j
- çh = h in England English "huge", "Hugh", German ch in "ich"
- GH = g-sound, leaving the breath going out (Modern Greek gamma, Spanish g in "pagar", a bit like French r)
- aa = long a
- trill the r's as in Scottish, Spanish, Italian...
- R' kind of palatalized one-tap r, sounds a bit like z

Bee hiss-huh moh hoo-lih, uh ree wore nuh nool
lyeen hiss-huh moh vah-huh, moh çhayt-fwee smoh stoo-im
bee hiss-huh ih mag-new gaKH ee-çhih skaKH laa
im KHoh-loo no im GHoo-shaKHt lyeen meh leh doh GHraa

bee hiss-huh moh h-R'aw-roo ih mree-uh-hur iss ih mart
fann hiss-huh guh d-yaw lamm iss koh-nyee meh kyart
glack koo-rum mor ah-hiR' iss aysh-ch leh moh GHee
iss tawR' doo-suh aach kaw-nee uh-stee ih doh CHree

Kathleen, I've listened to Aonghus' recording of your prayer; it isn't perfectly pronounced, there are mistakes.


Please ONLY use this as an aid to following the beautiful Irish in Aonghus's mp3 file.

Ditto.

Nach álainn an blas atá aige agus é ag caint as Gaeilge?

Níl sé álainn, go díreach.

Right. Ar aghaidh linn:

Your transcription isn't good. If you do pronounce like that, it means that you even don't master the basic sounds and rules of Irish pronounciation. Brón orm.

Could someone explain "domsa" vs "domhsa" --that seems to be the main pronunciation disagreement here. Are they both acceptable emphasis forms of "dom" ??

Yes, but one is more correct according to the written standard.

Domh is what we say in Donegal Irish (and you can write it if you want but it isn't standard spelling). Dom is the standard spelling. In Munster they say dom or dhom, and in Connemara, mostly dhom, i think.

I've been wanting to learn gaelic but don't know where to start. I would really appreciate any help finding books or programs to learn.

Dia dhaoibh;

I've moved Aonghus' "BiThusa.mp3" file to a new directory:
http://aia.gaeilge.org/religious/

Aonghus, you're very welcome to upload similar items there.

Le meas,
Cionaodh

Well, I knew the more erudite would not like it. Kathleen, did it help? Ar chor ar bith?
For the record, mine is Munster Irish. And I don't talk like that - I was trying to help someone who doesn't read phonetics.

Le meas mór, Conrad