Taig
dec...@delphi.com
Which is the Catholic side of the shovel? Why?
Larry
dec...@delphi.com
Matthew Moore
> Why are Catholics called "Taig" in Northern Ireland?
cos they re all fenians?
> Which is the Catholic side of the shovel? Why?
regional differences in shovel design - long handle without crossbar, or
shorter handle with T-shaped crossbar cause the shoveller to 'lead with the
"wrong" {ie other} foot'.
Andrew J Norman
In a previous article, ska...@ucl.ac.uk (Matthew Moore) says:
>dec...@delphi.com writes:
>
>> Which is the Catholic side of the shovel? Why?
>
>regional differences in shovel design - long handle without crossbar, or
>shorter handle with T-shaped crossbar cause the shoveller to 'lead with the
>"wrong" {ie other} foot'.
>
The story my father tells is that if you were taking on manual workers, you
would give them a shovel and ask them to show you what they could do - the
candidate would then signal his religious affiliations to you on the quiet,
and you wouldn't employ a Catholic to work with a Protestant gang, or vice
versa. Another one of those coded signals by which Northern Irish people
let each other know which side of the fence they sit.
--
/*****************************************************
* Andrew Norman n...@le.ac.uk *
* Engineering Dept, University of Leicester, England *
*****************************************************/
Suzanne Brabant Schrader
: Why are Catholics called "Taig" in Northern Ireland?
: Which is the Catholic side of the shovel? Why?
From "Belfast Diary" by John Conroy (Beacon Press, 1987):
The Protestant spade has a short shaft topped by a T-shaped handle...
[Catholic spades] have straight, long shafts, with no special handles;
the digger is meant to hold those shovels by the shaft. Because of the
difference in design, a man with a Protestant spade usually used his
left foot for his labors, while a man with a long-shafted tool used his
right. Today, an Irishman who has never lifted a spade, when unsure of a
new acquantance's religion, may ask "What foot does he dig with?"
Andrew J Norman
In a previous article, ssch...@netcom.com (Suzanne Brabant Schrader) says:
>dec...@delphi.com wrote:
>: Why are Catholics called "Taig" in Northern Ireland?
>: Which is the Catholic side of the shovel? Why?
>:
>From "Belfast Diary" by John Conroy (Beacon Press, 1987):
>
>The Protestant spade has a short shaft topped by a T-shaped handle...
>[Catholic spades] have straight, long shafts, with no special handles;
>the digger is meant to hold those shovels by the shaft. Because of the
>difference in design, a man with a Protestant spade usually used his
^^^^^^^^^^
>left foot for his labors, while a man with a long-shafted tool used his
^^^^
>right. Today, an Irishman who has never lifted a spade, when unsure of a
>new acquantance's religion, may ask "What foot does he dig with?"
>
>--
> ssch...@netcom.com
>
This, presumably, is why Catholics are known as "left-footers".
cawley
Sing the sash is another. There are loads more that exist even to-day. Whats your
second name is a common one in a bar. What school did you go to.
Beats me why they don't just say what religion are you and get it over with.
Bout-ye!
Colm Fitzgerald
In article <sschradeC...@netcom.com>, ssch...@netcom.com (Suzanne Brabant Schrader) writes:
>dec...@delphi.com wrote:
>: Why are Catholics called "Taig" in Northern Ireland?
>: Which is the Catholic side of the shovel? Why?
>:
for Timothy. In Scotland aren't Catholics, or those with Irish descent,
referred to as "Tim's"? I suppose the two are linked. Both terms are
rather derrogatory. I never heard the reference to the shovel before though.
Colm Fitzgerald
--
You can no longer depend on the land in which you were born/ You can no
longe depend in any land in which you choose to place yourself/ You can
no longer depend on the bed on which you lie by night.
"Blues for Ceaceascu", The Fatima Mansions
Gene Comiskey
>Another one is to say the alphabet, Taigs say Hay-tch for `h' , prods say Aa-tch.
Oh God, you'll be coming out with all prods drink Tennants/Bass and all
taigs drink Harp/Smithwicks next.
>Sing the sash is another. There are loads more that exist even to-day. Whats your
Yes, singing the sash is a very coded signal, as is wearing a Celtic/Rangers shirt.
These codes are known only to a few million.
>second name is a common one in a bar. What school did you go to.
This one I accept, the school is in most cases an indication of religion and is used
as such.
>Beats me .....
Somebody should ;-)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Gene Comiskey |"When money's tight and hard to get, |
gcom...@bfsec.bt.co.uk | And your horse has also ran, |
BT Belfast | When all you have is a heap o'debt, |
| Sure a pint o'plain is your only man"|
----------------------------------------------------------------
cawley
|> In article d...@irisa.irisa.fr, caw...@irisa.fr (cawley) writes:
|> >Another one is to say the alphabet, Taigs say Hay-tch for `h' , prods say Aa-tch.
|>
|> Oh God, you'll be coming out with all prods drink Tennants/Bass and all
|> taigs drink Harp/Smithwicks next.
|>
drink mcewens 'cos of the Rangers connection. Crazy eh??
|> >Sing the sash is another. There are loads more that exist even to-day. Whats your
|>
|> Yes, singing the sash is a very coded signal, as is wearing a Celtic/Rangers shirt.
|> These codes are known only to a few million.
|>
before. Before I was in the north I had never heard of any of these
"signs" of being on one side or the other. I live in a county just over the
border.
|> >second name is a common one in a bar. What school did you go to.
|> This one I accept, the school is in most cases an indication of religion and is used
|> as such.
|>
|> >Beats me .....
|> Somebody should ;-)
|>
Comiskey is that a taig name or a prod name? What school did YOU go to? ;>
Did you go to Queens?
Paul_-_...@cup.portal.com
I know that everyone posts messages like this... But, here I go anyway.
My fiance and I are getting married in October. She would love to tour
Scotland. She has studied Medeival literature for years. However, I am
paying for the entire wedding, and right now I doubt if I'm going to have
the money to pay for a really nice trip to Scotland.
So... What I'm wondering is: If we can afford the tickets, how cheaply could
we get along in Scotland? I'm sure she would be happy if we just picked one
area that was packed with castles and history. I know that she has said
many times that she wants to visit Loch Ness (yes she believes in the
monster), and I know that there are some interesting castles around Loch
Ness.
Basically, the best thing would be for us to find a really cheap inn near
Loch Ness (or anywhere that related to her studies), and then we could take
public transportation around to the neighboring communities. But, I want
someone who lives or has lived there to tell me if it will be cheap enough?
Can someone give me a very approximate guess at what we could expect on
something like this? My fiance would love just being there - as long as she
sees Illuminated pages, medeival castles, and beautiful countrysides she
will love it.
Any ideas??? I really want to be able to give her what she wants. Right
now, we aren't planning anything.
Thanks!
Paul Griswold
Ben Walsh
>Sing the sash is another. There are loads more that exist even to-day. Whats your
singing the sash is a slightly more obvious one ... the wearing of the
green being the papist equivalent.
the most common one I've heard is "what's your favourite football team".
people can try to answer with "Ipswich" or "Chester City' but that won't
do ... they say "no, I mean the Scottish League"... and you're not
allowed say Motherwell or Partick Thistle either. Want they want to know
is "Do you support Rangers or Celtic" ... Rangers being the Paisleyites
and Celtic the Papists.
>Beats me why they don't just say what religion are you and get it over with.
That'd be too simple ...
>Bout-ye!
slainte
--
H E C "But I never made the first team
E R T I I just made the first team laugh
E R T I And she never came to the 'phone
H E C She was always in the bath" (billy bragg)