The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (19 December 2023) published Census of Population 2022 Profile 8 - The Irish Language and Education
Tá leagan Gaeilge den leathanch seo ar fáil. Féach Daonáireamh 2022 Próifíl 8 - An Ghaeilge agus Oideachas.
There were over 6,600 (+7%) more people living in Gaeltacht areas in April 2022 compared with April 2016, bringing the Gaeltacht population to more than 106,000 people.
The proportion of Irish speakers in Gaeltacht areas continued to decrease from 69% in 2011 to 66% in 2022.
Almost 1.9 million people (aged three years and over) stated they could speak Irish, an increase of more than 112,500 people since Census 2016 (+6%).
One in ten people who spoke Irish could speak it very well while a further 32% spoke it well. The majority of Irish speakers (55%) could not speak the language well.
Just 35% of all people aged 15 and over in 2011 had a third-level qualification, this figure was 45% in 2022.
Almost 270,000 people, or 8%, had finished full-time education before they were 16, down from 13% in 2011.
People aged 15 and over in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown were the most likely to have a third level education (65%).
The average age nationally at which people finished their full-time education in Census 2022 was 20.8 years.
| Kathleen Goulding | (+353) 1 895 1413 |
|---|---|
| Tony Downes | (+353) 1 895 1319 |
| censuspublicity@cso.ie | |
| pressoffice@cso.ie |
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (19 December 2023) released Census 2022 Profile 8 – The Irish Language and Education.
Commenting on the results, Deirdre Lynch, Statistician in the Census Division, said: “Profile 8 looks at two distinct aspects of the Census 2022 results, the Irish language and the education of the population in detail. The report includes details on how many of us speak Irish, how often we do so, and to what level it is spoken. The topic of Education provides insights into the levels of qualifications achieved in the population, the age full-time education ceased, early school leavers by age and sex, as well as the relationships between level of education and employment and economic status.
Almost 1.9 million people indicated that they could speak Irish to varying degrees of fluency from not well to very well. One in ten (195,029 people) could speak the language very well, 32% (593,898 people) spoke Irish well, while 55% (1,034,132 people) of Irish speakers did not speak it well. It is interesting to see the number of non-Irish citizens who spoke Irish including 13% of Polish citizens, 13% of Latvian citizens, and 15% of Australian citizens.
Analysis on census results on education show that 45% of the population aged 15 and over held a third level qualification, the highest proportion to date. One in ten (10%) completed their education at primary level or had no formal education and 39% completed to secondary level.
Looking at third level education rates among non-Irish citizens, Indian citizens had the highest rate at 86%, followed by 74% of American and French citizens, and 73% of German citizens."
The Irish Language and Education – Some Highlights
Irish Speakers in Gaeltacht Areas
The number of people living in Gaeltacht areas grew by just over 6,600 to more than 106,000 people in Census 2022 (+7%) and every Gaeltacht area showed an increase. The largest growth was in the Galway County Gaeltacht, with over 2,900 more people living there, while Mayo’s Gaeltacht had the lowest growth with an extra 129 people between Census 2022 and Census 2016.
Just over 65,000 people aged three years and over living in Gaeltacht areas could speak Irish, up nearly 1,500 people since 2016. However, the proportion of Irish speakers in Gaeltacht areas continued to fall, down to 66% in 2022 having been 67% in 2016 and 69% in 2011.
Just over 20,000 people living in Gaeltacht areas spoke Irish daily (31%), 325 fewer people than in 2016 (-2%). Almost 6,500 people spoke Irish weekly, a rise of 2% since 2016. The biggest proportion of daily Irish speakers was in the Galway County Gaeltacht at 39%, though this was down from 40% in 2016. Just 8% of Irish speakers in the Galway City Gaeltacht spoke the language daily, the lowest proportion of any Gaeltacht area.
The Irish language question was expanded in Census 2022 to ask those who spoke Irish how well they spoke it. The majority of Irish speakers in Gaeltacht areas spoke the language well (29%) or very well (41%) while another 28% did not speak Irish well.
Irish Speakers Overall
The number of Irish speakers in the country has grown since Census 2016 but in most cases, they were speaking it less frequently. Almost 1.9 million people (aged three years and over) stated they could speak Irish, an increase of more than 112,500 people since 2016 (+6%). The people who could speak Irish made up 40% of the population aged three and over. There were just over 1 million female Irish speakers and nearly 844,000 male speakers. Nearly 57,000 non-Irish citizens could speak Irish.
The number of people who stated they could speak Irish but never did so grew by 13% to almost 473,000. Nearly 72,000 people spoke Irish daily, which was almost 1,900 fewer than in 2016 (-2%) while just over 115,000 people spoke Irish weekly. Nearly 615,000 people spoke the language less often than weekly, up 5% on 2016. Almost 554,000 people only spoke Irish within the education system, a slight decline since 2016 (1% or almost 4,700 people).
Non-Irish citizens who spoke Irish included 13% of Polish citizens (more than 10,800 people), 13% of Latvian citizens (over 2,100), and 15% of Australian citizens (more than 500).
Level of Education
The longer-term trend over recent censuses shows that the level of education and qualifications of the Irish population aged 15 and over have greatly increased. Just 35% of all people aged 15 and over in Ireland in 2011 had a third level qualification while by 2022, the proportion was 45%. This was up from 39% in 2016.
Among Irish citizens aged 15 and over, 45% had third level education. Indian citizens living in Ireland had the highest third level rate at 86%, followed by 74% of American and French citizens, and 73% of German citizens.
One in ten people aged 15 and over finished their education with no formal education or completed primary school only (10%). This was down from 12% in 2016. More than 81,000 of these people had no formal education.
Nearly two thirds (65%) of people (aged 15 and over) in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown had a third level education, the highest in the country. Galway City (53%) and Fingal (50%) were the next highest in the same age group age group educated to third level.
Age and Gender Differences in Level of Education
Census 2022 results show a generation gap in relation to educational qualifications.
Younger people who had finished their full-time education were significantly better educated than older people. Just 22% of people aged 65 and over had a third level qualification while 58% of those aged 15 to 44 did. Among those aged 65 and over, 28% were educated to primary level only, compared with 3% of those aged 15-44 years.
There are also some notable gender differences in the improvement in educational completion and qualifications, with women generally tending to do better than men. In 1991 just 13% of females and 14% of males were educated to third level. By 2022, 50% of females were educated to third level compared with 46% of males. Males were more likely to be educated to lower secondary level only, at 12% compared with 10% of females.
Other Education Results
The average age nationally at which people finished their full-time education in Census 2022 was 20.8 years, which was up by almost a year on the average age in Census 2016.
An early school leaver is defined as a person who finished their education before they were 16 years old. In 2022 almost 270,000 people had finished full-time education before they were 16. This was 8% of all people aged 15 and over, down from 13% in 2011. The vast majority of those who left school early were older people – just over 184,000 (68%) were aged 60 and over in 2022, compared with 55% in 2011, and 62% in 2016. Males made up 57% of all early school leavers.
More than 51,000 people aged between 20 and 49 years were educated to primary level only. They had a significantly lower labour force participation rate compared with people of the same age educated to upper secondary level, at 61% and 86% respectively.