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An t-seachdain sa chaidh, bha mi a’ bruidhinn mun fhacal-fillte geal-chasach – white-legged no white-footed. Geal-chasach. Ach dè a’ Ghàidhlig a tha air ‘b±ô²¹³¦°ì-±ô±ð²µ²µ±ð»å’? Dubh-chasach. Tha sin furasta gu leòr, nach eil? Dubh-chasach. Tha fionn-chasach a’ ciallachadh an ìre mhath an aon rud ri geal-chasach.

ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý     Seo eisimpleirean eile de dh’fhaclan fillte le ‘casach’ annta. Aon-chasach ‘o²Ô±ð-´Ú´Ç´Ç³Ù±ð»å’, dà-chasach ‘b¾±±è±ð»å²¹±ô’, ceithir-chasach ‘q³Ü²¹»å°ù³Ü±è±ð»å²¹±ô’. Tha am facal ³Ù°ùì-³¦³ó²¹²õ²¹³¦³ó ann cuideachd. Tha stòl ³Ù°ùì-³¦³ó²¹²õ²¹³¦³ó agam aig an taigh. Agus tha ³Ù°ùì-³¦³ó²¹²õ²¹³¦³ó cuideachd na ainmear, a’ ciallachadh tripod.Ìý

ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý     Tha caol-chasach a’ ciallachadh â€ÈÙ±ô±ð²Ô»å±ð°ù-±ô±ð²µ²µ±ð»å’. Tha brat-chasach, cam-chasach agus croma-chasach uile a’ ciallachadh ‘b´Ç·É-±ô±ð²µ²µ±ð»å’.

ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý     Tha sin gam thoirt gu sgeulachd thraidiseanta a tha a’ toirt a-steach an fhacail croma-chasach. Bidh sibh eòlach air an iasg air a bheil ±ôè²¹²ú²¹²µ no ±ô±ðò²ú²¹²µ – the flounder. Canaidh sinn gu bheil an ±ôè²¹²ú²¹²µ ³¦±ðà°ù°ù-²µ³ó´Ç²ú²¹³¦³ó – wry-mouthed. °ä±ðà°ù°ù-²µ³ó´Ç²ú²¹³¦³ó no cearra-ghobach. Ach ciamar a fhuair i beul – no gob – mar sin? Uill – ’s e Calum Cille a bu choireach. Nach robh fios agaibh air sin?! Seo an stòiridh, ma-thà – ‘Calum Cille agus an Lèabag’.

ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý     Latha a bha seo, bha Calum Cille san tràigh shìolag. ’S e sin a’ phàirt dhen tràigh fo ìre na h-ìsle-mhara aig an reothart. An tràigh-shìolag – far a bheil sìolagan â€ÈÙ²¹²Ô»å±ð±ð±ô²õ’ a’ fuireach. Co-dhiù, bha Calum Cille a’ grunnachadh anns an tràigh-shìolag. Shaltair e air earball aig ±ôè²¹²ú²¹²µ bheag bhòidheach bhàn. Tha sin a’ ciallachadh gun do chuir e a chas air earball na lèabaig. Shaltair e air. Ghoirtich e an t-iasg. Dhochair e a h-earball. Agus dh’èigh an ±ôè²¹²ú²¹²µ bheag bhrònach aig àird a cinn:

‘A Chaluim mhòir mhosaich,

Le do chasan croma crosgach,

’S mòr a rinn thu orm de dhosgadh

Dar [nuair] a shaltair thu air m’ earball.’

Bha Calum Cille feargach. Bha an ±ôè²¹²ú²¹²µ ladarna. Bha i a’ tilgeil air an naomh gun robh e croma-chasach. Thuirt Calum Cille ris an leabaig, ‘Ma tha mise croma-chasach, biodh tusa cearra-ghobach.’ Agus dh’fhàg e mar sin i. Bho sin a-mach, tha an ±ôè²¹²ú²¹²µ air a bhith cearra-ghobach. Agus an robh Calum Cille croma-chasach? Chan eil fhios a’m. Agus chan eil mi a’ dol a thoirt beachd air!

Last week, I was talking about the compound word geal-chasach – white-legged or white-footed. Geal-chasach. But what is the Gaelic for ‘b±ô²¹³¦°ì-±ô±ð²µ²µ±ð»å’? Dubh-chasach. That’s easy enough, isn’t it? Dubh-chasach. Fionn-chasach means pretty much the same as geal-chasach.

ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý Here are other examples of compound words containing ‘casach’. Aon-chasach ‘o²Ô±ð-´Ú´Ç´Ç³Ù±ð»å’, dà-chasach ‘b¾±±è±ð»å²¹±ô’, ceithir-chasach ‘q³Ü²¹»å°ù³Ü±è±ð»å²¹±ô’. There is also the word ³Ù°ùì-³¦³ó²¹²õ²¹³¦³ó [three-legged]. I have a three-legged stool at home. And ³Ù°ùì-³¦³ó²¹²õ²¹³¦³ó is also a noun, meaning ‘tripod’.Ìý

ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý Caol-chasach means â€ÈÙ±ô±ð²Ô»å±ð°ù-±ô±ð²µ²µ±ð»å’. Brat-chasach, cam-chasach and croma-chasach all mean ‘b´Ç·É-±ô±ð²µ²µ±ð»å’.

ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý That brings me to a traditional story that includes the word croma-chasach. You’ll know the fish called ±ôè²¹²ú²¹²µ or ±ô±ðò²ú²¹²µ – the flounder. We say that the flounder is ³¦±ðà°ù°ù-²µ³ó´Ç²ú²¹³¦³ó – wry-mouthed. °ä±ðà°ù°ù-²µ³ó´Ç²ú²¹³¦³ó or cearra-ghobach. And how did it get a mouth like that? Well, St Columba was responsible. Didn’t you know that?! Here’s the story, then – ‘St Columba and the Flounder’.

ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý One day, Columba was on the sandeel shore. That’s the part of the beach below the low-tide mark at a spring tide. The sublittoral zone – where sandeels live. Anyway, Columba was wading in the sandeel shore. He trampled on the tail of a beautiful white flounder. That [shaltair e] means that he put his foot on the flounder’s tail. He trod on it. He hurt the fish. He damaged its [her] tail. And the sad little flounder shouted at the top of its [her] voice:

ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý ‘Big miserable Columba,

With your crooked, crosswise feet,

You caused me great calamity,

When you trampled on my tail.’

ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌý Columba was angry. The flounder was cheeky. She was accusing the saint of having bandy legs. Columba said to the flounder, ‘If I am bandy-legged, let you be wry-mouthed.’ And he left her like that. From that time, the flounder has been wry-mouthed. And was Columba bandy-legged? I don’t know. And I’m not going to give an opinion!