99-459: Blackrock College ( Irish : Coláiste na Carraige Duibhe ) is a voluntary day and boarding Catholic secondary school for boys aged 13–18, in Williamstown, Blackrock , County Dublin , Ireland . It was founded by French missionary Jules Leman in 1860 as a school and later became also a civil service training centre. The college, 7 kilometres (4.3 miles) from Dublin city centre,
198-503: A Seachtain na Gaeilge (literally, "Week of Irish") is organised to promote the Irish language in the school. The Irish department organises events each year to mark this occasion including ceili dance , poc fada (longest hit) and screens Irish films. This co-curricular activity was particularly commended in a Department of Education inspection, which also recommended its further development. The school donates most of its funds raised during
297-410: A radio station, broadcasting to the surrounding south Dublin area, is undertaken annually. All of the administrative work, promotion and content-creation is the labour of transition year students. The station also allows programming submissions from other schools to be broadcast. It's the only second-level radio project that broadcasts nine and a half hours a day (8:00 am to 5:30 pm), five days
396-547: 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
495-681: A 20-year Leinster, Ireland and Blackrock College RFC veteran, who also represented Ireland in shot putting at the Olympics, Leo Cullen , former captain, now coach of the Leinster Rugby team and Shane Byrne , Leinster and Ireland professional rugby player. The current Ireland international team includes Ian Madigan , Jordi Murphy , Garry Ringrose , Andrew Conway and Joey Carbery , other Rugby internationals Include Vasily Artemyev (formerly of Russia), AJ MacGinty (USA) and Dylan Fawsitt (USA) In other games, Michael Cusack , founder of
594-717: 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
693-523: 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
792-575: A bishop and has a house named after him within the school. From 1924 until 1933 the Holy Ghost Fathers studied theology at Blackrock Castle, before returning to Kimmage Manor. In June 1932, college president John Charles McQuaid , hosted a large garden party on the grounds of the college to welcome the papal legate, Lorenzo Lauri , where the many hundreds of bishops assembled for the Eucharistic Congress of Dublin (1932) had
891-612: A blue silhouette of a rampant lion, that is, minus any fine caricature details so apparent in the existing variations. Blackrock is now run by the Congregation of the Holy Ghost in close co-operation with a dedicated group of lay personnel. The annual fees for students in 2011 were €6,300 for day boys, €17,250 for boarders and €18,250 for overseas boarders. The college and its sister schools in Ireland are today held in trust by
990-478: 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,
1089-553: 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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#17327910581521188-546: A full athletics programme. Blackrock College and Willow Park share a cycling club called the Willow Wheelers, run by Christy McDaid . The club has an annual trip abroad to either France or The Netherlands each Easter, recently in Cap D'Agde. It also has hostel trips to Clare and Donegal at the end of the school year. The club has an annual 160-kilometre (99 mi) cycle for charity which has raised around 150,000 euro in
1287-460: 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
1386-425: A heraldic description of the arms of the college was published (though not officially registered) in the 1937 Blackrock College Annual. It was commissioned into stained glass in 1938, presumably in its true and intended likeness and survives today at the end of one of the house corridors, though its conformity to the true heraldic interpretations is not accurate; "a Lion Rampant of the second" would correctly reveal only
1485-585: 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
1584-575: 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
1683-485: A preliminary to the annual provincial and national competitions. The athletics team participates in the East Leinster, Leinster and Ireland Athletic championships at under-14s to under-18s annually. Each year, opera productions are staged in conjunction with Mount Anville (senior musical) and Loreto Abbey, Dalkey (2nd and 4th-year musical), two nearby schools for girls. Debating is a tradition dating back to
1782-625: 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
1881-474: A sports day speech encapsulated the words Fides et Robur , which henceforth became the Rock motto. In 1928, a new College Crest, bearing four emblems around a blue cross was hurriedly officiated, primarily to show off the motto over the college's specially built new front gates. Not everyone was happy with this design and possible variations of a new design may have been experimented with; evidence exists that both in
