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A letter to Santa

Litir gu Bodach na Nollaige

Listen to this recording from Prògram Choinnich where you can hear a letter to Bodach na Nollaige (Santa Claus) written by Fred MacAmhlaigh (Fred MacAulay), an esteemed Gaelic broadcaster.

In this letter, he talks about the wishes and requests he would have for Bodach na Nollaieg (Santa Claus) that year.

A transcript is available on the same page.

miannaich! v
desire, long (for)!
iarr! v
ask for, want!
dùraig! v
desire, dare!
sùilich! v
expect, desire!
lùig! v
desire, long (to)!
togair! v
desire, wish!

Listen to the recording again and answer these questions:

Dè seòrsa tìodhlaic a dh'fhàgadh Bodach na Nollaige aig an òigridh ann an Solas an Uibhist a Tuath?
What kind of gift would Santa Claus leave for the young people in Sollas in North Uist?
Cò ris a tha Bodach na Nollaige coltach, a rèir Fred MhicAmhlaigh?
What does Santa Claus look like, according to Fred MacAmhlaigh?
Dè bu mhiann le Fred tachairt le fearann na h-Alba?
What would Fred want to happen to [ownership of] land in Scotland?
Agus dè bu mhiann leis a thaobh na Gàidhlig?
And what would he wish for in terms of Gaelic?

Ciamar a chaidh dhut?
 How did you get on?

Dè seòrsa tìodhlaic a dh'fhàgadh Bodach na Nollaige aig an òigridh ann an Solas an Uibhist a Tuath?
What kind of gift would Santa Claus leave for the young people in Sollas in North Uist?
Ubhal no orainsear, agus bonn sia-sgillinn.
An apple or an orange, and a sixpence.
Cò ris a tha Bodach na Nollaige coltach, a rèir Fred MhicAmhlaigh?
What does Santa Claus look like, according to Fred MacAmhlaigh?
Duine mòr reamhar bronnach agus dubhan air.
A big, fat (pot-bellied) man with a hook.
Dè bu mhiann le Fred tachairt le fearann na h-Alba?
What would Fred want to happen to [ownership of] land in Scotland?
Gum bi fearann Alba ann an sealbh nan daoine a tha a' fuireach ann, agus a' togail an teaghlaichean ann.
That the land of Scotland will be owned by the people who live there, and raise their families there.
Agus dè bu mhiann leis a thaobh na Gàidhlig?
And what would he wish for in terms of Gaelic?
Gum faigheadh iad còir air an cànan fhèin anns na sgoiltean.
That they would get the right to [use] their own language in schools.

Listen to 03:40–03:51 of the recording of Fred's letter again and complete the text below.

'S e a dhùraiginn-sa, a bhodaich chòir,
What I would wish , dear Santa/old Man,
Ciamar a chaidh dhut? How did you get on?
S e a dhùraiginn-sa, a bhodaich chòir, a bhodaich chòir, gun sgaoileadh tu an fheallsanachd seo fad 's farsaing, gus gum bi fearann Alba ann an sealbh nan daoine a tha a' fuireach ann, agus a' togail an teaghlaichean ann.
What I would wish, dear Santa/Old Man, is that you spread this philosophy far and wide, so that the land of Scotland is owned by the people who live there, and raise their families there.

In this sentence, the tràth cumhach gnìomhach (active conditional tense) can be seen with two verbs: dùraig (desire, dare) and sgaoil (spread, scatter).

We saw the verb lùig in B1 Cuspair 19 which also means 'desire' or 'long to'.

We can use dùraig in the same way.

Dùraig! |Desire! Dare!a' dùraigeadh | desiring, daring
CONDITIONAL | HABITUAL PAST 
An dùraigeadh?Would desire, dare?
Nach dùraigeadh?Wouldn't desire, dare?
DhùraigeadhWould desire, dare
Cha dùraigeadhWouldn't desire, dare
… gun dùraigeadh… that would desire
… nach dùraigeadh… that wouldn't desire
Nan dùraigeadhIf would desire, dare
Mura dùraigeadhIf wouldn't desire, dare
+ MI 
An dùraiginn?Would I desire?
Nach dùraiginn?Wouldn't I desire?
DhùraiginnI would desire
Cha dùraiginnI wouldn't desire
  
+ SINN 
An dùraigeamaid?Would we desire?
Nach dùraigeamaid?Wouldn't we desire?
DhùraigeamaidWe would desire
Cha dùraigeamaidWe wouldn't desire
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FAQs

What does “Level” mean (A1, A2, B1, B2)?

All courses and resources on SpeakGaelic are organised according to internationally recognised language levels. If you have learnt a language before you may be familiar with this terminology—the SpeakGaelic levels map onto those defined by the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). Within SpeakGaelic, levels are colour-coded to help you find your way about.

A1 is “Inntrigeadh” (Entry). Absolute beginners should start here!

A2 is “Bunaiteach” (Foundation). Widen your knowledge of sentences and frequently-used expressions. Communicate simple tasks and basic descriptions.

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Lowercase letters:

Uppercase letters:

Alternatively, these methods may work for you:

Windows

Some simple ways to type grave accents in MS Windows, depending on which version you use. The grave accent ` is next to the number 1 at top of keyboard.

à, è, ì, ò, ù Ctrl+`, release and type letter;

À, È, Ì, Ò, Ù Ctrl+Shift+`, release and type letter

OR

Alt key + character code on the numeric keypad on right of keyboard (laptops will vary). Ensure that the NUMLOCK is on.

à Alt+133 or 0224
è Alt+138 or 0232
ì Alt+141 or 0236
ò Alt+149 or 0242
ù Alt+151 or 0249

À Alt+0192
È Alt+0200
Ì Alt+0204
Ò Alt+0210
Ù Alt+0217

Mac

Push and hold a character to bring up a menu and choose.

E.g. hold the letter e to choose the letter è

What is the Gaelic Alphabet?

Aa, Bb, Cc, Dd, Ee, Ff, Gg, Hh, Ii, Ll, Mm, Nn, Oo, Pp, Rr, Ss, Tt, Uu

For more information visit LearnGaelic’s Scottish Gaelic Alphabet

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SpeakGaelic always gives you a sound file for the word you are learning. For more information on individual sounds, visit LearnGaelic’ Sounds section.

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All the others are broad.

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