98-575: The Mullet Peninsula ( Irish : Leithinis an Mhuirthead )—also known as the Mullet ( an Mhuirthead ) and sometimes as the Erris Peninsula —is a peninsula in the barony of Erris in County Mayo , Ireland. As of 2016 it has a population of 3963. It consists of a large promontory connected to the mainland at Belmullet ( Béal an Mhuirthead ), a town of about 1,000 inhabitants, by
196-541: A gaelscoil situated on the Killala road. There are also at least three Montessori schools and many pre-schools. There are three secondary schools; St Muredach's College (all-male), Moyne College (mixed), and St Mary's of the Convent of Mercy (all-female). A large, modern facility opened on McDermott Street (convent road) for the 2009–2010 school year to serve the needs of children with mild learning disabilities. It
294-547: 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
392-511: A 7th-century Bishop of Kilmoremoy. Quartered at Ardnaree, the "hill of executions", tradition says that their bodies were buried under the dolmen. The Belleek demesne once stretched for over three kilometres along the left bank of the Moy estuary, from the gate lodge on Castle Road as far as Knockatinnole Wood in the north. From here the demesne extended westward to the Killala Road where there
490-717: 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
588-526: A bayonet wound, that his fate was confirmed. Identified by his deformed feet, his death incited outrage and was noted for its horrific nature. In May 1921, two men, Thomas Jordan and William Leydon, were court-martialed at Renmore Barracks in Galway, and found guilty of carrying firearms. During the trial, it was alleged that, on 23 November 1921, seven masked men attempted a raid on a house in Ballina. Four of
686-575: 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
784-555: A brutal murder marked by torture and mutilation. His ordeal started when he lived in hiding after a raid at his mother's house. Captured by Crown forces on April 14th, 1921 while staying at a friend's house, he was then confined in a barracks. Despite attempts by his mother and friends to locate him, communication ceased. It was only when his mutilated body was discovered in Shraheen bog in June 1921, showing bullet wounds, amputated feet, and
882-591: A connecting bus to Ballina. Ballina's entertainment scene is supported by a number of traditional pubs, late bars and a variety of restaurants. The old Newman Institute building on Barrett Street is home to the Ballina Arts Centre, which was redeveloped to incorporate a new auditorium, dance studio, rehearsal space, exhibition gallery and coffee shop between 2009 and 2011. In 2009, the Jackie Clarke Collection went on display when
980-478: 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,
1078-553: 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
SECTION 10
#17327719080751176-543: A first language, it was no longer known by young people or used in the community. Ballina was one of the only parts of County Mayo not designated status as a Gaeltacht or 'Breac-Ghaeltacht,' a status given in 1929 to regions where more than 80% or 25% respectively of people spoke Irish as a first language. Ballina and Westport were among the first urban areas in County Mayo to adopt the English language. Records from
1274-596: A former Lord Lieutenant of Sligo , to designs attributed to the Irish architect John Benjamin Keane . Belleek remained within the ownership of the Knox-Gore family until 1942, when it was sold by William Arthur Cecil Saunders-Knox-Gore (1888-1975) due to mounting costs and rates. The River Moy forms the traditional county border between Mayo and Sligo . However, the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898 made
1372-460: 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
1470-430: A group of armed men targeted the houses of income-tax collectors living in the town. They forcibly entered the homes, held the occupants at gunpoint, and seized important books and papers related to tax collection. This event was part of a larger, coordinated series of attacks across Ireland, focusing on disrupting the administrative functions of income tax collection. In July 1920, a Royal Irish Constabulary police patrol
1568-623: A hotel), and the former provincial bank (now housing the Jackie Clarke Museum). The streets of Ballina consist mainly of three and four-storey Georgian and Victorian buildings, though the structures of several buildings are far older. The primary schools that serve the town include Scoil Iosa of the Convent of Mercy (mixed), Scoil Padraig (all-boys), the Quay NS (mixed), Culleens NS on the Killala Road (mixed), Breaffy NS (mixed), Behy NS (mixed) and Scoil na gCeithre Maol (mixed),
1666-691: A martial arts school, Moy Valley Freestyle, and a Jikishin Kage-ryu kenjutsu club. Ballina Golf Club is an 18-hole parkland golf course on the outskirts of the town on the Bonniconlon Road. A short lived greyhound racing track was opened by the Ballina Greyhound Racing Company Ltd in the town on 6 May 1948. The site near Coolcran farm was replaced by the Dunleavy cattle farm market in 1956. Ballina
