How about feith as waiting?

Your string of lamentation sounds fun but looks contrived. Also would
it be reasonable for the modal base to have that name? I'm thinking a
note that is obsessively returned to even if its not the modal base
(like Ann uses E in cumh Iarla Wigton, in G)

Please explain what you mean by 'Plagal' in one sentence for noggins

Also arent you going to tackle freagrach and dofreagrach? Or did I
miss that one?

Simon





On 27 Oct 2008, at 20:27, Alasdair Codona wrote:

> A chàirdean,
>
> The last of my etymological musings for a while.
>
> The name of the D string above the sisters is given by Bunting
> as 'ted na féola' (p36) and as 'tead na feitheolach' and 'tead na
> feithe-o-lach' (pp21/22). The first spelling seems to indicate a
> long E vowel; the last spelling seems to indicate a long O vowel. It
> is interpreted in p21 as 'the string of the leading sinews' (or
> strings). It is translated in pp21/22 as the 'leading sinews' and in
> p36 as 'leading sinews or strings' in a perhaps awkward plural.
>
> The possible link of féola to the word 'féith' (muscle, vein, sinew)
> would be interesting from an organologist's point of view as the
> Gaelic harp does not have gut strings. The word 'eolach' has been
> variously spelled in the past, sometimes with the fada mark over the
> E, sometimes over the O. 'Téad na bhféith-eolach' (the string of the
> sinew-knowing ones) is a possible interpretation of the string name.
> This interpretation is not exactly appropriate on a harp using wire,
> although the word 'string' is used in English for wires on musical
> instruments. It may be that whoever collected this word recorded it
> in the form 'féola' and personally interpreted it as 'féith-eolach'.
> However, this exact hyphenation never appears in Bunting.
>
> The masculine word 'eól' (knowledge) is the origin of the word 'iúl'
> (guidance) while the Irish phrase 'déanamh an eolais' means 'leading
> the way'. This may be the concept which lies behind Bunting's
> term 'leading sinews' but the word 'eolach' cannot be used here to
> mean 'leading/guiding'. Only if the word 'éola', an obsolete and
> debatable genitive singular of 'eól', was used could 'téad na bhféith
> eola' be produced (ie téad na bhféith iúil) which would translate
> as 'the string of the guiding strings', a strange term.
>
> Another possibility is the word 'eol' which appears in the Dictionary
> of the Irish Language. It may be the element which appears in the
> feminine word 'éolchaire' (lamentation). If 'eol' was feminine too,
> then it would be perfectly natural for the word to accrue an initial
> F in Gaelic, leading to a modern 'téad na feola' (string of
> lamentation). This would be an extremely appropriate name for a D
> string: the D scale forms the basis of most of Carolan's laments and,
> with plagal final, of the archetypical keening tunes.
>
> Beannachdan,
>
>
>
> Alasdair
>
>
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