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I can search a rainbow...
Jun. 12th, 2013 09:29 pmYesterday, someone wanted to know how to say "rainbow", meaning "of many colours", in Old Irish. Someone else suggested "dathannach", meaning colourful.
My Irish is terrible, and I know no Old Irish, but given the name "the Many Coloured Land", I felt there had to be something more colourful than "colourful".
A couple of searches later (very important to exclude Julian May if you don't want the results filled with her book!), I had the word "ildathach" as another name for Tir na nÓg. Another quick search confirmed it meant multicoloured in Modern Irish, as well as variegated and iridescent. The Many Coloured *Land* is presumably *Tír* Ildathach.
But was "ildathach" used in Old Irish? Luckily, there's increasing numbers of old documents online. I quickly found a transciption of Togail Bruidne Da Derga, an Old Irish text, from around 600 to 900CE. It has the line "At- chíu a brat n-derg n-ildathach nóthech siric srethchise." I don't know what that means*, except for ildathach, but it shows the word was used, and I judge it very unlikely to have a different meaning.
During my searches, I coincidentally came across a children's book translated into Modern Irish. In English, it's called The Rainbow Fish. In Irish, An T-Iasc Ildathach. Evidence that ildathach is the appropriate choice for the asker's use of "rainbow".
Hmm... while going back to the transcription to write this post, I noticed "illdathaig" a few lines below "ildathach". "scáthderc sceo deilb illdathaig." I suppose that's an alternative spelling. *does NOT add "understanding Old Irish texts" to to-do list*
*I can guess that "brat" is the clothing. And derg might be red, but red multicoloured? A brat of many shades of red, perhaps? *thinks madder thoughts*
My Irish is terrible, and I know no Old Irish, but given the name "the Many Coloured Land", I felt there had to be something more colourful than "colourful".
A couple of searches later (very important to exclude Julian May if you don't want the results filled with her book!), I had the word "ildathach" as another name for Tir na nÓg. Another quick search confirmed it meant multicoloured in Modern Irish, as well as variegated and iridescent. The Many Coloured *Land* is presumably *Tír* Ildathach.
But was "ildathach" used in Old Irish? Luckily, there's increasing numbers of old documents online. I quickly found a transciption of Togail Bruidne Da Derga, an Old Irish text, from around 600 to 900CE. It has the line "At- chíu a brat n-derg n-ildathach nóthech siric srethchise." I don't know what that means*, except for ildathach, but it shows the word was used, and I judge it very unlikely to have a different meaning.
During my searches, I coincidentally came across a children's book translated into Modern Irish. In English, it's called The Rainbow Fish. In Irish, An T-Iasc Ildathach. Evidence that ildathach is the appropriate choice for the asker's use of "rainbow".
Hmm... while going back to the transcription to write this post, I noticed "illdathaig" a few lines below "ildathach". "scáthderc sceo deilb illdathaig." I suppose that's an alternative spelling. *does NOT add "understanding Old Irish texts" to to-do list*
*I can guess that "brat" is the clothing. And derg might be red, but red multicoloured? A brat of many shades of red, perhaps? *thinks madder thoughts*
