What Languages do we all speak or want to learn?

Grumpy1314

I’m currently chipping away at learning the language of my late Ancestors from Montrose and Angus in Scotland. I thought learning French at school was challenging, but learning Scottish Gaelic on Duolingo, is on another level!!! Some sentences are not the way you would do a normal sentence. But over time I’ve started to pick it up, sometimes I have words floating around in my head, somehow sometimes I’ll get 100% on a lesson, other times I’ve got as little as 65%. But I must admit it is fascinating to say the least. I am also considering signing back up with Ancestry to continue my research into my family history, that is a challenge when you have very limited information and don’t speak to your family. But I’ve gone back as far as the 1700’s on some branches.

I changed my name to my late Grandfathers name Donald at the end of 2023, but when I started learning Gaelic, I saw how his name was spelt as Dòmhnall in Scottish Gaelic - the terminology for changing it to English didn’t sit right for me, which was Anglicised!! So I changed it again to the correct Gaelic spelling 💚

Hello my name is Donald, I come from Oldham in England

Halo ’s e Dòmhnall an t-ainm a th’ orm, tha mi a’ tighinn à Oldham ann an Sasainn

As you can see, from those two sentences, the Gaelic is very challenging to say and read. Dòmhnall’s is pronounced as - Dòughnall like Doughnut, with the MH silent.

Ranald

Montrose is in Angus, as am I! You must be going way back, as gaelic probably hasn't been spoken here in a thousand years!

Grumpy1314

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1014003#Comment_1014003

My Family surname’s from Montrose and the surround area around Angus such as Fern, Kirriemuir, Tannadice, Coupar, St Cyrus, my family anre laid to rest in the Kirkyards at Fern and Rosie Island. My family surnames are McFarlane, Whitefield, Ogilvie, Bowman etc. My three times great grandfather moved to Manchester in the late 1800’s. I may have been born in Oldham, but I’m more akin to the Scottish side of my family, I support Scotland in the Rugby, Football and Cricket. Gaelic slowly died out in the lowlands of Angus in the 1400’s but the last Gaelic speaking person in Angus died in the 20th century. Schools should be teaching it to keep the language alive.

Ranald

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1014012#Comment_1014012

Our ancient forefathers probably spoke a language akin to Welsh. Gaelic is the language of the Scots, who came from Ireland.

Btw, my family have ties to Skye. They were Gaelic speakers.

Don't mention Tannadice! My allegiance lies several hundred yards up the road;-)

Grumpy1314

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1014017#Comment_1014017

😂😂😂😂

I did the old Ancestry DNA, come back with, Scottish, Irish, Welsh, Danish, Swedish and English.

That’s going on my new front door 😂

My family are a Sept of Clan MacFarlane of Arrochar and Tarbet on Loch Lomond, Loch Long and Loch Sloy.

When I changed my name in 2023, I added the a to McFarlane as a nod to my late Grandad Mac, alongside as a nod to Clan MacFarlane. My late Grandad may of been born in Salford in Lancashire, but he was still called Donald McFarlane, because I wanted to learn Gaelic, I looked into how his name was spelt in Gaelic, Dòmhnall and Donald was the English spelling, I didn’t like the terminology of Anglicised so I changed it to its correct spelling and it’s good fun watching people try to say it 😂

Holly_Scope

Love this @Grumpy1314! It's given me a bit of a kick too as I started learning Spanish early this year via Duolingo but have been slacking recently! Definitely agree though, found Duolingo very good to use. Lots of variety ☺️

Grumpy1314

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1014293#Comment_1014293

I found this sentence quite funny when I had to translate it last night 😂 I’d be saying more than oh dear if a Lion was in my house, don’t think I’d have chance to say it another Lion had been in the house lol. It’s certainly an amazing language to learn, although trying to pronounce it can be tricky to say the least, I must admit you get a child saying it, mixture of ages of men and women, but then all of a sudden you will get this old lady with a very angry strong deep way of saying it, I just take my time doing it, listening carefully and use it for my mental health.