Oil Thigh

Last updated

The Oil Thigh is the name given to the anthem and fight song of Queen's University at Kingston and its sports teams, the Queen's Gaels. Although the song's official title is "Queen's College Colours", it is almost universally referred to by the first words of the Gaelic chorus.

Contents

Etymology

Oilthigh (pronounced [ˈɔlhɪ(j)] ) is the Scottish Gaelic for "university", from oil "educate, rear", which is from Old Irish ail- and taigh "house" (older spelling tigh) plus lenition. [1] It is usually spelt as a single word in modern orthography. [2]

History

The chorus was written in 1891 [3] as part of a longer Gaelic warcry, by three Gaelic-speaking students: Donald Cameron, F.A. McRae, and another called MacLean, whose first name is not known. The rest of the song was written in 1898 by a student, Alfred Lavell, with the title The Queen's College Colours after a disappointing loss to the University of Toronto in order to inspire the team. [3] The first verse is "Queen's College colours we are wearing once again, Soiled as they are by the battle and the rain, Yet another victory to wipe away the stain! So, Gaels, go in and win!"

The second, third and fourth verses are rarely sung.

In 1985 the original "Boys, go in and win" was changed to "Gaels, go in and win" to make the text gender neutral. [3]

The song is often heard sung by students and alumni when the home team scores a point, goal, touchdown, etc., and at other school events. It is usually sung while forming a chain by linking arms behind each other's backs and performing a low-kicking can-can. The Varsity Men's and Women's Rowing teams sing the song to celebrate winning the team points championship at the OUA Rowing Championships and/or the Canadian University Rowing Championships by huddling in a closed circle and performing the traditional low-kicking. The 1892 version uses the tune of the "Battle Hymn of the Republic/John Brown's Body". [3]

Additional stanzas that have fallen out of popular use made reference to historic victories over Yale University, rival McGill University, and the University of Toronto.

Gaelic translation

A distinctive element to the song is the Gaelic words of the chorus. The Gaelic translates to:

Chorus:

Oil thigh na Banrighinn a'Banrighinn gu brath!
Oil thigh na Banrighinn a'Banrighinn gu brath!
Oil thigh na Banrighinn a'Banrighinn gu brath!
Cha-gheill! Cha-gheill! Cha-gheill!

English translation:

The Queen's College and Queen forever!
The Queen's College and Queen forever!
The Queen's College and Queen forever!
No surrender! No surrender! No surrender!

Related Research Articles

"Land of Hope and Glory" is a British patriotic song, with music by Edward Elgar, written in 1901 and with lyrics by A. C. Benson added in 1902.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Brown's Body</span> United States marching song

"John Brown's Body", originally known as "John Brown's Song", is a United States marching song about the abolitionist John Brown. The song was popular in the Union during the American Civil War. The song arose out of the folk hymn tradition of the American camp meeting movement of the late 18th and early 19th century. According to an 1889 account, the original John Brown lyrics were a collective effort by a group of Union soldiers who were referring both to the famous John Brown and also, humorously, to a Sergeant John Brown of their own battalion. Various other authors have published additional verses or claimed credit for originating the John Brown lyrics and tune.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Queen's Golden Gaels</span> Athletic teams that represent Queens University at Kingston

The Queen's Gaels is the athletics program representing Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. The main athletics facilities include Richardson Memorial Stadium, the Queen's Athletics and Recreation Centre, Nixon Field and Tindall Field. The team colours are gold, blue, and red.

"The Skye Boat Song" is a late 19th-century Scottish song adaptation of a Gaelic song composed c.1782 by William Ross, entitled Cuachag nan Craobh. In the original song, the composer laments to a cuckoo that his unrequited love, Lady Marion Ross, is rejecting him. The 19th century English lyrics instead evoked the journey of Prince Charles Edward Stuart from Benbecula to the Isle of Skye as he evaded capture by government soldiers after his defeat at the Battle of Culloden in 1746.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cheering</span> Sounds made usually to encourage

Cheering involves the uttering or making of sounds and may be used to encourage, excite to action, indicate approval or welcome.

Word painting, also known as tone painting or text painting, is the musical technique of composing music that reflects the literal meaning of a song's lyrics or story elements in programmatic music.

The University of Alabama is a school with many traditions. This article describes several of these traditions.

