What is the irish word for i love you

With it’s stunning scenery, mystical history and charming people, nobody can deny that Ireland is a very romantic country. Even Saint Valentine’s remains are housed in the Carmelite Church on Whitefriar Street in Dublin. Father John Spratt, a preacher attached to the Church, visited Pope Gregory XVI in Rome and somehow blagged his way into gifting the remains from their location in the Cemetery of Saint Hippolitus to Ireland in 1836. They’ve been here ever since!

We’ve had our own special ways of expressing love for hundreds of years, both through the Irish language and through other traditions. One special way that couples mark their commitment to one another is with claddagh rings. This tradition originated from the town of Claddagh in county Galway. The ring is a heart held by two hands with a crown on top. The heart symbolises love, the hands friendship, and the crown loyalty. The tradition is that if you wear the heart pointing in towards your body, you have found love, but if it’s pointing outwards, you’re looking for love.

The phrase ‘tying the knot’ also has its origins in Irish history. Before the tradition of exchanging rings, couples at the altar would clasp hands and they would be tied with a rope, ribbon or piece of cloth to symbolise their eternal union.

However, sometimes only words will do, so here are some of the many ways in which to say ‘I love you’ in Irish.

Types of Love

Irish is one of those languages that has several different words for certain things – although it’s not as bad as Eskimo languages, which are famous for having up to 27 different words just for ‘snow’. In any society there are always various different types of love however; parental love, friendship love, romantic love, and many more. There is at least one word for each in Gaelic, so things can get a bit confusing to say the least. Here are the most commonly used ones.

Grá: General love! This is the most common word used for love in the Irish language. It denotes the love between couples, family, friends, significant others, and the like.

Cion: Affectionate love. The kind of love between close friends, relatives, parents and children. Non-romantic but still meaningful love.

Gean: Another less often used word for affection. Informal love rather than the ‘formal’ love between a man and wife or lovers.

Searc: True love, eternal love, primary love. This word is a lot more passionate and more serious than ‘grá’, so only use it if you really mean it!

Breá: Love of a thing or activity rather than a living person. For example, you would say ‘Is breá liom cáca milis’ (I love cake) rather than ‘Is grá liom cáca milis’, which is grammatical nonsense.

I Love You’ in Irish

Despite being a rich and complicated language, believe it or not there is no literal translation for ‘I love you’ in Irish! It’s not because we’re not into romance and serenading however, it’s because we have so many different ways to express it. It’s also just the way the grammar of the language works, unfortunately! Not having one definitive way to say ‘I love you’ isn’t a bad thing however, as we’ve come up with a lot of creative and poetic ways to express it instead. There are a lot of options, we’ve included all of them below…

Is tú mo ghrá : You are my love.

Is tú grá geal mo chroí: You are the bright love of my heart.

Mo ghrá thú: literally ‘my love you’, i.e. ‘you are my love’, the most common expression. 

Tá grá agam duit: I have love for you

Táim i ngrá leat: I’m in love with you

Tá mo chroí istigh ionat: My heart is within you

Tá cion agam ort: literally ‘there is affection at me on you’, or ‘I have a soft spot for you’.

Grá mo chroí: Love of my heart

Thabharfainn fuil mo chroí duit: I’d give you the blood of my heart

A stór mo chroí: Love of my heart

Mo Leannán: My lover

Grá buan: Love forever.

Is tú mo rogha: You are my chosen one.

A chuisle mo chroí: My heart’s beloved.

Tá tú mo chéad searc: You are my true love

Is tusa mo ghrá: Literally «You are my love»

Ádhraím thú: I adore you

Is grá mo shaol í (é): She/he is the love of my life

Le grá go deo: with love forever

Mo shíorghrá: My eternal love

B’fhearr liom thú nó céad bó bainne: I prefer you to a hundred milk cows!

Irish Love Sayings and Proverbs

Irish people have a lot to say at the best of times, and the mix of Gaelic phrases translated into English speech makes for some unique sayings. There is an old Irish proverb for almost every occasion, including love, marriage, and everything in between. However, Irish folk are also a very down to earth, practical bunch, so some of the turns of phrase aren’t quite as romantic as others. Here are some good (and not so good) thoughts on love, all of which were part of standard vocabulary a few decades ago, and are often still quoted today.

