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96-545: Ballyragget ( Irish : Béal Átha Ragad , meaning 'Mouth of Ragget's Ford') is a small town on the river Nore in the north of County Kilkenny in Ireland. Ballyragget is on the N77 road , 18 km (11 mi) north of Kilkenny . As of the 2016 census , it had a population of 1,082 people. The name 'Ragget' is Anglo-Norman in origin, and denotes a once-prominent Norman landowner Richard le Ragget who held these lands in

192-547: 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

288-724: A Ballyragget milk processing factory was built. Ireland entered the Common Market in 1970. The first bulk milk collections took place from 1973, when the amalgamation was formalised. Ballyhale C.D.S. became one of 20 members of Avonmore Farmers Ltd.; the other founding members being Castlehale, Mullinavat, Iverk, Piltown, Carrigeen, Kilmacow, Ballyragget, South Tipperary, Monastarevan, Muckalee, Barrowvale, Kells, Windgap, Brandonvale, Bennetsbridge, Castlecomer, Freshford, Donaghmore and Fennor. According to Glanbia Collections in Kilkenny Archives at St Kieran's College , Kilkenny,

384-588: A Special General Meeting in the Punchestown Event Centre to vote on the creation of Glanbia Ireland, a joint venture between Glanbia Co-operative Society Limited (60%) and Glanbia plc(40%) combining Glanbia Consumer Products, Agribusiness and Glanbia Ingredients Ireland. The proposal was approved by 93.1% of Glanbia Co-op Shareholders. The creation of Glanbia Ireland was also approved by Glanbia plc's Independent Shareholders at an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) on 22 May 2017. In September 2022

480-717: 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

576-575: 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

672-554: A cost, and the group struggled to maintain profitability in the mid-1990s. By 1997, after Waterford posted a profit warning , the group again found itself in merger talks with Avonmore. On 13 April 1997, Waterford confirmed that it had received a formal approach from Avonmore and advised that the Waterford Board was considering the approach. The prize for a successful merger would be significant: an Irish-based, world-scale food company. This proposed coming together would represent

768-478: 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,

864-553: 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

960-460: 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

1056-559: A number of other, smaller creameries. In the meantime, 25 other cooperatives agreed to merge to establish the Avonmore Creameries Federation by 1966. The Ballyhale C.D.S. 100 year anniversary booklet records that a federation of 25 Co-op Creameries originally emerged in January 1965 under the umbrella of Avonmore Creameries Ltd., that shares were taken in the new entity by the society and that in following years

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1152-709: A nutritionals business in January 2003, Glanbia acquired the German-based Kortus Food Ingredients Services (KFIS) in 2004. KFIS specialises in the production, research, and development of micronutrient premixes. The purchase increased Glanbia's product range and brought further access to markets in Germany and Central Europe. On 6 September 2006, Glanbia announced the acquisition of the California -based micronutrient premix business, Seltzer Companies Inc. The acquisition of Seltzer

1248-585: 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

1344-575: 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

1440-636: A programme of expansion. Avonmore's strategy included growing the dairy business in the UK and US . They also decided to grow the business through acquisition. Over the next nine years they made 28 acquisitions in Ireland, the UK, the US, Hungary , Germany and Belgium . The major developments were in the UK with liquid milk and mozzarella cheese and in the US with cheese production in Wisconsin , Illinois and Idaho . In

1536-433: A prosperous period for farmers. The crisis in the country's agricultural market following the war led to a large number of creameries to shut down. Government policy in the 1920s further consolidated the dairy market. The number of creameries was reduced to 17 large-scale facilities in the years following World War II . At the same time, the number of cooperatives in Ireland had shrunk back to fewer than 220. Butter remained

1632-625: 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

1728-492: 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

1824-579: A way into the North American omega-3 market. Glanbia again expanded its presence in the North American market in 2008 through its acquisition of the Illinois-based sports supplement firm Optimum Nutrition. Optimum has a strong presence in the US market for whey-based premium sports supplements. In January 2011, Glanbia announced the acquisition of Bio-Engineered Supplements and Nutrition (BSN), extending their sports nutrition portfolio. BSN

