a HIBERNO-ENGLISH Archive

Pending Contributions

Agnes (as in 'thank - A curious expression which I never saw in print, or indeed actually heard anyone else say, but it sounded exactly as I have rendered it above. I always assumed that it was a corruption of 'thanks be to goodness,' possibly with jocular intent or to avoid seeming excessively pious

allio - keep lookout, for example, 'You keep allio while I do the orchard'.

art carn - runt of a sow's litter, and by extension, a small contrary child.

as I roved out - Describes a fanciful tale, something that cannot be trusted. A longer version of the phrase is "That's all 'as I roved out...and forgot to come back'"

As I Roved Out - This is the title of a book written 1946 by Cathal O'Byrne, Belfast. Contents are true short stories. Some about interesting spots as he walked around the Belfast area and some about belfast history. This may be of some help as to whether it means to walk outside or write a story or both?

balbriggans - long underwear.

balmed off - relaxing, especially basking in sunshine (used to describe both people and animals).

bards Of Armagh - A severe dressing down, scolding. 'He got the 'Bards of Armagh' when he arrived home.'

bazz off, bazz it - describes a time when an exercise turned out to be less ardouous than expected.

beans - ragwort.

berlow (berloe)? - 'He's a right eejit' Thought to be exclusive to Castlecomer and perhaps comes from Béarlóir (English speaker) as many English people came to work in Castlecomer and were resented by the locals.

Beshion or Bession - Similar in meaning to hallion but perhaps more derogatory. Bession/beshion generally used to refer to a a rough, unfeminine woman - ill mannered etc.

boadán - A VERY stupid (not lazy) worker. Someone who is being paid for manual work and is making basic errors eg.that boadan dug a trench in the wrong place even though the correct place was clearly marked.

bog-eyed - bleary-eyed, falling down with tiredness.

budgekani, budgecá - a small round fella

Bulloster - Being small and having excess weight; usually someone who is small and pudgy.

call in the washers - - to call a halt. See John McGahern, 'The Power of Darkness', p 28. 'If I was you I'd call a halt. I'd call in the washers.'

canister - - messing about, 'acting the canister'.

chickle - to steal or to plunder.

clim (verb) - To 'clim' someone- to beat them up. 'He got a climming from X'. Pronounced 'klim'.

clouricane - similar to a leprechaun.

coalie - a changeling.

Coishapooka - Means a toadstool.

conceit - conceity (fussy about their food). If conceit was consumption you'd be long ago dead'. People also took to the bed with this thing called conceit.

copy book - A copy book is a blank book for writing in.

cradle Irish - Irish language that is learned by living in an Irish-speaking home from birth without other interference. "He had the cradle Irish". (my grandfather used this term to explain one of the reasons why his own father (Pat McManamon, Folklorist) was the subject of studies by linguist Prof Thomas Ó Máile of Galway University in the mid 1930s until the early 1940s). Although my Grandfather was in an Irish speaking family from birth, there was already an English influence because his older brothers and sisters were scholarised through English and working for the local English landlord and were subsequently bilingual - therefore, I believe that my grandfather did not consider that he himself had "the cradle Irish".

creena - dear one?

Crosaire - The more cryptic of the two daily crossword puzzles in the Irish Times. Crosaire is a play on the name of the compiler, Mr Derek St. John Crozier, an Irish gentleman resident in South Africa who has compiled the crossword since Adam was a chiseler. The genius of the puzzle lies in the fact that it is possible for a person of reasonable intelligence to complete in a lunch hour, while being difficult enough for him or her to feel satisfied at the achievement. By contrast, some crosswords simply insult the intelligence while others (even in some surprisingly downmarket newspapers) are utterly impossible.

cuaidi cáidi - bits and pieces which are referred to affectionally. They may be small or even cute objects as in the case of very appealing nick-nacks.

dawfake or daw-fake - As verb: to improvise clumsily; to construct in an unlikely, improvised manner; to produce an approximation, usually both clumsy and unlikely to last or function. As noun: A clumsy construction, an approximation of a recognised object. Etymology probably from the Irish "dá féach", two looks, something you'd lokk twice at (in disbelief).

dibs - first call on something should it be offered around, for example, first dibs on a drag from a cigarette.

dobber - marble (a small ball of coloured glass used as a toy)

eas-light - the quality of light at twilight (or thereabouts) rather than twilight as a time or period of the day.

eugene - a duodenal ulcer.

fian - an unknown person chasing a group of youths who are up to no good; A warning to run: "fian!", "there's a fian, run" or "the fian ran after us".

fleeter - a family with a large number of children.

forragan - a big hearty meal

furrager - a state of confusion

gack - a feral pigeon.

gaila - railway, for example, 'Mitching on the gaila' playing truant from school by hiding on the railway.

