Irish language (original) (raw)
Bilingual Irish/English street sign on Upper O'Connell Street, Dublin
Irish (An Ghaeilge), also known as Irish Gaelic or simply Gaelic particularly outside of Ireland, is a Celtic language of the Indo-European language family. It is a member of the Goidelic languages of the Insular Celtic sub branch of the family and is indigenous to the island of Ireland. It was the majority of the population's first language until the 19th century, when English gradually became dominant, particularly in the last decades of the century, in what is sometimes characterised as a result of linguistic imperialism. Since the 1990's in particular there have been a number of significant developments to try to boost the language including: the launch of two Irish-language television channels – TG4 and children's channel Cúla4; the growth of Gaelscoileanna (Irish-language medium schools); the enactment of the Official Languages Act 2003 and Irish is an official language of the EU since 2007. There have been other developments with the language through the years with more planned for the future.
Sign for Gaeltacht area in Co. Cork
- Tá léarscáileanna sa teanga dhúchais ar fáil i ngach tír a bhfuil féinmheas acu orthu féin.
- Translation: Every self-respecting country has their own language on their maps.
- Pádraig Ó Cuanacháin, Gael-Taca - Quoted in English in The Sunday Times (Ireland) in 2005.
- An t-aon fhadhb atá agamsa ná easpa tuisceanna i measc na heagraíochtaí Gaeilge mar gheall ar thábhacht cúrsaí margaíochta.
- Translation: The only problem I have is the lack of understanding among the Irish-language organisations regarding the importance of marketing.
- Pádraig Ó Cuanacháin, Gael-Taca - Speaking on RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta in 2007[1].
- Viewing the more traditional Irish language revival organisations as too narrow and conservative, he felt they had failed to sell Irish to people at grassroots level.
- Obituary in The Irish Times about Pádraig Ó Cuanacháin a few months after his death in 2008[2].
- By 1948, the year Ireland became a republic, both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael "claimed as a priority the revival of the Irish language as the vernacular of the people – and both equally did nothing to stop the death of Irish-speaking communities like that on the Blaskets".
- Fintan O'Toole, We Don't Know Ourselves, page 3 (2021).
- The failure, however, did not lie mainly in the schools. It was the blatant failure of the state itself to devise arrangements for the subsequent use of the language that largely discredited compulsory Irish. The children were given no incentive to master Irish as a living language, only as a dead one. The charade of Irish language tests for public employment, when everybody knew the language would hardly ever be used again, the whole fetid system of favouritism associated with language knowledge, as distinct from language use, inevitably left its mark, stamping the most idealistic and most important task undertaken by the new state as yet one more sleazy political racket. Genuine language lovers who ‘loathed the way that the politicians, the pedagogues, the urbanised peasants had sucked the life and beauty from it’ were brushed aside.
- J. J. Lee, Ireland: 1912–1985 – Politics and Society (Cambridge University Press, 1989), p. 670.
- I conducted a little survey of government websites. I asked for page view numbers for English and Irish versions for some pages I picked at random.
All figures are for January 2025.
A HSE page about treating Covid-19 symptoms at home had 5,274 views in English and 23 in Irish.
A Department of Health page on the menopause had 337 views in English and four in Irish.
A Department of Social Welfare page about the fuel allowance for pensioners was viewed 13,892 times in English and twice in Irish.
A Department of Education page on guidelines for school designs had 1,007 views in English and two in Irish.- Sarah Carey, The Irish Independent (2025)[3].
- The Irish language movement has not been good at seeking a strategic compromise. It still isn't. The 'all or nothing approach' generally results in nothing in the long run.
- Donncha Ó hÉallaithe, Chapter from book Who Needs Irish? Edited by Ciarán Mac Murchaidh, Veritas Publications (2004).
Seanfhocail Ghaeilge / Irish language proverbs
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- Tír gan teanga, trí gan anam.
- Translates to English as "A country without a language is a country without a soul".
- Is fearr an tsláinte ná na táinte.
- Translates to English as "Health is better than wealth".
- Ní neart go cur le chéile.
- Translates to English as "There is not strength until unity".
- An áit a bhfuil do chroi is ann a thabharfas do chosa.
- Translates to English as "Your feet will bring you to where your heart is".
Wikipedia