Preserving Irish Culture
Preserving Irish Culture The Gaeltacht serves as the home of the Irish language, one of the oldest languages in the world. ... Through much persecution and discrimination by the British, the Gaelic culture was almost completely destroyed. ... However, the Irish pride and their knowledge of their own self worth has helped to bring about remarkable changes within the Gaelic society. Though the Gaelic culture has suffered tremendously throughout the past few centuries, Ireland has been undergoing a massive revival to bring back the traditions of the former society within the educational system, the arts and media, as well as the activities included within the family environment and the voluntary learning being done by the youth. Gaelic cultures mainly encompass the countries of Ireland and Scotland, otherwise known as the “Western culture of the Old World” (Bennett 114). ... With Irish Expansionism a wave of Christianity took place in Scotland and consequently separated it from Ireland (“The Celts”). ... The communities where Gaelic culture is still alive today are comprised of nine different counties including Donegal, Mayo, Galway, and Kerry (“The Gaeltacht”). ... “The founding of the nationalistic Gaelic league in 1893 put the Gaelic language into a new light: from then on it was promoted as the language of what would one day become the Irish Free State (formed in 1922); and the literary revival of Gaelic that the league initiated has marked the twentieth century” (Bennett). ... Though the Irish Constitution named Gaelic (a Celtic language) the national language when the Irish Free State was first established in 1922 (Barry), a mere 31% of the total population of the Irish Republic speaks Gaelic now (Bennett). ... The Gaelic language makes up the people of Ireland, and the true identity of Irish culture. As Sharon Macdonald writes in Reimagining Culture, “Language, is, however, described as the key marker of a distinct identity: language ‘is the surest test [of whether people are really Highlanders]. ... Recently have people on Cape Breton, Nova Scotia where Gaelic heritage also persists, have deemed it necessary to keep the Gaelic culture alive. ... Due to this loss of jobs, food, and money, the Irish economy suffered a great deal. ... The Congested Districts Board, founded in 1891 also hurt the overall welfare of the Gaelic culture. (Price) The present day culture of the Gaelic areas has improved, though still faces its own share of hardships. ... The people of Ireland in the Gaeltacht communities can be seen as incredibly less modern than United States culture. ... (Bennett) Education has begun to play a larger role in the Gaelic culture. ... As John DeMont wrote in his article “Bringing back ‘The Gaelic’ to describe the new change, ‘the realization that a distinctive Gaelic culture was in danger of extinction acted as a call to arms. ... Gaelsoileanna is the National Organization for Irish-medium schools and was established in 1972. It has created a website that helps to update the Irish school system, where Gaelic is taught and spoken (Bhui). Another organization, An tŬdarás is a group that helps to provide aid to the local communities in coordinating the Irish schooling.