Gmail is now available in Irish! Google just announced that the popular email service is now available in the Irish language, bringing the number of available languages up to 72.
Laura Brassil, of Gmail’s Dublin localisation team, told the Irish Times that the process was a group effort that included Googlers and outside experts in the localisation process:
“Our EMEA headquarters is located in Dublin so it is fantastic that gmail is now available in Irish. Our meitheal of local googlers and volunteers translated over 60,000 words and phrases into Irish. I’d like to offer a ‘míle buíochas’ to Prof Kevin Scannell of the University of St Louis, Missouri who first approached us with the idea and all our Irish-language experts and enthusiasts for their commitment to Gmail as Gaeilge.”
Why make the effort to offer Gmail in so many languages, especially when everyone who speaks Irish also speaks English? It just goes to show that even when you get as big as Google, you still have to work to build a connection with your audience. For an international company, localisation is a key part of that process. People like using products that are tailored to them: their interests, their language and their needs. That’s definitely the case with Irish. As Ms. Brassil points out in a post on the Gmail blog,
“[F]or many Irish people it sparks memories of a shared history—from summers on the Western coast to the story of Peig and the Blasket Islands. With Gmail as Gaeilge we’re honored to help bring this Irish tradition online.”
To experience Gmail in Irish, click on the “Settings” icon on the top right corner of your inbox. “Language”is the first option. Change it to “Gaeilge,” and you should be good to go.
Do you speak Irish? If so, will you use the Irish version of Gmail? Let us know in the comments!