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The Irish For... it's fun to drink uisce beatha in a síbín - but watch out for the poison drop

If the Irish phrase for a hangover doesn’t put you off drink nothing will – ‘braon nimhe sa ceann’ means ‘a poison drop to the head’, writes Darach Ó Séaghdha.

This the latest dispatch from our columnist Darach Ó Séaghdha, author of the award-winning and bestselling Motherfoclóir. Every Sunday morning, Darach will be regaling (re-Gaeling?) us with insights on what the Irish language says about Ireland, our society, our past and our present. Enjoy. 

NOVEMBER IS A month when some people in Ireland, unmoved by the arrival of Beaujolais Nouveau or the hilarity of watching Movemberers attempt to drink a pint around their newly hairy upper lips, refrain from drinking alcohol.

While this practice may be rooted in religious abstinence, its enduring popularity seems to owe more to preparing for the hedonism of office party season.

After all, Christmas means an avalanche of social obligations and in Ireland, such organised fun demands to be lubricated by drink; some people decide to give their liver and wallet a bit of a rest before it kicks off.

Given the popularity of drinking here, could the practice of consuming alcoholic drinks possibly be reflected in the Irish language?

Póit: This word means an excessive amount of drink, more than one can handle (potus, as well as being an acronym for president of the united states, is a Latin adjective meaning drunken).

You might notice a similarity between it and poitín, the famous ersatz potato-based hard liquor. Historically, this has been illegal but recently some poitíns have been correctly taxed and available in shops. 

Síbín: This is another name for illicit hard liquor, and it can also mean the place where such alcohol is served; hence shebeen in English. The opposite is parlaimint, a lesser-used older word that means legally-distilled whiskey. But where does the word for whiskey come from?

Uisce Beatha: The word whiskey comes from this term, shared in Irish and Scots Gaelic, which means the water of life.

This is also the Irish title of the hit show Riverdance and the refrain repeated in its choral opening sequence – which does not mention rivers or dancing. Presumably naming the show “whiskey” in English wouldn’t have set the right tone.  

Aon Braiche: This is the Irish for single malt. It is a fairly recent entry to the language, but so is “single malt”, an expression unknown before the mid-1980s and one which aficionados won’t hesitate to tell you – whether you ask or not – is not a designation of quality.

Craorag: This is one of the terms in Irish for blood-red, and can also describe whiskey that’s served neat.

Asoilgi Laith Lochrúna: This is a proverb from old-Irish meaning “ale reveals dark secrets”. But what kind of dark secrets?

Maybe they involve the magical powers of the fada.  Leann means beer or ale, but when you add a fada, you get léann, which means learning.

Lagar means depression; add a fada and you get lagár means lager beer.

LGI: If you like IPAs, these are LGIs in Irish – Indian Pale Ale being Leann Gealbhuí Indiach. The colour of the ale is described as bright yellow (geal & buí) rather than merely pale.

The colours attributed to alcoholic drinks in English don’t always make sense and Irish doesn’t match them exactly either; a red ale is leann rua but a red wine is fíon dearg.

White wine is fíon geal… not to be confused with Fine Gael, a political party.

Fíontach: This urgently useful adjective describes a place with lots of wine or a person who is particularly keen on wine. Which leads us on to our final term,

Braon Nimhe: A nasty (or poison) drop. Used figuratively to refer to a hangover. As in braon nimhe sa ceann – a poison drop in the head.  

Darach’s new book, Craic Baby: Dispatches From A Rising Language is published by Head of Zeus and available in bookshops now.

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    Mute Ciaran Ó Fallúin
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    Nov 15th 2017, 2:42 PM

    Exercising his right to be all kinds of wrong.

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    Mute Gillian Weir Scully
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    Nov 15th 2017, 9:35 PM

    @Cultural Marxist: Quite right too and how many female mass murderers?

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    Mute Cultural Marxist
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    Nov 15th 2017, 9:40 PM

    @Gillian Weir Scully: Indeed.

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    Mute Deborah Behan
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    Nov 15th 2017, 3:50 PM

    Another case of a mass shooter having a history of domestic violence. If only there was some kind of law to prevent those with convictions from having access to guns. It must be hard for Americans to figure out….

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    Mute Deborah Behan
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    Nov 15th 2017, 3:53 PM

    @Deborah Behan: and why did he go to the school? He must have wanted to kill the kids inside! Absolutely nuts.

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    Mute Diarmaid Mac Aonghusa
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    Nov 15th 2017, 3:56 PM

    @Deborah Behan: In a country with such easy access to weapons a law like that would be pointless. I think getting upset about shootings in the US is a waste of time. It’s over, and the gun lovers won and won well. With more guns than people a change in any of the laws is futile. Just let them enjoy their freedom.

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    Mute Thought for Food
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    Nov 15th 2017, 4:03 PM

    @Deborah Behan:

    Yes, if only felonies prohibited people from legally acquiring and owning firearms in the US.

    Oh wait, it’s already outlined in Chapter 18 of the USC that felons cannot own firearms.

