Gàidhlig / English
Druite chun a Chraicinn

Druite chun a Chraicinn

Posted by Abi on 17th September 2015

There are many words and sayings from the Western Isles about bad weather, and after a wet holiday in Harris last week, it doesn’t surprise me!

Our saying of the week is ‘Druite chun a Chraicinn’ [soaked to the skin] and it was collected in Govig, Harris, along with the saying ‘cho fliuch ri lach’ [as wet as a wild duck] and ‘bog bathte’ [soaking wet].

A good saying was collected in Harris in Illeray, ‘Nach e a ghabh a’ bhùrsach’ [Didn’t he take a storm], meaning bad, wild weather or also someone who has had a heavy night on the drink.

In the fieldwork archive on the DASG website there are different sayings for somebody who comes inside on a bad day wearing wet clothes and shoes. In South Uist, ‘bha e na mheabain’ [he is a pest/rascal] was said of a child who was very wet after playing outside in the rain, and they also used a saying ‘O, b’e sin cas bheag a lodain’ [Oh, that’s a little puddle foot] in Swainbost on the Isle of Lewis. The saying ‘Fhuair thu do labanachadh’ [You got your “puddling”] was also collected in Lochs on the Isle of Lewis, for someone coming inside wet and dirty.

On Scalpay, Harris, the saying ‘bha slip-slap aig air an làr’ [there was a slip-slap on the floor] was collected for someone who was very wet with their shoes were full of water. The shoes would make a noise on the floor like a ‘slip-slap.’

If you know any other sayings or words for ‘Druite chun a Chraicinn’ [soaked to the skin] why not let us know on Facebook or Twitter?

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