Derek Hollingsworth
@DerekHolly7
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Reclaiming my language | Psychology | Co-founder ⁊ Cathaoirleach, @PobalGaeilge15 | Personal opinions #100DaysofGaeilge #GaeilgeGachLá @DerekHolly7.bsky.social
Áth Cliath
Joined November 2020
#100DaysofGaeilge .Lá Fhéile Bríde shona daoibh go léir! .Happy St. Brigid's Day everyone! .❤️#Gaeilge #Imbolc
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Just 200 years ago Ireland had millions of Irish speakers. Maybe 1.5m spoke no English at all. How much neglect of a community does it take to see it almost completely vanished 200 years later?.Thankfully, there are small signs of a turn of fortune for our beautiful language.
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I was Tweeting about the name Sadhbh when a guy called Allen jumped on with this:.'I'm sure it's lovely. But the majority wouldn't know how to pronounce it never mind spell it 😁'.So I checked the CSO data for baby names for the past 10 years:.Sadhbh: 1,277.Allen: 0.😂😂😂.
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The British Isles is a colonial term. It's not a geographic term. The Celtic Isles would be equally appropriate or inappropriate. The colonial era is over, so time to catch up with everyone else, Simone.
Lovely population density map of the British Isles (yes, I know some of you don’t like the name but that’s geography for you…) by @viola__alba. Give her a follow if you like maps - she is great!
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On my way back to Dublin from the Galway Gaeltacht after collecting my son. I asked him to rate his experience at Coláiste Lurgan. He said 10/10. Great to hear. Wouldn't it be great if every child had the option of attending the Gaeltacht Summer Colleges?.
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I'm starting a #100DaysofGaeilge challenge tomorrow. It's really simple - commit to a min. of 15 mins of learning/using Irish every day for 100 days & see where it takes you!.I think a few friends on Twitter are doing it too - bí linn mas mian leat!.❤️#Gaeilge #100DaysofGaeilge.
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The 'Irish Potato Famine' is a total misnomer. It's an injustice to all the victims. Every Irish person who believes in truth, justice & fairness should challenge that term every time it's used. 'An Gorta Mór' is literally & culturally a more appropriate name for the catastrophe.
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There's a postcolonial mindset that tells Irish people not to learn Irish because 'it's not useful globally', but they don't say 'Learn Irish & Spanish too' - there's a resentment of Irish. There are people learning Irish all around the world who think it's useful. #Gaeilge 1/3.
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25 years ago 2-3% of students had exemptions from Irish. In 2023, this was over 13%. '. there is “no difference in the cognitive process involved in learning French or German” than the process involved in learning Irish.' - Oireachtas Committee Report.
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The colonial machine tried to remove all kinds of things that were part of the native culture - even the Irish hairstyle known as the 'glib'. Great to see so many young lads wearing their hair like this now! 😜.#Decolonise #Díchoilínigh
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Imagine celebrating not having a word of the native language of your country! Mo náire siad!. Maith thú @SileSeoige 👏👏👏.
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Some say it's rude to speak a language in the presence of people who can't understand it. To protect minority languages we should welcome them into all social domains - a language is part of someone's identity and is no threat to anyone else.
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I just got a taxi home from Dublin City. A Sikh taxi driver told me he was subjected to some kind of racist comment or physical intimidation at least once every day. As Imelda May said, we don't get to be racist and Irish.
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I met a Russian person living in Ireland yesterday who told me they and their partner are learning Irish; their children are attending Gaelscoil. Irish is there for all. Irish adds to your experience of Ireland and takes nothing away. ❤️#Gaeilge #100DaysofGaeilge #SnaG24.
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I noticed my children were much more comfortable speaking Irish abroad where English was less visible & other languages were prominent. I think it's a good example of the fact that we need to create more space for the Irish language, and language diversity generally, in Ireland.
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There's this unhelpful idea that speaking Irish within earshot of anyone who doesn't speak it is impolite. This isn't the case with other languages. From where do we get such ideas about manners? Victorian society - prudish and repressed. Let's get over this cultural barrier.
