Island Voices is still on Twitter. You can follow us here.
But in the tech world relationships are moving on, such that Twitter and WordPress evidently no longer retain the same mutually supportive understanding they previously enjoyed.
So, rather than keep this strange new message in the Island Voices sidebar, we’ve decided to remove the link that would take you straight to our Twitter account, for the time being at least. Perhaps a new understanding will be reached in due course.
We’ll keep tweeting – and re-tweeting – in the meantime. If you don’t yet follow us on Twitter, you might like to take a look. The interests we share there are broader than just our own productions, while retaining a language and Hebridean focus – and a serenely cordial tone!
Thèid cuireadh a thoirt do Phàrlamaid na h-Alba nas fhaide air an t-seachdain seo gus Dàibhidh Hamilton ainmeachadh gu A Mhòrachd an Rìgh airson dreuchd Coimiseanair Fiosrachaidh ùr na h-Alba. Beachdaichidh a’ Phàrlamaid air gluasad aontachaidh airson Mgr Hamilton a chur an dreuchd air Diciadain 28 Ògmhios. Tha dùil gun lean Mgr Hamilton Darren Fitzhenry … Leugh an corr de Fios naidheachd: Pàrlamaid gus Coimiseanair Fiosrachaidh ùr na h-Alba ainmeachadh
“Cobbler” Shùbhan-làir agus Rùbraib / Strawberry Rhubarb Cobbler
(Taing dhan Naidheachd Againne, iris den Chomunn Ghàidhealach Ameireaganach airson cead an reasabaidh seo a chleachdadh, agus gu h-àraidh do Janice Chan airson a cho-roinneadh!)
Chan eil rud sam bith nas fheàrr na blas sùbhan-làir agus rùbraib le chèile. Gabh tlachd air seo nuair a tha e caran blàth, le reòiteag!
Grìtheidean airson an lìonaidh-mheasan
6 cupan rùbraib, air a ghearradh ann am pìosan garbh 3 cupan sùbhan-làir, slisnichte 1 1/4 cupan siùcair 3 spàintean-bhùird min-fhlùir 1 1/2 spàintean-tì caineil 1 1/2 spàintean-tì rùsg orainseir, sgrìobte gu mìn
Stiùiridhean 1. Teasaich an àmhainn gu 400°F. 2. Ann am bobhla mòr, measgaich le chèile na grìtheidean tioram airson aʼ mheasgachadh de mheasan (siùcar, min-fhlùir, caineal). Cuir an rùbrab, na sùbhan-làir agus an rùsg orainseir anns aʼ bhobhla agus cuir mun cuairt iad gu socair gus am bi na measan còmhdaichte gu math. Sgaoil am measgachadh gu cunbhalach air soitheach-fuine meud 13 òirlich x 9 òirlich. Bruich seo ann an àmhainn aig 400°F fad 10 mionaidean. Cuir seo an dàrna taobh. 3. Ann am bobhla mòr, measgaich le chèile grìtheidean airson aʼ mhullaich thioraim (min-fhlùir, min-choirce, siùcar, pùdar-fuine, sòda-fuine agus salann). Cleachd do chorragan no dà sgian gus an t‑ìm a mheasgachadh a‑steach gus am bi e coltach ri peasairean beaga. 4. Cuir am bainne ris (no am blàthach) agus cuir mun cuairt e gus am bi an taois maoth. Leag le spàintean-bhùird den taois tuiteam air aʼ mheasgachadh de mheasan teth. Bruich seo ann an àmhainn aig 400°F fad 25 mionaidean no gus an èirich e agus tha e donn-òir. 5. Leig leis fuarachadh. Bidh na measan nas tighe nuair a tha e nas fhionnaire.
1 1/3 cup flour3 tbsp rolled oats 3 tbsp sugar 1 1/2 tsp baking powder 1 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/4 tsp salt 3 tbsp chilled butter 1 cup milk (or buttermilk)
Method 1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. 2. In a large bowl, combine dry filling ingredients (sugar, flour, cinnamon). Add the rhubarb, strawberries and orange zest, and toss well. Spread the mixture in a 13″ x 9″ baking dish and bake in a 400°F (c. 200°C) oven for 10 minutes and then put aside. 3. In a large bowl, combine flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using fingers or two knives, cut in butter until mixture resembles small peas. 4. Stir in the milk or buttermilk with a fork just until a soft dough forms. Drop by tablespoons on top of the hot fruit filling. Bake in a 400°F (c. 200°C) oven for 25 minutes or until the topping is golden brown and has risen. 5. Allow to cool before serving. The filling will firm up when cool.
Cup measurements: If you don’t have one of these bunches of scoops for measuring in American cups, just use any container that holds 250 ml liquid instead (= 1 cup), for wet and dry ingredients. There’s also a conversion tool here: https://www.thecalculatorsite.com/cooking/cups-ml.php
Following on from the North Uist “Wellbeing” survey, Gordon Wells this week reviewed the Island Voices contribution to the Aire air Sunnd project led by Comann Eachdraidh Uibhist a Tuath.