1764-401: A narrow isthmus . There are several villages on the Mullet peninsula including Aughleam , Elly, Corclough and Binghamstown. The Peninsula is about 33 km (21 mi) long and ranges from 200 metres (660 ft) to 12 km (7.5 mi) wide. Its northernmost point is Erris Head . The peninsula's doglegged shape forms two bays, Blacksod Bay and Broadhaven Bay . The Mullet Peninsula
1862-530: 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
1960-575: 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
2058-625: 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
SECTION 20
#17327719080752156-547: 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
2254-514: A third bridge further down the river. The Salmon Weir Bridge is a pedestrian bridge over the River Moy from Barrett St. to Ridge Pool Rd. The bridge, which was designed to resemble a fishing rod, was opened in July 2009. Ballina Bus Station is host to a Bus Éireann bus depot. As of 2008, Bus Éireann reportedly stated an intention to develop services similar to the 24-hour Dublin-Belfast route on
2352-508: A train operates direct from Dublin to Ballina. Ballina is a major rail freight hub, with a direct freight line from the town to Waterford Port transporting pulpwood for Coillte, and as of late 2009, a direct Dublin Port line. Ireland West Airport (Knock Airport, NOC) is about 50.7 km, or 31.5 miles from Ballina. Bus Éireann now runs a shuttle service about five times a day from the airport to Charlestown , from where commuters can get
2450-545: 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
2548-603: 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
2646-459: Is alleged that a cure for eye problems can be acquired, is a couple of miles from the centre. Glosh tower on Termon Hill is one of the 82 Napoleonic signal towers built 1801-1806 by the English holds a commanding view of the area. Sculptures may be found on Glosh Beach. In the northwest of the Mullet peninsula a site for testing full-scale ocean wave power devices has been selected between Frenchport Pier, Annagh Head and Cross. This site will be
2744-452: 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
2842-691: Is also a monthly magazine called "Mayo Now" that was launched in March 2015. The Connaught Telegraph , published in Castlebar , and the Mayo News , published in Westport , also carry local news related to Ballina, though are less popular locally. Mid West Radio is the local station, with an office in the town. Historically, a number of newspapers have been directly linked with the town, including: [ M/W = merged with; C/A = continued as ] Throughout
2940-564: Is an amalgamation of the 2 old special needs schools, St. Dympna's and St. Nicholas'. The Newman Institute is located in a building near St Muredach's Cathedral. It is a charitable organisation working in conjunction with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Killala in the field of Catholic education. Ballina is one of the towns due to have a MAN (Metropolitan Area Network): the ductings and fiber optic cables are in place, but with no ISP connections. The MANs are being built for
3038-478: Is dedicated to Kinkead. From its foundation until the early 1900s, the Irish language was the primary language spoken in Ballina. As Irish began to decline in other parts of Ireland during the colonial period, it remained strong in County Mayo and in Ballina. By the 1920s, however, English had become the dominant language in Ballina. In the 1926 Census it was found that although many adults in Ballina had Irish as
Mullet Peninsula - Misplaced Pages Continue
3136-511: 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
3234-587: 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
3332-516: Is part of the Mayo Gaeltacht , meaning that Irish is a relatively common language. According to the 2016 census about 8% of the population spoke Irish on a daily basis outside the education system. The area has several Irish-language summer schools . The Mullet is a tourist destination, and has several beaches and a mild climate; chief attractions include golf , watersports , kiting , boating , fishing , and sea- angling . The origin of
3430-412: 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
3528-600: Is the Cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Killala . Work on the cathedral began in 1827. The stone was quarried locally and the roof and ceiling were completed before the Great Famine (1845). The spire was completed in 1855 and by 1875 the organ had been commissioned. Ballina has a number of listed buildings including Georgian housing on the banks of the Moy, the Ice House building (since converted into
3626-666: 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
3724-631: 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 ")
