Census 2022: Gaeltacht population on the increase but percentage of Irish speakers continues to fall

Census 2022 data released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) on Tuesday underlines the delicate balance between demographic growth and the Irish language in the Gaeltacht.

The latest official figures reveal that the population of the Gaeltacht increased by 7 per cent since 2016 while the number of daily Irish speakers continued to fall.

Over 6,600 more people were living in the Gaeltacht in April 2022 when the census was carried out, compared with April 2016, bringing the combined Gaeltacht population to more than 106,000 people, an increase of 7 per cent.

Of those living in the Gaeltacht, 65,156 indicated that they could speak Irish.

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While all eight Gaeltacht areas in the State saw population growth in the six years to 2022, just 31 per cent of the Gaeltacht population that can speak Irish, or 20,261 people, reported that they speak the language on a daily basis, representing a fall of 2 per cent compared with 2016 (325 fewer people).

Some 38,460 people who reported being able to speak Irish did so less than once a week, never, within the education system only, or gave no indication how often they use the language.

Of those Irish speakers in the Gaeltacht areas who are aged three years and over, 29 per cent reported that they spoke Irish well while 41 per cent spoke it very well. Another 28 per cent of Irish speakers said they didn’t speak the language well.

The proliferation of holiday homes and high property prices have long been the focus of advocates and activists, with many calling for a dedicated housing policy to protect linguistically vulnerable communities in Gaeltacht areas.

Julian de Spáinn, general secretary of Conradh na Gaeilge, said the results for the Gaeltacht are “concerning” and that there is a need for “urgent action” to reverse the decline and “significantly build” sustainable Gaeltacht communities.

“Central to this must be a national housing plan for the Gaeltacht that facilitates those from the Gaeltacht communities who wish to live in the Gaeltacht,” Mr de Spáinn said.

Sinn Féin TD Aengus Ó Snodaigh, who is chair of the Oireachtas Committee on the Irish Language, Gaeltacht and the Irish-speaking Community, also said the Gaeltacht figures “are a cause for concern”.

“It is high time for the Government to take the sociolinguistic crisis seriously by introducing long-awaited Gaeltacht housing and planning guidelines,” he said.

There was some good news in the figures, which showed an increase in the number of people nationally who could speak Irish and a significant number of respondents who reported a good level of proficiency.

A total of 1,873,997 people nationally, or 40 per cent of the population aged three years and over, reported an ability to speak Irish in April 2022, an increase of 112,577 since Census 2016, and a 6 per cent increase overall.

However, the number of people who stated they had Irish but never speak it grew by almost 55,000 people, or 13 per cent, to almost 473,000.

More women and girls (1,030,171) than men and boys (844,000) declared they were able to speak Irish, with women and girls representing 55 per cent of Irish speakers.

In terms of ability, 788,927 reported that they speak Irish “well” or “very well”, while 1,034,132 – or 55 per cent of those who reported an ability to speak Irish – said they could not speak it well.

The data revealed some encouraging signs among younger generations. A higher level of proficiency was recorded among younger speakers, with 62.5 per cent of those aged between 15 and 19 reporting that they spoke Irish either “very well” or “well”.

Mr Ó Snodaigh, who in addition to being chair of the joint Oireachtas committee is the Sinn Féin spokesperson on Gaeilge, Gaeltacht, Arts and Culture, said there are “positives and negatives” to learn from in the results.

“We now have over 2 million people North and South who say they can speak Irish, a larger population than five EU member states,” he said.

He said it was a “good news story” that almost 800,000 people say they can speak Irish “well” or “very well” and said this figure should be built upon with a goal of one million people with a high degree of proficiency “within the next decade”.

While welcoming the degree of reported proficiency in the language, Mr de Spáinn of Conradh na Gaeilge said the limited opportunities people have to speak the language “remains a concern”.

“We believe that a joined-up approach to the teaching of the Irish language in our schools is urgently needed, and also sufficient opportunities to use the language socially must be provided,” Mr de Spáinn said.

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Mr Ó Snodaigh added that the Government should reintroduce Scéim Labhairt na Gaeilge, an Irish speakers’ scheme which provided a support and incentive to Gaeltacht parents to raise their children through Irish but was discontinued in 2011.

By county, Galway reported the highest proportion of Irish speakers, at 50 per cent, followed by Clare at 47 per cent, while the lowest were in Dublin city at 33 per cent and Louth at 35 per cent.

An Bun Beag in Co Donegal and An Cheathrú Rua in Co Galway were the towns recording the highest proportion of daily Irish speakers, at 69 per cent, followed by Mín Lárach at 68 per cent and Doirí Beaga at 66 per cent, both in Co Donegal.

The CSO also released data showing that nearly 57,000 non-Irish citizens could speak Irish.

Among non-Irish citizens who could speak Irish by country of citizenship, 15 per cent of Australians in Ireland, or 501 people over the age of three, reported an ability to speak Irish.

The next highest number was among Polish and Latvian citizens, each group reporting 13 per cent, with 10,838 people and 2,114 people over the age of three respectively reporting an ability to speak Irish.

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* Amended on 24/12/2023