• Love is like a lifeboat on the stormy sea of life.
• Trouble in love hates nothing more than a smile.
• Beware an Irishman who loves his wife the most but his mother the longest.
• Love makes time pass, beware time making love pass.
• Love him when he least deserves it, that’s when he most needs it It is easy to halve the potato when there is love.
• May you have warm hands on a cold evening.
• Pulse of my heart, song of my soul, light of my night.
• Live in my heart, and pay no rent.
• Would you like to hang your washing next to mine? Tis a lonely wash with no man’s shirt in it.
• Mairg nach ndéanann comhairle dea-mhná: Woe to him without a good wife’s counsel.
• Capall an tsaoil an grá: Love makes the world go around.
• Maireann lá go ruaig ach maireann an grá go huaigh: A day lasts until it’s chased away but love lasts until the grave.
• Folíonn grá gráin: Love veils ugliness.
• Níl leigheas ar an ngrá ach pósadh: There is no cure for love other than marriage.

If you’d like to express your love with a piece of jewelry to match some wonderful words, why not take a look at our shop where we have dozens of options of silver, gold and more handmade jewelry, all inspired by Ireland.

Irish Love Poems and Quotes

Ireland is well known for its many distinguished authors, playwrights and poets. W.B Yeats, a Dublin born poet who spent much of his childhood in county Sligo on the West coast, was known for the many love poems he wrote to Maud Gonne, a young woman who refused his marriage proposals four times before choosing someone else over him.

Naturally, he had a few things to say about the matter, which has resulted in some beautiful if poignant poetry.

Another famous writer who regularly mused on the topic of love was Oscar Wilde. He has provided us with many plays such as ‘The Importance of Being Ernest’ and ‘Lady Windermere’s fan’ that explore love and marriage in the Victorian era, as well as endless witty quotes and one-liners. There are many other writers who penned their thoughts on the subject too, and we’ve included some of our favourites below.

• Had I the heaven’s embroidered cloths, Enwrought with golden and silver light, The blue and the dim and the dark cloths, Of night and light and the half-light, I would spread the cloths under your feet; But I, being poor, have only my dreams; I have spread my dreams under your feet; Tread softly because you tread on my dreams. (WB Yeats).
• My love is like a cabbage That’s easy to cut in two. The leaves I’ll give to others, But the heart I’ll give to you. (Anonymous)
• Love hath a language of his own, a voice, that goes from heart to heart, Whose mystic tone love only knows. (Thomas Moore)
• If you do not love me, I shall not be loved. If I do not love you, I shall not love. (Samuel Beckett)
• I believe there is a sun when it is not shining, I believe there is a God when I cannot see him, I believe there is love when I feel it not. (Anonymous)
• Man always wants to be a woman’s first love. Women have a more subtle instinct: what they like is to be a man’s last romance. (Oscar Wilde)
• The most important things to do in the world are to get something to eat, something to drink, and somebody to love you. (Brendan Behan)
• You don’t love someone for their looks, or their clothes, or for their fancy car, but because they sing a song only you can hear. (Oscar Wilde)
• Hearts are not to be had as a gift, hearts are to be earned. (WB Yeats)
• Love will heal what language fails to know. (Eavan Boland).

We find that our posts about expressing your love in Irish are really popular, so here is the full list of current posts we have on the subject. Let’s start with the terms of endearment and work up to the more intense passions!

• 5 Irish terms of Endearment
• More Irish terms of Endearment
• Ways to say «I Love You» in Irish
• 7 Ways to say «I Love You» in Irish
• Irish phrases about love for your wedding ring

And as usual, keep in mind that you can get these phrases or Ogham versions inscribed on some handmade irish jewelry from Claddagh Design. Or if you want to be extra special, why not commission a custom piece of jewelry?