3822-453: The 1798 rebellion. The monument was originally sculpted by a Dublin craftsman but subsequently restored locally. The figure on the monument is not Humbert but Mother Ireland. Maud Gonne unveiled the monument, and at the unveiling event famously poured water over another speaker's (an IRB member) head. The monument was moved to its current location on Humbert Street in 1987, where it was re-dedicated by Maud Gonne's son, Seán MacBride . In
3920-634: 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
4018-495: The 1980s, Ballina had a number of local radio stations before the advent of legalised local radio in 1989. These stations included: ARW – Alternative Radio West, which operated from Lord Edward Street, Castle Radio – which was based in Belleek Castle, Westward Radio – broadcast from Howley Street (Later Teeling St), Holiday FM and TCR both of which were based on Tone Street. The N26 is the main road to Dublin: it leaves
Mullet Peninsula - Misplaced Pages Continue
4116-789: 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
4214-403: 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
4312-571: 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
4410-756: The Ballina-Dublin route. The route currently runs seven services a day between Ballina and the capital. In 2007, Bus Éireann launched a direct bus from Dublin Airport to Ballina. A Ballina to Enniscrone bus is run by several companies during the summer months. Ballina railway station is located on the N26 beside the bus station. Departing trains stop at Foxford before terminating at Manulla junction where passengers can connect to trains going to Castlebar , Westport or Dublin ( Heuston Station ). Trains to Dublin operate three times daily and on Friday evenings
4508-497: The Clarke Museum opened in the old provincial bank. During his lifetime, Clarke sourced and purchased a number of rare documents, including sole surviving copies of publications, rare handbills and proclamations, unpublished manuscripts and political writings. He donated his collections to the state, under the condition that they would stay in Ballina. Ballina's location on the River Moy favours salmon fishing, and one of
4606-566: The Department of Communications; they are due to be run by a private operator, but remain the property of the government. BCRfm (Ballina Community Radio) is the community radio station in the town. The Western People is a local newspaper, based in Ballina, which was previously also printed at its premises in the town. Two weekly freesheets, the Mayo Advertiser and The Northwest Express are distributed throughout Ballina. There
4704-471: 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
4802-549: 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
4900-605: The Mayo residence of the Earl of Arran, was attacked and set on fire by Anti-Treaty Irregulars. The castle, constructed in 1808 under the supervision of Lord Tyrawley, housed a collection of antique furniture and oil paintings. Around 350 precious works of art were destroyed in the blaze. In March 1923, an Anti-Treaty Irregular - Nicholas Corcoran - was captured near Lahardane by the Free State Army from Ballina and imprisoned in
4998-527: The Moy in the town centre. The first, the Armstrong and West, or Lower bridge, was built in 1835. The second, the Hamm bridge or Upper bridge, was built in the following year of 1836 by Thomas Hamm at a cost of £3,000.00. Both bridges are limestone, and have 4 and 5 arches respectively. Traffic flows in a one-way direction around these 2 bridges and is often heavily backed up on both sides, the reason for calls for
SECTION 50
#17327719080755096-557: The Mullet Peninsula. Bus Éireann route 446 links the peninsula with Belmullet , Bangor Erris , Bellacorick , Crossmolina and Ballina . There is one service a day in each direction, including Sundays. On Friday evenings an extra journey operates from Ballina. Onward bus and rail connections are available at Ballina . Irish language Irish ( Standard Irish : Gaeilge ), also known as Irish Gaelic or simply Gaelic ( / ˈ ɡ eɪ l ɪ k / GAY -lik ),
5194-469: The Mullet peninsula including the Inishkea Islands , Inishglora and Duvillaun . There are lighthouses on other small islands off the coast at Blackrock and Eagle Island . The Saint Deirbhle heritage centre based at Aughleam near the southern end of the peninsula has a collection of books and historical information on the area. The saint's old church and St. Deirbhile's Well, where it
5292-690: The Quay and compete in division 2B of the All Ireland League. Ballina's athletics club has a floodlight outdoor 400m track and a cross country pitch which sometimes holds the AAI Connacht and Mayo finals. The local triathlon club, Liquid Motion, holds a triathlon in the town every summer. In basketball, Team Loftus Recycling represent the town in Men's Division 1. Ballina also has Mayo's only Gymnastics Training Centre, Nadia Gym. The town also has