1920-545: 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

2016-603: 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

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2112-487: Is a developer and distributor of nutritional products designed for health, training, physique development and performance. In April 2010 Glanbia plc announced plans to sell its Irish dairy and agri-business division to the Glanbia Co-Operative Society. The farmer-led co-op owns 54.6% of the company. The Irish dairy and agri-business includes brands such as Kilmeaden, Avonmore and Yoplait. The deal

2208-452: 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

2304-511: 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

2400-587: 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

2496-412: 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

2592-666: 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

2688-476: The 2016 census of Ireland , from 803 to 1,082 inhabitants. The electoral division which surrounds the town had a population of 1,451 in the 2006 census. The majority of residents in Ballyragget are nominally Roman Catholic , although there are minority Protestant and non-religious populations. Agriculture and the agri-food industry are the largest employers, with the large Tirlán factory across

2784-759: The Avonmore Coop brand was created through the merger of the Village Creameries that are included among their archives for: Backed by the British dairy giant Unigate , the new federation began the construction of a new multi-purpose dairy plant in Ballyragget , County Kilkenny . The plant was the biggest processing facility in Europe at that time. Today, the Ballyragget facility is the largest integrated dairy site in Europe, processing about 20% of

2880-547: The Dublin market on 1 June 1981. The two companies, Avonmore and Waterford, went public in the 1980s. Avonmore went first, becoming Avonmore Foods plc on 6 September 1988. Waterford Foods plc was launched on the Irish Stock Exchange (ISEQ) on 6 October 1988. Both groups remained majority controlled by the dairy farmers that had formed the original co-operatives. With new access to capital, both companies embarked on

2976-539: The Irish language – Glanbia means "pure food" in Irish. On 11 August 2000, Glanbia announced a joint venture with Leprino Foods . Leprino was the world's largest producer of mozzarella cheese . As part of the joint venture, Leprino took a 49 per cent interest in Glanbia Cheese UK and granted exclusive use of Leprino's patented technology to Glanbia. Leprino paid £27.50m in cash, delivered in 11 suitcases, for

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3072-631: 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 ")

3168-399: The 13th century Anglo-Norman landowner Richard le Ragget, Ballyragget was later held by Mountgarret family . The town is dominated by a large medieval keep (known as Ballyragget Castle). It is five storeys in height and surrounded by a court or bawn which has round defensive towers in each of four corners. A moat originally surrounded the keep and bawn, but now this can only be seen outside

3264-634: 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

3360-734: 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

3456-617: The 49 per cent share of the business. International joint ventures became a key element of the group's growth strategy. Consequently, in October 2003, Glanbia and PZ Cussons plc announced a €20 million joint venture to build a new factory in Nigeria to supply evaporated milk and milk powders to the Nigerian market. The name selected for the new joint venture company was Nutricima. Glanbia entered into yet another joint venture, this time with

3552-403: 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

3648-571: 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

3744-471: 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

3840-562: The Great Southwest Agency in New Mexico, US. Building commenced at Southwest Cheese in January 2004 and the official opening of Southwest Cheese took place in 2006. Glanbia continued to refine its focus, targeting the new and fast-growing 'nutritional' foods segment. In 2003, the company announced its intention to exit the fresh meat market which was subsequently sold in a management buy-out in 2008. After establishing

3936-419: The Irish dairy industry's core product, accounting for the majority of the creameries' production. The members of five co-operatives agreed to join forces and become Waterford Co-operative Society Limited in 1964. The formation of Waterford Co-operative in 1964 was the first of the major amalgamations and it was the beginning of a story that would be repeated throughout Ireland over the next 40 years. The size of

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4032-549: 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

