The vast majority of European countries are nation-states with common cultures and beliefs, and the language of the main ethnic group of each country is widely used in society as a symbol of the state, such as Italian, German, French, etc.
But Ireland, located in western Europe, is a different kind, not an indigenous language , English is popular in the country , while its own Irish language is rarely spoken and has even been designated as an endangered language by UNESCO.
Today Ireland has a population of about 5 million, with fewer than 5% of the country's native Speakers and concentrated in the backward mountainous regions of the west. Instead, English, a foreign language, became the mainstream of Irish society.
▲The location of Ireland
This is not unrelated to the 800-year british rule over Ireland, and even Irish society once prided itself on speaking English. In between, the Irish language is almost dying.
Many people think that Ireland's own national language can be developed after independence from the United Kingdom, but in fact, the endangerment of Irish language has not changed after Ireland's independence, and the proportion of speakers has become smaller and smaller, making Ireland one of the few countries that use non-national languages.
▲Irreversible! Irish-speaking areas continued to decline in the 20th century
So, how did English squeeze out the living space of Irish and become the mainstream language of Irish society? Why did the Irish abandon their national language?
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Irish was born more than 2,000 years ago as the language of the Celtic people, an ancient people living on the European continent. From the 8th century BC onwards, a section of the Celts migrated westward into the island of Ireland, where they fused with other tribes to form the early Irish language.
Early Irish was written in the Eugan alphabet and was not convenient to write. By the 5th century AD, the Latin alphabet had spread to Ireland in the footsteps of Christian missionaries. At the same time as the Irish converted to Christianity, they began to write their language in the Latin alphabet, and the Irish language achieved "product iteration".
▲ Eugan alphabet
The island of Britain, to the east of the island of Ireland, is undergoing more frequent power changes. The fertile soil and suitable climate of the southern part of the British Isle made it an object of conquest and plunder by external forces. The Romans and Anglo-Saxons came one after another to establish their rule over the southern part of the British Isles.
The source and occupied areas of the Anglo-Saxons
With the stabilization of Anglo-Saxon rule, the area in which they lived became known as the "Land of the Anglos", also known as England, and their language gradually developed into English. The Duke of Normandy conquered England in the 11th century, French became the court language of England for a long time, and a large number of French words entered english, promoting the development of English.
By around the 7th century, both The Latinized English and Irish languages had developed, but the two languages belonged to the Germanic and Celtic languages, which were quite different.
Duke of Normandy
Due to its close proximity to England, Ireland was an early target for England's expansion. In 1169, King Henry II of England personally conquered Ireland, and the princes of Ireland swore allegiance, and the power of England began to influence Ireland. Due to the political fragmentation of Ireland, England has seen the increasing influence of the needle, the king's direct territory in Ireland has been expanding, a large number of English have immigrated to Ireland, and the semi-independent Irish princes have been increasingly constrained.
In 1367, England passed the Kilkenny Act, which promoted an assimilation policy in the Areas under English control and promoted the spread of English in Ireland. By the end of the 16th century, King Henry VIII of England had established the Kingdom of Ireland, with himself as king. England accelerated its expansion in Ireland, and english began to penetrate into all classes of Ireland.
Henry VIII
Henry VIII took advantage of the Reformation's departure from Catholicism and established the Church of England, with the king in charge of the country's religion. But Ireland remains in the Catholic world, revering the Pope as its religious leader.
The Irish were already very resistant to Anglo rule, and the Reformation allowed ethnic conflicts to spread to the religious realm, and the Anglo-Irish conflict became more and more intense.
▲ Religious pattern after the Reformation
Anti-British uprisings rose and fell across Ireland, but Ireland was economically backward and had a small population. Under the suppression of England, the Irish resistance gradually disintegrated, and in 1641, two Irish earls who rebelled against English rule fled in defeat, and England used the "earl escape" to confiscate the territory of the four counties under their names, plus the counties of Cavan and Fermana as settlements for English Protestant immigrants.
These Protestants were loyal to England, and their conflicts with the Catholics of Ireland were frequent. As English immigrants increased, they made up the majority of the population in these six counties. These six counties formed the future Northern Ireland, which also became the abuse of the Northern Ireland problem.
