University sets out its stall with first national TV advert in Gaelic

Published on Monday 21 June 2010 21:32

GAELIC is being used to help lure students to the Highlands and Islands in what is believed to be the first national TV advertisement in the language.

• The UHI advert will appear in both English and Gaelic, highlighting the institution's commitment to the language. Picture: Complimentary

A four-week advertising campaign in both English and Gaelic started last night for Channel 4 and Five viewers in Scotland.

The Think UHI film promotes the prospective University of the Highlands and Islands, which currently has about 8,000 students in 13 colleges and research centres.

The series of 30-second adverts, which are costing UHI 25,000, will be seen in breaks between programmes such as Big Brother, Deal or No Deal, Hollyoaks, Desperate Housewives and Neighbours.

They will help the university-in-waiting to reach out beyond the traditional Gaelic heartland and into the cities.

At the last census in 2001 there were 58,652 Gaelic speakers, but 92,400 who could speak, read or understand the language spread across the country. While half live in the Highlands, Western Isles and Argyll and Bute, more than 11,000 (19 per cent) of Gaelic speakers live in greater Glasgow and there are also large concentrations in Edinburgh, Inverness and Aberdeen.

The Scottish Government has called for radical steps to create a new generation of Gaelic speakers in Scotland.

The public sector, communities and individuals are being urged to support initiatives to maintain it as one of the country's official languages.

Professor Matthew MacIver, UHI's chairman, said: "I am simply delighted that Gaelic will be used in our advertising campaign as it illustrates the different academic opportunities we provide for students.

"At UHI, we are committed to the Gaelic language. Gaelic is an integral part of the culture of the Highlands and Islands and as such will play an important part in the future development of the UHI.

"This is a first for the UHI and it sends out a clear message that, as an emerging university, we will be a different academic institution from others."

Last year UHI was the first higher education institution to be instructed by the Scottish Government to produce a Gaelic language plan.

The plan is due to be published later this year.

James Fraser, the UHI principal, said: "We are flying the flag for a proud language and culture … Whether you can understand Gaelic or not, our advert will bring it to the attention of thousands of people through one of the most powerful communication media."

The Gaelic version of the advert is voiced by Gilleasbuig Feargasdan, a tutor at Sabhal Mr Ostaig, the Gaelic college in Skye, which is part of the UHI network. It can be viewed online at www.thinkuhi.com.

Brd na Gidhlig, the national Gaelic development agency, wants to treble the number of Gaelic schools from two to six within two years under plans to increase the number of people speaking the language.

An action plan published this year also envisages a fourfold increase in the number of teachers training in Gaelic, and an additional 2,000 adults learning the language by April 2012.

The board wants to drive up the number of speakers from 58,000 in 2001 to 65,000 by 2021 and 100,000 by 2041.

The proposals include a national campaign to encourage the use of Gaelic and efforts targeted in five areas over the next two years: support for parents, promotion, adult learning, and education in the 0-3 and 3-18 age groups.