Hello,

Right now, I'm wondering in what past tense that should be used for a story that begins with "Once upon a time". Would it be the Aimsir Chaite? The Aimsir Ghnáthchaite? Or something else?

In my own particular case, I'm trying to translate this from English to Irish:

"Once upon a time, there was a town called Wood Grove. Every little village has a café, and this one was called "The Cosy Inn". Everyone would go there to sample Kate Millicent's famous apple tart."

What I have so far is:

"Bhí baile ann fadó darb ainm Wood Grove. Tá café i ngach baile beag agus thugtaí "The Cosy Inn" ar an gceann seo. Théadh gach duine ann chun..."

[Please note that I'm only interested in the tense choice here, not the other words].

Should I pick one and stick with it? As you can see in my example, I start with Aimsir Chaite, and then move on to Aimsir Ghnáthchaite. Is it ok to mix and match like this if it feels right?

Thank you,

Karen.

Yes, it's ok. It's even necessary.

(Except for "tá" which is present tense and doesn't fit in: Tá café i ngach baile beag -> Bhí caifé ...

In storytelling in Irish, you have the same choices as in English including the "historic present", e.g., "your man goes into the cafe and orders a drink..."

Your choices seem okay so far except for this one:

Tá café i ngach baile beag agus*

Since it is a generalism not a specific instance of a café, I think you need bíonn:

Bíonn caifé i ngach baile beag agus

_________________
Múinteoir Gaeilge - Irish Teacher
My "specialty" is Connemara Irish, particularly Cois Fhairrge dialect, but I can also speak Ulster and Munster Irish with native-level pronunciation.
Is fearr Gaeilge ḃriste ná Béarla cliste, cinnte, aċ i ḃfad níos fearr aríst í Gaeilge ḃinn ḃeo na nGaeltaċtaí.
Gaeilge Chonnacht (GC), go háraid Gaeilge Chois Fhairrge (GCF), Gaeilic Uladh (GU), Gaelainn na Mumhan (GM), agus Gaeilge an Chaighdeáin Oifigiúil (CO).

Thanks all for the replies.

Yes, considering "Every little village has a café" is a generalisation, "bíonn" seems best.

Grmma!