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Derek Hollingsworth

@derekholly7.bsky.social
1.1K followers 982 following 604 posts

| Psychology | Reclaiming my language | Co-founder 7 Cathaoirleach Pobal Gaeilge 15 | #GaeilgeGachLá #100DaysofGaeilge Irishlanguagematters.com (blog) | hollingsworthd.substack.com

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Reposted by Derek Hollingsworth
Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 17h
The banshee wasn't a monster. She was a messenger, a mourner, and perhaps an echo of Ireland's ancient keening tradition. Why does her cry still resonate centuries later? My latest article explores the history behind the legend. #IrishFolklore #Gaeilge ☘️ hollingsworthd.substack.com/p/why-the-ba...
hollingsworthd.substack.com
Why the Banshee’s Cry Still Resonates
The Turning of the Year
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 17h
The banshee wasn't a monster. She was a messenger, a mourner, and perhaps an echo of Ireland's ancient keening tradition. Why does her cry still resonate centuries later? My latest article explores the history behind the legend. #IrishFolklore #Gaeilge ☘️ hollingsworthd.substack.com/p/why-the-ba...
hollingsworthd.substack.com
Why the Banshee’s Cry Still Resonates
The Turning of the Year
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 14/10/2026
It's really wonderful to see ordinary people out on the streets supporting each other today. There is a National Strike on in Ireland. Ní neart go cur le chéile!
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 12/10/2026
The Irish word for werewolf carries echoes of a time when the line between human & wild wasn't as defined. Have you heard of the FAOLADH before? It's the human-wolf of Irish folklore, not always as sinister as a proper werewolf. #gaeilge #Irishlanguage #irishhistory #irishculture #irishfolklore
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Indeed!
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
No, I don't think 'manglicised' is in Translations. I thought I invented it - and I'm trying to encourage it! - but I think Ciara Ní É used it before me on X and I found it used on Instagram in Austria or somewhere around 2018 😂
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
I saw it a couple of years ago in the Abbey Theatre!
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Go raibh míle maith agat a chara!
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Reposted by Derek Hollingsworth
Siobhán McElduff @siobhanmcelduff.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
If you've never heard of the (quite religious) werewolves of Ossory, have you really lived?
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
The Wolf, the Werewolf, and the Wilderness in Medieval Ireland Link below hollingsworthd.substack.com/p/the-wolf-t...
hollingsworthd.substack.com
The Wolf, the Werewolf, and the Wilderness in Medieval Ireland
Ireland on the Thresholds
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
The legends of the werewolves of Ossory emerged from an Ireland where wolves roamed & wilderness boundaried civilisation. Ireland was seen as a place on the edge of the world. 🌳 🐺 My latest article 'The Wolf, the Werewolf, & the Wilderness in Medieval Ireland'. Link in comments.
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Manchán was everywhere: No Béarla, his magical books, thought-provoking documentaries, podcasts, videos & interviews, plays, & his presence on social media. He was our omnipresent guide. It felt like he would always be there. Is mór an chaill é. Link to substack article in bio. #Gaeilge #Manchán
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
hollingsworthd.substack.com/p/manchan-ma...
hollingsworthd.substack.com
Manchán Magan’s Anniversary: A Tribute to the Torch Bearer
It’s the Irish words that seem most appropriate in describing Manchán: seanchaí, saoi, scríbhneoir, saineolaí, ollamh, oide, file, fear fasa. He was all of this and more.
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Manchán Magan passed a year ago. He was a huge inspiration to many Irish learners & people in the language movement. His greatest legacy may be how he presented Irish as a beautiful, living treasure beyond political or religious associations. Link in comments. #Manchán #ManchánMagan
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Tá an deireadh seachtaine linne! Bíodh deireadh seachtaine maith agaibh uilig! 🙌 Meas ar Pheig Sayers ☘️ ❤️ #gaeilge #irishlanguage
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Don't worry, folks, the weekend is coming!
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Belfast has the most advanced Irish language infrastructure of any urban centre. There's some really exciting things going on culturally too. Have you heard tradtronica group, Huartan? Tír gan teanga tír gan anam ☘️ ❤️ #gaeilge #irishlanguage #decolonisethefocal #Béalfeirste
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Thank you! 😊
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
hollingsworthd.substack.com/p/the-forgot...
hollingsworthd.substack.com
The Forgotten Irish-Speaking Kings of Northumbria
Three centuries before there was a unified Kingdom of England, there were Irish-speaking kings in Northumbria.