4128-591: The Irish milk pool. Avonmore originally focused on the production of butter and powdered skim milk. On 1 September 1973, 20 societies amalgamated, thus creating Avonmore Farmers Ltd. As time moved on, Unigate's involvement changed and, in 1978, the cooperative bought back Unigate's stake in the Ballyragget facility. Both Avonmore and Waterford expanded into the 1980s. At home, both companies established brand names, while Waterford continued with its Yoplait franchise . The two co-operatives continued to add product lines. Avonmore, for example, launched Avonmore Fresh Milk on

4224-650: The Kilkenny Archaeological Society (January 1948), which has an article about Ballyragget and its environs, states a belief that Domhnach Mór means "big Sunday" and relates to the fact that thousands of people congregated at the now ruined church in Donoughmore for its opening on a Sunday and the name stuck. The settlement of Ballyragget originally formed at a fording-point on the River Nore at this location. Originally named after

4320-620: 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 ,

4416-565: The US$ 20 million investment programme, Avonmore West became a global supplier of advanced dairy food and nutritional ingredients. As a result, the company disposed of its smaller cheese business in Wisconsin. In Ireland, food ingredients activities were to be located mainly at Ballyragget and Virginia. Within the consumer food business, liquid milk operations were to be located at Ballytore , Waterford , and Drogheda . These decisions resulted in

4512-460: The Waterford and Avonmore areas. The successful merger of Avonmore Creameries Limited and Waterford Co-operatives Society, on 4 September 1997, formed the new Avonmore Waterford Co-operative Society. On the same date, the merger of Avonmore Foods plc and Waterford Foods plc, formed the new Avonmore Waterford Group (AWG) plc. The 1997 merger created the fourth biggest dairy processor in Europe and

4608-694: 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

4704-710: The biggest amalgamation in the history of the Irish dairy industry and possibly of Irish agribusiness . Intensive dialogue took place between Avonmore and Waterford throughout April and May 1997. On 26 May, the Boards of Waterford Foods plc and Waterford Co-operative Society met to consider amended proposals from Avonmore Foods plc and Avonmore Creameries Ltd. The merger proposals provoked serious debates at numerous shareholder meetings throughout Waterford and Avonmore. Some shareholders had strong reservations and among their concerns were issues such as perceived loss of identity, dominance by one party over another, relative valuations of

4800-572: The closure of smaller facilities. In the UK, the Group closed its Appleby cheese facility and also disposed of the Manchester-based juice business during 1997. The cost-saving measures targeted to save £20 million in 1998 and £40 million in 1999. It was anticipated that the programme would reduce jobs in AWG from 11,900 to 10,600. Job losses would be 750 in Ireland and 550 in the UK. By May 1999,

4896-479: The co-operative gave them the opportunity to produce a bigger range of products. With its head start, Waterford was able to grow and a decade later, in 1974, this scale of operation would help in winning the French Yoplait franchise to produce the prestige range of yogurts at Inch, County Wexford – an association that continues to this day. Waterford continued growing throughout the 1970s, amalgamating with

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4992-679: The company also announced €100 million buyback programme which was unaffected by this agreement. Glanbia declared to operate Flavor Producers within its Glanbia Nutritionals. In March 2023, Optimum Nutrition became the Official Performance Nutrition Partner of the Gaelic Players Association in a three-year partnership. In September 2023, Glanbia became the lead sponsor of the Kilkenny Camogie Team. Glanbia will sponsor

5088-491: The company's origins in the co-operative movement, farmer-suppliers of the company retain a significant interest in the company. Tirlán remains the largest shareholder in Glanbia plc. as of 2022 and retains the right to nominate a number of non-executive directors to the board of the company in line with their mutual Relationship Agreement. Dairy products have long formed the backbone of Ireland's agricultural sector, and by

5184-435: The country's dairy sector, which had been operated by independent farmers. In order to support the cost of new equipment, dairy farmers grouped together to build centralised processing facilities – known as 'creameries'. In the late 1880s, farmers adopted the cooperative format, often to enter into direct competition with the private creameries. Farmers who supplied milk to the co-ops were better served than those who sold it to

