Gaeilge
Irish
Celtic
Also known as: Irish, Gaeilge
Irish (Gaeilge) is the first official language of the Republic of Ireland (with English as the second), and an official EU language since 2007 (full status from 2022). Despite its constitutional status, daily L1 use is concentrated in the small Gaeltacht regions (Donegal, Galway/Connemara, Kerry, Mayo, Cork, Waterford, Meath) totaling ~70K daily speakers; another ~1.7M Irish residents claim some ability through compulsory schooling. It is a Goidelic Celtic language (sister to Scottish Gaelic gd and Manx gv; descended from Old Irish c. 600-900 CE — the Old Irish corpus is the third-oldest vernacular European literature after Greek and Latin), with three regional dialects (Munster, Connacht, Ulster). The 1958 Caighdeán Oifigiúil established a written standard. Distinctive features: VSO word order, initial consonant mutations (lenition séimhiú, eclipsis urú), broad/slender consonant pairs. The Gaelscoileanna (Irish-medium school) movement since the 1970s has revitalized urban use.
Where it is spoken
20 core words in Irish
Water
uisce
/ɪʃcə/
Fire
tine
/tʲɪnʲə/
Sun
grian
/ɡɾʲiən/
Moon
gealach
/ɟalax/
Mother
máthair
/mɑːhəɾʲ/
Father
athair
/ahəɾʲ/
Eat
ith
/ɪ/
Drink
ól
/oːl/
Love
grá
/ɡɾɑː/
Heart
croí
/kɾiː/
Tree
crann
/kɾɑːn/
House
teach
/tʲax/
Dog
madra
/mɑdɾə/
Cat
cat
/kɑt/
Hand
lámh
/lɑːv/
Eye
súil
/suːlʲ/
Hello
dia duit
/dʲiə dɪtʲ/
Thank you
go raibh maith agat
/ɡɔ ɾɛv mah aɡət/
One
aon
/eːn/
Good
maith
/mah/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Celtic languages
| Meaning | Irish | Scottish Gaelic | Manx | Middle Irish | Old Irish | Dutch | Frisian |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | uisce /ɪʃcə/ | uisge /ɯʃkʲə/ | ushtey /ˈuʃtʲə/ | usce /uske/ | uisce /ˈusʲkʲe/ | water /ʋaːtər/ | wetter /vɛtər/ |
| Fire | tine /tʲɪnʲə/ | teine /ˈtʲɛnʲə/ | aile /ailʲ/ | tene /tene/ | tene /tene/ | vuur /vyːr/ | fjoer /fjuːr/ |
| Sun | grian /ɡɾʲiən/ | grian /kɾʲiən/ | grian /ɡriən/ | grían /ɡrian/ | grían /ɡrian/ | zon /zɔn/ | sinne /sɪnə/ |
| Moon | gealach /ɟalax/ | gealach /kʲaɫəx/ | eayst /eːst/ | ésca /eːska/ | éscae /eːskai/ | maan /maːn/ | moanne /mwɑnə/ |
| Mother | máthair /mɑːhəɾʲ/ | màthair /maːhəɾʲ/ | moir /mɔːɾ/ | máthair /maːθirʲ/ | máthair /maːθirʲ/ | moeder /mudər/ | mem /mɛm/ |
| Father | athair /ahəɾʲ/ | athair /ahəɾʲ/ | ayr /ɛːr/ | athair /aθirʲ/ | athair /aθirʲ/ | vader /vaːdər/ | heit /hɛit/ |
| Eat | ith /ɪ/ | ith /i/ | gee /ɡʲiː/ | ithid /iθʲiðʲ/ | ithid /iθʲiðʲ/ | eten /eːtə/ | ite /iːtə/ |
| Drink | ól /oːl/ | òl /ɔːl/ | iu /juː/ | ól /oːl/ | ibid /iβʲiðʲ/ | drinken /drɪŋkə/ | drinke /drɪŋkə/ |
| Love | grá /ɡɾɑː/ | gaol /kɯːl/ | graih /ɡraːx/ | serc /serk/ | serc /serk/ | liefde /lifdə/ | leafde /lɪəfdə/ |
| Heart | croí /kɾiː/ | cridhe /kɾʲiə/ | cree /kɾiː/ | cride /krʲiðʲe/ | cride /krʲiðʲe/ | hart /ɦɑrt/ | hert /hɛrt/ |
| Tree | crann /kɾɑːn/ | craobh /kɾɯːv/ | billey /ˈbilʲə/ | crann /kran/ | crann /kran/ | boom /boːm/ | beam /bɪəm/ |
| House | teach /tʲax/ | taigh /tʰɤj/ | thie /tai/ | tech /tex/ | tech /tex/ | huis /ɦœʏs/ | hûs /huːs/ |
| Dog | madra /mɑdɾə/ | cù /kuː/ | moddey /ˈmɔðə/ | madra /madra/ | cú /kuː/ | hond /ɦɔnt/ | hûn /huːn/ |
| Cat | cat /kɑt/ | cat /kʰat/ | kayt /kat/ | cat /kat/ | cat /kat/ | kat /kɑt/ | kat /kɑt/ |
| Hand | lámh /lɑːv/ | làmh /ɫ̪aːv/ | laue /lɛːu/ | lám /laːv/ | lám /laːv/ | hand /ɦɑnt/ | hân /hɔːn/ |
| Eye | súil /suːlʲ/ | sùil /suːl/ | sooill /suːlʲ/ | súil /suːlʲ/ | súil /suːlʲ/ | oog /oːx/ | each /ɪəx/ |
| Hello | dia duit /dʲiə dɪtʲ/ | halò /haloː/ | moghrey mie /ˈmɔɣrə maɪ/ | fochen /foxʲen/ | fochen /foxʲen/ | hallo /ɦɑloː/ | hoi /hɔi/ |
| Thank you | go raibh maith agat /ɡɔ ɾɛv mah aɡət/ | tapadh leat /tʰapə lʲɛt/ | gura mie ayd /ˈɡura miː eːd/ | atlochur /atloxur/ | atlochur /atloxur/ | dank je /dɑŋk jə/ | tankewol /tɑŋkəvɔl/ |
| One | aon /eːn/ | aon /ɯːn/ | nane /næn/ | óen /oin/ | oín /oːin/ | een /eːn/ | ien /iːn/ |
| Good | maith /mah/ | math /ma/ | mie /maɪ/ | maith /maθʲ/ | maith /maθʲ/ | goed /xut/ | goed /ɡuət/ |
Word order compared
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