Picture the scene. A Friday night in a Galway pub, locals are chatting in their native Gaeilge, sipping the black stuff, and then a man begins to sing sean-nós. Nothing unusual you might say, except that man is Marcin Ostasz, a native of Poland, who has immersed himself in the Irish language and culture since moving here in 1998. The Irish may be struggling with their native language, but it is finding surprising favour with some of Ireland's immigrants, writes Caitríona Nic Giolla Bhríde

He is just one of the many new gaeilgóirs emerging in this country and speaks with all the zeal of a convert. "I have enjoyed every single moment of learning Irish, partly because of its excellent cultural background and also the friendly people who promote it. I have no talent for music but I do enjoy sean-nós singing and I have also tried rince sean-nós," he says.

Those of us with a "cúpla focal" might be justifiably embarrassed by the growing number of immigrants who are now learning Irish. Ostasz (34) was born in Poland and lived in Hungary for seven years where he qualified in engineering in 1997. The following year he moved to Ireland and has been living in Galway ever since.

"A friend of mine from college was working in a large multinational in Galway and as he was returning home to Poland, I applied for the same position. I arrived in Galway in the summer of 1998 and the city sucked me in."

Ostasz speaks Polish, English, Hungarian, Russian, Czech and Irish and says it was not an immediate love affair with the language. Some gentle persuasion was needed to coax him along, but once he got started he was hooked.

"I had no interest in Irish for a long time but a few years ago I began meeting people either speaking or learning Irish. They put me under gentle pressure to start learning it. It's a very pleasant experience when you know your 'cúpla focal' and are able to converse with people from a totally different background."

He attended classes in Galway's Conradh na Gaeilge for a few months and went on to complete the highest level. A couple of trips to Oideas Gael in Donegal also helped with his fluency.

Many people say it is one of the most difficult languages to learn, however Ostasz thinks the hardest part was finding someone to practise with. "The language itself is not hard but it is much harder to find a partner for a conversation. Compared to other languages, and I know, it does not have a complex grammar and its logical structure is easy to learn. I think Irish suffers from being 'a second language' and people tend to switch to English when the conversation begins to feel awkward in Irish."

John Barker, a teacher at Conradh na Gaeilge Irish night classes in Dublin, agrees that many perceive it as an inherently difficult language to learn but feels that most of the problem comes down to the person's attitude. "I also teach in an all-boys school in north Dublin and the general feeling is 'What's the point?' I find that foreign students, obviously proud of their own language, are shocked at how negative Irish people are towards the Irish language. Many are genuinely interested in Irish culture and want a deeper understanding of the country through Irish."

OSTASZ SAYS LEARNING Irish was an important part of his naturalisation into Irish society. He found that many Irish people didn't see it as part of their identity but was determined to explore the cultural significance of the language. "After it became obvious to me that Irish speakers in Ireland constitute a sort of cultural or social group I started to aspire to understand them. One can learn so much about that culture in that way and also understand why Irish society is the way it is."

With his multilingual ability, it is encouraging that he finds Irish a natural, humourous language and that he enjoys speaking it at every opportunity. "I like speaking Irish and the more I get to know it the more I like speaking it. Compared to other languages it feels more natural and perhaps simpler in that it has never been the language of modern urban communities. I have also realised that most of your humour is derived from Irish and it is only when you understand that language that you fully appreciate its wit."

BARKER THINKS THAT many people have a negative attitude towards the language because of their memories of how it was taught in school. He believes an overhaul of the curriculum with more emphasis on communication rather than text would go a long way towards making students more positive about it.

"A poor, boring, old-fashioned curriculum has not helped teacher's motivation for Irish. We have to make it interesting, make it modern with a curriculum that students can relate to. There shouldn't be as much emphasis on prose and poetry. I see so many students leaving school after six years and they can write a little bit and read, but ask them to say a few sentences and they look at you like you have two heads."

Ostasz thinks Irish people have an awkward and strained relationship with the language. "There is not enough Irish to call it a national language and one always struggles to understand how native Irish speakers can actually feel at home in this country. People who use language for 'practical' purposes probably find it very difficult to adhere to it, while there is a circle of people who treat it as a sort of national heritage and it is the latter that deserves a lot of support."

Ostasz hopes he can wake people up to the joys of the native tongue. "It is a phenomenon uncommon in the world. You have a beautiful language that is very close to becoming a cultural curiosity rather than an every day communication tool and almost the entire economic, political and social activity in this country is conducted in a different language." Barker hopes the trend of immigrants learning Irish will increase. "I think it can only go up, and that's probably because of the increase in numbers arriving here, and also hopefully due to the increase in popularity with Irish in the coming years. Fingers crossed."

Night classes: Gaelchultúr (www.gaelchultur.com, 01-6753658) Gael Linn (www.gael-linn.ie, 01-6751200) Conradh na Gaeilge (www.cnag.ie, 01-4757401)