Gàidhlig / English
Boillsgeil

Boillsgeil

Posted by Shelagh on Thursday 4th August 2016

Even in the middle of the summer, Scottish readers will be all too familiar with this week’s subject: showers.

The adjective boillsgeil was used by an informant from Aultbea, Ross-shire to describe a showery day with periods of sunshine. Boillsgeil literally means ‘gleaming’ or ‘shining’ and in this sense describes the glittering appearance of intermittent sunshine on wet surfaces. The verb boillsg, ‘to shine’, is derived from the Latin verb fulgeo, ‘to flash’ or ‘shine’.

Another informant from Arnol, Lewis, used the term sian-grèinidh to describe a warm shower which would fall while the sun was also shining. Sian means ‘stormy weather’ and grèinidh is the genitive form of grian, ‘sun’; thus the term literally means ‘sunny storm’. The synonym braon was collected in Port Charlotte, Islay, specified as a warm shower in the summer. This is derived from the Early Irish word bráen, ‘rain shower’.

The term sgàth-fhras was used by several informants to describe a passing shower, combining the nouns sgàth, ‘shadow’ or ‘shade’ and fras, ‘rain shower’.  

If you know of any other terms for summer showers, why not let us know under the blog or through our Facebook and Twitter accounts.
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