Letter Archive
Welcome to the letter archive page for the weekly "Letter from Ireland". We started to write these letters in 2013 covering Irish Genealogy & Family History, Irish Surnames, Irish Culture & Customs and Ireland Travel, here you'll find a link to all of them.
Browse the letters listed on this page and jump to one that interests you, or enter a placename, surname or other item in the search box below to see related letters.
All of our weekly letters to date
Did you know that Mr. Yankee Doodle Dandy himself – George M. Cohan – has deep Irish roots? Read on to find out more about his Irish family origins and more.
We’re going to dive a little deeper into the subject of Irish well water today – encompassing the Vikings, the brewing of beer in Ireland and a little urban history along the way.
Do you know which Irish county had the highest population by the end of the 1800s? Well, read on and you will find out, that county is the subject of today’s Letter from Ireland.
This man grew up in an Irish Gaelic speaking household. He wants you to learn just a few words of Irish – and tells us why!
Do you ever marvel at the miracle of modern communication? Our ability to make calls and send emails almost instantly and at such little cost? Today I would like to introduce you to a fascinating man (and his Irish mother) who played a crucial part in the making of that modern miracle.
When I am travelling in Ireland and someone asks me – “Where are you from?” – the answer is usually expected to be the county where you live. It’s only when I travel abroad that I start to think of myself as an “Irish man” as opposed to a “Cork man”. Do you have a similar experience?
Have you ever had something in your possession that you are minding for future generations? Perhaps a ring, a piece of jewellery a book or a piece of furniture? Here, in Ireland, we often tend to pass down baby christening robes through several generations. Our grandson was recently christened in a robe that was also used by his father and his grandmother – both standing proudly beside him!
Have you ever tried to track down the “life and times” of one of your Irish ancestors? It can be a fascinating (and sometimes frustrating) process as you put the pieces together and gradually gain a glimpse of what life was like at the time for those ancestors.
Explore the Druidic families of Ireland and their professions in this week’s letter. Some Irish surnames are associated with professions, such as “Hickey” for “Healer” and “Ward” for “son of the Bard”. Who knows, your family might have inherited a trait from these ancient times!
I recently had a chat with Eileen – one of our Green Room members – about her own Irish surname of “White”. She was unsure where in Ireland her White ancestor lived before he departed for America. Some records said “County Mayo”, while others stated “County Kilkenny”.