[GAELIC-L] The word "neach"

[Marion Gunn]

Watching many BBC ALBA programmes, for example a great one dated MMX
about 7:84, which went out again last night, the frequency with which
the word "neach" crops up in ordinary speech to indicate simply "person"
struck me again. In Irish, I'd hardly ever use "neach" outside the
context of indicating "an otherworld being" (an immortal), which causes
me to wonder whether Scottish Gaelic speakers use a special word for
otherworld person (in the case of Irish "neach"), whether "neach"
embraces both mortals and immortals equally, or only means "person".
Again, I'm inclined to wonder the same thing about Manx speakers.
mg

[Tom Thomson]

I'm not at all sure of the answer to that. Or rather I have three answers, and I haven't a clue which (if any) is correct.

1. We say "caochail" not "bàsaich". Bheir sinn pairt bheag dhe'm beatha fo'n ghrèin, agus pairt mhór air nèimh, air neo bheir anns an ifrinn i. Tha gach neach maireannach, mairidh sinn gu sìorruidh bràth. So every person is immortal, why should we need a separate word for immortals? That seems a reasonable argument about how the language could end up using a word rooted in immortality for ordinary people. I don't need to believe the religion to see how it can have that influence - but I too say "caochail" not "bàsaich" when talking about a person so I know that some influence exists (for me it was social pressure, but maybe for those who provided that pressure it was religion).
2. We just don't have any such word.
3. This is what used to be "tì". When I was young (let's say 60 years ago) I heard of "an Tì anns na h-àrdaibh" (God in the highest)", "an Tì as àirde" (God the highest),, "tì naomh" (a holy man -and after all, saints are immortal, see 1 above), "tì sìor-bheò" (an immortal person - in old stories), and assorted other immortal tì (tì-sith and so forth); but I also heard (but less often, I think) tì used just to mean "person".

There is of course a fourth possibility:
4. We have such a word, but I've never encountered it. Given how long I've been away from Gaelic, with only rare contact, that seems quite possible. Maybe it's more likely than any of the three above, but I don't want to believe that!

Tom

-----Original Message-----
From: Gaelic Language Bulletin Board [mailto:gaelic-***@listserv.heanet.ie] On Behalf Of Marion Gunn
Sent: Friday, July 5, 2013 4:22 PM
To: GAELIC-***@LISTSERV.HEANET.IE
Subject: [GAELIC-L] The word "neach"

Watching many BBC ALBA programmes, for example a great one dated MMX about 7:84, which went out again last night, the frequency with which the word "neach" crops up in ordinary speech to indicate simply "person"
struck me again. In Irish, I'd hardly ever use "neach" outside the context of indicating "an otherworld being" (an immortal), which causes me to wonder whether Scottish Gaelic speakers use a special word for otherworld person (in the case of Irish "neach"), whether "neach"
embraces both mortals and immortals equally, or only means "person".
Again, I'm inclined to wonder the same thing about Manx speakers.
mg

--
Marion Gunn * eGteo (Estab.1991)
27 P irc an Fh ithlinn, Baile an
Bh thair, An Charraig Dhubh,
Co. tha Cliath, ire/Ireland.
* ***@egt.ie * ***@egt.ie *