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    Mute Larissa Caroline Nikolaus
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    Nov 15th 2017, 4:54 PM

    @Thought for Food: Go back, stroke your guns, troll, no-one cares to listen to your bs excuses for these killers

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    Mute David On Tour
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    Nov 15th 2017, 9:41 PM

    @Thought for Food: You’re clearly an expert on US gun law. Tell me, exactly why would any member of the public need to own a firearm?

    I’m interested because a guy on twitter told me earlier he needed a gun to defend himself against bears. I’m hopeful you can come up with an even dafter excuse.

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    Mute GClare
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    Nov 16th 2017, 1:00 AM

    @Deborah Behan: he had to surrender his licenced guns after charges earlier in the year , the ones he used were illegal and registered to someone else

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    Mute Michael Heery
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    Nov 16th 2017, 2:51 AM

    @Diarmaid Mac Aonghusa: about 400 millions guns in private hands ,,,africa is safer.

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    Mute Thought for Food
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    Nov 16th 2017, 6:15 AM

    @David On Tour:

    How is defending themselves from a bear a daft excuse? Bear attacks on trails in the US are a relatively frequent occurrence.

    The needs for guns are varied. Target practice, hunting, self defence and just because someone wants one are all valid reasons.

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    Mute RónanMullsHisFaith#8
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    Nov 16th 2017, 7:08 AM

    @David On Tour: there is approx 8 million Americans that own on average anything between 8 to 142 guns..They need these guns to be able to shoot up tanks,fighter jets and incoming tomahawk missiles that have been fired from aircraft carriers..Any other silly question?

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    Mute Benson Hallahan
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    Nov 16th 2017, 8:35 AM

    @RónanMullsHisFaith#8: Don’t forget hurricanes!!

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    Mute Ciarán Masterson
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    Nov 15th 2017, 3:03 PM

    “Neal’s mother told The Associated Press her son, who was a marijuana grower, was in a long-running dispute with neighbours he believed were cooking methamphetamine.”

    Well, he was definitely breaking bad!

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    Mute Northern Craic
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    Nov 15th 2017, 11:42 PM

    @Ciarán Masterson: Nice neighbourhood.

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    Mute Polly Dolan
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    Nov 15th 2017, 2:53 PM

    Let’s be clear here he terrorised no one. Just an unhappy chap.

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    Mute Kerry Blake
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    Nov 15th 2017, 9:34 PM

    Well at least the guns involved didn’t kill anyone. Just another subject who had easy access to weapons….

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    Mute Thought for Food
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    Nov 16th 2017, 6:17 AM

    @Kerry Blake:

    He was legally barred from acquiring or holding firearms. How exactly is that “easy access”?

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    Mute Frank Hunt
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    Nov 16th 2017, 6:31 AM

    @Thought for Food: He was legally barred but yet got his hands on a semi automatic rifle and two hand guns, seems like easy access to me.

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    Mute RónanMullsHisFaith#8
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    Nov 16th 2017, 7:11 AM

    @Thought for Food: give up man.Your a$$has been handed to you on a plate sooo many times on this very subject..

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    Mute Thought for Food
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    Nov 16th 2017, 7:48 AM

    @Frank Hunt:

    So what would have prevented the same attack from happening here then? After all, the Bataclan attackers had easy access to automatic firearms even though legally they were forbidden from having them anywhere in the EU.

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    Mute John Owens
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    Nov 16th 2017, 3:59 PM

    @Thought for Food: have you lost your mind. All across the states there could be a mass shooting for every day of the week, but there hasn’t been more than a handful across all of Europe and Australia who are much stricter on gun ownership. You can ignore arguments if you like, but you can’t deny the endless reports coming out of one place where the laws are different… it’s not up for question at all. Americans in certain areas are complete idiots. It’s about time California and New York broke off from the madness in the middle. Most of the gang crime is in the major cities anyway where gun laws would be easier to police

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    Mute Bob Murphy
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    Nov 15th 2017, 9:37 PM

    It must be a muslim

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    Mute David Cagney
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    Nov 15th 2017, 10:38 PM

    The GOP, the NRA, Christian Republicanism, the organisations that just keep on giving. How else would we have thoughts and prayers?

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    Mute Fiona deFreyne
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    Nov 15th 2017, 10:31 PM

    The killer used the guns for the purpose for which they are designed and manufactured, that is to kill and injure people.

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    Mute Martin Sinnott
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    Nov 15th 2017, 9:57 PM

    Not news anymore! Only the friends and relatives will Romberg this in six months. Mass shootings in USA

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    Mute Northern Craic
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    Nov 15th 2017, 11:49 PM

    @Martin Sinnott: There’s a news organisations guideline in place that says mass shooting incidents in the States that result in fewer than 5 deaths are no longer deemed newsworthy anymore. Not sure why this one got through – likely the school/kids element.

    So you’re correct, this isn’t news anymore.

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    Mute Cormac Ó Braonáin
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    Nov 16th 2017, 12:37 AM

    a lovely country

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    Mute John Mulligan
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    Nov 16th 2017, 7:33 AM

    The home of the brave.

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