Ceartas
Encyclopedia
In the early 1980s in Scotland
, Ceartas (ˈkʲʰarˠʃt̪əs̪ ) was a protest group which attempted to publicise the unequal treatment of the Gaelic language. The name is the Gaelic word for 'justice'.
The group was founded in 1981, in the wake of the failure of MP Donald Stewart's private member's bill, which had sought for Gaelic the same status enjoyed by Welsh
in Wales. Some of those who travelled to London to observe the progress of the bill, most of them students from Aberdeen, Edinburgh or Glasgow, met afterwards to discuss non-violent direct action, a tactic which had played a key role in the campaigns of Cymdeithas yr Iaith in Wales. Key figures were Iain Taylor, Stephen Maceachern, Anne Martin, Kay Matheson and the MacDonald brothers
. Picking up on the on-going road sign controversy
, they defaced road signs around Scotland, and painted the slogan Ceartas airson na Gàidhlig (Justice for Gaelic) across roads. An anonymous statement was released to the press, resulting in widespread public attention. Ultimately Iain Taylor was arrested, though never convicted.
In court, a witness on Taylor's behalf attempted to give evidence in Gaelic and was forbidden to do so. This appeared to contradict a 19th-century precedent which allowed the use of Gaelic in court, and this resulted in a legal review which established the principle that Gaelic could be used in court only if the witness could not speak English. This principle remained until the Scottish Parliament's
Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act 2005
gave the language the status which the Ceartas group had argued for.
More recently, however, ceartas slogans have again been springing up around the Highlands of Scotland, Argyll and also in and around Glasgow, and also Edinburgh. The reason for this is unknown, however is believed to be due to the limited scope of the Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act 2005
and the sizable number of public bodies operating in Scotland (often those bodies dealing with reserved matters
) who have appeared to resist the spirit of the 2005 act.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, Ceartas (ˈkʲʰarˠʃt̪əs̪ ) was a protest group which attempted to publicise the unequal treatment of the Gaelic language. The name is the Gaelic word for 'justice'.
The group was founded in 1981, in the wake of the failure of MP Donald Stewart's private member's bill, which had sought for Gaelic the same status enjoyed by Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
in Wales. Some of those who travelled to London to observe the progress of the bill, most of them students from Aberdeen, Edinburgh or Glasgow, met afterwards to discuss non-violent direct action, a tactic which had played a key role in the campaigns of Cymdeithas yr Iaith in Wales. Key figures were Iain Taylor, Stephen Maceachern, Anne Martin, Kay Matheson and the MacDonald brothers
MacDonald brothers
The MacDonald Brothers are pipers and folk musicians from Scotland. They are notable for their playing, most notably for their piping.The three brothers, Allan, Iain and Angus grew up in Glenuig, a small Gaelic speaking community in the west Highlands of Scotland...
. Picking up on the on-going road sign controversy
Gaelic road signs in Scotland
In the Gaelic-speaking parts of Scotland, the use of the Gaelic language on road signs instead of, or more often alongside, English is now common, but has historically been a controversial issue of symbolic rather than practical significance for people on both sides of the debate.- History :In the...
, they defaced road signs around Scotland, and painted the slogan Ceartas airson na Gàidhlig (Justice for Gaelic) across roads. An anonymous statement was released to the press, resulting in widespread public attention. Ultimately Iain Taylor was arrested, though never convicted.
In court, a witness on Taylor's behalf attempted to give evidence in Gaelic and was forbidden to do so. This appeared to contradict a 19th-century precedent which allowed the use of Gaelic in court, and this resulted in a legal review which established the principle that Gaelic could be used in court only if the witness could not speak English. This principle remained until the Scottish Parliament's
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act 2005
Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act 2005
The Gaelic Language Act 2005 passed by the Scottish Parliament in 2005 is the first piece of legislation to give formal recognition to the Scottish Gaelic language....
gave the language the status which the Ceartas group had argued for.
More recently, however, ceartas slogans have again been springing up around the Highlands of Scotland, Argyll and also in and around Glasgow, and also Edinburgh. The reason for this is unknown, however is believed to be due to the limited scope of the Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act 2005
Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act 2005
The Gaelic Language Act 2005 passed by the Scottish Parliament in 2005 is the first piece of legislation to give formal recognition to the Scottish Gaelic language....
and the sizable number of public bodies operating in Scotland (often those bodies dealing with reserved matters
Reserved matters
In the United Kingdom reserved matters and excepted matters are the areas of government policy where Parliament had kept the power to make laws in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales....
) who have appeared to resist the spirit of the 2005 act.