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Tha sinn fhathast a’ toirt sùil air a’ bhriathrachas Ghàidhlig airson fuaimean. Ann am Beurla, bidh tunnagan ag ràdh, ‘quack, quack’. Ann an Gàidhlig, bidh iad ag ràdh fà-ug, fà-ug. Fà-ug, fà-ug. Bidh cearcan ag ràdh gog gog ann an Gàidhlig seach cluck cluck. Gog gog. Agus bidh coileach a’ gairm Gog-a-Ghuidh-Ghaoith, an àite Cock-a-doodle-do. Gog-a-Ghuidh-Ghaoith.Ìý

ʼS e gàg gàg a bhios aig feannagan is starragan. Gàg gàg. Bidh fithich ag ràdh gròg gròg. Gròg gròg. Ann am Beurla, canaidh a’ chuthag cuckoo, cuckoo. Ach, ann an Gàidhlig, bidh i ag ràdh gug-gùg, gug-gùg. Agus bidh an iolaire-bhuidhe ag ràdh glì-ug, glì-ug. Chan ann tric a chluinneas sinn iolaire-bhuidhe, ge-tà.

Nuair a thuiteas clach a dh’uisge, dè am fuaim a tha i a’ dèanamh? ʼS e sin plub. Plub. Ma tha sreath chlachan a’ tuiteam a dh’uisge gu sgiobalta, ʼs e sin plubraich. Plubraich.

Dè mu dheidhinn fuaimean nach eil cho cumanta? Ciamar a chanas sinn sizzle ann an Gàidhlig? Tha »å°ùù¾±²õ±ð²¹»å³ó ann. Drùiseadh. Tha dearrasan ann cuideachd. No dearrasanaich. Tha sin a’ gabhail a-steach crackling, agus fuaim brataich air latha gaothach. Agus tha °ùà²õ³Ù²¹±ô ann. Airson °ùà²õ³Ù²¹±ô, tha faclair Dwelly ag ràdh sizzling sound, as of flesh being fried. Facal math airson barbaiciù, ʼs dòcha!

Ciamar a chanas sinn hiss ann an Gàidhlig? Uill, bidh sinn a’ cleachdadh an fhacail fead uaireannan. Fead – a whistle or hiss. Fead an aonaich – ʼs e sin am fuaim a nì a’ ghaoth ann am fraoch air beinn, no aonach. Fead an aonaich.

Tha siosarnaich ann cuideachd. Hissing. Siosarnaich. Agus ²õè¾±»å°ù¾±³¦³ó. Hissing, snorting. Sin cuideachd am fuaim a bhios mucan-mara a’ dèanamh nuair a leigeas iad èadhar a-mach. ³§Ã¨¾±»å°ù¾±³¦³ó. Tha e eadar-dhealaichte bho sitrich. ʼS e sitrich am fuaim aig each. Bha na h-eich a’ sitrich ‘the horses were neighing’.

Bu mhath leam crìoch a chur air mo chunntas le lapan no slapan. ʼS e sin am fuaim a bhios duine a’ dèanamh ma bhios na bòtannan aige làn uisge, agus e a’ coiseachd annta. Lapan. Mar sin leibh.

We’re still looking at the Gaelic vocabulary for sounds. In English, ducks say, ‘quack, quack’. In Gaelic, they say fà-ug, fà-ug. Fà-ug, fà-ug. Hens say gog gog in Gaelic, rather than cluck cluck. Gog gog. And a cockerel crows Gog-a-Ghuidh-Ghaoith, instead of Cock-a-doodle-do. Gog-a-Ghuidh-Ghaoith.

Hoodie and carrion crows say gàg gàg. Gàg gàg. Ravens say gròg gròg. Gròg gròg. In English, the cuckoo says cuckoo, cuckoo. But in Gaelic it says gug-gùg, gug-gùg. And the golden eagle says glì-ug, glì-ug. It’s not often we hear a golden eagle, however.

When a stone falls into water, what noise does it make? That’s a plub. Plub. If a series of stones fall quickly into water, that is plubraich. Plubraich.

What about noises that are not so common? How do we say ‘sizzle’ in Gaelic? There is »å°ùù¾±²õ±ð²¹»å³ó. Drùiseadh. There is also dearrasan. Or dearrasanaich. That includes crackling, and the noise of a flag on a windy day. And there is °ùà²õ³Ù²¹±ô. For °ùà²õ³Ù²¹±ô, Dwelly’s dictionary says ‘sizzling sound, as of flesh being fried’. A good word for a barbecue, perhaps!

How do we say ‘hiss’ in Gaelic? Well, we can use the word fead sometimes. Fead – a whistle or hiss. Fead an aonaich – that’s the noise the wind makes in heather on a mountain, or aonach.Ìý

There is also siosarnaich. Hissing. Siosarnaich. And ²õè¾±»å°ù¾±³¦³ó. Hissing, snorting. That’s also the noise that whales make when they exhale. ³§Ã¨¾±»å°ù¾±³¦³ó. It’s different from sitirch. Sitrich is the noise of a horse. Bha na h-eich a’ sitrich ‘the horses were neighing’.

I’d like to finish my account with lapan or slapan. That’s the noise a person makes if his wellies are full of water and he is walking in them. Lapan. Cheerio just now.