The Tribes of Ireland, Connemara Marble and a Little Harbour in Antrim…

Céad míle fáilte, welcome to your Letter from Ireland “Shorts”.  Each Tuesday we’ll bring you a quick-read of some of our favourite and interesting Irish things for this week.

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FAVOURITE PLACES IN IRELAND 
Ballintoy, County Antrim.

Ballintoy is a lovely, little village on the Antrim coast with a picturesque harbour and beach. Located just down the road is the oldest whiskey distillery in the world (can you guess the name?) – we stopped off there to learn the history and have a wee drop!

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FEATURED IRISH SURNAMES – The Tribes of Ireland

Last week we had a look at how surnames evolved in Ireland, this week I thought I would expand on the time in Ireland of Tribes and Kingdoms. Click here to see if your family surname was part of the leading tribes of Ireland.

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BOOK I’M READING NOW

“Foster” by Claire Keegan. One of a number of books by Claire Keegan. A young girl is brought to Ireland to live with her relatives – not knowing if she would ever return to her family. She finds belonging and love during that summer – illustrating the power of family and silent bonds. A great read! Click here to see the book on amazon.

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IRISH WORD OR PROVERB

“Beatha teanga í a labhairt”

Which translates to “The life of a language is in speaking it”. Hopefully we do our small bit by sharing these proverbs!

Click here to listen to how a native Irish speaker would say it

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IRISH CRAFT/PRODUCT WE LOVE*

The Connemara marble range at The Irish Store make uniquely Irish pieces of jewellery. I think this Claddagh ring is a fine example. The beautiful green Connemara marble has been used since the stone age in Ireland and in the 19th century made its way around the world to decorate buildings.

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That’s it for this week. Send us an email with any of your own favourites for inclusion in future emails, or if you’re a plus member leave a comment below.

Slán for now,
Mike & Carina.

*Note: The above article may contain some affiliate links (for example Amazon and the Irish Store) which means we get paid a small amount should you choose to purchase, at no extra cost to you. This helps us keep the show on the road!