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115-650: Cailleach ('old woman' or 'hag' in modern Irish and Scottish Gaelic ) comes from the Old Irish Caillech ('veiled one'), an adjectival form of caille ('veil'), an early loan from Latin pallium , 'woollen cloak'. The Cailleach is often referred to as the Cailleach Bhéara in Irish and Cailleach Bheurra in Scottish Gaelic. Gearóid Ó Crualaoich believes this comes from

230-607: A river and then the loch . The overflowing well is a common motif in local Gaelic creation tales - as seen in the goddess Boann 's similar creation of the River Boyne in Ireland. Other connections to the region include her above-mentioned strong ties with the fierce whirlpool in the Gulf of Corryvreckan . She is also associated with other Scottish mountains. Ben Nevis was said to be her "mountain throne". The two mountains on

345-547: A unique dialect of Irish developed before falling out of use in the early 20th century. With a writing system , Ogham , dating back to at least the 4th century AD, which was gradually replaced by Latin script since the 5th century AD, Irish has one of the oldest vernacular literatures in Western Europe . On the island, the language has three major dialects: Connacht , Munster and Ulster Irish . All three have distinctions in their speech and orthography . There

460-717: A bargaining chip during government formation in Northern Ireland, prompting protests from organisations and groups such as An Dream Dearg . Irish became an official language of the EU on 1 January 2007, meaning that MEPs with Irish fluency can now speak the language in the European Parliament and at committees, although in the case of the latter they have to give prior notice to a simultaneous interpreter in order to ensure that what they say can be interpreted into other languages. While an official language of

575-458: A bed for Brigid in the barn with food, ale, and a candle on a table. The custom of making Brigid's bed was prevalent in the Hebrides of Scotland, where it was recorded as far back as the 17th century. A bed of hay or a basket-like cradle would be made for Brigid. Someone would then call out three times: " a Bhríd, a Bhríd, thig a stigh as gabh do leabaidh " (" Bríd Bríd , come in; thy bed

690-442: A bed for Brigid, leave her food and drink, and set items of clothing outside for her to bless. Holy wells would be visited, a special meal would be had, and the day was traditionally linked with weather lore . Although many of its traditions died out in the 20th century, it is still observed by some Christians as a religious holiday and by some non-Christians as a cultural one, and its customs have been revived in some places. Since

805-523: A better future for Ireland and all her citizens." The Strategy was produced on 21 December 2010 and will stay in action until 2030; it aims to target language vitality and revitalization of the Irish language. The 30-page document published by the Government of Ireland details the objectives it plans to work towards in an attempt to preserve and promote both the Irish language and the Gaeltacht. It

920-734: A boulder at, pinning him to the floor of the River Funshion . There is a rock on the Beara Peninsula in West Cork at Kilcatherine said to resemble the Cailleach. In mythology she is said to have leapt across the bay from Coulagh to its present location. The megalithic tombs at Loughcrew in County Meath are situated atop Slieve na Calliagh ( Irish : Sliabh na Caillí , meaning 'the hag's mountain') and include

1035-463: A concert. In 2016, the Green Party proposed that St Brigid's Day be made a public holiday in Ireland . This was put into effect in 2022 after the party entered government, and "Imbolc/St Brigid's Day" has been a yearly public holiday since 2023 to mark both the saint's feast day and the seasonal festival. A government statement noted that it would be the first Irish public holiday named after

1150-478: A cultural and social force. Irish speakers often insisted on using the language in law courts (even when they knew English), and Irish was also common in commercial transactions. The language was heavily implicated in the "devotional revolution" which marked the standardisation of Catholic religious practice and was also widely used in a political context. Down to the time of the Great Famine and even afterwards,

1265-553: A degree course in the NUI federal system to pass the subject of Irish in the Leaving Certificate or GCE / GCSE examinations. Exemptions are made from this requirement for students who were born or completed primary education outside of Ireland, and students diagnosed with dyslexia . NUI Galway is required to appoint people who are competent in the Irish language, as long as they are also competent in all other aspects of

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1380-409: A family member representing Brigid would circle the home three times carrying rushes . They would knock the door three times, asking to be let in. On the third attempt, they are welcomed in, a meal is had, and the rushes are then made into crosses or a bed for Brigid. In 18th-century Mann , the custom was to stand at the door with a bundle of rushes and say "Brede, Brede, come to my house tonight. Open

1495-460: A fully recognised EU language for the first time in the state's history. Before Irish became an official language it was afforded the status of treaty language and only the highest-level documents of the EU were made available in Irish. The Irish language was carried abroad in the modern period by a vast diaspora , chiefly to Great Britain and North America, but also to Australia , New Zealand and Argentina . The first large movements began in

1610-481: A gigantic bird carrying sticks in her beak. Families would have a special meal or supper on St Brigid's Eve to mark the last night of winter. This typically included food such as colcannon , sowans , dumplings , barmbrack or bannocks . Often, some of the food and drink would be set aside for Brigid. In Ireland, a spring cleaning was customary around St Brigid's Day. People traditionally visit holy wells and pray for health while walking ' sunwise ' around

1725-459: A hymn to Brigid. All wore white with their hair unbound as a symbol of purity and youth. They visited every house in the area, where they received either food or more decoration for the Brídeóg . Afterward, they feasted in a house with the Brídeóg set in a place of honour, and put it to bed with lullabies. When the meal was done, the local young men humbly asked for admission, made obeisance to

