161. Learn Irish – Fairytale of NY lyrics

Síscéal Nua Eabhrac

Though it is MUCH better to listen to Fred and Ger  singing the song and imitating them, these approximations of pronunciations may help some people who want to learn more of the language.

BTW If you are a complete beginner and want to learn a simple way to read and speak the Irish language, please explore: https://ancroiait.wordpress.com/2012/01/04/learn-irish-lesson-1/

Here’s how I arranged each line of the song in four parts

Line 1: Correct Irish

Line 2: Approximate sound

Line 3. Word for word translation

Line 4. Translation

Note: Something to learn from this line

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Before you begin, please note: ch is a gentle short gargling sound unless it’s written as tch below.

G and C are always hard sounds (never j or s)

ó is o as in only

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B’í      Oíche Nollag            í   is     mé   caochta      óltach.

Bee      eehu  nulig                ee   is     may cuayuchtu óltoch

Was it Night of-Chistmas   it     and   I      blind             drunk

It was Christmas Eve and I blind drunk.

Note: Ba + í ► B’í  = It was. Is í = It is. Chirsitmas is feminine so literally it is She is. Is í / Ba í is the form used for definitions, not for descriptions. The it (í) is repeated. Is í Máire í = She is Máire í.

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Dúirt     seanfhear in aice liom, “‘Sí mo Nollaig      dheireanach í.”

Doo-irt  shan-ar    in aku  lum        shee mu nulig          yerinoch     ee

Said      old man    in side with me  Is it  my Christmas last              it

An old man next to me said, ‘It’s my last Christmas.’

Note: Most adjectives come after the noun. teach mór, House big, Crann ard, Tree high etc. so Last Christmas ► Christmas last (Nollaig dheireanach) but seanfhear  old man becomes one word and has the adjective in front.

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Thosaigh sé ag gabháil fhoinn an ‘Rare Old Mountain Dew.’

husee shay eg guwawl in on ‘Rare Old Mountain Dew.’

Started he to go a tune the ‘Rare Old Mountain Dew.’

He started to sing a tune ‘The Rare Old Mountain Dew’

 Note: The usual verb to sing is casadh or canadh but gabháil fhoinn is chosen here.  It is more informal and it is similar to saying He went with a tune instead of He sang a song

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Chrom mé  mo cheann go ciúin  is     mé   ag  cuimhniú ortsa.

Chrum may mu chyon   gu  kyoon is      may eg  kuivnoo    urtsu

Bent     I       my head     to   quiet    and  I      at   thinking   on you

I softly bent my head down and I thinking about you.

 Note: Ort means On you. Ortsa mean On YOU (it’s emphatic). In English in this context it’s About you.

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Nach     orm     a     bhí an t-ádh! Tháinig sí     isteach go breá.

Noch      urm      a     vee   on  taw  Hawnig   shee  istoch  gu   bra

Isn’t  it   on me that was the luck! Came     she     in        to    fine.

Wasn’t I the lucky one! She came in well.

Note: ádh (aw) = luck. mór = big. ádh mór ort (luck big on you) = the best of luck to you. ☺

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Airím istigh  i   mo chroí gur     linne     an  bhliain seo  romhainn.

areem istih     i   mu  chree gur      linye      on  vleen     shoh róin

Feel I   inside in my heart  that is with us the year        this   before us

I feel inside my heart this coming year is ours.

Note: Airím = I feel. The letter m at the end indicates the I . Mothaím also means I feel. Options ☺

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Ó, Nollaig Shona dhuit. Is tú mo stóirín.

Oh Nulig huna ghit Is too mu stóreen

Oh Christmas Happy to you. Is you my little treasure.

Oh Happy Christmas. You are my treasure.

Note: Stór and Stóirín are terms of endearment like love, darling, sweetheart etc. Stór means a store (like a store of treasures). The ín at the end means little. It’s also a way of indicating something is cute and very like …ito in Spanish. Nóra becomes Little Nóra when it’s written as Nóirín (Noreen).

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Feabhsóidh   rudaí fós. Amach romhainn atá      sé.

Fwowsóee       rudee fós. Umoch róin            utaw    shay

Improve-will  things yet. Out       before us  that it   is

Things will get better yet. It’s out there ahead of us.

 Note: The óidh (óee) ending at the end of the Feabhsóidh is the Will part. Recognize the future 😉

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Is gar    le   bear iad na cairr is   na habhainn lán   le    h-ór.

Is gor     le    bar   eed na cawir is   na howin       lawn le      hór

Is close with bar they the cars and the rivers       full   with gold

The cars are like bars and the rivers full of gold.

Note: ‘an’ is the definite article (the). There is no indefinite article (a) in Irish. The plural of an is na.

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Ach tá    goimh ghéar sa       ngaoth. Ní      haon áit   í   gan      ghlór.

Och taw  giv      yayr    sa        ngee       Nee     hayh awt ee   gon        ghlór

But  is      sting  sharp    in the wind.     Is not any   place it without noise.

But there’s a sharp sting in the wind.    It’s      nowhere without noise.

Note: Is means is for definitions. Tá (taw) means is for descriptions.

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Nuair a     thóg tú   mo lámh ar ár gcéad Nollaig  riamh,

Noor  a       hóg  too  mu lawv  er awr gayd Nulig        reev

When that took you my hand on our first  Christmas ever.

When you took my hand on our first Christmas ever.

 Note: Céad (cayd) means first. ár before it puts r and c together and the sound comes out a g so it’s written gcéad

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Gheall      tú     dom Broadway a      bheith romham ins an tslí.

Yal             too   dum Broadway   a      veh      róm           ins an tlee

Promised  you to me Broadway that to be    before me    in the way.

You promised me Broadway was out there for me.

