92-646: Tullamore ( / ˈ t ʊ l ə ˌ m ɔːr / ; Irish : Tulach Mhór , meaning 'great mound') is the county town of County Offaly in Ireland . It is on the Grand Canal , in the middle of the county, and is the fourth most populous town in the Midlands Region , with 15,598 inhabitants at the 2022 census . The town retained Gold Medal status in the National Tidy Town Awards in 2015 and also played host to
184-569: A new distillery built in Midleton, County Cork. In 1994, Irish Distillers, then concentrating their international focus on promoting Jameson Irish whiskey , sold the brand to the C&;C Group . Subsequently, the C&;C Group divested their entire liqueur and spirit business (including Tullamore D.E.W.), which was acquired by William Grant & Sons for €300 million in 2010. At which point, Tullamore D.E.W.
276-540: A unique dialect of Irish developed before falling out of use in the early 20th century. With a writing system , Ogham , dating back to at least the 4th century AD, which was gradually replaced by Latin script since the 5th century AD, Irish has one of the oldest vernacular literatures in Western Europe . On the island, the language has three major dialects: Connacht , Munster and Ulster Irish . All three have distinctions in their speech and orthography . There
368-581: A Church of Ireland school, a Gaelscoil and an Educate Together school. There are three secondary schools in the town; Tullamore College, a coeducational, multidenominational vocational school, the Sacred Heart School, a Catholic all-girls school and Coláiste Choilm, a Catholic all-boys school. Notable current and former residents of Tullamore include: Irish language Irish ( Standard Irish : Gaeilge ), also known as Irish Gaelic or simply Gaelic ( / ˈ ɡ eɪ l ɪ k / GAY -lik ),
460-697: A bargaining chip during government formation in Northern Ireland, prompting protests from organisations and groups such as An Dream Dearg . Irish became an official language of the EU on 1 January 2007, meaning that MEPs with Irish fluency can now speak the language in the European Parliament and at committees, although in the case of the latter they have to give prior notice to a simultaneous interpreter in order to ensure that what they say can be interpreted into other languages. While an official language of
552-560: A better future for Ireland and all her citizens." The Strategy was produced on 21 December 2010 and will stay in action until 2030; it aims to target language vitality and revitalization of the Irish language. The 30-page document published by the Government of Ireland details the objectives it plans to work towards in an attempt to preserve and promote both the Irish language and the Gaeltacht. It
644-583: A blend of whiskey, herbs and honey, using a recipe alleged to have disappeared in the late 17th century and to have been rediscovered in a manuscript 250 years later. Williams also capitalised on the Irish coffee concept, and promoted blended whiskeys along with Tullamore Dew. The Tullamore Phoenix Festival was an annual celebration of art, culture and heritage first held in August between 2000 and 2007. Festival events included hot air balloons, concerts, street entertainment,
736-403: A capacity of 20,000 following an upgrade in 2006. The ground consists of a covered stand on one side of the pitch, with terracing on the other three. A stand was built in 1991 but replaced by the current structure in 2006. It seats 7,000 people and also includes a press box and a special section for wheelchair users. Association football (soccer) is represented by Tullamore Town F.C. This club
828-472: A cultural and social force. Irish speakers often insisted on using the language in law courts (even when they knew English), and Irish was also common in commercial transactions. The language was heavily implicated in the "devotional revolution" which marked the standardisation of Catholic religious practice and was also widely used in a political context. Down to the time of the Great Famine and even afterwards,
920-541: A degree course in the NUI federal system to pass the subject of Irish in the Leaving Certificate or GCE / GCSE examinations. Exemptions are made from this requirement for students who were born or completed primary education outside of Ireland, and students diagnosed with dyslexia . NUI Galway is required to appoint people who are competent in the Irish language, as long as they are also competent in all other aspects of
1012-454: A distillery was established in Tullamore by Michael Molloy. On his death, the distillery eventually passed to his nephew, Bernard Daly who later appointed Daniel E. Williams as the distillery's General Manager. The distillery was originally named Daly's Whiskey and sold mainly to the U.K. and Australia. In 1893, Williams helped bring about electricity to the town of Tullamore as well as install
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#17328455539931104-460: A fully recognised EU language for the first time in the state's history. Before Irish became an official language it was afforded the status of treaty language and only the highest-level documents of the EU were made available in Irish. The Irish language was carried abroad in the modern period by a vast diaspora , chiefly to Great Britain and North America, but also to Australia , New Zealand and Argentina . The first large movements began in