The Irish Language, also known as Gaelic, is beautiful, poetic, and unique. Expressions of love and affection are found in many of Irelands’ traditional Irish songs and ballads. Learning how to say ‘I Love You’ in Irish will surely impress your sweetheart, especially if they have Irish roots or a love of the Emerald Isle!

There are many charming and unique ways to express your love in Irish. Translating word by word may result in a different meaning than what you intend. It is much more impressive and easier to learn a few simple Irish phrases.

The Irish Pronounciation

Below are seven of our favorite heartfelt Irish (or Gaelic) terms of endearment to sweep your partner off their feet! We also include the English translation of each phrase and its pronunciation, so you can learn to say it like a pro!

All of the above Irish phrases and terms of endearment can be engraved on our handcrafted Celtic jewelry. A poetic Gaelic inscription on a piece of Celtic Jewelry makes for a truly romantic gift for that someone special in your life. If you would like to add a personalized Irish inscription to any of our Celtic jewelry pieces, contact us via phone, email, or using our live online chat.

Why not try out one of these romantic phrases this Valentine’s day to delight and impress your loved one.

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(le Róislín)

We’ve recently been looking at different ways to say “I love you” in Irish.  Some of you might have been wondering how to pronounce them, especially the phrases where the straightforward “grá” [graw] changes to “ghrá” [γraw, to be explained below, note the IPA gamma symbol for the “gh”] and the straightforward “croí” changes to “chroí” [khree].

Regarding the “gh-” sound, I’ve noticed some pronunciation guides online that simply say “graw” for the pronunciation of both “grá” and “ghrá,” which is, unfortunately, misleading.  For the “ch” sound of “chroí,” you’ll find at least three approaches, 1) the official IPA representation of /x/, 2) the typical “pronunciation guide” usage of “kh” (which I mostly advocate in this blog, for practicality’s sake), and 3) some sources just glossing over the fricative sound and making the “ch” a simple “k” sound.

I’ve actually dealt with this issue previously in this blog, as some of you may recall, but since there are always more léitheoirí nua ar an liosta and also many reasons to proclaim one’s love, or to talk about how to do so, we’ll revisit the fricatives.  Some of the other blogs that discussed the fricatives are https://blogs.transparent.com/irish/treoir-don-treoir-a-guide-to-the-guide-for-pronunciation-cuid-a-2/ (which mostly dealt with the broad “dh-” and “gh-” sounds) and https://blogs.transparent.com/irish/treoir-don-treoir-a-guide-to-the-guide-for-pronunciation-cuid-a-3/ (which mostly dealt with the broad “ch-” sound).

Some of the love phrases we discussed previously were “Mo ghrá thú,” “Tusa mo ghrá,” “Is tú mo ghrá,” and “Grá mo chroí thú.”

For “grá,” the basic noun for “love,” transcribing the sound as “graw” is reasonable.  In the North, of course, the vowel sound is a little different, but for this blog, we’ll just stick to consonant issues.

For “ghrá” [γraw], as in “mo ghrá” (my love), I described the voiced velar fricative sound previously as “a rumbling guttural sound that seems to want to stay in the throat.”  That’s “guttural” as in Latin “guttur” (throat), not “gutters” as in drainage systems.  I added that, subjectively speaking, it is “a bit softer and less blunt than the more familiar voiceless velar fricative,” the latter being represented by German “Achtung” or “Buch.”  The voiced velar fricative (as in Irish broad “gh” or “dh”) may be found in some pronunciations of German “sagen” and some pronunciations of Spanish “agua,” but not in all, and not typically in the American high school language class presentation.  The best way to pick up sounds that are not in one’s linguistic inventory, of course, is to listen, listen, listen, and for that, short of living in the Gaeltacht, I’d recommend tuning in to www.rnag.ie as often as possible and listening to the native speakers.

For “croí” (heart), the sound is quite straightforward, almost like “kree” as in “Cree” Indian, or “creel” or “creepie,” etc., but with the flapped (lightly trilled) “r.”  Remember the long vowel “í” here trumps the short “o” sound, which is, essentially, silent.

