Scottish Gaelic is making something of a comeback in Glasgow, according to an article I found today in The Herald. This is largely thanks to the Sgoil Ghàidhlig Ghlaschu / the Glasgow Gaelic School, which provides education from nursery to secondary level through the medium of Gaelic.
Gaelic medium education has been available in Glasgow at primary level since 1986, when half the children who took this option had connections with the Gaelic-speaking highlands and islands. The Glasgow Gaelic School was opened in 2006 and currently has about 700 pupils, 80% of whom have no Gaelic connections, and some are from other countries. Demand for places outstrips supply and there are plans to expand the school over the next few years.
A new generation of young Gaelic speakers is emerging in Glasgow, and some of their parents are learning Gaelic as well. Similar things are happening in Edinburgh and Aberdeen. There is also an increased interest in Gaelic culture and music, and a thriving Gaelic pub scene.
In 1901 approximately 18,500 people in Glasgow spoke Gaelic according the census, though the actual number was probably higher. In 2001 the census revealed over 10,000 Gaelic speakers, and those speakers are spread across all age groups, whereas elsewhere in Scotland it’s mainly the older generations who speak Gaelic.
It seems as if the idea of learning Scottish Gaelic is becoming more attractive the people of Scotland. If this trend continues, it will be good news for the language.
Are there Edinburgh and Glasgow varieties of Scots Gaelic?
Phil,
Not really. Children from Gaelic speaking homes in Edinburgh/Glasgow generally have parents from the Highlands or Western Isles, which means their Gaelic will be Lewis/Uist/Skye/Harris Gaelic.
The children who go through Gaelic medium education from non-Gaelic speaking homes generally learn a standardised variety of the language which tends to follow Uist/Skye vocabulary and pronounciation.
It is really encouraging to know that there are 700 pupils at the school in Glasgow.
Tioraidh matha
Seumas
Newyddion Gwych
Great News
Seems like a parallel of Welsh back in the 70s when new hope was found with the ever expanding Welsh Medium. Look at Welsh now?
Keep it up
Go math.
In Ireland the number of Irish medium schools has grown enormously in the last twenty years which is something of a return to the situation in the 1950s and 1960s when many schools were all-Irish.
What is happening in Glasgow is very positive but I hope that there is more success than in Ireland in getting the language spoken outside of school and specific language settings. In Ireland people from English speaking backgrounds who go to Irish language schools do not generally bring up their children as Irish speakers. That is the great divide that you have to cross.
In Ireland many Irish speakers outside of the Gaeltacht rarely if ever use the language in everyday life though they may well listen to Irish language radion now and again and watch TG4.
Interestingly the Irish language magazine nós (http://www.nosmag.com/) also carries articles in Scots Gaelic.