For those that would like to have a few words, Cúpla Focail, of Gaelic Irish to dust off for St. Patrick’s Day, I'm here to help. I love the Irish language. Learn with me and add a gaelic flavor to your holiday chat.

Hello - Dia dhuit

First things first, hello is always a good place to start. The most common phrase used as a greeting in Irish is Dia dhuit, which literally translates as God be with you, Dia = God and duit = with you.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day - Beannachtaí na Féile Padraig Ort

A common greeting around Ireland on the day itself. We have a whole blog dedicated to the phrase and how to pronounce it. Beannachtaí na Féile Padraig Ort literally translates as Blessings of Patrick’s Festival Upon You.

And if you have it said to you, you may want to respond with a cheery, And many happy returns which is go maire tú an céad.

Please - Le do thoil

Whether you are asking for a dance, a song, or a top up of your drink, it is always a good idea to be polite. If you would like to say please in Irish you say le do thoil.

Thank you- Go raibh maith agat

And continuing on the manners theme, saying thank you for your dance, song, or pint is also not a bad idea. In Irish you would say, go raibh maith agat, which translated means, may you have that which is good. It is a bit of a mouthful but you would typically hear this phrase said at top speed in Ireland, so it sounds more like “gura mya gut.”

Shamrock - Seamróg

The symbol of the season, a shamrock comes from the irish seamróg, and sounds pretty similar just a little softer, pronounced sham-rouge.

Cheers - Sláinte

A direct translation of cheers in gaelic is health. This word can also be used pretty widely in Ireland and not just when toasting a drink. Cheers can also get rolled out as a sort of stand in for thank you in informal chats.

Goodbye / Goodnight - Slán leat / Oíche mhaith

Despite the rumors that circulate about the somewhat rude “Irish Goodbye” there are plenty of polite and friendly ways to bid farewell in Gaelic. “Slán leat” is literally wishing health to the person but it translates as “Goodbye.” Or you can be a little less formal and just say “Slán” which works as a cheery “bye. Or if you want to be very friendly you can roll out “Slán go fóill” – Bye for now. And if you have stayed up late, you can always use Oíche mhaith - goodnight!

Cúpla focail

As you know from above, cúpla focail means “a few words” in Gaelic. If you would like to add a few more to your cúpla focail check out our other Irish language posts on our blog.