1840-520: A kerbstone known as "the hag's chair". Cairn T on Slieve na Calliagh is a classic passage tomb , in which the rays of the equinox sunrise shine down the passageway and illuminate an inner chamber filled with megalithic stone carvings. The summit of Slieve Gullion in County Armagh features a passage tomb known locally as the 'Calliagh Beara's House'. There is also a lake, where the Calliagh

1955-615: A lantern procession, fire performers, music, fireworks, and a symbolic battle between giant characters representing the Green Man and Jack Frost . More recently, Irish embassies have hosted yearly events on St Brigid's Day to celebrate famous women of the Irish diaspora and showcase the work of Irish female emigrants in the arts. In 2022, Dublin hosted its first "Brigit Festival", celebrating "the contributions of Irish women" past and present through exhibitions, tours, lectures, films, and

2070-585: A paper suggested that within a generation, non-Gaeltacht habitual users of Irish might typically be members of an urban, middle class, and highly educated minority. Parliamentary legislation is supposed to be available in both Irish and English but is frequently only available in English. This is notwithstanding that Article 25.4 of the Constitution of Ireland requires that an "official translation" of any law in one official language be provided immediately in

2185-575: A pass in Leaving Certificate Irish or English, and receive lessons in Irish during their two years of training. Official documents of the Irish government must be published in both Irish and English or Irish alone (in accordance with the Official Languages Act 2003, enforced by An Coimisinéir Teanga , the Irish language ombudsman). The National University of Ireland requires all students wishing to embark on

2300-625: A religious context. An Irish translation of the Old Testament by Leinsterman Muircheartach Ó Cíonga , commissioned by Bishop Bedell , was published after 1685 along with a translation of the New Testament. Otherwise, Anglicisation was seen as synonymous with 'civilising' the native Irish. Currently, modern day Irish speakers in the church are pushing for language revival. It has been estimated that there were around 800,000 monoglot Irish speakers in 1800, which dropped to 320,000 by

2415-492: A result of linguistic imperialism . Today, Irish is still commonly spoken as a first language in Ireland's Gaeltacht regions, in which 2% of Ireland's population lived in 2022. The total number of people (aged 3 and over) in Ireland who declared they could speak Irish in April 2022 was 1,873,997, representing 40% of respondents, but of these, 472,887 said they never spoke it and a further 551,993 said they only spoke it within

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2530-545: A wider meaning, including the Gaelic of Scotland and the Isle of Man , as well as of Ireland. When required by the context, these are distinguished as Gaeilge na hAlban , Gaeilge Mhanann and Gaeilge na hÉireann respectively. In English (including Hiberno-English ), the language is usually referred to as Irish , as well as Gaelic and Irish Gaelic . The term Irish Gaelic may be seen when English speakers discuss

2645-434: A woman, and "means that all four of the traditional Celtic seasonal festival will now be public holidays". The public holiday is observed on the first Monday of February, except for years where 1 February happens to fall on a Friday, in which case the holiday is observed on that Friday instead. Imbolc or Imbolc-based festivals are observed by some Neopagans , though practices vary widely. While some attempt to closely emulate

2760-458: A word meaning 'sharp, shrill, inimical' – bior or beur – and refers to the Cailleach's association with winter and wilderness, as well as her association with horned beasts or cattle. The 8th- to 9th-century Irish poem The Lament of the Old Woman says that the Cailleach's name is Digdi or Digde. In The Hunt of Slieve Cuilinn she is called Milucra, sister of Áine . In the tale of

2875-603: Is a Celtic language of the Indo-European language family . It is a member of the Goidelic language group of the Insular Celtic sub branch of the family and is indigenous to the island of Ireland . It was the majority of the population's first language until the 19th century, when English gradually became dominant, particularly in the last decades of the century, in what is sometimes characterised as

2990-489: Is a Gaelic traditional festival. It marks the beginning of spring , and for Christians, it is the feast day of Saint Brigid , Ireland's patroness saint. Its traditional date is 1 February, about halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox . Historically, its traditions were widely observed throughout Ireland , Scotland and the Isle of Man . Imbolc is one of the four Gaelic seasonal festivals, along with: Beltane , Lughnasadh and Samhain . Imbolc

3105-476: Is a small shieling in the Glen, known as either Tigh nan Cailleach (Scottish Gaelic for house of the old women ) or Tigh nam Bodach, (Scottish Gaelic for house of the old men ), which houses a number of heavy water-worn stones, resembling miniature human beings. Roughly rectangular, the building originally measured 2m by 1.3m by 0.4m high with a stone roof. A replacement roof of a wooden pallet having collapsed and

3220-452: Is also An Caighdeán Oifigiúil , a standardised written form devised by a parliamentary commission in the 1950s. The traditional Irish alphabet , a variant of the Latin alphabet with 18 letters , has been succeeded by the standard Latin alphabet (albeit with 7–8 letters used primarily in loanwords ). Irish has constitutional status as the national and first official language of

3335-511: Is divided into four separate phases with the intention of improving 9 main areas of action including: The general goal for this strategy was to increase the number of daily speakers from 83,000 to 250,000 by the end of its run. By 2022, the number of such speakers had fallen to 71,968. Before the partition of Ireland in 1921, Irish was recognised as a school subject and as "Celtic" in some third level institutions. Between 1921 and 1972, Northern Ireland had devolved government. During those years

3450-491: Is finished, her plaid is pure white and snow covers the land. In Scotland and Ireland, the first farmer to finish the grain harvest made a corn dolly , representing the Cailleach (also called "the Carlin or Carline"), from the last sheaf of the crop. The figure would then be tossed into the field of a neighbor who had not yet finished bringing in their grain. The last farmer to finish had the responsibility to take in and care for

