Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge (; English: "The

Irish Language Irish ( Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...

University Academy") is a third level educational and research institution headquartered in

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a city in the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay, and is the sixth most populous city on ...

, Ireland. It was established as part of the

University of Galway The University of Galway ( ga, Ollscoil na Gaillimhe) is a public research university located in the city of Galway, Ireland. A tertiary education and research institution, the university was awarded the full five QS stars for excellence in 201 ...

in 2004, to further the development Irish-medium education. The academy works in co-operation with faculties, departments and other university offices to develop the range and number of programmes that are provided through the medium of

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

on campus and in the academy's

Gaeltacht ( , , ) are the districts of Ireland, individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home. The ''Gaeltacht'' districts were first officially reco ...

centres.

Locations

The academy operates in four in urban and rural campuses or centres: * Áras na Gaeilge on the

's main campus in

Galway city Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a city in the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay, and is the sixth most populous city on ...

* Áras Mháirtín Uí Chadhain in the Ceathrú Rua in

Connemara Connemara (; )( ga, Conamara ) is a region on the Atlantic coast of western County Galway, in the west of Ireland. The area has a strong association with traditional Irish culture and contains much of the Connacht Irish-speaking Gaeltacht, ...

, Galway * Ionad an Acadaimh in the Doirí Beaga in

Gaoth Dobhair Gweedore ( ; officially known by its Irish language name, ) is an Irish-speaking district and parish located on the Atlantic coast of County Donegal in the north-west of Ireland. Gweedore stretches some from Glasserchoo in the north to Croll ...

, Donegal * Áras Shorcha Ní Ghuairim in Carna in

, Galway

Research & Service Provision

The academy's staff have been involved in the creation of The New Irish-English Dictionary, the

Digital Repository of Ireland The Digital Repository of Ireland (DRI) is a digital repository for Ireland's humanities, social science and cultural heritage data. It was designed as an open access infrastructure that allows for interactive use and sustained growth. Three inst ...

and other archival projects, providing material and data insights to the national Irish-language broadcaster

TG4 TG4 ( ga, TG Ceathair, ) is an Irish free-to-air public service television network. The channel launched on 31 October 1996 and is available online and through its on demand service TG4 Player in Ireland and beyond. TG4 was formerly known ...

, and conducting examinations for the national Seal of Accreditation for translators. It maintains a close relationship with departments of the university in Galway. Given its concentration of Irish language education and research skills, the academy provides services for other bodies such as translation services, language education for NUIG staff, and developing the university's Language Scheme. It publishes papers on topics including

sociolinguistics Sociolinguistics is the descriptive study of the effect of any or all aspects of society, including cultural Norm (sociology), norms, expectations, and context (language use), context, on the way language is used, and society's effect on languag ...

technology Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and Reproducibility, reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in me ...

pedagogy Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken ...

and

translation Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transla ...

in its annual scholarly publication, ''An Reiviú''.

History

The importance to any linguistic group of higher education through their own language has long been acknowledged. The foundation in Scotland of the

Sabhal Mòr Ostaig Sabhal Mòr Ostaig () (Great Barn of Ostaig) is a public higher education college situated in the Sleat peninsula in the south of the Isle of Skye, with an associate campus at Bowmore on the island of Islay, Ionad Chaluim Chille Ìle (the ...

, an institute which is comparable to but more substantial than the academy as it is a constituent college of the

University of the Highlands and Islands , type = federal, public , image_name = UHI Coat of Arms.jpg , image_size = 150px , established = 2011 – University status 1992 – UHI Millennium Institute , chancellor = The Princess Royal , vice_chancellor = , budget = £139m (202 ...

, has been accompanied by a marked increase in the vitality of

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well ...

