Does anyone speak Gaelic?

[Shay]

I'm desperately searching for someone who can translate something for me from English to Gaelic. I'd need it in writing, with all spelling and grammar correct, as this is part of a tattoo design to be added to my clan crest tattoo.

Be careful getting a tattoo in a different language. While it was a different situation, I saw a girl with "Cead Mile Failte" as a lower back tattoo- basically offering a hundred thousand welcomes to her butt. And there is a whole website dedicated to bad Chinese tattoos, too you may want to page through to get an idea how offbase people's interpretations can be. There's a couple different dialects of Gaelic, as I understand it, and you wouldn't want Irish Gaelic for a Scottish family or vice versa.

In any case, that sentence is by Richard Bach, the full quote is:

"The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other's life. Rarely do members of one family grow up under the same roof."

It's from a book called Illusions. You may already know this, but just in case, you may want to read where the author was going with the work before you have his words indelibly put into your skin.

(I have a tattoo myself, I'm not against them, I just am on the side of researching everything you can about your intended design/message before getting one.)

[Randy]

A friend of mine just had the AT logo tattooed. While it was being outlined the artist said "Oops, you wanted this filled in, right?" Probaly did not help I was taking photos of him doing 2 victims/3 tats. I just asked woman at work last month about the chinese on her, she thinks it means power and strength.

[An t-Ileach]

In the words of Deep Thought, "you're not going to like it".

I'm not a Gaelic scholar, just a user, so here's my suggestion for what it's worth, off the top of my head - sort of. I don't know how elegant or poetic it might be:

Chan ann dàimh ga cheangal do shliochd fìor ach meas agus aoibhneas ri deò agaibh do chàch a chèile.

It's not word-for-word, but as close as I could get. I think the tattooist will have a fit, or you might run out of skin.

[MacConnachie]

Don't trust to approximations, or "I hope this is right." When you go for a literal translation, word-by-word, you can get something in a structure and syntax that is either nonsense, subject to umpteen different translations back into English, or just plain wrong. Somebody recently, in a rather public manner, tried to go for, "A promise is a promise," in Gaidhlig. What they got, because one letter was left out of the Gailidh word for "promise," was, "A bitch is a bitch." I know enough Gaelge (Irish Gaelic) to be dangerous, and I know even less of the Scots Gaidhlig, so I'd advise you seek out a native speaker, such as someone from Cape Breton in Nova Scotia, or Scotland itself. There are a few of those about, puttering around public bulletin boards on the Internet; however, even the two fellows with a talent for translation who are members of Bob Dunsire's bagpipes forum have been rather scarce there, of late.

[Bryndian_Dhai]

Thanks to everyone for all the information... This is more response than I've gotten in months' worth of searching.

For the record, this quote will go across my lower back, above my clan crest tattoo that sits in the center just above my behind. I do know who wrote it, and the context of the quote.... This tattoo has been a work in progress now for several years... First the idea for my clan crest and now the addition to "complete" it. This will be my ninth tattoo, and most decidedly not my last, and every single bit of ink on my body has a minimum of a year of deliberation and research and decision, some have more than ten years.

This quote has deep, personal, intimate meaning for me. I don't care if anyone else can read what it says, I'm happy to translate. But I do care that it says what its supposed to say, if that makes sense. I've seen more tattoos than I like to think about in languages that are not the wearer's first, that don't mean what they thought it would mean. Not only Kanji (though that's the most prevalent), but there's a new trend of tattoos in Elvish (mostly LOTR elvish, but I've seen other dialects, too), Hebrew and oddly enough, Arabic. That's why I'm spending so much time on this, and am willing to pay for a correct translation, so that I can be sure. I have an absolutely phenomenal tattoo artist, whose black line work is astounding (y'all should see the celtic linework/knotwork/morphic piece he did on my calf), and I have absolutely no doubt that he can put these words on my body in a manner that will make me proud to show it off.

Thanks again for ALL of y'all's help. If nothing else, y'all give me much hope that I will be able to see this tattoo come together the way I'm picturing it in my head.

[sav]

There are several members here that have been inked, and posted about it! Please feel free to post pics of your celtic-themed tattoos!

[Bryndian_Dhai]

There are several members here that have been inked, and posted about it! Please feel free to post pics of your celtic-themed tattoos!

Is there a particular forum topic dedicated to tattoos, or should I just break out the pictures here? *grins* I don't usually have to have my arm twisted to share my tattoos!

[KiltedCodeWarrior]

Thanks to everyone for all the information... This is more response than I've gotten in months' worth of searching...

Thats whats great about this forum, the breadth and depth of knowledge of all the posters!

Is there a particular forum topic dedicated to tattoos, or should I just break out the pictures here? *grins* I don't usually have to have my arm twisted to share my tattoos!

You can always use the Show us your pics forum!