Hodden is a coarse, undyed cloth made of undyed wool, formerly much worn by the peasantry of Scotland from prehistory. Hodden, with wadmal, represent two similar cultural fabrics in Scottish history. Hodden is an early-modern period name for a primarily Gaelic fabric, earlier named lachdann in Gaelic, and even earlier lachtna in Old Irish; while wadmal was a Scandinavian fabric, in the now-Scottish islands and Highlands. Both are usually woven in 2/2 twill weave but are also known in plain or tabby weave. Both are a thick, coarse, fulled homespun cloth typically made of natural undyed wool of the vari-coloured Northern European short-tailed sheep breeds. The Scots preferred to breed strains of sheep in various areas to provide the local preferred colour of natural wool used for cloth to protect the poor and rural peasants from the elements.  

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian Gaelic</span> Scottish Gaelic dialects of eastern Canada

Canadian Gaelic or Cape Breton Gaelic, often known in Canadian English simply as Gaelic, is a collective term for the dialects of Scottish Gaelic spoken in Atlantic Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cavan GAA</span> County board of the Gaelic Athletic Association in Ireland

The Cavan County Board or Cavan GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) in Ireland, and is responsible for the administration of Gaelic games in County Cavan.

"Victory for MSU", formerly "MSU Fight Song", is the official fight song of Michigan State University. It was created in early 1915, when MSU was known as Michigan Agricultural College (M.A.C.). An MSU cheerleader, Francis Irving Lankey, along with lyricist Arthur Sayles, created the song. With several changes noted below, the school has used the same song ever since. The MSU Fight Song is played at all university sporting events and is frequently sung by students and alumni.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waulking song</span> Song

Waulking songs are Scottish folk songs, traditionally sung in the Gaelic language by women while fulling (waulking) cloth. This practice involved a group of women, who traditionally prepared cloth, rhythmically beating newly woven tweed or tartan cloth against a table or similar surface to lightly felt it and shrink it to better repel water. Simple, beat-driven songs were used to accompany the work.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hail to Old OSU</span>

"Hail to Old OSU" is the fight song of Oregon State University. It is extracted from a song written by Harold A. Wilkins in 1914 and is played mainly at sporting events like football and basketball games. The lyrics have been slightly altered since being written "to conform to a changing culture", changing to conform to new initials, and the use of a more gender-neutral version.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dublin University Boat Club</span>

Dublin University Boat Club (DUBC) is the Rowing club of Trinity College Dublin. The club operates from its boat house at the Irish National War Memorial Gardens, Islandbridge, on the South Bank of the River Liffey. The club colours are black and white with a royal blue shield bearing the arms of Trinity College. The current Captain is Benjamin Reid.

"Limerick" is a traditional humorous drinking song with many obscene verses. The tune usually used for sung limericks is traditionally "Cielito Lindo," with the words arranged in the form of a limerick.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">There Goes Old Georgetown</span> Georgetown University fight song

"There Goes Old Georgetown" is the unofficial name of the Georgetown University sports teams' fight song. It is also known as simply "Georgetown Fight Song". It is actually an amalgamation of three songs, only the oldest of which, 1913's "The Touchdown Song", contains the lyric "here goes old Georgetown". Onto a version of this was added "Cheer for Victory", written in 1915, and "The Hoya Song", written in 1930, both of which are included in their entirety. The authors of these songs, and of the combined version, are unknown. Although some effort has been taken to change the song, no serious proposal has come forth.

The following is an alphabetical list of terms and jargon used in relation to Gaelic games. See also list of Irish county nicknames, and these are very interesting.

"Follow the Colours" is a marching song written by the English composer Edward Elgar in 1907, with words by Capt. William de Courcy Stretton. The song is for male voice solo with an optional male voice chorus, accompanied by piano, orchestra or military band.

Scottish Gaelic literature refers to literary works composed in the Scottish Gaelic language, which is, like Irish and Manx, a member of the Goidelic branch of Celtic languages. Gaelic literature was also composed in Gàidhealtachd communities throughout the global Scottish diaspora where the language has been and is still spoken.

Donnchadh Ruadh Mac Conmara (1715–1810) was an Irish schoolmaster of a hedge school, Jacobite propagandist, anti-hero in Irish folklore, and composer of poetry in both Munster Irish and in the Irish language outside Ireland.

References

  1. MacBain, A. (1911) An Etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic Language Stirling Eneas MacKay, 1982 edition by Gairm ISBN   0-901771-68-6
  2. Mark, C. The Gaelic English Dictionary Routledge (2004) ISBN   0-415-29761-3
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Queen's Encyclopedia". Queen's University. Retrieved 21 April 2011.