This is a thread for the songs and poems published with Sliabh na mBan bhFionn and
Cúán Fithise when they first appeared as a pamphlet. The idea is to write up a similar set of
notes as for Sliabh na mBan bhFionn as found in the thread:
http://irishlearner.awyr.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=2022

Anybody who would like to join in is welcome! The complete set of notes for Bó na Leathadhairce
will be up early tomorrow.

_________________
The dialect I use is Cork Irish.
Ar sgáth a chéile a mhairid na daoine, lag agus láidir, uasal is íseal

Go raibh míle maith agat, a Loin Dhuibh!

I'm rarin' to go!

Dia dhuit, a Loin Dhuibh!

I started working on Bó na Leath-Adhairce yesterday and I've got a general sort of question.

Bó, bó, is í an tseana-chaora adharcach
Okay, the song is about a sheep, not a cow, so why do they say bó? Is that a way of saying "female sheep"?

Oh, by the way, I noticed that the word caora is actually pronounced caíora – does a more phonetic spelling than "caora" exist? If there is one, I'd rather use the more phonetic spelling.

I may regret asking this... but do Irish ewes have horns?
Neither do cows afaik.


I read somewhere that the song is about a póitín still. The horn being the worm.

_________________
___________________________________________________________

It is recommended that you always wait for three to agree on a translation.
I speak Connemara Irish, and my input will often reflect that.
I will do an mp3 file on request for short translations.
___________________________________________________________

I don't know anything about sheep, but there is a strathspey called "The Ewe Wi' The Crooked Horn", so I always assumed that at least some kinds of ewes must have horns – or could "The Ewe Wi' The Crooked Horn" also be a song about a still?

I think I've seen cows with horns before, but alas, I don't really know anything about kine either

What's the connection between a póitín still and a worm? I'm assuming from your comment, a Bhríd, that there must be some part of a still that is called a "worm", right? I've pored over this song pretty thoroughly for the past couple o' days and I can't really see how it has anything to do with a still. Maybe I'm just not understanding the code.

The worm is the copper piping where the póitín mixture condenses.
It's usually or often a spiral, so maybe curved like a ram's horn.

I could be so totally wrong about the connection with the song. Just somebody mentioned it on another forum.
So I'm sorry if I have taken the topic in the wrong direction.

_________________
___________________________________________________________

It is recommended that you always wait for three to agree on a translation.
I speak Connemara Irish, and my input will often reflect that.
I will do an mp3 file on request for short translations.
___________________________________________________________

This thread isn't going in the wrong direction at all. I think it's good that you mentioned something that you've read about this song, even if it turns out not to be right. I know it's not your own personal theory – it's just something that you happened to read somewhere.

I'm usually very cautious about songs that allegedly have hidden meanings, unless there is reasonably good evidence to back up the claim. The myths about "Puff the Magic Dragon" are a good example of why it's generally good to be cautious.

Bríd is right, the song is actually about a Poitín still and the money the owner makes from it.
In the preliminary version of the notes I sent you, I didn't explain the background of the song, which
I'm adding in now.

I should, finally, be able to upload files to ILF tomorrow, after a month of not being able to, so the notes
will hopefully be up then for all to see!

_________________
The dialect I use is Cork Irish.
Ar sgáth a chéile a mhairid na daoine, lag agus láidir, uasal is íseal

Okay Lon Dubh, if you and Bríd are both sure about this, then it must be true! I'm sure you wouldn't be saying this unless you've found good evidence to support this hidden message theory. I haven't done any research into this at all; I just couldn't tell from the lyrics that the song has anything to do with poitín.

Maybe all of this could be related to my original "cow and sheep" question

Are you trying to tell us that there never was a magic dragon who lived by the sea?

_________________
Táim ag foghlaim fós. Fáilte roimh gach aon cheartúchán.