Failte
our hostel, we had a nice chat with him about our trip and the places we’d visited so far, and he talked a bit about himself and told us how much he loved New York City. As we got closer to our hostel, Charlie added, “It’s a good thing I happened upon you. This part of the city’s famous for violence and muggings, and the pair of you with your backpacks would have been prime targets.” Charlie brought us to the corner of our street and wished us a pleasant trip, waving off our thanks with a sincere “Just doing what any decent person would do,” and he set off into the misty Dublin night, just one more of the open-hearted Irish men and women willing to help out strangers. Many people continue to return to Ireland to take more of it in—the natural beauty, the rich culture, the fascinating history, the welcoming people. These travelers have felt the magic. I know that I’ll be taking more trips to the Emerald Isle. I’ve been enchanted. “There’s a saying in Ireland,” O’Neill says. “‘You’ll never see the half of it.’ And that’s true; you won’t see it all. Not in one go, anyhow.” ∏
In Other Words . . . Gaeilge
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46 >> SUMMER 2010
Ireland seems like it would be a linguistically safe place for Americans to travel. Like Britain, it has its own distinctive flair without having a completely foreign language. What many travelers don’t realize is that Ireland does have its own language: Gaelic (Gaeilge). From welcome (fáilte, pronounced fell-tuh) to goodbye (slán, pronounced slawn), this language is one completely its own. The Irish language, spoken by the Celts, survived attacks by Viking Norse and Norman French but began to lose ground to British English during the eighteenth century. The
ruling British had imposed strict laws to oppress the Irish Catholics, including preventing them from teaching or attending schools (scoil). English (Bhéarla) first became the language of government (rialtos) and then of business (gnó), pushing the native Gaelic to the fringes of society. Deaths during the Great Potato Famine (an Gorta Mór) and emigration also reduced the number of native speakers. Few pockets of Gaelic speakers remained by the time Ireland (Éire) was granted independence in 1922. Gaelic was declared an official language in a preservation effort, but
only a few of the prime ministers (Taoiseach) have ever been fluent in it. However, though few present-day Dubliners remember anything from their mandatory Irish classes, interest in Gaelic seems to be rising. The upcoming generation is taking greater pride in their language, and fluency is seen as an “in-crowd” marker among college-age students. Lend a careful ear as you journey through Ireland and you may catch a phrase or two of a vibrant language, as intrinsic in the culture of Éire as the impressive green hills around you. —Caitlin Channer
Top: code poet jim; bottom: william bennett.
Right: The Giant’s Causeway, a natural basalt formation, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Below: Dublin International Youth Hostel in the north part of the city, where the author stayed during his excursion to Ireland.