Note: Geall (gyal) = promise. by putting a h in as the second letter you put it in the past tense. This also changes the sound from Gyal ► Yal.

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Bhí tú dathúil. Tá tú meabhrach. Banríon Nua Eabhrach.

Vee too dohool. Taw too myowroch. bonreen Nooa Owroch

Was you handsome. You are smart. Queen [of] New York

You were handsome. You were clever. Queen of New York City.

 Note: Dath means color. dathúil (literally colorful) means attractive or beautiful.

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Ní   raibh críoch  leis   an scléip.    Bhí an chraic is spraoi   thar barr.

Nee raw    creech  lesh   on shclayp. Vee on  chrac   is spree     hor bawr

Not  was    end      with  the fun.        Was the  fun     and  fun    over top.

There was no end to the pleasure. The fun and games were outstanding.

Note: There are lots of words for fun in Irish. That tells you something about the culture ☺ We even gave the word spraoi to English as Spree

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‘Sinatra’ ag swingeáil. Na cloig is iad ag ‘ringeáil,

Sinatra    eg swingawl   Na  clig   is   eed  eg ringawl

Sinatra    at swinging    The bells  and they at ringing

Sinatra was swinging, the bells were ringing.

Note: ag + …áil  = …ing  (One way to do this). Ag tógáil = taking   Ag bácáil = baking

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Muid ag pógadh is    ag damhnsa gan       imní faoin      saol.

Mwid eg pógu       is    eg dowsu       gon        imnee fween     sayul

We   at     kissing and at dancing     without worry under the life

We kissing and dancing without a care in the world.

 Note: Another way to do …ing is  Ag + …adh  Ag pógadh = kissing Ag múineadh = teaching

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Is An Cór      an        NYPD is    iad  ag casadh ‘Galway Bay,’

Is    on cór      on           NYPD is     eed   eg cosa ‘Galway Bay,’

And the choir [of] the NYPD and they singing ‘Galway Bay,’

And the NYPD choir and they singing ‘Galway Bay,’

Note: Ways to say Singing ♫ ag gabháil, ag casadh, ag canadh ♫

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Curfá Chorus

Is     na cloig ag bualadh leo:             Lá        breith’ Mac Dé.

Is     na  clig   eg boola      ló:                 law         breh moc day

And the bells at hitting     with them: Day [of] birth son of-God

And the bells ringing away: The son of God’s birthday.

Note: Lá breithe or more commonly Breithlá means Birthday. Happy Birthday To You is Breithlá Shona Duit ☺

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Fear déirce           gan       rath,         a   shean stróinse gan   mhaith,

Far    dayrcu          gon         rah              a    han  strónshu   gon      woh

Man  [of] begging without a blessing, You old pauper      without good

You worthless begger, you no-good old pauper,

Note: The a here is like Oh you when addressing someone directly.

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I    do chrap                ansin   thall        mar           ‘bheadh     cailleach sa       gclúid.

i    du chrop                onshin  hol         mohr          vaych       calyoch   sa       glooid

In you shriveled state there over there like [it] would be a hag        in the corner

Shriveled up over there like a hag in the corner.

Note: mar ‘bheadh is a contraction of mar a bheadh

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A Sclíteach, a Chonúis,         ‘Chacsmuitín an donais.

a shleetoch, a chunooish,          chocsmiteen  on dunish

You scumbag, you trash, [you] gobshite      the of-badness.

You scumbag, you trash, you gobshite of  badness.

Note: Donas is badness Donais is of-badness

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Nollaig Shona, mo thóin! Faraoir gan é ‘thart.

Nulig huna mu hoon fureer gon ay hart

Christmas Happy my butt Shame without it [to be] over

Happy Christmas my arse! Shame it’s not over.

Note: The word that is missing before thart is bheith (ve) meaning to be

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Curfá

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Bhí saol breá romhamsa. Nach breá an scéal agat é!

Vee sayl bra rómsa Noch bra on shcayl ogut ay

Was life fine before me. Wasn’t fine the story at you it

I had a good life ahead of me. Isn’t that a fine story you have!

Note: To say someone has something you have you need to say something is at someone. Tá scéal agat literally means It is a story at you. Really it means you have a story.

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Sciob tú mo bhrionglóid uaim an chéad uair a chas mé ort.

shyub too mu vringlód wem on chayd oor a chos may urt

Snatched you my dream from me the first time that met I on you

You snatched my dreams away from me the first time I met you.

Note: uaim means from me. The m at the end indicates me. ort means on you. The t at the end indicates you.

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Tá    siad   agam i  gconaí, a        stór,       i dtaisce   i mo chroí.

Taw sheed ogum i    gónee   a          stór          i dashke   i mu chree

Is      they   at me in always oh you treasure, in storage in my heart

I have them always, love, stored away within my heart.

Note: A chroí, a stór, a stóirín, a ghrá… are all terms of endearment

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Ná    fág   mé   anois, a mhnaoi.      Is tú bun is barr mo shaolsa.

Naw fawg may unish , a vnee.           Is too bun is bawr mu sheelu

Don’t leave me now, oh you woman. Is you bottom and top [of] my life

Don’t leave me now, woman. You’re everything in life to me.

Note: Déan é means Do it. Ná déan é means Don’t do it.

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Curfá

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If you are happy with all this and want to explore the things you learned from each line a little deeper, go to https://ancroiait.wordpress.com/2013/08/19/109-lessons-from-wake-me-up-as-gaeilge/

If you want to start at the beginning learning how to read Irish words and some basic phrases try:

https://ancroiait.wordpress.com/2012/01/04/learn-irish-lesson-1/

https://ancroiait.wordpress.com/2013/12/15/160-sisceal-nua-eabhrac/