Bain triail aisti – Seachtain na Gaeilge sna Déise with Waterford City and County Council
Seachtain na Gaeilge (SnaG) is being celebrated in Waterford again this year, with a host of events taking place throughout City and County.
The Irish Office of Waterford City and County Council is collaborating with several different groups to celebrate the Irish language and culture of the Déise.
This year’s Bilingual Table Quiz organised by the Irish Office of Waterford City and County Council will take place in the Cove Bar on the Dunmore Road, Waterford City on Thursday, 12th March at 8pm and is open to the public. It’s a fun night which gives people a chance to use their ‘cúpla focal’. You can register in advance by contacting jlenane@waterfordcouncil.ie.
Thursday, 5th March will be a special night in Dungarvan, with a gala screening in Movies@Dungarvan of the award-winning Irish language film, Báite, starring local actor Moe Dunford. Winner of Best Irish Language Feature Film at the 2025 Galway Film Fleadh and nominated in four categories at the 2026 IFTA Awards, Báite won the Original Music category and will be released in cinemas nationwide (including the SGC Cinema, Dungarvan) on the 6 March 2026, to coincide with Seachtain na Gaeilge.
Staff from the Libraries throughout city and county have organised a programme of bilingual/Irish events and activities for SnaG, all of which are free of charge. Flagship events open to the public this year include an evening with Irish Fiction Laureate Éilís Ní Dhuibhne, who will be in (bilingual) conversation with fellow novelists Anna Heusaff and Réaltán Ní Leannáin in Dungarvan Library on Saturday, 14th March at 7pm.
Why not pop into the Central Library on Lady Lane in the City at 6.30pm on Wednesday, 4th March to hear a very interesting talk (in English) by Rev. Daniel Fleming entitled “The Bedell Bible: Provenance, Ownership, and the Formation of the Cotton Library, Lismore.”
Music-lovers can enjoy the male voice choir Dordán performing some Irish folk songs in the Central Library on Saturday, 14th March at 2.30pm and Dungarvan and Tramore Libraries will also be hosting their regular Ciorcal Comhrá during Seachtain na Gaeilge and all are welcome to drop in for a chat ‘as Gaeilge’.
Come along and join Donnchadh Ó Ceallacháin for a Bilingual Guided Tour of the Medieval Museum, Cathedral Square on Thursday 5th March. The tour will begin at 1.15pm and all are welcome, but spaces are limited so you will need to book online in advance at https://www.waterfordtreasuresbookings.com/Home
Waterford’s growing number of Ciorcail Chomhrá (Irish conversation groups) will have an opportunity to come together for a ‘cupán tae agus caifé’ and a chat on Wednesday, 11th March in Mount Congreve. If you are interested in joining a Ciorcal Comhrá you can contact your local Library or the Irish Officer at gaeilge@waterfordcouncil.ie for details of a Ciorcal Comhrá near you. Bígí linn!
Among the performers taking part in the Spoken Word event in O’Connell Street on Saturday, 14th March during the Festival weekend, will be poet Joanne McCarthy and Tom O’Neill, who will perform in both Irish and English.
The Library Services are organising several events for children and families during Seachtain na Gaeilge, including Rannta le Chéile (Irish language rhymes for young children) every Tuesday morning in Dungarvan Library and a morning of fun and games for children on Saturday, 7th March in Dungarvan Library from 10am, where you can play Monopoly, Scrabble & Cluedo ‘as Gaeilge’.
A number of pre-booked schools events have been organised by the Library Services, including a morning of reading and craft activities with writer Sadhbh Devlin in Dungarvan Library on the 13th March; storytelling with traditional seanachaí, Niall de Búrca in Ardkeen and Tramore Libraries on the 11th March, and an Introduction to Mindfulness session with the Meaningful Múinteoir, Bernie Woods in Central Library on the 2nd March.
Details of all events and activities can be obtained from your local Library and will also be shared on the Library Service website www.waterfordlibraries.ie and on social media.
Dún Garbhán le Gaeilge is organising a number of events and activities around the Gaeltacht Service Town of Dungarvan during Seachtain na Gaeilge, including special screenings of Irish language films in Movies@Dungarvan for local schools. For more information on these events see their website at https://www.dungarbhan.ie/ or contact Bróna at dungarbhanlegaeilge@gmail.com or 0874785054.
If you would like to practice your ‘cúpla focal’, or simply listen to our native language in use, please feel free to attend any of these free Seachtain na Gaeilge events. Bain sult as!
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Images attached:
Enjoying 2025 SnG events: A Ciorcal Comhrá gathering in Kilmacthomas and a sean-nós dancing workshop in St Patrick’s Gateway Centre.
