The Irish For: Cuddly mammals and furry predators

Darach Ó Séaghdha Writer THE ESTEEM IN which wolves were once held in Ireland is indicated by one of their names in Irish: mac tire, son of the country.

For example, the idea of reintroducing wolves to the Irish countryside once seemed ludicrous, but is actually gathering steam on the foot of successes in other countries. Our cunning friends have another, more obscure name which warrants attention: loisinnán, meaning the white-tipped one.If you find madra rua imprecise or misleading, perhaps you’ll find this name for a red squirrel less so. Or perhaps not – it does look awfully like the word for Norway .A possible source of linguistic confusion, the word eas can mean a stoat or a

The girl’s name Nessa is thought to come from this nes. The stoat has another title which has also found its way into Irish naming – bláthnaid.No doubt the stoat name bláthnaid comes from the likelihood of seeing that creature hiding among flowers. This thought process is also evident in this name for the dormouse, which translates literally as little blind creature of the grass.

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