Cup Song in Irish (as gaeilge)

A friend in the USA sent me this cool video of school kids singing the cup song in the Irish Language (as gaeilge).   It is definitely worth a look.

In Ireland it is compulsory to study Irish until you leave school at 18.  Many children take additional classes during the Summer Holidays by travelling to Summer Camp in the Gaeltacht region (all Irish speaking region) of Ireland.  This video of the cup song was filmed in one of the Gaeltachts.

While at the Gaeltacht, they stay in the homes of families who converse through Irish (Gaelgoirs) and they do classes during the day through Irish.  The classes are a lot of fun and consist of singing, Irish dancing, acting, sport and quizzes - this is all done through the Irish language.

In the evening time the kids attend "Ceilidhs" (prounounced Kay-Lees) which are dances where set dancing is done.  For many teenagers it is a rite of passage to meet their first boyfriend at a Ceilidh in the Gaeltacht!

Generally it is children from the age of about 13 to 16/17 yrs who go to these camps and it is very beneficial as they tend to come home with a fluency that you don't get from studying in the traditional classroom during the year (case in point being able to translate the cup song in to Irish!).

By the way the cup song is extremely popular at the moment here in Ireland, click here for another version by Irish school children which was performed on the Late Late Toy Show just before Christmas.