Hello,
My name is Stuart. I am first gen of my family in America. Both parents from S. Glasgow and all of my family back there. I am trying to find the Scottish Gaelic translation of "Never Give Up". Not in the never surrender type of meaning but more of a general philosophy of life type of meaning. I'm not sure if it would translate different because of the meaning? Would it? And also I understand there is quite a difference from Scottish and Irish Gaelic.

I have seen a lot of Na geill choiche but as i undertand it, it is Irish and in the never surrender type of meaning.

I have also seen Na geill a-chaoidh. Does anyone know exactly what it translates to and the meaning? Is it Scottish Gaelic?

And Na treig achaoidh

Please forgive the accent marks that are not there, I don't know how to add them. I understand they are extremley crucial for the correct meaning of the word or phrase. Is this also true?

I am getting this phrase tattooed on my arm in memory of my only brother that recently passed away. Any help would greatly appreciated or anyone that is skilled in Scottish Gaelic would be fantastic. Thank you for your time.

negative imperative, don;'t do something: na
don't give up,in the sense of forsake, abandon doing something: na tréig OR na dìobair
don't give up, in the sense tending towards surrender : na toir suas, na toir thairis
don't surrender: na géill
never, forever are the same, as the negation of your phrase is all in the 'na ' = do not.
so - gu bràth, gu sìorruidh
for the best sound, assonance and rhythm, I'd choose:
na tréig gu bràth, na géill gu bràth

Source(s):

native speaker [& v. experienced translator!]

Can anyone comment on any of this above. It says it is different ways of saying "Never Give Up" in Scottish Gaelic. I found it searching the internet and coppied straight to here. Any help would be most appreciated. Many thanks

Yes, Ná géill choíche is Irish, not Scottish Gaelic, and géill has several meanings, like its Gaelic equivalent, gèill

The various possibilities which you've been given are largely correct, but not perhaps as to all of the nuances (though that may vary, depending on the speaker), and some of the spellings you were giving are a bit old-fashioned now, though not exactly "wrong", since Gaelic spelling is still in flux (Gaelic speakers wrote in Irish until the 17th century or so, and many older forms are still used).

Also, watch the direction of the accents. Scottish Gaelic used to use both kinds, as in é [acute accent] and è [grave accent]. For reasons that are not entirely logical, modern Gaelic only uses the second one now, though you will still see both in older writings, especially in proverbs and songs. Your informant may have found some of the words in older dictionaries.

Here are the most commonly accepted nuances in the meanings:

Na gèill
Don't yield/surrender/submit/give in [it can mean any of these - the context will normally make clear which]
Na trèig
Don't desert/forsake/quit

Na gèill a-chaoidh or Na gèill gu bràth [either will work]
Na gèill gu sìorraidh [this sounds a bit off in a short expression like this, because the meaning is more like "forever" than "ever"]
Never yield/surrender/submit/give in
Don't ever yield/surrender/submit/give in
[Note that there are also other ways to say "ever/never" which would be used in the past tense]

Na trèig a-chaoidh
Never desert/forsake/quit
Don't ever desert/forsake/quit

With all of that, however, there is a stock phrase in Gaelic which is used to say things like "Don't give up" or "Persevere!", although the more literal meaning is more like "Keep going!" or "Keep at it!":
Cùm ris!

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I'm not a native (or entirely fluent) speaker, so be sure to wait for confirmations/corrections, especially for tattoos.

That is fantastic. Thank you so much for your help, it is much appreciated.