I've been trying to learn Scottish Gaelic for a few years now and it's a tricky language, as it is so different to English or any of the other languages I speak. I started out learning with Duolingo, but eventually gave up on that, as the course suddenly changed. I attended local classes, but, although the tutor was enthusiastic and encouraging, his teaching style really didn't suit my learning style. I've been watching Speak Gaelic for a few years now, this is a course originally broadcast on the BBC but also available on Youtube. The Speak Gaelic website contains lots of support material to help you on your learning journey. Learn Gaelic has lots of resources and a useful weekly newsletter, which is well worth signing up to.
Since starting to learn Scottish Gaelic, my ambition has been to win the Gaelic section of the Scottish Book Trust's monthly 50 Word short story contest. Last month, the challenge was to write a story about an elephant, which made things much easier. I have a very short, real life story about an encounter with an elephant that I've told (in English) many times. So I just needed to write a version in Scottish Gaelic, which I could do, using relatively simple phrases and after all it only needed 50 words! And, I'm delighted to say, it won the competition. You can read my story in Gaelic, with English translation, here (just scroll down a wee bit).
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Meanwhile, the latest post in my Crafty Green Poet Substack has gone live. You can read it here.
3 comments:
That's absolutely fantastic news about winning the Scottish Book Trust's 50-word short story contest in Gaelic. What an accomplishment, especially with such a challenging language. It sounds like a real breakthrough after exploring different learning methods.
What was the most challenging part of translating your elephant story into Gaelic while keeping it to 50 words?
That's fantastic news about winning the Scottish Book Trust's 50-word short story contest! What a brilliant achievement, especially in Gaelic. It just goes to show that persistence pays off, even with a language as unique as Gaelic.
It's really insightful to hear about your learning journey too. Many people struggle to find a method that clicks, and it's great you kept searching beyond Duolingo and local classes to find what worked for you. Speak Gaelic and Learn Gaelic sound like excellent resources.
What part of the process, beyond the win itself, did you find most rewarding?
Hi Melody, thnaks for your comments. Sorry for taking so long to respond! The most challenging thing about translating the story was to keep it to 50 words. Gaelic seems to need more words to say the same thing as you'd say in English. The most rewarding thing was finding i could actually do it, as I still feel very much a beginner in Gaelic. My understanding is improving noticeably, but my ability to use the language (to speak it or to write it) is not increasing so much, so i was very pleased to be able to write this story.
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