5280-490: The county's senior, intermediate, minor and under-16 camogie teams over the next three years as part of the deal, with team jerseys and leisurewear carrying the Glanbia brand. In February 2024, McLaren Racing announced Optimum Nutrition as the Official Sports Nutrition Partner of the team. Optimum Nutrition's branding will be prominently featured on the pit crew overalls and set-up kit, and

5376-417: The early 19th century the country was amongst the world's largest producers. In 1848, Ireland accounted for two thirds of butter imports into the port of London. Irish butter came under pressure by competitors modernising their systems with newly developed cream separators . As a consequence, Irish butter exports to London dramatically fell in the early 1880s. The new technologies fundamentally transformed

5472-461: The early part of the 13th century. Older names of the settlement include Donoughmore (or Donaghmore; Irish : Domhnach Mór "large church") and the even more ancient Tullabarry ( Irish : Tualach Bare ) - the name of a Celtic or possibly pre-Celtic tribe which held their seat in the vicinity. There is some debate as to the meaning of Donoughmore. The very first issue of the Journal of

5568-718: 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

5664-474: 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

5760-560: 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

5856-524: The fourth biggest cheese producer in the world. The Avonmore Waterford Group announced a reorganisation programme to increase their competitiveness. The strategy was to concentrate food ingredients activities in large-scale facilities in Ireland and the US. The US development strategy focused on the Avonmore West operation in Idaho which benefited from scale, location, and a growing milk supply. Following

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5952-498: 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

6048-410: 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

6144-425: 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 ,

6240-399: 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

6336-409: The move into the prized Dublin milk market. In 1995, Waterford bought The Cheese Company, one of the two largest cheese manufacturers in Great Britain. Both organisations were focused on similar growth strategies at home and overseas. Speculation was, therefore, rife as to a possible merger between the two dairy giants. The talks began and ended without agreement in 1991. Waterford's expansion came at

6432-497: 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

6528-403: The new Tirlán brand identity was introduced by both Glanbia Ireland and the co-operative to replace the previous Glanbia name. The company operates the following businesses: In April 2024, Glanbia announced to acquire Aroma Holding Company, a US flavouring business for $ 300m (€281 million) plus deferred consideration of up to $ 55 million, dependent on performance in 2024. On 28 February 2024,

6624-409: 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

6720-402: The north lies the town of Durrow in County Laois , to the south the River Nore flows on towards Kilkenny City . The town is located in the townland of the same name which is in the civil parish of Donoghmore in the ancient barony of Fassadinin . Central Statistics Office reports indicate that Ballyragget's population increased by over 30% in the 20 years between the 1996 census and

6816-448: The north wall. This tower was renovated in the late 15th century, and contains a late 16th century inscribed stone which commemorates Edmund Butler, 2nd Viscount Mountgarret . Much of the town streetscape was laid out by George Butler and his grandson Robert Butler around the town's square in the mid-17th century. A large mid 19th-century Catholic church sits on a rise overlooking the town's central square. The River Nore flows beside

6912-655: 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

7008-503: 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

7104-557: 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

7200-474: The private creameries. In time, most of those businesses found that they were unable to compete with the farmer co-operatives, and many sold their premises and businesses to the co-ops. The numbers of creameries increased substantially by 1900, and by the eve of World War I , the country counted nearly 800 plants. In spite of the scarcities, political unrest and violent incidents, the World War I era had been

7296-492: 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 )

7392-458: The reorganisation programme, announced in November 1997, was virtually complete. The Ballyragget site had been enhanced to accommodate the additional milk volumes. In the US, the Group was investing US$ 36 million in Idaho to increase cheese production by 30 percent and dairy-based food ingredients production by 22 percent. On 1 June 1999, the Group announced two important strategic sales. The first

7488-432: 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

7584-712: 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

7680-488: The river dominating the town's industry for the past forty years. The plant at Ballyragget is the largest multi-purpose integrated dairy plant in Europe, and both Glanbia plc and Tirlán can trace their roots to the Avonmore co-operative founded in Ballyragget in the 1960s. A percentage of the area's residents commute to work (or education) some distance from the town. Ballyragget is served by Ballyragget National School