1196-571: A merger of three major Irish distillers. In 2010, the brand was purchased by William Grant & Sons, who constructed a new distillery on the outskirts of Tullamore. The new distillery opened in 2014, bringing production of the whiskey back to the town after a break of sixty years. In 2012, a visitor centre was opened in a refurbished bonded warehouse previously belonging to the original distillery. The centre offers guided tours and tutored tastings ranging from 50 minutes to 5 hours in duration. The origins of Tullamore D.E.W. date back to 1829, when
1288-662: A number of factors such as Prohibition , the Anglo-Irish Trade War and high taxes introduced by the Irish Free State . In the 1960s, with whiskey stocks running low, rather than reopen the distillery, the owners opted to sell the brand to John Powers & Son , the Dublin distillers. In 1966, John Powers & Son merged with two other Irish distilleries to form Irish Distillers . In the 1970s, Irish Distillers closed their existing distilleries and consolidated production at
1380-574: A paper suggested that within a generation, non-Gaeltacht habitual users of Irish might typically be members of an urban, middle class, and highly educated minority. Parliamentary legislation is supposed to be available in both Irish and English but is frequently only available in English. This is notwithstanding that Article 25.4 of the Constitution of Ireland requires that an "official translation" of any law in one official language be provided immediately in
1472-573: A parade, and fireworks. The Queen of the Land Festival takes place in Tullamore each year on the second weekend in November. Primarily a personality contest, it seeks to find the best examples of a modern Irish woman. It is organised by Offaly Macra Na Feirme. Each year about 25 girls between the age of 17 and 35 compete to be crowned Queen of the Land. The festival provides a host of entertainment throughout
1564-554: A pass in Leaving Certificate Irish or English, and receive lessons in Irish during their two years of training. Official documents of the Irish government must be published in both Irish and English or Irish alone (in accordance with the Official Languages Act 2003, enforced by An Coimisinéir Teanga , the Irish language ombudsman). The National University of Ireland requires all students wishing to embark on
1656-632: A private house known as Acres Hall. As the county town of Offaly, many government services are located here such as the headquarters of Offaly County Council , the Midlands Regional Hospital and HSE services. Government departments located in the town include the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and the Department of Education . Tullamore has traditionally been an important industrial, retail and services centre for County Offaly. When
1748-635: A public house since the early 1800s. In the early 1900s it was bought by the Williams Group, founders of the D.E. Williams Distillery, and run as a public bar and grocery, along with many other outlets in the Irish Midlands , from which they sold their growing whiskey brand "Tullamore Dew". It has been in the Lynch Family since 1971. The national Fleadh Cheoil was held in Tullamore for the very first time in August 2007. It returned in 2008 and returned for
1840-611: A religious context. An Irish translation of the Old Testament by Leinsterman Muircheartach Ó Cíonga , commissioned by Bishop Bedell , was published after 1685 along with a translation of the New Testament. Otherwise, Anglicisation was seen as synonymous with 'civilising' the native Irish. Currently, modern day Irish speakers in the church are pushing for language revival. It has been estimated that there were around 800,000 monoglot Irish speakers in 1800, which dropped to 320,000 by
1932-538: A result of linguistic imperialism . Today, Irish is still commonly spoken as a first language in Ireland's Gaeltacht regions, in which 2% of Ireland's population lived in 2022. The total number of people (aged 3 and over) in Ireland who declared they could speak Irish in April 2022 was 1,873,997, representing 40% of respondents, but of these, 472,887 said they never spoke it and a further 551,993 said they only spoke it within
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#17328455539932024-537: A wider meaning, including the Gaelic of Scotland and the Isle of Man , as well as of Ireland. When required by the context, these are distinguished as Gaeilge na hAlban , Gaeilge Mhanann and Gaeilge na hÉireann respectively. In English (including Hiberno-English ), the language is usually referred to as Irish , as well as Gaelic and Irish Gaelic . The term Irish Gaelic may be seen when English speakers discuss
2116-584: Is a Celtic language of the Indo-European language family . It is a member of the Goidelic language group of the Insular Celtic sub branch of the family and is indigenous to the island of Ireland . It was the majority of the population's first language until the 19th century, when English gradually became dominant, particularly in the last decades of the century, in what is sometimes characterised as
