To Thread - Forum Home

The Mudcat Café TM
https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=49212
10 messages

Spoken Irish

04 Jul 02 - 02:00 PM (#742331)
Subject: Spoken Irish
From: Dragonmom

Can anyone tell me how to say Sidhe, phonetically? Thanks, Martha


04 Jul 02 - 02:05 PM (#742333)
Subject: RE: Spoken Irish
From: Big Mick

Sheve would be a fair pronounciation.


04 Jul 02 - 03:10 PM (#742362)
Subject: RE: Spoken Irish
From: Emma B

The Bean Sidhe (lit the woman fairy) is usually written as the banshee (the d when followed by h is usually not prononced as in ceilidh, bodhran etc. . .)


04 Jul 02 - 03:13 PM (#742364)
Subject: RE: Spoken Irish
From: MartinRyan

What was the context for the word? Looks like an old speling of a word for "fairy" - which would be pronounced "she", basically.

Regards


04 Jul 02 - 03:40 PM (#742378)
Subject: RE: Spoken Irish
From: weepiper

Sidhe is how you spell it in Scottish Gaelic, and yeah, 'shee' is close enough.


04 Jul 02 - 05:12 PM (#742442)
Subject: RE: Spoken Irish
From: mack/misophist

Like written Thibetan, written Gaelic is almost a sacred language. The philology boffins claim it was once pronounced as it's spelled.


04 Jul 02 - 05:20 PM (#742446)
Subject: RE: Spoken Irish
From: GUEST,JTT

Shee is close. The Irish sound for "sh" is made differently from the English one; in Irish the sound is made with the tongue pointed forward near the front teeth, while the English "sh" is made with the tongue flattened and the teeth close together - the Irish one is nearer "sss", and yet is identifiably a "sh" sound.

Similarly, the English "ee" sound is also made with the tongue relaxed and fairly flat in the mouth, while the Irish sound is more forward in the mouth.

But hell, everyone will understand you if you say "shee". That's all that matters in the first place.

One of the things that's killing Irish is that everyone expects to be perfect straight away, so there's no "shaping" of one's skills from a basic skill towards a greater one.

My advice to you is say "shee" and let anyone who objects do the other thing.


04 Jul 02 - 08:16 PM (#742547)
Subject: RE: Spoken Irish
From: GUEST,Dragonmom

Thank all of you so much! I love to hear it spoken and sometimes I really would like to learn it. But, I still have problems with English. Thanks again, Martha


05 Jul 02 - 05:15 AM (#742742)
Subject: RE: Spoken Irish
From: Mr Happy

sheesh!


05 Jul 02 - 05:54 AM (#742758)
Subject: RE: Spoken Irish
From: GUEST,Dragonmom

HAAA! Thanks Mr. Happy