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'A language is not just words. It’s a culture, a tradition, a unification of a community, a whole history that creates what a community is. It’s all embodied in a language.' - Noam Chomsky (93 today). Breithlá Sona!
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European: 'I speak 3 languages'. Other European: 'I think that's great'. Irish person: 'I speak Irish'. Other Irish person: 'You think you're great'.
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One of the great things about learning Irish is discovering new terms from the dialects. Some of the terms I've learned from Ulster Irish:. bomaite - minute.achan - every.múscail - wake.furasta - easy.fadúda - about.cad chuige - why?.falsa - lazy. ❤️#Gaeilge .#100DaysofGaeilge.
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Seamus Heaney 13.04.39-30.08.13. “Not to Learn Irish is to miss the opportunity of understanding what life in this country has meant and could mean in a better future. It is to cut oneself off from ways of being at home. ''
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I'm getting fab reports from my son in the #Gaeltacht: quizzes, games, kayaking, soccer, GAA, céilís, music, basketball, volleyball, swimming agus a lán craic. The emphasis is on learning through fun. Unfortunately not every kid gets the opportunity to go. #Gaeilge.
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In post-colonial Ireland, the smallest use of Irish in public is still cause for complaint from some. Imagine this being said about Indian, Thai, Italian & French restaurants, menus etc? It's actually unimaginable in 2023. ❤️#Gaeilge #Irish #Decolonise.#Meas #díchoilínigh.
Dingle Distillery doubling down on the unpronounceable brand names with the Grianstad an Gheimhridh release .
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#100daysofGaeilge challenge:.From 7 May - 15 August, I'm going to commit to minimum 15 mins of Irish every day (learning, speaking, reading, watching @TG4TV, listening to @RTERnaG etc.). I invite you to join me or choose your own start date & commit to using some Irish every day!.
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I don't really understand people being precious about the flag or the anthem, but casual about the language.
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Ancient Irish names used today: Aoibhe. Aoibhe is a beautiful Irish female name that is over a thousand years old, originating in Old Irish (6th-10th cent.). It is often incorrectly equated with the names Eve or Eva. ❤️#Gaeilge.
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Belfast City Hall.Rally for Noah Donohoe.#RememberMyNoah .#JusticeForNoah .#JusticeForNoahDonohoe .#NoahsArmy 💙⚡
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#100daysofGaeilge.Labhair mé Gaeilge leis an Uachtarán! Dúirt mé leis go bhfuil mé, mar fhoghlaimeoir Gaeilge, an bródúil as (agus chonaic mé Bród agus Misneach). ❤#Gaeilge
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1 in 8 students exempt from Irish while many of these study other languages. '. there is “no difference in the cognitive process involved in learning French or German” than the process involved in learning Irish.'.
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#100daysofgaeilge .I noticed today that I'm comfortable speaking to my kids in Irish in front of non-Irish-speakers. I wasn't always so happy to do so, but you have to do it to maintain the habit, and not care what people think. You're doing nothing wrong! .#LanguageLearning.
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Why does the Irish media seem reluctant to give attention to the case of #NoahDonohoe and the plight of Fiona Donohoe in Belfast?.Has any mainstream media covered the story?.#NoahsArmy 💙⚡.
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The 'Nobody speaks Irish' narrative is more sinister than indifference. If nobody speaks Irish, then there is no community. If there is no community, there is no need to be afforded rights or respect. Nobody speaks Irish = you don't exist = you don't deserve rights. #Decolonise.
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Growing up in Dublin I knew exactly who Nicholas Witchell was - the BBC Royal reporter🤦♂️ I had no idea who Aodh Rua Ó Domhnaill was - or even how to say his name! Totally alienated from my Gaelic heritage by being an English monoglot, but that's post-colonial societies for you.
