The Irish Tongue Pays for Itself in Galway – Gaelic Strengthens on its Economic Power

In late 2015 Galway City in the west of Ireland declared itself to be a bi-lingual city giving equal status to Irish alongside English.  It was ironic that the City Council made the effort considering Irish is already the official language of Ireland. But it was a welcome development nevertheless and based on the latest news from Galway the 2015 declaration has had a beneficial effect on the local economy. Touting the economic value of Gaelic to the local business community, the website Galway Advertiser (linked below) has an article headlined “Irish language is worth €136 million annually - The Irish language is worth €136 million annually to Galway, and Galway city businesses are capitalizing on this by increasing the use of the Irish language in the day-to-day running of their businesses.”

Bríd Ní Chonghóile, spokesman for Gaillimh le Gaeilge described by the Advertiser as “ the organization responsible for the promotion of the Irish language in Galway city businesses”, is quoted assessing the impact that  Irish has on doing business in Galway and declaring the it is now becoming common place: “There is definitely a better understanding and appreciation of the value of the Irish language to Galway as well as its importance to our uniqueness as a cultural, bilingual city. This is of particular importance to the city as we approach our year as European Capital of Culture in 2020. In the coming months, we will be increasing our efforts as we direct Galway businesses and organizations attention to Gradam Sheosaimh Uí Ógartaigh,”. The Gadam, now in its 15th year, is Galway’s bilingual business award which recognizes and celebrates companies and organizations in Galway city that use the Irish language in their day-to-day business.

The 2011 census reported that 42% of the residents of Galway City speak Irish and 20% speak Gaelic in the home.  In important ways Galway City is the capital of the Gaeltacht. Galway is the home of the National Irish Language Theater and the Gaelic League (Conradh na Gaeilge) has a presence in the city. There are four Irish medium primary schools and an Irish medium secondary school. The Galway campus of the National University of Ireland (NUI) provides Irish medium education at all levels and its website declares “A unique aspect of NUI Galway’s role as a University is its strategic commitment to the provision of University education through the medium of Irish and the University’s aim to serve the Gaeltacht and the Irish language community, and to create an exemplary bilingual campus. “

Galway is also home to Gaillimh le Gaeilge, mentioned above, a quasi-government entity established in 1987 with the aim of promoting the Irish language as an economic resource and who work with Galway City Council and the local Chamber of Commerce to figure out how to make money off of the ancient tongue of the land.  In 2015 news reports on the announcement included the following on the motivation for the City Council’s action in declaring Galway a bi-lingual city: “In terms of tourism, the Irish language is worth 40 million euro per annum to the city and county. A new steering committee will ensure Galway’s bilingual status becomes a unique selling point.”

Irish is arguably an endangered language, especially given the abuse heaped upon the Celtic tongue by Dublin bureaucrats. But, the good news is that there are several factors that contribute to the revitalization of an endangered language independent of Dublin's malign indifference. The noted author and linguist, David Crystal, Honorary Professor of Linguistics at the University of Wales-Bangor, has laid out the factors which help a language to regain its strength. These factors include an increase in the prestige of the Celtic tongue within the dominant (English speaking) community and an increase in the wealth of the Gaelic speakers through the tongue's use in the commerce and finally maintaining a strong presence in the educational system. The good news is that Galway City, the capital of the Gaeltacht, has all these elements in place and may just save Irish for us all.

www.transceltic.com/blog/capital-of-ireland-s-gaeltacht-declares-irish-language-galway-gaelic-city

http://www.advertiser.ie/galway/article/96203/irish-language-is-worth-13...