In this Book
- An Irish-Speaking Island: State, Religion, Community, and the Linguistic Landscape in Ireland, 1770–1870
- Book
- 2014
- Published by: University of Wisconsin Press
- Series: History of Ireland and the Irish Diaspora
summary
After 1770, Ireland experienced the establishment of modern forms of Irish Catholicism, new engagement by the public with the political process, and the growth of the modern state, represented by new legal and educational systems. An Irish-Speaking Island investigates the role in these developments of the population who spoke Irish in their daily lives—whether as a first or second language—and links the history of language contact and bilingualism with the broader history of Ireland in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
As late as 1840, Ireland had as many as four million Irish speakers—a significant proportion of the total population—who could be found in every county of the island and in all social classes and religious persuasions. Their impact on the modern history of Ireland and the United Kingdom cannot be captured by a simple conclusion that they became anglicized. Rather, Nicholas M. Wolf explores the complex ways in which the transition from Irish to English placed a premium on adaptive bilingualism and shaped beliefs and behavior in the domestic sphere, religious life, and oral culture within the community. An Irish-Speaking Island will interest not only historians but also scholars of linguistics, folklore, politics, literature, and religion.
Winner, Michael J. Durkan Prize for Books on Language and Culture, American Conference for Irish Studies
Winner, Donald Murphy Prize for Distinguished First Books, American Conference for Irish Studies
As late as 1840, Ireland had as many as four million Irish speakers—a significant proportion of the total population—who could be found in every county of the island and in all social classes and religious persuasions. Their impact on the modern history of Ireland and the United Kingdom cannot be captured by a simple conclusion that they became anglicized. Rather, Nicholas M. Wolf explores the complex ways in which the transition from Irish to English placed a premium on adaptive bilingualism and shaped beliefs and behavior in the domestic sphere, religious life, and oral culture within the community. An Irish-Speaking Island will interest not only historians but also scholars of linguistics, folklore, politics, literature, and religion.
Winner, Michael J. Durkan Prize for Books on Language and Culture, American Conference for Irish Studies
Winner, Donald Murphy Prize for Distinguished First Books, American Conference for Irish Studies
Table of Contents
Download Full Book
- Acknowledgments
- pp. ix-xii
- Notes on Names and Sources
- pp. xiii-2
- Introduction
- pp. 3-20
- Part I: Identities
- 2. Peasant Etymologies
- pp. 63-82
- Part II: Encounters
- 4. Education and Established Church
- pp. 111-148
- 5. Courtroom and Polling Booth
- pp. 149-180
- 6. Language and Catholic Devotional Reform
- pp. 181-222
- Conclusion
- pp. 268-274
- Source Abbreviations
- pp. 275-276
- Bibliography
- pp. 349-418
Additional Information
ISBN
9780299302733
Related ISBN(s)
9780299302740
MARC Record
OCLC
898456626
Pages
464
Launched on MUSE
2015-01-28
Language
English
Open Access
No
Copyright
2014