2208-448: Is also An Caighdeán Oifigiúil , a standardised written form devised by a parliamentary commission in the 1950s. The traditional Irish alphabet , a variant of the Latin alphabet with 18 letters , has been succeeded by the standard Latin alphabet (albeit with 7–8 letters used primarily in loanwords ). Irish has constitutional status as the national and first official language of
2300-518: Is botanically an important survivor of primeval stock. The park was the location of the annual Tullamore Agricultural Show. However following the cancellation of the show for two consecutive years due to heavy rainfall the event was moved to a new location with improved drainage in the Blue Ball area, south of the town. Tullamore is used as a base for the Slieve Bloom Mountains to the south of
2392-479: Is derived from the initials of the brand's creator, Daniel Edmund Williams (1848-1921), a general manager and later owner of the original distillery. In 1954, the original distillery closed down, and with stocks of whiskey running low, the brand was sold to John Powers & Son , another Irish distiller in the 1960s, with production transferred to the Midleton Distillery , County Cork in the 1970s following
2484-511: Is divided into four separate phases with the intention of improving 9 main areas of action including: The general goal for this strategy was to increase the number of daily speakers from 83,000 to 250,000 by the end of its run. By 2022, the number of such speakers had fallen to 71,968. Before the partition of Ireland in 1921, Irish was recognised as a school subject and as "Celtic" in some third level institutions. Between 1921 and 1972, Northern Ireland had devolved government. During those years
2576-515: Is only in Gaeltacht areas that Irish continues to be spoken as a community vernacular to some extent. According to data compiled by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht , Sport and Media , only 1/4 of households in Gaeltacht areas are fluent in Irish. The author of a detailed analysis of the survey, Donncha Ó hÉallaithe of the Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology , described
2668-412: Is still spoken daily to some extent as a first language . These regions are known individually and collectively as the Gaeltacht (plural Gaeltachtaí ). While the fluent Irish speakers of these areas, whose numbers have been estimated at 20–30,000, are a minority of the total number of fluent Irish speakers, they represent a higher concentration of Irish speakers than other parts of the country and it
2760-659: The Fíor-Ghaeltacht (true Gaeltacht ), a term originally officially applied to areas where over 50% of the population spoke Irish. There are Gaeltacht regions in the following counties: Gweedore ( Gaoth Dobhair ), County Donegal, is the largest Gaeltacht parish in Ireland. Irish language summer colleges in the Gaeltacht are attended by tens of thousands of teenagers annually. Students live with Gaeltacht families, attend classes, participate in sports, go to céilithe and are obliged to speak Irish. All aspects of Irish culture and tradition are encouraged. The Act
2852-472: The Grand Canal opened in the late 18th century, it offered increased connectivity to the town and offered an increased market for goods produced in the area. Tullamore Dew , a brand of Irish Whiskey was first distilled in the town in 1829. Tullamore was connected to the national railway network in 1854 by the Great Southern and Western Railway company, now Iarnród Éireann . Tullamore is also located near
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2944-670: The Irish midlands – drinks businesses, tea importing, seed and grain retail, and a network of 26 general stores. Following this period, Prohibition in the United States , an economic war with Britain in the 1930s, and World War II all harmed the industry. Tullamore was one of many Irish distilleries affected by a general decline in Irish whiskey sales worldwide. After World War II, Desmond Williams, grandson of Daniel E. Williams, used modern marketing techniques to re-establish Irish whiskey in world markets. In 1947, Desmond Williams also developed Irish Mist , an Irish liqueur made from
3036-581: The Midleton Distillery in Cork . However, in 2014, the brand's new owners, William Grant & Sons , invested in a new distillery near Tullamore, bringing whiskey production back to the town. In the Middle Ages , Tullamore was within the Gaelic territory of Firceall ruled by the O'Molloy clan. Firceall was part of the Kingdom of Meath . The Tullamore area was part of the first English plantations in Ireland during
3128-619: The Republic of Ireland , and is also an official language of Northern Ireland and among the official languages of the European Union . The public body Foras na Gaeilge is responsible for the promotion of the language throughout the island. Irish has no regulatory body but An Caighdeán Oifigiúil , the standard written form, is guided by a parliamentary service and new vocabulary by a voluntary committee with university input. In An Caighdeán Oifigiúil ("The Official [Written] Standard ")