1980-536: A team from the school won the Leinster and All-Ireland U-17s schools cup. The college has a swimming team, which combines 1st to 6th year. The college competes in Leinster Senior Schools and has won the senior relay cup multiple times, most recently in 2017, and the Irish senior schools, regularly making finals and achieving gold in 2017. The school has two 25-metre (82 ft) swimming pools on
2079-536: A trip to India in both 2012 and 2013 to the Transition Year boys, inviting them to see the projects which they helped fund through their Badge campaigns. The school also has a long-standing relationship with the Society of St. Vincent de Paul , contributing large sums of money raised through various projects. For example, the proceeds of the annual sale of Christmas trees in the college are donated. In 2007,
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#17327910581522178-429: A week. The station has a mix of programmes from its current affairs programming to its guest programming. Blackrock College Radio has featured many famous and influential guests including Enda Kenny , while in office as Taoiseach, Neil Flynn, Ryan Tubridy , Eamon Gilmore , Leo Cullen, Mary Hannifin, Micheál Martin , Ruairi Quinn , Brent Pope , David Norris , The Heathers, Bobby Kerr , and Denis O'Brien . Each year
2277-545: 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
2376-452: 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
2475-511: 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
2574-594: Is in the Jubilee Hall while the introduction of the new sports hall provides a professional basketball court and spectator area. The school has a tennis team divided between minors, juniors and seniors. They practise and play their home matches on the college's four tennis courts. 1st years in Willow Park also play on the college's tennis teams. The college also has teams in other sports such as cricket , golf , rowing and Judo . Cricket has been played since
2673-461: Is just in from the sea, and is self-contained, with boarding and teaching facilities in 56 acres of parkland. It accommodates approximately 1,000 day and boarding students. As of 2023, Blackrock is run by the Congregation of the Holy Ghost in close co-operation with a dedicated group of lay personnel. The college was founded in 1860 by Jules Leman , a French missionary with the Congregation of
2772-587: 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
2871-559: Is played in 4th year in the college. Past pupils Mark Vaughan and Niall Corkery are forwards on the Dublin Gaelic football team. The school also has a hurling team for 2nd and 3rd years. Five members of the All Ireland Club Championship winning Kilmacud Crokes team of 2008–09 were past pupils of Blackrock College. The college has a soccer team for its senior pupils in 4th, 5th and 6th years. In 2003
2970-412: 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
3069-666: 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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3168-881: The Band Aid and Live Aid movements for famine relief in the 1980s, was a student at the college. Frank Duff , the founder of the Legion of Mary , the Catholic lay movement, is also a past pupil. In his memoirs, Straight Left: A Journey in Politics Ruairi Quinn cites the ethos and "sense of solidarity" with the Third World that was imparted to students, including Bob Geldof, as a formative force. The Holy Ghost Fathers were (and remain) an active missionary order in Africa. He wrote: The poverty of distant Africa
3267-599: The Gaelic Athletic Association taught at the school and played early forms of hurling with the pupils. Golfer John O'Leary (winner of the Carrolls Irish Open), Alan Lee (Ireland soccer international) and Joey O'Meara (who represented Ireland in both Hockey and Cricket), also went to Blackrock. Retired Dublin GAA footballer Cian O'Sullivan and professional golfer Paul Dunne attended
3366-631: 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 ")
3465-581: The Royal University of Ireland ) was later added and operated for over forty years, until University College Dublin grew, and the school focused more on the secondary curriculum. Although never a seminary, some ordinations have taken place in Blackrock College. The first ordination there was on 22 April 1900, when Emile Allgeyer (a former student of Blackrock and the first to be made a bishop), ordained Joseph Shanahan who later became
3564-634: 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
3663-789: 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
3762-400: 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
3861-403: 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
3960-571: 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
4059-517: The Christmas tree project raised €93,000 and the total amount raised for the Society in that year is estimated to be in excess of €150,000. Other projects for St Vincent De Paul include the second and third-year duck races, which raise money through sponsorship. Christmas hampers are also packed and delivered by students and their families in the run-up to the holiday. This provides some families with
