Irish language project Turas is celebrating 10 years of Irish in East Belfast with a special screening of Oscar nominated Irish film, An Cailín Ciúin (The Quiet Girl), in The Strand Cinema.
Founded in 2012 by Irish language advocate Linda Ervine, who was awarded an MBE for her services to the Irish language, Turas is run by East Belfast Mission with a vision that Irish is a shared language which can support reconciliation. Turas offers free Irish language classes at East Belfast Mission’s Skainos Centre.
The project has gone from strength to strength with almost 500 people registering for classes this year.
To mark 10 years in East Belfast, Turas and East Belfast Mission are hosting a special screening of An Cailín Ciúin, on Friday 10th March in The Strand Cinema. The Irish film has been nominated for the 95th Academy Awards in the ‘International Feature Film’ category of the Oscars.
The event will also include the launch of a 10-year anniversary animation explaining how Turas was set up and how Linda, who comes from a Unionist and Protestant background, became interested in the language. The video will be released to the public on East Belfast Mission’s social channels on Monday March 13 at 12pm.
Founder of Turas, Linda Ervine, said: “Turas means journey in Irish, and it has truly been a journey of healing and reconciliation. What started as one small class in East Belfast Mission’s Skainos Centre, is now a community of hundreds of people from all backgrounds, ages and abilities, making up one of the largest Irish language centres in Belfast.
“We’re not just a language learning organisation, however, we are a community of Irish language speakers and learners. This is a journey I started on my own but now there’s hundreds of us and I couldn’t be prouder.”
The classes are held in East Belfast Mission’s Skainos Centre on the Newtownards Road. East Belfast Mission is part of the Methodist Church in Ireland and has a long track record of delivering renewal and transformation in East Belfast through social engagement.
Rev. Andrew Irvine, CEO of East Belfast Mission, said: “We’re thrilled that Turas is celebrating its tenth anniversary and are proud to have supported them on this journey. East Belfast Mission wants to create a space where all communities feel welcome. Turas is an important part of that ambition, and we will continue to help them bring the community together.”
Starting as a beginner’s programme for Irish, Turas now supports nine people on scholarships studying Irish at university. Other successes include historical bus tours in East Belfast, which aims to bring more tourism to the area and encourage a better appreciation of Irish culture.
In 2022 Turas also launched an integrated Irish nursery school. Linda added: “Last year we started our own integrated Irish nursery school which has been our biggest achievement so far.
“The Naíscoil (nursery) for many years was a pipe dream, so to finally get it off the ground has been amazing. In the future we hope to find a permanent place for the Naíscoil and eventually start an integrated Bunscoil (primary school) in East Belfast.”
An Cailín Ciúin will be showing in The Strand Cinema every day until the March 16. For more information visit strandsartscentre.com