Making the Irish language fun again: ‘I know so many learners who have benefited from Kneecap concerts’

From the Belfast rappers to An Cailín Ciúin, speaking Irish is having a mainstream moment. Now YouTuber Molly Nic Céile wants to take the fear out of learning the language. Kneecap: ‘I know so many Irish-language learners who have benefitted from their music’.

Photo: Kevin Scott Molly Nic Céile’s favourite Irish seanfhocail is ‘maireann croí éadrom i bhfad’. In English, it means ‘a light heart lives long’ and emphasises the importance of letting go and living life with a sense of humour. The proverb begins chapter five of Nic Céile’s new book, Gaeilge i Mo Chroí — Irish in My Heart , which is described as ‘a guide to falling in love with our native language’.



The chapter takes a light-hearted look at how direct translation of Irish to English can be extremely humorous..