http://keltalingvoj.blogspot.com/2008/01/seosamh-ceallaigh.html

Cllr. Joe Kelly has welcomed the comprehensive research on the Linguistic Study of the use of Irish in the Gaeltacht which was presented in Gweedore on Monday night. The three year study was initiated by Minister of Cuiv and it gives a detailed and up to date perspective on the state of the spoken language throughout the Gaeltachts.

While the study shows that spoken Irish is still a community language in a large area is western Donegal, it raises nonetheless serious questions for the people of the Gaeltacht. The report highlights that there is a clear threat to the survival of the Irish language, a threat which is intensifying.

Evidence form the research shows that the Gaeltacht education system is not transforming those who come to school as English speakers into active Irish speakers. Furthermore it is alleged that students outside the Gaeltacht outperform Gaeltacht students is some language ability tests. Clearly this raises critical linguistic questions in relation to educational aims and practices currently implemented in Gaeltacht schools.

Cllr. Kelly stated that 'Padraig Pearse who visited Cloughaneely regularly, had claimed that "the Irish speaking child is the most valuable living thing in Ireland." 'This still holds true today' Cllr. Kelly asserted and added that this new Lingusitic Report further highlighted that fact.

While the comprehensive Report offers detailed analysis, maps and figures as well as recommendations, Cllr. Kelly believed that immediate focus was needed on the Irish speaking child. He suggests that Naíonán beaga class sizes in Gaeltacht schools should be reduce to ten pupils so as to allow the teacher to foster the language and to facilitate the positive developments of Cuntoirí teangaí.

Undoubtedly, State organisations can help to further promote the Irish language, nevertheless, Cllr Kelly asserted that the onus rest ultimately with the people of the Gaeltacht. 'I urged the people of the Gaeltacht to cherish the language and to rise to the challenge of ensuring that we sustain our native language- let it not be said by future generations that the language died on our watch' he concluded.

A PLEA FOR THE GAELTACHT

Its true that the survival of Irish as a community language rests ultimately with the Gaeltacht people. But Cllr Kelly seems inclined to 'put the cart before the horse'. He must surely realise that Gaeltacht communities are small, rural and often relatively poor. They traditionally are scattered along the coastline and have lacked administrative control at community level over their own affairs, having to accept the decisions of county councils taken by people who understandably don't always put 'their' Gaeltacht first.

Údarás na Gaeltachta does not have an over-riding authority [title notwithstanding] to make decisions that might alleviate the contradictory nature of the town and regional planning and development decisions which have brought us to the current empass about what percentage of a housing development should be retained for Irish speakers and the method by which this rule may be tested.

I believe its fair to say that in the past Gaeltacht communities have suffered even more than the rest of the country from their isolation one from another and from a general weakness in social cohesiveness due to all the old ills of emigration and an absence of youthful vigour and leadership.

I know from experience going back many decades of examples where county councils have allocated newly-built council houses in Gaeltacht districts to people who had no knowledge of or interest in the Irish language. With seemingly hardly a murmur of protest from within or outside, the slender resources of the Gaeltacht district in question were expected to cope as best they could with the influx [the current Daingean school row is only the surfacing of what has long been a Gaeltacht problem].

The reality is that all Gaeltacht districts need all the support they can get from government and the private sector to withstand the tremendous pressure from the English language and maintain the status quo, not to mention making any advances. It would be quite ridiculous and terribly unfair to suggest that ordinary Irish speakers in their tiny districts going about their everyday lives are individually able to insulate themselves from the torrents of English they have to come into daily contact with.

Seanfhear