Modern Irish uses the regular latin alphabet, so any normal font will work fine, as long as it has the accented vowels — which most do. You can experiment with all kinds of fonts here: http://www.ellipsix.net/textwriter/render.jsp

Also, until the middle of the last century a font style called seanchló was used.

In seanchló, all instances of the letter h after a consonant are replaced by a dot over that consonant. Any occurrence of h at the beginning of a word is simply left alone.

Where can I find traditional Irish fonts?

The second font featured in the image above is called Seanchló GC. It is a popular Irish font, and you can get it from its download page at Gaelchló (whose interface is written in Irish). On that page, click on the link for seangc.zip to download the regular version of the font, seantgc.zip for the bold version, or seandgc.zip for the extra-bold (poster) version.

On Windows

• Download the font you want.
• Click on your Start button and select Settings -> Control Panel.
• Open the fonts folder.
• Select File -> Install New Font. A dialog box will appear.
• Open the directory (or zipfile) containing the font you want to install.
• Select the font(s) you want to install.
• Click OK.

On Linux

Put the font somewhere in your fonts directory (probably /usr/X11R6/lib/X11/fonts). Then reload your font server using /etc/init.d/xfs restart.

On Mac OS X

• In the Finder, click your home icon and select Library > Fonts.
• Drag or copy the .tff file you downloaded into that Fonts folder.

There are other traditional Irish fonts available if you’re curious. Try these links:

• http://www.gaelchlo.org/ (The instructions on that page are in Irish, but click around and you’ll find the download links).
• http://www.smo.uhi.ac.uk/~oduibhin/mearchlar/fonts.htm
• http://www.mythicalireland.com/art/wallpapers/fonts.html
• http://www.ireland-information.com/freecelticfonts.htm
• http://www.ucc.ie/faculties/celtic/fonts/
• http://babel.uoregon.edu/yamada/fonts/gaelic/gaeilge.html
• http://www.evertype.com/celtscript/csmain.html (these fonts are not free)

How can I type fadas (accents)?

When using our fourm: You can always type fadas on the forum by clicking the “Reply” button, and using the accented characters provided. This feature is not available when you use “quick reply” (the box at the bottom of each page).

Writing Irish on Windows and Linux

If you have a European keyboard, you should be able to type fadas simply by holding down the Alt Gr key, pressing one of the vowel keys, and then releasing both keys. To get an uppercase vowel with a fada, simply use shift + Alt Gr + vowel.

If you do not have a European keyboard or an Alt Gr key, you can type fadas by holding down the Alt key, and typing the character code using the numeric keypad with Num Lock ON, not the numbers along the top of the keyboard. This method works only on Windows. For Irish you’ll need these:

Alt + 0225 = á
Alt + 0193 = Á
Alt + 0233 = é
Alt + 0201 = É
Alt + 0237 = í
Alt + 0205 = Í
Alt + 0243 = ó
Alt + 0211 = Ó
Alt + 0250 = ú
Alt + 0218 = Ú

If you plan to type a lot of fadas, there are ways to configure your system to make it easier.

Windows and Linux: Using an alternate keyboard layout: http://www.ellipsix.net/geninfo/charaset/index.php

Unix/Linux: Modifying your keyboard map: http://nualeargais.ie/foghlaim/keymapping.php

Mac OS 8.x, 9.x and 10.x:

Option key + each of the vowels represents a different accent. “e” happens to be the fada. Type Option + e, then type the vowel you want. For capitals, type Option + e, then Shift + vowel.

Or…

Click the blue apple in the top left corner. Click on System Preferences -> International. Click on the Input Menu, and go down the list of languages till you see Irish and check mark it. Make certain to check-mark “Show Input Menu in Menu Bar”. Click on the language tab, select Gaeilge and add it to the list of your languages.

Now EVERY font on your computer has Gaeilge keyboard Format with all the fadas. To get a fada just hold the Option key and type the vowel.

Since you check-marked “Show in Input Menu Bar” just look up at the top right hand corner and you will see a flag displayed to the left of the clock. Click it and you can select the Tricolor for Gaeilge. You can easily toggle between other language formats in the same way.

You can also use the Irish Extended keyboard, which allows you to type the dotted consonants (option-consonant) just as easily as the vowels with fadas (option-vowel). And shift-option-7 in that keyboard gives you the “Tironian et”, or the 7-shaped “agus” sign.

For general information on Celtic keyboard layouts for the Mac, please see http://www.evertype.com/celtscript/celt-keys.html

Tools for writing Irish

• Ceart Irish grammar checker runs under Windows and corrects Irish grammar and spelling.
• GaelSpell Irish spell checker integrates with Microsoft Office, and corrects your litriú while you write.

Contributed by: Abigeál, ad51201, Aisling_M, blixt, Brigid_CloverMoon, Dónal Óg, éanna, giomach, Maidhc, Méabh, mhwombat, Scotaigh, wdsci, WolfpactVI, Yoda

Stress

For the most part, Irish words are stressed on the first syllable. There are a few dozen words — mostly old compounds that merged into one word–that are accented on the second syllable.

Consonants

Irish consonants can be either broad or slender. This quality is determined by the vowels that follow or precede it. A basic rule of Irish spelling is “caol le caol agus leathan le leathan” – “broad with broad and slender with slender”.

Except in the case of compound words, a slender consonant or consonant group will always have either an “e” or an “i” on both sides of it–after it if it’s the first consonant in a word, before it if it’s the last in the word.

Likewise, a broad consonant will always have an “a,” “o,” or “u” before and after it.

Generally, broad consonants sound more or less like they do in English, although they sound like they come from further back in the mouth than in English, and there is often a off-glide similar to a light “w” sound after them. The only way to grasp this is to listen to Irish speakers, but the key below should help you on your way.

Slender consonants can often sound different from English. They are generally produced further forward in the mouth, and often have a palatal “y” sound gliding off from it. This seriously affects the dental consonants — d, t, and s

a á b c d e é f g h i í l m n o ó p r s t u ú

Newly imported words can contain j, k, q, v, w, x, y, z. Of these, v is probably the most commonly used letter.

The accent that can be placed on each of the five vowels is called the fada. The accent broadens the vowel.