Welsh Journals

Irish Free State Commission on the Irish Language. By F. Llewellyn Jones, B.A., LL.B. AMONG the numerous Government publica- tions of the Irish Free State there is probably none that is of such fundamental interest as the Report of the Commission Na Gaeltachta," which has recently been pub- lished. Having regard to the fact that the report deals with conditions in many respects closely analogous to those existing in parts of Wales, the value if its careful perusal by Welsh educationalists and administrators can hardly be overestimated. Unfortunately, although the re- port saw the light nearly two months ago, it has scarcely been noticed in the British Press. The Report is comprised in a volume of foolscap format, and contains 135 pages. The Report itself occupies 68 pages, and is followed by a number of appendices with carefully pre- pared statistical tables containing a special census of the Irish speaking districts, a return of Irish speakers in the Civil Service, and a number of interesting graphs relating to economic condi- tions. In an accompanying envelope is a series of maps of Ireland with detailed information as to the percentage of Irish speakers in various parts of Ireland at the census of 1911 and in August, 1925. It may be mentioned that the Report and Maps are published at the low price of half-a-crown. The Commission was appointed in January, 1925, and its terms of reference were To inquire and report as to the percentage of Irish speakers in a district which would warrant its being regarded as (a) an Irish speaking district or (b) a partly Irish speaking district, and the present extent and location of such districts." To inquire and make recommendations as to the use of Irish in the administration of such districts, the educational facilities therein, and any steps that should be taken to improve the economic conditions of the inhabitants." The Commission consisted of twelve members, four of whom were members of the Irish Parlia- ment, the others being persons who had been prominently associated with educational or administrative work in Ireland. After a number of preliminary sittings in Dublin the Commission spent fully two months at the close of the summer of last year in making their investigations in the West and South-West of Ireland. A special census of the whole or part of eleven counties was undertaken with a view to finding the number of Irish speakers in these counties. The Commissioners in their report, recommend that an Irish Speaking District should be a district in which the Irish language should be immediately restored in matters of education, administration, and for general purposes to the position that the English language occupies in England," while a Partly Irish Speaking Dis- trict should be one in which the Irish language should be restored to such a position, by gradual processes, at the earliest possible moment." An Irish Speaking District," in the opinion of the Commission, should be one where over 80 per cent. of the population speak Irish, while a Partly Irish Speaking District is one where not less than 25 per cent. and not more than 79 per cent. of the population speak Irish. A perusal of the very detailed census table in the Appendix to the Report will indicate the diffi- culty of defining the districts which are to be regarded as wholly or partly Irish speaking. In the first place there is not a single county in which the Irish speaking population approaches 80 per cent. of the whole population, in fact, there is not one county in which half of the people are Irish speaking, and only in six counties is the percentage of 25 exceeded. It is not without significance that notwithstanding the activities of the Gaelic League during the greater part of this century, the percentage of Irish speakers has generally suffered a serious drop since the Census of 1901. In the County of Donegal alone is an increase recorded, namely from 34.9 per cent. in 1901 to 36.2 per cent. in 1925, while on the other hand the other counties where Irish is spoken show the following decrease: Mayo from 50.1 per cent. to 32.6 per cent. Galway, from 57.8 per cent. to 48.2 per cent. Clare, from 45.7 per cent. to 26.4 per cent. Kerry, from 44.8 per cent. to 33.1 per cent. Cork, from 31.2 per cent. to 15.5 per cent. and Waterford, from 48.8 to 30.3 per cent. In the whole of Ireland there is no urban district with an Irish speaking popu- lation of over 50 per cent., and there are only three where the Irish speakers exceed a quarter of the population. In order, therefore, to build up the two types of districts, the Commissioners have taken the Dis- trict Electoral Divisions as their units, but have had to modify and re-arrange these districts so as to formulate their scheme. Each of the counties in which Irish is spoken is finally split up into three parts, the first comprising the Irish speaking districts," the second the Partly Irish speaking districts," leaving in each county an area outside these districts. The Irish speaking districts thus formed contain a total population of 164,744, of whom 144,821 are Irish speaking; the partly Irish speaking districts contain a total population of 294,890, with an Irish speaking population of 110,585. The former districts have therefore a population somewhat less than the