The Language Freedom Movement () was a political organisation founded in 1966 that was opposed to some aspects of the state-attempted revival of the

Irish language Irish (Standard Irish: ), also known as Irish Gaelic or simply Gaelic ( ), is a Celtic language of the Indo-European language family. It is a member of the Goidelic languages of the Insular Celtic sub branch of the family and is indigenous ...

in the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...

. The organisation had the backing of several notable Irish-speaking writers including

Séamus Ó Grianna Séamus Ó Grianna (; 17 November 1889 – 27 November 1969; locally known also as Jimí Fheilimí) was an Irish people, Irish writer, who used the pen name Máire. Biography Born to Feidhlimidh Mac Grianna and Máire Eibhlín Néillín N� ...

("Máire") and John B. Keane.Wars of Words: The Politics of Language in Ireland 1537–2004
Tony Crowley,

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, 2005, , 9780199273430

Concerns

Examinations

At the time the organisation was formed, if a student failed the Irish paper in their Leaving Certificate, they were deemed to have failed the whole exam. This requirement was abolished in 1973, although students are still obliged to study Irish as part of the Leaving Certificate programme and a pass is required for Irish students entering almost all Irish universities (but not for foreign students). In 1974, Irish was removed as a requirement for entry to the

civil service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

Textbooks

Significant changes in the Leaving Certificate maths curriculum were reflected in two new textbooks produced by the Irish Christian Brothers. However, material for the new honours (higher-level) syllabus was offered only in a government-subsidised book in Irish while the pass (lower-level) material was published in English. The situation continued for several years until affordable alternative textbooks eventually became available.

Mansion House meeting

The organisation held a meeting in the Mansion House in Dublin on 21 September 1966. It was advertised by a poster with a cartoon depicting the "Gaelic language policy" as a well-fed cow sitting atop the educational system. The meeting was chaired by broadcaster Gay Byrne. About 2000 people turned up, though most of them seemed opposed to the organisation.From Language Revival to Survival
Donncha Ó hEallaithe, anghaeltacht.net, originally published in , citing Opponents taunted the organisers by waving

Union Jack The Union Jack or Union Flag is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. The Union Jack was also used as the official flag of several British colonies and dominions before they adopted their own national flags. It is sometimes a ...

s at them and singing " God Save the Queen". As John B. Keane got up to speak, one man seized an Irish Tricolour from the table used by the organisation, shouting that the flag should not be displayed at such a meeting. A fight involving ten men broke out and calm was only restored when the LFM agreed to four of their opponents speaking at the meeting. The Gardaí were also present at the meeting. At the request of the organisers, Patrick Byrne TD had asked the Garda Commissioner to ensure law and order prevailed. Irish language writer

Máirtín Ó Cadhain Máirtín Ó Cadhain (; 20 January 1906 – 18 October 1970) was one of the most prominent Irish language writers of the twentieth century. Perhaps best known for his 1949 novel , ÓCadhain played a key role in reintroducing modernist literatur ...

and Mick Ryan (the IRA O/C of Dublin) were involved in the disruption of the meeting.

References

External links

Clip of RTE ''7 Days'' report from 1967
(

Windows Media Player Windows Media Player (WMP, officially referred to as Windows Media Player Legacy to retronym, distinguish it from Windows Media Player (2022), the new Windows Media Player introduced with Windows 11) is the first media player (application soft ...

). News report on the Language Freedom Movement public meeting at the Mansion House.
James Hardiman Library Archives - G44 - Language Freedom Movement
- archive of materials from 1966 to 1974 held at NUI Galway 1966 establishments in Ireland Political history of the Republic of Ireland Political organisations based in Ireland Organizations established in 1966