3565-403: Is mentioned in early Irish literature , and some evidence suggests it was also an important date in ancient times. It is believed that Imbolc was originally a pagan festival associated with the lambing season and the goddess Brigid . Historians suggest that the saint and her feast day are Christianizations of these. The customs of St Brigid's Day did not begin to be recorded in detail until

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3680-469: Is mentioned in several early Irish manuscripts , but they say very little about its original rites and customs. Imbolc was one of four main seasonal festivals in Gaelic Ireland , along with Beltane (1 May), Lughnasadh (1 August) and Samhain (1 November). The tale Tochmarc Emire , which survives in a 10th-century version, names Imbolc as one of four seasonal festivals, and says it is "when

3795-587: Is only in Gaeltacht areas that Irish continues to be spoken as a community vernacular to some extent. According to data compiled by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht , Sport and Media , only 1/4 of households in Gaeltacht areas are fluent in Irish. The author of a detailed analysis of the survey, Donncha Ó hÉallaithe of the Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology , described

3910-526: Is ready"). A corn dolly called the dealbh Bríde (icon of Brigid) would be laid in the bed and a white wand, usually made of birch, would be laid beside it. It represented the wand that Brigid was said to use to make the vegetation start growing again. Women in some parts of the Hebrides would also dance while holding a large cloth and calling out " Bridean, Bridean, thig an nall 's dean do leabaidh " (" Bríd, Bríd , come over and make your bed"). In

4025-607: Is said to have played a trick on the mythical warrior, Fionn mac Cumhaill , when he took on the physical appearance of an old man after diving into the lake to retrieve a ring that the Calliagh fooled him into thinking was lost. Aillenacally ( Aill na Caillí , "Hag Cliff") is a cliff in County Galway . The Carrowmore passage tombs on the Cúil Iorra Peninsula in County Sligo , are associated with

4140-418: Is sometimes interpreted as 'hag' is the Irish síle , which has led some to speculate on a connection between the Cailleach and the stone carvings of Sheela na Gigs . In Scotland , where she is also known as Beira, Queen of Winter (a name given by 20th-century folklorist Donald Alexander Mackenzie ), she is credited with making numerous mountains and large hills, which are said to have been formed when she

4255-412: Is still spoken daily to some extent as a first language . These regions are known individually and collectively as the Gaeltacht (plural Gaeltachtaí ). While the fluent Irish speakers of these areas, whose numbers have been estimated at 20–30,000, are a minority of the total number of fluent Irish speakers, they represent a higher concentration of Irish speakers than other parts of the country and it

4370-421: Is suggested that the festival, which celebrates the start of lambing , is linked with Brigid in her role as a fertility goddess. Hutton says that the goddess might have already been linked to Imbolc and this was continued by making it the saint's feast day. Or it could be that Imbolc's association with milk drew the saint to it because of a legend that she had been the wet-nurse of Christ. The festival of Imbolc

4485-599: Is three months after the 1 November festival of Samhain. Imbolc is mentioned in another Old Irish poem about the Táin in the Metrical Dindshenchas : " iar n-imbulc, ba garb a ngeilt ", which Edward Gwynn translates "after Candlemas , rough was their herding". Candlemas is the Christian holy day which falls on 2 February and is known in Irish as Lá Fhéile Muire na gCoinneal , 'feast day of Mary of

4600-540: The Brídeóg , and joined the girls in dancing and merrymaking. In many places, only unwed girls could carry the Brídeóg , but in some both boys and girls carried it. In parts of Ireland, rather than carrying a Brídeóg , a girl took on the role of Brigid. Escorted by other girls, she went house-to-house wearing 'Brigid's crown' and carrying 'Brigid's shield' and 'Brigid's cross', all made from rushes. The procession in some places included 'strawboys', who wore conical straw hats, masks and played folk music; much like

4715-666: The Fíor-Ghaeltacht (true Gaeltacht ), a term originally officially applied to areas where over 50% of the population spoke Irish. There are Gaeltacht regions in the following counties: Gweedore ( Gaoth Dobhair ), County Donegal, is the largest Gaeltacht parish in Ireland. Irish language summer colleges in the Gaeltacht are attended by tens of thousands of teenagers annually. Students live with Gaeltacht families, attend classes, participate in sports, go to céilithe and are obliged to speak Irish. All aspects of Irish culture and tradition are encouraged. The Act

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4830-566: The Glas Gaibhnenn , she is called Biróg. Elsewhere, she is called Bui or Bua[ch]. In Manx Gaelic she is known as the Caillagh . The plural of cailleach is cailleacha ( pronounced [kɪˈl̠ʲaxə, ˈkal̠ʲəxə] ) in Irish, cailleachan ( pronounced [ˈkʰaʎəxən] ) in Scottish Gaelic, and caillaghyn in Manx. The word is found as a component in terms like

4945-525: The Isle of Skye named Beinn na Caillich ( western and eastern ) after her, from which fierce storms of sleet and rain descend, wreaking havoc and destruction upon the lands below. There is a Gleann Cailliche in Glen Lyon in Perthshire with a stream named Allt Cailliche which runs into Loch Lyon . This area is famous for a pagan ritual which according to legend is associated to the Cailleach. There

5060-583: The Proto-Celtic * embibolgon , 'budding'. The early 10th century Cormac's Glossary has an entry for Oímelc , calling it the beginning of spring and deriving it from oí-melg ('ewe milk'), explaining it as "the time that sheep's milk comes". However, linguists believe this is the writer's respelling of the word to give it an understandable etymology. The Táin Bó Cúailnge ('Cattle Raid of Cooley') indicates that Imbolc (spelt imolg )

