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Tha cuimhne agam fhathast air a’ chiad turas a fhuair mi cupa cofaidh air a’ Chomraich. Bha mi a’ tadhal air seann bhoireannach a bha càirdeach dhomh agus thuirt i rium, ‘An gabh thu copan teatha, a Ruairidh?’ Mus d’ fhuair mi cothrom freagairt a thoirt seachad, dh’atharraich i a beachd. ‘No dè mu dheidhinn cofaidh? Am b’ fheàrr leat cofaidh?’

Bha sin anns na seachdadan agus, roimhe sin, chan eil cuimhne agam air cofaidh fhaicinn air a’ Chomraich, gun luaidh air òl, co-dhiù am measg nan seann Ghàidheal. Bhiodh mo sheanmhair a’ gabhail ³Ùì – no teatha – fad an latha o mhoch gu dubh. Uaireannan cha chuireadh i na duilleagan ann am poit. Bhiodh i gan cur ann an cupa, ʼs chuireadh i uisge goileach orra. Agus an ceann dà mhionaid bhiodh ‘teatha nan ceàrd’ aice, mar a chanadh i fhèin.

Tha e doirbh a bhith a’ smaoineachadh air Alba às aonais ³Ùì. Tha i cho bitheanta. Ach bha uair ann nuair nach robh an ³Ùì, air a bheil sinn eòlach an-diugh, anns an Roinn Eòrpa idir. A-nise, tha feadhainn ga fàs ann an Alba fhèin.

Bha mi ann an Lios Mòr an-uiridh agus, far an robh sinn a’ fuireach, bhathar a’ fàs ³Ùì air a’ chroit. Tì dhonn agus ³Ùì bhàn. Cha d’ fhuair mi blas dhiubh, ach chan eil adhbhar agam a bhith a’ smaoineachadh nach biodh iad math, blasta. Tha feadhainn ga fàs gu coimeirsealta ann an Alba, leithid ann an Siorrachd Pheairt.

Bha grunn Albannach an sàs ann a bhith a’ brosnachadh gnìomhachas fàs na ³Ùì o chionn fhada. Mar eisimpleir – Raibeart Fortune. Ann am meadhan an naoidheamh linn deug, bha esan ann an Sìonaidh, far an do ghoid e lusan ³Ùì airson Companaidh Bhreatannach nan Innseachan an Ear.

Bha sin an aghaidh an lagh agus bha an obair aig Fortune gu math cunnartach. Chaidh e timcheall ann an riochd marsantach Sìneach, ag innse do dhaoine gun robh e às an fhìor cheann a tuath, agus chaidh e fad air falbh bho na puirt-mhara far an robh cead aig Eòrpaich a bhith. Uaireannan, bhiodh e air falbh airson trì mìosan agus chaidh e gu àiteachan far nach robh Eòrpach air a bhith ann roimhe. 

Cheannaich e lusan ³Ùì agus fhuair e iad gu Hong Kong. Às a sin, chaidh iad chun nan Innseachan. Ach cha b’ urrainn do Fortune sùil a chumail orra an uair sin, agus chaill e mòran dhiubh air bòrd nan long. Uile-gu-lèir, thathar a’ dèanamh dheth gun do ghoid e trì mìle deug lus agus deich mìle sìol.

An toiseach, ʼs e ³Ùì uaine a bha Fortune a’ cruinneachadh. Ach bha fèill mhòr air ³Ùì dhubh, agus rinn e oidhirp mhòr gus lusan agus sìol a chruinneachadh dhen ³Ùì dhuibh ann am Fujian. Anns a’ Ghearran ochd ceud deug, caogad ʼs a h-aon (1851) dh’fhàg e Shanghai airson a dhol do na h-Innseachan. A bharrachd air lusan is sìol, thug e leis sguad de thuathanaich Shìneach aig an robh na sgilean is eòlas airson ³Ùì dhubh fhàs. Bha beatha ùr gu bhith aca anns an Hiomalaithea anns na h-Innseachan. Agus bha gnìomhachas mòr ùr gu bhith aig na h-Innseachan – gnìomhachas a mhaireas chun an latha an-diugh.

Co-dhiù, tha an t-àm agam falbh airson cupa ³Ùì fhaighinn – no saoil an gabh mi cofaidh?

Faclan na Litreach: na seachdadan: the [19]70s; mo sheanmhair: my grandmother; teatha nan ceàrd: travellers’ tea, historically known as ‘tinkers’ tea’; Lios Mòr: Lismore; gu coimeirsealta: commercially.

Abairtean na Litreach: tha cuimhne agam fhathast air a’ chiad turas a fhuair mi cupa cofaidh air a’ Chomraich: I [can] still remember the first time I got a cup of coffee in Applecross; a’ tadhal air seann bhoireannach a bha càirdeach dhomh: visiting an old woman who was related to me; dh’atharraich i a beachd: she changed her opinion; am b’ fheàrr leat?: would you prefer?; chan eil cuimhne agam air cofaidh fhaicinn, gun luaidh air òl: I can’t remember seeing coffee, not to mention drinking it; chuireadh i uisge goileach orra: she would put boiling water on them; tha feadhainn ga fàs: some people grow it; chan eil adhbhar agam a bhith a’ smaoineachadh nach biodh iad math, blasta: I have no reason to think they wouldn’t be good and flavoursome; ann a bhith a’ brosnachadh gnìomhachas fàs na ³Ùì o chionn fhada: in encouraging the tea-growing industry a long time ago; far an do ghoid e lusan ³Ùì airson Companaidh Bhreatannach nan Innseachan an Ear: where he stole tea plants for the British East India Company; chaidh e timcheall ann an riochd marsantach Sìneach: he went around disguised as a Chinese merchant; gun robh e às an fhìor cheann a tuath: that he was from the far north; bho na puirt-mhara far an robh cead aig Eòrpaich a bhith: from the sea ports where Europeans were permitted to be; chaidh iad chun nan Innseachan: they went to India; uile-gu-lèir, thathar a’ dèanamh dheth gun do ghoid e trì mìle deug lus: in total, it’ s reckoned he stole thirteen thousand plants; thug e leis sguad de thuathanaich Shìneach aig an robh na sgilean is eòlas airson ³Ùì dhubh fhàs: he took with him a team of Chinese farmers who had the skills and knowledge to grow black tea.

Puing-chànain na Litreach: An gabh thu copan teatha?: will you take a cup of tea? Interestingly not everybody uses the same Gaelic for ‘cup’ or ‘tea’; there are dialectal differences. ‘Cup’ can be copan, cupan or cupa [pl. copannan, cupannan, cupaichean] and ‘tea’ can be ³Ùì or teatha. All terms are mutually intelligible, of course. You can remain dialectally neutral and ask somebody, ‘an gabh sibh srùbag?’ If they say, ‘g²¹²ú³ó²¹¾±»å³ó’, then you can enquire, ‘dè b’ fheàrr leibh?’ and, if it is tea, they will use either teatha or ³Ùì.

Gnàthas-cainnt na Litreach: o mhoch gu dubh: all day long [‘from early to dark’].