The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1908-12-05
THE LANGUAGE
Of THE CElTs
Lecture by Prof. Kuno Meyer,
the Gre / German Scholar
in London.
Hoped Day is Distant When
Gaelic is Not Heard in
Ireland.

The first of the course of ten lee
lures arranged by the authorities OF
the University of London as an in
PRODUCTION to the study Of Celtic Ian
guages and literature, was delivered,
on Oct IL, by Professor kuno Meyer,
at University College. There was a
very large audience. composed for the
most part of members of the Gaelic
League, Irish Literary Society, Irish
Texts Society and similar Welsh and
Scotch associations. Sir John Rhys,
professor of Celtic in Oxford, presided.
The lecturer, in the course of his
address, said there was no book deal
ing with the subject of the Irish Ian
guage from the earliest period, with
the result that student had to piece
things together from a variety OF
works for himself. The subject was
not only one of pathological interest.
Language properly studied was often
a safer guide to the remote period
of history than anthropology or arch.
zoology. The origin of the Gaels, who
belonged to one of the mightiest peo-
pie ever known. their settlement III
ireland, their struggles with other ma
lions whom they subdued, until they
were in turn subdued, were all re-
corded in that language which at one
time prevailed throughout the length
and breadth of Ireland. That language
spoke to us from old stone monuments
and place names which but for: it's
knowledge must have remained alto
getf1er meaningless to the people. In
that language there was enshrined
medieval literature second to none
other. The fact that the original Cells
and their primitive language spread
over Europe was evidenced by the
knowledge that no less than Al places
were called by names that meant the
city which stands in the middle of the
plain. Wherever they turned on the
Continent they found rivers and towns
and mountains which had derived their
names from the primitive Gaelic Ian
guage. While the Celts swept over
the greater part of Europe some Ger.
manic people became subject to them.
This was proved by words in Germanic
which were borrowed from Celtic. It
was point of long standing contro.
versy between Sir John Rhys and him
(Mr Kuno Meyer) as to the road by
which the Celts arrived in Ireland. Sir
John Rhys contends they came to
Great Britain, whence they were driv-
en- to ireland by the Britons. His
main argument was that they found
Gaelic settlements along the coast In
Wales In historic times, and also
again ogham stones and Gaelic place
names. Apart from everything else,
he Cthe lecturer) had never been able
to understand how the Britons, If they
conquered the Celts, would have al
lowed their remnant to linger on the
coast, but he held that the various set
Elements of the Gaels in Wales and
elsewhere in Great Britain took place
in the third and fourth centuries of
our era from Ireland. He could not
enter into all these points of .contro.
versy now, but he wished to repeat
what he had said on a former occasion,
that whether they took history or ira.
they were led to no other conclusion
than that no Gael ever set his foot on
British soil except from vessel that
had put out from Ireland. The Gaels,
therefore. in his opinion, arrived in
Ireland not from Great Britain, but d.
rect from Gaul and Spain. ireland
stood in very close connection with
the Continent. Before our era trade
routes existed, and there was abund-
lnce of material which proved this.
These routes did not come via Great
Britain. but via Gaul and Spain.
There was great deal to be found
upon the subject in Professor Bewley's
Life of st. Patrick, book of almost
exhaustive learning. Continuing, the
lecturer said the Ogham Inscriptions
were a testimony that the Roman al
phabet reached Ireland before the
coming of Christianity. The CONVEX.
sion to Christianity, which began ear.
ly in the third century. and reached its
climax in the fifth century, was most
important factor in connection with
the Irish language. With Christian.
ity came the art of writing on parch.
ment. During this early Christian pc
riod, the lecturer pointed out, the Irish
language was enriched with a large
vocabulary, partly by taking Latin
words and partly by coming words on