I am opening this topic to find a name for my dog that is a Gaelic word. The word for "dog", "companion" etc... are all good ideas. I think I found the Irish word for Friend is Cara (or close) but it is a male dog and Cara is just too feminine. He is an Australian Shepherd that I adopted from the animal shelter here. Another idea is the Gaelic word for "marble" if there is one, since his current name (given at the pound) is Marble, named for his marbled eyes (blues and browns in the same eye). Both eyes are marbled and it looks really cool. I prefer a one word name that is easy to [learn to] pronounce and would be a word that would get his attention (he doesn't answer to "marble" anyway so I thought I would change it to a Celtic name that I like and could train him to respond to). Any help is appreciated and I know there are some language aficionado's here.
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My son and his wife just got a Siberian Husky a few weeks ago. That bantered around several names, but finally settled on Aidan. The pup seems to like it well enough! They also considered Seamus, but Aidan has a nice ring to it.
Good luck with your search!
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The word for marble is "marmar," what's called a "loan word", that is, borrowed from the germanic part of the European pool and not specifically gaelic in origin. Here is the entry:
marble = marmar marble = mirlín
USAGE: a statue of marble = dealbh déanta as marmar; marble, travertine, ecaussine = marmar, traibhirtín, ecaussine; granulated marble agglomerated with cement = marmar gránaithe agus é ceirtleánaithe le stroighin.
Maybe not so attractive.
Why don't you think about giving him a male name, like Aonghus, or Cillian, or Fionbharr (Finbar), or Ruaidhri (Rory), instead of the word for what he is? These are all from Irish -- Scots names are somewhat different, but similar. They all mean something. Here's a link with lots of names -- be prepared, they rarely sound even close to what they look like, but this list gives pronunciations and meanings too:
How about CUCHULAINN (Born Setanta) gained his name which means "Hound of Culain" after he killed a fierce wolfhound guarding the fort of Culain using his skill as a hurler while still a young boy. He offered to take the dogs place as protector to the King. His most famous deeds were perhaps the time he single handedly held back the forces of Connaught until his Ulster kinsmen had time to rally to fight them and the time he fought his friend Ferdiad, champion and chief of the Connaught Knights of the Sword. So feared was he that even after dying in battle he struck terror into all enemies who approached his body, which his kinsmen had propped up against a boulder and armed.
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"Irishness is not primary a question of birth or blood or language; it is the condition on being involved in the Irish situation, and usually of being mauled by it."-Conor Cruise O'Brien
If you want to read a fantastic telling of the legend of Cuchullain, try to get Rosemary Sutcliff's "The Hound of Ulster." It's out of print, but libraries have it.
It's a heroic name for a dog, to say the least!
I have heard it pronounced by the Irish singer Noireen ni Riann "cu CHUL lin." The CH is like the sound in "loch," not "chicken."
If you want to read a fantastic telling of the legend of Cuchullain, try to get Rosemary Sutcliff's "The Hound of Ulster." It's out of print, but libraries have it.
It's a heroic name for a dog, to say the least!
I have heard it pronounced by the Irish singer Noireen ni Riann "cu CHUL lin." The CH is like the sound in "loch," not "chicken."
Thanks Stormeil, that's the way I've heard it pronounced in the past. That's why I thought it be best to double check with others here. Wikipedia is not the most reliable of sources.
Thank you all sooooo much for your input, especially the pronunciation lesson from Charles. My family has rallied to keep his original name but I plan on getting another dog (a puppy so I can start fresh) and this thread will really come into play. If you think of anymore please come back to it and add more suggestions or message me.
Sláinte,
Jay
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