Did you know that the Irish government has undertaken an ambitious twenty year plan to help increase the number of Irish Gaelic speakers in Ireland, and to also preserve the first language native speaker rate? Many current projects and plans have been proposed, and some of them are yet to unfold fully. One such plan is to designate certain urban districts around the country as Irish Gaelic zones, meaning that businesses, street signs, and various other public language displays will be in Irish Gaelic first. This urban centered idea focuses on the fact that urban Irish speakers generally only use the language as a second tongue, and will use English in most casual conversation. The government believes that if they can increase the rate at which Gaelic is used as a first language amongst urban dwellers, than a substantial inroad can be made to preserve the language. Hopefully we'll see these plans meet success very soon.
