meelia murther - lanigans ball

Subject: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: GUEST,Sean MacRuaraidh
Date: 01 Nov 00 - 01:08 PM

Hi,

The line in Lanigans ball -

"and cried 'Meelia Murther'"

What does it mean ?

Boys were all merry and the girls they were hearty And danced all around in couples and groups, 'Til an accident happened, young Terrance McCarthy Put his right leg through miss Finnerty's hoops. Poor creature fainted and cried, ``Meelia murther,'' Called for her brothers and gathered them all. Carmody swore that he'd go no further 'Til he had satisfaction at Lanigan's Ball.

Cheers

Sean

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: MartinRyan
Date: 01 Nov 00 - 01:26 PM

"meelia" is an Anglicised spelling of the Irish Gaelic word for "thousand" - so think of it as a warcry!

Regards

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: GUEST,Bruce O.
Date: 01 Nov 00 - 03:07 PM

It's 'millia murther!' in Tony Pastor's "Lanigan's Ball", 1863, in the Levy sheet music collection (Mudcat's Links). 'Mile', Gaelic, yes, but derived from Latin. See the Gaelic "Eileen Aroon" in DT for another instance of its use.

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: GUEST
Date: 01 Nov 00 - 03:46 PM

mile (1000) murders

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: Jimmy C
Date: 01 Nov 00 - 07:01 PM

melia/millia murder - literally means a thousand murders.

It is a general expression of surprise, alarm or regret, soemwhat like horror of horrors. or E-Gads ?

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: GUEST,Joerg
Date: 01 Nov 00 - 09:32 PM

"Well, the landlord went rearing an leaping and tearing, He jumped out the window and kicked in the door. When he could get no further he cried meela murder, These rats are eating me up by the score." (The Waterford Boys).

That's what I knew of this expression (and its spelling). I simply accepted it as one of those things I'd hardly find out more of. Thanks for the explanation: Late - but late isn't never.

:-)

Joerg

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: GUEST,Sean MacRuaraidh
Date: 02 Nov 00 - 05:37 AM

Thank you,

I am happy with the 'thousand murders' explanation.

It is great that I have gotten an answer so quickly.

Sean

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: Mikey joe
Date: 02 Nov 00 - 06:20 AM

It seems strange that although the expression is common in (S & SW) Ireland to combine irish and english in an expression such as "míle murder". I suspect that it is not a thousand murders at all. Not entirely sure what it is but I doubt very much it is a 1000 murders. I'll look into it.

Mj

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: MartinRyan
Date: 02 Nov 00 - 06:25 AM

Mikey Joe

The only other possible connectionI can think of is with the word "moider" - but I doubt it.

Regards

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: Mikey joe
Date: 02 Nov 00 - 06:29 AM

I agree, but I just find it unlikely that it is 1000 murders. Maybe I'm wrong. I'll have a go and phone my mam this evening if I'm stuck

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: Jimmy C
Date: 02 Nov 00 - 11:10 AM

Mile Murdar is a thousand murders. Another word for murder is dunmharaigh - v dunmharu.

The expression probably derived from mile and the last part of dunmharu . ie, mile mharu, throgh the years the pronunciation get screwed up. The following are takenn from Bernarrd Shares dictionary of Irish Slang expressions.

From Patrick Kennedy;s " Legendary Fiction of the Irish Celts " !866. " He trod on the dogs tail, and if he did he got the marks of teeth in his arms, and legs and thighs. "MILLIA MURDHER" cried he.

FromLiam Doyle's " Ballygullion" 1908 - Michael in the middle av thim (of them) and the wimmen (women) hanging round, pullin the skirts of men's coats and cryin melia murdher.

and again , from Flann O'Brien's " The Hair of the Dogma" 1977 - " but there was sacred holy melia murder about it afterwards.

Anopther similar phrase is " Murdersherry"(eternal murder) an expression of acute disappointment or anguish.

Slan

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: GUEST,Mikey Joe
Date: 02 Nov 00 - 11:13 AM

Sorry JimmyC

I still not convinced. Not saying your wrong but I find it difficult to believe.

Mj

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: GUEST,Bruce O.
Date: 02 Nov 00 - 03:58 PM

'Murther' is just an older English alternative to 'murder' (see many instances of its use in the broadside ballad index on my website), so I don't see any viable alternative to '1000 murders'.

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: An Pluiméir Ceolmhar
Date: 29 Jul 03 - 07:11 AM

I never heard "murder" being used in Irish, and only know the standard word dúnmharú - though I'm not a Gaelic scholar, and one can't discount a macaronic imprecation, especially in jokey contexts.

But - and this is pure speculation - could it be "míle martar", i.e. an invocation of a thousand martyrs?

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 29 Jul 03 - 05:32 PM

That sounds more probable I'd say. When in trouble call on the saints.

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: GUEST,Guest
Date: 29 Jul 03 - 05:49 PM

The author was Tony Pastor, a former Irishman who ran a concert hall specializing in Irish and Irish-American songs in New York City, and the song isn't Irish, it's Irish-American.

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 29 Jul 03 - 05:57 PM

You can't be "a former Irishman"...

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: GUEST,Martin Ryan
Date: 31 Jul 03 - 08:26 AM

...unless murdered....

Regards

Subject: RE: meelia murther - lanigans ball
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 31 Jul 03 - 09:18 AM

That's a dead Irishman.