Irish is the 21st language to be officially recognised by the EU
Posted on 06/13/2005 1:45:27 PM PDT by RWR8189
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Irish is the 21st language to be officially recognised by the EU
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Ireland's national language is the 21st to be given such recognition by the EU and previously had the status of a treaty language.
Irish Foreign Minister Dermot Ahern said he was pleased by the move, which was announced on Monday.
"This affirms at European level the dignity and status of our first official language," he said.
"This represents a particularly significant practical step for the Irish language, and complements the government's wider policy of strong support for the language at home."
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 As an Irish speaker, I am obviously delighted that the Irish language has been accorded the status of an official working language of the EU  Bairbre de Brun
Sinn Fein MEP |
In the country's 2002 census, 1.4 million of the four million population said they had "an ability" to speak Irish.
More than a quarter of those said they spoke it on a daily basis.
There are a number of Gaeltacht areas in Ireland, where Irish is spoken by more than 80% of people.
The Gaeltacht encompasses the most westerly parts of counties Cork, Donegal, Galway, Kerry and Mayo and their nearby islands.
Sinn Fein MEP Bairbre de Brun said the EU's recognition was a "victory for campaigners from all over Ireland and further afield who continue to campaign for equality for the language".
"As an Irish speaker, I am obviously delighted that the Irish language has been accorded the status of an official working language of the EU," she said.
"Sinn Fein has made the recognition of the Irish language at EU level a party priority and has campaigned long and hard with other Irish speakers and Irish language organisations."
Yes, and if they spoke English they would be a much better developed country.
The fall of England coincides with the rise of the Labor Party and the consequent decline of real English and acceptance of various barbarous dialects.
SO9
Please add me to your Ireland ping list.
A cute little Irish barmaid of my own... black hair and blue eyes... ahhh... a dream that will never come to pass... *sigh* LOL
Ok, I'll do that!
And then there's Scots Gaelic - As you know, the Irish invaded Scotland in the AD 400s and drove out the Picts (to Hell or to England LOL).
"Those Irish bastards, they took our land, now we're speaking their foreign language" "Paddies out!" "Hurling - that foreign game!" "Up the SRA!" /satire
Sorry, I don't know the Scottish for 'tiocfaidh ar la' LOL!
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