Language maintenance and language death: the case of the irish language

"It is very important to focus on initial/preschool years in order to support intergenerational transmission of Irish” (woman, 39).

This is also one of the methods helping to keep the language alive through the so called immersion education, which means that at a very early age a child becomes familiar with the basic Irish-language phrases and words and is given the basis for future communication in the language through the medium of a very natural immersion method laying the bases for the creation of bilingual society and its long-term sustainability.

THE FUTURE OF THE LANGUAGE

We see that there is a future for the Irish language, especially if we take into account various job positions in which the Irish language skills and competencies are required. Language preservation rests upon the emergence of job market areas where the Irish language can be effectively used. It means that people can get material benefits from the language acquisition.

In many state positions there is a requirement to speak Irish, but the question is to what extent an individual is motivated to use the language and how many people will use the possibility to address such individuals and offices through the medium of Irish. We have in mind the previous failure of Irish language rights' application. According to Theimer (2012) it also depends on the policy of the employer. If employers believe that there is value in using the language, this attitude has a positive impact on employees. The result will be that the people, will be able to see that the service they promise to provide is fulfilled.

There are many organizations in the city of Galway which help different businesses to use the Irish language effectively in their agenda. Our respondent from the Gaillimh le Gaelige (Galway with Irish) confirmed this statement:

"So we were established to show people those economic, social and cultural values of the Irish language ” (woman, 45).

The main aim is to try to normalize the language in association with other institutions and organizations to reach bilingualism, giving advice to businesses to incorporate the Irish language into their agenda. The mantra of Gaillimh le Gaelige is selling the Irish language as a unique product as people need to see the economic value in language and Gaillimh le Gaelige employees are there to facilitate it.

There are several factors which may be central to the Irish language revitalization concerning demographic, educational, occupational, social and psychological level of the question. The first one tackles demographic features. We assume that the increase of language centres and language clubs can have a positive effect on language maintenance. Furthermore, language speakers should join their efforts in cities and create more places for conversations in Irish. Thanks to the creation of such networks, learners of Irish can see that there is Irish used in real life settings as an instrument of communication. In this way the language is not seen solely as a symbol, but also as a component of identity which tackles the psychological level of individuals.

There are different attitudes towards Irish ranging from sentimenal ones to those attitudes which see Irish as an instrument of communication.

Even though the Irish language has gained its prestige again, there are still worrying issues, like the lack of modern literature written in the Irish language or the lack of Irish language authors.

To sum up what has been said above, there must be economic or material reasons to learn the language if it is going to survive. As it was pointed out by one of the Moycullen residents:

“We should encourage social use of Irish, curriculum is wrong, there is too much emphasis on academia than oral speaking” (man, 50).

This opinion was frequent among the majority of our respondents in different age groups. They stressed the fact that learning by heart does not help the Irish language revitalization at all. Too much memorising in thea language class can be detrimental and demotivating for students. Therefore, more attention should be paid to innovative approaches during language classes, with more communication instead of drills and reading old-fashioned pieces of literature.

CONCERNS ABOUT THE LANGUAGE

Although the Irish language has gained a lot of popularity within the last decades, there is still a question what would happen if one day it becames an elective subject. Will there be enough students enrolled in the course in every class and every school across Ireland? Will that not hurt the already weak status of the language?

Language must adapt to new situations in order to stay successful and viable (Hutkova, 2016). It must also reflect a new reality (new words, new technologies, new ways of communication) accordingly.

It is true that language planners should be aware of the fact that their decisions, activities and actions can influence the number of speakers. They can also create satisfaction or cynicism in language communities reflecting the loss of loyalty towards the state policy among minority language speakers. It happened with the previous language commissioner who resigned from his post because he could not secure the rights of Irish speakers anymore.

It is generally believed that the Irish language in Gaeltacht is endangered, as it can be deduced from the following opinion of our respondent from Aras na Gaelige:

"There was so much damage done to the Gaeltacht that people are just cynical, it is very late to turn back the tide” (man, 40).

