'Irish name' signs for street called after Indian city, despite local objections
Belfast Council is set to shell out hundreds of pounds to build signs giving the ‘Irish name’ of a street called after the capital city of India.
Delhi Street is in a residential area off Belfast’s Ormeau Road that’s commonly nicknamed ‘the Punjab’, as it contains several streets bearing names connecting them to Indian subcontinent. Others include Agra Street and Candahar Street.
Next week Belfast Council is set to vote through a move that will see signs bearing the ‘Irish version’ of the name of India’s capital city built – which, according to council reports, is ‘Sraid Dheili’.
Delhi Street doesn’t have free-standing signs, with area markers fixed to the fronts of residential homes at either end of it. New markers bearing ‘Sraid Dheili’ as well as the original ‘Dehli Street’ may now be added to those houses.
Surveys said that of the 123 residents polled over the name change, 37 were in favour while five opposed and the remaining 81 didn’t reply. Council rules are that if 15% or more vote in favour of adding Irish signs then they will be built, so 37 is more than enough to carry the idea.
From published survey results, it wasn’t clear if the people who could have signs bearing the ‘Irish name’ of an Indian city attached to their homes are in favour of the idea, opposed, or indifferent.
The Dehli Street move was voted through at a council committee in January and is set to be rubber-stamped at a meeting on Monday night.
Also to get a green light is a move to build Irish signs at another Ormeau Road side street, Rosetta Avenue. There, almost 15% of residents were opposed to the idea – but as 42% are in favour, the signs will be built.
That’s even though one person wrote to the council stating that, although they’re “a catholic who embraces Irish culture”, they still thought building the signs “would be divisive”.
The system of building dual language street signs has been a regular bugbear for Belfast’s unionists since the council massively relaxed its conditions a couple of years ago.
Since then, more Irish signs have been approved than in the 24 years of a previous stricter regime, while no signs in any other language have been given a green light.