Abstract
The Irish language has been spoken for more than 2,000 years and is one of the oldest written European languages still in use today. This invaluable heritage has undeniably left a mark on our landscape and culture and on people here. Indeed, just over 150 years ago, Irish was the main language spoken by the majority of people on the island. A fact that isn’t widely disseminated is that most of those who died or emigrated during the Great Famine were Irish speakers.
When criticism is made of the politicisation of the language, this shows little regard for or a lack of understanding of the Irish language question – it is a political matter. It is not by accident a language revival is needed: the number of speakers has dropped significantly as a result of hostile and aggressive policies against the language over the course of centuries. The implementation of a language act would be a positive move towards addressing historical faults and weaknesses
When criticism is made of the politicisation of the language, this shows little regard for or a lack of understanding of the Irish language question – it is a political matter. It is not by accident a language revival is needed: the number of speakers has dropped significantly as a result of hostile and aggressive policies against the language over the course of centuries. The implementation of a language act would be a positive move towards addressing historical faults and weaknesses
| Translated title of the contribution | Irish Language Act: Discussion Document |
|---|---|
| Original language | Irish |
| Publisher | Conradh na Gaeilge |
| Number of pages | 35 |
| Publication status | Published (in print/issue) - 15 Mar 2017 |
Keywords
- Irish Language Act
- Language rights
- History of Irish Language
- Place-Names
- signage