5175-631: The Republic of Ireland , and is also an official language of Northern Ireland and among the official languages of the European Union . The public body Foras na Gaeilge is responsible for the promotion of the language throughout the island. Irish has no regulatory body but An Caighdeán Oifigiúil , the standard written form, is guided by a parliamentary service and new vocabulary by a voluntary committee with university input. In An Caighdeán Oifigiúil ("The Official [Written] Standard ")

5290-548: The wrenboys . Up until the mid-20th century, children in Ireland still went house-to-house asking for pennies for "poor Biddy", or money for the poor. In County Kerry , men in white robes sang from house to house. The festival is traditionally associated with weather lore , and the old tradition of watching to see if serpents or badgers came from their winter dens may be a forerunner of the North American Groundhog Day . A Scottish Gaelic proverb about

5405-634: The 17th century, largely as a result of the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland , which saw many Irish sent to the West Indies . Irish emigration to the United States was well established by the 18th century, and was reinforced in the 1840s by thousands fleeing from the Famine . This flight also affected Britain. Up until that time most emigrants spoke Irish as their first language, though English

5520-640: The 18th century to the mid-20th century, many St Brigid's Day traditions were recorded by folklorists and other writers. They tell us how it was celebrated then and shed light on how it may have been celebrated in the past. In Ireland, Brigid's crosses ( pictured ) are traditionally made on St Brigid's Day. A Brigid's cross usually consists of rushes woven into a four-armed equilateral cross, although there were also three-armed crosses. They are traditionally hung over doors, windows, and stables to welcome Brigid and for protection against fire, lightning, illness, and evil spirits. The crosses are generally left until

5635-789: The 1998 Good Friday Agreement , the language gradually received a degree of formal recognition in Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom, and then, in 2003, by the British government's ratification in respect of the language of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages . In the 2006 St Andrews Agreement the British government promised to enact legislation to promote the language and in 2022 it approved legislation to recognise Irish as an official language alongside English. The bill received royal assent on 6 December 2022. The Irish language has often been used as

5750-403: The 6th century, used the Latin alphabet and is attested primarily in marginalia to Latin manuscripts. During this time, the Irish language absorbed some Latin words, some via Old Welsh , including ecclesiastical terms : examples are easpag (bishop) from episcopus , and Domhnach (Sunday, from dominica ). By the 10th century, Old Irish had evolved into Middle Irish , which

5865-571: The Act all detailing different aspects of the use of Irish in official documentation and communication. Included in these sections are subjects such as Irish language use in official courts, official publications, and placenames. The Act was recently amended in December 2019 in order to strengthen the already preexisting legislation. All changes made took into account data collected from online surveys and written submissions. The Official Languages Scheme

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5980-464: The Cailleach and Brìghde as two faces of the same goddess, while others describe the Cailleach as turning to stone on Bealltainn and reverting to humanoid form on Samhainn in time to rule over the winter months. Depending on local climate, the transfer of power between the winter goddess and the summer goddess is celebrated any time between Là Fhèill Brìghde ( Imbolc , 1 February) at the earliest, Latha na Cailliche (25 March), or Bealltainn (1 May) at

6095-583: The Cailleach is associated with craggy, prominent mountains and outcroppings, such as Hag's Head ( Irish : Ceann Caillí , meaning 'hag's head') the southernmost tip of the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare . Labbacallee wedge tomb ( Irish : Leaba Chaillí , meaning 'the hag's bed') is located near Glanworth , County Cork and is, according to folklore, the Cailleach's grave and former dwelling where she lived with her husband, Mogh Ruith , who she threw

6210-602: The Cailleach. One is called the Cailleach a Bhéara's House. William Butler Yeats refers to the Sligo Cailleach as the 'Clooth na Bare'. In County Sligo she is also called the Garavogue Cailleach. The Cailleach is prominent in the landscape of Argyll and Bute , Scotland. In later tales she is known as the Cailleach nan Cruachan ("the witch of Ben Cruachan "). Ben Cruachan is the tallest mountain in

6325-572: The Candles'. Hutton writes that Imbolc must have been "important enough for its date to be dedicated subsequently to Brigid … the Mother Saint of Ireland". Cogitosus , writing in the late 7th century, first mentions a feast day of Saint Brigid being observed in Kildare on 1 February. Brigid is said to have lived in the 6th century and founded the important monastery of Kildare. She became

6440-471: The European Union , only co-decision regulations were available until 2022, due to a five-year derogation, requested by the Irish Government when negotiating the language's new official status. The Irish government had committed itself to train the necessary number of translators and interpreters and to bear the related costs. This derogation ultimately came to an end on 1 January 2022, making Irish

6555-560: The Gaelic cailleach-dhubh ('nun') and cailleach-oidhche (' owl '), as well as the Irish cailleach feasa ('wise woman, fortune-teller') and cailleach phiseogach ('sorceress, charm-worker'). Related words include the Gaelic caileag and the Irish cailín ('young woman, girl, colleen'), the diminutive of caile 'woman', and the Lowland Scots carline/ carlin ('old woman, witch'). A more obscure word that

6670-549: The Irish language policy followed by Irish governments as a "complete and absolute disaster". The Irish Times , referring to his analysis published in the Irish language newspaper Foinse , quoted him as follows: "It is an absolute indictment of successive Irish Governments that at the foundation of the Irish State there were 250,000 fluent Irish speakers living in Irish-speaking or semi Irish-speaking areas, but

