AN IRISH student is looking to interview Staffin people for a documentary about the role of Gaelic in community life.
Lauren Beehan, a postgraduate student of Edinburgh’s Napier University, will be in Staffin between Wednesday, July 15 and Friday, July 17.
A copy of Lauren’s letter is published below. If anybody is interested please get in touch with Hugh Ross at the Staffin Trust who will pass on details to Lauren or e-mail her directly via beehanl@tcd.ie
SOS for Staffin interviewees.
Feasgar math,
I am writing with regard to a short documentary that I will soon be filming about the Gaelic language. In this documentary, I intend to examine the role of Gaelic in Scottish life and culture today by meeting various people who use the language in different ways in their everyday lives. As the role of a language is decided primarily by those who use it, I would like to go beyond laws and statistics to talk to Gaelic speakers of all backgrounds and ages to find out what the language means to them.
I know that Staffin is one of the strongest Gaelic-speaking communities and I was wondering if anybody from the Trust or the area in general would be interested in meeting with me for a short interview about how and why they speak Gaelic? I will be in Skye from the 15th-17th July and I could come up to Staffin to meet any locals who would be interested in taking part. It would not take up very much of their time and I would like to ensure I give the most representative view of the Gaelic community possible.
I am a postgraduate student in Journalism at Edinburgh Napier University and, while this is part of my final dissertation, I hope it will gain a wider audience once it has been completed. Unfortunately, the majority of my filming will be through English (as my understanding of Gaelic is limited to the words that are similar to Irish) but some Gaelic portions may be subtitled.
Please let me know if you would be interested in meeting with me on July 15th or 16th.
Looking forward to hearing from you,
Mòran taing,
Lauren
Lauren Beehan
Edinburgh Napier University