What's the status of the Manx language?

What's the news about the Manx language?

It is irretrievably lost. No one knows exactly when the last speaker died. The first report I heard was 1957. Later, 1962. A few years ago I read in the introduction of an English-Manx dictionary that the last speaker was a man living in Rhodesia (Now Zimbabwe) who died there in 1972. This is the same year that Mary Stewart of Sutherland, Scotland, died. She is believed to be the last genuine speaker of Scottish Gaelic, a language closely related to Manx.

As an Englishman with English, Scottish and Manx ancestry, I'm quite interested in the Manx language. According to this website, there are now 300 Manx speakers today, but not as native speakers. It also says that the last native speaker, a man called Ned Maddrell, died in 1974.
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Manx is a descendant of Middle Irish.


Manx dates to around the 5th century and is called Gaelg Vanninagh by Manx speakers. The last native speaker, Ned Maddrell, died in 1974, but by then a scholarly revival had begun to spread to the populace and many had learned Manx as a second language. The first native speakers of Manx (bilingual with English) in many years have now appeared: children brought up by Manx-speaking parents. Primary immersion education in Manx is provided by the Manx government. Manx-language playgroups also exist, and Manx language classes are available in island schools.

Manx is used by the Tynwald (the Isle of Man parliament), with new laws being read out by Yn Lhaihder ('the Reader') in both Manx and English.





Key: SCO - Scottish Gaelic, IRL - Irish

Manx............. English......... Nearest Irish or Scottish Gaelic equivalent

Moghrey mie.... .......Good morning ........Maidain mhath (SCO)
Fastyr mie........ ......Good evening ............Feasgar math (SCO)
Slane lhiu ..............Goodbye ..........Slán leat (IRL)
Gura mie ayd .........Thank you............ Go raibh maith agat (IRL)
baatey...................boat ...............bata (SCO)
barroose ...............bus ..............bus (IRL & SCO)
blaa .....................flower.............. blath (IRL)
booa................... cow ..................bó (IRL)
cabbyl ...................horse ...................capall (SCO/ IRL)
cashtal ...................castle ............caisleán (IRL)
creg ....................rock................ creag (SCO)
eeast.................. fish.................. iasc (IRL)
ellan.................... island............... eilean (SCO)
gleashtan ............car................... gluaistean (IRL)
kayt................... cat..................cat (IRL & SCO)
moddey............. dog.................. madadh (SCO)
shap.................. shop................ siopa (IRL)
thie..................... house.............. taigh (SCO)
ushag.................. bird................. eán (IRL)
jees.................... pair ...................dís (IRL)

Numbers

Manx......... English......... Nearest Irish or Scottish Gaelic equivalent

nane.............. one.............. aon (IRL & SCO)
daa................ two.............. dhà (SCO)
tree................ three ............trí (IRL)
kiare................ four............ ceithir (SCO)
queig............... five ..............cuig (IRL)
shey................. six.............. sé (IRL)
shiaght............. seven........... seacht (IRL)
hoght............... eight............. ocht (IRL)
nuy................... nine.............. naoi (IRL & SCO)
jeih................... ten............... deich (IRL & SCO)
nane jeig.......... eleven ...........aon déag (IRL)
daa yeig........... twelve ...........dhà dheug (SCO)


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manx_language