Is Trua Gan Mhis’ I M’Eala (1859)

Tomás Ua Baíghell, composed in South Gloucester, Ontario

Is trua gan mhis’ i m’eala,

Do ghluaisfinnse abhaile,

Ag snámh seal ar fhuathscéith thar luascadh na dtonn;

Ba dhuan mo thriall thar muir,

Mar Fionnghualainn Ní Lír,

Laoch ionúin na hÉireann go rianú mo bhrionn

Dá mbéinn féin faoi gheasa,

Ná ‘r bhféar fós a sheasadh

Is cónaí sa ndúthcas mo shinsear ‘s mo ghaol,

Ag iomlua gach srutha,

‘S ag ionladh mo chrutha,

I bhfíorthoibrithe suait’ ar feadh tíre na nGael!

It is a pity I am not a swan,

I would travel home,

Swimming on phantom wings over the rolling waves;

Severe would be my journey over the sea,

As Fionnuala daughter of Lear,

Beloved hero of Ireland that traces my dreams

If I myself was under taboo

On the grass not to stand

I would live in the district of my ancestors and relations,

Travelling along every stream,

And washing my form,

In the true sweet springs throughout the land of the Gaels!

Is shiúlfainnse mar Fionnbhar,

Gach abhainn is gach inbhear,

I gcríoch aoibhinn Éireann, ag machnadh a scéil,

Ag triall síos go mall moch,

Go huachtar a seanloch’,

Ar cuairt fá gach rí-bhrú faoi ríocht ag sruth Gael:

Bhéinn leo go dubh deorach,

Mar chlarsaigh caoinfhoghrach,

Ag uachtú sliocht Éireann faoi dhruadh `gus saoi léann

Go meath Sacsan uile,

`Gus saoirse Chlann Mhíle,

`S ó ghaois is an céinbhruid go scaoilfidh mé féin.

I would walk as Finnar [King of the Fairies of Connacht],

Every stream and inlet,

I the beautiful land of Ireland, reflecting on their tale,

Going down early and slow,

To the top of the old lake,

Visiting every kingly hostel in the kingdom of the flowing Gaels:

I would be with them dark and sad,

As a gentle sounding harp,

Solemnly declaring the generations of Ireland under the druids and wisemen

May the Saxons all decline,

And the freedom [for] the descendants of Míl

And from hatred and long bondage may I be released.

For citation, please use: Ua Baíghell, Tomás. 1859. “Is Trua Gan Mhis’ I M’Eala.” Ó Dubhghaill, Dónall. 2024. Na Gaeil san Áit Ró-Fhuar. Gaeltacht an Oileáin Úir: www.gaeilge.ca

Adapted from: The Irish American. 1859 (9 July). New York: Lynch, Cole & Co. See the original here.