Achill parish to be surveyed on Irish language

Achill parish to be surveyed on Irish language


Anton McNulty

A QUESTIONNAIRE about the future of the Irish language in Achill will be distributed to households across the parish which will form the basis of a Plean Gaeilge for Achill.
The new Plean Gaeilge is being prepared by Comhlacht Forbartha Áitiuil Acla’s Coiste na Gaeilge and the questionnaire is designed to give the public a chance to make their own views on the language known. The survey is set to begin this week and members of the Achill Rural Social Scheme will call to every household in the parish to distribute the questionnaire and collect them a week later.
The national 20-year strategy for the Irish language places an emphasis on its use in the community and the survey will determine how Achill people use the language. The aim of CFÁA is to have the whole parish of Achill categorised with Gaeltacht status and the questionnaire is to help Coiste na Gaeilge achieve that.
Mary Angela McLoughlin of Coiste na Gaeilge told The Mayo News that the feedback of the survey will form the basis of the Plean Gaeilge and she asked the public to take time to complete the questionnaire.
“The questionnaire will help clarify how the people of the parish feel about the language and what can be done to improve Irish in the parish. The questionnaire will ask people what level of Irish they have and if they are interested in improving it, and if they are interested in the whole of Achill being in the Gaeltacht. Our big aim is to have all of Achill in the Gaeltacht but that will only happen with the support of the people and we invite them to fill in this questionnaire to ascertain the level of interest the Achill community has in retaining Gaeltacht status and/or gaining Gaeltacht status for the whole parish. When we get the completed surveys back we will access them and see what is the best way in progressing with the Plean Gaeilge,” she said.
The Plean Gaeilge is expected to take two or three years to complete with a seven year plan for implementation which will run from 2011 - 2018.