what does the Irish expression "Jenny Mac" mean and what is its origin?
345276
This was a children's street rhyme\n \n"Janey Mack me shirt is black\nWhat'll I do for Sunday?\nGo to bed and cover your head\nAnd don't get up until Monday." \n\nThis was an expression of protest against conformism in an age fascinated with religion. It was shortened to just "Janey" or "Janey Mac" and used in the same context as "Gosh" or "Golly" or other expressions of surprise or derision.
562663
mé liom briosca tú. = i want you (it is old Irish and is called Celtic Gaelic) need anything else let me know i do alot in gaelic.      maith ádh
1006405
I’m not positive but I believe that what you have quoted is a version of an old song/poem with multiple versions.  One such version follows here and the source link provides much more detail on its origins.\n\n\nVALERIE BLOOM\nWAKE UP, AMY\nWake up, Amy chile,\nwater fe get,\nthe barrel fe full an’\nwe no draw one pan yet,\nan’ me see de sun\na-come up over de hill,\nah know if I lef ’\nyuh gwine be sleepin’ still\nat half past ten,\nmaybe twelve o’clock,\nif yuh don’t hurry up,\nde school gate gwine lock,\nbefore yuh get dere,\nwe haffe look firewood,\ncomb we hair,\ngive de goat dem food,\ntie out de donkey,\nsweep de yard,\nan’ eat breakfast,\nI know it hard\nFe leave you\nNice warm bed,\nBut work dey fe do,\nGet up, sleepyhead!\nWake up, wake up, wake up beeny bud\nWake up, beeny soon o’ mawnin’,\nWake up, wake up, wake up beeny bud\nWake up, beeny soon o’ mawnin’.
207349
Howdy,\n  1800's . If you will listen to the song "DIXIE" all the way through, You will here this is an old Irish song that the South adopted. In this song, on the second and third verse, Jim was a deciever, and His gal had a meat cleaver.
555893
It's slang from the UK & Ireland, a made up phrase to avoid cursing when surprised or annoyed.\n\nIt's also a slang term for a sexual position.
491615
"Up the duff" is a UK/Aus/NZ slang for being pregnant\n\nen.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duff
32323
It is Welsh and I think it means 'stupid','emptyheaded', 'not all there",etc.\n\nI am a saesneg,but from my sojourns I think the literal translation is 'not a full yard'.\n\nOur ocker mates would say 'a sixpack short of a barbie'!
619665
The Gaelic word "Samhain" \n'sow-in' (in Ireland), or 'sow-een' (in Wales), or 'sav-en' (in Scotland), but NOT 'sam-hane' (in the U.S., where they don't speak Gaelic) means literally "summer's end."
184823
the origin of the word is spanish. the word comes from combining two words Mary and Ann.\nanother explanation is-MARIANA:  Latinized form of Marian, "bitter."  Variant, Marianna, exists.\n\nso it is a compound name combining Marie and Anne- the meaning is Bitter Grace.
44504
there are two supposed origins - \n1. is from the word nut, meaning hard seed, which is called "hnutu" in Old English or "*khnut" in Proto-Germanic\n\n2. from earlier be nutts upon "be very fond of" (1785), which is possibly from nuts (noun, plural) "any source of pleasure" (1617), from nut (described above). Sense influenced probably by metaphoric application of nut to "head" (1846, e.g. to be off one's nut "be insane," 1860). Nut "crazy person, crank" is attested from 1903, (British form nutter first attested 1958).
883336
It's from "Through the Looking Glass" by Lewis Carroll. \n\nIt's out of copyright now so maybe you can look through the text http://etext.virginia.edu/toc/modeng/public/CarGlas.html :)\n\nThat's also where "Jabberwocky" comes from, and the Duchess' Lullaby \n\nSpeak roughly to your little boy,\nAnd beat him when he sneezes:\nHe only does it to annoy,\nBecause he knows it teases.\n\n:)
272687
There is no word for ngome in Irish It would be in fact Leprechaun or in Irish = [Irish Gaelic luprachán, alteration of Middle Irish luchrupán, from Old Irish luchorpán : luchorp (lú-, small; see legwh- in Indo-European roots + corp, body from Latin corpus; see kwrep- in Indo-European roots) + -án, diminutive suff.]
276106
Erin Go Bragh (also commonly spelled Erin Go Braugh) is the Anglicization of a Gaelic phrase used to express allegiance to Ireland. It is most often translated as "Ireland Forever."
