WHAT a sad society we live in when there are those among us who deface or destroy street name signs because they are in Irish or in English.

Our unending loyalty to sectarianism, first in war and now in politics, has been extended to language – and this latest version of our medieval battle is literally being fought street by street.

Against that backdrop, Conradh na Gaeilge (CnG), Ireland’s main Irish language advocacy organisation, has commissioned research into the role of Irish in a united Ireland, by Róisín Nic Liam of Queen’s University.

The report argues that sidelining Irish should not be used as a “bargaining chip” to help unionists accept Irish unity. It is a valid point. Irish is not negotiable.

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However, while the report sets out where Irish should be in an all-Ireland future, it might also have examined whether Irish is currently helping or hindering us to reach that future.

Street names, for example, have become sectarian territory markers in many areas.

In Belfast City Council, where Sinn Féin is the largest party, the support of 15% of residents in a street is sufficient for that street to have dual........

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