So my ancestry is all screwy. I'm English, Irish, Scottish, Portuguese, Spanish, Choctaw, Seminole, and Yaqui.

I can understand Spanish and read it just fine, speak it not so much. Not really a priority for me though, I'll get to it eventually. I've found a few teach yourself Gaelic courses at the used book store. One each of the Irish and Scots dialects and a Scots dictionary. The Irish book also has some cassettes which I was able to find in mp3 format as well. Anyone here speak either dialect?
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there is only about 2 people in scotland that speak it lol u wana try welsh gaelic north wales is the only place in the uk were thay use it alot lol the road signs in north wales are in both english and gaelic
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Probably about 15 years back, I was interested in learning Gaelic because of my Irish background but I didn't realize that there was a difference between Irish Gaelic (Gaeilge or just "Irish") and Scottish Gaelic until I had spent a few hefty bucks on some Scottish lessons. I learned a little, had fun with it but never went after it really hardcore.

So recently I realized the need for learning Spanish and I turned to Rosetta Stone. I was poking around their site and it turns out, they just began offering a program for learning Irish. I just ordered the Latin American Spanish program so I'm going to hold off on pulling the trigger on the Irish lessons. Either way, I thought it was pretty cool that Rosetta Stone now offers Irish!
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I would be interested in hearing your thoughts on Rosetta Stone and how effective you feel the program is once you get into it for awhile. I've been thinking about getting the Spanish but don't want to buy the hype. I want to hear the pros/cons from someone who has used it, not commercial marketing.
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I'm with you - actually the only reason I went with Rosetta Stone was because of a family friend who used it and felt very comfortable with the material. I should have my copy here towards the end of next week so I'll be sure to let you know my thoughts :-)

As for the Irish, I'll be interested to see how it's presented. Due to the differences in Irish dialects (and they are indeed quite different), it would seem fairly difficult.

MithShrike, which dialect are the cassettes/mp3s in? Munster, Ulster, Connacht, etc... As an aside, I know there are some really great resources (free) on the net that I've run across that I would imagine could be a great help to you. One of which was a news broadcast where everything was spoken in Irish. I always thought that would be a great way to train your ear.
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The cassettes/mp3s are dialect non-specific. They mention the dialects though in case one is traveling.

As to the Rosetta Stone... I'm not a fan. I think the linguistic theory behind it is flawed for teaching adults. For teaching children it's great. I think for adults though the best is what is called 'leveraged' learning. So programs like Michel Thomas or Fluenz would be a better choice IMO.
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He said Gaelic. LOL!

:-)

:-)

:-)
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What are you 13?

:-)
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The main difference is between Scottish and Irish. Different dialects are just that. British English vs American English vs Aussie English, etc. Pretty similar. Or Castillian vs South American Spanish. Similar enough to be understood by each other.

There was a time when I wanted to learn dozens of languages, but have found it's not worth the trouble. I speak five fluently, and wanted to learn Arabic and Japanese or Chinese- but it REALLY takes a lot of work. I think that here in the US of A, Spanish is becoming quite important- I think I'd look into that before Gaelic.

Interesting about Rosetta Stone. They are quite expensive even on Ebay! I understand that Berlitz does a good job.

Understand, I'm not knocking your wanting to learn Gaelic! Heck, I wanted to learn Sioux or Apache and even hieroglyphics- but thought better of it. I guess I'm saying that to really learn a language requires a lot of time and, frankly, money. So, if you can find a book of Gaelic phrases for cheap I'd say go for it. But, if you really want to learn another language that would also help you, time and money on Gaelic is not the way to go.

Sorry, but languages are dear to my heart, and I wanted to give you the best advice I could. But, being free, it's worth as much as it cost you. Good luck! Sláinte agus táinte!
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Thanks hotreds, yeah... nothing is expensive to me... I have an Internet connection.

I wanted to learn dozens of languages at one time as well. I still have a marginal grasp of what I call 'essential' Polish. You know, enough to eat, drink, find a woman, get around town, and get in fights. My Spanish is about the same but I understand and read it a hell of a lot better. My spoken Farsi is about the same as my Polish but I've lost all ability to read it. Japanese bored me quickly, also their culture bored me too, I'm just not a Nippophile. At one time I was going to join the Armed Forces as a cryptolinguist but my health got in the way.

As to the utility of the language, this isn't my goal. Basically I want to read and compose poetry in the language. More of a hobby than anything. I found a group locally that is meeting next Saturday.
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Kewl! I wish you luck! Powodzenia!
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:-)



Ron
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:-)
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