3220-494: The 1550s when land was confiscated from the native Irish and colonized with English settlers. Firceall was divided into the baronies of Ballycowan , Ballyboy and Eglish , with Tullamore located in Ballycowan. The Tullamore area, comprising some 5,000 acres, was granted by the English to Sir John Moore in 1622. At that time the Tullamore estate included a ruined castle, ten cottages and two water mills. Sir Robert Forth, who leased
3312-555: The 17th century, largely as a result of the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland , which saw many Irish sent to the West Indies . Irish emigration to the United States was well established by the 18th century, and was reinforced in the 1840s by thousands fleeing from the Famine . This flight also affected Britain. Up until that time most emigrants spoke Irish as their first language, though English
3404-769: The 1998 Good Friday Agreement , the language gradually received a degree of formal recognition in Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom, and then, in 2003, by the British government's ratification in respect of the language of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages . In the 2006 St Andrews Agreement the British government promised to enact legislation to promote the language and in 2022 it approved legislation to recognise Irish as an official language alongside English. The bill received royal assent on 6 December 2022. The Irish language has often been used as
3496-574: The 6th century, can be seen in the village. Within 5 minutes drive is the Celtic cross of Durrow . In the middle of the 6th century, a monastery was founded here by Saint Columba . The monastery is known for the Book of Durrow , an illuminated manuscript written here in the 7th century. There are four metal sculptures located on the N52 Tullamore bypass funded under the percentage for arts scheme where 1% of
3588-403: The 6th century, used the Latin alphabet and is attested primarily in marginalia to Latin manuscripts. During this time, the Irish language absorbed some Latin words, some via Old Welsh , including ecclesiastical terms : examples are easpag (bishop) from episcopus , and Domhnach (Sunday, from dominica ). By the 10th century, Old Irish had evolved into Middle Irish , which
3680-563: The Act all detailing different aspects of the use of Irish in official documentation and communication. Included in these sections are subjects such as Irish language use in official courts, official publications, and placenames. The Act was recently amended in December 2019 in order to strengthen the already preexisting legislation. All changes made took into account data collected from online surveys and written submissions. The Official Languages Scheme
3772-541: The Aura Leisure Centre Tullamore, located on Hophill Road, which has a full gym suite and a 25-metre swimming pool. Tullamore Golf Club has been situated at Brookfield since 1926 and has an 18-hole championship parkland golf course. It was rated among the top 25 parkland courses in Ireland in Backspin 's 2014 Irish Golf Course Rankings. Tullamore has several primary schools. There are several Catholic schools,
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3864-667: The Dublin-Galway and Dublin-Westport/Ballina inter-city routes. In association with the County Westmeath urban centres, Athlone and Mullingar , Tullamore forms part of what is known as the Midlands Gateway . Tullamore lies on the N52 national secondary road . This connects to Birr in the southwest of the county and continues towards Mullingar which is located to the northeast. At Kilbeggan (about 12 km north of Tullamore)
3956-463: The European Union , only co-decision regulations were available until 2022, due to a five-year derogation, requested by the Irish Government when negotiating the language's new official status. The Irish government had committed itself to train the necessary number of translators and interpreters and to bear the related costs. This derogation ultimately came to an end on 1 January 2022, making Irish
4048-536: The Irish language policy followed by Irish governments as a "complete and absolute disaster". The Irish Times , referring to his analysis published in the Irish language newspaper Foinse , quoted him as follows: "It is an absolute indictment of successive Irish Governments that at the foundation of the Irish State there were 250,000 fluent Irish speakers living in Irish-speaking or semi Irish-speaking areas, but
4140-611: The N52 forms an interchange with the M6 motorway which connects Dublin and Galway . The N80 national secondary road connects Tullamore with Killeigh , Mountmellick and Portlaoise , travelling in a southwards direction. A number of regional roads run through the town such as the R420 connecting Tullamore to Moate , Clara and Portarlington , and the R421 which connects to Kinnitty . In 2009, Tullamore
4232-565: The Portarlington Road also has a mix of shops including Tesco , Heatons , Petmania, Harry Corry and Woodie's DIY. In September 2016, Boots opened in the town centre. From 1975 until 24 March 2008, Tullamore was the home of RTÉ Radio 1 's principal medium-wave transmitter , broadcasting the AM version of Radio 1 on 567 kHz, at a power of 500 kW. Before this, the main transmission centre had been sited near Athlone . In addition to being