In the middle of the 17th century, a revolution broke out in England. Ireland sided with the Royals, and Cromwell, a parliamentarian, led an expedition to Ireland, inflicting harsh punishment on the defeated Irish, and a large number of Irish Catholic lands were confiscated and distributed to English soldiers and merchants. As the English ruled the island, English gradually took the C position in towns, while the Irish were driven to the western part of the island, and Irish was spoken only in the countryside and the western region.
Cromwell invaded Ireland
Although britain and ireland were religiously, ethnically and culturally at odds, England had fertile soil and a large population. Compared with Ireland, which is poor in land and backward in economy, it has absolute self-confidence in strength. Ireland gradually fell into the pocket of England, and the Irish nobility began to speak English, which spread in Irish society and established the status of English in Ireland.
In the second half of the 18th century, the ideas of the Industrial Revolution affected Ireland, industrialization prompted a large number of Irish peasants to pour into the cities, English was the carrying language of towns and new technologies, and it was also the language used in education and work, and the Irish who entered the city gradually became the English-speaking population.
Changes in the distribution of the Irish language from 1800 to 2000
Limited industrialization has not changed the backward appearance of Ireland, which is still a backward agrarian economy, known as the "European countryside". Cultural inferiority made the Irish language even more useless, and the Irish middle class gradually became English-language during this period.
At the same time, Scotland also achieved the merger with England in the form of decrees, forming the "Kingdom of Great Britain", and English began to enter the Scottish region strongly, forming a unique accent of Scottish English. Conversely, the Scottish Gaelic language, which is also a Celtic language family as Irish, gradually declined.
▲ Scottish street signs
In 1801, the Kingdom of Great Britain merged with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland". Although both occasions and nominally equal, England, which was overwhelmingly dominant in terms of population and economic volume, dominated the combined country. English became the absolute dominant language of the United Kingdom, and "Englishization" and "Anglo-Saxonization" became the fatal blow that changed the soul of the Irish.
In 1833, the British government intervened in the Irish education system, and the Irish language completely lost its place in the education system, and students who communicated in Irish were ridiculed and even ruthlessly punished by the teachers. English education was imposed and the Irish language lost its soil for development.
Ireland (dark green) became part of the United Kingdom
Due to the huge differences in race and culture between Britain and Ireland, the Irish were completely suppressed in terms of religious rights and ethnic status.
Ireland, as an agricultural region, became the object of plunder by the British government. A large number of agricultural products are purchased cheaply, and the single industrial structure has also made Ireland's economic development lag behind for a long time. The Irish lived a poor and backward life, and the great famine in Ireland in 1845 caused by the failure of the potato harvest became the last straw that crushed the camels.
Due to Ireland's long history of poor land, lack of crops, and high potato yields and sufficient calories, it has been a staple food for The Irish since its introduction to Ireland. In the mid-19th century, the per capita daily consumption of potatoes in Ireland reached 2.3 kg, compared with 0.16 kg in France at the same time, which shows the importance of the potato to the Irish.
During the famine, the British government saw no death, and even had ulterior motives to increase Irish grain exports, countless ships carrying grain passed through Irish waters, but all were transported to England, more than a million Irish were starved to death, and more than a million were forced to emigrate to various parts of the Americas in order to make a living.
In 1850, the population was 8 million, and the great famine caused the population to plummet by nearly 2 million, and today The population of Ireland is only 5 million
Former U.S. Presidents Kennedy and Reagan are descendants of Irish immigrants. Ireland's population has fallen from eight million at its peak to less than six million, the vast majority of the population lost is Irish-speaking civilians, the number of Irish speakers has been greatly reduced, the resulting population loss has not yet recovered, and the decline of the Irish language has become irreversible.
▲ Famine Monument
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="214" >2, peoples who have lost their native language</h1>
The Great Famine is the history of the blood and tears of the Irish nation, but it also shaped the national consciousness of Ireland, and the national sentiment was also high. In the face of the British government's assimilation policy, a large number of Irish insightful people formed the "Gaelic Alliance" to revive the Irish language, but even if these organizations did their best, the Englishization of Ireland could not be reversed.
Before the Great Famine, half of Ireland's native-speaking population fell to 14% by 1901, and Ireland gradually transformed into an English-speaking society. At its root, English, promoted by the British government, was forcibly instilled into Irish children through the education system, interrupting the development of the Irish language.
▲ Irish writer Yeats
Britain developed rapidly, and English took root around the world along with British colonial conquests, becoming synonymous with strength and advancement. In contrast, since only some of the Irish countryside continued to be used, and these villages were the most backward areas in Britain at that time, Irish became synonymous with backwardness and poverty, and Irish society formed a trend of English speaking pride.