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Irish people recognise the obscenity of An Gorta Mór/An Drochshaol. It informs their perspective on mass suffering. They are appalled by the horrors of the Holocaust. They know that what is happening in Gaza has no place in civilisation. #Ceasefire #TwoStateSolution #Genocide
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In the early modern period Irish speakers were maligned as 'wild Irish', 'barbarous', 'uncivilised' etc. in a campaign to damage the language. Unfortunately, you'll find people who still think it's acceptable to put down #Irish & its speakers in the 21st C. #Decolonise #Respect
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Seamus Heaney 13.04.39-30.08.13. “Not to Learn Irish is to miss the opportunity of understanding what life in this country has meant and could mean in a better future. It is to cut oneself off from ways of being at home. ''. Nach bhfuil an sliocht seo go hálainn?.
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Last night I was treated to my three kids singing 5 or 6 Christmas songs in Irish together as we got ready for Santa. They learned them in the Gaelscoil. That gave me a warm glow on Christmas eve! 🎄.
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#100DaysofGaeilge.Tip #29 - Listen to the great Seamus Heaney: . “Not to Learn Irish is to miss the opportunity of understanding what life in this country has meant and could mean in a better future. It is to cut oneself off from ways of being at home. ''
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#Gaeltacht Dún na nGall. Myth #1:.I had heard often that locals won't speak to U in Irish unless Ur a native speaker-they would reply in English. My Irish is mediocre & this never happened. I had dozens of interactions & EVERYONE spoke to me in Irish,once they spoke #Gaeilge.
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Bródúil. Fuair mé mo theastas inniu ó TEG @TeastasEorpach (leibhéal B1) tar éis mo chúrsa le @gaelchultur. Níl mo chaighdeán an-ard, ach táim sásta leis an dul chun cinn. Buíochas as an tacaíocht le mo chairde agus teagmhálaithe ar Twitter. ❤️#Gaeilge #GaeilgeGachLá
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The Irish language has links with many other languages including English, Norwegian, Scottish Gaelic, Welsh, Manx & the Romance languages. 🏴🇳🇴🏴🏴🇮🇲🇫🇷🇮🇹🇪🇸🇵🇹🇷🇴. Irish words of French origin/Focail Gaelach atá as Fraincis ó dhúcas: .'Seómra' from Old French chambre .❤️ #Gaeilge.
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'If you know all the languages of the world and you don't know your mother tongue, or the language of your culture, that is enslavement.' .- Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong'o. Athbhliain faoi mhaise! Anyone ready to use/learn/improve their Gaeilge this year??.
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#100DaysofGaeilge.Lá Fhéile Bríde shona daoibh go léir! . Happy St. Brigid's Day everyone!. ❤️#Gaeilge
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Ancient Irish names used today: Sadhbh (var. Sadbh).Sadhbh is a fine Irish female name that is over 1,000 years old, originating in Old Irish (6th-10th cent.) .Its spelling is a great example of Irish orthography. It was the 32nd most popular name for girls in 2022. ❤️#Gaeilge.
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Why you should ensure you child can speak Irish: if your child reaches adulthood & they cannot speak Irish they have no choice in the matter. If they have learned Irish in the home, in education, in the Gaeltacht or elsewhere, it is up to them - but U have given them the option.
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No point trying to revitalise Irish? Languages have been revived before: E.g. Hebrew, the obvious one & Manx too (on a much smaller scale). And there's another: IRISH. From the mid 14th-early 17th century Irish revived to the point that colonialists complained of its dominance.
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Starting my first #Irishlanguage class in 4 years at 19:00 le @gaelchultur I really want to achieve proficiency so I can use Irish in all settings of my life. Reading 'An Leon, an Bandraoi & an Prios Éadaigh' with my 12-yr-old last night-felt very proud of us both!.❤️ #Gaeilge.
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Went to Club Chonradh na Gaeilge aréir. Was a bit nervous about my Irish but I was grand. I always hear from people that they R self-conscious about their standard of Irish. We have to encourage everyone 2 use what they have. Nothing wrong with being a learner or Gaelscoil Irish.