The point is that although a lot of damage has been caused, in the opinion of many, there is still hope for the language on the condition that this belief is shared by the majority of the people concerned. On the one hand, Gaeltacht areas are beautiful regions of magnificent natural phenomena, which attract a lot of English-speaking tourists and support cultural tourism; on the other hand, these regions are economically deprived, so there is an outflow of not only Irish-speaking individuals not only Irish-speaking individuals but also English speaking individuals. They are also leaving the area. One of the ways to reach language maintenance can be ensured by isolation and lack of mobility (Edwards 2001). But if the regions are going to be economically sustainable, they cannot close their doors to tourists coming to see the regions and pay for the services offered.

“If Gaeltacht areas do not perform in the future they will lose the status of Irish speaking area and the truth is that linguistic situation deteriorates every year” (man, 45) (respondent from Aras na Gaelige).

This is something Gaeltacht inhabitants must face regularly. Every year the situation gets worse for the language with the arrival of new non-Irish-speaking inhabitants or tourists for whom the region is very attractive. On the one hand, tourism is essential for Gaeltacht survival, but on the other hand, precautious measures should be initiated to find the most suitable solution for both tourists and native inhabitants.

The sustainability of Gaeltacht areas and maintenance of language minority rights is more about the group of Irish-speaking inhabitants than about individual rights (O'Cuiv 2008, 2011). Individuals must work as a community, cooperate and participate in common activities and projects aimed at saving the language for future generations. In the opinion of our respondent from the Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology:

“There is strong need for Irish language areas to be taken seriously by government, the strength from geographical community would be lost if that is not going to be supported” (woman, 60).

The language maintenance rests upon the economic support of true Gaeltacht regions. In this case economy and survival of the language go hand in hand together. As the respondents indicated, the maintenance of Gaeltacht as a region is a key to successful language revitalization. We have identified several components which are of help to the language vitality and which were mentioned by our respondents. These were: Irish language pre-schools, Gaeltacht youth-clubs, support of language-based activities, Irish courses, language services centres, creating Irish logos, brands used by firms using Irish in their agenda.

CONCLUSION

If there are people who are actively using the language, then this is a sign of vitality (O Laoire 2012). If the intergenerational transmission is ensured, the future seems bright. In today's multicultural world it is of benefit to speak different languages which are like windows to different cultures and identities. This is how our horizons can be broadened. It is true that a lack of prestige can be detrimental to any language, be it dominant or minority, regional or lesser-used, therefore effective language planning is a good sign of fulfilling the aims of the language policy. Activity, motivation, effort and positive attitude are the best ways to maintain the vital status of any language. It is a dynamic presentation of culture through language that can ensure the transmission of an autochthonous language for the future generations. On the contrary, inaction can only trigger language death.

It is essential to present language actively in such forms that are motivating and up-to-date. There are sean-nos songs in Ireland and other forms of Irish folklore and culture which can be presented through the medium of the Irish language. Therefore, we assume that there is still an immense value and a potential in the Irish language which can be used in different forms and different sectors, including cultural tourism.

As far as the analysed interviews go, for L1 Irish speakers living in Gaeltacht (Irishspeaking areas) the Irish language is more personal than for the L2 speakers. Gaeltacht people display their identity expressed through Irish. Moreover, Gaeltacht area as a bastion of the Irish language is supported by the organization called Udaras na Gaeltachta, which provides learning materials, economic, cultural and financial help for the region. It also supports enterprise and community in cultivating and preserving their original language and culture. Thanks to their initiatives, Irish can be used in terms of cultural tourism as companies which integrate Irish into their agenda are supported. In this way, Irish can be sold as a product. For many people in Gaeltacht, Irish is a key part of their enthnolinguistic identity. Irish pre-school education is established in these areas, and there are also opportunities to enrol in Gaeltacht-based Irish language courses.

