| Official Name: | North American Gaeltacht |
| Native Name: | Irish: Gaeltacht an Oileáin Úir |
| Other Name: | Permanent North American Gaeltacht |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | Canada |
| Subdivision Type1: | Province |
| Subdivision Name1: | Ontario |
| Established Title: | Established |
| Established Date: | 16 June 2007 (as the first official Gaeltacht outside Ireland[1]) |
| Area Land Km2: | 0.24 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 0.09 |
| Population As Of: | 2007 |
| Population Note: | seasonal |
| Timezone: | Eastern (EST) |
| Utc Offset: | -5 |
| Coordinates: | 44.5017°N -76.9844°W |
The North American Gaeltacht [2] is a gathering place for Irish speakers in the community of Tamworth, Ontario, in Canada. The nearest main township is Erinsville, Ontario. Unlike in Ireland, where the term "Irish: [[Gaeltacht]]" refers to an area where Irish is the traditional language, this part of Ontario has no resident native Irish speakers. The name refers instead to its being a meeting place for Irish speakers from North America and elsewhere.
Erinsville was settled by the Irish, and its first five mayors were Irish.[3] As of early 2021, the organisation's website referred to it as the North American Gaeltacht or Irish: Ghaeltacht Thuaisceart an Oileáin Úir.[4]
This site was the first and only officially sanctioned Irish: Gaeltacht (or "designated Irish-speaking area") to exist outside Ireland. The Irish: Gaeltacht's opening ceremony was attended by the Irish ambassador to Canada, Declan Kelly, and by Helen Gannon of Irish: [[Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann]].[5] A statement was also released by the then Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Éamon Ó Cuív. In this, dated 29 May 2007, he stated: "I would like to congratulate the Canadian people for establishing a Gaeltacht in Canada, the first outside Ireland." [1] Ó Cuív also approved the funding of €20,000 (C$28,835) for teacher training.[6]
Following its launch, the project received some news coverage, primarily for the claim that it was the first of its kind outside Ireland, including by RTÉ and TG4 in Ireland,[7] [8] the BBC in the UK,[5] and the Globe and Mail in Canada.[9]
The project's stated aim is to "restore and maintain the language by having a place where speakers can make connections with each other, learn and practice Irish".[10] The site is intended to be used for Irish language immersion weeks and to build a learning centre.[11] Other objectives are to arrange exchanges with Irish: Gaeltacht families, to provide an Irish-language summer camp for children and to bring teachers from Ireland.[12] [13]
As of 2021, cultural events and "language immersion" courses were happening virtually and at the site.[14] [15] [16]