4324-597: The Republic of Ireland ), new appointees to the Civil Service of the Republic of Ireland , including postal workers , tax collectors , agricultural inspectors, Garda Síochána (police), etc., were required to have some proficiency in Irish. By law, a Garda who was addressed in Irish had to respond in Irish as well. In 1974, in part through the actions of protest organisations like the Language Freedom Movement ,
4416-473: The World Sheep Dog Trials in 2005, which attracted international interest in the region. The Tullamore Show is held near the town every year. The town's most famous export is Tullamore Dew – an Irish whiskey distilled by Tullamore Distillery – that can be traced back to 1829. The original distillery was shut down in 1954. The brand was later resurrected, but at first was produced at
4508-630: The ashes following the accident. The Grand Canal linked Tullamore to Dublin in 1798. During the Napoleonic Wars , a clash between troops of the King's German Legion and a regiment of British Light Infantry who were both stationed in the town, became known as the Battle of Tullamore. Tullamore became county town of County Offaly in 1835, replacing Daingean . Tullamore has a long history of whiskey distilling , with two distilleries known to have operated in
4600-682: The beginning of the following academic year. For a number of years there has been vigorous debate in political, academic and other circles about the failure of most students in English-medium schools to achieve competence in Irish, even after fourteen years of teaching as one of the three main subjects. The concomitant decline in the number of traditional native speakers has also been a cause of great concern. In 2007, filmmaker Manchán Magan found few Irish speakers in Dublin , and faced incredulity when trying to get by speaking only Irish in Dublin. He
4692-621: The boglands of the Bog of Allen . This provided employment through the work of Bord na Mona . Agriculture is also important to the local economy. A number of industrial estates are located in the town. For example, in Srah Industrial Estate, employers include multinationals like Sennheiser , GeneMedix, Covidien , Isotron and Zannini. The Bridge Centre, one of the main shopping areas in the town centre, has outlets of Dunnes Stores , Vero Moda, and Holland and Barrett. The Tullamore Retail Park on
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#17328455539934784-431: The budget is allocated to roadside art. Sculptor Maurice Harron created the figures presenting symbols of learning and sanctity. The figures are located on esker ridges that the new roadway cuts through. There are also a number of churches in the town, including Tullamore Catholic Church, Tullamore Presbyterian Church and St. Catherine's Church of Ireland church. Tullamore Town Hall , which dates from 1786, used to be
4876-531: The county. Also south of Tullamore are the Lough Boora parklands. These boglands contain a range of flora and fauna. The wetlands also contain a number of large-scale environmental sculptures that form part of the ' Sculpture in the Parklands ' sculpture park. 10 km west of Tullamore is the village of Rahan . The remains of what was once a large monastery settlement founded by St.Carthage or Mochuda in
4968-422: The day-to-day running of the business to Daniel E. Williams, the distillery's general manager , under whose careful watch the distillery grew and prospered, and launched Tullamore Dew , the whiskey which bears his initials. Williams brought electricity to Tullamore in 1893. The distillery installed the town's first telephones and introduced motorised transport. Williams ran various commercial businesses throughout
5060-424: The distilling, canal and urban history of the town. Audio visual and self-guided tours are available. Charleville Estate is located on the edge of the town. The Gothic Charleville Castle stands in this parkland setting which contains the King Oak , one of the biggest and oldest oak trees in the country. The castle is said to be haunted and was featured on series 1 of Living TV 's Most Haunted . The oak woodland
5152-403: The dots de-emphasised using colour and font size), is a brand of Irish whiskey produced by William Grant & Sons . It is the second-largest-selling brand of Irish whiskey globally, with sales of over 1,500,000 cases per annum as of 2020. The whiskey was originally produced in Tullamore , County Offaly , Ireland , at the old Tullamore Distillery which was established in 1829. Its name
5244-443: The early 21st century. Between football and hurling championships, Tullamore is one of the most successful clubs in the history of Offaly GAA . Ballinamere won the intermediate hurling championship in 2013, and therefore play senior hurling along with Tullamore. Durrow partakes in the senior 'B' football championship. O'Connor Park is the Offaly GAA home stadium for both the Offaly Gaelic football and hurling teams. The stadium has
