History of the Gaelic Community in Glasgow Celebrated

Next week the Mòd, a festival of Gaelic language and culture, is returning to the city of Glasgow (Scottish Gaelic: Ghlaschu) after an absence of more than 30 years. Mòd Ghlaschu - Mod Glasgow will take place in Glasgow from Friday 11th to Saturday 19th October 2019. The Mòd is run by An Comunn Gàidhealach (The Gaelic Association) and is a festival celebrating Scottish Gaelic language, literature, song, arts and culture. 

For Glasgow this will be a double celebration with an exhibition called Glasgow Gaels taking place that acknowledges the contribution that Gaelic people have made to the City. A recent history of the Gaelic community in Glasgow pointed out that Glasgow and its surrounding areas were predominately Gaelic speaking in the 11th and 12th Centuries. The Gaelic speaking community were further increased from the late 18th Century, when social upheaval, including the Clearances, drove thousands of Highlanders into the City. 

According to Glasgow City Council the city now has more than 10 per cent of Scotland's Gaelic speakers, the largest number outside the Western Isles. There is now increasing demand for schools in Glasgow, that teach through the medium of Scottish Gaelic. The Glasgow Gaels exhibition is at the Mitchell Library, located at North Street, Glasgow, G3 7DN. Opening hours are Monday - Thursday 9am to 8pm, Friday and Saturday 9am to 5pm and closed on Sundays.