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By the time most of us realise the value of our native language, the best opportunity to learn it - when the brain is best able to absorb language (up to about 17) - has passed. Surely the solution is more Irish-medium education/access to the Gaeltacht etc. for children?.
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In the case of Ireland, there is something lost irretrievably without the Irish language. It is our most important cultural expression and a unique insight into who we are as a historic people.
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Adult learners of Irish can have anxiety from both sides: "What will Gaeilgeoirí think?" and "Will people judge me for speaking Irish?". The language was robbed from us in the past. We can't let anyone steal it from us today. #FoghlaimGaeilge .#100DaysofGaeilge 01.01.25.
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❤️#Gaeilge .Muirnín - darling.Dílseog - dear one.Grá - love.Leannán - lover.Maoineach - precious.Rún - sweetheart.Searc - beloved.Stóirín - little darling.Taisce - treasure.Grá geal - sweetheart .A chuisle mo chroí! - my heartthrob!.A rún mo chléibh/chroí - love of my heart.❤️❤️
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Gaeilge, the Irish language:."We have something very precious here, and just open your eyes to it, and your ears to it, and your mouth to it.".- Brendan Gleeson, actor.
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The Irish language is inclusive & open to all. It has been used by people of many backgrounds across Ireland & beyond. It connects us to history & places in a unique way. It is a rich repository of songs, stories & history. We can all engage with & support this cultural treasure.
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An bhfuil Gaeilge agat - ta? .It took me years to see myself as an Irish speaker, rather than 'just' a learner. I think the sooner we see ourselves as speakers, the better! .❤️#Gaeilge #FoghlaimGaeilge #Gaeilgegachlá #Bród #Misneach
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My journey with Irish started in school. I was useless - D in Ordinary level. I started learning again when my son was born, and I've done courses with @CnaG @gaelchultur & @PobalGaeilge15. I'm up to Upper Intermediate level now. If I can learn Irish anyone can! ❤️#Gaeilge.
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I'm very proud & privileged that my son is off to the coláiste samhraidh i gConamara tomorrow!.He'll be the first child in 2 generations of my family to go to a #Gaeltacht summer course. ❤️#Gaeilge.
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It's brilliant that there's been so many guests from the North since Patrick Kielty took over the Late Late Show gig. To many people in the 26, it will be news that the North is part of the island.
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Irish words of Latin origin:. Nollaig - Christmas 🎄🎅⭐️. From Old Irish Notlaic, from Latin nātālīcia for 'a birthday party'. Scottish Gaelic - Nollaig.Manx - Nollick.Welsh - Nadolig.Breton - Nedeleg.French - Noël. Nollaig shona duit!! Merry Christmas to you!!
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My 13-year-old has reached the second highest league on Duolingo learning Spanish, which he studies at secondary school. I'm convinced the Gaelscoil background develops their interest in language, culture, travel & diversity. By contrast, I was totally closed-minded at that age.
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Gaeilge IS inclusive & open to all. It's used socially by people of many backgrounds in Ireland & beyond. It connects us to our own history & places. It's a repository of songs, stories & history. We can all engage with & support this cultural treasure. #100DaysofGaeilge 01.01.25.
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There were millions of Irish speakers even after the conquest and before the famine. They were disempowered, disenfranchised and vulnerable - but they were living. Reclaiming the language is a way to symbolically put right some historical wrongs. ❤️#Gaeilge
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Percentage of primary school children taught through the native language:.-Wales 24%.-Ireland 8% (26 counties). My understanding is that, in Catalonia, a principle is that all children have a right to education in Catalan. #Gaeilge #Gaelscoil #immersioneducation.
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'At A-level, Irish has replaced French as the second most popular language – a strong performance given that it is rarely taught in State schools.'. French loses out as Spanish and Irish rise in NI language league
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Arís. Foghlaimím Gaeilge. Déanaim botúin. Scríobhaim i nGaeilge. Déanaim botúin. Labhraím Gaeilge. Déanaim botúin. Ach tá gach uile shórt ceart. Táimid ag déanamh iarracht agus sin an rud is tábhachtaí. ❤️#Gaeilge #FoghlaimGaeilge #100DaysOfGaeilge.