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4158-560: The Department of Education found exemplary standards of teaching and learning. The Irish Times placed the college in the "Top Ten" schools in the state, based on the proportion of students who accept a place in higher or further education. There are dedicated facilities for home economics and materials technology. The boarding school is housed in Williamstown Castle (known by students as "The Castle"). Williamstown Castle
4257-738: The Des Places Educational Association, which, as the college's patron, aims to maintain the Spiritan ethos in all five schools – Blackrock, Rockwell , St. Mary's , St. Michael's and Templeogue – conducted by the Congregation of the Holy Spirit in Ireland. The curriculum offered is broad, covering all common subjects in the State Examinations including Latin, German, art, music, business, materials technology wood, science and history. Inspections by
4356-471: 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
4455-472: The Holy Ghost , and was the first of the order's five schools in Ireland. Leman had a dual aim, namely to train personnel for missionary service in the Third World and to provide a first-class Roman Catholic education for Irish boys. It was originally known as the French College by the locals. A civil service training and university department (where students were examined and had degrees conferred by
4554-549: 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
4653-485: The Labour Party) and Barry Andrews , a former junior minister. Many businessmen have also attended the school such as David J. O'Reilly , chairman and former CEO of Chevron Corporation, and Brendan O'Regan , founder of Shannon Airport and proponent of the Irish peace and reconciliation process. Philip R. Lane (governor of the central bank), Ronan Dunne (EVP and group president of Verizon Wireless) also attended
4752-620: 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 ,
4851-740: The Spiritans have been associated with a number of child sexual abuse cases in Ireland; the Spiritans acknowledged in 2022 that they had paid out over €5m (£4.4m) in settlements for sexual abuse cases since 2004. In 2022 the Garda Síochána were involved in the investigation; 233 people had made allegations against 77 members of the Spiritans. Martin Kelly, leader of the Spiritans, admitted and apologised for abuse. At least six abusers are known to have operated at Blackrock College; in November 2022, it
4950-746: 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
5049-400: The castle on occasion, and for years a portrait of O'Connell adorned the room which is now the oratory. Tiernan Mealiffe is the director of boarding in the college. The boarding school contains around 100 students. Boarding is available from first year up to sixth year. Some day boys join the boarding school in 6th year in preparation for their Leaving Certificate . Boarders are allowed to leave
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#17327910581525148-571: The castle with permission. Sport is viewed as an integral part of a Blackrock College pupils education and each pupil is expected to participate in some activity. The principal sport in the college is rugby, with Blackrock having won the Leinster Schools Senior Cup 70 times (a figure larger than every other teams wins combined). It has also won the Leinster Schools Junior Cup 51 times. Blackrock won
5247-460: The college is the third creation, dating back to 1936, and shows a blue cross and a dove in its natural colours on a silver field, with a lion rampant in the first quarter. This is blazoned in the 1937 College Annual as follows: ARGENT: – On a Cross Azure, the Dove of the Holy Ghost, Proper, with seven Rays descendant, Or. In the first quarter a Lion rampant of the second. On 30 April 1926 Leen at
5346-582: The college, organises many charitable events throughout the year, assists the school (e.g., mentoring, management assistance, advice) and organises social events for members. There are branches in Ireland and across the world. Early Free State ministers such as Art O'Connor (secretary for agriculture 1921–1922), and Éamon de Valera , six times Taoiseach and the 3rd president of Ireland, studied and later taught in Blackrock. Modern politicians include Eoin O'Broin , Ruairi Quinn (a former minister and leader of
5445-579: The college. Irish language Irish ( Standard Irish : Gaeilge ), also known as Irish Gaelic or simply Gaelic ( / ˈ ɡ eɪ l ɪ k / GAY -lik ), 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
5544-431: The college. Writer Flann O'Brien , and journalist and scholar Tim Pat Coogan , were students of the school. Alumni in the fine arts include designer Paul Costelloe , composer Michael McGlynn and visual artist Robert Ballagh . The Holy Ghost Order has a long tradition of missionaries. Frank Duff , founder of the Legion of Mary , is perhaps the best-known. Singer, songwriter, author and political activist Bob Geldof
