Cultural Impact & Language Shift - British rule attempted to suppress the Irish language, associating it with poverty and rural communities while promoting English as the language of government and education [1] - By 1900, less than 20% of Irish people were fluent in Irish due to British-run schools switching to teaching purely in English in the 1830s [2] - Father Eugene Agrroni's lessons in Irish in the "weekly Freeman" helped the Irish language become a symbol of resistance [3] Current Status & Linguistic Features - Approximately 40% of the population in the Republic of Ireland can now speak some Irish [4] - The Irish language lacks direct equivalents for "yes" and "no", using an "ingressive affirmative" (a sharp intake of breath) to signify affirmation [4][5]