Press release -

Gaelic Spoken Here

Tourism businesses and members with an interest in promoting the use of Gaelic have until Friday 8 May to have their say on VisitScotland’s updated Gaelic Language Plan.

With around a quarter of Americans (26%) and Canadians (25%) stating they are very interested in Gaelic language and culture, the national tourism organisation has renewed its commitment to making the language an important part of the country’s tourism offering.

VisitScotland’s Gaelic Language Plan has a new focus on tourism business and events in Scotland with a three-year timetable of activity planned, including the employment of a Gaelic Language Officer and increasing the amount of Gaelic content on its corporate website.

A draft of the plan can be found at http://www.visitscotland.org/about_us/our_gaelic_plan.aspx, with interested parties invited to submit written comments to Riddell.graham@visitscotland.com by Friday 8 May.

Riddell Graham, Director of Partnerships at VisitScotland, said: “If Gaelic is to be revitalised as a living language in Scotland, it is important that we make a concerted effort to enhance its status and to encourage its increased usage. We have already made great strides to develop and promote Gaelic, but we recognise that much still needs to be done to fully embed the language into all parts of the organisation in a way that it becomes an integral part of our strategic thinking, decision-making and delivery plans.”

VisitScotland already has in place a number of actions from its first Gaelic Language Plan, published in 2012. This includes a bilingual corporate logo and signage at its VisitScotland Information Centres; provision for handling phone calls and emails in Gaelic; Gaelic speakers being made available for media interviews; and the introduction of a policy to offer Gaelic training to staff.

New aims suggested by Bord na Gaidhlig, the Gaelic language board, to be implemented by VisitScotland by 2018 include:

  • Identifying a Gaelic Ambassador on the VisitScotland Board
  • Increase the Gaelic language content on the organisation’s corporate website: VisitScotland.org
  • The development of a ‘Gaelic Spoken Here’ Welcome Scheme within VisitScotland’s Quality Assurance Scheme
  • Promote the story of Scotland’s Gaelic heritage and language in its consumer-facing marketing activity
  • Look to employ, on a job-share basis with another public body, a Gaelic Language Officer
  • According to the 2011 Census, there are 57,375 Gaelic speakers in Scotland. The highest concentration is in the Outer Hebrides, followed by Skye and Lochalsh and the islands of Argyll and Bute. There are also now around 10,000 speakers in greater Glasgow and almost 6,000 in the Edinburgh area. Overall, approximately 87,000 people were claimed to have ‘some knowledge of Gaelic’ in 2011.

The Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act 2005 was passed by the Scottish Parliament with a view to securing Gaelic as an official language of Scotland, commanding equal respect to English.

For more information on VisitScotland’s Gaelic Language Plan, go to http://www.visitscotland.org/about_us/our_gaelic_plan.aspx

Topics

  • Tourism

Categories

  • corporate communications
  • gaelic

Regions

  • Scotland

Notes to Editors

  • Follow us on twitter: @visitscotnews
  • VisitScotland is Scotland’s national tourism organisation. Its core purpose is to maximise the economic benefit of tourism to Scotland.
  • The organisation has three key roles:
    1. To market Scotland to all parts of the world to attract visitors
    2. To provide information – and inspiration – to visitors and potential visitors so they get the best out of a visit to Scotland
    3. To provide quality assurance to visitors and quality advice to the industry and partners to help the industry meet and strive to exceed customer expectations
  • VisitScotland works together with tourism businesses to make tourism a success for everyone and ensure the industry continues to grow.
  • The organisation employs 700 people and has offices and VisitScotland Information Centres across Scotland.
  • According to a recent Deloitte study, the tourism economy supports 270,000 jobs in Scotland in 20,000 diverse businesses. The same study calculates that the tourism economy contributes £11 billion annually (direct and indirect impact, including day visits) and supports around 10 per cent of employment in Scotland. Almost 16 million tourists take overnight trips to Scotland.
  • For VisitScotland’s press releases go to http://www.visitscotland.org/media_centre.aspx, tourism statistics and frequently asked questions go to http://www.visitscotland.org/
  • Where possible, a Gaelic speaker will be made available for broadcast interviews on request (Far an tèid iarraidh, agus far am bheil sin nar comas, bruidhinnidh neach le Gàidhlig aig agallamh)
  • For holiday information on Scotland go to www.visitscotland.com
  • For information about business tourism in Scotland go to www.conventionscotland.com

Year of Food and Drink 2015

  • 2015 is the Year of Food and Drink, a celebration of Scotland’s natural larder and the role that food and drink plays in shaping our economic success.
  • Scotland generates over £2.5m per day through food and drink tourism.
  • A series of themed months will create an appetite for key areas of Scotland’s food and drink industries – from seafood and whisky to berries and high-quality meat
  • For more information, visit www.visitscotland.com/tastescotland

Contacts

Chelsea Charles

Press contact Scotland’s Themed Years Communications & Engagement Manager Contact for media enquiries on: Scotland’s Themed Years (i.e. 2018 Year of Young People; 2020 Year of Scotland's Coast and Waters; 2022 Year of Scotland's Stories) 0131 472 2067

Carrie MacWilliam

Press contact Senior Corporate Press Officer - National Contact for media enquiries on: Travel media (Scotland); Year of Young People; UK Marketing; Dundee; Fife; Angus; Perthshire 0131 472 2052

Amelia Whittaker

Press contact Senior Corporate Press Officer - Regional Contact for media enquiries on: South Region; Edinburgh and Lothians; Food and Drink; Scottish Thistle Awards 01750 723806

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