360 FISH 



FISH. — Bean-iasg (fem.), bior-iasg (prickly) ; Ca|)alan-a-clunn- 

 mhoir (kind of) (E. M'D.), car, ciolach (fry), cliath (shoal); 

 Doirbeag (little) ; Eise, esse ; Farasg (drill), fear-iasg (male), 

 fleogaii (flat), frith-iasg (fry) ; Gealag, gealagan ; lasg, iasg-air- 

 chladli (spawning), iasg-dubh (salmon from sea), iasgeigir 

 (small, dwarf), iasgan (little), iuchairneag, iucharag, iuchrag 

 (spawner) ; Langan (shotten), lapadan, loisdin ; Magar (Ir.), 

 maghar, maihe (Ir.), meas, mion-iasg (small) ; Soil, sonn, etc. 



Bait, bated (full — Sussex), but, butt (flat) ; Conners (ground) ; 

 Fiche, ficsa, fisc, fisca (Old Eng.), fish fry, flaag (shoal), fyche (A. S.) ; 

 Gilligan (little) ; Jabart (foul) ; Keilling (white) ; Loer (big, sea) ; 

 Mild, milwyn (green — Lane.) ; Peijailack (roe), poor John (salted) ; 

 Scag (putrid), scull (a shoal), spawner, spawning fish, etc. 



The word "roe" is said to be from the Gaelic word "righinn," 

 tough, adhesive, viscid; the Scottish word is "raun"; "ruchair" 

 is, however, the recognised term. " Rath eisg " signifies a shoal 

 of fish; salt dried fish are "scalpions," sun-dried, "scral." A 

 fishing or fishery is "achladh," a fish-pond "eisgin or eisglinn," 

 while a fish's gills are termed "garbhan, gial, giall, giuir or giuran." 

 "Achladh" signifies fisherj-^ or the art of fishing, while "tochar 

 eisg " signifies a causeway of (dead) fish. 



The science of evolution had faint dawnings among the ancient 

 Celts, as the belief existed that birds were once fish. As to fish 

 mythology, see Campbell's Tales, Vol. III., pages 338-9. It has 

 been remarked that of all the dwellers in the waters, the whale 

 alone is mentioned in Ossian's poems, the reason sometimes 

 assigned being the fact that the ancient Celts, like the Homeric 

 heroes, ate no fish. Modern Gaelic or Celtic poetry, it has to be 

 observed, abounds with descriptions of the salmon, "the monarch 

 of the flood " (Clerk). 



The following part of a parody on an old song, composed by 

 a well-known writer, may be given : — 



*' Ged tha mi gun bhreac gun sgadan Though I am without trout or 

 Gun mhac-lathaich gun chnudan herring, 



agam, Devil-fish or prickly gurnet, 



Ged tha mi gun bhreac gun sgadan Though I am without trout or 

 Gheibh mi fhathast bodach ruadh. herring, 



A codling red I yet shall catch. 



Fhir a dh' imicheas do'n ghealaich Thou who to the moon progresses, 



Feuch gu'ntillthuruinnguh-ealamh. Return as quick as lightning flashes, 



'S feuch gu'n inns' thu do na balaich And tell to all the lads and lassies, 



Sgadan salach 'bhi 's a chuan. That there's foul fish in the sea. 



