Do most people in Ireland speak Gaelic and would you need to be able to speak it to work there?

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Shiori_hime

It depends on what you mean by speaking Irish and it depends on what kind of job you want.

Children in Irish schools are required to study Irish, but the way it's taught is a bit screwed up and most kids leave the system hating Irish and completely unable to use it. However, there are communities throughout Ireland where Irish is still the primary language. Most of them are found in the Irish-speaking areas known as the Gaeltacht, but you can also find vibrant Irish-speaking communities and networks in cities like Dublin if you put a bit of effort into looking.

For most jobs you probably won't need to learn Irish, but for some, like working as a teacher in primary schools, you will need to speak enough Irish to pass the required Irish exam. I believe you also need to pass it for certain law-related jobs. Basically, if you're looking for a job in Ireland, do your homework carefully. If the job you want requires a certain level of Irish, it's highly unlikely that the requirement will be waived just for you (seriously, there was at least one case about this that went all the way to the EU courts and the Irish requirement was upheld even at that level). That said, according to pretty much everyone I've ever spoken to who needed to take the Irish exam, it's really easy and you don't need to be fluent to pass it.

tzddean

Irish (we call it Irish, not Gaelic) is a compulsory subject all the way through school so everyone speaks a little bit. But English is the main language, and you definitely don't need to speak Irish to work here.

bertie_wooster09

English is the primary language of communication in Ireland these days. I do not think you need any other language to work there. Of course, the accents may take while getting used to :).

Orla C

No, and no.

And we refer to our language as Irish or Gaeilge. Gaelic refers to Scotch Gaelic here.

Aisling xx

Hiya no you wouldn't need it to work here. The only time we ever speak irish is in irish class in school. We don't speak it outside of school at all! We just speak english...
If you started speaking irish alot of people probably wouldn't even be able to understand you!

capeverdeirishgirl

no.

they teach the language terribly here, and its such a great language..i can speak irish fluently which shoots some ignorant idiot up when he makes a bad comment about me not being irish.

Rory M

Nope and no.

Power Flower

My Irish partner can roll off every different type of gaelic saying for "cheers", but has to think really hard to count to three. My brother and lots of friends have worked there... it's not a problem.

Guillaume D

i agree with 'alan m' completely.down with irish.i've spent 5 wasted years learning this cursed language.'alan m' is not ignorant.as somebody suggested.he's merely stating his opinion.

Puzzledirishgirl

Most people speak english except in certain places. You don't need Irish to get a job. You will pick it up as well when you are here!

Misty Blue

You won't have any problems.English is the most widely spoken.My sons are fluent gaeilge speakers and around where I live Irish is the most widely spoken language.As everyone also speaks English we can accomodate even the most ignorant of people like Alan M.

legallyblonde

no...i dont know anyone who speaks gaelic and it tends to only be used in really backward, remote places where you REALLY wouldnt want to live anyway! Its a dead language...and of all the dead languages that you could study...it is the least useful!
My time was much better occupied learning Latin (I am so thankful I was educated in Northern Ireland rather than south of the border)

alan m

Gaelic is forced on the children at school but once leaving its quickly scrapped as no one in the world speaks it except a few people in the country in southern Ireland.You might need it to work on a remote farm.

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