Bearing in mind that Irish was the main language in North Antrim and the Glens until 1860 and died out only recently, I found this 2009 survey write up a fascinating and insightful read. The survey write up was published by Pobal an Chaistil, who conducted the search. I really recommend it, read it here:

http://content.yudu.com/Library/A14u8q/SuirbhmrnaGaeilge/resources/index.htm?ref errerUrl=

Would love to hear your thoughts.

Here in Ballycastle, Co. Antrim we have our own Irish medium school catering to the area and I've noticed posters around the town for Irish lessons and there is an Irish paper Gaelsceal sold in the newsagents. Positive stuff I think. The language is being embraced it seems.

Would love however a revival of the Glens of Antrim dialect. Anyone have any info about this dialect and its linguistic intricacies?

Anyway post back any thoughts on survey/Irish in Antrim- would be very much appreciated!

http://rathlingaelic.blogspot.com/

http://content.yudu.com/Library/A14ln6/DosandDontsofGlensof/resources/index.htm?referrerUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.yudu.com%2Fitem%2Fdetails%2F37848%2F-Dos-and-Don-ts--of-Glens-of-Antrim-Irish

http://www.antrimhistory.net/content.php?cid=649

http://www.smo.uhi.ac.uk/~oduibhin/

Related threads:

http://www.daltai.com/discus/messages/13510/33483.html
http://www.daltai.com/discus/messages/13510/42919.html
http://www.daltai.com/discus/messages/13510/44680.html

The user Ggn (aka 'Gaelgannaire') is really into the east Ulster Irish dialect(s). Good luck!

(Message edited by Danny2007 on July 15, 2010)

Antóin, Contact the Glens of Antrim Historical Society fro a numbner for Brian MacLochlainn a fluent speaker of Scots Gaelic and of Antrim Irish he's very knowledgeable about Rathlin Irish.

Does and Don’ts in Glens Irish

Ní > Cha
Bhfuil > bhfeil
bígí > bíbh
déanaim > ním
achan > gach / gach uile
Gaeilge > Gaelc
Cailín > Cailean
Teach > Toigh / Taigh
Buachaill > balach

 Words like beannacht, bean etc are pronounced as if written byean and byeannacht

 ‘ch’ is often extremely weak if pronounced at all

 Final –amh is often just like –a like in Conamara.

 Broad mh & bh are pronounced like a ‘v’ sound rather thán like a ‘w’ sound

 Words like deas are pronounced like ‘djes’ rather thán like ‘djas’


Antrim Basic Phrases


Sé do bheatha
Welcome

Dia libh anseo
God be with those here.

Goidé mar atá tú?
How are you?

Goidé an dóigh atá ort?
How are you?

Goidé an chuma atá ort?
How are you?

Tá mé / sinne go maith
I / We are well

Tá mé (díreach) drotara*
I am (just) alright

’bhfeil Gaelc agat?
Do you have Irish?

Tá
Yes
Chan fheil ach rud beag
I have only a little

Tuigim go maith
I understand well

Tuigeann tú go glé mhaith / go breagha
I understand very well

Goidé an t-ainm* atá ort?
What is your name?

Goidé a shaoileas tú don aimsir* seo
What do you think of this weather

Tá an lá seo giobach
This is a rough day

Cá as duit?
Where are you form

Beannacht leat
good bye

Sabháilt* ’un abhaile dhuit
Safe home to you

Oíche mhaith (pron. mhath)
Good night


More Antrim Words and Phrases*

Chan fheil athrach agam air
I cannot help it

Corraigh (pron. Caruigh) ort
hurry up

Go tric*
often

frithir
sore

fuirigh seal beag
wait a wee while


Resources :

Dogen Records 1931, (Brian Mac Amhlaidh, Micheál Mac Thiarnáin).

