Crack or craic? Ulster-Scots Agency insists correct spelling is crack and its origin is Ulster-Scots, not Irish

"Crack" was the Ulster-Scots Agency's "Word of the Day" on Facebook earlier this week, with the definition given as "News/Banter/Fun - 'Whit’s tha crack wi ye?'”

But the post opened up an online debate, with a number of Facebook users replying to the Ulster-Scots Agency to insist that the word was actually "craic".

One person wrote: "Isn't it craic? Never ever seen anyone spell it like that"

Another said: "It’s 'craic' and to no-ones surprise is of course Gaelic in origin and they pretend it’s not. It’s a thing."

While another said: "Not spelt like that it’s spelt craic."

However, the Ulster-Scots Agency replied to such comments by pointing to a website, https://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/, which carries an article that claims the word crack "has been used widely in Ulster for several hundred years".

The article, titled "The word 'craic'... a linguistic lie?", says Walter Scott used the word in Rob Roy and "in his book about the Rhyming Weavers, John Hewitt included it in the glossary with the meaning 'to talk, to banter'".

The article claims that in the mid-20th century, the word "was borrowed into the Irish language from Scotland and Northern Ireland, with the Gaelicised spelling 'craic'", adding that "for some Gaelic speakers, the claim that the word originated in that language is an annoyance".

"But how did crack become craic?", continues the article.

"One theory is that the basic Irish alphabet has just 18 letters, while the English alphabet has 26. One of the letters missing in the Irish alphabet is 'k', which is the final letter in 'crack', and, as a result, it was Gaelicised as 'craic' changing the spelling as it did so as to represent the same sound phonetically but in a way that is true to the Irish language."

"Craic" appeared in the Connacht Sentinel newspaper in July 1968 when an Irish language advertisement referred to "ceol agus craic" - which means music and fun.

"Spelled as 'craic', the word was then popularised by legendary presenter Seán Bán Breathnach in the catch phrse 'Beidh ceol, caint agus craic againn' - 'We'll have music, chat and craic' which he used on the RTÉ show Raidió na Gaeltachta broadcast from 1976 to 1982."

The Ulster-Scots Agency posts an Ulster-Scots "Word of the Day" on its Facebook page.

Others this week have included:

• Mind - remember;
• Hallion - rascal;
• Awa - away/gone;
• Strand - beach/shore.

In a separate post this week, the agency issued a "friendly reminder".

It said: "While we encourage discussion on our Facebook page, we also understand that there will be differing opinions between users now and again. However, please remember that comments should always be appropriate and respectful."