6785-491: The Outer Hebrides, ashes from the fire would be raked smooth, and, in the morning, people would look for some mark on the ashes as a sign that Brigid had visited. If there was no mark, they believed bad fortune would come unless they buried a cockerel at the meeting of three streams as an offering and burned incense on their fire that night. In Ireland and Scotland, a representation of Brigid would be paraded around

6900-620: The Republic of Ireland ), new appointees to the Civil Service of the Republic of Ireland , including postal workers , tax collectors , agricultural inspectors, Garda Síochána (police), etc., were required to have some proficiency in Irish. By law, a Garda who was addressed in Irish had to respond in Irish as well. In 1974, in part through the actions of protest organisations like the Language Freedom Movement ,

7015-746: The beginning of the following academic year. For a number of years there has been vigorous debate in political, academic and other circles about the failure of most students in English-medium schools to achieve competence in Irish, even after fourteen years of teaching as one of the three main subjects. The concomitant decline in the number of traditional native speakers has also been a cause of great concern. In 2007, filmmaker Manchán Magan found few Irish speakers in Dublin , and faced incredulity when trying to get by speaking only Irish in Dublin. He

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7130-520: The belly', and refers to the pregnancy of ewes at this time of year. Joseph Vendryes linked it to the Old Irish verb folcaim , 'to wash/cleanse oneself'. He suggested that it referred to a ritual cleansing , similar to the ancient Roman festival Februa or Lupercalia , which took place at the same time of year. Eric P. Hamp derives it from a Proto-Indo-European root meaning both 'milk' and 'cleansing'. Professor Alan Ward derives it from

7245-485: The blooming of blackthorn . Prominent folklorist Seán Ó Súilleabháin wrote: "The main significance of the Feast of St. Brigid would seem to be that it was a Christianisation of one of the focal points of the agricultural year in Ireland, the starting point of preparations for the spring sowing. Every manifestation of the cult of the saint (or of the deity she replaced) is bound up in some way with food production". From

7360-479: The coming months. As a result, people are generally relieved if Là Fhèill Brìghde is a day of foul weather, as it means the Cailleach is asleep, will soon run out of firewood, and therefore winter is almost over. On the Isle of Man, where She is known as Caillagh ny Groamagh , the Cailleach is said to have been seen on St. Bride's day in the form of a gigantic bird, carrying sticks in her beak. According to Mackenzie,

7475-431: The community by girls and young women. Usually, it was a doll known as a Brídeóg ('little Brigid'), called a 'Breedhoge' or 'Biddy' in English. It would be made from rushes or reeds and clad in bits of cloth, flowers, or shells. In the Hebrides of Scotland, a bright shell or crystal called the reul-iuil Bríde (guiding star of Brigid) was set on its chest. The girls would carry it in procession while singing

7590-582: The corn dolly for the next year, with the implication they'd have to feed and house the hag all winter. Competition was fierce to avoid having to take in the Old Woman. Some scholars believe the Old Irish poem " The Lament of the Old Woman of Beara " is about the Cailleach; Kuno Meyer states, "she had fifty foster-children in Beare. She had seven periods of youth one after another, so that every man who had lived with her came to die of old age, and her grandsons and great-grandsons were tribes and races." In Ireland,

7705-447: The day is: Thig an nathair as an toll Là donn Brìde, Ged robh trì troighean dhen t-sneachd Air leac an làir. The serpent will come from the hole On the brown Day of Bríde, Though there should be three feet of snow On the flat surface of the ground. Imbolc was believed to be when the Cailleach —the divine hag of Gaelic tradition—gathers her firewood for the rest of the winter. Legend has it that if she wishes to make

7820-540: The door for Brede and let Brede come in". Similarly, in County Donegal , the family member who was sent to fetch the rushes knelt on the front step and repeated three times, "Go on your knees, open your eyes, and let in St Brigid". Those inside the house answered three times, "She's welcome". The rushes were then strewn on the floor as a carpet or bed for Brigid. In the 19th century, some old Manx women would make

7935-422: The early modern era. In recent centuries, its traditions have included weaving Brigid's crosses , hung over doors and windows to protect against fire, illness, and evil spirits. People also made a doll of Brigid (a Brídeóg ), which was paraded around the community by girls, sometimes accompanied by ' strawboys '. Brigid was said to visit one's home on St Brigid's Eve. To receive her blessings, people would make

8050-664: The education system. Linguistic analyses of Irish speakers are therefore based primarily on the number of daily users in Ireland outside the education system, which in 2022 was 20,261 in the Gaeltacht and 51,707 outside it, totalling 71,968. In response to the 2021 census of Northern Ireland , 43,557 individuals stated they spoke Irish on a daily basis, 26,286 spoke it on a weekly basis, 47,153 spoke it less often than weekly, and 9,758 said they could speak Irish, but never spoke it. From 2006 to 2008, over 22,000 Irish Americans reported speaking Irish as their first language at home, with several times that number claiming "some knowledge" of

8165-414: The end of the famine, and under 17,000 by 1911. Irish is recognised by the Constitution of Ireland as the national and first official language of Republic of Ireland (English being the other official language). Despite this, almost all government business and legislative debate is conducted in English. In 1938, the founder of Conradh na Gaeilge (Gaelic League), Douglas Hyde , was inaugurated as

8280-429: The ewes are milked at spring's beginning". This linking of Imbolc with the arrival of lambs and sheep's milk probably reflected farming customs that ensured lambs were born before calves. In late winter/early spring, sheep could survive better than cows on the sparse vegetation, and farmers sought to resume milking as soon as possible due to their dwindling stores. The Hibernica Minora includes an Old Irish poem about

