Each month, Culture Vannin’s Manx language development officer, Ruth Keggin Gell, contributes a column to Island Life.

2026 is Blein ny Gaelgey – the Year of the Manx Language. Manx Gaelic is an important part of our island, our intangible cultural heritage, and one of the key reasons that our entire Island is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. But do you know about the history of Manx?

Three thousand years ago Celtic languages were spoken by many people across Europe. Visualise Ireland, modern-day Britain and modern-day Spain and keep going right across the continent to the Black Sea and modern-day Turkey; that’s how far these languages stretched!

As new empires spread out across Europe, the Celtic languages spoken on the continental mainland died out. The Celts on the islands of modern-day Britain and Ireland kept their Celtic languages, and over time they diverged into two different groups: Brythonic, spoken in most of the island that we now call Britain, and Goidelic, or Gaelic, spoken in Ireland.

Around 1,500 years ago, Irish missionaries and migrants travelled to Scotland and the Isle of Man. They spoke an early form of Irish, and this developed into the separate – but related – languages of Scottish Gaelic, Manx, and what we know now as modern Irish.

Manx was the main language spoken in the Isle of Man until relatively recently. As towns grew, and trade, tourism and the influence of the English language increased in the 19th century, the use of Manx rapidly declined.

Within only a few generations the majority of people only spoke English. The benefits of bilingualism weren’t widely recognised in those days, and many people felt compelled to choose English.

Fortunately, efforts to begin saving the language began in the late 1800s: a number of language enthusiasts voluntarily collected recordings from native speakers, taught classes and produced learning resources. This helped to halt the decline and inspire a new generation of Manx speakers, many of whom learnt the language from the native speakers.

Manx was introduced to state schools across the island in 1992 and in 2001 the Bunscoill Ghaelgagh opened, teaching children through the medium of Manx.

The language only received governmental support just over 40 years ago, and grassroots work has been incredibly important.

Now, thanks to a mixture of voluntary work, paired with government initiatives, Manx learning opportunities are available to all and the number of speakers is increasing year on year.

This column is merely the briefest of dips into our island’s beautiful Celtic language; if you’d like to find out more about it, and the incredible work that has been done to ensure its survival into the 21st century, I thoroughly recommend reading ‘A Short History of the Manx Language’ by Stowell and O’Breaslain.

Manx has always been spoken in the Isle of Man, and you can learn and enjoy it too – it’s for everyone.

Find out more at https://www.learnmanx.com/ and get involved with Blein ny Gaelgey, the Year of the Manx Langage by visiting https://yearofmanx.im/