Tag Archives: How to speak Outlander

How to Speak Outlander Catch-up and Gàidhlig Tip of the Day from Àdhamh

Due to real life and other occurrences (i.e. Outlander Retreat and MOBY), I’m a bit behind on the How to Speak Outlander posts from Starz. For those who may have missed it, or just want an excuse to watch again, here are the latest in the ‘How to Speak Outlander’ series.

How to Speak Outlander: Lesson 10 – Dinna Fash

This is probably one of my favorite Scots phrases and I always enjoy seeing Mrs. Fitz. It’s also lovely to see Àdhamh continue to allow his personality to shine through. 🙂

 

How to Speak Outlander: Lesson 11 – Slàinte Mhath

Now here is a phrase every good whisky-drinking Outlander should know! Alas, I have it on good authority that Àdhamh was forced to drink water during the filming of this video. Afraid of having too many takes to get the perfect video, you ken.

 

Gàidhlig Tips from Àdhamh

Last but not least. Àdhamh was in a particularly teacherly frame of mind yesterday and provided us with the following Gàidhlig tip of the day:

Next to slender vowels, d, s & t become soft -see below….

‘D’ –  “deur” /jair/ (tear) : “dìolt” /jeelt/ (refuse; ‘jilt’)

‘S’ –  “seud” /shade/ (jewel) : “sìol” /sheel/ (seed, progeny)

‘T’ –  “teth” /tchay/ (hot) : “tinn” /tcheen/ (ill)

 

 

 

The Outlander Effect or (in Gàidhlig) “Buaidh Outlander”

 Outlander and Scottish tourism

Now that a premiere date for Outlander has been announced, we are slowly yet surely seeing press coverage about the series tick up. One such article published recently got me to thinking. Outlander already has a large and loyal fan base. What impact has there been, if any, on Scotland’s economy and culture? And what can we expect to change after the series starts airing?

First, let me start with the article that intrigued me, published by a site called “We Love Soaps,” who bill themselves as the “World’s biggest champion of scripted, serialized storytelling on TV & the web.” I guess the Outlander TV series does fit that description, although I would never call it a Soap! The bit of the article to catch my eye was this:

The fervent on-line fan base totals over a half-million and when the ‘first-look’ photo of Sam Heughan as Jamie Fraser posted on the Starz social channels, it outperformed other introductions of lead characters for properties such as The Great Gatsby (Gatsby), Hunger Games (Katniss), Game of Thrones (Ned Stark), and NBC’s Dracula (Dracula). Additionally, when Sam was cast as Jamie Fraser, the fans took it upon themselves to make their voices heard and put him on E! News’ “Hottie of the Week” charts two weeks in a row (which is very rare, if not unprecedented). In addition, #Outlander trended (was one of the top ten things being talked about on Twitter) numerous times during NY ComicCon.  Starz Summer 2014 New Series: ‘Power’ and ‘Outlander’

It is apparent the size and fervency of the Outlander fan base has already been noticed and its impact noted. One example is the recent Twitter trending event held on May 19 for #WorldWideTVNeedsOutlander. The tag trended globally and the fact was highlighted in the introduction of Outlander during the L.A. Screenings event for international TV buyers that same day. You can see Diana Gabaldon — author of the bestselling Outlander series of novels — tweet about that here:

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How to Speak Outlander: Lesson 9 ‘Tùlach Àrd’

Happy Monday Outlanders! Starz has given us a sparkling new ‘How to Speak Outlander” video this afternoon. This video focuses on ‘Tùlach Àrd’, the war cry of the Clan MacKenzie.  After a most spirited introduction and pronunciation by Àdhamh (is it just me or does he just get better and better in front of the camera with every new video), we are forced to recognize yet again that the Gàidhlig language is full of traps for the unwary learner.  For English speakers like me, ‘ard’ on paper does not logically translate to ‘aarsd’ in pronunciation, but I have learned to not be too phased by this. (See previous comments regarding H’s in Gàidhlig)

Luckily, we are treated to the MacKenzie brothers (Gary Lewis and Graham McTavish) giving us their rendition of the Clan war cry as well. And may I take a moment to compliment Terry Moore (@outlandercostum) once again for such a lovely job with everything we have seen so far costume wise. As have all the others I’ve seen, the costumes for Column and Dougal take my breath away.

In this new video, viewers are also given a glimpse into the humor of Gary Lewis as he very helpfully points out that the large chap (Graham as Dougal) will be uttering the war cry as he asks for another glass of the Rhenish. I can so totally believe Gary is the prankster on set.

And last but not least, I can’t help but get a little thrill at the end of the video when the premiere date of August 9, 2014 is shown. So close and yet so far!

 

How to Speak Outlander: Lesson 9 ‘Tùlach Àrd’

Àdhamh Ó Broin Surprises and Delights with Gàidhlig Story and Song at the UK Outlander Gathering

So I hope everyone is having a wonderful Monday. If you’re not, Àdhamh has kindly provided the Gàidhlig to express yourself!

 

Àdhamh had quite the busy weekend as he dropped in on the UK Outlander Gathering as a featured speaker and entertainer. From the flying tweets and Facebook posts, he was quite the hit, which doesn’t surprise me in the least.  I have never met anyone more willing and eager to share the culture he loves so much! Starz and Tall Ship Productions have done a great favor to Outlanders everywhere in bringing Àdhamh on board. Not only does he work long and hard to keep the Gàidhlig aspects of Outlander authentic, but he goes well above and beyond to interact with fans and help those of us who appreciate the culture and are trying to learn more.

Some shots from the Gathering:

Courtesy Simone Laufer, Elaine Acheson, Emma Bradie
Courtesy Tricia Leedom
Courtsey @OutlanderTours
Courtesy of Angela Sasso

However, by far the highlight of the afternoon, or so I hear, was Àdhamh’s vocal performance. Luckily Outlanders far and wide are able to appreciate a part of the performance thanks to this recording by Karin Anderson.

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How to Speak Outlander: Lesson 8 ‘Leoch’

Happy Friday to Outlanders everywhere. In celebration, STARZ has gifted us with a new ‘How to Speak Outlander’ lesson. Castle Leoch may be an invention from Diana’s fertile imagination, but that doesn’t mean there’s not an official Outlander pronunciation. Luckily, we have Àdhamh, Mrs. Fitz and fans from the LA event to set us straight. Enjoy!

How to Speak Outlander: Lesson 8 ‘Leoch’