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Middle Irish, also called Middle Gaelic (Irish: An Mheán-Ghaeilge, Scottish Gaelic: Meadhan-Ghàidhlig), is the Goidelic language which was spoken in Ireland, most of Scotland and the Isle of Man from c. 900–1200 AD; it is therefore a contemporary of late Old English and early Middle English.
- Ireland, Scotland, Isle of Man
From the 12th century, Middle Irish began to evolve into modern Irish in Ireland, into Scottish Gaelic in Scotland, and into the Manx language in the Isle of Man. Early Modern Irish, dating from the 13th century, was the basis of the literary language of both Ireland and Gaelic-speaking Scotland.
Early Modern Irish represented a transition between Middle and Modern Irish. Its literary form, Classical Gaelic , was used by writers in both Ireland and Scotland until the 18th century, in the course of which slowly but surely writers began writing in the vernacular dialects, Ulster Irish , Connacht Irish , Munster Irish and Scottish Gaelic .
The spoken language of the same period is called Early Modern Irish, but the speech of the people underwent many changes from the start to the end of this period. Although the majority of the people had Irish, English, however, was necessary for administrative and legal affairs.
Primitive Irish c. 4th centuries, Archaic Irish (or Early Old Irish) c. 7th century, Old Irish c. 8th centuries, Middle Irish c. 10th centuries, and Modern Irish from 1200 onwards, the latter in turn divided into Classical (or Early) Modern Irish pre-1650, and dialectally differentiated Modern Irish since the middle of the 17th century. For the ...
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The history of Irish may be divided into four periods: that of the ogham inscriptions, probably ad 300–500; Old Irish, 600–900; Middle Irish, 900–1200; and Modern Irish, 1200 to the present.
The history of Irish as a literary language falls into three periods: Old Irish (7th–9th cent. AD), Middle Irish (10th–16th cent.), and Modern Irish (since the 16th cent.). In the medieval period a great Irish literature flourished.
