POSTS
Gur e m’ anam is m’ eudail
It was my love and my treasure
Short post…sentimental post. Over the past couple years I’ve neglected my love of Gaelic music. I got this love from my Mom who dabbled in learning Gaelic a bit. I remember singing along with some Gaelic songs trying to memorize what the lyrics mean while in high school, college and grad school–out of view of most people haha! My vocabulary is limited to what I learned through the music and I’m sure my pronunciation is pretty poor, but I’m slowly finding my passion for this music again.
Digging around Youtube I came across Julie Fowlis and posted one of her songs that I absolutely love. It’s a love song. A friend asked about the lyrics…haha, I had to use google translate for most of it to concoct the rough translation, then dug around Julie’s site and found the actual lyrics, they are posted below in Gaelic then English.
I love re-discovering parts of me that were lost in the fray of life.
I love re-discovering love.
My source for this is: www.juliefowlis.com/songs
The youtube video where you can actually hear the song if you aren’t one of my ‘facebook friends’ is: http://youtu.be/ez1O5swf1IM
Bothan Àirigh am Bràigh Raithneach (A sheiling on the Braes of Rannoch)
Gur e m’ anam is m’ eudail
chaidh an-dè do Ghleann Garadh:
fear na gruaig’ mar an t-òr
is na pòig air bhlas meala.
O hi ò o hu ò, o hi ò o hu ò,
Hi rì ri ò hu eile
O hì ri ri ri ò gheallaibh ò
Is tu as fheàrr don tig deise
de na sheasadh air thalamh;
is tu as fheàrr don tig culaidh
de na chunna mi dh’ fhearaibh.
Is tu as fheàrr don tig osan
is bròg shocrach nam barrall:
còta Lunnainneach dubh-ghorm,
is bidh na crùintean ga cheannach.
An uair a ruigeadh tu ‘n fhèill
is e mo ghèar-sa a thig dhachaigh;
mo chriosan is mo chìre
is mo stìomag chaol cheangail.
Thig mo chrios à Dùn Eideann
is mo bhrèid à Dùn Chailleann,
gheibh sinn crodh as a’ Mhaorainn
agus caoraich à Gallaibh.
Is ann a bhios sinn ‘gan àrach
air àirigh am Bràigh Raithneach.
ann am bòthan an t-sùgraidh
is gur e bu dùnadh dha barrach.
Bhiodh a’ chuthag ‘s an smùdan
a’ gabhail ciùil duinn air chrannaibh;
bhiodh an damh donn ‘s a bhùireadh
gar dùsgadh sa mhadainn.
It was my love and my treasure
who went yesterday to Glengarry,
the man with hair like gold
and kisses that taste of honey.
You suit your clothes
better than any man on earth;
you look better in your garments
than any man I’ve ever seen.
You look better in stockings
and comfortable laced shoes,
a dark blue London coat
that cost many crowns to buy.
When you arrive at the fair,
you’ll bring my gear,
my small belt and my comb
and my little narrow fastening
head-band.
My belt will come from Edinburgh
and my marriage head-dress from
Dunkeld,
we’ll get cattle from the Mearns
and sheep from Caithness.
And we’ll rear them in a sheiling
in Bràigh Raithneach,
in the brush-wood enclosed hut of
dalliance.
The cuckoo will sing
its song to us from the trees,
the brown stag and its roaring
will wake us in the morning.