Gaelic

Doric-speaking MRI scanner eases patient worries

The University of Aberdeen in Scotland decided to run a £1.2 million upgrade to their MRI scanner. Supporting 17 languages including Spanish, Arabic, Mandarin, Russian, and French, the language offerings now also includes Doric, or Northeast Scots. 

The Irish Language: A Cereal Troublemaker Hits the Gaeltacht

I joined my son (aged 13) for breakfast and asked him if he knew the Irish for "cereal". Officially, the term would be "gránach bricfeasta" or similar, but he simply said, "calóga" (which basically means "flakes"). But I immediately thought he said "Cellógga", my Dublin urban Irish ear already tuned into expecting to hear brand names and slang as terminology.

Northern Ireland’s current language crisis

The current cultural conflict in Northern Ireland, and, in particular, the argument over the status of its languages, is at the core of a political crisis regarding restoring the power-sharing assembly.

The Politics of Irish Language: Gaeilge (Never Gaelic)

I was going to write about the politics of the Irish language (Gaeilge) in the North of Ireland/Northern Ireland (see? in trouble already). But I won't. The...

Ich Bin Ein Taoschnó

Yes, taoschnó. That's the answer to the Twitter question (asked by @patricox) "How do you say donut in Irish? Some Irish cops want to...

Saint Patrick and Twitter

Just love this story on ReadWriteWeb: Using Twitter to Preserve Minority Languages. It's about Indigenoustweets.com,  launched on Saint Patrick's Day by Professor Kevin Scannell...

20 Year Strategy for Irish Language Launched: It's All Politics

Irish Government launched their 20 year strategy for the Irish language. But it's the wrong strategy, for the wrong language, at the wrong time. What a shame the strategy wasn't about creating a multilingual society in Ireland and positioned Irish within that, along with other languages.