Gaelic Proverbs: Cynic (1906)
Collected by the Gaelic Revival Association of Ottawa, Ontario
This collection of Irish proverbs was meticulously compiled by Edmund P. Stanton, the Gaelic Revival Association’s language instructor and vice-president, as well as chief clerk of Canada’s Postal Service. Found in one of the only surviving society papers, this treasury gives a glimpse into the language that was being taught and spoken in Ottawa at the time. Stanton believed these proverbs revealed the true character of the Irish mind, introducing his collection by writing:
“For the bulk of Irish or Gaelic proverbs it may safely be said that in felicity of expression, in terseness of phrase, in epigrammatic quality, in compactness of thought, and quick shrewd seizing of a situation with a corresponding readiness to express it, it is hard to beat them… [these proverbs] it is the duty of those imbued with the spirit of the Gaelic movement not only to cherish but to use.”
Cynic
Duine gan dinéar beirt gan suipéar - A man without dinner is two for supper
Is maith an bligeard an sliabh - A pill is fine vinegar
Ba bheag dom blathach, nuair bhíonn lán di - I don’t think much of buttermilk when I’ve had my fill of it
Is iomaí duine bheadh ar meisce muna leisce beith ag díol as - Many would be drunk, but loath to pay
Leigheas na póite, ól arís - The toper’s cure - drunk again
An té nach ólann ach uisce ní bheadh sé ar meisce - He that drinks only water will never be drunk
Tá biotáille go maith ‘na háit, ach is é ifreann an áit di - Whiskey is right in its place, and hell’s the place for it
Is minic do bhris teanga duine a shrón - Many a man’s tongue broke his nose
Ní bheathaíonn briathra na bráithre - Fine words won’t feed the friars
Is mar an-bhogadh ar an mbláthaigh ar sin - That’s great softening on the buttermilk
Ní bhriseann focal maith fiacail - A good word never broke a tooth
Ní hiad na mná deasa chuireann pota ar fiuchadh - Tisn’t the pretty women who put the pot to boil
Is fearr bheith maol ná gan cheann - Better be bald than have no head at all
Arís chugat, a sheanbhríste, nuair do shíleas bheith scaipthe leat - Come again, old breeches, when I thought I’d done with you
Is fearr greim ná buille - A grip is better than a blow
Ná nocht t’fhiacle go b’fhéadfair an greim do bhreith - Don’t show your teeth till you can bite
Lá na bruíon ‘s é luíonn na buille ar a thaobh - The day of the fight is when the blows go astray
Ar theacht na bhfocal bhforbh is binn béal iata - When hard words come a closed mouth is melodious
Adapted from prose into list format based on: Gaelic Revival Association of Ottawa. 1906. Ottawa University Review. Vol 8 no 9 (June).
For citation, please use: Gaelic Revival Association of Ottawa. 1906. “Gaelic Proverbs: Cynic.” Ó Dubhghaill, Dónall. 2024. Na Gaeil san Áit Ró-Fhuar. Gaeltacht an Oileáin Úir: www.gaeilge.ca