5336-664: The education system. Linguistic analyses of Irish speakers are therefore based primarily on the number of daily users in Ireland outside the education system, which in 2022 was 20,261 in the Gaeltacht and 51,707 outside it, totalling 71,968. In response to the 2021 census of Northern Ireland , 43,557 individuals stated they spoke Irish on a daily basis, 26,286 spoke it on a weekly basis, 47,153 spoke it less often than weekly, and 9,758 said they could speak Irish, but never spoke it. From 2006 to 2008, over 22,000 Irish Americans reported speaking Irish as their first language at home, with several times that number claiming "some knowledge" of
5428-414: The end of the famine, and under 17,000 by 1911. Irish is recognised by the Constitution of Ireland as the national and first official language of Republic of Ireland (English being the other official language). Despite this, almost all government business and legislative debate is conducted in English. In 1938, the founder of Conradh na Gaeilge (Gaelic League), Douglas Hyde , was inaugurated as
5520-430: The first President of Ireland . The record of his delivering his inaugural Declaration of Office in Roscommon Irish is one of only a few recordings of that dialect. In the 2016 census, 10.5% of respondents stated that they spoke Irish, either daily or weekly, while over 70,000 people (4.2%) speak it as a habitual daily means of communication. From the foundation of the Irish Free State in 1922 (see History of
5612-427: The first telephone in town. On top of the distillery, Williams also imported tea, seeds, and various grains. Under Williams's watchful eye, the distillery expanded and prospered and, following Williams death, his family came to own the distillery and added his initials (D.E.W.) to its name. In 1954, the distillery ceased production, having, like many of those in Ireland at the time, been hit by declining sales due to
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#17328455539935704-420: The headquarters of Midlands 103 , Tullamore is home to a number of local newspapers including The Tullamore Tribune and The Offaly Independent . Tullamore features in several books by the author Lyn Andrews . The population of Tullamore (and its environs) rose from 10,029 in 1996 to 15,598 in 2022, an increase of over 55%. Tullamore railway station , first opened on 2 October 1854, is served by trains on
5796-419: The lands from Thomas Moore (son and heir of Sir John), built a mansion house c.1641 in what is now the Charleville demesne . Charles Moore, Lord Tullamore, grandson of Thomas, eventually regained possession of the estate and when he died in 1674 it went via his sister to Charles William Bury. Charles William was later (1806) created the 1st Earl of Charleville in a second creation of the title. On 10 May 1785,
5888-498: The language family, is derived from the Old Irish term. Endonyms of the language in the various modern Irish dialects include: Gaeilge [ˈɡeːlʲɟə] in Galway, Gaeilg / Gaeilic / Gaeilig [ˈɡeːlʲəc] in Mayo and Ulster , Gaelainn / Gaoluinn [ˈɡeːl̪ˠən̠ʲ] in West/Cork, Kerry Munster , as well as Gaedhealaing in mid and East Kerry/Cork and Waterford Munster to reflect local pronunciation. Gaeilge also has
5980-410: The language was in use by all classes, Irish being an urban as well as a rural language. This linguistic dynamism was reflected in the efforts of certain public intellectuals to counter the decline of the language. At the end of the 19th century, they launched the Gaelic revival in an attempt to encourage the learning and use of Irish, although few adult learners mastered the language. The vehicle of
6072-425: The language. For most of recorded Irish history , Irish was the dominant language of the Irish people , who took it with them to other regions , such as Scotland and the Isle of Man , where Middle Irish gave rise to Scottish Gaelic and Manx . It was also, for a period, spoken widely across Canada , with an estimated 200,000–250,000 daily Canadian speakers of Irish in 1890. On the island of Newfoundland ,
6164-399: The mid-18th century, English was becoming a language of the Catholic middle class, the Catholic Church and public intellectuals, especially in the east of the country. Increasingly, as the value of English became apparent, parents sanctioned the prohibition of Irish in schools. Increasing interest in emigrating to the United States and Canada was also a driver, as fluency in English allowed
6256-497: The name of the language is Gaeilge , from the South Connacht form, spelled Gaedhilge prior the spelling reform of 1948, which was originally the genitive of Gaedhealg , the form used in Classical Gaelic . The modern spelling results from the deletion of the silent ⟨dh⟩ in Gaedhilge . Older spellings include Gaoidhealg [ˈɡeːʝəlˠəɡ] in Classical Gaelic and Goídelc [ˈɡoiðʲelɡ] in Old Irish . Goidelic , used to refer to
6348-409: The new immigrants to get jobs in areas other than farming. An estimated one quarter to one third of US immigrants during the Great Famine were Irish speakers. Irish was not marginal to Ireland's modernisation in the 19th century, as is often assumed. In the first half of the century there were still around three million people for whom Irish was the primary language, and their numbers alone made them
