I wonder if you could help me understand the following from "An Odaisé" in Irish (aistritheoir: Monsignor Pádraig de Brún). De Brún wrote in the Munster dialect.

In particular, what does “beam” mean.

I am trying to reconcile the following two passages. The first is de Bruin’s translation from Greek into Irish.

“Duine gan mheabhair is gan mhaith, mar mheasaim, an té sin do chuirfeadh slán chun treise na géag faoin bhfear sin a thug sa gcoigrích dó fáilte agus féile; nach amhlaidh a dhúnfadh na dúileanna air féin leis? Pé fear eile gur mian leis, ní dhiúltaím treis ná ní scorn liom, ach geobhfad síos ar an bpáirc leis is beam á fhéachaint le chéile.”


The second is Samuel Butler’s Greek into English:



“At least I do not think it a prudent or a sensible thing for a guest to challenge his host's family at any game, especially when he is in a foreign country. He will cut the ground from under his own feet if he does; but I make no exception as regards any one else, for I want to have the matter out and know which is the best man.”

Beidh muid, I think.

'geobhfad síos ar an bpáirc leis is beam á fhéachaint le chéile'

I'm not sure of the idiom 'á fhéachaint le chéile' but given the Englsih I assume he means something like we'll have it out.

Google throws up this:

http://www.clgnagaeltachta.com/nuacht.html

Beidh an dá fhoireann fé 16 is fearr sa chontae, sinn féin agus An Daingean, á fhéachaint le chéile i Roinn 1 de shraith an chontae tráthnóna inniu, an 10 Lúnasa, i bPáirc an Ághasaigh ag a 7.30.

So, competing!

FWIW, Art Hughes' 'Leabhar Mór Bhriathra na Gaeilge' includes 'beam' as an alternative to 'beimíd'.

FWIW, Art Hughes' 'Leabhar Mór Bhriathra na Gaeilge' includes 'beam' as an alternative to 'beimíd'.

Sorry for the double post - odd!

(Message edited by obuadhaigh on August 18, 2011)

(Message edited by obuadhaigh on August 18, 2011)

Yeah, beam = we will be. But it's a literary form, I don't think anybody would use it in speech nowadays.

Go raibh maith agaibh, tá mé buíoch díbh as do chúnamh!

quote:

But it's a literary form, I don't think anybody would use it in speech nowadays.

Cloistear ó dheas fós é.

Ca hait agus ca huair? Bhi muinteoiri agam (as Dun Chaoin agus as Cuil Aodha) a d'urt liom nach ndéarfai ach "beimid" anois, mas buan mo chuimhne.

Go hannamh, i gCorca Dhuibhne & ar an raidió.

I found this interesting: one phrase in "An Odaisé" is translated to English as "downy beds," "good beds," or "love at night," while de Brún translates it as "ardaoibhneas na seirce."

Whatever about the other two, "downy beds" seems to me a very euphemistic metaphor indeed for "ardaoibhneas na seirce."

Rath na raithní, seans? ;-)

(English tends to more prudish than Irish, even when the Irish is being written by a cleric!)

And Irish seems to be often on the verge of a double entendre!