5643-403: The crest and in the uniform, by reason of fault or debate, and most likely between 1928 and 1936, a distinctive crest had been "with nine rays descendant, Or". In 1936, McQuaid instigated a new and distinctive crest that to this day is in continual use (unchecked variations and wayward deviations are contracted into stores by stationery and uniform suppliers). It was adopted on blazers that year and
5742-398: The current Leinster Rugby head coach and former Irish international Leo Cullen . Current professional players include Bristol and Ireland's Ian Madigan , Leinster and Ireland players Garry Ringrose , Caelan Doris and Jordi Murphy, Munster and Ireland's Andrew Conway and Joey Carbery, Sale Sharks and US Eagles' AJ MacGinty and multiple others around Ireland and the world. Gaelic football
5841-492: The cycling club are invited to see the club's projects throughout the world and to understand how their raised funds are spent. The students usually visit Ethiopia , and have visited Vietnam . The school's 6th-year students have the opportunity to travel to the school in Kenya every year after the leaving certificate examinations. The school is to be run by the Spiritans, who also run Blackrock College. Bob Geldof , initiator of
5940-640: The debate. The gold medal debates are used in the sixth year to select an eligible valedictorian for the year, who gives his address at both the graduation mass and again at prize day. The college's debaters participate in many competitions including the L&;H debates in UCD. The college has two main choirs: the Leman and the Libermann choirs . The Leman choir has members from the 2nd, 4th, 5th and 6th years. The best of
6039-414: 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
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#17327910581526138-399: The final of the Junior All Irelands in both seasons. In 2010, the Senior A team competed in the World Schools Championships for the first time. The college has its own basketball team run by teachers as well as professional coaches. The college has three outdoor basketball courts and different indoor basketball courts on the grounds. One indoor basketball court is in Willow Park gym, and one
6237-430: 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
6336-430: The first term (September to October) to St Vincent De Paul and in the second and third terms the focus is mainly on Goal, Aidlink and the Willow Wheelers humanitarian projects; all of which provide international aid. Up until 2017, the Transition Year students organised the annual St. Patrick's Day Badge appeal which raised large sums of money throughout Ireland for the Irish charities GOAL and Aidlink . Goal organized
6435-418: The first time in 2009, while the seniors also won the Leinster Senior League for the first time since 1968, as well as reaching the final of the Senior All Irelands for the first time. 2010 saw the junior team reach the Junior Cup final for the 3rd year in a row, however in 2008 and 2009 the Blackrock Junior A team completed the Leinster double, with victories in both Junior Cup and Junior League, and also reached
6534-400: The foundation of the school in 1860. There has been a renaissance on the cricket pitch in the last 10 years since the building of the new sports hall which is fully equipped with 2 full-sized practice lanes. This investment in cricket has helped the college to win its first Junior Cricket Trophy since 1964 and reach its first Senior Cup Final since 1961. Other sports include rowing, badminton and
6633-425: The grounds. The junior school Willow Park also has a swimming team. The college has teams in other water sports such as water polo and 4th years participate in rowing. Table tennis is another one of the college's sports with many of its students participating. Many players come from 2nd year with older years fielding fewer numbers. 2010 saw the Blackrock Senior A team retain the Leinster Schools Senior Cup, won for
6732-470: The inaugural cup competition held in 1887 and has been consistently the most successful team, winning the cup at least three times in every decade since. Retired Blackrock rugby union players include Fergus Slattery , Niall Brophy , Hugo MacNeill and Brendan Mullin (all playing before rugby union was professional), former British and Irish Lions , Ireland and Leinster captain Brian O'Driscoll , Shane Byrne , Victor Costello , Luke Fitzgerald , and
6831-498: 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
6930-410: 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
7029-425: 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 ,
7128-547: 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 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
7227-526: 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
7326-804: 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
7425-623: The necessary supplies of food for the period. The college supports humanitarian projects in Sub-Saharan Africa , mainly through the college's cycling club, the Willow Wheelers. In 2006, their annual sponsored 160 km (99 mi) cycle raised in excess of €60,000. The club also annually sends a group of self-funded volunteers to help with humanitarian projects in Africa, most commonly: establishing clean water supplies for villages and constructing schoolhouses, infirmaries or similar institutions. Transition year students who are members of
