Languages of the Republic of Ireland
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| Languages of the Republic of Ireland | |
| Official languages | Irish 42%, English 94% |
| Minority languages | Ulster Scots, Shelta, Irish Sign Language |
| Main immigrant languages | Polish, Chinese |
| Main foreign languages | French 20%, German 7%Source: [1] |
There are a number of languages used in Ireland. Several have originated from within the island and others have been introduced through foreign settlement.
Contents |
[edit] Pre-History
The earliest linguistic records in Ireland are of Primitive Irish, from about the 5th century AD. Languages spoken in Iron Age Ireland before the arrival of the Celts or Gaels are now unretrievable, although there are some claims of pre-Celtic traces in Irish toponymy.[1]
[edit] Irish
The ancestor of Primitive Irish was introduced by the Celts. This gradually evolved into Old Irish, a Q-Celtic language on Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man and Old Welsh, a P-Celtic language in Wales, Cornwall and later Brittany. Today, Irish is recognised as the first official language of the Republic of Ireland and is officially recognised in Northern Ireland and in the European Union. It is spoken in the Gaeltacht areas, mainly in secluded areas on Ireland's west coast. A government report found that[citation needed] 60,000 people speak Irish on a daily basis in the Gaeltacht. In the most recent census, 1.5 million people said they could speak Irish, with 350,000 saying they used it every day, 155,000 weekly, 585,000 less often, 460,000 never, and 30,000 didn't state how often. In the over 80 years since the independence of the South, efforts to revive Irish as the daily vernacular of most of the nation have relied on compulsion and have generally failed thus far. Although the use of Irish in educational and broadcasting contexts has risen, English is still overwhelmingly dominant in almost all social, economic and cultural contexts. In the media, there is an Irish language TV station, TG4, a radio station, Radió na Gaeltachta and two newspapers, Foinse, a monthly and Lá Nua, a daily. There are also occasional columns written in Irish in English-language newspapers, including The Irish Times and The Irish News. Similarly, RTÉ run Nuacht, a news show, in Irish and Léargas, a documentary show, in Irish with English subtitles. They also have a bi-lingual show aimed at learners called 'Seachtain' and formerly had a programme to help people learn the language called 'Turas Teanga', hosted by Sharon Ní Bheoláin. TV3 have a one minute round-up of goings on in the arts around the island, called 'Noiméad Amháin' meaning 'One Minute'. In 2006, the first Irish language charter was issued. In 2007, Irish became the 21st official language of the European Union. Éire is the Irish spelling of Ireland, and is being used to promote the Irish language throughout Europe. The charter also detailed allowing all court procedures to occur in Irish if wanted, and a majority of all Dáil meetings to be recorded in Irish.
[edit] English
English was first introduced by the settlers in the 12th century. It did not initially take hold as a widely-spoken language as the settlers assimilated into the Irish culture and became 'more Irish than the Irish themselves'. In later plantations, such as the Ulster Plantation of the 17th Century, settlers were forbidden to mingle with the natives. Through English rule, the language became that of power and that of the landed classes and since Irish speakers were generally poor and lived on the worst land, Irish was seen as a backward language, suited to agriculture but not useful for those who wanted to engage in a modern career. Consequently most Irish people have spoken English as a native language since 1850 and its teaching was sponsored by the Roman Catholic church. English is often based on Irish language forms, as found in Hiberno-English.
[edit] Ulster Scots
Ulster Scots is a dialect of Scots spoken in some parts of County Donegal. It is promoted by the Ulster Scots agency, a cross-border body. This is because it is also spoken in parts of Northern Ireland. Its status as a recognised language as opposed to a dialect of scots is still debated.
[edit] Shelta
Shelta is a cant, based upon both Irish and English, generally spoken by the Irish traveller community.
[edit] Irish Sign Language
Irish Sign Language is the sign language of Ireland. It has little relation to either spoken Irish or English, and is more closely related to French Sign Language than to British Sign Language.
[edit] Hiberno-Norman French
Norman settlers from England spoke Anglo-Norman French when they came to Ireland in the 12th century. It was spoken mainly in counties Wexford and Waterford and was spoken until the twentieth century. The Department of Irish Folklore in University College Dublin possesses recordings of these individuals [2].
