Many people have the wrong impression about the Irish language. It’s not uncommon to talk to someone about Irish Gaelic and hearing that “it’s a dying language”, when that’s far from the truth.
The Irish language isn’t dying, not at all. It’s being used on a daily basis and (you probably didn’t know this) it’s evolving!
Just take these technology words for example:
- Ríomhaire /REEV-er-ah/ means “computer”
- Idirlíon /IJ-er-leen/ means “Internet”
What people do for a newly-used word is to go look at the original core meaning of the word. Then they try to come up with a nice translation that would work in the Irish language. That’s also the case for the word “Burrito”.
How To Say – “Burrito” in Irish Gaelic (VIDEO)
So to say burrito in Irish Gaelic, say:
asailín
/OSS-ah-leen/
Extra pattern with “ín”
Do you know the word smithereens? That came from the Irish language, and it literally means “small pieces”.
Well, the “ín” ending of words in Irish Gaelic tells you that we’re talking about something small. That’s a pattern to remember!
So asal /OSS-al/ means “donkey”, so asailín means “small donkey”.
Next time you’re in Ireland, tell your friends you want to go get an asailín!