For “chroí,” as in “mo chroí” (my heart), the sound is, as I’ve mentioned several times before, like German “Achtung” or “Buch,” like the Welsh “bach” or “fach,” and as you might hear in the pronunciation of “Loch” especially by a Gaelic speaker.  This is the voiceless velar fricative.  In American English, we may find it sometimes in the pronunciation of Hebrew- or Yiddish-derived words like “Chanukah” and “Chutzpah,” but many Americans tend to minimize the throaty quality of these sounds and simply start off with an initial “h” sound.  Unless, of course, they actually speak Hebrew or Yiddish, in which case the voiceless velar fricative comes quite naturally.

Feeling completely tongue-tied?  Actually, it’s a vocal cord issue, not really the tongue.  There is some good news – there are some ways to avoid the velar fricatives and still say you love someone, like “Tá cion agam ort” and “Tá grá agam duit.”

Tá cion agam ort, very literally, there is love/affection at me on you.

Tá grá agam duit, very literally, there is love at me to you.

Of course, if you pronounce the latter with typical Cois Fharraige Irish, the “duit” will become “dhuit” and you’ll be right back in there with the voiced velar fricatives.

In fact, at some point, to really master Irish pronunciation, you’ll need the velar fricatives.  If you want to say “Cén chaoi a bhfuil tú, a Dhonncha?,” you’ve got two voiceless ones and one voiced one.  If you want to talk about the poet Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill, you’ve got a voiced one every time you say her surname.  If you live “sa Chlochán Liath (Dungloe),” you’ve got two (voiceless, within the same word, using Donegal Irish) and if your muintir are from “Contae Dhún na nGall,” you got a voiced one.  Not to mention speaking about “dúchas” (heritage), as in “Is as an gClochán ó dhúchas mé” (I’m from An Clochán/Clifden originally).  The phrase “ó dhúchas” is a “double-whammy” example, like “a Dhonncha,” with both a voiced and a voiceless velar fricative.  And isn’t that special!

And in case you think that velar fricatives are a bizarre topic for discussion in an Irish language blog, I’d like to add two points as closers.

First, both the voiceless and voiced velar fricatives are widely used sounds in Irish and they do occur in a variety of other languages.  They happen not to occur in English, except in a few loan words, and even there, English speakers will tend to soften them to the point where they are no longer fricative.  In other words, English speakers will tend to say Hanukah with an initial “h” sound instead of “Chanukah” with an initial “kh” sound.  They’ll also tend to say “Hallah” instead of “Challah” for the braided bread.  BTW, who’s talking about “Challah” these days?  Well, plenty of people in U.S. delis and bakeries, for one, but more recently, and newly exciting to both art historians and the world at large, anyone discussing Rembrandt’s “The Supper at Emmaus.”  Apparently the recent cleaning, removing many layers of varnish, revealed that the bread being served at Emmaus was, in fact, challah, bread braided in three strands before it’s baked.

Second, “Velar Fricatives” made headline news not too long ago in the online journal Significance: Statistics Making Sense (October 22, 2010).  A statistics journal, no less!  Michael O’Kelly’s article, “How’s your velar fricative? A numerical guide to urban and rural Irish speakers,” commented on some research by Dr. Brian Ó Broin, concerning the accuracy of pronunciation among difference demographics of Irish speakers.  O’Kelly’s article can be found at http://www.significancemagazine.org/details/webexclusive/870327/Hows-your-velar-fricative-A-numerical-guide-to-urban-and-rural-Irish-speakers.html

So keep your fricatives velarized when whispering “sweet nothings” in Irish, and remember to make them voiceless or voiced according to whether you’re saying “chroí” or “ghrá.”  Or, if you prefer, choose one of the fricative-less alternatives.

Hmmm, “sweet nothings” as Gaeilge?  “Baothbhriathra mealltacha” – that’s a nice mouthful, nach ea?  Ábhar blag eile, b’fhéidir?  You might note that while the Irish phrase is considered equivalent to the English, it contains neither the word “sweet” nor the word “nothing.”  How’s that?  Stay tuned!  SGF, Róislín