The Basics of Irish
Irish is one of the three Gaelic languages; the others being Manx Gaelic and Scots Gaelic derived from the Goidelic branch of the Celtic languages. When many people think of Gaelic they tend to group all three of these languages together as one. All three languages are very different with each one having various local dialects and influences from the English language. The main difference between all three is that Irish is the only Gaelic language that is on the UNESCO Interactive Endangered Languages list. The reason that Irish has made that list is because it is considered a dying language.
Like the Cherokee language in America, Irish is the foundation for various place names having a cultural influence on the modern land. Rivers, mountains, historical monuments, roads and towns all have Irish names. Again, like the Cherokee and other Native American languages in America, Irish has been mainly phased out with the use of English dominating the main line of common communication. The spread of English-speaking immigrants into both countries has contributed to the replacement of history and the way each land has developed in accordance with the economic growth of other English-speaking countries.
The main Gaeltacht (areas where Irish are spoken) began to fade out at the start of the Great Famine in the mid-1800s and the last invasion of the English to the island. Under English rule the Irish were made to learn and speak English when dealing with the ruling officials. When the Republic of Ireland was formed and the English only retained Northern Ireland, the government of the Republic established Irish as the official language but still dealt in the English language as many people had started to use that language more. English was the official language of Northern Ireland until the Good Friday Agreement of 1998 allowed Irish to be used again in that area. Using English instead of Irish also helped the new government in communicating with foreign governments for economic purposes.
Impact of Technology
The developing technology of our world made more commerce possible and outsourcing became a large and profitable venue. The majority of businesses outsourcing to other countries use English as the main language and Ireland became a major hub for outsourcing from the United Kingdom and America. In 2007 the profits for Ireland due to outsourcing reached over $357 million dollars. In addition to outsourcing, the Dublin Institute of Technology has helped to gear Irish students for working in the fields of computer programming, web design and Internet businesses, all covered in English.
The full influence of our world technology and the English language domination is covered in Nicholas Ostler’s book Empires of the Word: A Language History of the World where he writes. “Even more, the twentieth century’s technological revolutions in communications, telephones, films, car ownership, television, computing and the Internet were let overwhelmingly from English-speaking America, projecting its language across the world, to parts untouched even by the British Empire." Historically then, we can see how English is spreading through the world while other languages that have not adapted are dying out. Irish is one of those lingering languages underneath the English language veil that is dying out.