Why isn't Irish the main language of Ireland?

Answer 1

The conquering English went to great lengths to exterminate Irishness, including the Irish language, and they almost succeeded. However, there remains a small population, mostly in the West of Ireland, that still speak Irish as their first or only language. And as the result of a very strong revival movement, the number of Irish speakers, as a second language, of course, is steadily increasing.

Answer

Some people in Ireland can still speak and write Irish, but in order to make a living they need to be able speak English. The British invaded Ireland several times in the past millennium, beginning with King John.

This invasion failed appallingly, after which no invasion was attempted until the reign of Elizabeth I, when a colony was set up in the north, and Dublin was taken over. After that, successive invasions by William III then set Northern Ireland as a British colony.

There is still a large amount of conflict there today. This repeated contact would surely make English a serious language there. Also, the related language Old Norse was there in the 900s, when there was a Viking settlement in Dublin.

Answer 2

The conquering English went to great lengths to exterminate Irishness, including the Irish language, and they almost succeeded. However, there remains a small population, mostly in the West of Ireland, that still speak Irish as their first or only language. And as the result of a very strong revival movement, the number of Irish speakers, as a second language, of course, is steadily increasing.

Answer 3

English has become the dominant language, mainly because of the British influence in Ireland throughout history. Irish is still spoken in some parts of the country as the main language. Also, Irish is very evident in many other ways in Ireland. It is a compulsory subject in schools. Street name plates and signposts always have both the English and Irish names on them. Many modern place names have their origins in Irish. Dublin comes from the Irish words Dubh Linn, meaning Black Pool. This is because an early settlement, well over 1000 years ago, where Dublin now is, was near a black pool.

Words that are part of place names often come from Irish. For example, lots of places begin with Kil or Kill, which comes from Cill, which is an old Irish word for church. Bally is common in names and it comes from Baile, which is a word that means town or place. Knock comes from cnoc, meaning hill. Dún is an Irish word for fort. There are many other examples. Some place names are mispronunciations of the Irish form, some are translations and sometimes the Irish name for a place is completely different to the English name. The Irish name used for Dublin is not Dubh Linn, but Baile Átha Cliath. It means the town at the crossing of the hurdle Ford. It was another settlement close to Dubh Linn, and as the two grew, they became one place and both names have survived.

There are Irish newspapers. There is a main radio station and a main television station in Irish. Even on the main English language TV and radio channels, there are some programmes in Irish. Some everyday words used when people speak English are Irish words. One of the best examples is Taoiseach, pronounced "tea shock", which is the official name for the head of an Irish government. It would be the equivalent of a prime minister in other countries. Lots of organisations have their names in Irish. People give their children names in Irish. There are many cultural events for the Irish language. There is a lot of music in the Irish language. Ireland's national anthem is always sung in Irish. In all of these ways, and in many others, the Irish language is still evident in Ireland, even if the majority of people don't speak it everyday or fluently.