Grants aim to 'widen audience' for Manx language
CULTURE VANNINPeople have been encouraged to put forward ideas for projects that would "widen the audience" for the Manx Gaelic.
Culture Vannin is providing 30 grants of £500 under its Treisht scheme, which aims to spark creativity around the language.
It ties in with the Year of the Manx Language in 2026, a year-long celebration of the island's native tongue.
Director of Culture Vannin Breesha Maddrell said the organisation hoped to "inspire people to connect" with the language in "simple ways".
Project ideas for the grant included creating new artwork, arranging songs for schools, organising concerts or workshops, taking Manx lessons to new audiences, or using recorded samples of Manx speech in new electronic music tracks.
The year-long celebration of Manx also coincides with a number of anniversaries, including 10 years of Biosphere Isle of Man and 35 years of Manx being taught in all schools.
The celebration is set to be co-ordinated by Jeebin, the Manx Language Network, which works to increase accessibility of the native tongue.
Treisht, which means trust, confidence or hope in Manx, ran once before in 2020 to encourage creativity around the language during lockdown.
'New connections'
"Language is all around us", Dr Maddrell said. "It is in our place names, in our patterns of speech in English, in our history and heritage but also in culture today."
"We are encouraging people to play with those ideas of language.
"It is about widening the audience, involvement and the connection with the Isle of Man," she continued.
The funding is a result of long-term planning to support creative and language-based projects for the 2026 Year of the Manx Language.
Applications for the grants run until 25 July, and are themed around young people and families, identity and sense of place, community and creativity, research and resources and lifelong learning.
Dr Maddrell said the Manx language was a "vibrant" part of the island
"We are looking forward to seeing people enjoying making new connections, playing with the language creatively, or taking it to new audiences," she added.
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