Word of Mouth - Gaelic
Michael Rosen is in conversation with Gaelic language expert Roddy Maclean about the status of Gaelic in Scotland. Roddy explains its origins as one of the Indo-European languages, a Celtic language we characterise by sound differences. One group is called P-Celtic, the other is called Q-Celtic, and Gaelic's in the Q-Celtic group. Traditionally Gaelic has been spoken in The Highlands - the Gàidhealtachd - but its growing in popularity in Scottish cities these days with new learners and schoolchildren helping boost the language. A few decades ago there were fears the language would die out.
Among the facts Michael picks up is that Gaelic has no single word for Yes or No and that the landscape of the Highlands can be better understood by understanding the origin of Gaelic place names. He also gets to hear some of his work performed in Gaelic by Glasgow schoolchildren.
Producer: Maggie Ayre
Produced in partnership with The Open University
Published on Thursday, 27th August 2026.
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