Читать книгу Reading the Gaelic Landscape - John Murray - Страница 10

In 1881 and 1891, Gaelic was spoken throughout the Highlands. Only in Caithness and in towns bordering the Moray Firth, along the southeastern edge of the Grampians, in south Kintyre and on the east coasts of Arran and Bute, was there less than 50% of the population speaking the language. Nearly a quarter of a million Scots spoke Gaelic in Scotland in 1891, over 6% of the population. Between 1901 and 1931 the number of Gaelic speakers declined from 230,806 (4.5% of the population) to 136,135 (2.8%). By 1951, only in the Hebrides (excepting north and east Mull), Morar, Sunart and the western margins of mainland Inverness-shire, Ross and Sutherland did a majority of people speak the language. Less than 2% of the nation’s population were now Gaelic speakers. Of the four core counties in the Gàidhealtachd, Argyll and Sutherland proved the least resilient to linguistic erosion. Given the monoglot agenda of the education authorities, it is not surprising that parents did not think it worthwhile to pass on their language to their children. ‘Gaelic will get you no further than the ferry pier’ was a common admonition in the Hebrides.

Figure 2: Gaelic Speakers in UK Census Data 1881 - 2011

The rate of decline in Gaelic speakers appears to have decelerated in recent years. The 2001 census reported 58,652 people, having fallen by 11.1% from 65,597 in 1991. In 2011, the decline had slowed to 2.2% to 57,375. This represented 1.1% of the Scottish population recorded as having some ability in the language. Half of these lived in the Outer Hebrides, Highland Region or Argyll and Bute. Gaelic has continued to decline in these core indigenous areas, but this has been partly masked by an increase of speakers in the Lowlands. In 2001, nearly 50% of Gaelic speakers lived in the cities of the Central Belt. Kenneth MacKinnon termed the new distribution ‘a Gaelic archipelago in a Lowland sea’. The 2011 census also recorded the positive result that the number of speakers under twenty years in age had increased by 0.1% - presumably as a result of the growth in Gaelic medium education. In 2005, the language was officially recognised by the Scottish Government, but unlike Welsh, Gaelic is not recognised as an official language of the United Kingdom.

The most noticeable indicator of a Gaelic revival is the erection of bilingual road and rail signs throughout much of the Highlands. To the place-name enthusiast this is manna from heaven! Many names have had their Gaelic origins revealed. What was obscure and meaningless is now accessible. Semantic revelations have strengthened a sense of place and cultural identity, which, though sourced from the past, embraces the entire Gàidhealtachd. If we did not know the Gaelic spelling of Acharacle, for example, which is Àth Tharracail, we might mistake a field (achadh) for a ford (àth), and misunderstand the reason for the siting of the settlement near the narrow outflow of Loch Shiel (Loch Seile) and the significance for settlement history that it remembers a Norseman called Torcuil.

Most of the verification of the names on the bilingual signs has been undertaken by Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba (AÀA) - Gaelic Place-names of Scotland, the national advisory partnership for Gaelic place-names, based at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig (SMO) on the Isle of Skye (An t-Eilean Sgitheanach). SMO, now part of the University of the Highlands and Islands, was initiated in the humble setting of an old stone barn by Sir Iain Noble in 1973. He had bought the estate of Fearann Eilean Iarmain in Sleat (Slèite) from the impoverished Lord MacDonald. What started as a Further Education Establishment is now the Centre for Gaelic Language and Culture in Scotland. As Noble said at the time, this was the first new institution of its kind since Columba founded Iona Abbey.

About the same time, Sir Iain provoked the beginnings of a bilingual policy on road signs. The then County of Invernesshire wished to carry out road improvements to the south of Portree, requiring the purchase of land from Fearann Eilean Iarmain. Sir Iain agreed, on condition that 3 bilingual signs were erected for Broadford, Portree and Viewfield Road. These were An t-Àth Leathann, Port Rìgh and Goirtean na Creige. The last means the arable enclosure of the rock. Its Gaelic name bears no resemblance to the English version. After a long struggle with the Council, signs were eventually erected. Upon local government reorganisation in the 1970s, Comhairle nan Eilean rapidly replaced anglicised road signs with Gaelic renderings - often with no translation supplied.

The Duke of Atholl had attempted something similar on his estate in the early 20th century with partial success as shown by Baile-na-H-eiglas for Kirkton of Lude and Achgobhal for Achgoul (Ó Murchú 1989). Bilingual signs are now commonplace on roads in the Highlands, but less so at the time of writing in the Highland parts of the former Counties of Angus, Perth and Stirling. Where possible Gaelic station names have been introduced throughout the rail network of Scotland. The results of such policies have propelled the language into the mainstream world of maps and mapping.

These patterns are mirrored elsewhere. Citing Mount Egmont, Mt McKinley and Mount Everest, known as Taranaki, Denali and Chomolungma in the native languages of New Zealand, Alaska and Nepal, Roddy MacLean (Ruairidh Macilleathain) argues that Ben Lomond, Ben Nevis, Braeriach, Cairn Toul and the Pap of Glen Coe (Gleann Comhann) should be shown on maps in their dual identities. These are Beinn Laomainn, Beinn Nibheis, Bràigh Riabhach, Càrn an t-Sabhail and Sgòrr na Ciche. The following table of famous Scottish mountains, adapted from MacIlleathain’s 2010 lecture to the Islands Books Trust, proves how correct renderings provide an informative resource for those trying to read the landscape through place-names.

Table 1: Anglicisation of well-known Mountains and their Original Gaelic.

True Gaelic spelling enables correct pronunciation. Cairn Toul - Càrn an t-Sabhail provides an interesting example. To the Lowland Scot, who pronounces dour as ‘doo-er’, it is tempting to pronounce -toul as ‘tool’. The Southern English speaker, who may pronounce dour as ‘dower’ is more likely to voice the Gaelic correctly, as Cairn TOWel. Similarly, Tomintoul (Tom an t-Sabhail - the hillock of the barn) also in the Cairngorms is often pronounced Tomintool.

Plate 3: Ardeonaig - Beinn Ghlas and Beinn Labhair, Tom a’ Bhuachaille is on the left middle ground of the picture

Plate 4: Glen Beith - Beinn Mhùrlag, Stùc a’ Chroin and Beinn Odhar, Tom Cadalach is on the right middle ground of the picture behind the sheep

Correct pronunciation can also help with meanings. How do we know what Balloch, near Loch Lomond, means if we do not know that the original Gaelic form is Bealach, meaning pass and pronounced BYAHluch, stressing the first syllable? If we did not know the sound of the name, we could conclude that Balloch had a quite different meaning of Town of the Loch, like Baile an LOCH, near Inverness, which is pronounced with the stress on loch and, confusingly, also anglicised as Balloch.

If the spelling of Gaelic names is incorrect on maps and in guides, how can we be sure if the anglicised prefix kil means a church (cill), a wood (coille) or the back of something (cùl), which are completely different things? If Auchtertyre is spelled thus, or as Ochtertyre, how do we know if the name refers to a field, ach[adh], or the upper part, uachdar, of the land - two differing types of place? This example shows another problem with corrupted Gaelic orthography. It is inconsistent, and inconsistencies have no rules. Throughout the text this book will identify and correct many common corruptions of Gaelic spelling. Like the introduction of bilingual road signs, it is hoped that this will promote a more grounded and deeper understanding of the landscape.