Did you hear the one about the Irish couple who were arrested for speaking Irish at a July 4 parade?
Relax. The story was a hoax.
Still, there's a germ of truth in the story. Irish is a compulsory subject for all students in Ireland, despite which, for a variety of reasons, there are less than 100,000 native Irish speakers in the country, out of a population approaching four million (almost six million of you include Northern Ireland).
Most Irish people though, have a smidgin of Irish, enough to hold 'coded' conversations in the presence of the Gall, those without Irish.
Still, the longer its been since one left school, the rustier one becomes. For those with an interest, the internet is full of mailing lists and websites dedicated to refreshing that knowledge. This is not one of those sites.
This site aims to give you a refresher course in bluffing your way. I think Irish is fun (No, don't laugh, I'm being serious) and the lessons here, while not to be taken seriously, do contain a germ of truth. You won't learn Irish here. You might learn a little about the language though. If all you get is a laugh, well and good. If you get more, that's good too.
Just don't take it too seriously. You're not in school any more. No one is forcing you to read this.
* Entering the mind of the Gael
* Being and the Gael
* Creating new Gaelglish
* The Gael & the Living World
* The Joy of Copula-tion
* It Ain't What You Say
* How To Seduce In Gaelglish...
* Modern Ancient Proverbs
* Hard cases and bad laws
* How many is enough?
* Three Hundred Words
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Gearóid Mac Cuinneagáin
Tá m'aerbhád lán d'eascanna