7524-469: 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
7623-655: 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
7722-403: The opportunity to mingle with a huge gathering of distinguished guests, including president of the executive council, Éamon de Valera , and others who had paid a modest subscription fee. Blackrock pays homage to its historical founders and other influential figures through its six student house names: De Valera ( Eamon De Valera , Duff, Ebenrecht, Leman, McQuaid, Shanahan. The coat of arms of
7821-503: 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
7920-464: The past few years. The club cycles every Sunday to varying destinations around Dublin. The college has an athletics team and encourages participation in both track events and field events. The college also has a cross-country team which competes regionally. The school organises the annual Blackrock College Invitational, inviting top athletic schools ( CBC Monkstown , St Gerards School, St Michael's College, Dublin and The King's Hospital to compete as
8019-557: 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
8118-492: 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 )
8217-432: 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
8316-647: 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
8415-543: The school's founding in the 1860s. There are separate clubs for junior and senior pupils. One of the college alumni, Shane Murphy (now a Senior Counsel), won the 1985 World University Debating Championship at McGill University, representing the Honourable Society of the King's Inns. The college holds gold medal debates for every academic year giving the students the opportunity to win the medal on prize day if they win
8514-603: The senior members of the Leman choir are accepted into the Libermann choir. In 2013, a group of students from the college's Leman choir reached the final of the All Island Choir Competition . The college has a choir for boarders and another for parents. The college has a youth orchestra . Each year, all the choirs and the orchestra host the annual Leman Concert in the National Concert Hall . A transition year program to set up and maintain
8613-726: 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
8712-594: 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
8811-465: 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 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
8910-554: Was also a student at the college. Eminent handbag designer Pauric Sweeney also calls Blackrock his alma mater. Radio and TV personality Ryan Tubridy attended the college. Singer-songwriter and producer Jonathon Ng (better known as EDEN) attended Blackrock, and in 2014 a video was posted on the college's YouTube account of Ng performing a song entitled "Amnesia". The college places a heavy emphasis on sport. Past pupils include Ireland internationals Brian O'Driscoll , former Ireland and Lions captain, Luke Fitzgerald , Victor Costello ,
9009-531: 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
9108-531: Was brought into our classrooms by our returned missionary teachers. Willow Park School , a private primary school that acts as the college's principal feeder, is also run by the order and is situated on the same campus. Until the early 1970s, St. Michael's College in Ballsbridge was also a feeder school for Blackrock College, but now has classes up to the Leaving Certificate . Members of
9207-484: Was built around 1780 on lands rented by the Fitzwilliams, later Pembrokes, to Counsellor William Vavasour. It resembled other spacious houses in the area including Willow Park and Castledawson, but a later owner, Thomas O'Mara, extensively redeveloped the building and its surrounds, adding the castellated finish, hence making it into a 'castle'. O'Mara had acted as an election agent for Daniel O'Connell , who dined in
9306-668: 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
9405-537: 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. Rockwell College Too Many Requests If you report this error to
9504-474: 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
9603-596: Was reported that 57 people had alleged that they had been abused on campus. Following the revelations, the government commissioned a scoping report into what had occurred. Almost 2,400 allegations of historic abuse at schools run by Catholic religious orders, including Blackrock, were found; in response to this report, in 2024 it was reported that a statutory commission of inquiry would be set up. As of 2022 one of its six student houses , McQuaid, continued to be named after alleged child sex offender John Charles McQuaid . The Blackrock College Union represents former students of
9702-693: 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
9801-442: 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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