While economic forces are often cited as being a key cause of language loss there is very
little research that explores this link in detail. This work based on policy analysis and
ethnographic data addresses this deficit. It examines how neoliberalism the dominant economic
orthodoxy of recent decades has impacted the vitality of Irish in the Republic of Ireland
since 2008. Drawing on concepts well established in public policy studies but not prominent in
the subfield of language policy the neoliberalisation of Irish-language support measures is
charted including the disproportionately severe budget cuts they received. It is argued that
neoliberalism's antipathy towards social planning and redistributive economic policies meant
that supports for Irish were inevitably hit especially hard in an era of austerity.
Ethnographic data from Irish-speaking communities reinforce this point and illustrate how
macro-level economic disruptions can affect language use at the micro-level. Labour market
transformations emigration and the dismantling of community institutions are documented along
with many related developments thereby highlighting an issue of relevance to communities
around the world the fundamental tension between neoliberalism and language revitalisation
efforts.
