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Irish American Mom

Celebrating Our Irish Heritage Together

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You are here: Home / Archives for Language

Thoughts On The Irish Language, Plus A Bitesize Irish Album Giveaway

December 11, 2012 by Irish American Mom 35 Comments

Bitesize Irish Gaelic logo

When I was growing up in Ireland my mother and grandmother spoke a form of English, peppered with Irish words. It wasn’t until I moved to America that I came to realize how many expressions escape my lips that are nowhere to be found in the Oxford English dictionary. Image Credit When polishing furniture I […]

Filed Under: Giveaways, The Irish Language or Gaelic Tagged With: Audio Language Courses, Gaelic, Irish Language DVD, Language, Learn Irish at Home, Lessons For Tourists, The Irish Language

I Could Or I Couldn’t Care Less

October 16, 2012 by Irish American Mom 21 Comments

Blue graphic with the words I couldn't care less

The first time I used the phrase “I couldn’t care less” here in the U.S. I got a strange look from my American companion. “You mean ‘you could care less’,” she corrected me. “No,” I said “I could NOT care less, meaning I don’t care about the outcome.” “Oh, over here we say that we […]

Filed Under: Lessons for Tourists, The Irish Language or Gaelic Tagged With: Irish Expressions, Irishisms, Language, Lessons For Tourists

In A Jiffy

October 9, 2012 by Irish American Mom 16 Comments

Jiffy mixes factory in Chelsea

Today my triplets learned a new phrase: “In a jiffy”.   Our jiffy tale started when my little girl asked me what a jiffy is.  She was delighted with my answer.  She is either blessed or bitten by an efficient, perfectionist streak.  She proceeded to spend the whole day describing how she planned to do […]

Filed Under: My American Journey Tagged With: American Expressions, family, Language, My American Journey, out of the mouth of babes sayings

The Irish American Clothing Dictionary

September 27, 2012 by Irish American Mom 19 Comments

Colorful Irish sweaters on a store shelf in Galway Ireland

A significant naming difference for clothing items exists between Ireland and America.  It is something I didn’t think twice about before packing my bags to come to America twenty something years ago. As I threw vests and jumpers into a bag I had no idea I would need to relearn the nomenclature for my wardrobe. […]

Filed Under: Lessons for Tourists, The Irish Language or Gaelic Tagged With: Hiberno-English, Irish Expressions, Irish vs American Culture, Language, Lessons For Tourists

Irish – A Language Without Words For ‘Yes’ and ‘No’

July 9, 2012 by Irish American Mom 29 Comments

Puzzle pieces laid out to form the word NO

Irish, the primary official language of Ireland has been spoken on the island for over 2500 years.  Its sentence structure and syntax are very different from that of the English language.  One striking distinction is the lack of words for “yes” and “no” in Irish. This probably sounds very strange to any English speaking person.  How […]

Filed Under: Lessons for Tourists, The Irish Language or Gaelic Tagged With: Gaelic, Hiberno-English, How the Irish Speak English, How the Irish Think, Irish Language, Language, Lessons For Tourists

Why The Irish Love A Bit Of Craic!

October 26, 2011 by Irish American Mom 27 Comments

An Irish pub sign saying ceol agus craic or music and fun

“How’s the craic?” is a friendly greeting used throughout Ireland.  Heard in pubs, on street corners, and even in people’s homes, it is a question of extreme importance to most Irishmen. Unfortunately the word is pronounced just like the English word “crack”, giving rise to potential awkward misunderstandings for tourists, especially those unaccustomed to an […]

Filed Under: Lessons for Tourists, The Irish Language or Gaelic Tagged With: A Little Irish Fun, Ceol agus Craic, Craic, Craic agus Ceol, Fun in Ireland, Irish Expressions, Irish Pubs, Language, Lessons For Tourists

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