The story of the founding of Belfast’s urban Gaeltacht area will air tonight as part of a new BBC two-piece documentary.
The Irish Houses – Scéal Phobal Bhóthar Seoighe, will also take a look at the families who made the decision to raise their children through Irish and to make Irish the language of their own communities.
In 1969 a group of young people from Belfast, who met and became friends through their interest in the Irish language, set up the first Gaeltacht in Ireland and 50 years on, BBC Gaeilge will hear from some of those founders and get an insight into their journey.
It will also date back to 1971, when the Shaw’s Road community established the first Irish medium school in Northern Ireland which led to the development of the Irish medium education sector here.
The series shows how this community influenced the growth and development of the Irish language in Ulster over the past 50 years and how many of the original couples who founded this community still contribute to the wider Irish language circle today.
Speaking ahead of the show, Séamus Mac Seáin reflected back on the first Gaeltacht area.
He said: "What do you need in order to create a Gaeltacht? You need people, you need Irish-speaking families, you need houses where you can live side-by-side. Everything else comes after that, in that they’re just practical considerations."
Máire Mhic Sheáin said: "The growth of the Irish language community is the result of work that was carried out over the years. People who taught Irish in houses, in kitchens, in cramped rooms, on a voluntary basis, their whole life long, without asking for, or receiving a penny for their efforts."
Made for BBC Gaeilge by Clean Slate TV and with support from NI Screen’s Irish Language Broadcast Fund, the shows will be broadcast on BBC 2 NI on Monday 18 and Monday 25 May at 10pm.