Adopting a slightly different format to Jess Wood’s presentations last week, Gordon speaks to camera on Zoom while screen-sharing key points from the Island Voices Aire air Sunnd webpage. Speaking in Gaelic he reinforces the point that using this language does not exclude non-speakers or early learners, given the multilingual technical resources that are now available online.
His video recaps the various recordings that have been created for the project in the past year or so, including the “Gaelic Crisis” presentation, and the Progress Report, as well as the recording sessions with community members covering storytelling, artefact description, and environmental issues. In so doing, it also shows how the YouTube subtitling and auto-translation functions can be put to effective use, and includes a quick demonstration of the Clilstore platform too, while emphasising the alternative effectiveness of recorded speech in a world where written communication is often taken for granted as the default norm.
Summing up, Gordon stresses the untapped value of various recording collections (in addition to Island Voices’ own), noting in particular how open resources such as Tobar an Dualchais have the potential to bring present and past communities together in a new manner to support North Uist cultural wellbeing, offering innovative ways of forward-looking engagement with the island’s Gaelic heritage so positively valued by all. At the same time, it needs to be recognised that community-wide engagement in such activity is dependent on community-wide comfort with the new digital tools that enable it. This is probably an area of work that needs closer attention.
The results of the Aire Air Sunnd community survey in North Uist are going online. Jess Wood from the University of Aberdeen kicked off on Monday 19th June with an overview, split between two videos on a dedicated CEUT YouTube playlist, both of which are well worth watching to get a sense of the breadth and depth of the project. It’s been an ambitious collaborative exercise, turning out interesting and challenging findings for anyone interested in taking a rooted and holistic approach to community wellbeing across the board.
For those with a particular interest in Gaelic, Jess has devoted quite a bit of time in the first video to analysis of responses on this topic. We’ve picked out some headlines below.
The overall sample of 79 respondents divided themselves up roughly equally between Fluent Speakers, Learners, and Non-speakers of Gaelic.
The slide below shows a really strong level of agreement in the group overall with the notion that “Gaelic has an important symbolic value in the community as a vehicle for transmitting our island culture and heritage”.
Another immediately striking statistic is the 90% figure for those expressing concern over the declining trend in use of Gaelic, as shown in this slide:
And what may be particularly interesting about this figure is the way that similar sentiment is shared across all three groups – Fluent Speakers, Learners, and Non-speakers – with even 58% of those who have no Gaelic expressing concern about the decline in its use.
While Jess is duly cautious in her presentation, a topic eliciting a 90% level of concern might well be considered a community wellbeing issue worthy of further investigation…
If these figures pique your interest do take a look at the online presentation to find out more. The project also plans to run another face-to-face event in August at which Gaelic and other questions arising from the survey will be further discussed and developed. You can find full details and keep abreast of other events leading up to it on the CEUT Facebook page.
Here’s Part 1 of Jess’s presentation, in which she provides an update on the findings of Section 1 of the survey (including the questions on Gaelic):
In Part 2, Jess talks about the key findings of Section 2 – Use of the School, and Section 3 – Personal Wellbeing:
And coming soon, keep an eye out for an Island Voices video follow-up from Gordon Wells on “Recording Community Conversations”, to be followed shortly after by more detail on Digital Use and Activities with Alan Miller and Sharon Pisani from St Andrews University.
Tha Comataidh Slàinte, Cùraim Shòisealta agus Spòrs a’ feuchainn ri faighinn a-mach dè na prìomh cheistean a tha mu choinneamh sheirbheisean cùraim-shlàinte ann an sgìrean iomallach agus dùthchail na h-Alba. Tha a’ Chomataidh airson cluinntinn bhon phoball agus bho luchd-obrach mu na dh’fhiosraich iad de sheirbheisean cùraim-shlàinte iomallach agus dùthchail. Tha iad airson tuigsinn dè … Leugh an corr de Comataidh a’ sireadh bheachdan air cùram-slàinte ann an sgìrean dùthail is iomallach
Tha aon lus, gu ìre mhòr fiadhain, as toil leam gu sònraichte faicinn sa ghàrradh aig an àm seo den bhliadhna, le a fhlùraichean purpaidh cùbhraidh ‘s a dhuilleagan mòra biorach – an gealach-lus, no “honesty” sa Bheurla. Chanadh cuid luibheanach ris, ach dhomsa ‘s e lus brèagha a th’ ann, a bheir dath dhan ghàrradh tràth sa bhliadhna, agus ùidh a bharrachd as t-fhoghar ‘s sa gheamhradh leis na buinn-airgid àlainn air.
