An t-Òran Ailean Breac
Posted: Thu May 23, 2013 8:41 pm
(Apologies for not writing this first part in Gaelic! )
Kidnapped, by Robert Louis Stevenson, is one of my favorite books and in fact is the book that ultimately inspired me to learn Gaelic. There's this one scene in the story where one of the main characters, a Highlander named Alan Breck Stewart, makes up a Gaelic victory-song after beating off some murderous sailors. Stevenson, however, only provides the English lyrics, so I've always wondered what Alan's song might have looked like in the original Gaelic. A few months ago I tried doing my own (very clumsy) tr*nsl*t**n. It's probably awful, but I thought I may as well post it here. Please correct!
Alan's Victory Song, by Robert Louis Stevenson
This is the song of the sword of Alan;
The smith made it,
The fire set it;
Now it shines in the hand of Alan Breck.
Their eyes were many and bright,
Swift were they to behold,
Many the hands they guided:
The sword was alone.
The dun deer troop over the hill,
They are many, the hill is one;
The dun deer vanish,
The hill remains.
Come to me from hills of heather,
Come from the isles of the sea.
O far-beholding eagles,
Here is your meat.
Seo an t-òran a' chlaidheamh Ailean,
Rinn an gobha e,
Chruadhich an teine e,
Deàlreach e a-nis anns an laimh Ailean Breac.
Bha sùilean aca mòran agus soilleir,
Bha iad luath a dh'fhaicinn,
Threòraich iad làmhan mòran:
Bha an claidheamh na h-aonar.
Triall na fèidh dhonn thairis air a' chnoc,
Tha na fèidh mòran, tha an chnoc na h-aonar;
Rach às an t-sealladh na fèidh dhonn,
Fuirich an cnoc.
Thig à na cnuic an fhraoich,
Thig à na h-eileanan na muir.
A iolairan fad-fhradharcach,
Seo do fheòil.
Kidnapped, by Robert Louis Stevenson, is one of my favorite books and in fact is the book that ultimately inspired me to learn Gaelic. There's this one scene in the story where one of the main characters, a Highlander named Alan Breck Stewart, makes up a Gaelic victory-song after beating off some murderous sailors. Stevenson, however, only provides the English lyrics, so I've always wondered what Alan's song might have looked like in the original Gaelic. A few months ago I tried doing my own (very clumsy) tr*nsl*t**n. It's probably awful, but I thought I may as well post it here. Please correct!
Alan's Victory Song, by Robert Louis Stevenson
This is the song of the sword of Alan;
The smith made it,
The fire set it;
Now it shines in the hand of Alan Breck.
Their eyes were many and bright,
Swift were they to behold,
Many the hands they guided:
The sword was alone.
The dun deer troop over the hill,
They are many, the hill is one;
The dun deer vanish,
The hill remains.
Come to me from hills of heather,
Come from the isles of the sea.
O far-beholding eagles,
Here is your meat.
Seo an t-òran a' chlaidheamh Ailean,
Rinn an gobha e,
Chruadhich an teine e,
Deàlreach e a-nis anns an laimh Ailean Breac.
Bha sùilean aca mòran agus soilleir,
Bha iad luath a dh'fhaicinn,
Threòraich iad làmhan mòran:
Bha an claidheamh na h-aonar.
Triall na fèidh dhonn thairis air a' chnoc,
Tha na fèidh mòran, tha an chnoc na h-aonar;
Rach às an t-sealladh na fèidh dhonn,
Fuirich an cnoc.
Thig à na cnuic an fhraoich,
Thig à na h-eileanan na muir.
A iolairan fad-fhradharcach,
Seo do fheòil.