Turas

For the album, see Fergus McCreadie.

Turas (Irish for "journey") is an Irish-language project which is part of East Belfast Mission, in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Beginning as a grassroots effort, spearheaded primarily by Linda Ervine, Turas aims to promote the language particularly in the Protestant Unionist community.[1] Historically, the Irish language was more closely associated with Irish Catholic identity.[2]

Turas was first established in 2011 with a single Irish-language class held on the Newtownards Road. Today, the project caters to approximately 200 learners and is considered the largest provider of Irish-language classes in Belfast.[3][4] Turas has received many accolades for its cross-community work. In 2015, after awarding Linda with the Civic Leadership Award, Community Relations Council chairman Peter Osborne stated that Turas' success was a "testament to Linda’s vision, bravery and leadership."[5]

  1. ^ "Linda Ervine: 'I don't want to be part of the problem in Northern Ireland'". Belfast Telegraph.
  2. ^ Geoghegan, Peter. "Protestants go for Gaelic in Northern Ireland". Al Jazeera.
  3. ^ "Irish Language Can Bridge Northern Irish Divide, Trinity Study Finds". The University Times.
  4. ^ Ervine, Linda (26 March 2018). "Turas in east Belfast is now the largest provider of Irish classes in Belfast with the highest number of people registered. @ForasnaGaeilge".
  5. ^ "TURAS at East Belfast Mission". East Belfast Mission.