Comments on: Side trip: Fear a’ Bhàta (Boatman) http://www.daveswhiteboard.com/archives/3077?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=side-trip-fear-a-bhata-boatman Dave Ferguson's interests, ideas, notions, tangents Wed, 08 Feb 2012 21:23:12 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Dave http://www.daveswhiteboard.com/archives/3077/comment-page-1#comment-18507 Dave Sat, 09 Jan 2010 18:55:55 +0000 http://www.daveswhiteboard.com/?p=3077#comment-18507 Jim, I'm confident that even my posts that are not labeled "side trips" provoke some head-scratching. I am pessimistic about the survival of Scottish Gaelic as a living language. I hope I'm wrong. See my <a href="http://www.daveswhiteboard.com/archives/176" rel="nofollow">post two years ago</a> on the death of the last native speaker of Eyak, and especially the quote from linguist Geoff Pullum. As he says of another language in <a href="http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/001783.html" rel="nofollow">his post</a> from which the quote is taken, "Don't get me wrong: I don't want Cornish to be dead; I love languages, and I traveled on my own initiative to the Isle of Man when I was an undergraduate in 1968 so that I could go and see the last native speaker of Manx, Ned Maddrell, and record him telling a story. I would have gone to see Dolly Pentreath too. But I was 200 years too late. Everybody is." Jim, I’m confident that even my posts that are not labeled “side trips” provoke some head-scratching.

I am pessimistic about the survival of Scottish Gaelic as a living language. I hope I’m wrong. See my post two years ago on the death of the last native speaker of Eyak, and especially the quote from linguist Geoff Pullum.

As he says of another language in his post from which the quote is taken, “Don’t get me wrong: I don’t want Cornish to be dead; I love languages, and I traveled on my own initiative to the Isle of Man when I was an undergraduate in 1968 so that I could go and see the last native speaker of Manx, Ned Maddrell, and record him telling a story. I would have gone to see Dolly Pentreath too. But I was 200 years too late. Everybody is.”

]]> By: Jim Burrill http://www.daveswhiteboard.com/archives/3077/comment-page-1#comment-18506 Jim Burrill Sat, 09 Jan 2010 18:35:38 +0000 http://www.daveswhiteboard.com/?p=3077#comment-18506 When I transfered to Maryland, I stayed active in living history and focused on things Celtic. Sorry to say my studies of Gaelic never progressed. From keeping touch with my friends in California, I see that An Comunn Gaidhealach Ameireaganach is still going strong. Many Celtic fusion musicians are fitting in songs in Gaelic, so I think that some of the Old Ways are surviving, and dare I say thriving? Although I don't wear my kilt as much as I used to, I still mangage to get to a local pub with my bodhran for the weekly open seisiuns. I am sure this thread will have a number of the ISDs scratchin' their heads...... Slainte' Jim When I transfered to Maryland, I stayed active in living history and focused on things Celtic. Sorry to say my studies of Gaelic never progressed. From keeping touch with my friends in California, I see that An Comunn Gaidhealach Ameireaganach is still going strong. Many Celtic fusion musicians are fitting in songs in Gaelic, so I think that some of the Old Ways are surviving, and dare I say thriving?

Although I don’t wear my kilt as much as I used to, I still mangage to get to a local pub with my bodhran for the weekly open seisiuns.

I am sure this thread will have a number of the ISDs scratchin’ their heads……

Slainte’
Jim

]]> By: Dave http://www.daveswhiteboard.com/archives/3077/comment-page-1#comment-18503 Dave Sat, 09 Jan 2010 17:57:10 +0000 http://www.daveswhiteboard.com/?p=3077#comment-18503 <i>Tapadh leat,</i> James. Capercaillie has always performed Gaelic songs, one way to carry tradition from one century to the next. I don't know how long it'll survive as a living language, but I'm very grateful to those who work at renewing its cultural role. Tapadh leat, James. Capercaillie has always performed Gaelic songs, one way to carry tradition from one century to the next. I don’t know how long it’ll survive as a living language, but I’m very grateful to those who work at renewing its cultural role.

]]> By: Jim Burrill http://www.daveswhiteboard.com/archives/3077/comment-page-1#comment-18501 Jim Burrill Sat, 09 Jan 2010 17:40:45 +0000 http://www.daveswhiteboard.com/?p=3077#comment-18501 Gla Bha! I first heard this in 1980 when I joined a 15th cent Scottish living history group in San Francisco. Slainte' Jim aka Brenden Dhu MacColin Gla Bha!

I first heard this in 1980 when I joined a 15th cent Scottish living history group in San Francisco.

Slainte’
Jim
aka Brenden Dhu MacColin

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