Why do the Irish speak English instead of Gaelic?

Question

I am curious to find out why the Irish continue to use English when they have their native language of Gaelic? Other formerly colonized countries or oppressed regions like Korea or the Basque Country successfully preserved their languages which now flourish but why not the Irish? I know they have areas where Gaelic is still used called "Gaeltacht" but why can't the entire country become a "Gaeltacht"?

Answer 1

Have you ever tried to learn Gaelic? LOL I tried but gave up and I can speak English, French and Italian fluently.

Answer 2

To the first person who answered: Welsh is a Brythonic language, not a Goidelic one. Meaning it is more akin to Cornish, not Gaelic ~ just to set things straight.

The English government prohibited the use of Gaelic in both Ireland and Scotland, with Scotland having to bear the full force of their attempts at assimilation. And if you're wondering whether Irish has survived, it definitely has more than any other Gaelic language and there's a movement to bring it back to areas where it has been lost. Here's a quote from wikipedia to help you understand where things went wrong:

"A combination of the introduction of a primary education system (the 'National Schools'), in which Irish was prohibited and only English taught by order of the British government, and the Great Famine (An Gorta Mór) which hit a disportionately high number of Irish language speakers (who lived in the poorer areas heavily hit by famine deaths and emigration), hastened its rapid decline. Irish political leaders, such as Daniel O'Connell (Dónall Ó Conaill), too were critical of the language, seeing it as 'backward', with English the language of the future. Contemporary reports spoke of Irish-speaking parents actively discouraging their children from speaking the language, and encouraging the use of English instead. This practice continued long after independence, as the stigma of speaking Irish remained very strong. Despite the policy of successive Irish governments to promote the language the decline in the number of native speakers (language shift) within the Gaeltacht has accelerated although the number of those elsewhere in the country able to speak it (as a second language) has increased albeit not to the extent that many hoped."

Once a language has been (literally) beaten out of a few generations, it's extremely hard to get the language back. Those children who were forbidden to speak it, ended up not teaching their children and so on. It's a downward spiral and the only way to get it back is to learn it in school or on your own. Many feel that there's no need to learn it, purely from a practical point of view. They fail to see the importance of keeping a language and culture alive, or any reason to spend money on it. Scottish Gaelic is in much worse shape, and Manx Gaelic is technically extinct. I think it's unfair to use Korea as an example in comparison, as there are different factors involved. I am certainly no historian, and have fairly limited knowledge of Korean history, but as far as I know the Japanese left after the 35 yr reign. England/Britain still has a hold over Ireland, but mainly b/c English is now regarded as the language of business and the pressure to learn and use it is felt worldwide. A lot of the descendants of the people who were forced to stop speaking Irish, now regard the language as "backward" or something from the olden days. This is what happens when a culture is slowly assimilated. They were basically brainwashed into believing that they were inferior to English culture, until that was the only culture they knew and had nothing to go back to.

Answer 3

Think of it this way, you're growing up in Wales, you have to learn both, by law every website in Wales has to have a gaelic version, so they do try and preserve it, however, speaking Gaelic does not server people much on an internationnal level which is why most of the younger generation are choosing to invest more work into English.

Answer 4

As I remember, English was forced on them many generations ago. And since English is becoming so widespread perhaps they decided to stick with the language that had the widest acceptance.

If you hope to work anywhere in the world, English would give the greatest opportunities.

It is good that some people are working to preserve that ancient language. It would be sad if it were lost.

Answer 5

In Scotland there is a movement for people to re-learn Gaelic, and in the Hebrides, you'll find road signs written in both languages. I guess it's a matter of cultural priorities. Personally, I think it would be nice to see Irish language re-introduced in Irish schools.

Answer 6

Because it became more useful for them to change to English.

Answer 7

I have relatives in County Galway who speak both.