Irish language kept alive by Government funding

THE Irish language is waning and is kept alive largely by Government funding. And perhaps for no other reason.

There’s very little support for its retention as a working language and many believe it is being keep alive artificially in the schools. The language is subject to varied interpretation and words do not have a uniform meaning throughout those parts of the country where it’s still spoken.

This makes it unsuitable for business. It is also used to confuse the public with advertisements, especially in planning, where applicants want as few people as possible to understand what is being said. Those using the language in such a way may not know a word of it. This is very effective at blocking legitimate planning objections because only a handful of people understand it fully.

When this is taken into account, one can see a great case for its discontinuance at official level. Action should be taken to cut down on certain abuses of the language.

It should also be discontinued for other reasons. It is being cleverly used to discriminate against those who can only speak English, especially in the public service. Under the constitution, Irish is the first official language of the State, which is a fiction except in remote parts of the west. How many more millions is it going to take before we all can speak it fluently? In every meaningful sense, English is the language of the Irish people.

Maurice Fitzgerald

Shanbally

Ringaskiddy

Co Cork