There’s lots of life around the Irish language outside of Ireland. I think that many people in Ireland don’t even realize the number of you who want to learn, or are learning.
Irish is taught at some American universities, in particular Notre Dame. Other organizations, like Indiana Celtic Community, also work hard to make classes available.
Ireland-United States Fulbright Commission report released
In the past month, the Ireland-United States Fulbright Commission released a big report on Irish language learners in the USA.
Many findings of the report are interesting, such as that 98% of respondents (Irish language learners or teachers) said that it is important to preserve minority languages.
The Fulbright Commission report looked specifically at learners in the USA.
I had a look at our number of Bitesize Irish Gaelic members, to compare. Bitesize Irish Gaelic offers online Irish language lessons with audio pronunciation. I wondered where Bitesize Irish Gaelic members come from.
From which countries do our online Irish language learners come from?
I think it’s pretty clear…
While many come from the USA, other countries that our online learners come from are:
- Canada
- United Kingdom
- Ireland
- Australia
- Germany
- Denmark
- France
The list is longer if I include countries with just one member.
Where are the most online Irish learners in the USA?
You go, California! Maith sibh.
Our top 5 American states are:
- California
- Washington
- Texas
- Florida
- Massachusetts
Some notes about our reporting
- Bitesize Irish Gaelic focus has always been to help people outside of Ireland to learn to speak Irish. Many people simply search for “Gaelic”, which is why we use the term “Irish Gaelic” here.
- Learning online is great for those without direct access to local classes. That may influence the maps above.
- The numbers only include members who have paid. There are pockets of Irish classes who use complimentary accounts of Bitesize Irish Gaelic, but they don’t feature in the numbers.
- The numbers come from Google Analytics reports, which are not always accurate, but are a good indicator.
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14 thoughts on “Top USA States for Online Irish Language Learners”
Hello,
We are working with an amazing Irish language project that brings the love of Irish music, culture and gaelic together. We are very interested in reaching to US/Canadian schools and organisations that work with Irish language lovers and sharing this project with them. Is there any way to get a database or contacts for this?
We’d love to send forward more information about this project.
Go raibh míle maith agaibh,
Belen
Hi Belen,
Thank you for your comment.
Let me find this out for you and we will post the answer here.
Le meas,
Ana.
Hi Belen,
Thank you for your comment.
Unfortunately, I have only been able to find a list of organisations in Canada https://www.dfa.ie/irish-embassy/canada/our-role/irish-community/irish-studies-in-canada/. You should be able to find the information you’re look for about the US from the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Go n-éirí libh! Good luck with the project!
Le meas,
Siobhán
You should update this for 2016.
Hi Greg,
Thank you for commenting.
Nice suggestion! I’ll pass it along to the team.
Le meas,
Ana.
Check out the PoetryBeo app – the text of 10 poems in Irish spoken and on video with full explanations of the meaning in both Irish and in English. The video is subtitled in Irish to being the text alive (beo). If you have an interest in Ireland, its heritage and language then you might find this interesting to download onto your smart phone or iPad. http://www.poetrybeo.com. 🙂
Great work everyone! Our language is so beautiful and is best learned in conversation. Go n’eiri an bothar libh.
Agreed!
It’s fascinating to see this research and to consider the value of online language learning.
I’m a writer, living in Corca Dhuibhne. One of the themes of the book I’ve just completed is the impact of the oral tradition and the Gaeltacht’s inherited values on my own work/life, and on post-Celtic tiger Ireland.
In the process of writing about stories, ideas and memories passed on across millennia through the Irish language I’ve been struck by the extent to which aspects of traditional oral culture – communal awareness, shared memory, the importance of attribution, use of music and imagery, story variations and so on – are mirrored by the shared experience of the internet. Not a hugely profound observation. But for some reason I found it cheering!
Kewl,they are teaching a class here in Portland,Or also
Slán go fóill
Nice. Have you attended them? Why, or why not?
This is really interesting information.
My only comment about your on-line Irish Language learning is that the one thing that is very important besides speaking it is seing in writing the pronounciations.
Anyone Like myself that has a hearing problem has a very difficult time clearly hearing the conversations
I have a student at Lipscomb University that states that she dropped the course because she had difficulty at times understanding the verabal speech.
siente mhath
Winton, you’re right. We have to add more of the written-out pronunciation that features in the course, as it’s only been added to early lessons. Thanks for your feedback. Go raibh maith agat – thanks!