Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht


The Department of Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht is a department of the Government of Ireland. The mission of the department is to promote and develop Ireland’s arts, culture and heritage; to advance the use of the Irish language and to facilitate sustainable regional and rural development, including the development of the Gaeltacht and Islands. It is led by the Minister for Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht.

Departmental team

The official headquarters and ministerial offices of the department are at 23 Kildare Street, Dublin 2. The department also has offices in South Frederick Street in Dublin and in New Road, Killarney, County Kerry. The departmental team consists of the following:
In carrying out its mandate the department undertakes a variety of functions including:
The Department is responsible for funding important Irish cultural institutions like
and organisations such as:
The department was created by the Ministers and Secretaries Act 1977 as the Department of Economic Planning and Development, an act of the 15th Government of Ireland led by Jack Lynch. This act provided its function as:
Over the years the name and functions of the department have changed several times by means of statutory instruments. The Department of Culture, Heritage and Gaeltacht has had its current title and functions since 2017.

Alteration of name and transfer of functions