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09/07/2012

Tha litir bheag na seachdain aig Ruaraidh MacIllEathain.
This week's short letter for learners is introduced by Ruaraidh MacLean.

3 minutes

Last on

Mon 9 Jul 2012 19:00

Clip

An Litir Bheag 374

An t-seachdain sa chaidh bha mi a’ bruidhinn mu Tannochbrae, Balamory agus Glendarroch. ’S iad trì àiteachan ficseanail air prògraman telebhisein Albannach. Tha na h-ainmean uile Gàidhlig no leth-Ghàidhlig.

            Tha Balamory a’ riochdachadh Baile Mhoire. Tha e stèidhichte air Tobermory, no Tobar Mhoire, ann am Muile. Agus chan eil e uile-gu-lèir ficseanail. Tha Balmory ann an Eilean Bhòid.

            Tha am facal cill(e) uaireannan ceangailte ri Moire. Tha mòran àiteachan air a bheil Cille Mhoire – Kilmory no Kilmuir ann am Beurla. Tha iad eadar An t-Eilean Sgitheanach agus Siorrachd Àir. Tha a’ chuid as motha aca ann an Earra-Ghàidheal.

            Bha Glendarroch anns a’ phrògram Take the High Road. Bha am filmeadh air a dhèanamh ann an Lus, taobh Loch Laomainn. Tha Glendarroch a’ tighinn bho Gleann Darach “glen of oaks”.

            Cha tuirt mi càil air dà phrògram eile air an telebhisean – Hamish MacBeth agus Monarch of the Glen. Bha Hamish MacBeth stèidhichte ann an Lochdubh. ’S e sin deagh ainm Gàidhlig! Agus chruthaich Compton MacCoinnich àite macmeanmnach air an robh Glenbogle. Bha sin airson a nobhail Monarch of the Glen. Tha e às a’ Ghàidhlig, ach chan eil fhios agam dè tha e a’ ciallachadh. “Gleann na Boglaich” ’s dòcha?

            Tha teachdaireachd an seo, nach eil? Ma tha sibh airson ainm baile a chruthachadh a tha aithnichte mar “Albannach”, dèanaibh cinnteach gu bheil e stèidhichte air a’ Ghàidhlig!

            Ach a bheil sin fìor anns na bailtean mòra? Tha River City stèidhichte ann an Glaschu. Chruthaich iad ainm sgìre airson a’ phrògraim – Shieldinch. Chanainn gu bheil a’ chiad phàirt bhon t-seann Bheurla, a’ ciallachadh “bothain aig iasgairean”. Agus an dàrna pàirt? “Riverine meadow” à Gàidhlig no Breatannais.

            Agus dè mu na caractaran cartùin, na Broons agus Oor Wullie? Airson iomadach bliadhna, cha robh iad ag ainmeachadh a’ bhaile aca. Anns na naochadan, ge-tà, thàinig an t-ainm a-mach – Auchenshoogle. Ainm Gàidhlig – Achadh an t-Seagail “field of the rye”.

            Sin Tannochbrae, Balamory, Glendarroch, Lochdubh, Glenbogle, Shieldinch agus Auchenshoogle. Tha iad coltach ris na h-ainmean a bhiodh tu a’ leughadh air botail uisge-bheatha!

The Little Letter 374

Last week I was talking about Tannochbrae, Balamory and Glendarroch. They are three fictional places in Scottish television programmes. The names are all Gaelic or semi-Gaelic.

        Balamory represents Baile Mhoire. It’s based on Tobermory, or Tobar Mhoire, in Mull. And it’s not entirely fictional. There is a Balmory in Bute.

        The word cill(e) is sometimes linked to Moire. There are many places called Cille Mhoire – Kilmory or Kilmuir in English. They are between Skye and Ayrshire. Most of them are in Argyll.

        Glendarroch was in the programme Take the High Road. The filming was done in Luss, by Loch Lomond. Glendarroch comes from Gleann Darach “glen of oaks”.

        I haven’t said anything about two other programmes on television – Hamish MacBeth and Monarch of the Glen. Hamish MacBeth was based in Lochdubh. That’s a good Gaelic name! And Compton MacKenzie created an imaginary place called Glenbogle. That was for his novel Monarch of the Glen. It comes from Gaelic but I don’t know what it means. “Glen of the Bog” perhaps?

        There’s a message here, isn’t there? If you want to create the name of a village that is recognised as “Scottish”, make sure it’s based on Gaelic!

        But is that true in the cities? River City is based in Glasgow. They created an area name for the programme – Shieldinch. I’d say that the first part is from old English, meaning “fishermen’s bothies”. And the second part? “Riverine meadow” from Gaelic or British [Cumbric].

       And what about the cartoon characters, The Broons and Oor Wullie? For many years they weren’t naming their town. In the nineties, however, the name came out – Auchenshoogle. A Gaelic name – Achadh an t-Seagail “field of the rye”.

            That’s Tannochbrae, Bala-mory, Glendarroch, Lochdubh, Glenbogle, Shieldinch and Auchen-shoogle. They’re like the names you’d read on whisky bottles!

Broadcast

  • Mon 9 Jul 2012 19:00

All the letters

Tha gach Litir Bheag an seo / All the Little Letters are here.

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The Little Letter for Gaelic Learners

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