I may be wrong since I don't speak it or study it in any way, but it is still spoken (although English as a first language seems to predominate) and it is studied in schools. Not just in Dublin but elsewhere too. Wikipedia (I know it's not the most reliable source) has an article on the status of the language: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Status_of_the_Irish_language.
There are several regions (called Gaeltachts) in Ireland, where Irish is spoken on a daily basis.
As for Dublin, you probably won't hear every day on a street, but it is taught in schools, and quite a lot of people understand it, even if they don't actively use it. Situtaion with Irish language is difficult, but it's definitely not dead. :)
Yes. I met plenty when I was there a few years ago. And even people who don't speak it all the time generally can, owing to the policies of the Irish school system.
a palatal coarticulation of velar plosives is a well-documented phenomenon for Hiberno-English, not only in codas but also in onsets (Bliss 1984 gives [kʲaɹ] car, [kʲat] cat). Additionally, there is an incipient tendency across a number of accents of British English to palatalise word-final coda /k/ following a front vowel. Over the last 15 years or so it has gained quite a momentum and can even be heard in RP speakers under 30.
I think in this case it's not so much Hiberno-anything--the singer is using a southern American accent, as pop singers often do. The strong palatalization is a way of getting the final consonants of "sneak freak" out clearly. As a singer, I've been taught to pay attention to such things; unvoiced stops of any kind in terminal position, like the final /k/ here, have no chance of being heard in the hall unless you overemphasize them, and palatalization is the easiest way to do that. (Speakers, particularly actors, have to deal with the same issue.) Also, in this case, I think the singer is overpronouncing/palatalizing not just for clarity but as part of the vocal treatment--adding a kind of vocal percussion.
Huh, Dubliners say her accent is very typical for the Liberties, a city district she comes from (resemblance between Irish and some American accents isn't something unusual).
Interesting. I didn't know that. Can you tell whether she's using her native Liberties accent or what I'd call the "Elvis dialect" so often used in pop music?
ekeme_ndiba) wrote in 
linguaphiles,
February 3 2013, 06:32:24 UTC 3 months ago
February 3 2013, 06:34:46 UTC 3 months ago
Is it really spoken in Dublin?!
February 3 2013, 07:25:03 UTC 3 months ago
This is an infographic I saw the other day: http://purrprinthom.tumblr.com/post/418
I may be wrong since I don't speak it or study it in any way, but it is still spoken (although English as a first language seems to predominate) and it is studied in schools. Not just in Dublin but elsewhere too. Wikipedia (I know it's not the most reliable source) has an article on the status of the language: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Status_of_
February 3 2013, 07:59:49 UTC 3 months ago
As for Dublin, you probably won't hear every day on a street, but it is taught in schools, and quite a lot of people understand it, even if they don't actively use it.
Situtaion with Irish language is difficult, but it's definitely not dead. :)
PS: I'm not a speaker, but an active learner.
February 3 2013, 18:47:59 UTC 3 months ago
February 3 2013, 12:47:51 UTC 3 months ago Edited: February 3 2013, 12:48:13 UTC
February 3 2013, 17:19:20 UTC 3 months ago
Thanks a lot for your detailed explanation, now it makes sense.
February 3 2013, 18:42:42 UTC 3 months ago
Also, in this case, I think the singer is overpronouncing/palatalizing not just for clarity but as part of the vocal treatment--adding a kind of vocal percussion.
February 3 2013, 18:55:56 UTC 3 months ago
February 3 2013, 19:31:36 UTC 3 months ago
February 3 2013, 19:45:46 UTC 3 months ago
February 5 2013, 00:31:54 UTC 3 months ago