Irish language teaching is supported across the whole world. In the USA, Canada and Europe graduates can spend time teaching Irish abroad, thanks to a wide range of scholarships. Irish is supported as no other minority language in the world. It does not lack investments put into it like it is evident in the 20-Year Strategy for the Irish language. However, motivation to use it is crucial. It is because of negative attitudes both in the community and on the government level that the process is hindered.

The question of the Irish language maintenance and revitalization is very broad and complex. As it was mentioned in the analysed interviews, it is also possible to like Irish but to be negative against its users -- L1 speakers (those who regard Irish as their mother tongue) which may cause a certain kind of isolationism of L1 and L2 groups. Our respondents often expressed positive attitudes towards Irish as a part of their heritage, culture and identity but this was not matched by their proficiency in it. Therefore, their attitudes contradict the language use.

Finally, we came to the conclusion that all the institutions contributing to the language support are very important for the future of the Irish language. Our assumption proved correct. The more the Irish language cultural activities are realized in Ireland, the more attention the language receives in general. This rests hugely on the provision of financial means allocated to language policy in order to increase the number of people using the Irish language in everyday life.

Another key factor concerning the language rescue rests within the attitudes or approach of people towards the Irish language protection. It is crucial especially for the young generation to see that there are real material benefits gained from the knowledge of Irish which can motivate them to transfer the language to their offsprings, keeping the language for the future generations, thus maintaining its intergenerational transmission.

According to analysed data, there are many people who agree with the revitalization initiatives but are not willing to improve the level of their Irish or learn it. They see the language as a symbolic issue without its practical use. According to our personal experience in Ireland, the Irish language is an important issue among the people and their awareness of the language varies. There are those who are very enthusiastic about the Irish language protection and revitalization. These are the people who consider the

Irish language as an integral part of their identity. This might be because of their Irish- medium upbringing or genuine interest in the Irish language enhancement because of the future work opportunities. Many people in Ireland do not wish to see the Irish language dead. We should not forget about L1 speakers using Irish as their mother tongue, since they have the right to use the language they choose for communication, be it Irish or English. The question of the Irish language survival can be quite an emotional issue, as we could see when analysing the transcribed data from interviews.

There is a multitude of opportunities with Irish nowadays, ranging from teaching positions to business ones. It is interesting to see the rise of bilingual speakers, especially thanks to the Irish-medium education, which is crucial for the language survival. Since there is a decrease of Irish speakers in Gaeltacht areas, it is crucial to support elective bilinguals in their effort to be part of urban language communities. These communities are located across the whole Ireland and are made up of L2 speakers predominantly (for whom Irish is a second language). It is evident that conversational circles established in Dublin or Galway can trigger interest in the Irish language. The increase of Gaelscoils is also remarkable and many governmental organizations help to maintain the Irish language in Gaeltacht, as well as to revitalize it across the whole island of Ireland.

Last but not least, we assume that the Irish language should be promoted more among ordinary people and through popular social media. All languages are important and significant, regardless the number of users, and all of them deserve our respect since they are part of the world's cultural diversity.

Language maintenance is a complicated issue, and an exact solution, one which fits all, does not exist. There has not yet been such a cure found, which would ensure survival of all world-wide endangered minority, regional or lesser-used languages. The question of the Irish language maintenance and language death is open and only the future will show if the number of Irish-speakers increases or shrinks.

We can conclude that, in spite of all the barriers and challenges, the Irish language maintenance and revitalization can still achieve its goals thanks to the motivation, effort and interest of the Irish people to use it outside the educational system. Only time will tell if the link between the Irish language and Irishness, or Irish cultural identity. will persist or perish. There is also another issue which deserves attention -- the link between the Irish language and identity. There is still a lot to explore about the link between language and identity in general and only further research will show if the Irish language perishes or stays an important aspect of Irish cultural and national identity.

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