I found your entries whilst confirming the lyrics I sing to my child every night of Báidín Fheilidhmidh (excellent last song for drifting off), I was glad to see that my use of the séimhiú is correct in bhóidheach although I do not recall learning the long o in Toraigh.
As a visitor to Gola (but not Tory), I fondly remember learning the song on the boat trip.

Thanks for the link to the book in this thread, I will certainly look it up. As parents, we decide to send our child to a Irish-speaking school for multiple reasons and despite not learing enmoured with the learning of a language through the Department's syllabus at the time, my memory for Irish vocabulary has appeared to be re-invigorated and we are considering how best to proceed.


Anyway, if you have simple advice on how best to support my children's learning of the language, I would be most grateful. We have already obtained a CD, some early learning books as Gaelige but have stopped short of attending beginner/intermediate classes. Yes, the day has already arrived when our child (4) has been able to tell us the word in Irish for something. Scary, nach ea ?

Regards,

Fionntáin.

P.S. With an influence from Donegal on my side (holidays not family) and from the west tip of Galway (Béal an Daingean) on my wife's side, our recollections of phrases and pronounciations differ somewhat. Rather than this being an obstacle as it was in school, I find myself surprised to say that it adds to the enjoyment. ( Even to a logical, black and white matematicain/computer head as I am :)

P.P.S. A discussion with my mother (a fluent speaker) on different dialects enlightened me to dialects which do not include the well-publicised (Uladh, Connacht is Mumhan). She described the Clare dialect which apparently is no longer well-practised.