County Cork

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Blog 17 - Are Your Irish Surnames On This Saintly List?

Are Your Irish Surnames On This Saintly List?

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!

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Niall of the Nine Hostages

Do You Carry Niall of the Nine Hostages DNA?

Today we look at a very old Irish boy’s name. It’s one that has worked its way around the world as both a given name and a surname. The name is “Niall” (pronounced “Nile” in Ireland). Do you have a relative with the name Niall (or maybe Neil or Neal)? Did you know that the name Niall means “champion” in old Irish? It’s a name with an important place in Irish culture. Let’s take a closer look.

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Poulnabrone Square - How The Celts Celebrated The Start Of Summer

How The Celts Celebrated The Start Of Summer

The month of May, or as we call it in Irish “Bealtaine” (pronounced “ba-yowl tanna”) heralds the start of our Irish Summer.

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Ellis Island and Statue of Liberty jpg - Join Us on This Trip from Cobh to Ellis Island (#810)

Join Us on This Trip from Cobh to Ellis Island (#810)

In this special episode of the Letter from Ireland show we start our journey in Cobh (Queenstown) in County Cork. We chat with the manager of the Cobh Heritage Centre who has his own immigration stories to tell. We then take the route across the Atlantic that our ancestors would have followed (just slightly upgraded!)…

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Irish celtic knot

Look Through This Window into a Celtic World (#809)

Have you ever been to the lovely County Donegal? Perhaps some of your ancestors came from that county? A few years back, Carina and myself visited the beautiful sandy beach of Portnoo, County Donegal. We could see the nearby coastal islands – some of which could be reached at low tide. One of these islands…

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