Category: English

If the Country Is Ours, Why Not Politics Too?

Sep 2nd, 2017

Wir leben alle unter dem gleichen Himmel, aber wir haben nicht alle den gleichen Horizont.

(All of us live under the same sky, but we don’t all have the same horizon.)

~ Konrad Adenauer

Recently, I was asked two questions as part of a group, which got me thinking. The first was what the best thing about Ireland was. The second was what was the biggest problem or issue facing Irish society at the moment.

Many of us in the group thought the same thing about what was good about Ireland: Community. We all agreed that the Irish have a strong sense of community, so much so that it breaks down social barriers, and we’re a country that seems to believe that a stranger is a friend you haven’t met yet. We’re a connected community, and if you met someone on the street (even a street abroad) they’ll probably know a relative, friend, or colleague of yours. Maybe it comes from being a relatively small country, or maybe it’s because the Irish are just that closely connected. (more…)
Let the ‘Irish Is Dead’ Argument Die Instead

Aug 31st, 2017

“It is not in the interests of our community for Irish (which our ancestors shunned as they would rocky crags) to be spoken widely and freely.”

So wrote Richard Stanyhurt, a Dublin-born alchemist and Latin translator, in 1587.

Four hundred and thirty years later, such opinions are still being voiced against the language, and despite the words of Stanyhurt then, to the likes of Kevin Myers et al. today, the language continues to be spoken. For over four centuries (and counting) the Anglo-Irish and Anglo-centric Irish have hoped for a day when, as Sir John Davies wrote in 1612, “…the next generation will in tongue […] become English; so as there will be no difference or distinction but the Irish sea betwixt us”. (more…)
Bank of English? Bank of Ireland Reveals a Costly Truth About Irish

Aug 28th, 2017

Like the vast majority of people in the western world, I use my bank card often enough, from contactless payments, to ATM withdrawals. As an Irish speaker, I’ve used the Irish language option on Bank of Ireland ATMs (and more recently, the ATMs available at Dublin Airport) for as long as I can remember. I use English only when I don’t have Irish available to me, which is admittedly much more common.

At this point, and for the sake of those unfamiliar with my views on the language, I take what I would see as a Nordic view on languages; I speak my own language (i.e. Irish) with anyone who can or wants to speak it, and for anyone else, I’ll speak English without complaint. I don’t ever expect people to speak Irish with me, but while I accept that it’s a minority language, I will make the most of it being an official language of the Republic and the EU. (more…)
The Next Chapter

May 8th, 2017

When I first visited Nottingham, I was smitten.

The landscape of the East Midlands, from Leicestershire to Nottinghamshire and beyond, was beautiful in my eyes. The charm of my first few visits to Nottingham would turn out to have a lasting effect on me: 18 months later, and I made the decision to join my partner in Robin Hood’s hometown, and start a new chapter of my life in this beautiful part of England. (more…)
‘Fás | Growth’ Out Now

Mar 20th, 2017

I’m delighted to say that my début poetry collection, Fás | Growth, is now available to buy on Amazon and Kobo from today!

The title of the collection notes the ten years of poetry that showcase my formative years as a writer, covering various themes from love to depression, social commentary to national identity, and spirituality to satire. Over fifty poems, written in both English and Irish, cover the period 2007-2016, as I find my own place in the world, and now on the bookshelves.

As the collection’s editor, Marian Butler, writes: “Some of the Irish poems are translated into English, some are not, and this is arbitrary”. Indeed, some poems – in English or Irish – stand alone without translation, but this collection will still appeal to the reader regardless of their language, I hope.

Like all writers when their work is finally sent out onto the bookshelves, I’ve a few people to thank for the support. Marian Butler of MKB Publishing, for taking on the mammoth task of going through a decade of poetry, and figuring out which ones were best to put on show in this collection. I also have to thank Siún Ní Dhuinn of As an Nua, for being willing to read though the poetry and add her foreword in Irish to it, realising that she has known me since the earliest of these poems were written.

The poetry will hopefully impress, entertain, and hopefully leave you thinking for a few moments after you read it. If so, then my job is done.

Fás | Growth is published by MKB Publishing, and now available on Amazon and Kobo.

Category: English

If the Country Is Ours, Why Not Politics Too?

Let the ‘Irish Is Dead’ Argument Die Instead

Bank of English? Bank of Ireland Reveals a Costly Truth About Irish

The Next Chapter

‘Fás | Growth’ Out Now