A groundbreaking new monolingual Irish dictionary by Foras na Gaeilge that provides people with a new way to understand, use and learn the Irish language – without relying on dictionaries in English or in other languages – was launched by president Catherine Connolly last week.
An Foclóir Nua Gaeilge (The New Irish Dictionary) is the first comprehensive monolingual “Irish-Irish” dictionary. Until its publication, anyone trying to understand an unfamiliar Irish word or phrase typically had to look it up in an Irish–English dictionary and understand it through the lens of English.
Unique Features
Work on compiling An Foclóir Nua Gaeilge began in September 2022, with Foras na Gaeilge chief dictionary editor Pádraig Ó Mianáin and dictionary programme manager Cormac Breathnach leading the project. An initial tranche of 20,000 entries, comprising 40,000 word senses, is now live on Focloir.ie.
The monolingual Irish dictionary reflects Irish as a living language by including real-world, every-day, contemporary usage, aiming to re-affirm current good practice in the standard language as well as recognising common dialectal forms.
The new dictionary includes definitions of foreign words that are in common use in the Irish language, such as ad hoc, al fresco, baguette, cappuccino and aide-de-camp. While many phrases, idioms and proverbs have dedicated entries and definitions.
The dictionary aims to provide guidance where needed as to the intricacies of Irish grammar, more than would ordinarily have been provided in previous dictionaries. This is done through various means such as usage notes, grammar information within entries, or widespread use of examples that illustrate different points of grammar.
It also gives helpful grammar and pronunciation guidance for those less sure about how to use and pronounce words and phrases.
‘ESSENTIAL RESOURCE’
Launching the new dictionary at a special Foras na Gaeilge event in the EPIC Irish Emigration Museum in Dublin, president Catherine Connolly said that the contemporary monolingual dictionary “is an essential resource in any living language, in which the language itself and its uniqueness are defined in its own words and by its own community, instead of constantly being defined through the medium of another language.”
The main phase of the dictionary project is scheduled to be completed by August 2027, by which time it will comprise 30,000 entries and 80,000 senses.
The project is principally funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht in Dublin and the Department for Communities in Belfast, with additional support from the Department of Education in Dublin.
An Foclóir Nua Gaeilge is now available to access free of charge online at Focloir.ie
