[sw-l] Sign for Leprechaun?

[Shane Gilchrist Ó hEorpa]

Sandy,

Ceist maith! (good question!)

The leprechaun - in NISL, now that is a good question because theres not
many leprechauns in our mythology up North - its more focused on warriors
and love stories (one of my ex boyfriends complained to me that we have
better stories whereas down South they have to talk about stupid things like
leprechauns and pots of gold etc!) - and it was because the industrial
revolution started and was contained in the North (Belfast: linen, foundry,
shipyard, Belfast sinks etc - that was sent all over the world - Dublin
wasn't even a capital (still governed from London) - for the past 200 years
so very little desire for mythological gold. Lepruchuans (associated with
getting the mythical gold) was made popular in Irish America - believe it or
not, it was Ireland's poor that emigrated to America - the rich stayed in
Ireland (you ll have some Americans coming to Ireland claiming that their
ancestors used to own that castle, this castle, this castle - when most
castles here in Ireland were built by for the Normans, the Vikings, the
Anglo-Irish etc - the Celts didn't live in castles!!!)

And it is so funny - the Irish version of lepruchuans is not even the Disney
version of lepruchuans - in many Irish mythology, lepruachuans were evil,
selfish, cannibals or something like that - and often they were compared to
Jewish people (the stereotypes of course)

RIGHT...the sign for lepruchuan - I have asked 6 different people - and only
one matched my sign (lazy sign maybe?)

(Val, u'll have to forgive me as im very tired to use signwriting as im not
fluent yet!)

1. ELF (long ears) - my sign - I usually sign it as "ooooh elf,
evil-eyes-rolling, clapping-hands-once, come, come, will-devour-you...bite
you-in-the-leg, bite-off" - not the sign you want to tell your mate, Sandy?
;) (can be used in ISL or NISL)

2. LONG MR SPOOK EARS (both hands) - SMALL-CHILD - IRISH (in NISL)

3. MISCHIEVOUS E-L-F (in NISL)

4. E-L-F small mr-spook-ears

5. small man long beard pointy head (influenced by America)

6. green man (in ISL)

7. man green (in NISL)

8. witch's son (one said he saw someone religious signing it as "devil
hide-away-hide-away"!!!!)

9. little man doing-the-jig (irish dancing)

If I train interpreters, I'll tell them to use the sign "elf" - but in
England, I guess you ll have to say "elf their Ireland" to be more precise.

Shane



> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-sw-l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu [mailto:owner-sw-
> l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu] On Behalf Of Sandy Fleming
> Sent: 02 February 2005 15:52
> To: sw-l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu
> Subject: [sw-l] Sign for Leprechaun?
>
> Shane,
>
> A friend of mine is asking me for a sign for "leprechaun" for her deaf
> child - do you know one you could teach me, by any chence?  :)
>
> Sandy
>
>