geansai-load....more - its derived from the habit of nicking apples from the local orchards, a geansai load essentially meaning too many to carry in your hands... especially when half way up a tree. if you could not hold them all, you'd shove them into your geansai! This leads on to the drink related example noted above, according to my mum, as its suggesting you taking on more alcohol then you could handle!

gickna - a feral pigeon.

gicknaw - not the real thing, also feral pigeon.

gig - 1. Proud or unabashed bearing or attitude 2. provocative or inappropriate dress, for example, ''Would you look at the gig of your woman'. (Note in Share, gig refers to fun or a joke)

gitna - pigeon, for example, 'There's me Uncle Gerry's gitnas'.

gollop - to swallow food or drink quickly with apparent relish.

gotchy, gotchee - a watchman or security guard (from "got ye!")

Gripe - Long-handled four prong fork used to shift soiled animal manure or turn over a manure heap. It is occasionally used as a verb especially during petty Land Commission rows, and is the wounding of animals by stabbing with a gripe.

gumming - Going mad for, gagging for; usually conveys thiirst, but could include food. May derive from era when older people had less teeth than today!

ikey and hushabates. - ikey - "too smart" "too quick off the mark" "taking liberties". ikey mo - a person who does the forementioned.

I'd like my job - I remember 'I'd like my job' being used by people who felt they were being imposed upon; I believe this is the meaning intended by Leopold Bloom in the passage quoted: 'Me lend you my valise? I'd like my job.' In other words 'not bloody likely!' I cam't find any other examples in print.

lathar or lothar - - to prepare dried, scattered hay in to long rows ready for baling.

lend me a loan of - - lend me. See Ulysses, opening scene, where Buck Mulligan says to Stephen Dedalus: 'Lend us a loan of your noserag to wipe my razor.'

lonely - in some parts of Donegal, 'lonley' means 'afraid'. This is reflected in the peculiar meaning of the Irish word 'uaigneas' in Donegal. There, instead of meaning 'loneliness' it means 'fear'. "I think he does be lonely in that old house of a winter's night, especially with all the robberies going on"

melder - big greasy meal, something like a fry, and lots of it.

mowler - pigeon, for example, 'Them mowlers, they're full of fleas!'

Mowler - a cat

muckalero - term of abuse similar to mucker, bogger etc.

norrie - a person from the north-side of Cork city.

odgin, odgins - an advantage given by an older boy to a younger in a foot race.

padaráil, peadaráil - to make an effort at something, to work away at something that is less than enthusing.

pisstrick - a superstition or old wive's tale.

prawnshuck - Is 'prawnshuck' the same as 'praiseach'? The sound of it is evocative, i.e., what's left after shucking and eating a prawn.

pug - old leather laced-up football. Usage would be, for example, 'Can we borrow your pug for a game?'

scab - a child pestering other children for sweets etc.

scorafunger - someone grabbing more than his share of the food, someone eating "the two lots".

sirragny - a menagerie or collection of anything, implying disorganisation or untidiness.

solid finest - an indication of being in good form (Tipperary equivalent of game-ball). "How are ye all anyway?" "Ah sure we're the solid finest".

spog - to conceal.

stella - used exclusively of females (especially from the northside of Cork city) considered to be vulgar and/or violent in their behaviour or demanour.

strawbaltik - unsettled

sun-car - a push-chair for a child.

tangler - A man who acts as an intermediary in a dealing on a fair day, persuading buyer and seller to shake hands on the deal; a man with an expertise in horses, often refering to a Traveller man.

tawhalen - from the Irish word for honeysuckle,branches of which are very difficult to cut/break

the real whea - refers to something genuine, authentic.

thirty bare - to be on the cusp of doing or saying something (Possible reference to the popular card game of "thirty one". To be have a hand worth thirty points is often called "thirty bare".)

throwing shapes - getting organised to go or to move on, for example, if a person gets up to leave a table, she or he might say 'I better be throwing shapes.'

thrown down - very ill, unable to sit up. Perhap's from Irish caithe sios?

thrun, trun - Not sure how common is it's usage, it would have been considered too slang even for us though. I'm not sure if it's a townie or culchie word though, or possibly a North Dublin word(?)

tolderly - slovenly or slapdash referring to housework.

trawkawlies - a mixture of sweets and food.

tull - inelegant, impolite, socially clumsy, "naff"

ware - 'ware' used here to refer to dinner plates, dishes, cups etc. Its interest lies in the use that is made of 'doing the ware' rather than the more common 'washing-up'

when hard y comes to - As in pending contributions.

when Hardy comes to - a substitute for 'when push comes to shove'.

womish - A relaxed or unhurried gait (while taking in the surroundings).

womiss, womish - walking unhurriedly (sometimes deliberately so, in order to be admired).

wrought - To have worked on someone's behalf in difficult or trying cirmstances

xerox - Side-locks or sideburns