Although the language has changed, the spark for national independence still remains in the hearts of the Irish, and the rising nationalist sentiment has made the Irish continue to set off a wave of independence.
In 1919, the Independence faction took advantage of Britain's serious losses in World War I to launch the War of Independence. After thousands of casualties on both sides, the British recognized the independence of the 26 southern counties of the island of Ireland in 1921 and established the Irish Free State. The six northern counties remained in England because of the Protestant majority in England, known as Northern Ireland.
▲ The island of Ireland is divided into two
In the process of Irish independence, nationalists deliberately emphasized their Irish identity. But what is embarrassing is that the Irish language, as an important carrier of national culture, has played no role in the process of national independence.
The reason is that, first of all, the influence of English in Irish society is deeply rooted, the daily language of most Irish people is English, less than 15% of the Irish-speaking population, in the process of striving for independence, it is unrealistic to force a cut with English. A significant proportion of Irish people have lost their Irish language function, and the use of Irish will cause unnecessary trouble. Compared with language, the Catholic faith is better able to unite the Irish.
After independence, Ireland revived the Irish language in three ways. First of all, the areas in the west that insisted on using the Irish language were designated as "Irish-speaking areas", and a supporting economic development plan was formulated to change the backward appearance of the local area; secondly, it provided the necessary environment for the revival of the Irish language, established the status of Erlan as the Chinese, and English was also established as the official language due to its wide circulation. Government documents, social announcements, street signs must be bilingual, recruitment of officers, teachers and other positions, Irish speakers preferred. Thirdly, work began to revive Irish language education.
▲Today's Irish-speaking area (green)
Since 1922, the Irish language education policy has been introduced. For example, primary school students study Irish for at least one hour a day, teachers who teach in Irish receive additional salaries, students in the first and second grades of primary school can only teach in Irish, and students who answer in Irish for the final exam can receive extra points.
However, from the actual situation, in 1926, only 9% of all the active teachers in Ireland were able to teach in Irish, 35% of the teachers themselves were not proficient in Irish, and Irish teaching materials were quite scarce, and it was impossible to complete the educational plan.
▲ University College Dublin, Ireland
In 1926, Valera's Irish Soldiers' Party came to power. In the party's view, English has no role in the national strategy. Despite opposition from the opposition and the National Teachers' Association, Valera vigorously pursued the so-called "obligatory Irish" policy.
The policy requires that every Irish citizen must be familiar with the history and traditions of his or her own people, and teachers must complete the teaching of history and geography subjects in Irish, otherwise they will be rated as unqualified. Accordingly, the number of hours in English, Mathematics, Science and other subjects has been reduced. The Valera government's education minister, Derig, said that "if we do not vigorously oppose English, irish cannot be preserved".
Valera's "obligatory Irish" policy was linked to his conservative economic policy, arguing that economic development required the efforts of his own people, and foreign investment was denied entry into Ireland. The Irish, on the other hand, can only work together through their own linguistic and cultural connections. In this context, the "obligatory Irish" policy also became Valera's instrument of government, which lasted until 1948.
▲ Valera
Looking back at the eight hundred years of British colonial rule, the revival of the Irish language became irrefutable political correctness, which made the Irish government's policy of language revival out of touch with reality and set a hard target for Irish language education. Under extreme policies, although the Irish language has been revived to some extent, for example, by the 1940s, 43% of primary schools were taught in Irish, and the vast majority of the civil service could speak Irish fluently.
But extreme language policies also divided Irish society, and the opposition party described the Irish people at that time as "illiterate in two languages", in addition to education, Ireland's economic and trade policy at that time was also based on nationalism, and the separation from reality slowed economic development. After the end of World War II, the Irish language ushered in a new change.
Irish writer Joyce's Ulysses is regarded as the first English novel of the 20th century
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="215" > three, awkward Celtic tiger</h1>
After nearly 20 years in power, the Irish Soldiers Party, which holds high the banner of nationalism, has not allowed Ireland to take off economically, and the face of the backward country has not changed. There are calls for a more pragmatic government, and the party has suffered a huge crisis in power. When Valera stepped down in 1948, several Irish parties formed a coalition government.
After the establishment of the new government, it changed its previous conservative economic policies, attracted foreign investment, and actively promoted industrialization, and Ireland established an export-oriented strategy. As the economy grew, the original "obligatory Irish" policy was abandoned and replaced by an open bilingual policy.
