Westmeath Community Development

The Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Éamon Ó Cuív TD today announced that he has sanctioned funding from the Irish Language Fund for Third Level Institutions Overseas to Beijing Foreign Studies University in China, to assist them in providing Irish classes at the university’s Irish Studies Centre.  Beijing Foreign Studies University is the first university in China to apply for funding to teach Irish.  Minister Ó Cuív has sanctioned a grant of €21,900 over a three-year period for this project. 

It is Beijing Foreign Studies University’s policy to teach all the official languages of the European Union, and now that Irish is an official working language of the EU, the university is keen to offer Irish language tuition to its students.  The Language Centre in NUI Maynooth will liaise with Beijing regarding the curriculum and course content.

The Irish Language Fund for Third Level Institutions Overseas was established by Minister Ó Cuív in 2006 to assist in the provision of Irish courses as part of the academic programme in overseas universities.  To date, over 30 institutions worldwide – in the United States, Canada, Australia and Europe – have made use of this grant to offer students Irish language classes.

Minister Ó Cuív said:
“I am delighted to welcome Beijing Foreign Studies University on board as the first third-level institution in China to seek our support in providing Irish classes to their students.  Ireland and China already have extensive links, and it is my hope that our new relationship with Beijing Foreign Studies University will further cement the ties between the two countries.

“The demand for funding from this scheme from universities worldwide, and now as far away as China, is a clear indicator not only of the interest within the academic community in Irish as one of the world’s oldest vernacular languages, but also as proof of the opportunities for Irish speakers globally.   The Irish language is a valuable export.  Studying Irish in their own universities is often the first step in a lifelong interest in both the language and the country’s wider culture, and it is wonderful to see students from all over the world coming to the Gaeltacht to continue their studies.”