Thou'lt Aye Be Dear Tae Me: Gaelic

Scottish Gaelic has suffered terribly since the clan system collapsed in 1746. Today, no more than 70,000 speakers survive, most in the Western Isles. Like Irish Gaelic, Gaelic's cultural significance is not reflected in the weak demographics. What role it will play in newly-autonomous Scotland remains to be seen.

Internet magazine Scottish Radianceincludes a regular bilingual column in English and Gaelic. While Scottish Gaelic's media presence is growing, including Grampian Television programmes and the Gaelic radio network Radio nan Gaidheal, no Scottish Gaelic livestream sites are available. An Comunn Gàidhealach oversees the preservation of Gaelic language and culture in Scotland, and Sabhal Mór Ostaig, a Gaelic-language college, maintains an extensive Gaelic server.

Alba Nuadh (Nova Scotia)

Gaelic was the mother tongue of Canada's first five prime ministers, and it is still heard on the back roads of northern Nova Scotia. A hundred years ago Gaelic was the first language of most inhabitants of this region, which even boasted a Gaelic-speaking community of black American refugees from slavery. The recent popularity of Nova Scotia's Scottish-influenced music has brought Canada's remaining 1,000 celtophones into the lime light. Here too, Gaelic speakers are taking an active interest in preserving and promulgating their language and culture.

Mannin (The Isle of Man)

Though Irish tribes colonised the Isle of Man well into this millennium, modern Manx Gaelic is about as different from modern Irish as that spoken in Scotland. No one speaks Manx natively today, but like Cornish , it is the target of an enthusiastic revival movement. As a result, Manx enjoys greater Web presence than most "dead" minority languages.

Predicting the future is a risky business, particularly in a world where political realities change as quickly as they do today. Celtic languages, until lately dismissed as a lost cause, have proven remarkably resilient through the centuries. The European Union and recent international success of Gaelic singers are breathing new vigour into these formerly moribund traditions. Perhaps future linguists will remember this as the era that assured Gaelic's survival. I sincerely hope so.

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