User:Folk Life/Backup/Sean Nós and Sean-nós Activities

BACKUP - 11DEC08

Sean Nós and Sean-nós Activities refers to the Irish traditional activities in the "Old Style," such asSean-nós song and Sean-nós dance. When the words Sean Nós are used in isolation, the general connotation is to anything Irish in an "old style"—as opposed to the "new way." However, when referring in isolation to just "Sean Nós," it frequently might be assumed to mean Sean-nós song in particular. However, other "old style" Irish cultural activities exist as well, such as Sean-nós dance.

The terms "Sean Nós" and "Sean-Nós" activities
Foreign words—and the associated foreign characters or diacriticals (the "fada," accent mark, or other symbols added to the "base letter" to indicate the specific character or phoneme)—can be confusing to non-native speakers or readers. The Irish Gaelic phrase "Sean Nós" is a prime example.
 * In the Irish Gaelic Language, the word "sean" means "old" and "nós" means "style." Therefore, "sean nós" means "old style" (noun form)—as contrasted to "nos nua," which means "new way."
 * Sean-nós dance therefore refers to old-style dance (where addition of the "-" between the words indicates the adjectival form).
 * The phrase "an sean nós" means "the old way."
 * The phrase "ar an sean nós" means "in the old style."

The Irish word "Nós" - Does the Diacritical Mark on the letter "ó" matter?
Proper Irish will have the diacritical mark (the "accent mark") on the letter "ó." If the user is not able to insert certain special characters from foreign alphabet for a given font face, and if copying a sample from an existing instance does not work, then using a plain "o" will be the default. However, it is not proper Irish Gaelic. For general audiences, the distinction may not be noticed.

The terms "Sean Nós" and "Sean-Nós" activities
Foreign words, and the associated foreign characters or diacriticals (the accent mark or other symbols added to the "base letter" to indicate the specific character or phoneme), can be confusing to non-native speakers or readers. TheIrish Gaelic phrase "Sean Nós" is a prime example.
 * In the Irish Gaelic Language, the word "sean" means "old" and "nós" means "style." Therefore, Sean Nós means "Old Style" (noun form)—as contrasted to Nos Nua, which means "new way."
 * Sean-Nós Dance therefore refers to Old-Style Dance (where addition of the "-" between the words indicates the adjectival form).
 * The phrase "an sean nós" means "in the old style."

The Irish word "Nós" - Does the Diacritical Mark on the letter "ó" matter?
Proper Irish will have the diacritical mark (the "accent mark") on the letter "ó." If the user is not able to insert certain special characters from foreign alphabet for a given font face, and if copying a sample from an existing instance does not work, then using a plain "o" will be the default. However, it is not proper Irish Gaelic. For general audiences, the distinction may not be noticed.