A standard Scottish Gaelic greeting is “How are you?”

This is a common statement made by people studying and instructing in endangered languages.

Even though the language is frequently connected to Scotland and Nova Scotia, it is also celebrated in other parts of North America, such as Washington, New York, Texas, and North Carolina, as well as Canadian towns like Toronto and Vancouver.

In various sections of the continent, a number of Gaelic organisations are working to preserve the language.

“We own this tongue. I’d like it returned. And I don’t think I’m alone in that,” Toronto’s Gaelic Society member Trish MacNeil remarked.

A decline in speakers of Gaelic

With the wave of Scottish immigrants from the late 1700s to the mid-1800s, the language of Scotland was extensively spoken throughout Canada. It ranked as the third most spoken European language in Canada in 1867, the year of Confederation.

The Canadian government discouraged the use of Gaelic and, occasionally by physical punishment, stopped school-age children from learning or using the language.

The language eventually became less common in Canada. According to the 2021 Canadian Census, there are just 2,170 Gaelic speakers remaining in Canada, compared to the previous estimate of 250,000 speakers.

There is now much more need to save the language from extinction due to the sharp decline. An increasing number of people in North America are keen to study and teach Scottish language because of strong familial ties and intense allegiance to their history.

Initiatives to bring the language back
“My family is proud to be Highlanders,” stated Jamie MacDonald, a retired professor from St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Newfoundland, who taught Celtic Studies.

People from all over the world attend these events, including John David Gressett, a Gaelic teacher from Texas.

Gressett learned that he was descended from Scotland’s first king. He learnt the language of his forebears from visiting native speakers during Scottish gatherings and festivals throughout the state.

He eventually took it upon himself to teach Gaelic. Currently, he is among the few Gaelic speakers in Texas as well as the only one who travels from festival to festival teaching Gaelic and encouraging its use. He is searching for someone to replace him at the age of 73.

“I intend to make an effort to find a replacement. Thirty years from now, I won’t be here,” Gressett declared. However, I’m going to attempt to make

coordinated initiatives to support the endangered language
In Nova Scotia, there is a deliberate attempt to encourage the study and usage of Gaelic, spearheaded by the provincial government, educators such as Gressett, and volunteers.

The government has contributed to the funding of more than a dozen Gaelic-based initiatives, and in 2021 it spent $1.9 million to establish a Royal Cape Breton Gaelic College satellite campus in Mabou, Nova Scotia.

Lewis MacKinnon, executive director of the province Gaelic Affairs office, stated, “We need all partners to help with reclamation, renewal, healing, all of these pieces.” “Government in my view is central as part of that work.”

coordinated initiatives to support the endangered language
In Nova Scotia, there is a deliberate attempt to encourage the study and usage of Gaelic, spearheaded by the provincial government, educators such as Gressett, and volunteers.

The government has contributed to the funding of more than a dozen Gaelic-based initiatives, and in 2021 it spent $1.9 million to establish a Royal Cape Breton Gaelic College satellite campus in Mabou, Nova Scotia.

Lewis MacKinnon, executive director of the province Gaelic Affairs office, stated, “We need all partners to help with reclamation, renewal, healing, all of these pieces.” “Government in my view is central as part of that work.”

“I realised that having all that culture around me growing up created a very short bridge to the language,” MacNeil stated. “From there I’ve been given this super foundation and the language was just there waiting for me and I have been with it ever since.… It just completed things for me.”