Tha na faoileagan a’ nochdadh ann an mòran sheanfhaclan is abairtean / Seagulls appear in large number of Gaelic proverbs and observations about nature

Faoileagan nan Seanfhaclan

Herring Gull and Thrift
©Lorne Gill

Tha e iongantach na th’ againn de sheanfhaclan co-cheangailte ri faoileagan. Bidh sibh eòlach, tha mi cinnteach, air an abairt cho còir ris an fhaoileig. Tha feadhainn dhen bheachd, ged a tha i dha-rìreabh an-diugh, gun do dh’èirich an abairt à ìoranas. Cia mheud faoileag a chunnaic sibh, agus i a’ toirt seachad biadh gu saor-thoileach gu creutair eile?! Agus tha samhlaidhean eile ann nach eil a’ toirt meas do bheusan an eòin – cho faoin ris na faoileagan, cho gòrach ris na faoileagan agus – à Eilean Leòdhais – cho faoin ri faoileag ann an Ach (a’ ciallachadh an Acha’ Mhòir, an aon bhaile anns an eilean aig nach eil cladach!)

Thathar ag ràdh mu neach òg a tha a’ feuchainn ri dèanamh a-mach gu bheil iad nas sine na tha iad ann an dha-rìreabh gu bheil guth na faoileig ann an beul na sgairig no gu bheil guth na faoileig aig an sgliùbraich (faoileag òg). Nuair a nochdas faoileagan ann an achaidhean air falbh bhon chladach, thathar ag ràdh gu bheil sneachd air an rathad. Ach, mas iad sgaireagan a tha a’ tighinn cruinn, ’s e uisge a tha san amharc. Tha an seanfhacal ann – faoileagan manadh an t-sneachda, sgaireagan manadh an uisge.

Bidh sinn a’ gabhail faoileagan a’ chladaich againn fhèin air feadhainn a bhuineas gu làidir don choimhearsnachd againn, agus ma tha feadhainn a’ leantainn ann droch shuidheachadh nuair a bu chòir dhaibh gluasad air adhart gur e faoileagan an droch chladaich a th’ annta. Bha beachd aig na seann daoine nach biodh na faoileagan a’ falbh fada on dachaigh. Ged nach eil sin buileach fìor, tha iad rim faicinn fhathast ann am mìosan a’ gheamhraidh, eucoltach ri mòran eun-mara eile.

tha an fhaoileag air a’ mhuir  ‘the seagull is on the sea’ 
Ness lighthouse, Montrose ©Lorne Gill/SNH

Agus ’s ann tric a chithear faoileag air a’ mhuir. Chan eil sin a’ ciallachadh nan eun fhèin, ach na barran geala air muin gach stuaigh air latha gaothach no stoirmeil.

Seagulls of Many Proverbs

Non Gaelic-speakers might be surprised by the number and variety of Gaelic proverbs connected to our native seagulls (the generic Gaelic term for the various species is faoileag). Perhaps the proverb most commonly encountered in conversation is cho còir ris an fhaoileig ‘as generous-hearted as the seagull’; it’s been suggested that, while the sentiment in today’s language might be genuine, the origin of the simile might be based on an ironic observation (given the selfish behaviour of gulls who are scrapping for food!) This is perhaps supported by two other sayings with a largely negative flavour – cho faoin ris na faoileagan ‘as vain as the seagulls’ and cho gòrach ris na faoileagan ‘as silly as the seagulls’.

Lesser black-backed gulls (Larus fuscus),
©Lorne Gill/SNH

A young seagull (in its first year) is called a sgaireag. It is said of a young person trying to sound older than they really are that they have guth na faoileig ann an beul na sgairig ‘the old gull’s voice in the young gull’s mouth’. When the young gulls appear in numbers in inland fields, it is reckoned to presage wet weather – but when older gulls gather, it is said that snow is on the way. This is summed up in the observation faoileagan manadh an t-sneachda, sgaireagan manadh an uisge ‘adult gulls foretell snow, young gulls foretell rain’.

It might be said of people who belong to our own community and are unlikely to venture far from home that they are faoileagan a’ chladaich againn fhèin ‘the seagulls of our own shore’. If they persist in staying in a poor situation, when they should really move on to better things, they might be termed faoileagan an droch chladaich ‘seagulls of the bad shore’. These sayings arise from the traditional observation that gulls are not as strongly migratory as some other species of seabird – or, at least, many of them can still be seen locally during the winter months.

tha an fhaoileag air a’ mhuir  ‘the seagull is on the sea’
Bass Rock from Belhaven Bay, Dunbar.
©George Logan/SNH

And what is the Gaelic equivalent of the English ‘white horses’, referring to the white caps on waves on a windy day? It is also biological, but refers, not to horses but to seagulls – tha an fhaoileag air a’ mhuir ‘the seagull is on the sea’; the singular, of course, is collective!