Irish Gaelic

Irish Gaelic

Around 30% of daily Irish speakers live in the Gaeltacht areas (Officially designated regions where Irish is the primary spoken language ) These include counties Cork, Donegal, Galway, Kerry, Meath and Waterford.

Irish language speakers in Ireland The figures from Ireland’s Census 2016 show 73,803 people, of the total population of 4.75 million, speak Irish daily. This equates to 1.7 percent of the population.This is a slight decrease from the last Census, in 2011, when the Central Statistics Office reported that, “there were 77,185 persons speaking Irish on a daily basis outside of the education system in April 2011.”

According to the Constitution of the Republic of Ireland, there are two official languages in the country. The Irish language has the status of the national language and the first official language, whereas the English language is a second official language. However, English remains the dominant language with around 95% of the population using it as its primary language.

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Interesting facts about the Irish Language

Gaelic Written Alphabet

The first Celtic speakers came to Ireland around 500BC. There were people living here at the time but we know little about the language they spoke. It is important to note that a lot of Europe, and northern Europe especially, spoke some version of a Celtic language at the time.

Was Gaelic always the language of Ireland?

Are the Gaelic language and the Irish language the same? Yes but there are actually three Gaelic languages - Scottish Gaelic, Irish Gaelic and Manx Gaelic (in the Isle of Man).Most people in Ireland refer to the language simply as Irish or Gaeilge. Most people outside of the country refer to it as Gaelic or Irish Gaelic.

Irish or Gaeilge or maybe Irish Gaelic?

-Irish is taught to all pupils in The Republic of Ireland.( It was made a compulsory subject in all national schools in the new Irish Free State in 1922).- It can also be seen on traffic signs, which usually give place names in English and Irish Gaelic. -The knowledge of Irish is also required in some professions, e.g. it is obligatory for primary school teachers and police officers.- In accordance with the Official Languages act 2003, important official documents must be published in both Irish and English (or Irish alone).-TG4, an Irish-language TV channel and many Irish radio stations provide content for speakers and students.

Nowadays...

Dia dhuit -Hello (it literally means God be with you )/ Dee-ah gwit / Dia is Muire dhuit - Hello, the response to 'Dia dhuit' ( God and Mary be with you)/ Dee-ah iss Mwir-eh gwit / Cad is ainm duit? - What is your name? (What is the name to you?)/ Cod iss anim gwit? /Seán is ainm dom - My name is Seán ( Seán is the name to me )/ Seán iss anim dum /Níl a fhios agam - I don't know ( The knowledge is not at me )/ Neel ah iss a-gum /Slán leat - Goodbye (literally Health/Safety with you)/ Slawn lat / Más é do thoil é - Please (literally If it is your will)/ Maws aye duh hull aye / Sláinte - Cheers (toast) (literally Health)/ Slawn-che / Conas atá tú? - How are you?/ Kun-ass a-taw to?/Tá me go maith - I am well/ Taw may guh maw /Go raibh maith agat – Thanks (literally That there may be good at you)/ Guh rev mah ah-gut /Failte – Welcome/ ˈfɑːltə /Cead Mile Failte - warm welcome (100 000 x welcome)/ˌkeɪd miːlə ˈfɔːltʃə /

Irish Gaelic Phrases most Irish people know

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Irish in short films, Irish TV

Irish in adverts

watch Saoirse Ronan teaching Irish accent and pronouncing Irish names

Siobhán / Shi-vawn /

Úna / Oo-nagh /

Fionnuala / Fin-ule-eh /

Eithne / Eth-neh /

Deirdre / Deer-dreh /

Caitríona / Cat-ree-on-ah /

Séamus / Shay-muss /

Éamonn / Ay-mon /

Diarmaid / Deer-mid /

Conall / Cun-al /

Brian / Brine /

Irish names and what they mean

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As English has been gradually adopted over several centuries, a good number of characteristics of Gaeilge have remained.

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Pronunciation and intonation

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Irish Gaelic full of blessings and curses has enriched the way Irish people speak English in many ways.

Hiberno-English uses "yes" and "no" less frequently than other English dialects as speakers can repeat the verb, positively or negatively, instead of "yes" or "no. • "Are you coming home soon?" – "I am." • "Is your mobile charged?" – "It isn't."

You may hear Irish people say things like: Is it yourself that's in it? = Is it you? Is herself at home? = Is your wife at home? I'm after having me dinner = I've just had my dinner. We had mighty craic last night= We had great fun last night.

Hiberno English refers to the type of English or dialect of English spoken by many people in Ireland. It is heavily influenced by Irish Gaelic and the structures of the Irish language.

Hiberno-English

podcasts in Irish

For many, Gaeilge represents an important part of the Irish identity and, perhaps more importantly to its survival, carries significant sentimental value.

O’Farrell P. 1993 How the Irish speak English, Mercier Press, Dublin

O'Connell S. 1999 An introduction to the Irish language published in the World of English (Irish issue)

https://www.gaelicmatters.com/gaelic-language.html

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