'Irish is having a moment all over the country': Why more people than ever are speaking our native language

Anne Lucey looks at what's behind the huge surge in interest in the Irish language

President Catherine Connolly at the launch of An Foclóir Nua Gaeilge with Éile Ní Dhuinn Ní Bhric (5) and Iolann O Duinn Ó Bric (4). Picture: Leon Farrell / Photocall Ireland

The Irish language is having its moment — from the first-of-its-kind dictionary aimed at ending the need to understand Irish words through the lens of English, to a new president devoted to the use of Irish in the Áras, there is a new pride in speaking the native tongue.

But is it any different to previous spikes and fads from the 1890s to the 1990s? The 2022 Census recorded 1,873,997 speakers of the language, an increase of 6% in five years.