7776-616: The town, which nestles in a wide alluvial valley between the Attanagh Plateau and several hills to the east, including 'Knockmannon' and 'The Balla boys'. The Nore passes by one of the most significant ancient sites in North Kilkenny 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) south of Ballyragget at Rathbeagh . The statistical Ballyragget Geographical Area is recorded by the CSO as containing 26.67 square kilometres (10.30 sq mi). To

7872-406: The two organisations, size and scale of the new entity, representation and weakening of farmer control. The majority of shareholders believed the merger was the right option for both organisations. The first vote took place on 11 July 1997, exactly three months after the merger was formally proposed. The first vote followed an intensive six-week programme of shareholder information meeting throughout

7968-671: 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

8064-594: 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

8160-480: The years following flotation, Avonmore also invested in the meat business in Ireland. In 1989, a year after the establishment of Waterford Foods plc, the Group bought Galloway West in the US heartland dairying state of Wisconsin. The company manufactured cheese, condensed milk and food ingredients. Later in the year, Waterford bought A.Heald Limited of Manchester, a company that operated in the liquid milk and fruit juice business. Waterford also expanded in Ireland with

8256-592: Was a logical addition to the previously acquired KFIS. Both businesses have since changed their names to Glanbia Nutritionals. In 2007, Glanbia further expanded their micronutrient premix business with the completion of a new premix plant in Suzhou , China . As part of its international expansion, Glanbia acquired the Canadian nutritionals business Pizzey's Milling in August 2007. Pizzey's, which mills flaxseed , created

8352-801: Was aimed at freeing up Glanbia plc to pursue its global cheese and nutritional ambitions, but it failed to achieve the necessary three-quarters approval from the co-op's members on 10 May, falling just short at 73%. On 25 November 2012 Glanbia disposed of 60% of its Irish dairy processing business to Glanbia Co-Operative Society Limited (the "Society"). As a result, the Irish dairy processing business, now called Glanbia Ingredients Ireland Limited ("GIIL")became an associate of Glanbia plc. January 2014 – Glanbia acquires Danish sports nutrition company Nutramino for up to €20 million. September 2014 – Glanbia acquires US sports nutrition specialist Isopure for $ 153m (€118m) December 2015 – Glanbia completes $ 217m acquisition of US protein bar specialist, thinkThin. The company

8448-531: 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

8544-668: 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

8640-491: 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. Glanbia plc Given

8736-602: Was founded in 1999 and is based in Southern California. February 2017 – Glanbia invests in two new acquisitions in 2017, US based Amazing Grass and Dutch company Body & Fit. Amazing Grass specialises in plant based nutrition, "Greens" and superfood categories. Body & Fit is a direct to consumer distribution company focused on own label and branded sports nutrition based in the Benelux region. On 18 May 2017 Glanbia Co-operative Society shareholders attended

8832-702: Was opened following the amalgamation of Scoil Naomh Bhríde and Scoil Chiaráin Naofa in August 2018. There is no secondary school in the town. At national level, Ballyragget, as part of the Carlow–Kilkenny constituency, is represented by five Teachtaí Dála in Dáil Éireann . At a local level, the town is within the administrative area of Kilkenny County Council . Irish language Irish ( Standard Irish : Gaeilge ), also known as Irish Gaelic or simply Gaelic ( / ˈ ɡ eɪ l ɪ k / GAY -lik ),

8928-474: 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

9024-693: 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

9120-473: Was the disposal of the UK liquid milk operations to Express Dairies, for £125 million. The second was the sale of its Irish beef processing operations to Dawn Meats for £10 million. On 15 February 1999, an Extraordinary General Meeting and Special General Meeting were held to seek the necessary approval for the introduction of a new name. The change of title from Avonmore Waterford Group to Glanbia became official on 4 March 1999. The name Glanbia has its roots in

9216-442: 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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