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Portrush in Irish Gaelic is Port Rois, which means “promontory port”. If you are interested in languages, cultural history, learning more about your Irish ancestry and discovering more about the ancient past of Ireland during your trip, this section hopefully acts as a starting place. An hour to the West of Portrush over the border in Donegal you can experience a Gaeltacht region (Irish speaking area) and throughout Northern Ireland you will see Gaelic referenced in historical narratives, on street signs here and there and in everyday use when you hear the term ‘Whats the craic?’

Gaelic origins

Which we’ll borrow from Wikipedia: Gaelic is an adjective that means “pertaining to the Gaels”. As a noun, it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Celtic languages are spoken in both Ireland and Scotland, in Scotland it is very often referred to just as “Gaelic”, but in Ireland it is referred to as “Irish”.

The Gaels (Irish: Na Gaeil [ɡeːlˠ], Scottish Gaelic: Na Gàidheil [ˈkɛː.əl̪ˠ], Manx: Ny Gaeil) are an ethnolinguistic group native to northwestern Europe. They are associated with the Gaelic languages: a branch of the Celtic languages comprising Irish, Manx and Scottish Gaelic. Historically, the ethnonyms Irish and Scots referred to the Gaels in general, but the scope of those nationalities is today more complex.

Irish Gaelic and you | Your family ancestry

Find the Irish translation of your family name
Irish family tartan finder (search by county)
How to trace your Irish ancestry guide

Irish Gaelic | Language apps and translators

Teanglann | English-Irish Translator
An Chraic app | Irish Gaelic translator
Translate your town name into Irish
Fáinne badge | worn to show Irish speaker
Map of the Gaeltacht areas of Ireland

Gaeltacht areas of Ireland

Borrowing wikipedia again as a good explanation and reference point for further info: The term Gaeltacht refers individually to any, or collectively to all, of the districts where the government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home.

A great site showing how to ‘Holiday in the Gaeltacht’