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When you get people saying that use of Irish placenames could damage tourism, you know they don't have a breeze what they are talking about. Ask them for evidence. There's none. Maybe they've never travelled beyond their parish and have some warped view of the world? 🤡 s.
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names & surnames, placenames; in fully accessing Irish culture, literature, history, song & music. It's beneficial in the Gaeltacht, for socialising, for educational opportunities, and there hasn't been as many employment opportunities for Irish speakers in hundreds of years! 3/3.
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Good interview. The tourist argument is farcical. In Sicily you can struggle to find a menu in English, or a speaker, and they don't care - why should they? Are they short of tourists? .Further, in Gaeltacht areas the Irish name IS the ONLY official name.
‘This is about place names in Ireland fundamentally being imposed by hundreds of years of British rule.’. Ireland’s road signs should be As Gaeilge with English translations in smaller writing - @PadraigMacB #BKNT.
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The #Irishlanguage is similar to the native forests. Both were depleted due to unnatural historical events. Nobody questions the validity of regenerating native forests to protect biodiversity & counteract previous destruction. Both have a place in the national psyche #Gaeilge
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I'm going to start my #100daysofGaeilge challenge tomorrow. It's about creating a habit of regular learning & use to get to the next level.
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We should all be grateful to the people involved in the Belfast Irish language revival. They're miles ahead of Dublin - an example for us all to follow.
"The only thing we had. was that Irish would be the language of the home. I was explaining to them the importance of community-it's very, very important. If you lose sight of that you more or less lose everything. You have to know where you come from.".
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The pride and passion in native culture. It reminds me of Seán Óg Ó hAilpín's speech in Irish in Croke Park. Embracing native cultures cleanses the scars of colonialism. When will we openly celebrate Gaelic culture in Ireland again?.Tír gan cultúr dúchasach - tír gan ainm.
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Irish vocab 4 summer🌧️☔️🚣:. vitamin D deficiency - easpa vitimín D.drowned wet - fluich báite.umbrella - scáth báistí.raincoat - cóta báistí.pale-faced - bánghnúiseach.there was lashing rain - bhí sé ag stealladh fearthainne.wellies - buataisí.central heating - teas lárnach.🥶.
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Irish radio presenter: 'The Crown is a series about the Royal family'. Which Royal family? O'Neill, O'Donnell, McCarthy, O'Byrne, McMahon et. al?. #decolonise #postcolonial #Ireland #díchoilínigh.
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English words of Irish language origin/Focail i mBéarla atá Gaelach ó dhúcas: . English - boreen.Gaeilge - bóithrín.A narrow country lane or little cow path. Bóthar originally meant a path wide enough for two cows. ❤️#Gaeilge.#IrishLanguage
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20,00 daily Irish speakers in the Gaeltacht. At what point does English-language media take an interest in the threat to the Gaeltacht?.Contrast this with the platform given to critics of Irish who don't speak it & admit little interest. #Gaeilge #irish #Census2022 #daonáireamh.
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If anyone knows Sarah Carey, the columnist, could you pass on a suggestion please? Could you suggest she does a bit of research and actually asks the main Irish course providers if people from foreign backgrounds learn Irish too? Just a suggestion. She might be surprised.
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Some try to denigrate the Irish language by saying it has many loan words etc. Take 'cúirtéis', a word for 'courtesy'. I don't know the etymology tbh, but the English word is from Anglo-Norman 'curtesie', & Old French 'curteisie' & 'cortoisie'. Loan words are normal. ❤️#Gaeilge.
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Emotions are on you in Irish.Tá amhras orm 🤔 I'm doubtful.Tá áthas orm 🙂 I'm happy.Tá codladh orm 😴 I'm sleepy.Tá éagla orm 😰 I'm frightened .Tá lúchair orm 😃 I'm overjoyed.Tá náire orm 😳 I'm embarrassed .Tá tinneas orm 🤕 I've pain.Tá tuirse orm 🥱 Im tired.#GaeilgeGachLá
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I heard my children singing Christmas songs in Irish lately. They know some songs in English, some in Irish, and some with versions in both languages. I believe I missed out on so much in my monolingual upbringing where my entire childhood worldview was filtered through the BBC😅.
