What is the difference between Gaelic, Irish and Gaeilge when people talk about the language?
They overlap, but they are not interchangeable. Gaeilge is the language's own name for itself, pronounced roughly GWAYL guh. Irish is its name in English, and that is the word to use in conversation: people in Ireland learn Irish, speak Irish, watch Irish television. Gaelic is the wider family name, covering Irish, Scottish Gaelic and Manx, and on its own it usually makes an Irish listener think of Scotland. Under the Constitution, Irish is the national language and the first official language, with English the second. So: Irish in English, Gaeilge when you are speaking the language itself.
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Sources
- Foras na Gaeilge and Udaras na Gaeltachta: the Irish language, Gaeltacht areas and language guidance, forasnagaeilge.ie and udaras.ie
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