Litriocht.com

...de Inside Ireland:

Tom Fitzgerald, Litriocht’s owner, has spent 10 years challenging the status quo of the Irish language business. Back in 1999, ecommerce websites were unknown in most of Ireland, let alone in the Irish language business. Even Amazon.com was in its infancy with only four years in business.

Tom saw ecommerce as a long term opportunity. “I knew the market was there. I had been trying to buy Irish books in California as far back as 1980 and it wasn’t easy. I also knew that the market was in the Diaspora, and when I spoke to Bord na Gaeilge in 1999, they were totally unaware either the diaspora market or ecommerce as a route to get there.”

As Amazon became a big story in the following five years, Litriocht.com became known as 'Amazon.com na Gaeilge'.

With very poor broadband in Ireland, the US remained Litriocht’s top market for several years. Perhaps more interesting was the fact that Finland held the Number 2 position for quite a long period of time. Very loyal customers like Panu Hoglund in Finland were delighted with the choices at Litriocht....

George Sorial

….de STV:

Donald Trump’s right hand man is learning Gaelic from a celebrated Scots singer through her Twitter page.

George Sorial, Managing Director of The Trump Organisation, has joined the army of people interested in the traditional Scottish language through the daily ‘Tweets’ from Gaelic singer Fiona J. Mackenzie.

Fiona has been posting several short lessons on her site (under the twitter name Gaelicsinger) every day that are read and learnt by over 700 people from all over the world.

Mr Sorial said: “Gaelicsinger’s daily Gaelic Tweets take me back to my childhood summers spent at my Grannie’s home on the Hebridean island of Lewis where I heard Gaelic every day.

“I don’t get to hear it very often in NYC so the Tweets are an ideal, quick way for me to keep in touch with the culture of my youth and it’s great to hear the accent – and the music - on the actual podcasts on her website.”...

Nelson McCausland

….de Nelson McCausland:

This afternoon I met representatives of the Irish language organisation Pobal. At the present time I am preparing a paper on a minority languages strategy for Northern Ireland and it was an opportunity to hear the views of Janet Muller and her colleagues.

We have two indigenous minority languages in Northern Ireland, Ulster-Scots and Irish, and I said to the folk from Pobal that the nearest situation to that in Northern Ireland was the situation in Scotland, where there are also two indigenous minority languages, Scots and Gaelic.

There are differences but there are also similarities, not least the fact that the two minority languages in Ulster are sister languages to the minority languages in Scotland. Scottish Gaelic developed from Irish Gaelic and Ulster-Scots is a variant of Scots.

I also explained that one of my priorities was to promote a shared and better future and that the minority languages strategy would reflect the core principles of that priority, which are equity, diversity and independence.

cogar.ie

Brud Nevez

…de Breizhoo:

La réputation d'Hervé Bellec n'est plus à faire.. Sa contribution à la littérature bretonne d'expression française est multiple : chroniques de voyage (dont "Les sirènes du Transsibérien", récemment paru), ses billets, ses romans et ses récits témoignent de la diversité de son inspiration, de la qualité de son humour, de son regard sans trop d'illusions sur notre société, ainsi que de la vivacité de son écriture.

Brud Nevez a donc voulu échanger avec Hervé Bellec dans un dialogue au-delà de la langue. La revue en langue bretonne propose à ses lecteurs de partir à la découverte de l'écrivain grâce à une interview réalisée par Marie Kermarec et Louis Grall et publie à cet effet la traduction en breton d'un chapitre de chacun de ses livres. Une initiative originale, sans aucun doute.

Mike O’Hara & Carol Steere

…de la Guernsey Press:

A fact-findind mission to the Isle of Man was both inspirational and relevant, two ministers said.

Culture and Leisure minister Mike O’Hara and Education minister Carol Steere said the trip was to see how the island was keeping its heritage alive and particularly to find out how its almost dead language had been rejuvenated.

The visiting deputies and accompanying officers, learned that around 1,300 children were being taught Manx at school and that number was expected to rise.

‘It was obvious that they were all very proud to be keeping their native language alive,’ said Deputy O’Hara….

Pobal

…de la Fermanagh Herald:

Culture Minister, Nelson McCausland met with Janet Muller, CEO of POBAL and a delegation from the Irish Language community.

The Minister welcomed the opportunity to meet with the representatives and said: "Northern Ireland has a rich cultural diversity and all regional or minority languages are equally important and must be recognised and respected.

"I am committed to bringing forward a strategy for the Ulster-Scots culture, heritage and language and for the Irish language, as set out in the St Andrew's Agreement.

The Minister said: "I am considering a number of issues surrounding the protection and development of Ulster-Scots and Irish...

Bethan Jenkins

…de This is South Wales:

Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams was in Swansea yesterday to address the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly.

Mr Adams, the first party leader to address the Assembly spoke at the Marriott Hotel about his vision of a shared, integrated Ireland.

He discussed with members his hopes that Ireland would have equal ownership and be culturally diverse with political, social and economic equality….

…In a question and answer session, South Wales West AM, Bethan Jenkins asked Mr Adams how he saw the role of the devolved governments working with the Northern Irish administration and his party in achieving that aim.

Her question came in response to Mr Adams saying that Welsh interests would be served by helping Ireland with reunification.

Mr Adams said the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly was the ideal place for people of all nations to work together to assist with the reunification of Ireland.

He said Wales was currently seeking a new Welsh Language Act, and Sinn Fein wanted an Irish Language Act but was facing difficulties in pressing ahead due to opposition by Unionists….