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
The Forgotten Irish-Speaking Kings of Northumbria. Oswald, Oswiu & Aldfrith spent time in Dál Riata. The Venerable Bede recorded that King Oswald translated St. Aidan's sermons in Irish live to his court. My substack article link in comments... Grateful for RTs🙏 ❤️ #Gaeilge ☘️ #spéirghorm
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Luí na gréine - sunset Bhí dul faoi na gréine go hálainn - the sunset was beautiful #gaeilge #irishlanguage
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Reposted by Derek Hollingsworth
Pádraic Fogarty @whittledaway.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Place names in Irish show the deep connections our ancestors had with wildlife, from wolves and eagles to wild boar and oak forests. The names are still there but the animals are long gone www.bbc.com/future/artic...
bbc.com
Eagles and wolves: The long-lost animals that live on in Irish place names
Long-standing Irish place names hark back to a world alive with cranes, wolves and eagles. Now these old names are piquing the interest of nature-lovers and ecologists.
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Reposted by Derek Hollingsworth
Irish Doctors for the Environment @irishdocsenv.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
The decline of our Irish language is intrinsically linked with colonial ecocide. Tá ár dteanga, ár mbithéagsúlacht agus ár gcuid sláinte fite fuaite. Our language, biodiversity and health are intertwined. Labhair Gaeilge, agus bíodh grá agatsa don fhuinseog 's dair www.who.int/europe/publi...
who.int
Role of the arts and culture in addressing the health impacts of climate change: Behavioural and Cultural Insights policy brief series
Publicaciones de la Organización Mundial de la Salud
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Ná bígí buartha. Tá an deireadh seachtaine beagnach linne! Don't worry folks. They weekend is almost with us! ❤️ #Gaeilge #andeireadhseachtaine #spéirghorm
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Reposted by Derek Hollingsworth
Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Neurodivergent: Reflecting on Learning Irish with ADHD. My substack today. "I felt locked out of Irish language culture: the social events, songs, stories, literature, all lying tantalisingly beyond my grasping reach." hollingsworthd.substack.com/p/neurodiver...
hollingsworthd.substack.com
Neurodivergent: Reflections on Learning Irish with ADHD
Reflections on learning a language with a ghost in the room
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Go raibh míle maith agat Eimear!
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Ró-chineálta Orlagh. Táim fíorbhuíoch díot!!
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Neurodivergent: Reflecting on Learning Irish with ADHD. My substack today. "I felt locked out of Irish language culture: the social events, songs, stories, literature, all lying tantalisingly beyond my grasping reach." hollingsworthd.substack.com/p/neurodiver...
hollingsworthd.substack.com
Neurodivergent: Reflections on Learning Irish with ADHD
Reflections on learning a language with a ghost in the room
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
David Keohan went looking for a stone. He found: 🪨 A lost tradition ☘️ Connection to Irish culture 💔 Loss & shame 📢 Grá for the Irish language ✨️ Reclamation of self Read article on irishlanguagematters ✍️ 📢 Full interview soon on Irish Language Matters: Decolonising The Focal 🎙 🎧 #gaeilge
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
@cilldaralegaeilge.bsky.social @siobhaingrogan.bsky.social 🙌
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Cé thú féin anyways? Siobhain Grogan, Cill Dara le Gaeilge "Tá rud éigin an-speisialta faoi bheith i measc daoine óga ⁊ Gaeilge á labhairt ag gach duine! ... tá pobal láidir inár gceantar anois ⁊ go leor daoine breá sásta Gaeilge a labhairt." ❤️ #Gaeilge irishlanguagematters.com/2026/09/02/c...
irishlanguagematters.com
Cé Thú Féin Anyways? Siobhain Grogan.
Siobhain Grogan, Cill Dara le Gaeilge (ar dheis) le Deirdre Ní Choistín, TG4 Cé thú féin anyways? Is mise Siobhain Grogan, tuismitheoir triúir, cathaoirleach Chill Dara le Gaeilge agus Uisce for Ga…
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
Manglicised: Irish Placenames Stradbally was Sráidbhaile Laoise in the 16th C. 'Street town of Laois'. Today, the Irish name is An Sráidbhaile. Sráidbhaile (village) is made up of sráid (street) & baile (town/settlement). 📢 Podcast 'Irish Language Matters: Decolonising the Focal' 🎙 🎧 coming soon!
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
New interview with David Keohan, 'Indiana Stones', on his desire to reconnect with Irish. David is driving the revival of the tradition of stone lifting in Ireland, part of a wider cultural revival. ❤️Gaeilge☘️ irishlanguagematters.com/2026/08/26/d... irishlanguagematters.com/2026/08/26/d...
irishlanguagematters.com
David Keohan, ‘Indiana Stones’, Lifts the Lid on His Grá for Gaeilge
David Keohan, ‘Indiana Stones’, is a Waterford man. He is reviving the old tradition of stone lifting in Ireland and has recently published his book, The Wind Beneath the Stone.
