Isle of Man

Basic Data

The Isle of Man lies between Great Britain and Ireland in the Irish Sea. Once part of the Norwegian Kingdom of the Hebrides, it came under British control in 1765. The Isle of Man has one dependent islet, the Calf of Man, which is a bird sanctuary. The Isle of Man chief of state is the British monarch, represented locally by an appointed Lieutenant Governor. The government is headed by the Chief Minister, who is elected by the members of the bicameral Tynwald, which consists of an 11-member Legislative Council and a 24-seat House of Keys. The population is approximately 73,000, and the official language is English. Many speak a dialect called Manx Celtic, and there are extensive efforts to keep this language alive. Offshore banking, manufacturing and tourism make up the largest sectors of the economy.

Citizens of the island enjoy the press and speech freedoms of England. The Isle of Man Newspapers Ltd. publishes the country's three newspapers, all of which appear weekly in English. Content from the publications appears on the Isle of Man Online Web portal, also owned by the newspaper company. The Isle of Man Courier is a tabloid-format newspaper that prints on Thursday. Its circulation is approximately 35,000, and it is available free of charge. The Isle of Man Examiner is a broadsheet that prints on Tuesday. Its circulation is approximately 15,000. The Manx Independent, published on Friday, is a tabloid-format newspaper with an approximate circulation of 13,000.

There are two radio stations, one AM and one FM. There are approximately 27,500 televisions, but no television station. IofM.net is the sole Internet service provider.

Bibliography

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). The World Fact-book. Directorate of Intelligence, 2001. Available from http://www.cia.gov/.

The Isle of Man Courier, The ADWEB UK Regional Newspaper Database Service (2001). Available from http://www.adweb.co.uk.

The Isle of Man Examiner, The ADWEB UK Regional Newspaper Database Service (2001). Available from http://www.adweb.co.uk.

The Manx Independent, The ADWEB UK Regional Newspaper Database Service (2001). Available from http://www.adweb.co.uk.

Jenny B. Davis

ISLE OF MAN. An island in the Irish Sea. The island was ruled by the Welsh during the 6–9c, then by the Norse until Magnus King of Norway ceded it and the Hebrides to Alexander II of Scotland in 1266. Granted to the Earls of Derby in 1406, it passed to the Dukes of Atholl in 1736, and was purchased from them by the British government partly in 1765, wholly in 1832. The island has its own parliament, the Court of Tynwald, comprising the governor, the Legislative Council, and the elected House of Keys. Acts of the British Parliament do not generally apply to the Isle of Man, which has a high degree of autonomy.

Manx Gaelic

(also Manx). This Celtic language is closely related to Irish and Scottish GAELIC. It was probably introduced in the 4c by Irish settlers and may have replaced an earlier language similar in structure to Welsh. In the 10–13c, Manx was influenced by Norse, especially in its lexicon, but continued to be the main language of the island until the end of the 18c, when English began to assume a dominant role. Ned Maddrell, the last surviving speaker of Manx, died in 1974. The Manx Society has sought to sustain Manx as the second language of the island. The form now in use tends to be that of its classical literary period, the 18c, Anglicisms being replaced by coinages from Manx roots. It tends to be influenced in the spoken form by Irish Gaelic, since islanders can receive the Irish-language programmes of Radio Telefis Eireann.

Manx English

Welsh and Scandinavian influence gave way in the later Middle Ages to a distinctive Manx dialect of English that has close links, with varieties in Lancashire and shows substratum influence from Manx. Manx English is non-rhotic, has /æ/ in both glass and gas, distinguishes between wh and w as in which witch, tends to replace /ŋ/ by /n/ in -ing words, and often has a glottal plosive for /t/ (especially before syllabic n as in beaten, touting). Syntactic influence from Gaelic is found in the use of such preposition and pronoun constructions as They returned with money at them and put a sight on her (visit her). The Gaelic influence is stronger in vocabulary and includes words associated with farming (collagh a stallion), food (braghtan bread and butter), the home (chiollagh hearth), and folk traditions (crosh caoirn a cross made from twigs or rushes and placed over a door). See CELTIC LANGUAGES.

Isle of Man

Broadly speaking, the Isle of Man's educational system is similar to that of Wales and England. The Department of Education is funded by Tynwald (the legislative assembly on the Isle of Man) and operates independently of the United Kingdom's educational authorities. The goals of the Department of Education are to provide the nation with the skills needed to survive, prosper, and increase economic growth. The goal is to educate Manx children so that they can secure employment locally or globally.

The ages of compulsory education are 5 through 16. There are 35 primary schools and 5 secondary schools. In 2000, there were 6,250 students enrolled in primary schools and 4,110 11- to 16-year-olds in secondary schools. The French language is taught to all students beginning at age seven, and the native Manx language is optionally taught at this age.

Students aged 16 though 18 who wish to enter college or university enter into Advanced "A" levels. Approximately 35 percent of all students enter into sixth form. At this level, some courses are taught through modern computer and video telecommunications. In late 2000, to expand educational opportunities, the secondary schools and the Isle of Man College were being updated so that a common network could be formed.

In 1996, the Isle of Man Government joined forces with the University of Liverpool to enhance higher education. A long range plan is for Isle of Man College to become part of Liverpool University and eventually create the Isle of Man University.

—LeAnna DeAngelo

Isle of Man. The Isle of Man in the Irish Sea is 48 miles from Anglesey, 38 miles from the Irish coast, and only 20 miles from Scotland. It is some 30 miles from north to south and 10 east to west—i.e. rather smaller than Anglesey but larger than the Isle of Wight. The population in 1991 was 70,000, many of them retired people. There is no evidence of Roman settlement, though they must have known it since Ravenglass, an important Roman port, was less than 40 miles away. A handful of Roman coins, probably from traders, have been found. From ad 800 it formed part of the Norse empire, though the control of the king of Norway was fitful. The representative institutions reflect the Norse influence. In 1266 it was ceded to Scotland after the battle of Largs, but did not stay long in Scottish possession. The island was disputed between Scots and English until 1333, when Edward III annexed and retained it. The bishopric of Sodor and Man, founded in 1134, continued under the supervision of the archbishopric of Trondhjem but was placed in the archdiocese of York in the 15th cent. From 1406 the island belonged to the Stanleys, earls of Derby, who ruled it as lords of Man, and held it until 1736. It then passed to the dukes of Atholl, but in order to curtail smuggling the British government purchased it in 1765 and took full control in 1828.

The island is a crown possession with wide independent powers under a lieutenant governor. There is a two-chamber assembly, the Tynwald, the lower house of which is the House of Keys. The emblem of the island—the three legs of Man—is an ancient design, possibly going back to the Norse period. The Manx language, basically Celtic, was widely spoken until the 19th cent., but is now an acquired tongue. With the decline of fishing and mining, tourism provides the main income, with regular sailings in the season to Douglas from Heysham, Fleetwood, Liverpool, Stranraer, Belfast, and Dublin. The largest town and capital is Douglas (22,000), followed by Ramsey (6,500), Peel (3,800) and Castletown, the old capital (3,000).

J. A. Cannon

Man, Isle of Island off the nw coast of England, in the Irish Sea; the capital is Douglas. In the Middle Ages, it was a Norwegian dependency, subsequently coming under Scottish then English rule. It has been a British crown possession since 1828, but has its own government (the Tynwald). The basis of the economy is tourism although agriculture is important, the chief products being oats, fruit and vegetables. Area: 572sq km (221sq mi). Pop. (1996) 71,700.

http://www.gov.im; http://www.isle-of-man.com