THE Aisling Awards are back for their 26th year and Foras na Gaeilge are once again sponsors of the Outstanding Contribution to the Irish Language Award.

The Aisling Awards embody the very best of Belfast and people and organisations are at the centre. The Belfast Media Group will celebrate its 50th anniversary in November making this year's Aisling celebrations even bigger and better.

Previous winners of Foras na Gaeilge’s Outstanding Contribution to the Irish Language Award include Bunscoil Pobail Feirste, Turas and Glór na Móna among many others.

Founded in December 1999, Foras na Gaeilge is the body responsible for the promotion of the Irish Language through the island of Ireland.

Seán Ó Coinn Chief Executive at Foras na Gaeilge said: “We were attracted to the Aisling Awards, they recognise civic effort and civic achievement in greater Belfast.

"The Aisling Awards recognise best practice and achievement in all walks of civic life and it is important for us that it showcases the Irish Language because the Irish language is well on its journey that began in the 1960s to being intricate and central to everything that happens in Belfast as a city and for us the Aisling Awards gives us a chance to give a platform to that and to recognise high achievement in that effort in terms of the Irish language.

“The Aisling Awards are very important to Foras na Gaeilge. They give an amazing platform for Foras na Gaeilge to recognise high achievement in the on-going development of the Irish language in Belfast city and we’ve been able to recognise through these awards the work of some of the pioneers on the Shaws Road and Belfast, Linda Ervine and the Turas project in East Belfast and other amazing projects that are continuing on the journey that began many years ago, over 50 years ago to bring the Irish language centre stage as an important part of the fabric of the life of Belfast city.”

The Aisling Awards will be held in the Europa Hotel on the 25th of November. Nominations for awards are now open and will close on Friday the 28th of October. To make a nomination, please click here.

See also page 15 of this week's paper.