5390-620: 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 ,
5488-561: The US president Joe Biden visited the town and gave a keynote speech to tens of thousands of people on the final part of his four-day visit to the island of Ireland. His speech commemorated the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement . His speech also highlighted his family links to both Ballina and County Mayo . The town's architectural heritage includes the 15th-century Moyne Abbey , and St Muredach's Cathedral , which
5586-451: The Union Jack. This incident reportedly caused outrage throughout the town. During the evening of 3 April 1921, the IRA attacked a police patrol travelling between Ballina and Bonnaconlon, wounding one constable. A cache of ammunition was later found in the grove where the attack took place. The police subsequently raided a local dance hall and arrested all the men present. Michael Tolan, a tailor and IRA member from Ballina, fell victim to
5684-577: 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
5782-450: The best spots, the Ridge Pool, is situated in the heart of the town. The Ballina Salmon Festival is held annually in July in the town. The festival includes Heritage Day, where most of the centre of the town is closed to traffic and the streets fill with arts and craft stalls and demonstrations of transport from days gone by. The festival finale is a Mardi Gras followed by a monster fireworks display Tourist attractions include two museums in
5880-664: 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
5978-414: 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
SECTION 60
#17327719080756076-430: 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
6174-443: The first half of the 19th century, the rural areas around Ballina were heavily dependent on the potato as a primary source of food. When a potato blight struck in 1846, widespread starvation occurred. The Ballina workhouse served the entire northwestern coast of Mayo. As the famine took hold in the rural areas, huge numbers of starving peasants requested admission to the overcrowded facility. In February 1847 people were dying of fever at
6272-432: The first time full-scale devices have been tested off the west coast of Ireland. Prototypes have been tank tested in Cork and scaled models have undergone testing near Spiddal in Galway Bay in recent years. The wave energy potential in the Atlantic Ocean between North Mayo and West Donegal is one of the best in the world for the development of this new renewable energy technology. Several device types will be tested off
6370-404: The ford') is a town in north County Mayo , Ireland . It lies at the mouth of the River Moy near Killala Bay , in the Moy valley and Parish of Kilmoremoy, with the Ox Mountains to the east and the Nephin Beg mountains to the west. The town occupies two baronies ; Tirawley on the west bank of the Moy River, and Tireragh, a barony within County Sligo , on its east banks. At the 2022 census ,
6468-498: 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
6566-410: 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
6664-425: 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 ,
6762-399: 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
6860-400: The name may be from English and refer to the fish or the star shape used in heraldry . Despite its apparent sandy 'barrenness', the Mullet Peninsula has much to offer in way of interesting historical artefacts. The parish of Kilcommon which lies to the northeast of the Mullet has more visible prehistoric monuments such as in-situ megalithic tombs . Several islands lie off the coast of
6958-497: 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
7056-461: The names Mullet and an Mhuirthead is not clear. They may have come from Irish Muileat or an Mhuileat , which has been translated as "(the) isthmus ". Bernard O'Hara in Mayo: Aspects of its Heritage suggests that "A change from 'L' to 'R', which is quite common in Irish" may have resulted in a change to an Mhuireat , which in turn became an Mhuirthead . It has also been suggested that
7154-409: 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
7252-655: 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
7350-503: 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
7448-557: 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
7546-398: The population of Ballina was 10,556. According to Encyclopædia Britannica , the first signs of settlement on the site of the town date from around 1375 when an Augustinian friary was founded. Belleek, now part of the town, pre-dates the town's formation, and can be dated back to the 16th century. Ballina was founded as a garrison town in 1723 by O'Hara, Lord Tyrawley . Belleek Manor
