The Turas Irish language project started in East Belfast just over 10 years ago when a cross community women’s group were introduced to the Irish language. What started as a short taster course has grown into a thriving and diverse community.
The project run by the East Belfast Mission is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year as it continues to promote its vision of Irish being a shared language that can bring people together in Northern Ireland and promote peace and reconciliation.
Speaking to Belfast Live, Turas founder Linda Ervine said that she never set out with a plan to develop the project and that it came about quite naturally after her interest was sparked in the language.
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She said: "Growing up in East Belfast the Irish language was something that I had never had the opportunity to engage with and it wasn't until I started exploring it that I started to discover the connections the area has with it and how it is something that belongs to everyone.
"I never set out with a plan to develop Turas, but after attending a six week Irish language taster session with East Belfast Mission, I discovered that it was a real eye-opener and that started me on a journey with the language. I realised that it could be used as a tool to bring people together and to understand our shared history.
"10 years ago we set up the first Irish language class with 20 people primarily from a PUL background and I wasn't quite sure how long it would last, but the classes kept filling up as more and more people began to take part. Due to the friendly and welcoming atmosphere friendships developed and even two marriages and one baby.
"This year around 500 people have registered for classes and the interest in the language continues to grow.
"Turas means journey in Irish, so it is a very fitting name for how far we have come over the past 10 years."
Linda said that discovering the Irish meanings behind many of the place names in east Belfast had a big impact on her as, with the help of her colleague, Dr Gordon McCoy, she began to understand the history of the area and how the Irish language was everywhere.
She said: "The more I began to understand Irish, the more I saw it intertwined with our local history and understood why certain parts of east Belfast are named the way that they are.
"Knocknagoney for example comes from the Irish Cnoc na gCoiníní, which means hill of the rabbits, and Cregagh is from An Chreagaigh, which means the rocky place.
"And of course anyone familiar with east Belfast will know that the Cregagh Road runs up to the Rocky Road.
"Once you start to make these connections the language really starts to come to life and you begin to see that it is all around us."
While Turas has proven to be successful over the years, there have been a few bumps in the road as a small minority have spoken out against the project and the work it is doing.
This included recent intimidation the project faced regarding a Naíscoil at Braniel Primary School which meant that it was forced to move locations.
Linda continued: "We have received a lot of support for Turas over the years, with only a small number of negative incidents.
"For the past few years we have been involved in a project where Turas has been going into schools in East Belfast and teaching Irish, which has been thoroughly enjoyed by children and their families, with one of these being Braniel Primary School.
"After the suggestion of starting an integrated Irish language nursery we were thrilled when we were invited by the school to use one of their old mobiles to start up, but sadly from there we faced an online hate campaign and a lot of misinformation began to be circulated.
"None of this represented the Braniel community and we received lots of support from parents at the school, but it sadly got to the point where we had to find another premises.
"It is sad that a small minority with no connection to the school could be so harmful, but we are very grateful to Braniel Primary for their support throughout it all."
Looking forward to the future, Linda hopes that Turas can expand its education programmes and Irish language programmes, along with its popular bus tours.
She said: "I am hoping that Turas will continue to grow over the next few years and I look forward to seeing new leadership come into place and take it another step further. We are providing bursaries for eight of our learners to study Irish at both Ulster University and Queens University and they are the teachers and mentors of the future.
"As education is a key focus of Turas I hope that this will continue to expand and our aim is to not only have a naíscoil well established but a bunscoil too.
"Learning another language can do wonderful things for a young person's development and overall education, helping them with communication and problem solving skills as well as improving their literacy in their first language.
"We have also been running bus tours that celebrate Gaelic history and culture in the area with our Gaelic East Belfast tour and Con O'Neill tours that I hope will continue to be a success and we will soon be launching a new East Belfast Mural Tour promoting the area's positive artwork and heritage.
"Over the past 10 years it has been lovely to see so many people beginning to learn the Irish language, helping to dispel some of the misperceptions around the language and show that it is something that can bring people together. My main goal is to spread that message further."
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