Attitudes to Gaelic in Scotland

The Gaelic language has acquired growing prominence in Scotland in recent decades, but there is very little evidence on public attitudes to the language, especially those of the anglophone majority. The purpose of the funding sought is to fill this gap in evidence with an academically rigorous survey source: the proposed research would insert a module of questions on attitudes to Gaelic in the annual Scottish Social Attitudes Survey of 2012, measuring views about such topics as the use of Gaelic in public areas, the place of Gaelic in education, the use of Gaelic in broadcasting, the place of Gaelic in regional, Scottish and British identities, and the future of Gaelic. The policy importance of this evidence is signalled by the financial contribution which the Scottish Government and Bord na Gaidhlig (the statutory body responsible for promoting the use of Gaelic) are making to the costs of the survey.The applicants would then use the data generated to analyse the issues and report on them. Most of the funding for the analysis and dissemination phases is not being sought here, and will be carried out as part of the inter-university Gaelic research network Soillse (in the form of 25% of the time for one year of a Research Fellow who will work under the supervision of the Principal Applicant; for further details, see 'Academic Beneficiaries'.)The topics to be addressed in that analysis are explained in full in the Case for Support, and are in summary: Like all minority languages dependent on sources of public funding, Gaelic relies on the support - or at least the acquiescence - of the non-Gaelic-speaking majority. Its position is paradoxical in several respects. On the one hand, there seems to be a great deal of goodwill towards Gaelic; on the other, particular proposals to spend public money on Gaelic (eg in broadcasting or on bilingual signage) can generate intense controversy. Gaelic is often seen as an essential part of Scottish identity, and yet is spoken by only a small minority. It has received recent encouragement through legislation and funding from the Scottish Parliament, and yet was supported also by the Conservative government in the 1980s that was firmly opposed to devolution. Thus the purpose of the analysis is to develop a better understanding of where support lies, how deep it is, what aspects of Gaelic language policy lead to controversy, and how people view its place in Scottish culture. Debates about Gaelic are one instance of a world-wide growth of interest in minority languages, some of which have achieved state encouragement in recent decades. Academic views about the future of minority languages range from support for language rights to scepticism, the latter often based on the view that being able to speak a majority language is necessary for social opportunity. The further purpose of the analysis is thus to understand attitudes to Gaelic in this wider context. The most relevant research from other countries is on attitudes to Welsh and to Irish in both parts of Ireland, and this research will pay close attention to the methods and results of these studies, advised by an expert advisory group which will be set up under the auspices of Soillse.

The main public beneficiaries of the research that would use the data generated by the funding will be policy makers in central and local government. Three areas in particular will benefit: (1) Policy on promoting the Gaelic language itself. The research will provide evidence relating to the nature of public understanding of such policies and the extent of public support for them. (2) Policy on Gaelic education. The research will provide evidence on the understanding of what this entails, on the support for various models of Gaelic education (eg immersion, bilingualism, second-language learning) and attitudes to the place of language learning in the school curriculum.(3) Policy on Gaelic broadcasting. The research will assess awareness of Gaelic services, extent of use of them, and attitudes to their quality and importance. Note that (1) and (2) primarily relate to devolved matters, whereas (3) is mainly a reserved matter, and so the research will also contribute to one aspect of the complex relationship between Scottish and UK policy. In all three respects, the research will also contribute to comparing policy in Scotland with analogous policies in Wales and Northern Ireland. An expert advisory group will be established of both academics and also people from the Scottish Government, Bord na Gaidhlig, Highland Council, BBC Alba, and other relevant bodies. The group would be invited to comment on both the draft questionnaire and on plans for analysis and dissemination. Public dissemination will include: (a) summaries of research directed at a wide audience, on the websites of appropriate organisations and in print; (b) reports for specific public bodies (eg on attitudes to Gaelic education or to Gaelic broadcasting); (c) contribution to dissemination activities led by the Scottish Centre for Social Research; (d) contribution to dissemination activities led by Soillse (see 'academic beneficiaries'); (e) public seminars held in collaboration with Soillse and with Edinburgh University's Institute of Governance. For more details of planned public dissemination, please see the attached Pathways to Impact.