Learning Irish: From My Great-Grandmother to the Gaeltacht

A Journey That Began with My Great-Grandmother

Learning Irish started with my great-grandmother, Mary O’Toole, a woman I never had the honour of meeting. Born in An Spidéal and raised in Tuam, I honestly haven’t a clue whether she spoke Irish or not. I can assume, and my heart says she did, but perhaps someday I’ll meet the family she left behind and they can tell me the truth.

Nonetheless, my Irish language journey started with this enigmatic woman who, like many millions of others, departed from her home on a ship to cross the sea.

How My Interest Was Piqued…

I live in California and I was never particularly interested in laying claim to my Irish heritage. I had never spoken to anyone from Ireland, had never been there, and knew next to nothing about the country. It wasn’t something I felt I had a right to claim – and, to be honest, I still feel shy when someone inevitably asks if that is my reason for pursuing Celtic Studies at university. The answer is yes and no, and neither answer is inherently good or bad.

But it was my dad speaking offhandedly about his grandmother one day that first piqued my interest. I had never realised how close I could have been to Mary if she hadn’t passed away before I was born. I had always imagined the immigrants in my family as being many generations removed from my comfortable life. Suddenly, I realised that I could have asked her questions and begun to know intimately a place I had never even seen. I was close to my other great-grandmother, who passed away when I was 19, and so I felt like a hole was suddenly taking up space in my life.

Discovering the Irish Language

This desire to know more about Mary dug into me. My father couldn’t quite satisfy the itch, as he had little memory of his grandmother and hadn’t been particularly interested in her gruffness. Having always loved languages and feeling that they are at the heart of a culture, I decided to pursue Irish.

I managed to find an online tutor who shared my love of etymology and culture and gave me a wealth of knowledge and insight into the language well before I could string a sentence together. Thanks to these lessons, I felt emboldened to take an Irish class at the university I had recently started to attend.

The class was small and held online across several campuses. I won’t lie: the class was a slog, and the material was dry. The online interactions were difficult. Most of the students were genuinely curious about Irish, but it was still just a required language class that they needed to complete.

Despite the lacklustre university experience with the language, I became more and more curious about the mythology and history behind the words. Only about six of us graduated in the end, and so it was an interesting and intimate experience as we trudged from semester to semester together. And then, for two wonderful summers, we attended an immersion school in the Gaeltacht through a Fulbright Summer Gaeltacht Award. That experience changed my relationship with the Irish language.

Learning Irish in the Connemara Gaeltacht

The Gaeltacht has by far been my favourite experience in the learning process. With homestays and dedicated teachers at the school, it was the perfect chance to let myself be swallowed up by the Irish language and Irish hospitality.

I loved walking along the countryside road to An Acadamh in Conamara, greeting the neighbours’ donkeys and cows along the way. Even with the grueling hours of lessons, I enjoyed being there among my peers and finding time during the lunch hour for an impromptu trad session. Or we would meet at the pub after lessons and enjoy listening to more seasoned players.

The amazing tours we went on, learning more about the Irish language and the history of the Gaeltacht, were incredibly eye-opening. They still make learning Irish feel like a gift and an opportunity that I can’t afford to pass up. An opportunity, in some way, from Grandma Mary.

Continuing to Learn Irish

I am still finding ways to keep up the learning process outside of university and the Gaeltacht. It can be challenging, but every day I see new Gaeilgeoirí popping up on social media, spreading their passion for the language like wildfire. I find it comforting to be on this journey with so many people across the world. That, perhaps, is one of the most unexpected parts of learning Irish.

What began with a woman I never met has become a connection to a language, a culture and the worldwide community of people who are also choosing to learn ‘An Ghaeilge’. My journey is still ongoing, and perhaps, somewhere along the way, I’ll finally learn a little more about ‘mo sheanmháthair’ Mary.

Your Own Irish-Language Journey

Ray’s story is a reminder that there are many reasons to learn Irish. For some people, it begins with family. For others, it is an interest in Irish history, music, mythology or culture. And for many learners, the language itself becomes the reason to keep going.

If you are beginning your own journey with Irish, Let’s Learn Irish offers live online Irish classes, video courses, conversation sessions and workshops for learners around the world, from complete beginners to more advanced speakers.

You can also join our monthly Free Irish Workshop, which is open to learners at all levels, and get started with our free video courses.