Focal an Lae #15
The Word of the Day in Irish
Word: teanga (CHANG-guh; ANG rhymes with “hang”)
Meaning: teanga = tongue; language
Usage: Teanga names both the fleshy organ in our mouths and human speech:
- teanga ghéar (CHANG-guh YAY-uhr) = a sharp tongue
- teanga bheo (CHANG-guh VYOE) = a living language
- Tír gan teanga, tír gan anam. (CHEER guhn CHANG-guh, CHEER guhn AH-nuhm) = A land without a language is a land without a soul.
History: Old Irish “tengae” derives from Indo-European *dṇghū (tongue).
Modern cognates are “tongue”, “language”, “linguist” (these latter from Old Latin “dingua”).
Scottish Gaelic: teanga (CHENG-guh), meaning both “tongue” and “language”, although in the latter sense the word “cánan” is more usual