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Shelta (also known as Gammen, Sheldru, Pavee, Caintíotar or simply "The Cant") is a language spoken by the Irish Traveller people. It was often used to conceal meaning from those outside the group. The language is found throughout Ireland, but is more concentrated in the south-east part of the country. Shelta is a cant originally based on Irish with some English influences.[citation needed] Because Shelta originates from older versions of Irish, it was originally part of the Goidelic branch of the Celtic language family. However, its syntax is now primarily English based and has been heavily influenced by other non-Celtic languages. As a result, Shelta has a character very different from other Goidelic Celtic languages.
[edit] Origins and historyIt has been suggested that the word "Shelta" derives from the Irish word "siúlta", meaning "of walking", possibly referring to the Traveller lifestyle. The word “Shelta” first appeared in 1882 in the book The Gypsies by “gypsiologist” Charles Leland, who claimed to have discovered it as the “fifth Celtic tongue”. Shelta is the term still preferred by some today, more so amongst academics than the Travellers themselves. Linguists have been documenting Shelta since at least the 1870s. Celtic language expert Kuno Meyer and Romany expert John Sampson both assert that Shelta existed as far back as the 13th century. There are now approximately 86,000 worldwide speakers of Shelta, with anywhere from 6,000-25,000 in Ireland itself according to various sources. The language is spoken almost exclusively by Travellers. Much of Shelta's vocabulary is based loosely on Irish, with many words inverted in a style not unlike French verlan slang. For example, the Sheltan word for “girl” is “lackeen”, from the Irish “cailín”, and the word “rodas”, meaning “door”, has its roots in the Irish “doras”. The language's structure also contains many grammatical similarities with English. It also contains elements of Romany languages (such as the term "gadje”, meaning "non-Traveller" and "kushti" the Romanichal word for good), though the Travellers are not actual Roma.[1] An example of a Shelta word that now has common usage in everyday speech in Britain is the word “bloke” meaning “a man”, originating in the mid-19th century. It probably derives from the Irish word "buachaill", meaning “boy” or "lad".[2] Sociologist Sharon Gmelch describes the Travellers' language as follows:[3]
[edit] Phonology[edit] Vowels
[edit] Consonants
[edit] Comparison textsBelow are reproductions of the Lord's Prayer in Shelta as it occurred a century ago, Irish Traveller Cant, and modern English and Irish versions for comparison. The 19th century Shelta version shows a high Shelta lexical content while the Cant version a much lower Shelta lexical content. Both versions are adapted from Hancock[4] who notes that the Cant reproduction is not exactly representative of actual speech in normal situations.
[edit] Bibliography
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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