. While higher education has a long history in Ireland, for most of that history it has been almost exclusively been a pursuit for English-speakers. Many Irish third level institutions provide courses where Irish itself is the object of study, but outside of that it very rare for Irish to be the medium through which a student can achieve the prestige which goes along with the title "graduate" (a notable exception being Fiontar in

Dublin City University Dublin City University (abbreviated as DCU) ( ga, Ollscoil Chathair Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a university based on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. Created as the ''National Institute for Higher Education, Dublin'' in 1975, it enrolled its ...

). The academy was founded in 2004 under the auspices of the

to provide a centre of excellence for university studies and research through the Irish language. It was the only third level body where the working language and language of instruction are Ireland's indigenous language until in 2013 when the educational organisation Gaelchultúr was granted its status as a third level institution by the QQI, giving birth to Coláiste na hÉireann. The academy is not a large body and given its subordinate status to its parent it cannot truly be considered an

Irish language Irish ( Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...

university.

Academic

The academy offers university courses of various levels in numerous subjects, primarily in language studies,

communication Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inqui ...

and

, and

indigenous culture Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

. Many courses can be taken full-time or part-time, and some even cater for

distance learning Distance education, also known as distance learning, is the education of students who may not always be physically present at a school, or where the learner and the teacher are separated in both time and distance. Traditionally, this usually in ...

. Prospective students can apply directly or through the

Central Applications Office The Central Applications Office (CAO) ( ga, An LárOifig Iontrála) is the organisation responsible for overseeing undergraduate applications to colleges and universities in the Republic of Ireland. The primary mission of the Central Application ...

, as appropriate. Below is a sample of the programmes which have been delivered.

Undergraduate Programmes

* BA in Communication Studies and Irish * BA in Irish and Translation Studies * BA in Applied Irish * BComm with Irish Both Translation Studies and Communication Studies can be taken as part of a joint honours degree.

Postgraduate programmes

* MA/Postgraduate Diploma in Conference Interpreting * Higher Diploma in Applied Irish * MA/Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Practice in the Media * MA/Postgraduate Diploma in Language Studies * Postgraduate Certificate in Translation Studies * Postgraduate Certificate in Advanced Irish Skills for Teachers

Other programmes

* Diploma in Web Development * Diploma in Indigenous Culture * Diploma in Arts (Film and Multimedia) * Diploma in Arts (Translation Studies) * Diploma in Language Planning and Preservation

Publications

Comprehensive Linguistic Study of the Use of Irish in the Gaeltacht: Principal Findings and Recommendations, Dublin: Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge (National University of Ireland Galway) Members of the academy produce regular contributions to the interdisciplinary online journal, ''An Reiviú''.

References

External links

Official websiteAn ReiviúFiontar

Potential sources

* The Role of the university in Sustaining Linguistic Minorities – an Irish Case Study by Seosamh MacDonnacha, pages 49–62 i
National Languages in Higher Education
2010, edited by Marjeta Humar and Mojca Žagar Karer * Education in the Celtic Languages, Irish Medium by Seosamh MacDonnacha, pages 295–296 in The Celts: History, Life, and Culture edited by John T. Koch, Antone Minard. ABC-CLIO, 2012. * The Role of Capacity Building in the Implementation of the 20-Year Strategy for the Irish Language by Seosamh MacDonnacha, pages 11–20 i
Strategies for Minority Languages: Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, and Scotland
edited by John M.Kirk and Dónall P. ÓBaoill. Cló Ollscoil na Banríona, 2011.
"Les représentations sociolinguistiques de l’irlandais et de son apprentissage : enquêtes dans des établissements secondaires de Galway (République d’Irlande)"
Doctoral thesis at Paul Valéry University, Montpellier III by Lise Catherine CARREL BISAGNI, page 58 (in French)
A Gaelic University
by Arthur E. Clery in Studies: An Irish Quarterly Review, Vol. 6, No. 24 (Dec. 1917), pp. 606–616 {{DEFAULTSORT:Acadamh na hOllscolaiochta Gaeilge 2004 establishments in Ireland Buildings and structures of the University of Galway Education in County Donegal Education in County Galway Education in Galway (city) Educational institutions established in 2004 Indigenous education Irish-language education