‘S ann à ceann a deas na Roinn Eòrpa a tha e bho thùs, agus is cinnteach gun tàinig e do Bhreatainn ro dheireadh an 16mh linn, an toiseach mar fhlùr-gàrraidh, ach san eadar-àm tha e ri fhaicinn air feadh na dùthcha far a bheil an aimsir measarra – nochdaidh e ann am faichean, ri taobh an rathaid, agus anns na gàrraidhean againn. Ach na gabh dragh mura h-eil thu ga iarraidh an sin – tha e glè fhurasta an lus còmla ris a fhreumhan a tharraing a-mach. Cha dèan mise sin ach nuair a bhios cus ann, no nuair a bhios e a’ fàs san àite cheàrr, is mi cho measail air.
Nuair a tha thu a’ coimhead air, cha bhiodh tu a’ saoilsinn gur ann dhan teaghlach brassica a bhuineas e, còmhla ri càl, snèap, raip no mustard, ach seall gu dlùth agus tha na fluraichean den aon chruth. A rèir coltais faodaidh tu seòrsa mustaird a dhèanamh às na sìl, agus na duilleagan òga (mus nochd na fluraichean) a chleachdadh ann an sailead.
Ach ‘s ann airson rèiteachadh fhlùraichean a cleachdar iad mar as trice. Fhad’s a tha na flùraichean air an lus fhathast chì thu na siliques a’ fàs – is iad seo seòrsa sligich cruinne còmhnaird anns a bheil meamran leis na sìl. As t-earrach tha iad fhathast beag agus an aon dath ris na duilleagan agus mar sin cha bhi thu cho mothachail orra, ach tha na sìl rim faicinn mar-thà tron t-sligeach thrìd-dhealrach – ‘s ann air an adhbhar sin (mas fhìor) a fhuair an lus an t-ainm honesty, fìrinnteachd, is e a sealltainn a shìl gu firinneach. As t-fhoghar, nuair a tha na sligeachan tioram is na sìl deiseil ri sgaoileadh, thuitidh am plaosg a-muigh air falbh agus às a dhèidh na sìl bhon mheamran, agus chan eil ach am meamran fhèin air fhàgail, geal-airgid agus cho tana ri pàipear-sìoda. Tha iadsan gu h-iongantach buan, agus gu tric tha cuid air fhàgail gus an earrach. Dìreach ann an gruaim a’ gheamhraidh tha iad feumail is brèagha mar sgeadachadh.
‘S e lunariaannua a th’ air an lus sa Laideann, bho luna, gealach, agus chì thu carson. Am measg nan ainmean Beurla tha cuideachd moonpennies, agus siniomradh air a’ choltas eile a th’ orra – ri buinn-airgid. Cluinnidh tu silver dollars orra cuideachd. Mar sin, le buaidh mhathasach na gealaich, geall soirbheachaidh nam bonn-airgid, agus a chliù firinnteachd, cò air talamh nach iarradh na lusan àlainn seo na ghàrradh? ‘S dòcha gum bi sibhse a’ coimhead orra le sùilean ùra a-nis. Tha mi an dòchas gum bi, co-dhiù!
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Honesty
There’s one plant, more or less wild, which I particularly like to see in the garden at this time of year, with its fragrant purple flowers and its large pointed leaves – honesty (“moon-plant” in Gaelic). Some would call it a weed, but to me it’s a lovely plant which brings colour to the garden early in the year, and adds interest in autumn and winter with its beautiful silver “coins”.
It actually comes from southern Europe but has been in Britain since at least the end of the 16th century, first as a garden flower, and in the meantime all over the countryside, wherever the climate is moderate – it shows up in meadows, at the roadside and in our gardens. But don’t worry if you don’t want it there – it’s very easy to pull out, roots and all. Being so fond of it myself, I would only be doing that where there was too much of it, or it was in the wrong place.
When you look at it you wouldn’t automatically think that it’s in the brassica family, along with cabbage, turnip, rape or mustard, but look more closely at the flowers and you’ll see they’re the same form. Apparently you can make a kind of mustard out of the seeds, and use the young leaves (before the flowers come) in salad.
But it’s for flower arrangements that they’re most often used. While the flowers are still on the plant, you see the siliques appearing – they’re a kind of round, flat casing covering a membrane with the seeds attached inside it. In spring they’re still small and the same colour as the leaves, so you don’t notice them, but the seeds are already visible through the translucent casing – that’s allegedly the reason they’re called honesty, as they display their seeds so “truthfully”. In the autumn, when the siliques are dry and the seeds are ripe for spreading, the outer pod falls off, followed by the seeds dropping from the membrane, leaving the membrane itself in the round silique “frame”, silver-white and as thin as tissue-paper. These are amazingly long-lasting, and many often hang on until the spring. They’re especially useful and attractive as decoration in the gloom of winter.
The Latin name is lunaria annua, from luna, the moon, and you can see why. Among the many English names the term “moonpennies” also refers to another similarity – to silver coins. You also hear the name “silver dollars”. So, with the benign influence of the moon, the promise of prosperity of the coins, and the reputation for truthfulness, who wouldn’t want these beautiful plants in their garden? Maybe you’ll look at them with fresh eyes now – I hope so, anyway!
Island Voices is still on Twitter. You can follow us here.