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Interview with David Keohan 'Indiana Stones' on irishlanguagematters.com tomorrow. David is reviving the tradition of stone-lifting in Ireland. David lifts the lid on his grá for Gaeilge. "Why can't I speak my own language. I felt an awful sense of shame." #gaeilge #irishlanguage #learnIrish
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
A bit mad!
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
The biggest task will be the restoration of the language. How can we express our most subtle thoughts and finest feelings in a foreign tongue? ...until we have it again on our tongues and in our minds we are not free, and we will produce no important literature.” - Michael Collins #Gaeilge #Ireland
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
English words of Irish language origin: Esker Borrowed from the Irish eiscir, an esker is a long glacial ridge. Recorded in English from 1852☘️ Esker in Lucan, is named for Esker Riada nearby that stretches across Ireland. ❤️ #Gaeilge #LearnIrish #FoghlaimGaeilge #Irish #100daysofGaeilge
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
English words borrowed from Irish: Clan 'Clann', brought into English centuries ago, means family/offspring. From prehistory, Irish society was organised around kinship groups Gaelic surnames often contain Mac, Mhic, Nic, Ó, Uí, Ní, Mag, de ❤️ #Gaeilge #FoghlaimGaeilge #LearnIrish
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
❤️ #Gaeilge #LearnIrish "We must now seize the opportunity to also take responsibility for ensuring that it means something in our own lives. I gcroílár gnóthaí laethúla na hEorpa; i gcroílár an tsaoil sa Bhaile (at the heart of daily business in Europe; at the heart of life at home)."
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
"A people without a language of its own is only half a nation. A nation should guard its language more than its territories—'tis a surer barrier, and a more important frontier, than fortress or river." - Thomas Davis ❤️ #Gaeilge #irishlanguage #Irish
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
Comhghairdeas le Gaillimh! Táim tar éis an lá a chaitheamh ann. Congratulations to Galway! I've after spending the day there. #AnGhaeltacht #Galway
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
English words borrowed from Irish: Boreen A boreen is a narrow country lane from the Irish 'bóithrín', a cow track. 'Bóthar' is road, derived from 'bó' for cow. A bóthar was wide enough for 2 cows to pass so a bóithrín is narrower. ❤️ #Gaeilge #FoghlaimGaeilge #LearnIrish #Gaelach
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
When the colonialists weren't stealing Irish land & resources, they were picking words from the Irish language☘️ I know, right? Who could blame them? It's a class language! The English word bog comes from the Gaelic bogach for soft boggy ground☘️ ❤️ #Gaeilge #Irish #LearnIrish #FoghlaimGaeilge #Gaelach
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Reposted by Derek Hollingsworth
Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
English words of Irish language origin: Banshee The Banshee is a foreboding female spirit-often the harbinger of a death in old Gaelic clans. This comes from the Irish, bean sí, & the Old Irish, ben síde 'woman of the fairy mound'.🧟‍♀️ ❤️ #Gaeilge #LearnIrish #FoghlaimGaeilge #Irish
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
English words from Irish. 'Barmbrack' comes from the Irish 'bairín breac' meaning speckled loaf. This was a traditional bread eaten at Halloween (Oíche Shamhna, an Irish festival) when turnips were carved to scare off evil spirits. ❤️ #Gaeilge #LearnIrish #GaeilgeGachLá #Foghlaim
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
English words of Irish language origin: Banshee The Banshee is a foreboding female spirit-often the harbinger of a death in old Gaelic clans. This comes from the Irish, bean sí, & the Old Irish, ben síde 'woman of the fairy mound'.🧟‍♀️ ❤️ #Gaeilge #LearnIrish #FoghlaimGaeilge #Irish
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Irish words in the English language: 'asthore'. Asthore is from the Irish term, 'a stór', meaning 'my treasure', 'my love', 'my darling'. I've never heard anyone use this in English, but it's in the dictionaries! You can say 'a stór' to your partner or children ❤️☘️ ❤️ #Gaeilge
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
Comhghairdeas le Maigh Eó! I don't know how they had any supporters in Croker when half the County seemed to be on bridges over the N4 waving flags. #MaighEó #Mayo
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
Ghlaoigh páiste de mo chuid orm ón Ghaeltacht. Rinne siad an glao go hiomlán trí Gaeilge. Bhí mé chomh sásta agus chomh bhródúil! ❤️ #Gaeilge #AnGhaeltacht #Gaeltacht
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Derek Hollingsworth @derekholly7.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
The sportswashing is finally over. The innocent Gazan kids are the image of the War Cup. Children watching soccer while war mongers & human rights abusers are cheered on by corrupt capitalists. #WorldCup #WorldCup2026 #WorldCupFinal #Boycott #Sportswashing
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