6440-620: The northern section of the route to the Tullamore Western Relief Road R443 creating in an almost-full orbital route around Tullamore. The N80 now terminates at its junction with the N52. The scheme began construction in April 2008, and was officially opened in late 2009 by then Taoiseach Brian Cowen . Tullamore has a number of sporting organisations, including Gaelic games , association football, rugby union and athletics clubs. Gaelic games are represented by Tullamore GAA , Ballinamere GAA and Durrow GAA. Tullamore GAA won four senior football championships and one senior hurling championship in
6532-522: The number now is between 20,000 and 30,000." In the 1920s, when the Irish Free State was founded, Irish was still a vernacular in some western coastal areas. In the 1930s, areas where more than 25% of the population spoke Irish were classified as Gaeltacht . Today, the strongest Gaeltacht areas, numerically and socially, are those of South Connemara , the west of the Dingle Peninsula , and northwest Donegal, where many residents still use Irish as their primary language. These areas are often referred to as
6624-498: The other official language, if not already passed in both official languages. In November 2016, RTÉ reported that over 2.3 million people worldwide were learning Irish through the Duolingo app. Irish president Michael D. Higgins officially honoured several volunteer translators for developing the Irish edition, and said the push for Irish language rights remains an "unfinished project". There are rural areas of Ireland where Irish
6716-539: The political party holding power in the Stormont Parliament , the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), was hostile to the language. The context of this hostility was the use of the language by nationalists. In broadcasting, there was an exclusion on the reporting of minority cultural issues, and Irish was excluded from radio and television for almost the first fifty years of the previous devolved government. After
6808-487: The relationship between the three Goidelic languages (Irish, Scottish Gaelic and Manx). Gaelic is a collective term for the Goidelic languages, and when the context is clear it may be used without qualification to refer to each language individually. When the context is specific but unclear, the term may be qualified, as Irish Gaelic, Scottish Gaelic or Manx Gaelic. Historically the name "Erse" ( / ɜːr s / URS )
6900-432: The requirement for entrance to the public service was changed to proficiency in just one official language. Nevertheless, Irish remains a required subject of study in all schools in the Republic of Ireland that receive public money (see Education in the Republic of Ireland ). Teachers in primary schools must also pass a compulsory examination called Scrúdú Cáilíochta sa Ghaeilge . As of 2005, Garda Síochána recruits need
6992-683: The revival was the Gaelic League ( Conradh na Gaeilge ), and particular emphasis was placed on the folk tradition, which in Irish is particularly rich. Efforts were also made to develop journalism and a modern literature. Although it has been noted that the Catholic Church played a role in the decline of the Irish language before the Gaelic Revival, the Protestant Church of Ireland also made only minor efforts to encourage use of Irish in
7084-510: The third time from 21 to 23 August 2009. The National Ploughing Championships , Europe's largest Outdoor Exhibition and Agriculture Trade Show, was held in Screggan, Tullamore in 2016. The total attendance figures for the 2016 Championship came to a record-breaking 283,000. The show returned to Screggan in September 2017. The Tullamore Dew Visitor Centre on the banks of the Grand Canal focuses on
7176-598: The town in the 1780s, though closed some years later. Subsequently, a new distillery was established by Michael Molloy, on the site of one of the old distilleries in 1829. When Molloy died, the distillery first passed to his brother Anthony, before eventually making its way into the hands of his nephew, Bernard Daly. When Daly died, his son, Captain Bernard Daly took ownership of the business. With an estate in Terenure, Captain Daly left
7268-460: The town over the weekend, primarily at night. An annual Tullamore Show takes place on the second Sunday of August every year. It was cancelled in 2007 and 2008 due to heavy rain, though it ran again in 2009. Agriculture was originally the show's main focus, but this has broadened to include entertainment, food, crafts, lifestyle, trade stands, food and refreshments, fashion and entertainment. Hugh Lynch's Pub on Kilbride Street has been operating as
7360-454: The town was seriously damaged when the crash of a hot air balloon resulted in a fire that burned down as many as 130 homes, giving the town the distinction of being the location of the world's first known aviation disaster . To this day, the town shield depicts a phoenix rising from the ashes. The event is yearly commemorated by the Phoenix festival which celebrates Tullamore's resurrection from
7452-705: The vacancy to which they are appointed. This requirement is laid down by the University College Galway Act, 1929 (Section 3). In 2016, the university faced controversy when it announced the planned appointment of a president who did not speak Irish. Misneach staged protests against this decision. The following year the university announced that Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh , a fluent Irish speaker, would be its 13th president. He assumed office in January 2018; in June 2024, he announced he would be stepping down as president at
