Month: December 2017

Comrades and companions

By Simon

The other day a Manx-speaking friend posted a photo on Instagram of a boat with the name Cumraig, with a note saying that it means comrade or companion:

Cumraig – comrade / companion #Manx #Gaelic #gaelg #culture #identity #isleofman

A post shared by Adrian Cain: Greinneyder (@greinneyder) on

I wondered if Cumraig is related to the Welsh word Cymraeg (Welsh language), and whether the other Celtic languages have similar words.

In Manx the word cumraag means companion, comrade, fellow, mate, pal, escort – Cumraig seems to be a variant form.

Cumraag appears in phrases like:

– cumraag caggee = brother-in-arms
– cumraag marrey = shipmate
– cumraag scoill = schoolfellow
– cumraag shamyr = roommate

In Welsh there are a number of words that are probably related to cumraag, although I cannot find confirmation of this:

– Cymraeg [kəmˈraːɨ̯ɡ] = Welsh; the Welsh language; of the Welsh language; Welsh-speaking
– Cymreig [kəmˈrei̯ɡ] = Welsh; of Wales or the Welsh culture (but not of the Welsh language)
– Cymro [ˈkəm.rɔ] = Welsh person; Welshman
– Cymraes [kəmˈraːɨ̯s ] = Welshwoman
– Cymry [ˈkəm.rɨ̞] = the Welsh (people); Welshmen
– Cymru [ˈkəm.rɨ̞] = Wales

These words come from the late Proto-Brythonic *kumroɣ [kɵmˈroːɣ] (compatriot), from *kombrogos, a compound of *kom- (with) & *brogos (country).

*kombrogos is also the root of the Breton keñvroad / keñvroiz (compatriot), and of Cumbria, Cumberland, and Cambria, the Roman name for the region now known as Cymru / Wales.

Sources: Fockleyreen, Wiktionary, Encyclopedia.com, Y Ddraig

Sitting in a session

By Simon

If someone said to you, “It was a good session last night”, what would you understand by that?

In my world a session involves people gathering together, usually in a pub, to play folk music, sing, and sometimes to dance and/or tell stories.

Other kinds of sessions are available: jam sessions, parliamentary sessions, training sessions, drinking sessions, recording sessions, and so on.

The word session comes from the Old French session (sitting; session [of a court or committee]), from the Latin sessiō (a sitting), from sedeō (sit), from the Proto-Italic *sedēō (sit, be sitting, be seated), from the Proto-Indo-European *sed- (to sit), which is also the root of the English word saddle [source].

I go to several folk music sessions a week, and usually play the mandolin, and occasionally the whistle, bodhrán or cavaquinho. I also go to a ukulele session. In some sessions we play Irish or Welsh music, in others we play music and sing songs from many countries. We also play tunes we have written ourselves, including some of my own tunes.

I’ve learnt many tunes from these sessions. Some I can pick up by ear after hearing them a few times, others I record and learn at home. I find it easier to learn a tune if I’ve heard it many times, though some are harder to learn than others as they are in unusual keys, and/or don’t go where you expect.

Similarly, when learning new words in foreign tongues, the ones that are easiest to learn are the ones that sound familar. Maybe I’ve heard them many times, and/or they’re similar to words I already know. Words that contain unfamiliar sounds and combinations of sounds take more learning, just as tunes in unfamiliar keys and/or containing unusual combinations of notes can take longer to learn.

Sometimes the versions of tunes I know are a bit different to the ones known by my fellow musicians. This is a bit like hearing a language spoken with a different accent, or in a different dialect – it may seem strange at first, but you get used to it the more you hear it.

Last night I went to a Welsh music session in the Globe Inn (Tafarn y Glôb) in Bangor. Here’s one of the tunes that was played (Y Derwydd – The Druid):