8395-510: The festival at the start of spring, or on the full moon nearest this. Many use traditional songs and rites from sources such as The Silver Bough and The Carmina Gadelica . It is a time of honouring the goddess Brigid, and many of her dedicants choose this time of year for rituals to her. Wiccans and Neo-Druids celebrate Imbolc as one of the eight Sabbats in their Wheel of the Year , following Midwinter and preceding Ostara . In Wicca, Imbolc

8510-560: The first President of Ireland . The record of his delivering his inaugural Declaration of Office in Roscommon Irish is one of only a few recordings of that dialect. In the 2016 census, 10.5% of respondents stated that they spoke Irish, either daily or weekly, while over 70,000 people (4.2%) speak it as a habitual daily means of communication. From the foundation of the Irish Free State in 1922 (see History of

8625-554: The focus of a major cult. However, there are few historical facts about her, and her early hagiographies "are mainly anecdotes and miracle stories, some of which are deeply rooted in Irish pagan folklore". It is suggested that Saint Brigid is based on the goddess Brigid , or that she was a real person and the lore of the goddess was transferred to her. Like the saint, the goddess is associated with wisdom, poetry, healing, protection, blacksmithing, and domesticated animals, according to Cormac's Glossary and Lebor Gabála Érenn . It

8740-416: The four seasonal festivals. Translated by Kuno Meyer (1894), it says, "Tasting of each food according to order, this is what is proper at Imbolc: washing the hands, the feet, the head". This suggests ritual cleansing. It has been suggested that originally the timing of the festival was more fluid and associated with the onset of the lambing season, the beginning of preparations for the spring sowing , and

8855-477: The full moon nearest this point. Some Neopagans designate Imbolc based on other natural phenomena, such as the emergence of primroses, dandelions, or similar local flora. Celtic Reconstructionists strive to reconstruct ancient Celtic religion . Their religious practices are based on research and historical accounts, but may be modified slightly to suit modern life. They avoid syncretism (i.e., combining practises from different cultures). They usually celebrate

8970-522: The glen was always fertile and prosperous. When they left they gave the stones to the locals with the promise that as long as the stones were put out to look over the glen at Bealltainn and put back into the shelter and made secure for the winter at Samhain then the glen would continue to be fertile. This ritual is still carried out to this day. Irish language Irish ( Standard Irish : Gaeilge ), also known as Irish Gaelic or simply Gaelic ( / ˈ ɡ eɪ l ɪ k / GAY -lik ),

9085-558: The historic accounts of Imbolc, others rely on many sources to inspire their celebrations. Festivals typically fall near 1 February in the Northern Hemisphere and 1 August in the Southern Hemisphere. Some Neopagans celebrate the festival at the astronomical midpoint between the winter solstice and spring equinox -- in the Northern Hemisphere, this is usually on 3 or 4 February -- while others rely on

9200-659: The language family, is derived from the Old Irish term. Endonyms of the language in the various modern Irish dialects include: Gaeilge [ˈɡeːlʲɟə] in Galway, Gaeilg / Gaeilic / Gaeilig [ˈɡeːlʲəc] in Mayo and Ulster , Gaelainn / Gaoluinn [ˈɡeːl̪ˠən̠ʲ] in West/Cork, Kerry Munster , as well as Gaedhealaing in mid and East Kerry/Cork and Waterford Munster to reflect local pronunciation. Gaeilge also has

9315-410: The language was in use by all classes, Irish being an urban as well as a rural language. This linguistic dynamism was reflected in the efforts of certain public intellectuals to counter the decline of the language. At the end of the 19th century, they launched the Gaelic revival in an attempt to encourage the learning and use of Irish, although few adult learners mastered the language. The vehicle of

9430-425: The language. For most of recorded Irish history , Irish was the dominant language of the Irish people , who took it with them to other regions , such as Scotland and the Isle of Man , where Middle Irish gave rise to Scottish Gaelic and Manx . It was also, for a period, spoken widely across Canada , with an estimated 200,000–250,000 daily Canadian speakers of Irish in 1890. On the island of Newfoundland ,

9545-488: The later 20th century, Celtic neopagans and Wiccans have observed Imbolc as a religious holiday. Since 2023, "Imbolc/St Brigid's Day" has been an annual public holiday in Ireland . Historians such as Ronald Hutton argue that St Brigid's Day must have pre-Christian origins. Some scholars argue that the date of Imbolc was significant in Ireland since the Neolithic . A few passage tombs in Ireland are aligned with

9660-443: The latest, and the local festivals marking the arrival of the first signs of spring may be named after either the Cailleach or Brìghde. Là Fhèill Brìghde is also the day the Cailleach gathers her firewood for the rest of the winter. Legend has it that if she intends to make the winter last a good while longer, she will make sure the weather on 1 February is bright and sunny, so she can gather plenty of firewood to keep herself warm in

9775-590: The longest night of the year marked the end of her reign as Queen of Winter, at which time she visited the Well of Youth and, after drinking its magic water, grew younger day by day. In Scotland, the Cailleachan (lit. 'old women') are also known as the Storm Hags, and seen as personifications of the elemental powers of nature, especially in a destructive aspect. They are said to be particularly active in raising

9890-582: The mid-18th century, English was becoming a language of the Catholic middle class, the Catholic Church and public intellectuals, especially in the east of the country. Increasingly, as the value of English became apparent, parents sanctioned the prohibition of Irish in schools. Increasing interest in emigrating to the United States and Canada was also a driver, as fluency in English allowed

