Gàidhlig / English
boinneagraich

boinneagraich

Posted by Alasdair on 13 April 2017
This term in the Fieldwork Archive was recorded from an informant in Harris in 1972.  It is recorded in the phrase "boinneagraich uisge" which is translated as “light drops of rain”.  It can be compared to two nouns recorded by Dwelly, boinneartaich and boinnealaich, which are translated in that source as “dropping of rain previous to a shower”.
 
Boinneagraich is not recorded in Corpas na Gàidhlig but boinnealaich and boinneartaich are recorded in digitised texts there.  The phrase “boinneartaich uisge” is recorded in the following passage in Naigheachdan Firinneach 2: “bha a nis boinneartaich uisge ann a bha cur air mhanadh oidhche shalaich”.  The implication is that boinneartaich uisge is an indication that a night of filthy weather is on the cards.

The same sense is recorded in the following passage in An Teachdaire Ùr Gàidhealach: “mhothuich mi boinnealaich uisge ge nach robh e ach ainneamh”.  It's clear that boinnealaich uisge refers to very light rain and, again, in this passage, it precedes heavy rain.  It's interesting to note that boinnealaich is also recorded on its own, without uisge, in The Campbell collection of Gaelic proverbs and proverbial sayings, where it is translated as “rain drops prior to a shower”.

The implication of these instances in Corpas na Gàidhlig is that these terms refer to light drops of rain which precede heavier rain.  The three terms derive from boinne, meaning ‘drop; small quantity; liquid measure’ (LearnGaelic).
 
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