Ask A Gaeilgeoir

Happy Seachtain na Gaeilge! What a great week to be Irish.

This is the land of the saints and scholars, the Emerald Isle, Ole' Rainy. A country that we, for the most part, treasure. But what is our relationship with the Irish language? How relevant is it in today's society?

Eboni from Yuppa decided to interview three Gaeilgeoirs (fluent Irish speakers) about all things Gaeilge! But first, let's get to know them a little bit...

Abbie Gartland

"Is fear Gaeilge briste na béarla cliste".

Abbie is a sixth year student in Beaufort College, Navan. She has been a fluent Irish speaker since primary school. Abbie plans to pursue Irish as a subject in university this September, after which, she will spread her infectious passion for Irish to secondary school students.

Conor Horgan

"Cinnte, cinnte, nach bhfuil sé dochcreidte."

Conor first became acquainted with Irish when he started secondary school, and after a lot of hard work, came to be a dedicated fan of the Irish language - even finding ways to fit it into casual conversations. He won't be studying it when he moves on to university, but he does hope to keep it up for later on in life. By the way, Conor is also part of the Yuppa family and you can find out lots more about him here.

Sorcha Ní Chonghaile

“Stop leis an seafóid sin!”

Sorcha has been a long time advocate for the Irish language. She was elected as Oifigeach na Gaeilge (Irish language officer) to the Irish Second-Level Students' Union (ISSU) during her time in secondary school. She is currently a candidate for Oifigeach na Gaeilge to the DCU Students' Union - and us at Yuppa wish her the very best of luck in this election! #Sorcha4Gaeilge

1) How did you learn to speak Irish to the point of fluency?

Abbie: My mom sent me to a Gaelscoil so that I would be able to learn our native language and to have more opportunities. So from day one in baby infants, I was practising speaking Irish day in day out until 6th class. We were never able to speak English so we had to learn every word we didn’t know which led me to fluency now.

Conor: I attended an all Irish school. It was difficult at first, especially since I came from an all English primary school. Eventually you adjust to it though. Studying each subject through the language immerses you in it, as a result it eventually becomes natural.

Sorcha: I was very lucky to have a couple Irish speakers around me as a young child, but ultimately my true love for the language came from years of summers at the Gaeltacht.

2) Do you think there's a benefit to speaking Irish?

Abbie: Yes there are huge benefits! For me personally, I love our native language and I would love if people actually spoke it every day but unfortunately we don’t. Although we do everything in English I think people forget to realize we need people who speak Irish to act as translators for our political documents, for court cases, teachers, road signs; it’s everywhere most people just don’t realize the benefits. It can help you to interact with people from the Gaeltacht or even just to teach other people our language.

Conor: Definitely. Not only does being fluent in Irish look very well on your CV, it's a crucial part of our history, our heritage, our culture. The language went through extreme hardship and yet it still perseveres. Everyday people speak the language and that's something to be proud of.

Sorcha: There 100% is! It is part of our national culture and in an uncertain world, having something steady like the Irish language (which is over 5000 years old) is very settling. It’s a help for employment, as it adds something unique and extra to your CV! It’s also got one of the best community vibes in the country as there is an amazing network of Irish speakers who socialize together and support each other and it is absolutely incredible.

3) Do you think there's a disadvantage to speaking Irish?

Abbie: That’s a hard question. I mean I suppose some people could argue that it’s a waste of time, that it’s no use anymore that we don’t need it etc and that teens are wasting time in school learning it when they don’t need it. But I don’t agree with that argument. I honestly don’t see a disadvantage to it.

Conor: I cannot see any disadvantage to speaking Irish. Perhaps there is one, but from my experience I fail to see one.

Sorcha: The only one I can think of is the stigma attached to it by rote learning but that’s easily solvable by better education standards!

4) In terms of education, do you think the way Irish is taught in schools is effective?

Abbie: In secondary schools yes. In primary schools not so much. I have noticed this from friends and even my sister. For example, she is in 6th class in an English speaking school. They aren’t really learning it to the full extent they should be; I feel like teachers feel it’s not as important as Maths, for example, and they kind of push it aside until they have more time to do it. People go into first year not knowing basic Irish.

Secondary schools, on the other hand, are teaching Irish effectively. You need to have teachers who love the language to teach the language effectively and I feel like the teachers in my school definitely love the language. Our school participates in Seachtain na Gaeilge every year and it really gets students involved in the Irish language.

