Hello,

This may or may not turn into an unfortunate story. When I was 19 I spent quite a few months working on the perfect tattoo. Back then these forums were not readily available. I discovered a Gaelic bible and pulled the verse I wanted and thought I had done all the right things. Fast forward to today, after my husband announced that he would like to get the same tattoo on his ring finger, I decided to do a little digging before hand. I have found absolutely nothing that looks like what I have tattooed on my side. Thus, I am here looking for a translation to see If what I have permanently applied to my body is what I hope it is.

BIB- 1 Corinthians 13:8 "Love Never Fails".

What is tattooed on my side: "Ni Iacbaish an giá i léig go seo". This may be misspelled, the font makes it difficult to see some letters. The "S" could also be something else, on my tattoo they appear to be S like shapes, similar to the shape of a 5 just prettier. I tried to add a photo but was unable too and no longer have the research from when I was 19.

Thank you for any help you can give me, It is greatly appreciated.

(ach) ní rachaidh an grá i léig go deo. = (but) love will never decay
http://ga.bibles.org/gle-ABN/1Cor/13

Labhrás,

Thank you so much for translating that for me. After looking at my tattoo and its font I can see how your corrections make sense. I am so happy to know that it is accurate with the scripture I intended! I expected a slight variation with the translation.

I have one more favor if its not too much to ask? After seeing that the exact translation is "Love will never decay", my husband is thinking about only taking the "Never Decay" portion of the scripture and using that for his tattoo. I wondered if you might be able to tell me what portion of the translation says "Never Decays"?

Again, thank you so much for your help. It is greatly appreciated.

I'd suggest:

Ná téigh i léig riamh

But that's a bit clunky, and might be read as "Don't neglect yourself/let yourself go" Wait for further input, please.

Redwolf

ní rachaidh i léig [go deo]

literally: 'will not go into decay [ever]'.

Is this the font you are talking about:

ní raċaidh an grá i léig go deo

Cian

_________________

Please wait for corrections/ more input from other forum members before acting on advice

Ní rachaidh an grá i léig go deo
lit.:
not will-go the love in decay for ever

But you can't simply delete the subject, e.g. "love"

Redwolf,
Thank you for your translation! I appreciate it.

Cian,
Yes, that font is very similar to what I have. Mine is just a little more feminine, some of the letters are more exaggerated. Thank you for your translation, that one seems very close to what we are looking for!

labhrás,
Thank you for breaking that down further for me. I can see what you are saying about how you cannot remove the subject and still have a structured sentence. Our goal in simplifying the phrase for his tattoo was to ultimately shorten it. He wants something small on his finger that will hide under his ring but be visible if the ring is removed. It sounds like there is no simple way to do that while still keeping it in Irish. Am I correct in that assumption? Taking the entire sentence out of the equation, how would you simply (or as simply as possible, haha) say "Never decay"? Does it change when you take it out of that particular sentence? Or does it have to be in reference to something in order to structure it properly?