Translation help for DIY project

[Stitchwiz]

Thanks, that site is a HUGE help!

I think I like the explanation of ionmhainn mhac. Plus, I think, given the right font, it would look really sharp (pun intended) on the face of the blade. Thanks again, and, once I'm done, I'll probably post some pics up in the DIY forums.

A well-loved lad will be opening a very special gift on Christmas morning.

Ater all the research you have done, and with help from some other very gifted gentlemen, this will be a one of a kind. We will all be waiting to see the finished product...and keep that camera handy for Christmas morn - we would love to see his face when he opens it, too.

[OC Richard]

Yes you really need to talk to someone who was raised speaking Gaelic, because (as in all languages) words have both denotation and connotation.

Now, there's a piobaireachd titled Alba Bheadarrach.

What of this word beadarrach?

MacLennan's Gaelic Dictionary gives

beadarrach, a. sportive, caressed, fondled*, spoiled as a child; fond of; pampered.

and the next entry is

beadradh, vb. n. m. act of caressing, toying, fondling*; flirting.

All of this gives a much different picture than the English translation of Alba Bheadarrach, Beloved Scotland.

Anyhow in the English > Gaelic section of that dictionary only one word is given for 'beloved'

beloved, part. gradhaichte (with ` over the first 'a')

In the Gaelic > English section it's apparent that this is a widely used root (all with ` over the first 'a')

gradh, n.m. love or affection; a dear; a ghraidh, my dear, my darling;

gradhach, adj. loving, dear.

gradhadair, n.m. a lover.

gradhag, n. f. a loved, a dear little one, a pet.

gradhaich, v. love, esteem.

gradhan, n. m. a little darling.

gradhmhor, a. greatly beloved.

gradharachd, n. f. loveliness.

This all seems to strike at the heart of your sentiment.

There's also, as said above,

ionmhainn, a. dearly beloved; is ionmhuinn le gach neach a choslas, every one is fond of his equal, birds of a feather flock together.

ionmhas, n. m. treasure, riches.

ionmhasach, a. wealthy, rich.

ionmhasair, n. m. a treasurer.

ionmholta, a. praiseworthy.

It's stuff like this that makes language so interesting.


*BTW 'fondle' in this case is the traditional meaning of the word rather than its current American connotation of sexual predatorship.