English is the main spoken language throughout Ireland, with Gaelic a
compulsory subject in schools, colleges and in some universities. The Aran
Islands together with a large part of the West and South West of Ireland is
known as the Gaeltacht, where Gaelic is the first language.
Road signs and official notices are written in both English and Irish.
SPOKEN IRISH
Irish is a Celtic language spoken in a number of small communities, mostly in the west of Ireland, and by larger numbers of people scattered across the country. It has been the spoken language of Ireland for over two thousand years, and has an extensive literature stretching back to the seventh century. While Irish speakers are very much a minority in the Ireland of today, they have an importance to the cultural life of the nation far out of proportion to their numbers. Irish is by constitutional law the first official language of the Irish Republic
IRISH USAGE
Its roots/ usage today - blah blah and so forth
About the Irish Language
The Gaelic language is split into two distinct varieties: Irish Gaelic and Scottish Gaelic. Irish Gaelic, more commonly referred to simply as "Irish," is a Celtic language which is part of the Indo-European family of languages. Written Irish was based at first on Latin orthography and British pronunciation, making ancient texts difficult to decipher. Viking invasions in 8th century Ireland left a mark on the vocabulary by introducing Scandinavian words referring to navigation and urban life.
Up until the 17th century, the Irish language was spoken by the entire population of Ireland. It was predicted that Irish would become extinct in the 19th century because of the English influence. However, the language experienced a resurgence after the formation of the Irish Free State in 1921. A standard written form of the Irish language was implemented in 1945.
Today, about 500,000 people speak Irish, about one-seventh of the population of the Republic of Ireland. It is the official language of Ireland, but has been overtaken by English as the primary spoken language. Because of this, there have been revival programs instigated by the government and it is taught in all of the schools in Ireland so that students can learn Irish. Dialects of Irish are prominent in the following areas: Munster, Connacht, Donegal, Leinster, and Ulster.
English words of Gaelic origin include bard, glen, bog, whiskey, shamrock, and galore.