Conor: No, no, definitely not. Most students hate Irish by the time they get to second level education. The majority of English schools don't learn to understand or speak the language, they just learn off essay upon essay, which they then regurgitate during their exam. In primary school there needs to be more oral Irish taught as well.

Sorcha: Honestly, it’s not perfect nor is it entirely wrong. I think we have some great benefits like the heavy weight of the oral exams however I do be a bit concerned by the disinterest of students in the subject (NB the subject does not equal the language). I worry that students who find the subject dry might dislike the language but that’s not fair on gaeilge as the language deserves better. I encourage further reform to the subject to make it more focused on communication over rote learning!

5) Should Irish continue to be a compulsory subject in secondary school?

Abbie: Yes honestly it’s so important to educate our students on our native language they will gain a better understanding of our culture and it opens doors to opportunity’s for them.

Conor: This is tricky. I feel that it should, but I can see the resentment people have for it. It's much like math. If they improved the way it was taught then perhaps it would be more excepted.

Sorcha: I believe it should. With the Anglicization we faced up until the 20th century, we are still re establishing our cultural impact with the language. Irish should be our marker for quality education so I think that we should look at encouraging more Irish medium education as much as possible. It is an integral aspect of our society and it would break me (not only as a training teacher) to see it be pulled.

6) What's the hardest aspect to maintaining fluency?

Abbie: Definitely summer and breaks from school. You need to speak Irish daily or weekly to maintain the ability to speak fluently, and especially over the summer it’s very hard to keep it up when your constantly around people speaking English 24/7.

Conor: Speaking it. I have no one at home to speak with in Irish. After every Summer most people are a little rusty in school as few have been speaking the language. English as it is my first language is simply easier to communicate with so my friends and I speak in English, with a few words of Irish thrown in here and there.

Sorcha: I suppose the real difficulty is falling out of practice with her. I am lucky to be placed in a Gaelscoil and to be friends with loads of like minded people everyday in college. I encourage people to get out there and use their Gaeilge as often as possible. As that is the easiest way to keep it up (for the people old enough, highly recommend pop up Gaeltachtaí!!)

7) Do you think Irish is still relevant in today's society?

Abbie: Well that depends on the type of job you want to have when you leave school or the type of job you have. It’s relevant if you need it on a day to day but also if you want to visit Gaeltachts, or even to be able to help your future children with their Irish it’s very relevant. Irish is clearly relevant still in today’s society - we still hear the news in Irish everyday before it’s read in English. It wouldn’t be read if people weren’t watching it in Irish.

Conor: Most people seem to automatically grow a respect for you if you are fluent. So it improves your image. It is now recognized as a European language so there are more jobs available. Irish is all around us, even if you don't notice it. The signs, place names, some words we use in everyday conversation. I think it is, and will continue to be

Sorcha: It is integral! The language influences the randomest things in Irish society and culture- take our dialect of English for instance, our nuances are heavily hit by the Irish language. We love the craic, what would life be without it so I hope that the Irish language keeps growing and shaping society the way she does at the moment.

8) Do you think Irish is a dying language?

Abbie: Sadly yes I do people aren’t using it as much as we used to. People aren’t interested in speaking Irish. And it’s sad but that’s just the reality of it. If more people don’t start to embrace our native language and use it more it’s just going to die out.

Conor: I believe the numbers aren't decreasing. I know people say so few people speak it, but our population is tiny. I do feel that the numbers may well decrease if how Irish is taught does not change, unfortunately.

Sorcha: Not even in the slightest! The language is at arguably one of the strongest it’s been, and this year is Bliain na Gaeilge so she is only expanding and adapting on the daily!

9) Do you have a favourite Irish phrase you'd like to share?

Abbie: Yes! "Is fear Gaeilge briste na béarla cliste". Meaning broken Irish is better than clever English.

Conor: "Cinnte, cinnte, nach bhfuil sé dochcreidte". "Raic agus craic" is another good one.

Sorcha: Interesting question! I find myself saying “stop leis an seafóid sin” when I am speaking Irish. I also use quite a bit of slang but that’s slightly worrying as a habit haha!!

And with that, we have gotten to hear the very important views of young people who can speak Irish fluently.

Whether you're a Gaeilgeoir like Sorcha, Conor, and Abbie, or you only know a cúpla focal, we should all band together to celebrate our thriving and culturally rich heritage this Seachtain (and Bliain!!) na Gailege. After all, tír gan teanga, tír gan anam!

Go raibh míle maith agat!

-Eboni DeBúrca, lead writer.