▲ The Irish Parliament
The new Government is well aware that earlier policies placed too much emphasis on indicators and the status of the Irish language, with unqualified Irish students not even being able to progress to higher education, and the deterioration of English proficiency preventing students from studying abroad. After the end of World War II, Ireland withdrew from the Commonwealth and became more and more separated from Britain, no longer needing to emphasize its particularities in Irish as it did when it first became independent.
Irish language teaching time was compressed, and the number of schools with Irish as the language of instruction fell from 632 in the 40s to 161 in the 80s. In some schools, Irish is only a general subject.
In 1973, Ireland joined the European Community, the predecessor of the European Union, and further integrated into the European market, and the role of English was once again highlighted. In the same year, Ireland abolished the irish compulsory education policy, irish was no longer a compulsory subject for secondary school graduates, and even the civil service examination was abolished.
Ireland was once a traditional agricultural country
Ireland reduces the influence of politics on education and emphasizes the spontaneity of education. A large number of "immersion" schools have emerged, students and parents have spontaneously used Irish in life and learning, and the Irish government has established many Irish television stations and broadcasts, hoping to subtly improve the use of Irish.
In the 1990s, with the advancement of the process of European integration and the establishment of a special relationship between Ireland and the United States, Ireland became an important bridge connecting Europe and the United States. The average economic growth rate reached 7.6% during this period, and the per capita GDP surpassed that of the United Kingdom, ranking in the top ten in the world for many years. In one fell swoop, Ireland threw off the hat of "European countryside" and became the Celtic tiger.
In 2018, Ireland's per capita GDP ranked fourth in the world
Behind the rapid economic development, the revival of the Irish language has once again fallen into a bottleneck. The "Irish-speaking areas" established by the government have further diluted the Irish-speaking population due to industrialization and the migration of a large number of English-speaking populations. "Immersion" education has little connection to everyday life, students still use English outside of school, and the actual level of Irish is not high.
Due to the huge influence of English, in the context of global integration, a large number of Irish emigrated abroad and integrated into the English-speaking countries represented by the United States and Britain, and native Irish people are still willing to learn English. This made the status of the Irish language very awkward.
According to Irish authorities, about 35% of the nearly 5 million people in Ireland today consider themselves To speak Irish, but only 3%-5% of the population uses Irish in daily life. As things stand, English became the mother tongue of the vast majority of Irish, while Irish became a foreign language, and there is no doubt that the linguistic renaissance of Irish has failed.
Proportion of Speakers speaking Irish
Compared to Ireland, Israel's language revival program is an example to learn from. Since the reign of the Roman Empire, Jews have been forced to leave their homeland and disperse to european countries. They began to use the language of their country, and the original national language, Hebrew, became a religious language and was mastered by only a few people.
In modern times, the Israeli restoration movement has been vigorously carried out, and the revival of the Hebrew language has begun. Hebrew dictionaries and newspapers were published. After the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, Jews from all over the world returned to Israel, and with the encouragement and support of the government, Hebrew became the most important language spoken by Israelis.
Israel's experience is worth learning from, and the British-administered Northern Ireland also issued the Education Act in 1998, which emphasizes cultural diversity, encourages the opening of Irish language schools and promotes Irish language education. Nearly 5,000 people speak it as their mother tongue, while more than 100,000 speak it as a second language.
▲ Hebrew logo of the "Wailing Wall"
After more than eight hundred years of strong importation, the English language has become deeply rooted in Irish society. With its status as a global language and the strength of countries such as the United States and Britain, English still plays an important role in the world, which is unattainable in Irish, which is why most Irish people are willing to accept English as their mother tongue.
With the support of the government, irish language has restored a certain social function in just half a century, and the achievements are still there. As a symbol of national identity, it has an important place in the hearts of the Irish.
Many Irish are also helping to develop the Irish language in action. For example, the current President of Ireland, Michael. Higgins, an elderly man, was an Irish poet who often used his presidency to promote the transmission of the Irish language. But the revival of the Irish language failed, and the predominantly english made the Irish language very awkward. For the Irish language, the road to revival is long.
President Higgins visiting the United Kingdom
Long-term author | Biluo Qingyao
Veteran of history
Responsible editor| Thomas
Graduate of the London School of Economics and Political Science| Editor-in-Chief of the Global Intelligence Officer
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