A Question For People from the UK

My husband and I are in Belfast right now, it’s absolutely beautiful and the people could not be lovelier. We felt the same way about our visits to England last year, as well.

Some small thing happened as we were getting off the plane and I’ve been wondering about it a little.

Our plane landed in Dublin, I’d spoken with several people who lived in the Republic and they were absolutely wonderful and helpful. 

As you get off the plane, the signs are in English, but also in Gaelic. It’s Dublin, no big deal, right? That’s what I thought, it’s a beautiful language to look at though I can’t speak a word of it.

As we got off, a woman with what I think was a London accent was very angry and quite loud about the signs having Gaelic translations on them. She griped loud enough for everyone nearby, including airport employees, to hear.  She said, quote, “That is NOT the King’s English. That should NOT be on the signs in a public space.”

Now, we have this in America all the time, when signs have Spanish translations or Chinese translations because of a large community from those countries in one area. I still think it’s a goofyass thing to complain about, but this is in DUBLIN, it’s their own language, right?

So my question is, there’s something going on there that I am unfamiliar with, precisely. Is this woman’s attitude common? Why would she have an objection to Gaelic on signs in a country where that language is still spoken? Is it part of some larger sense of entitlement or colonialism or what? Is this actually an ongoing controversy?

Pardon my ignorance, I know something odd was going on, but the exact nature escapes me, not sure of the context.

Edited because I actually somehow said the signs were in “Mexican,” not “Spanish,” for God knows what goofy reason. Sorry!