On the 31st of December 2021, the Irish language was finally granted full official and working status in the EU. When Ireland joined in 1973, only the treaties were translated into Irish, so it has been a long journey to get the Irish language this status.
Dr. Pádraig Bredán Ó Laighin was instrumental in pushing for the progression of the Irish language in the EU. IN 2003 he wrote to Maurice Hayes about the importance of discussing the Irish language of the national forum for Europe. In 2005, the request is made that Irish become an official language and 10 years later in 2015 the request is made for Irish to have full status. From 2019-2021 there was a dramatic increase in the volume of translations into Irish.
The MyEU50: The Ireland EU50 Youth Competition overall post primary winners were from GaelCholáiste Mhaigh Naud who did their entire project as Gaeilge discussing young people and the EU. It is incredibly inspiring to see now the effect that Irish becoming a full working language has had on the opportunities provided to young Gaelgóirs.
