Minority languages and performative genres: the case of Irish language stand-up comedy

Abstract

This article will examine the potential for language change from the bottom-up given the new domains in which minority languages are present as a result of the process of language mobility. Drawing on a theoretical notion of sociolinguistic scales, this article aims to discuss how the position of the Irish language has been reconfigured. From this position, the article traces how the domain of the Irish language in contemporary Irish society has been reformed through increased presence of the language in performative genres such as comedy and rap music. The principle aim of this article is to examine the domain of Irish-language comedy produced by the Irish-American comedian Des Bishop in his television series In the Name of the Fada and in his subsequent stand-up comedy show Tongues in terms of bottom-up language planning. The article will discuss what is seen under the gaze of the comic lens and highlights the achievements of such a scrutiny in terms of Irish language maintenance. By identifying Bishop as a bottom-up language-planning actor, the potential for such initiatives to boost top-down language planning is revealed.