Long letter outlined the merits of the Irish language but failed to analyse unionist fears that it has been hijacked by republicans

In the course of a long and tedious letter outlining a potted history of the origins etc of the Irish language (‘Irish is an ancient language that has shaped our mythology and names and to conflate it with republicanism is to do it a disservice,’ December 18) Dr Ronan Davison-Kernan studiously avoids any serious attempt to analyse the logic that gives rise to unionist fears that the Irish language, regardless of its beauty or cultural status, has been hijacked by Sinn Fein/IRA for purely sectarian and political purposes.

No amount of personal regard for the language can change the fact that niche languages, such as Irish, Welsh and Scots Gaelic, will remain as low level academic pursuits.

They will never, and should never, replace our priceless mother tongue.

Indeed, we are among the very fortunate to have English as our first language — a fact well understood throughout much of the Western world and beyond.

Keeping the language alive makes perfect sense.

Nationalising the language with the goal of replacing English is patent nonsense.

Unfortunately, the government of the Republic, through its agent, the language commissioner, sees fit to impose the language on the people without any debate or public discussion.

That is what Sinn Fein and super-nationalists want for Northern Ireland.

Lectures on the merits of Irish will not make a jot of difference to the reality on the ground.

Niall Ginty, Dublin 5