[edit] Yola
Yola was a dialect of Middle English, surviving in County Wexford up to the 19th century.
[edit] Immigrant languages
Since the increase in immigrants into Ireland, there has been a substantial increase in the number of people speaking languages such as Polish, Lithuanian, Latvian, Cantonese, Mandarin and Arabic.
[edit] Language education
In primary schools, all pupils are taught to read and write in Irish and English. The vast majority schools teach through English, although a growing number of gaelscoileanna teach through Irish. Most students at second level choose one or two foreign languages to learn. Languages available for the Junior Certificate and the Leaving Certificate include French, German, Italian and Spanish; Leaving Certificate students can also study Arabic, Japanese and Russian. Some schools also offer Ancient Greek, Hebrew Studies and Latin at second level.
Students who did not immigrate to the Republic of Ireland before they were ten years old may receive an exemption from having to learn Irish. The following is a list of languages taken at Leaving Certificate level in 2007, followed by the number as a percentage of all students taking Mathematics for comparison (mathematics is a mandatory subject).[2]
| Language | Higher Level | Ordinary Level | Total candidates | % of Maths |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| French | 13,770 | 14,035 | 27,805 | 56.695% |
| German | 4,554 | 2,985 | 7,539 | 15.372% |
| Spanish | 1,533 | 1,127 | 2,660 | 5.424% |
| Italian | 140 | 84 | 224 | 0.457% |
| Latin | 111 | 111 | 0.226% | |
| Japanese | 90 | 90 | 0.184% | |
| Arabic | 117 | 13 | 130 | 0.265% |
| Russian | 181 | 181 | 0.369% | |
| Latvian | 32 | 32 | 0.065% | |
| Lithuanian | 61 | 61 | 0.125% | |
| Dutch | 16 | 16 | 0.033% | |
| Portuguese | 27 | 27 | 0.055% | |
| Polish | 53 | 53 | 0.108% | |
| Romanian | 25 | 25 | 0.051% |
Total Mathematics students in 2007 was 49,043.
Languages of Europe | |
|---|---|
| Sovereign states | Albania · Andorra · Armenia1 · Austria · Azerbaijan2 · Belarus · Belgium · Bosnia and Herzegovina · Bulgaria · Croatia · Cyprus1 · Czech Republic · Denmark · Estonia · Finland · France · Georgia2 · Germany · Greece · Hungary · Iceland · Ireland · Italy · Kazakhstan2 · Latvia · Liechtenstein · Lithuania · Luxembourg · Republic of Macedonia · Malta · Moldova · Monaco · Montenegro · Netherlands · Norway · Poland · Portugal · Romania · Russia3 · San Marino · Serbia · Slovakia · Slovenia · Spain · Sweden · Switzerland · Turkey3 · Ukraine · United Kingdom (England · Scotland · Northern Ireland · Wales) · Vatican City |
| Dependencies, autonomies, and other territories | Abkhazia2 · Adjara1 · Akrotiri and Dhekelia · Åland · Azores · Crimea · Faroe Islands · Gagauzia · Gibraltar · Guernsey · Jan Mayen · Jersey · Kosovo · Isle of Man · Madeira4 · Nagorno-Karabakh1 · Nakhchivan1 · South Ossetia2 · Svalbard · Transnistria · Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus1, 5 |
1 Entirely in Southwest Asia; included here because of cultural, political and historical association with Europe. 2 Partially or entirely in Asia, depending on the definition of the border between Europe and Asia. 3 Mostly in Asia. 4 Entirely in the African Plate, included here because of cultural, political and historical association with Europe. 5 Only recognised by Turkey. | |
[edit] References
- ^ D. O Corrain, 'A future for Irish placenames', in: A. O Maolfabhail, The placenames of Ireland in the third millennium, Ordonnance Survey for the Placenames Commission, Dublin (1992), p. 44.
- ^ Results of Exams in 2007 Using mathematics as comparison, as its examination is near-universal at some level and had the largest number of candidates in 2007.