Cá bhFuil Ár Scoil?

GAELSCOIL BHARRA Ascal An Fhasaigh An Chabrach BAC 7

A Dublin Gaelscoil (Bharra) are looking to take their new single, 'Ca Bhfuil Ár Scoil', to the top of the Irish Charts. The single release date is Friday 16th October.

After 14 years of fighting for a permanent school building, the children of Gaelscoil Bharra, Cabra are bringing their campaign to the nation.

The Department of Education acknowledged in 2001 that the school was located in appalling temporary accommodation.

Yet they have done nothing about it. But you can do something about it by getting this song to No.1 in the Irish charts.

It’s easy to help, and downloading the single only costs 99c.

a.. Simply download it in a few seconds via your phone (just text “music 4075m” to 57501) or

b. Download it from iTunes or

c. If you want one of the special limited editions of the CD you can buy it from Tower Records, Wicklow Street, Dublin 2 for €3.

One purchase from each source will count but you can do all three of the above and all three will count. The children need only 1,800 downloads/sales to make it to No.1. Make this happen for the children in your Community – DOWNLOAD IT NOW! A gig to celebrate the launch of the single is on the 22nd Oct (Thursday) in the Village. The band is Tupelo. Tickets for the gig are €10 at the Door.

Deasún Mac an Easpaig

…de la Irish Voice:

...Perhaps the best advocate for Irish is fellow Queens, NY native Des Bishop. Bishop moved to Ireland when he was in his mid-teens and, thus, was exempt from having to learn Irish while in school here. That exemption probably explains Bishop's recently found love of Irish better than anything else: he wasn't turned off the language by the school and exam process.

Bishop is a well known stand-up comedian, which gives him a platform to reach out to those teenagers and 20-somethings, so many of whom detest the thought of Irish. Bishop’s first foray into the mother tongue was an Irish version of the rap single "Jump Around" by House of Pain. This was a big hit with audiences all over the country.

However Bishop took it a lot further last year with his ‘reality’ television series that tracked his efforts to learn Irish in a year and finish up with a whole night of comedy in the language.

"In the Name of the Fada," is great television and with it Bishop has made Irish ‘cool’, to an extent anyway. There’s a lot for the language to overcome, but if somehow someone can convince the staid folks in charge of setting education policy – and Bishop is working on this – then maybe the language.

“Iechyd Da”

…de Paul Flynn, MP:

Gerry Adams was welcomed to Swansea this morning. He had a message of hope with bitter edges.

He reacted warmly to the questions in the Welsh language.

It's the only Celtic language that is used fully, naturally and fluently in the political life of a nation. But Gerry had one one startling story of the prickly jagged edge to the relationship between Wales and Ireland.

When he was in Long Kesh as an uncharged prisoner Gerry Adams took part in an escape plot. The result was that a close friend, also an uncharged prisoner, was shot dead by a Welsh Guardsman. It was in Long Kesh where Gerry first heard the expression 'Iechyd Da' Welsh for 'Good health'.

When the Welsh Guards finished their tour of duty at Long kesh, the IRA prisoners lined up to chant 'Iechyd da' in a derisive farewell. Later I asked Gerry whether I got the point of his story right. The farewell was not a friendly 'Good luck to our fellow Celtic brethren?'. "No. It wasn't" said Gerry.

Skath

…de This is Cornwall:

The programme for the 2009 Cornwall Film Festival has been announced by festival director Donna Anton.

Scheduled for November 13 to 15 , the eighth annual festival will be held in four venues around Falmouth…

… The world premiere of the Cornish language film Skath, directed and produced by Paul Farmer, the winner of last year's £5,000 Govyn Kernewek filmmaking commission. Skath, which means 'gig' in Cornish, documents the ambitions of Pol Hodge as he progresses from unfit novice to serious competitor in the World Pilot Gig Championships in Scilly...

Acht Gaeilge

...de Sinn Féin:

Ag caint di inniu, agus tacaíocht faighte aici do Acht na Gaeilge ó thíortha eile san Aontas Eorpach, dúirt BPÉ Shinn Féin Bairbre de Brún;

“Cháin an litir na páirtithe siúd a shínigh suas do Chomhaontú Chill Rímhin agus nár chomhlíon na dualgais a bhí orthu.

Shínigh cúig comhaltaí eile de Pharlaimint na hEorpa litir chuig an Chéad agus leas-Chéad Aire inar iar siad, mar Comhaltaí i bParlaimint ilteangach na hEorpa, ar an Fheidhmeannas sa Tuaisceart cosaint dlíthiúil a thabhairt don Ghaeilge.

D’iarr siad orthu fosta a dtionchar agus a sainordú a úsáid chun an reachtaíocht riachtanach seo a thabhairt chun tosaigh.”

Lingva Morto

...de la BBC:

An estimated 7,000 languages are being spoken around the world. But that number is expected to shrink rapidly in the coming decades. What is lost when a language dies?

In 1992 a prominent US linguist stunned the academic world by predicting that by the year 2100, 90% of the world's languages would have ceased to exist.

Far from inspiring the world to act, the issue is still on the margins, according to prominent French linguist Claude Hagege.

"Most people are not at all interested in the death of languages," he says. "If we are not cautious about the way English is progressing it may eventually kill most other languages." ,,.

...Closer to home, Cornish intellectuals, inspired by the reintroduction of Hebrew, succeeded in bringing the seemingly dead Cornish language back into use in the 20th Century. In 2002 the government recognised it as a living minority language. ...