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Tearraideachadh

Tearraideachadh

Posted by Garry on 19 October, 2017
It was on the island of Taransay in 1917 tha Cailein T. MacCoinnich was born and, after graduating from the University of St. Andrews, he was a minister in the Church of Scotland for the rest of his life.  Fond of poetry and of prose, he was awarded the Bardic Crown at the Royal National Mod in 1952; and he has left us one, short novella (A’ Leth Eile, 1971) and three collections of short stories (Oirthir Tìm, 1969; Mar Sgeul a Dh’innseas Neach, 1971; and Nach Neònach Sin, 1973), in addition to a variety of pieces which were published over the years in the magazine, Gairm.

In his short story, “Crudha Eich”, which appeared in Gairm (Number 59) in the summer of 1967, someone was killed, but, was it an accident or a murder, this was the question.  Investigating this question, this is what one of the characters in this story did:

            “He took hold of the pipe, and he made a tearraideachadh of it ...” (p. 217)

But, what is a tearraideachadh?  Well, it’s a sort of detailed examination, and, as far as we are aware, at this moment, Cailein T. MacCoinnich has been the only author by whom this word has been used.  However, since he used it in another story (in “Sop ás Gach Seid”; Nach Neònach Sin, 1973), surely it is not a hapax legomenon.
In Dwelly’s great dictionary, there is the word tearraideachd, from the words earraideachd and earraid, apparently.  Is it from these words that came this week’s word?

 
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