Handwriting Gaelic to English please

[macintosh]

Adrian perhaps you would be kind enough to transcribe the original text on the book cover in English, as there are some letters difficult to make out.

Regards
James

[GR2]

I have just looked out a 1905 Gaelic Bible and Psalm 37, verse 25 reads:

Bha mi og, agus a nis tha mi sean; gidheadh cha'n fhaca mi am firean air a threigsinn, agus a shliochd ag iarraidh arain.

Graham.

[RedMystic]

TX GR2 & others. Here I was hoping we had another bard in the family. Your help is much appreciated.

I did hear a native Irish speaker could converse fluently with a native Scots speaker though there are some differences in the endings and some basic words. They have a common structure and sound shape. Interestingly I met a Welsh speaker in the 70's who learnt English in the Royal Navy and on a courtesy visit to a French warship found he had no difficulty in having a fluent conversation with the Breton sailors in both their native languages; Welsh and Breton. They were both much surprised.

That is an interesting observation Dulaigh. I've learned something new today.

[macintosh]

Thanks Graham,

James

[Annie65115]

Off topic but with reference to the comments about Welsh and Breton -- Welsh, Cornish and Breton all come from the same root, and I can certainly see a lot of similar words in Welsh and Cornish.

[Dulaigh]

The original handwriting:-
Bha me oig agus tha mi nis shean. Chan fhaca mi firean air a threigoan agus a sliochd aig iairridh arain.
Modern Irish gaelic would be:-
Bhi me og agus anois ta me aosta ach ni fhaca me riamh an firean a threigean na a shliocht ag iarraidh a gcoda.

[RedMystic]

The original handwriting:-
Bha me oig agus tha mi nis shean. Chan fhaca mi firean air a threigoan agus a sliochd aig iairridh arain.
Modern Irish gaelic would be:-
Bhi me og agus anois ta me aosta ach ni fhaca me riamh an firean a threigean na a shliocht ag iarraidh a gcoda.

Interesting comparison Dulaigh. Can I assume they mean precisely the same?

I'm sad to say there are no Gaelic speakers left in the family branch that came to Canada, though I do recall some old drinking songs my grandpa taught me - much to my grandma's dismay. I wonder if they'll come in handy when I visit the Outer Hebrides this summer. 

[Kerryman]

I did hear a native Irish speaker could converse fluently with a native Scots speaker though there are some differences in the endings and some basic words. They have a common structure and sound shape. Interestingly I met a Welsh speaker in the 70's who learnt English in the Royal Navy and on a courtesy visit to a French warship found he had no difficulty in having a fluent conversation with the Breton sailors in both their native languages; Welsh and Breton. They were both much surprised.

Not sure that I fully agree on the Irish / Scots bit. The accent is very different, for a native Irish Gaelic speaker it is easier to understand written Scots Gaelic (SG) than the spoken version. Donegal Irish (NW Ireland) is closer to SG than any of the other Irish dialects. Anyway, the Scots are just an Irish tribe that left 15 or so centuries ago (Scotus= Irish in Middle Ages e.g. Johannes Duns Scotus Eriugena )
Breton and Cornish are closer than Breton and Welsh, Manx fits in also, but all, including Gaelic, share roots e.g. a river is  abhann  in Irish, abona in Old English, aven in Breton, awin in Manx.
My father was a fluent Irish speaker and years ago at a funeral in the Hebrides (Barra) had difficulty in conversing in Gaelic with an old man there. He did say that the guy had no teeth was not a help!
K.

[RedMystic]

He did say that the guy had no teeth was not a help!
K.

"no teeth" ... Too funny Kerryman.  TX for the insight though.

Just out of curiosity, I heard on the news today that the Queen spoke Irish at a function in Ireland yesterday. Would that be Irish Gaelic or something else?

Also, I heard that the census in the UK asked people to indicate if they understand and / or speak Scots. Would that be Gaelic or something else?