thomas leverett weblog: Scottish Gaelic

Friday, July 10, 2020

Scottish Gaelic

Carrell, Severin. (2020, July 5). Scottish politicians call for urgent action to stop Gaelic dying out, The Guardian. Online. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/jul/05/scottish-politicians-call-for-urgent-action-to-stop-gaelic-dying-out. Accessed 7-2020.

I plan on answering this call for several reasons.

One is that I have some Scottish heritage but I am barely in touch with it. About eight or nine generations ago, a couple of Scottish boys crossed over to Northern Ireland, and from there to Pennsylvania, and so, to make a long story short, my mother was a Wallace. Like most Scots in the US, they lost touch with their heritage. But when I hear Scottish music, I always feel like it's there for me. It is partly in respect to my mother's side and her family that I would pursue it.

Nationwide, there are millions of Scots like me, millions in Texas and New Mexico alone. I could start a kilt store, or sell bagpipes, but who would buy them? People are not aware of their heritage really, and I don't think I can make them that way.

I have always wanted to learn Scottish Gaelic, though, and it's a new day. It's a day when I don't have to go to those western hills and islands in order to use the language. Someday, I will get there, yes, and it will be good to hear it being used just in the course of one's daily life. But I live my life, and will have to keep living it, without meaningful chance to actually go and experience that. I can do it on zoom, and that will have to do.

So here's my plan: a weekly zoom meeting to encourage people to learn and keep and use Scottish Gaelic. It will be a one-room schoolhouse in the sense that some weeks it may have high-level learning going on, and beginners will have to just sit and listen. I haven't quite resolved that problem, but obviously, one way would be to keep the beginners' meeting separate. I will say that the purpose of the meeting should probably be more social than practical, in the sense that our first job will be to simply welcome everyone and encourage their study and use of the language. If they hear and understand but a few words each week, that's still better than nothing. And there's nothing stopping people from starting companion meetings that get more in depth.

I have a zoom account. I know that it's doable. My plan is to think it out, and then spring. Right now I'm thinking Saturday mornings (afternoon in UK).

Labels: languages, personal, scottish gaelic