Gàidhlig / English
Gaoth na Seichean

Gaoth na Seichean

Posted by Shelagh on Thursday 10 March 2016
Anyone who has ventured out into the open countryside over the last couple of weeks will no doubt be able to relate to this week’s featured phrase. The term gaoth na seichean literally means ‘the wind of the skins’ and was used by an informant from Nethy Bridge in Inverness-shire to describe bitingly cold easterly winds during March. These freezing winds could turn the little grass that was in the fields brown and withered, thus threatening the livestock with starvation. Thus, gaoth na seichean refers to the appearance of the sheep, which would grow thinner and thinner until they were skin and bones.

Another interpretation of the phrase is that it refers to the pile of sheep skins in the barn that would increase as the number of livestock in the field dwindled due to lack of feed.

Seichean is the plural of the noun seiche, meaning ‘hide’ or ‘pelt’, particularly of animals, which is derived from the Old Norse word sigg, meaning ‘callus’ or ‘hard skin.’

If you know of any other ways to describe an icy cold wind, you can now let us know on here as well as through social media. A new comments feature on the DASG blog is going live today, allowing you to create an account and to leave feedback on blog posts. Previous posts have now been archived and are easy to browse by month. We look forward to hearing what you think each week!
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  • Admin

    Tha abairt eile ann cuideachd a tha inntinneach: 'S fheàrr toit a' fhraoich na gaoth a' reothaidh!

    Another interesting phrase is 'peat smoke is preferable to freezing wind' i.e. it's better to be in an enclosed, smoky room than outdoors in a biting wind!

    2016-03-10 09:50:23