Friday, June 26, 2020

language as political hot-potato that is hard to handle (English graveyard, Gaelic text)

excerpt from Church of England refuses to allow foreign language on a gravestone, calling it a "political statement"

...the Church of England pushed back again when they saw the planned inscription on the cross: "In ár gcroíthe go deo," which means, "In our hearts forever" in the Irish language. This didn't seem particularly radical, especially as there are already Welsh inscriptions in the same cemetery. But once again, the diocesan advisory committee denied the family's headstone proposal. "Given the passions and feelings connected with the use of Irish Gaelic," said a Church judge who is also a local government judge, "There is a sad risk that the phrase would be regarded as some form of slogan or that its inclusion without translation would of itself be seen as a political statement."


After yet another appeal, the judge agreed to allow the Irish words only if they're accompanied by an English translation.



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