7544-594: The work of such writers as Geoffrey Keating , is said to date from the 17th century, and was the medium of popular literature from that time on. From the 18th century on, the language lost ground in the east of the country. The reasons behind this shift were complex but came down to a number of factors: The change was characterised by diglossia (two languages being used by the same community in different social and economic situations) and transitional bilingualism (monoglot Irish-speaking grandparents with bilingual children and monoglot English-speaking grandchildren). By
7636-464: Was bypassed by re-routing the N52 away from the town centre. The bypass is to the east of the town, and is a 14 km (8.7 mi) single carriageway which leaves the previous N52 approximately 6 km (3.7 mi) southwest of Tullamore, intersecting with the N80 road , crossing over the Grand Canal , before rejoining the original N52 3 km (1.9 mi) north of the town. A spur was constructed from
7728-523: Was also sometimes used in Scots and then in English to refer to Irish; as well as Scottish Gaelic. Written Irish is first attested in Ogham inscriptions from the 4th century AD, a stage of the language known as Primitive Irish . These writings have been found throughout Ireland and the west coast of Great Britain. Primitive Irish underwent a change into Old Irish through the 5th century. Old Irish, dating from
7820-412: Was completed in 2014, which saw production of whiskey return to Tullamore for the first time in sixty years. The new distillery has the capability to produce both malt and pot still whiskey. However, it does not yet have a Coffey still installed to allow the production of grain whiskey . Therefore, as Tullamore D.E.W. is a blend of all three varieties of Irish whiskey, the grain whiskey component of
7912-643: Was enacted 1 July 2019 and is an 18-page document that adheres to the guidelines of the Official Languages Act 2003 . The purpose of the Scheme is to provide services through the mediums of Irish and/or English. According to the Department of the Taoiseach, it is meant to "develop a sustainable economy and a successful society, to pursue Ireland's interests abroad, to implement the Government's Programme and to build
8004-563: Was establishing itself as the primary language. Irish speakers had first arrived in Australia in the late 18th century as convicts and soldiers, and many Irish-speaking settlers followed, particularly in the 1860s. New Zealand also received some of this influx. Argentina was the only non-English-speaking country to receive large numbers of Irish emigrants, and there were few Irish speakers among them. Tullamore Dew Tullamore Dew , rendered in most branding as Tullamore D.E.W. (typically with
8096-628: Was founded in 1941 and have teams in the Leinster Senior League , Combined Counties League (2nd team Women's and Youths) and the Midland Schoolboys League. Tullamore Rugby Club was founded in 1937 and is based in Spollenstown . The Tullamore 1sts team was successful in 2012 as Ulster Bank All Ireland Jnr Cup Champions. Tullamore Harriers caters for athletics in the town, and was founded in 1953. Other leisure facilities include
8188-465: Was passed 14 July 2003 with the main purpose of improving the number and quality of public services delivered in Irish by the government and other public bodies. Compliance with the Act is monitored by the An Coimisinéir Teanga (Irish Language Commissioner) which was established in 2004 and any complaints or concerns pertaining to the Act are brought to them. There are 35 sections included in
8280-678: Was spoken throughout Ireland, Isle of Man and parts of Scotland . It is the language of a large corpus of literature, including the Ulster Cycle . From the 12th century, Middle Irish began to evolve into modern Irish in Ireland, into Scottish Gaelic in Scotland, and into the Manx language in the Isle of Man . Early Modern Irish , dating from the 13th century, was the basis of the literary language of both Ireland and Gaelic-speaking Scotland. Modern Irish, sometimes called Late Modern Irish, as attested in
8372-468: Was still being produced under license at the Midleton Distillery. Therefore, as expansion of the brand was dependent on the availability of whiskey from Midleton, and with significant growth envisaged, William Grant & Sons opted to construct a new distillery in Tullamore, rather than depend on outsourced production. Construction of the distillery is to take place on a phased basis. Phase one
8464-442: Was unable to accomplish some everyday tasks, as portrayed in his documentary No Béarla . There is, however, a growing body of Irish speakers in urban areas, particularly in Dublin. Many have been educated in schools in which Irish is the language of instruction. Such schools are known as Gaelscoileanna at primary level. These Irish-medium schools report some better outcomes for students than English-medium schools. In 2009,
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