220621
Slovenian: \ngrandpa: dedek\ngrandma: babica\n\n\ngaelic: \nGRANDMOTHER = SEANMATHAIR (Shann-wa -her or Shann- wahr). \n\nGRANDFATHER = SEANATHAIR (Shann-ah-her , Shann -e'-her or \nShann-ahr - Irish is full of dialect differences). \n\n\nGRANDMA; GRANNY = MAMAI (mammy)' MAIMEO; MAMO (mammo). \n\nGRANDPA; GRANDADDY = DAIDEO (daj-jo) (dadd-yo).
437184
Here follows some theories:\n\nThe exact origin of "say uncle" or "cry uncle," an American invention first appearing in written English around 1918, is unclear, but there are, as usual, some interesting theories. One theory posits that "uncle" is actually a mangled form of the Irish word "anacol," meaning "protection" or "safety," making a demand from an aggressor to "cry uncle" equivalent to the thug demanding that his victim "cry for help" as a signal of surrender. There's no real evidence to support this theory, but there certainly was no lack of recent Irish immigrants in the U.S. around the turn of the century, so it's not entirely implausible.\n\nThe other popular theory about "cry uncle" suggests that the phrase may actually be thousands of years old, and that its origins go all the way back to the Roman Empire. According to this theory, Roman children, when beset by a bully, would be forced to say "Patrue, mi Patruissimo," or "Uncle, my best Uncle," in order to surrender and be freed. As to precisely why Ancient Roman bullies forced their victims to "cry uncle," opinions vary. It may be that the ritual was simply a way of making the victim call out for help from a grownup, thus proving his or her helplessness. Alternatively, it may have started as a way of forcing the victim to grant the bully a title of respect -- in Roman times, your father's brother was accorded nearly the same power and status as your father. The form of "uncle" used in the Latin phrase ("patrue") tends to support this theory, inasmuch as it specifically denoted your paternal uncle, as opposed to the brother of your mother ("avunculus"), who occupied a somewhat lower rung in patrilineal Roman society.
521879
The string of ***** is pussey\n\nPussy is both a vulgar word referring to the vulva and vagina, and an affectionate term for a "cat". Thus it can be used as a double entendre. It can also be a derogatory term implying cowardice.\n\nThe origins of the word are unknown. The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) explains that the word "puss" is common to several Teutonic languages, usually as a call name for the cat — not a synonym for "cat", as it is in English. Both the OED and Webster's Third International Dictionary point out similarities with the Old Norse, pūss (pocket); the Low German, pūse (vulva); and the Old English, pusa (bag), etc.; the medieval French word pucelle referred to a young adolescent girl or a virgin [1], although this comes from a slang term for virginity puce (flea) rather than referring to cats. In the 17th century, the term was also used to refer to women in general.\n\nThe word in the former sense normally refers almost exclusively to the aforementioned portions of the female anatomy. It was not included in George Carlin's list of seven dirty words, as it can be used in the sense of kitty, and George Carlin's list was remarking upon words that can never be said on television. Most dictionaries mark the form referring to a vulva as "vulgar" or "offensive" and its use is frowned upon in polite company.\n\nThe word pussy can also be used in a derogatory sense to refer to a male who is not considered sufficiently masculine (see Gender role). When used in this sense, it carries the implication of being easily fatigued, weak or cowardly. This meaning for the word may arise as a shortened form of 'pusillanimous'.\n\nMen dominated by women (particularly their partners or spouses and at one time referred to as 'Hen-pecked') can be referred to as pussy-whipped (or simply whipped in slightly more polite society or media).\n\nAccording to the Oxford English Dictionary, puss was used as a "call-name" for cats in both German and English, but pussy was used in English more as a synonym for "cat." In addition to cats, the word was also used for rabbits and hares as well as a humorous name for tigers. In the 19th century, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, the meaning was extended "in childish speech, applied to anything soft and furry", as in pussy willow. In thieves' slang, it meant "fur coat".\n\nTo pussyfoot around the question or point means to be evasive, cautious, or conceal one's opinions. The reference is to the careful, soft tread of the cat and has no vulgar implications.\n\nI hope i have explained as much as u want.\nenjoy hope this helps u out with ure confusion.
89605
It means 'a wonderful or remarkable person or thing'. But it nearly always implies stylishness and newness-it's 'the greatest thing since sliced bread'.\n\nThe cat's pajamas (and the cat's meow, the cat's whiskers), was a very popular expression in the 1920s, associated with the daring and unconventional jazz-age flappers. H.L. Mencken describes the flapper as a young woman who "has forgotten how to simper; she seldom blushes; and it is impossible to shock her." The lexicographers William and Mary Morris suggest that these "cat" expressions may have originated even earlier, first used in girls' schools. Alternatively, some sources attribute coinage to Tad Dorgan, sportswriter and cartoonist. The original use was definitely American, but the cat's pyjamas, the cat's miaow also caught on in England.