Gàidhlig / English
Puilm-shruth

Puilm-shruth

Posted by Kate on Thursday 1st of October 2015.

It is a pleasure this week to bring to you a variety of phrases connected with the flow of water and the different sounds you hear when sitting beside a river or burn in a glen. The phrase puilm-shruth was recorded in the Isle of Lewis, and this describes the flowing of the stream when moving so fast over rocks that bubbles rise on the water’s surface. You may hear the torman of the stream as a result. You would hear crònan or dùrdail from a burn that is more settled.

When a bubble appears as a spring bursts out of the earth, this is known as puilmean. Perhaps you would hear corraghul, the gurgling sound of freshwater, “a’ puilbheadh suas” from the spring as you sit beside it.

There is many a bard that took pleasure out of listening to a burn and studying its movements. This is apparent from the beautiful verse of Alexander MacDonald from his poem, Allt an t-Siùcair (‘The Sugar Brook’):

 

Gur milis, brisg-gheal, búrn-ghlan,

Meall-chúirneineach, ’s binn fuaim,

Bras-shruthain Uilt-ain-tsiucair,

Ri torman siubhlach luath:

Gach bioloir, ’s luibh le ’n úr-rós’

Ag cintinn dlú ma bhruaich;

’S e toirt dhoibh bhuaghan súghor,

Go ’n sui’bheathachadh mancuairt.

 

Búrn tana, glan, gun ruaghan,

Gun deathach, ruaim, no ceo,

Bheir anam-fáis, is gluasaid,

D’a chluanagan ma bhórd.

Gaoir bheachainn bhui, ’s ruagha,

Ri dioggladh chluaran óir,

’S cir-mheala d’ a chuir suas leo,

An ceir-chuachagan ’n a stóir.

 

You can read the rest of this poem here, and you can also listen to Allt an t-Siùcair as a song here.

 

We’ll conclude here with a phrase or two for you to bear in mind when walking by a riverside. If a river is na gàire gheal, then it is in spate and jumping, perhaps after a big flood. I myself heard a proverb recently from a friend, and this could be interpreted as a warning to you if you hear the like when walking close to a river:

 

“Tha a’ chomhachag ri bròn, thig tuiltean oirnn.”

 

“The owl is mourning, floods are coming.”

 

If you are familiar with any other words for the different voices of the burn or river, get in touch on Facebook of Twitter.

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