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The Irish language originated in Ireland and was historically the dominant language of the Irish people. They took it with them to a number of other countries. In Scotland and the Isle of Man it gave rise to Scottish Gaelic and Manx. It was later carried abroad to other more distant lands in both hemispheres. In the course of the 19th century English became the dominant vernacular of Ireland, and Irish has since been spoken only by a small minority of the population.〔A detailed view of the linguistic geography may be found in Fitzgerald, Garret, ‘Estimates for baronies of minimal level of Irish-speaking amongst successive decennial cohorts, 117-1781 to 1861-1871,’ pp.117-155, Volume 84, ''Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy''. Royal Irish Academy, Dublin. His analysis of the 19th century census figures relating to Irish shows that the language remained very strong in the south-west (Munster) and west (Connacht) until towards the end of the century. He remarks, furthermore, that for the decennial periods of 1841-51, 1851-61 and 1861-71, the results are in all likelihood an underestimate (extrapolations included): p.118.〕 Irish remains the vehicle of a separate cultural, literary and historical experience, emphasised by purely linguistic differences, since (like other Celtic languages) it is distinctive in structure and vocabulary. Irish was the language that a large number of emigrants took with them from the 17th century (when large-scale emigration, forced or otherwise, became noticeable) to the 19th century. The Irish diaspora mainly settled in English-speaking countries, chiefly Britain and North America. In some instances the Irish language was retained for several generations. Argentina was the only non-English-speaking country to which the Irish went in large numbers, and those emigrants came in the 19th century from areas where Irish was already in retreat. An interest in the language has persisted among a minority in the diaspora countries, and even in countries where there was never a significant Irish presence. This has been shown in the founding of language classes (including some at tertiary level), in the use of the Internet, and in contributions to journalism or literature. ==Britain== Irish speakers of all social classes were to be found in early modern Britain. Irish beggars were common in 16th century England, and from the late 16th century many unskilled Irish labourers settled in Liverpool, Bristol and London.〔Camp, Anthony. ‘The Irish in England’, in ''Family Tree Magazine'', vol. 19, no. 9 (July 2003) pp. 8-10. http://www.family-tree.org.uk〕 Aristocratic Irish speakers included the Nugent brothers, members of Ireland's "Old English" community: Christopher, 9th Baron Delvin, who wrote an Irish-language primer for Elizabeth I, and William, an Irish language poet who is known to have been at Oxford in 1571.〔De Brún, Pádraig; Ó Buachalla, Breandán; Ó Concheanainn, Tomás (eds.). ''Nua-Dhuanaire: Cuid 1''. Institiúid Ardléinn Bhaile Átha Cliath 1975, p. 179.〕 Irish speakers were among the Royalist contingents brought over from Ireland during the English Civil War. Language and cultural differences were partly responsible for the great hostility they encountered in England. Among them were troops commanded by Murrough O'Brien, 1st Earl of Inchiquin, who took them with him when he later sided with Parliament.〔Stoyle, Mark. ''Soldiers and Strangers: An Ethnic History of the English Civil War''. Yale University Press 2005, pp. 62-70. ISBN 9780300107005〕 Large-scale Irish immigration, including many Irish speakers, began with the building of canals from the 1780s and of railways in the nineteenth century. More Irish settled in industrial towns in Lancashire in the late eighteenth century than in any other county. Many Irish were attracted to Birmingham in the mid-1820s by rapid industrial expansion. The city had large households of Irish speakers, often from the same parts of Mayo, Roscommon, Galway and Sligo. In Manchester a sixth of the family heads were Irish by 1835. By the 1830s Irish speakers were to be found in Manchester, Glasgow and the larger towns of South Wales. Irish speakers from Roscommon, Galway and Mayo were also to be found in Stafford from the 1830s.〔Camp, pp. 8-10〕 The Great Famine of the 1840s brought an influx of Irish speakers to England, Wales and Scotland. Many arrived from such counties as Mayo, Cork, Waterford and Limerick to Liverpool, Bristol, and the towns of South Wales and Lancashire, and often moved on to London. Navvies found work on the South Wales Railway. There are reports of Irish-speaking communities in some quarters of Liverpool in the Famine years (1845–52).〔Nic Craith, Máiréad; Leyland, Janet, ‘The Irish language in Britain: A case study of North West England,’ ''Language, Culture and Curriculum'', Volume 10, Issue 3, 1997, pp. 171-185. DOI: 10.1080/07908319709525250〕 Irish speakers from Munster were common among London immigrants, with many women speaking little or no English. Around 100,000 Irish had arrived in London by 1851.〔 The Gaelic Revival in Ireland at the turn of the 20th century led to formation of branches of the Gaelic League abroad, including British cities. There were three branches of the Gaelic League in Glasgow by 1902〔”The Gaelic League is making rapid headway in Glasgow. There were only three branches in the city twelve months ago.” The Sacred Heart Review, Volume 28, Number 20, 15 November 1902: http://newspapers.bc.edu/cgi-bin/bostonsh?a=d&d=BOSTONSH19021115-01.2.57〕 and a branch was also founded in Manchester.〔Irish Manchester, Memories and Stories: http://www.irishmanchester.com/memories.shtml〕 In the aftermath of the Second World War there were a large number of Irish working in Britain in the construction industry and as nurses. Many of them, both in provincial towns and in London, were Irish speakers from Conamara and other Gaeltacht areas, and Irish was commonly heard on building sites and in dance halls.〔Mac Amhlaigh, Dónall. ''Dialann Deoraí''. An Clóchomhar Tta 1960. The standard autobiographical account of an Irish navvy’s life in the period in question.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Irish language outside Ireland」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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