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@Sean_Mac_C @ActingTheGom Don't be a racist. She's Irish. She is Irish born and we are so proud of her. It's really pathetic to be a faceless, anonymous troll while there is a brilliant talented young person like that representing Ireland.
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The myth pedalled is that Irish hasn't been spoken in Dublin for 800 years. The reality is there has always been Irish speakers in Dublin. With so many kids learning Irish today, we can all play a role in making Dublin a more hospitable environment for the Irish language. 5/5.
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'If you know all the languages of the world and you don't know your mother tongue, or the language of your culture, that is enslavement.' - Ngũgĩ Wa Thiong'o . Athbhliain faoi mhaise! Anyone ready to use/learn/improve their Gaeilge this year??.❤️#Gaeilge.#100DaysofGaeilge.
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The #Irish language was used in the courts in the North for the first time in 300 years. Making languages & cultures invisible is a key strategy in minoritising them - which is one of the reasons why there is opposition to bilingual signage.
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A thread about the story of Dublin. Where is the Gael in the popular story of Dublin? .The usual spiel is the Vikings founded Dublin, the English developed it and the British built Georgian Dublin. You'll also hear Irish was never spoken in Dublin City. 1/5.
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Our first priority should be early Irish immersion & bilingualism. Only then will we see a natural interest & value placed on languages & cultures beyond the Anglosphere. Ireland has made 'no progress' on its European language strategy, says academic.
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Rise in daily Irish speakers outside the education system in Uíbh Ráthach Gaeltacht, Kerry.
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Mac tíre (son of the land). 3 powerful symbols of the historical suppression of Ireland: depletion of the Irish language & native forests & loss of the wolf. Wolves were synonymous with nature & part of Irish folklore & mythology. #OícheShamhna #Halloween #Gaeilge #IrishLanguage
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This guy quote-tweets my post about the Irish-speaking community & says it's Anglophobic!.Ironically, he then says Irish kids would be better off without the Irish language (don't have an image of that one) & then blocks me. Slán, mar sin! 😂
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I've a few new followers lately, so I'm tweeting this again - my review of my family holiday in a Gaeltacht area. If holidaying in Ireland this year, why not support the communities in the culturally rich and beautiful #Gaeltacht regions?.❤️#Gaeilge .
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Excited & nervous about this - I'm planning to launch a blog in the coming weeks. I'll focus on the Irish language & broader language issues too. It will be in Eng. as my standard of Ir. isn't sufficient yet. I hope it will help to inform & inspire others to engage too! #Gaeilge.
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Bhí an t-ádh Dearg orm. Bhuaigh mé Gradam Cúige Laighean, Oibrí Deonach na Bliana ó Chonradh na Gaeilge. Buíochas libh. Nílim cinnte an bhfuil sé tuillte agam ach tógfadh mé é le buíochas. Aitheantas ar @PobalGaeilge15 i ndáiríre. Ar aghaidh linn!.❤️#Gaeilge @PaulaMelvin #AFCnaG
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This is my 2,500th Tweet! I should use it well. Have you heard of the case of Noah Donohoe? 💙⚡.
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Bhí mo pháistí ar laethanta saoire sa Ghearmáin ansin. Dúirt mé leo 'An raibh deiseanna agaibh aon Gearmáinis nó Gaeilge a labhairt?' Dúirt siad liom 'Bhí a lán paisinéirí ag caint as Gaeilge san aerphort in Frankfurt'. ☘️.
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There are people learning Irish on Twitter from the USA, Canada, New Zealand, Sweden & elsewhere (see #100daysofGaeilge). Many online course places are taken by people from overseas. In Ireland, only English is more useful. Irish is essential in understanding & appreciating 2/3.
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