Gaeilge alive and well in Cootehill

IF YOU sign up to Irish language classes in Cootehill you can put aside memories of the Irish classes of your schooldays.

When people of a certain age think about the Irish classes of their youth it conjures memories of years of verb and grammar drills culminating in a slog through Peig Sayers.

In Cootehill, when you join an Irish class the focus is as much on caint, ceol agus craic as it is on the history of the language, the origins of words and phrases and learning the language for the real, modern world.

Run by Gaeil Mhuinchille on Monday evenings at St Aidan’s Comprehensive School in the town, there are adult classes for beginners, intermediate level, and fluent speakers. Each class is run under the direction of a fully qualified Irish language teacher.

Fiona Uí HAodha told the Celt classes are for over 18s who come for various reasons.

“Our youngest participant is 18 and the oldest in their 70s,” Fiona said, “People come to brush up their vocabulary, meet new people and some to help their children with their Irish homework.”

Fiona says learning a second language can also help with older people’s cognitive health and points out: “It’s a well-known fact that people who are multi-lingual are two-and-a-half times less likely to develop accelerated brain ageing.

Obviously passionate about the Irish language and all its nuances Fiona Uí HAodha also suggests its surge in popularity is down to the fact that it’s “cool”.

And Fiona attributes that, in part, to Manchan Magan books like “32 Words for Field”.

“Irish is an ancient language – older than English – but it has such cool ways of describing things like, for instance, in Irish we don’t say ‘I am depressed’ like your illness defines you or is part of you. We say ‘Ta fonn dubh orm’ which is a variation of the ‘the black dog is on me’, which, means you can get the sickness off you, it can be removed, it is not who you are.”

Clearly enthused by the native language herself, Fiona says the classes in Cootehill are “plenty of craic” and a way to meet new people while learning new words.

The group play scrabble with only the letters in the Irish alphabet, learn a modern song as Gaeilge every week and will soon host a games and cards night.

She encourages anyone who has been considering taking up Irish to “Come along and see what it’s like.

“And remember, any language, that has six or seven words for ‘play’ must be fun!” Fiona said.

The Gaeil Mhuincille Group established in December 2016 dedicated to the promotion and development of the Irish language in Cootehill town and its environs.

The classes will continue at the same time and same venue on Monday, January 26, February 9, February 23 and, pause after March 2 for Seachta na Gaeilge. Fees are €5 (pay as you go) for each class or €20 for the entire five classes.

For further information or to sign up contact: Kevin Óg on 0873126925. Bígí linn.