How I learned to love speaking Gaeilge

From almost failing Irish in the Leaving Cert, and largely abandoning the language, John Ó Ríordáin has found a way to make room for Irish in all aspects of his life. Especially ar an mbus.

Sos Lóin: Caint agus craic ar tigh taibhairne an Roundy i gCorcaigh via

Irish has a deep connection with the natural, and indeed supernatural world. Often native speakers have an almost preternatural understanding of life, deep in their bones. I recall, while in Corca Dhuibhne in Kerry, a fantastic, life-altering conversation with a well-known, and revered, almost shamen like native speaker. With one perceptive seanfhocal he was able to release all the tension and hesitation, around speaking Irish, that had infested my soul since school.

Is cuma liom to foc faoi ghramadach - I don’t give a foc about grammar.

I think you’ll agree that there really is some deep, Celtic, mystic wisdom embedded in that seanfhocal.

Here's rud éigin eile that we all know in our bones too, when it comes to Béarla, very few of us have perfect gramadach. Many of us couldn’t tell you what the past participle of certain verbs are, or even what a past participle is, and yet we get along just fine. And what’s the difference between a verb and an adverb anyway? Similarly there are many focail as Béarla that we don’t know. How many of us had to look up the meaning of preternatural, from the opening paragraph of this article? I know I did! Imagine if we all stopped speaking Béarla because we weren’t sure if we were using it correctly, or didn’t understand every word. Obviously that’s not going to happen. Language is about using it, not sitting back in fear of mistakes.

Anois, gach uair nuair a fheiceann mé someone hesitating, or refusing, to speak Gaeilge mar atá siad unsure about gramadach, pronunciation or if they are using the right words, tháinig brón orm. Is cuma liom to foc faoi ghramadach. The reality’s is cuma l'éinne to foc faoi ghramadach. No one cares. Language isn't about perfection, it's about communication. So go out agus úsáid do chuid Gaeilge. Déan botúin. Make mistakes. In fact mistakes are fine; they are how you learn.

Anois, you might say to yourself, “But níl aon Gaeilge agam”. So this doesn’t article apply to me. Listen, anseo i gCorcaigh, where Gaeilge isn’t the príomhtheanga, it’s surprising how many daoine are eager to use the teanga if given the opportunity. And gach éinne love to hear it being spoken. People are looking for an excuse to speak it, and hear it, even if it’s just a couple of words. Bíonn daoine sasta í a chloisint, and they get a kick out of it.

John, ar dheis, at Sos Lóin.

Take it with you

Nuair a bhím ar an mbus I always say “Slán, agus go raibh maith agat” to the driver. Some of them don't answer at all because driving a bus is a hard job and they're busy. Other lads give me a nod and a smile. Some of the foreign lads don't know the teanga but they know I'm saying thanks, because everybody says thanks, so they give a nod and a smile too. And sometimes freagraíonn an bus driver i nGaeilge.

Uair amháin I’d gotten off the bus and cúpla nóiméad later it passed me again, but was gafa in traffic. The front doors flung open wide and the driver, with a big smile on his face, shouted “Tá fáilte romhat. I finally remembered it, boy!” It put a smile on my face freisin, and many of the passengers. And that was only cúpla focal, not a full blown conversation.

Tá go leor samplaí de seo. I was at a cluiche iománaíochta idir Corcaigh agus Cill Chainnigh ar an deireadh seachtaine and I used a cúpla focal le mo chairde. The páistí behind us starting shouting at na imreoirí Chill Chainnigh as Gaeilge. The highlight was a boisterous chat of “Slán agus beannacht” when the final whistle blew agus bhí an bua ag Corcaigh.

Tar éis an cluiche we went to the Black Market where they had TG4 showing rugbaí on the big screen and speakers. Tar éis sin bhí cúpla deoch againn in El Fenix where Kneecap songs were blaring over the speakers. I dusted off my “Go raibh maith agat” again for the barman, who gave me a cheery “Ná habair é” in return. I overheard beirt cailíní ag labhairt as Gaeilge at the cúinne of the bar. Nádúrtha as anything. And was their gramadach perfect? An raibh Gaeilge snasta acu? Níl a fhios agam. Is cuma liom to foc!

You may be thinking “But Gaeilge is difficult to learn”. Yes, it is. All languages are deacair. You’re trying to convey the full wealth of knowledge and opinions in your brain, to daoine eile using sounds. Tá sé sin deacair. Tá an Béarla deacair chomh maith. But when a foreigner makes an effort to speak Béarla bríste, do you tear them down for their droch gramadach? Of course not, I know you are nicer that that. And guess what, so are daoine le Gaeilge.

Ach tá eagla ort, because the múinteoirí in school were always giving out to you, and belittling your Gaeilge. And now your confidence is imithe. They made you believe that you weren’t ábalta í a fhoghlaim. Well good news! You’re an adult now, níl do mhúinteoirí timpeall. And you are ábalta. Who are around are supportive daoine who are also trying to speak Gaeilge, and who want to encourage others to speak it too. They don't care if you make a botún, or several.

Tá siad sásta that you're trying. And if you do happen to throw in a focal Béarla anois is arís, or even frequently, tá sé sin ceart go leor. Is cuma leo to foc. It’s a shared space where we help each other out, just like when we’re talking to someone in Béarla and we realise they need a little assistance to keep the comhrá going.

Personally I didn’t do well in school Gaeilge, I got a D3 in the Leaving Cert and almost failed the whole thing as a result. I didn’t try to speak Gaeilige again for 20 bliain. Ní raibh suim ar bith agam. But I’ve learnt far more Gaeilge in the tigh tábhairne le chairde than I ever did sa rang. And that’s what it’s all about: úsáid Gaeilge where you can. The more you use it, the more natural it feels, and the more you pick up.

People confuse school Gaeilge with actual Gaeilge, but the two are completely difriúil. I’ve heard people speak about the difficulty of Béarla, as a subject in school, ach úsáideann siad Béarla gach lá, mistakes and all. The same goes for Gaeilge. It’s a living, breathing language, and it should used it no matter what. Is teanga bheo í.

Seachtain na Gaeilge

So má tá tú timpeall an Seachtain na Gaeilge seo, take a moment to bain triail as cúpla focal. Don’t worry if the other person has Gaeilge níos fearr than you, that’s not a reason to stop. Just like someone speaking broken Béarla, you’ll find that people are more than willing to help, especially since they too were once in your bróga. And if you're not sure of something, ask! You'll be surprised at how oscailte and encouraging people are. It’s like a club, we are always looking for daoine nua. Regardless of their ability. Without members the club will cease to exist.

There’s no such thing as a botún when you’re learning, just a chance to learn. So go ahead, bain triail as! No one’s going to laugh at you, and you’ll probably be surprised at the positivity that comes your way. After all, is í do theanga í. It’s your language. Yes you! Speak it, mess it up, and have a bit of craic with it. Níl tú ar scoil níos mó. So if you want to give it a go then déan é. And if you make a botún just say to yourself is cuma liom to foc and move on. No one cares. Really.

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John Ó Ríordáin is the organiser of Sos Lóin, a friendly and informal place to improve your Irish. They meet regularly at The Roundy and O’Sho in Cork city. According to John, he has the weakest Irish of anybody in the group, but is cuma leis to foc. John also maintains this helpful list of Irish language events and activities happening in and around the city and county.

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• Seachtain na Gaeilge runs from March 1-17. More info here. For a detailed list of events as Gaeilge in Cork check out Peig.ie.

• De Barras in Clonakility has a full programme of events for Seachtain na Gaeilge including a ceolchoirm by John Spillane on Thursday, March 6. Full details here.

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