Irish Culture & Customs Resources
In this section I share articles on Irish music, dancing, poetry, writing, story-telling and history. Many of the topics that we consider to be quite unique in our shared Irish heritage. You can browse through the features listed on this page and jump to one that interests you, or enter a placename, surname or other item in the search box to see which letters mention them. I do hope you enjoy!
Irish Culture & Customs Letters
For me, this is a special time as we transition into the winter here in Ireland – a time when I am aware of our connections to the past and those who have…
One of the things we are most proud of here in Ireland are the work of our writers and poets. These wonderful characters manage to capture the mood and thoughts of a whole…
Many of our Irish ancestors would spend days on the “bog” in their parish – digging peat (we call it turf in Ireland) with a special shovel called a “slean”…
Given the connection to this celtic festival, it is no coincidence that we celebrate Lá Fhéile Bríde (Law Ail-ah Bree-da) – St. Brigid’s Day – on February 1st in honour…
Looking back, candles played a big part in my childhood Irish Christmas traditions. Of course we had Father Christmas (“Daidí Na Nollag” – pronounced “dad-ee nah nul-ug”) but the countdown…
Irish Culture & Customs Podcasts
This week we look at one of the most Irish of cities outside Ireland – the city of Liverpool on the western shores of Britain. It’s a place that has…
This week we look at the fact that there are many, many more people of Irish descent OUTSIDE the island of Ireland than on the island of Ireland. Many Irish…
Welcome to this special musical edition of the Letter from Ireland podcast. We take a tour around the five counties – Galway, Mayo, Sligo, Leitrim and Roscommon – of the…
In this episode we look at two types of storyteller. First, we have the “bard” who composes songs to honour the deeds and exploits of the great (and not so…
In this episode, we look at the time of the Brehon laws of Ireland and take an example of just some of these Gaelic common laws that held our society…