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About Kaye McAlpine
Expertise
Lifecycle (birth, marriage, death) customs in Scotland, Early Modern Scottish social customs, modern Scottish social customs, Border March laws and procedures, criminal processes and judicial execution practices, social history in Early Modern Scotland, ephemera printing in Scotland. While I have knowledge of the clan system and function of the clan society (Highland and Lowland), I am not a an expert in clan genealogy.

Experience
Freelance tutor in outreach courses from Edinburgh University on Scottish Culture and Tradition, including lifecycle customs, broadsheet ballads in Scotland, the traditional ballad and history. Freelance writer, guest presenter on Ch4 History Hunters programme, contributor to BBC Radio Scotland's 'Songlines' series on 'The Dowie Dens of Yarrow'. Currently co-director of amedia production company

Publications
Books: Forthcoming - Compendium of Scottish Ethnology, chapter on The Traditional and the Border Ballad; The Harris Repertoire (2000, Scottish Text Society, co-editor), The Ballad in History (chapter on Border ballads). Journals include Folklore, The Review of Scottish Culture,Sottish Studies, and The Scottish Literary Journal

Education/Credentials
Ph D, M. Phil, BA (hons)

You are here: Experts > Cultures > Scottish Culture > Scottish Culture > Translation for Words

Scottish Culture - Translation for Words

Expert: Kaye McAlpine - 8/2/2009

Question
I don't know if i can even ask this, but i was wondering if you would happen to know the scots-gaelic words for 'sorrow', 'loneliness' and 'pain'. I've tried searching through the net for translations, but nothing seems to come up with what i need.

Answer
Hello Cynthia

I don't speak Gaelic. However, a bit of a trawl through some sites came up with the following. Try http://www2.smo.uhi.ac.uk/gaidhlig/faclair/sbg/lorg.php?faclair=sbg&seorsa=Beurl... or http://www.cairnwater.co.uk/gaelicdictionary/index.aspx?Language=en for any other words.
It is usually a case of try try try again. With apects such as these, go to source - I went to the site of Sabhal Mòr Ostaig, the Gaelic College at Sleat on the Island of Skye and folowed the trail from there

Here are some variants, but as I don't speak Gaelic, I cannot put them into any form grammatical relevance - but I hope this helps

Kaye

Sorrow:

sorrow   airsneal   masc
sorrow   bròn   masc
sorrow   doilgheas   masc
sorrow   dubhailteach   masc
sorrow   duileachd   fem
sorrow   duilichinn   fem
sorrow   eislean   masc
sorrow   iargan   fem
sorrow   mulad   masc
sorrow   smàl   masc
sorrow   smàlan   masc
sorrow   smuairean   masc
sorrow   smuaireanachd   fem
sorrow   tùirse   fem

Loneliness
uaigealtachd   sf Loneliness, eeriness.
uaigealtas   -ais, sm Loneliness, eeriness.
uamhaltachd   sf Loneliness, solitariness.
ciamhaireachd   sf Sadness. 2 Weariness. 3 Loneliness.
dìomhaireachd   ‡ sf ind Privacy, mystery, secrecy. 2 Recess, lonely place. 3 Loneliness, solitude, concealment, obscurity. 4 Darkness.
cianalas   -ais, sm Melancholy, sorrow, sadness. 2 Mildness. 3 Dulness, pensiveness. 4** Wearisomeness. 6(MMcD) Homesickness. 6* Solitariness, loneliness, dreariness. A' cur dhinn ar cianalas, banishing our dreariness; thàinig smàl oirnn le cianalas, we are darkened with sadness; tha cianalas air, he is homesick.

Pain
pain   acaid   fem
pain   bochdainnich   vi/t
pain   cràdh   masc
pain   cràidh
pain   dòrainn   fem
pain   gradan   masc
pain   lèir
pain   pian   fem
pain   sgiùrsadh   masc
pain   spàirn   fem
pain   stic   fem
pain   tacaid   fem
pain   treaghaid   fem
pained   dòrainneach
painful   acaideach
painful   cràiteach
painful   creadhnach
painful   iol-ghonach
painful   pianail
painful   piantach
painless   neo-chràiteach
painless   neo-phiantach
painstaking   saothail
painstaking   saothrachail

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