"Gleanntáin Ghlas' Ghaoth Dobhair" is a song in the

Irish language Irish (Standard Irish: ), also known as Irish Gaelic or simply Gaelic ( ), is a Celtic language of the Indo-European language family. It is a member of the Goidelic languages of the Insular Celtic sub branch of the family and is indigenous ...

written by Irish musician

Proinsias Ó Maonaigh Proinsias Ó Maonaigh () or Francie Mooney (28 April 1922 – 28 March 2006) was a fiddler from Gweedore (Gaoth Dobhair), County Donegal, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. He is known for his distinguished fiddle playing and his unique and vast contr ...

(father of

Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh (; born 26 July 1959) is an Irish fiddler and the lead vocalist for the Irish folk music band Altan, which she co-founded with her husband Frankie Kennedy in 1987. Ní Mhaonaigh is recognised as a leading exponent in ...

Altan Altan may refer to: * Altan (name) * Altan (company), a software company. * Altan (band), a folk music group from Donegal * ''Altan'' (album), a 1987 album by Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh and Frankie Kennedy * Altan Jalab, a village in Afghanistan * A ...

) about his hometown of

Gaoth Dobhair Gweedore ( , officially known by its Irish language name, ) is a Gaeltacht (Irish-speaking) district, and parish, located on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of County Donegal in the north-west of Ireland. It stretches some from Glasserchoo ...

(i.e. Gweedore) in

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county of the Republic of Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is the northernmost county of Ireland. The county mostly borders Northern Ireland, sharing only a small b ...

. It translates as "''the green glens of Gweedore''". The song is one of the well-known

songs of

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

and it can be heard in many

Irish pub In Ireland, a "pub" is an establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. Irish pubs are characterised by a unique culture centred around a casual and friendly atmosphere, hearty food and drink, Irish sports, ...

s around the world.See p. 282 in Vallely, Fintan (1999) ''The Companion to Irish Traditional Music'', Cork University Press The song is about

immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as Permanent residency, permanent residents. Commuting, Commuter ...

overseas to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

and the desire to go back home to Gweedore, Ireland as well as about a great respect and love for Gweedore, its surrounding nature, and its people.

Renditions

's version of the song appears on their 1997 album '' Runaway Sunday''. * Irish singer

Paul Brady Paul Joseph Brady (born 19 May 1947) is an Irish singer-songwriter and musician from Strabane, Northern Ireland. His work straddles folk and pop. He was interested in a wide variety of music from an early age. Initially popular for playing ...

has recorded the song on numerous occasions. * Scottish folk group

Battlefield Band Battlefield Band was a Scottish traditional music group. Founded in Glasgow in 1969, they have released over 30 albums and undergone many changes of lineup. As of 2010, none of the original founders remain in the band. Their last known live per ...

popularised the song as "Paddy's Green Shamrock Shore" (which they recorded and released in 1976 on their debut album ''

Farewell to Nova Scotia "Farewell to Nova Scotia" is a popular folk song from Nova Scotia, Canada. It was adapted from the Scottish lament "The Soldier's Adieu" written by Robert Tannahill. It was written sometime before or during World War I and popularized in 1964 ...

'').

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gleanntain Ghlas Ghaoth Dobhair Culture in Gweedore Irish folk songs Songs in Irish Year of song missing