7644-631: The raiders entered the house, and during a scuffle, residents managed to unmask two of them, identifying Jordan and Leydon. Despite Leydon's refusal to recognise the court's authority and witnesses who provided alibis which placed him at a different location at the time of the raid, both he and Jordan were sentenced to one year of hard labour. During the Irish Civil War (1922–1923), a number of incidents occurred in Ballina and its surrounding districts. For example, in September 1922, Castle Gore,
7742-521: The rate of almost ninety persons a week. There were attempts at mitigating the crisis by some local citizens. Francis Kinkead, the Church of Ireland curate in Ballina, who came to Ballina in 1837 and died on 27 January 1847, played a role in organising funds to help relieve the suffering of both the Catholic and Protestant populations. A marble memorial tablet on the wall of the Church of Ireland in Ballina
7840-492: 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 )
7938-432: 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
8036-712: 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
8134-589: The right (east) bank of the Moy, including Ardnaree and Crockets Town (the Quay), part of the administrative county of Mayo. This is a suburb of Ballina. The Battle of Ardnaree was fought there in 1586. Ardnaree Sarsfields GFC is based there. A centenary memorial (known as the Humbert Monument) was dedicated on 11 May 1898 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the French landing at Killala in support of
8232-465: The surrounding then Irish-speaking rural areas in Mayo and in neighbouring County Sligo suggest that Irish-speakers from those areas felt pressure to use English when in Ballina. Today only Ceathrú Thaidhg , 70 km to the west of Ballina remains a majority Irish-speaking area in County Mayo. During the Irish War of Independence , a number of violent incidents occurred in Ballina. In April 1920,
8330-626: The town south to Foxford , and after Swinford joins the N5 to Dublin . N59 comes from Belmullet and Crossmolina in the west, and goes through the town to Sligo to the northeast. The R314 is a regional road to Killala , and then Ballycastle . The R294 goes to south County Sligo via 'the Windy Gap' in the Ox Mountains . It is used as an alternative route to Dublin, via Tubbercurry and Boyle . There are two main bridges straddling
8428-404: The town, the Jackie Clarke Collection and Belleek Castle Museum. Ballina Stephenites is one of the local Gaelic Athletic Association club teams. The name also refers to the town's Gaelic Athletic Association grounds, James Stephens Park. Ballina Town and Ballina United are two of the town's soccer clubs, the former playing their home matches at Belleek Park. Ballina R.F.C. is located in
8526-604: The town. Subsequently, he and other prisoners were taken to clear a barricade from the railway at Ballinahaglish. When Corcoran refused to help remove the barricades, he was shot by a Free State soldier - Vol. Daniel Boyle - while kneeling. Boyle was charged with Corcoran's murder at Ballina District Court the following week. Ballina Urban District Council was based in offices in Market Square until 2003, when new offices were completed in Arran Place. On 14 April 2023,
8624-675: 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
8722-594: 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
8820-470: Was a secondary entrance at a place known as "The Black Woods". During the Irish Rebellion of 1798 , a small column of French soldiers advanced through the estate, as part of a reconnaissance group. This gave title to the avenue known as "The Old French Road". The manor house on the estate is Belleek Manor (now known as Belleek Castle Hotel) which was constructed from 1831 for Sir Francis Knox-Gore ,
8918-531: 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
9016-511: Was built between 1825 and 1831. The Dolmen of the Four Maols is located on 'Primrose Hill' behind Ballina's Railway Station. This Bronze Age cist is sometimes dated to c2,000 B.C. and is locally known as the 'Table of the Giants'. Legend suggests that the dolmen is the burial place of the four Maols (from the Irish word maol meaning "bald") – four brothers who murdered Ceallach ,
9114-668: 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
9212-602: 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. Ballina, County Mayo Ballina ( / ˌ b æ l ə ˈ n ɑː / bal-ə- NA ; Irish : Béal an Átha , meaning 'mouth of
9310-469: Was held up by armed men about a hundred yards from Ballina's barracks. The raiders demanded the surrender of the police's arms. The police opened fire, and the raiders returned fire, killing a sergeant and wounding a constable. Two other policemen escaped unharmed. In January 1921, auxiliary police arrested and humiliated several local merchants, reportedly forcing them to march through the town, holding Union Jacks, dragging an Irish flag, and kneeling to kiss
9408-474: 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
9506-693: 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
9604-495: 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,
#74925