Irish language learning course launched by Welsh innovators
Stephen Price
The resurgence in Irish language learning has been boosted with the launch of a complete web and app-based Irish course focused on speaking, which has been created by developers here in Wales.
SaySomethinginWelsh was created by language activists, who ‘cared more about getting people to speak Welsh than they did about looking as shiny’ as some of their competitors, and users have remarked on its methodology being ‘almost too clever’ – with its focus on speaking, something many learners say is often neglected in the world of language learning.
The trust in the SaySomethingin methodolody has been backed up with the decision from National Centre for Learning Welsh to partner with Duolingo first, before the organisation moved on to make SaySomethinginWelsh available to all their adult learners.
Now primary and secondary schools are starting to report impressive results from a homegrown Welsh app which is all about talking, as soon and as much as possible.
Launch
With the launch of the full Irish course back in May, things have never looked more promising for Irish speakers and learners, and perhaps most importantly, those curious about learning from scratch.
Aran Jones, co-founder of SaySomethingin, shared: “We’ve always wanted to help support our sister Celtic languages.
“We’ve built taster courses for Manx and Cornish, but now thanks to some funding from Agile Cymru, we’ve been able to publish a full course in Irish – we’re even a little worried that it might be slightly better than our Welsh course, but we’re trying to keep quiet about that.”
Connections
The SaySomethingin course for Irish is available on SaySomethingin.com and the Android and Apple app stores, with a free taster that will help learners say their first confident sentences in Irish in less than an hour.
Aran added: “We’re going to have a lot of fun with this.
“A better future for the Celtic languages is all about fun. We’re going to do a crazily intensive 10 day course in Ireland to prove that we can chat on TV and radio even as raw beginners.
“We don’t mind feeling embarrassed! If anyone is mad enough to come on that crash course with us – it’ll be exhausting! – they’ll be welcome for free, as long as we can find a place for them to sleep.’
The methodology made in Wales, shared in Ireland, with two nations proud of their own languages, offers a new dawn in our countries’ bonds, according to Aran who added: “If the SaySomethingin method works as well in Ireland as it has in Wales, this could be the beginning of a new kind of cultural connection between these two Celtic countries.”
Learn more about the Irish language course and take the free taster course at SaySomethingin.
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If those who created SaysomethingInWelsh can aid those learning Gaeilge with an app based course , all the better. I know in the past Irish speakers marveled how Cymraeg survived the onslaught of English where Gaelic (Gaeilge) in Ireland suffered even though they had the luxury of independence and the Irish sea separating the Republic from the British mainland.
The history of Ireland is very.different to.that of Wales and Welsh never experienced anything like the attacks on the language that Irish did. Nor did Wales suffer genocide under Cromwell like Ireland did when the English themselves reckoned that at least 40% of the population died and Wales didn’t have an alien arristocracy imposed on it in the way that Ireland did.