| Reference Number | 15 |
| Title | Bàrdachd na Roinn-Eòrpa an Gàidhlig (European Poetry in Gaelic) |
| Author | N/A (Anthology) |
| Editor | MacThomais, Ruairidh |
| Date Of Edition | 1990 |
| Date Of Language | 20c |
| Date Of Language Ed | 1950-1999 |
| DateMacro | Late 20th c. |
| Date Of Language Notes | |
| Publisher | Gairm |
| Place Published | Glasgow |
| Volume | N/A |
| Location | National and academic libraries |
| Geographical Origins | Various |
| Geographical Origins Ed | Various |
| GeoMacro | Various |
| GeoX | |
| GeoY | |
| Geographical Origins Notes | |
| Register | Literature, Verse |
| Register Ed | Literature, Verse |
| Genre | Literature |
| Medium | Verse |
| Rating | B
109 poems by 55 poets, in more than 20 European languages, translated into Gaelic by 25 translators.
The poems reflect a wide range of styles and elements from European and Classical traditions.
The language used in the translations displays a broad spectrum of Gaelic with many registers exemplified to some degree. |
| Alternative Author Name | Derick Thomson |
| Manuscript Or Edition | Ed. |
| Size And Condition | 21.5cm x 15cm |
| Short Title | Bàrdachd na Roinn-Eòrpa |
| Reference Details | EUL, Celtic Library: LI G Tho |
| Number Of Pages | i-v, 136 |
| Gaelic Text By | Various |
| Illustrator | N/A |
| Social Context | This volume contains 109 poems from 55 poets, taken from more than 20 European languages (including Russian, Scots, Latin, and German), and is the work of 25 translators. Some of the poems were published previously in Gairm and elsewhere, although around a third of the poems were prepared especially for this volume. The poems included represent the personal preferences of the editor and the translators rather than a balanced selection of European poetry as such. |
| Contents | The Clar-Innse (pp. iii-v) lists the poems in alphabetical order by translator, beginning with Tormod Burns and ending with Crìsdean Whyte. The poems are listed under their Gaelic titles and the poets’ names are given in brackets beside them.
The poems themselves are ordered by language and the languages are presented alphabetically, in Gaelic, beginning with Breatanais and ending with Ungarais. For some languages the first poem is given both in Gaelic and in its original language. Each poem is displayed under its Gaelic title, with the original title (where there is one) and author given underneath the Gaelic title. Where the poem has been previously published in Gaelic, the publication information is given at the end of the poem; no publication details are given for the poems in their original language.
The last two pages comprise a list of poets, giving their dates of birth and the pages on which their translated poems appear. |
| Sources | Some of the translations have previously been published in Gairm or in other volumes, such as Fuaran Sléibh and Saorsa agus an Iolaire. A third of the poems were translated afresh for this volume. |
| Language | This volume contains over a hundred poems, from various countries, dating from around 700 BCE to the late twentieth century CE. The poems cover a variety of subjects including love, e.g. ’N dèan mi do choimeas (p. 15); war, e.g. Dìomhanas (pp. 16-17); and death, e.g. Hen Benillion (pp. 25-26). The stylistic qualities of the original poems have been followed quite closely, although some translators have added their own dialectal or stylistic touches. Most seem to have followed the rhyming scheme of the original (see, for example, Ruairidh MacThomais’ translation of Mark Alexander Boyd’s Sonnet, p. 5). Some poems seem to have been translated from English intermediary versions.
The Gaelic language used is not restricted to traditional domains and involves a variety of registers. This is reflected in a diverse vocabulary. There are seven poems translated from Irish Gaelic, including two Old Irish verses, a number of poems from Russia about Leningrad, Yeats’ poem about the Easter Rising, Wilfred Owen’s Futility, poems from Horace and Catullus, and a short verse from Sappho (originally in ancient Greek). There are five of Shakespeare’s sonnets (Sonaid), Burns’ Holy Willie’s Prayer, and a number of poems on old age and death from various countries. Some of the poems cover a number of pages while others comprise just a few lines.
The language used in some of the poems is richly descriptive, for example in Te-Bhàite an Adhair (p. 127-28), we find ‘Dealan-dè fighte, èideadh \ crochte bho na craobhan, \ bàite ann an adhar, tarraingte \ a-measg sgalan is frasan, aonarach, aonarach, dlùth’ (p. 127), and in An Cladh ri taobh na mara (pp. 54-59), we find ‘A chuain ana-mhòir, tàlantach le breislich, a chraiceann pantair agus a sheiche \ a tha air a tolladh le mìltean de iodhalan grèine, a hydra iomlan, air mhisg le \ d’fheòil gorm fhèin, a’ bìdeadh d’earball lainnireach ann an ùpraid coltach ri samhchair’ (p. 59).
In other poems the language is less complex and more informal, for example in Barbara (p. 59), we find ‘Eil cuimhn’ agad, a Bharbara, \ bha uisge a’ dòrtadh air Brest an latha-ud, \ is tu a’ coiseachd is a’ gàireachdainn, \ toilicht’, fliuch, is snuadh na h-òige ort’ (p. 59). |
| Orthography | The orthography is that of the late twentieth century. |
| Edition | First edition. Those poems previously published in Gairm seem to have been published here unchanged, although acute accents found in some earlier publications have been replaced with grave accents in this volume.
Some of the poems published elsewhere undergo minor orthographic changes in the versions published in this volume. For example, Fuaran Sléibh (p. 59) has ‘Bidh mi ’san uair fo ’n fhòid, gun fheòil ’nam thannasg’ (p. 59), whereas this volume has ‘Bidh mi san uair fon fhòid, gun fheòil ’nam thannasg’ (p. 51).
Where a poem is also given in its original language in this volume, it can be seen that some of the translations take up more space than the original poem, e.g. Vivamus, mea Lesbia or Gaol Agus Beatha (pp. 88-89). In addition, the layout of the poem has occasionally been altered from the original, e.g. Canción de Jinete or Amhran a’ Mharcaiche (pp. 120-21), where five stanzas in the original have been written as one single stanza in Gaelic. |
| Other Sources | |
| Further Reading | MacThomais, Ruairidh, Saorsa agus an Iolaire (Glasgow, 1977: Gairm).
Hay, Deòrsa Caimbeal, Fuaran Sléibh (Glasgow, [1948]: [n. pub.]). |
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| Download File | |
| NumWords | 24906 |
