Labhair Gaeilge Liom a project by the Gaelgoer team
• an initiative to connect Irish speakers with each other, both in person and online • addresses the issue that Irish is rarely heard in Dublin’s public spaces • people working in customer-facing roles across Dublin wear the ‘Labhair Gaeilge Liom’ (Speak Irish to me) badge, inviting customers to speak to them in Irish • there are plans to develop an app that would locate Irish speakers worldwide and enable them to contact each other and have exchanges in Irish What inspired you to start the project? As I moved about our capital city in the past few years I loved to listen to the many languages from all corners of the globe. As I listened I began to wonder, “Where is the Irish language in the midst of all these languages? Why is it that one does not hear the Irish language in daily encounters between Irish people?”. I read some reports about the current status of the Irish language, and noted that one of the reasons mooted was that Irish speakers do not know who the Irish speakers around them are. What has been the impact of the project? I designed a badge saying ‘Labhair Gaeilge Liom’ and identified ten shops or businesses where one or more members of staff spoke Irish. I requested that they wear my badge for two weeks, and fill in a form at the end of each day indicating how many customers spoke to them in Irish. Over the two weeks, 35
between one and seven people spoke to them in Irish each day. We are now designing an app called GAELGOER that will assist Irish speakers to locate and communicate with each other. What would you advise someone who would like to replicate your project? They can contact me to use the ‘Labhair Gaeilge Liom’ badge already available and identify Irish speakers in their area. We would also like their support in our plans to develop GAELGOER, the first communications app in Irish. Contact details: Noreen Breen, Project Leader, Retired Primary School Teacher and CDVEC Chief Psychologist www.gaelgoer.ie
