ANTIGONISH: Over 60 Gaels gathered at St Joseph’s Lakeside Community Centre in Antigonish County on May 27, for the second annual Caidreabh an t-Seanchais.
Designed for Gaelic speakers and learners, it was a full-day of Gaelic speaking, singing, storytelling, music, and visiting. The event saw participants from across the province and beyond, from young to old and from fluent native speakers to brand-new learners join in fellowship entirely in the medium of Gaelic.
“There was a great joy in the air to be in one another’s company,” Amber Buchanan said, of Freumh is Fàs Intentional Gàidhlig Community, the group that helped organize the day on behalf of the Office of Gaelic Affairs. “We received wonderful feedback that a lot of the activities we did together throughout the day ended up being both accessible to beginner learners and engaging for fluent speakers, which was no small feat.”
Gathering together in community to celebrate shared cultural connection and identity is so important.
Caidreabh was a wonderful opportunity to share old tales, create new stories, and play some improv games to deepen relationships with old friends and get to know new ones.
“It really was a great way to bring us all together and celebrate our shared cultural connection and identity,” Buchanan said. “We got to share old stories and songs and also speak about parts of our modern lives getting to know one another better.”
Gaelic Affairs is a division of Communities, Culture, Tourism and Heritage and works with government and community partners to support Gaelic language and culture as a basis for community development.