10005-804: The name of the language is Gaeilge , from the South Connacht form, spelled Gaedhilge prior the spelling reform of 1948, which was originally the genitive of Gaedhealg , the form used in Classical Gaelic . The modern spelling results from the deletion of the silent ⟨dh⟩ in Gaedhilge . Older spellings include Gaoidhealg [ˈɡeːʝəlˠəɡ] in Classical Gaelic and Goídelc [ˈɡoiðʲelɡ] in Old Irish . Goidelic , used to refer to

10120-469: The new immigrants to get jobs in areas other than farming. An estimated one quarter to one third of US immigrants during the Great Famine were Irish speakers. Irish was not marginal to Ireland's modernisation in the 19th century, as is often assumed. In the first half of the century there were still around three million people for whom Irish was the primary language, and their numbers alone made them

10235-407: The next St Brigid's Day. In western Connacht , people made a Crios Bríde ( Bríd 's girdle); a great ring of rushes with a cross woven in the middle. Young boys would carry it around the village, inviting people to step through it and be blessed. On St Brigid's Eve, Brigid was said to visit virtuous households and bless the inhabitants. As Brigid represented the light half of the year and

10350-655: The number now is between 20,000 and 30,000." In the 1920s, when the Irish Free State was founded, Irish was still a vernacular in some western coastal areas. In the 1930s, areas where more than 25% of the population spoke Irish were classified as Gaeltacht . Today, the strongest Gaeltacht areas, numerically and socially, are those of South Connemara , the west of the Dingle Peninsula , and northwest Donegal, where many residents still use Irish as their primary language. These areas are often referred to as

10465-503: The other official language, if not already passed in both official languages. In November 2016, RTÉ reported that over 2.3 million people worldwide were learning Irish through the Duolingo app. Irish president Michael D. Higgins officially honoured several volunteer translators for developing the Irish edition, and said the push for Irish language rights remains an "unfinished project". There are rural areas of Ireland where Irish

10580-426: The personification of winter: she herds deer , she fights spring, and her staff freezes the ground. In partnership with the goddess Brìghde , the Cailleach is seen as a seasonal deity or spirit, ruling the winter months between Samhainn (5 November or first day of Samhain) and Bealltainn (1 May or first day of summer), while Brìghde rules the summer months between Bealltainn and Samhainn. Some interpretations have

10695-557: The political party holding power in the Stormont Parliament , the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), was hostile to the language. The context of this hostility was the use of the language by nationalists. In broadcasting, there was an exclusion on the reporting of minority cultural issues, and Irish was excluded from radio and television for almost the first fifty years of the previous devolved government. After

10810-440: The power that will bring people from the dark season of winter into spring, her presence was vital at this time of year. Before going to bed, people would leave items of clothing or strips of cloth outside for Brigid to bless. The next morning, they would be brought inside and believed to have powers of healing and protection. Brigid would be symbolically invited into the house and a bed would often be made for her. In Ulster,

10925-477: The region. Tea-towels and postcards of her are sold in the visitor shop for the Hollow Mountain , which also features a mural depicting her accidental creation of Loch Awe . Legend has it that the Cailleach was tired from a long day herding deer. Atop Ben Cruachan she fell asleep on her watch and a well she was tending overflowed, running down from the highlands and flooding the valleys below, forming first

11040-492: The relationship between the three Goidelic languages (Irish, Scottish Gaelic and Manx). Gaelic is a collective term for the Goidelic languages, and when the context is clear it may be used without qualification to refer to each language individually. When the context is specific but unclear, the term may be qualified, as Irish Gaelic, Scottish Gaelic or Manx Gaelic. Historically the name "Erse" ( / ɜːr s / URS )

11155-432: The requirement for entrance to the public service was changed to proficiency in just one official language. Nevertheless, Irish remains a required subject of study in all schools in the Republic of Ireland that receive public money (see Education in the Republic of Ireland ). Teachers in primary schools must also pass a compulsory examination called Scrúdú Cáilíochta sa Ghaeilge . As of 2005, Garda Síochána recruits need

11270-647: The revival was the Gaelic League ( Conradh na Gaeilge ), and particular emphasis was placed on the folk tradition, which in Irish is particularly rich. Efforts were also made to develop journalism and a modern literature. Although it has been noted that the Catholic Church played a role in the decline of the Irish language before the Gaelic Revival, the Protestant Church of Ireland also made only minor efforts to encourage use of Irish in

11385-569: The sunrise around the times of Imbolc and Samhain. This includes the Mound of the Hostages on the Hill of Tara , and Cairn L at Slieve na Calliagh . Frank Prendergast argues that this alignment is so rare that it is a product of chance. The etymology of Imbolc or Imbolg is unclear. A common explanation is that it comes from the Old Irish i mbolc (Modern Irish: i mbolg ), meaning 'in

11500-427: The town of Killorglin , County Kerry , which holds a yearly "Biddy's Day Festival". Men and women wearing elaborate straw hats and masks visit public houses carrying a Brídeóg to ward off evil spirits and bring good luck for the coming year. There are folk music sessions, historical talks, film screenings, drama productions, and cross-weaving workshops. The main event is a torchlight parade of 'Biddy groups' through

11615-551: The town. Since 2009 a yearly "Brigid of Faughart Festival" is held in County Louth . This celebrates Brigid as both saint and goddess and includes the long-standing pilgrimage to Faughart as well as music, poetry, and lectures. The "Imbolc International Music Festival" of folk music is held in Derry at this time of year. In England, the village of Marsden, West Yorkshire holds a biennial "Imbolc Fire Festival" which includes

