Hello all,

Could you help me with the pronunciation of the following words and names, please?

béaloideas
seanchas
dinnsheanchas
bean an leasa

Gaeltacht
Corca Dhuibhne
Cahiratrant
Táin

Mór
Maeve
Medb
Donncha Di

Máire Mhac an tSaoi
Seán Ó Ríordáin
Medb Mc Guckian
Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin
Máirtín Ó Direáin

Thanks a lot!

I'll give you the pronounciation in Donegal dialect... have to choose one since there isn't any real standard pronounciation, and Donegal dialect is mine so it's the one I best know !

For English transcriptions, KH = guttural German Ach-Laut or Spanish j. GH = kinda g-sound (as in "go") but you let the air going out between your tongue and your palate instead of stopping it as in normal g).

béaloideas -> [b´eːlˠɔdʲəsˠ] (bay-lodjuss)
seanchas -> [ʃanˠəχəsˠ] (shah-nuh-KHuss)
dinnsheanchas -> [dʲɪɲhanˠəχəsˠ] (djinn-hah-nuh-KHuss)
bean an leasa -> [b´anˠ ə λasˠə] (bann uh lyah-ssuh)

Gaeltacht -> [gˠɛːl̪t̪ˠɑr̥t̪ˠ] (gayl-taKHt)
Corca Dhuibhne [kˠɔrkˠə ɣiːnɪ] in the local pronounciation, as far as I know. (korr-kuh GHee-nih)
Cahiratrant -> as in English, it is the English spelling of an Irish placename...
Táin -> [t̪ˠæːn] (taah-n, aah is for a long open a as in English "bad")

Mór -> [moːɾ] ("more", with a one-tap alveolar r)
Maeve -> [m´eːw] ("may-oo") for the Irish name Méa(dh)bh. But you may pronounce Maeve as it is spelt because it is English spelling.
Medb -> [m´ɛðβ] ( quite like "mehthe-uv")
Donncha Di -> what is "di" ? doesn't look Irish. Are you sure there isn't somethin missing? Donncha is [d̪ˠɔn̪ˠəχə] (doh-nuh-KHuh)

Máire Mhac an tSaoi -> [mʷæːjɪ wɑkˠ ə t̪ˠiː] (mway-yih wack uh tee)
Seán Ó Ríordáin -> [ʃæːnˠ o ˈriːrd̪ˠan] (shane oh reer-dann)
Medb Mc Guckian -> see above for Medb. Mc Guckian is English spelling so pronounce it as if it were English
Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin -> [ɛlɛnˠ ɲiː χʌλanˠan] (ellen nee KHull-yah-nann)
Máirtín Ó Direáin -> [mʷæːɼtʲin o ˈdʲɪɼan] (mwayr-cheen oh djih-yann).

Thank you, Lughaidh! It helped a lot.

A Shibel, a chara,

Just wanted to point out that if you're talking about the poet Medbh McGuckian, there's an "h" in her first name. It was probably just a typo, but she's a poet I like quite a bit, so I thought I'd mention it. :)

Ádh mór ort!

/mα:rt∫i:n’ dʒi:r’α:n’/ mar is Árainneach é :)

Abair [ˈmʷɑːɼtʃiːn ə ˈdʒiːɼɑːn] san fhoghraíocht ;-)

Máirtín Ó Direáin

Rinne mé dearmad ar 'ó' :((