Fáilte
Fáilte romhat go suíomh gréasáin Chumann Gaeilge na hAstráile. Is í príomhaidhm an chumainn ná teagasc (agus foghlaim) na Gaeilge. Bíonn ranganna ar siúl oíche Dé Máirt le linn na dtéarmaí scoile Victoria agus bíonn scoil samhraidh againn i mí Eanáir freisin. Más comhrá atá uait, tagann an ciorcal comhrá le chéile gach coicís. Bíonn ócáidí sóisialta eile ann i rith na bliana agus foilsímid nuachtlitir gach ráithe.
Anseo is féidir leat teagmháil a dhéanamh linn, clárú leis an suíomh seo agus páirt a ghlacadh san fhóram, ach más maith leat teacht chuig na ranganna is riachtanach ballraíocht den chumann a ghlacadh. Mar bhall den chumann, beidh réimsí eile den suíomh ar fáil duit freisin.
Welcome to the website of the Irish Language Association of Australia. The association’s primary aim is the teaching (and learning) of Irish. Classes are run on Tuesday nights during the Victorian school terms and we also have a summer school in January. If it’s conversation you’re after, the conversation circle meets fortnightly. There are other social events during the year and we publish a newsletter each quarter.
Here you can get in contact with us, register with the website and participate in the forum, but if you want to come to classes you will need to become a member. As a member of the association, you will also gain access to other parts of the website.
Ranganna · Classes
We run classes every Tuesday night during the Victorian school term (except public holidays), starting at 7:30 pm. There are different levels of classes, so you should find one to suit you. You’re welcome to come along and try them out, but if you want to attend regularly you will need to become a member of the Cumann. There is also a fee of $5 per class.
Classes are aimed at adult learners and led by experienced teachers. Different classes use different texts and some of these are available for purchase (e.g. Gaeilge gan stró, Buntús Cainte, Progress in Irish).
Venue
Classes are held at the offices of The Celtic Club — Level 1, 420-424 William Street, West Melbourne. There is parking in William Street and in Franklin Street on the south side of Victoria Market.
The venue is the temporary (administrative) home of The Celtic Club while the club site is being redeveloped and is not licensed. But just across the street is the Royal Standard Hotel and within walking distance you can find The Last Jar and The Drunken Poet as well as Celtic at the Metropolitan (The Celtic Club’s other temporary home).
Dangerous diacritic in the hands of a child!
After a long period of cases and appeals in the courts, Fañch Bernard, two and a half years old now, was allowed to use his Breton name with a tilde (~) as it is spelled in that language.
When the young boy was born in May 2017, a government official refused to register his name with the ñ because the tilde wasn’t part of the French language and he wrote “Fanch” on the birth certificate. A more senior official reversed the decision, but prosecutors took the case to the Kemper (Quimper) local court and they confirmed the original decision again i September 2017. According to the local court, it would be a breach of “the will of our state of law to maintain the unity of the country and equality for all regardless of origin” to allow the little mark to be written officially.
By that time though, little Fañch already had a I.D. card and passport with the troublesome ñ on them.
In the end, the case came before the Appeals Court of Roazhon (Rennes) last October and they allowed the sign. They found that the tilde was not unknown in the history of the French language and in addition the name Fañch had already been accepted by a prosecutor in Roazhon in 2002 and a registrar in Paris in 2009.
There are a couple of well-known Breton writers with the name — Fañch Peru and Fañch Broudig. Also, the tilde can be regularly seen in the surname of the junior Minister for the Interior — Laurent Nuñez.
Fañch’s parents are happy of course — they only wanted to name their child after his grandfather — and the French Republic hasn’t falled apart.
Aisteoirí ar aistear ~ Visiting actors
Le déanaí, thug beirt aisteoir Éireannach cuairt ar Chomhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann anseo i Melbourne. Thug Edwin Mullane léiriú ar “The Little Cloud” ó Dubliners le James Joyce, chun aitheantas a thabhairt do Bloomsday. Is comhbhunaitheoir The Corps Ensemble é Edwin agus tá sé ina stiúrthóir ealaíne don chompántas sin faoi láthair.
Is fearr aithne ar John Connors as an dráma RTÉ Love/Hate. Léirigh sé dráma aonair, Ireland’s Call, in St. Kilda agus Bondi le linn a thurais, cé nach raibh an bheirt acu san Astráil ach cúig lá!
I láthair freisin, bhí Éadaoin O’Reilly (Irish Film Festival Australia) agus iar-Uachtarán an Chumainn, Karolyne McDermott Paron. Bhain an lucht féachana an-sult as an seó.
Recently, two Irish actors visited Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann here in Melbourne. Edwin Mullane gave a rendition of “The Little Cloud” from Dubliners by James Joyce, as an acknowledgement of Bloomsday. Edwin is co-founder of The Corps Ensemble and the company’s current artistic director.
John Connors is best know for the RTÉ drama Love/Hate. He staged a one-man play, Ireland’s Call, in St. Kilda and Bondi, even though the two actors were only in Australia five days!
Also present were Éadaoin O’Reilly (Irish Film Festival Australia) and ex-President of the Cumann, Karolyne McDermott Paron. The audience enjoyed the show very much.
Would you like a Cuppa with Van…and Yer Man, Ann, Nan, Jan and Dan?
On Tuesday evening, celebrating Seachtain na Gaeilge in honour of Barney Devlin, the Cumann’s classes put on one of his comedies, Cupán le Van (“A Cuppa with Van”). To the joy (irritation?) of the participants, it’s now available on the Internet!
Barney was a great friend to the Cumann as a teacher and writer and he is sorely missed.
Focail i mbarr a mblátha ~ In full Bloomsday
Performers celebrating Bloomsday at The Quiet Man
16 Meitheamh 2019
