Written by gabriella

Níos Gaelaí ná na Gaeil féin

This Irish phrase means: “More Irish than the Irish themselves.”

The saying is attributed to historian John Lynch who described the 12th century Norman invaders that had adopted the Irish language and culture, eventually appearing more Irish than the native-born population.

In 2022, the census in Ireland showed that only 72,000 people speak Irish daily while 124,000 people speak Polish daily. The growing linguistic diversity in the country is important, but also concerning and raises questions about whether the native Irish language is endangered.

A hundred-year revival began in 1922 to re-establish the Irish language. It’s already the official language in the Republic of Ireland and recently the Identity and Language Act of 2022 established Irish as an official language in Northern Ireland.

Linguist Jim McCloskey explains that when Christianity came to Ireland in the 4th century CE, the church’s classical learning combined with local story traditions produced a very standardized literary language that is now called Old Irish.

Here’s some lovable idiosyncrasies from the Irish language:

  • Irish is very literal! 
    • Jellyfish = smugairle róin (“seal snot”) or sceith róin (“seal vomit”).
    • Dragonfly = snáthaid mhór (“big needle”).
    • Squirrel = madra crainn (“tree dog”).
  • No word for “Yes” or “No”: Instead answer with a verb like “I do” or “I will.”
  • No present perfect: Instead of “I have read the book,” it’s “I’m after reading the book.”
  • Go above and beyond: Instead of “Welcome,” it’s “A hundred thousand welcomes” or “Céad Míle Fáilte.”

Go raibh míle maith agat! May you have a thousand thousand goodness!

Read More:

Cox, Patrick (Host), March 5 2024, “Studying the Irish language can be fraught for Irish school kids – but it’s increasingly popular for others around the world” Episode 66, Subtitle podcast, production company Quiet Juice and the Linguistic Society of America, subtitlepod.com. Studying the Irish language can be fraught for Irish school kids — but it’s increasingly popular for others around the world | by Subtitle | Medium.

Posocco, L., & Watson, I. (2022). Speaking Irish and belonging among Irish-speakers of diverse ethnicity and nationality in Ireland: a pilot study. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 45(7), 2620–2634. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2022.2060990.

Nagle, Laura. “10 Delightfully Descriptive Irish Animal Names,” Mental Floss, Feb 28, 2024. 10 Funny Irish Animal Names (mentalfloss.com).