HOLMER (Nils M.): On some relics of the Irish dialect spoken in the Glens of Antrim (with an attempt toward the reconstruction of northeastern Irish).
Upsala: Lundequistska Bokh.; Leipzip: Harrassowitz, 1940. 133 pp. (= Uppsala Universitets arsskrift 1940, 7)

Seanchas Ghlinntí Aontroma (Pobal an Chaistil, 2008)

http://www.smo.uhi.ac.uk/~oduibhin/
www.nuacht.com > click “An Ghaeilge: Teanga Náisiúnta na hÉireann”, you can there hear some Antrim Irish, ‘Oisín i ndiaidh na Féinne’, recited by Brian Mhac Amhlaoibh, Cluain Riabhach, Gleann Airimh
Tuathail, Éamonn Ó: "Ortha ó Chonntae Aondroma", Béaloideas 2:1 (1929) 95-6 (Ls., Bun Abhann Dalla).
Watson, Seosamh, "Séamus Ó Duilearga's Antrim Notebooks - I: Texts", Zeitschrift für Celtische Philologie 40 (1984) 74-117.
____: "Séamus Ó Duilearga's Antrim Notebooks - II: Language", Zeitschrift für Celtische Philologie 42 (1987) 138-218.
____: "Séamus Ó Duilearga's Co Antrim Notebooks", Éigse 20 (1984-5) 187-211.
____: "Seanchas Ghlinntí Aontrama - 1", An tUltach 66:1 (1/1989) 9-11.
____: "Béaloideas", An tUltach 66:10 (10/1989) 9-10.
Scottish Gaelic & Antrim Irish
A talk by Brian MacLochlainn a fluent speaker of both Scottish Gaelic and Antrim Irish on the influences these have had on colloquailisms and dialect of Co. Antrim (in particular Rathlin Island & The Glens of Antrim) up to the late 19th or early 20th century.
http://www.antrimhistory.net/content.php?cid=649

Ba cheart go mbeadh Seanchas Ghlinntí Aontroma (Pobal an Chaistil, 2008) ar fáil go furasta i mBaile an Chaistil, tá sé iontach úsáideach agus tá seanchas deas ann chomh maith.

Cha is not only used in the Glens but also everywhere in Northern Donegal.
Ním (should be spelt ghní(o)m) is used throughout Ulster as the independent form (the dependent remains déanam or téanam).

quote:

Would love however a revival of the Glens of Antrim dialect. Anyone have any info about this dialect and its linguistic intricacies?

The book mentioned by Ggn is the reference for the Glens' dialect:

HOLMER (Nils M.): On some relics of the Irish dialect spoken in the Glens of Antrim

It would be nice if the people of that area tried to speak it again, but for that it should be taught (and what is taught in Ireland except standard Irish?), and books etc should be available. Now there are not many resources so you have to be motivated to find these resources and to try to speak that way. But it's possible!

chuala mé go bhfuil fear darb ainm black? ann fós sá aontromá agus 's cainteoir duchásach é. Chualás cómáith go mbeadh se leáth fluirseach o thaobh dí. Fuair amach an t-eolas sin sá idirlínn mé.

Cainteoir duchais Ghaeilg Aontroma sa la ata inniu ann? Ni chreidim sin, ba bheag cainteoir duchais sa cheantar sin i dtus an 20u haois cheana féin.

Is féidir go bhfuil cainteoir duchais as Oilean Reachlainne go foill (muna bhfuair sé bas o chualaidh mé an scéal sin!), is é sin an duine deireanach.

Maidir leis na Glinnti, is doigh liom gur fada o fuair an cainteoir deireanach bas.

feicfidh mé i ndiadh an násc sa idirlínn agus cuir me ar an suoimh sin muna gheobahigh me é. Chualás ar dtús go cur an deiridh cainteoir duchasach i deag sa 70's, bean a bhi i gceist, ach fuair me amach an t-eloas sin breise le dearnai. Nilim cinnte go mbeadh sé fior na breagach.

http://content.yudu.com/Library/A14skv/RathlinIrishGaelicPh/resources/index.htm? referrerUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.it%2Fsearch%3Fq%3Drathlin%2Bisland%2Birish%2 Bholmer%26hl%3Dit%26rls%3Dcom.microsoft%253Ait%253AIE-SearchBox%26rlz%3D1I7ADFA_ it%26sa%3D2

Some Raghery phrases.

The Irish language in Rathlin Island

http://www.archive.org/stream/toddlectureserie18royauoft/toddlectureserie18royau oft_djvu.txt

It is corrupted but people may be able to get something out of it.

The Rathlin Catehism

http://www.reference-global.com/doi/abs/10.1515/zcph.1

http://www.archive.org/details/toddlectureserie18royauoft

You can download the full text of the Irish language in Rathlin through the above link.

Last native speaker of Rathlin Irish was still alive in 2005 and 90 years old called Alex Morrison. The link is here
http://www.talkingscot.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=2416