11730-726: The vacancy to which they are appointed. This requirement is laid down by the University College Galway Act, 1929 (Section 3). In 2016, the university faced controversy when it announced the planned appointment of a president who did not speak Irish. Misneach staged protests against this decision. The following year the university announced that Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh , a fluent Irish speaker, would be its 13th president. He assumed office in January 2018; in June 2024, he announced he would be stepping down as president at

11845-504: The water as a libation . In County Kilkenny , graves were decorated with box and laurel flowers (or any other flowers that could be found at that time). A Branch of Virginity was decorated with white ribbons and placed on the grave of a recently deceased maiden. St Brigid's Day and Imbolc are observed by Christians and non-Christians. Some people still make Brigid's crosses and Brídeog s or visit holy wells dedicated to St Brigid on 1 February. Brigid's Day parades have been revived in

11960-409: The well. They might then leave offerings, typically coins or strips of cloth/ribbon (see clootie well ). Historically, water from the well was used to bless the home, family members, livestock, and fields. Scottish writer Donald Alexander Mackenzie also recorded in the 19th century that offerings were made "to earth and sea". The offering could be milk poured into the ground or porridge poured into

12075-529: The whole building having become somewhat ruinous it was rebuilt by a local dyker in 2011. According to local legend the stones represent the Cailleach, her husband the Bodach, and their children and the site may represent the only surviving shrine of its kind in Great Britain. The local legend suggests that the Cailleach and her family were given shelter in the glen by the locals and while they stayed there

12190-438: The windstorms of spring, during the period known as A' Chailleach . On the west coast of Scotland, the Cailleach ushers in winter by washing her great plaid ( Gaelic : féileadh mòr ) in the Gulf of Corryvreckan ( Gaelic : Coire Bhreacain - 'whirlpool/cauldron of the plaid'). This process is said to take three days, during which the roar of the coming tempest is heard as far away as twenty miles (32 km) inland. When she

12305-399: The winter last a good while longer, she will make sure the weather on Imbolc is bright and sunny so that she can gather plenty of firewood. Therefore, people would be relieved if Imbolc is a day of foul weather, as it means the Cailleach is asleep and winter is almost over. At Imbolc on the Isle of Man, where she is known as Caillagh ny Groamagh , the Cailleach is said to take the form of

12420-594: The work of such writers as Geoffrey Keating , is said to date from the 17th century, and was the medium of popular literature from that time on. From the 18th century on, the language lost ground in the east of the country. The reasons behind this shift were complex but came down to a number of factors: The change was characterised by diglossia (two languages being used by the same community in different social and economic situations) and transitional bilingualism (monoglot Irish-speaking grandparents with bilingual children and monoglot English-speaking grandchildren). By

12535-531: Was also sometimes used in Scots and then in English to refer to Irish; as well as Scottish Gaelic. Written Irish is first attested in Ogham inscriptions from the 4th century AD, a stage of the language known as Primitive Irish . These writings have been found throughout Ireland and the west coast of Great Britain. Primitive Irish underwent a change into Old Irish through the 5th century. Old Irish, dating from

12650-668: Was enacted 1 July 2019 and is an 18-page document that adheres to the guidelines of the Official Languages Act 2003 . The purpose of the Scheme is to provide services through the mediums of Irish and/or English. According to the Department of the Taoiseach, it is meant to "develop a sustainable economy and a successful society, to pursue Ireland's interests abroad, to implement the Government's Programme and to build

12765-689: Was establishing itself as the primary language. Irish speakers had first arrived in Australia in the late 18th century as convicts and soldiers, and many Irish-speaking settlers followed, particularly in the 1860s. New Zealand also received some of this influx. Argentina was the only non-English-speaking country to receive large numbers of Irish emigrants, and there were few Irish speakers among them. Imbolc Imbolc or Imbolg ( Irish pronunciation: [ɪˈmˠɔlˠɡ] ), also called Saint Brigid's Day ( Irish : Lá Fhéile Bríde ; Scottish Gaelic : Là Fhèill Brìghde ; Manx : Laa'l Breeshey ),

12880-474: Was passed 14 July 2003 with the main purpose of improving the number and quality of public services delivered in Irish by the government and other public bodies. Compliance with the Act is monitored by the An Coimisinéir Teanga (Irish Language Commissioner) which was established in 2004 and any complaints or concerns pertaining to the Act are brought to them. There are 35 sections included in

12995-693: Was spoken throughout Ireland, Isle of Man and parts of Scotland . It is the language of a large corpus of literature, including the Ulster Cycle . From the 12th century, Middle Irish began to evolve into modern Irish in Ireland, into Scottish Gaelic in Scotland, and into the Manx language in the Isle of Man . Early Modern Irish , dating from the 13th century, was the basis of the literary language of both Ireland and Gaelic-speaking Scotland. Modern Irish, sometimes called Late Modern Irish, as attested in

13110-474: Was striding across the land and accidentally dropped rocks from her creel or wicker basket. In other cases she is said to have built the mountains intentionally, to serve as her stepping stones. She carries a hammer for shaping the hills and valleys, and is said to be the mother of all the goddesses and gods. According to Mackenzie, Beira was a one-eyed giantess with white hair, dark blue skin, and rust-colored teeth. The Cailleach displays several traits befitting

13225-442: Was unable to accomplish some everyday tasks, as portrayed in his documentary No Béarla . There is, however, a growing body of Irish speakers in urban areas, particularly in Dublin. Many have been educated in schools in which Irish is the language of instruction. Such schools are known as Gaelscoileanna at primary level. These Irish-medium schools report some better outcomes for students than English-medium schools. In 2009,

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