Ireland: A Cultural History Brief
Mohammad A. Bihamta
13F SLC Class 505-17, U.S. Army
Ireland: A Cultural History Brief
Although the valleys and low-lying mountains are covered in exorbitant amounts of soothing green, the country of Ireland, affectionately known as the “Emerald Isle”, has seen enough turmoil to rival any country across the globe. In order to understand the culture of this island and the people, which were once entirely under the rule of the United Kingdom, one must first define what the term culture truly encompasses. Culture can be described in an array of aspects ranging from daily life and social customs to historic traditions and moral values. The United States Army views culture as “a web of meaning shared by members
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These first inhabitants were primarily hunter-fisherman which sought out resource-rich land in order to survive. It wasn’t until the Iron Age (~500 BC) that Celtic arrival occurred in Ireland. The Celts were a group of Indo-European people who were spread across the Mediterranean. They were comprised of different tribes but shared the same language and similar cultural characteristics. From the time of Christianity to present dates, the Celts occupying Ireland eventually became Gaelic Celts, an ethnolinguistic group sharing similar cultures, beliefs, and languages. During the early first millennium, Ireland was separated into several small kingdoms or clans each under a separate rule. Ireland became a country whose primary source of living was through farming and agriculture. Throughout the first and second millennium, Ireland was witness to the Roman Empire, several Nordic invasions, the sure of Christianity and the Great Famine. It was during this time, when Irish culture truly began to take on the form it carries today.
Major Cultural Characteristics
To understand more about Irish culture, one must first understand major characteristics that define what a culture is. Culture can be defined in a multitude of different ways but for the purposes of this paper, the topics discussed will be Ireland’s language, daily customs, literature and drama, music, and its cultural institutions which preserve so much of this country’s historic
Included within the anthology The Penguin Book of Irish Fiction,1[1] are the works of great Irish authors written from around three hundred years ago, until as recently as the last decade. Since one might expect to find in an anthology such as this only expressions and interpretations of Irish or European places, events or peoples, some included material could be quite surprising in its contrasting content. One such inclusion comes from the novel Black Robe,2[2] by Irish-born author Brian Moore. Leaving Ireland as a young man afforded Moore a chance to see a great deal of the world and in reflection afforded him a great diversity of setting and theme in his writings. And while his Black Robe may express little of Ireland itself, it expresses much of Moore in his exploration into evolving concepts of morality, faith, righteousness and the ever-changing human heart.
Meagher, Timothy. “The Columbia Guide to Irish American History.” Columbia University Press- New York, 2005
This gentleman is six foot two, short black hair, black eyes, and with no real distinguishing marks. He is heterosexual, African American, and is An Atheist. His name is David, and he is walking home while wearing sweat pants with a ripped up t-shirt that was from home. Some people would consider this gentleman to be poor and have a horrible education with nothing good on his mind. However David is a part-time firefighter, with a part-time job, and also being part time college student. There is a difference between people hardcore supporting their culture or beliefs, compared to individuals who get stereotyped like David for example. In the article, “Sticks and Stones: The Irish Identity”, by Robert McLaim Wilson and published by Grand Street.
There is particular consideration given to the political climate in this story. It is incorporated with social and ethnic concerns that are prevalent. The story also addresses prejudice and the theme of ethnic stereotyping through his character development. O'Connor does not present a work that is riddled with Irish slurs or ethnic approximations. Instead, he attempts to provide an account that is both informative and accurate.
In order to legitimise a regime or cause, traditions may be constructed around historical or mythological events, people or symbols that reinforce the image required to focus people’s conception of the past. People can be encouraged to invent a cohesive view of their shared ‘traditions’ by what could be called cherry picking bits of history.
What do you think of when you hear the name Ireland? Ireland is a relatively small island off the coast of Great Britain with a land area of 32,424 square miles (Delaney 2). There are several things that you may associate with this country such as St. Patrick’s Day, shamrocks, beer, and strife. The source of the bitterness behind this conflict began centuries ago, when Britain came over and forced Protestantism on the Irish Catholic inhabitants. For this reason there has always been an animosity between the Protestants and the Irish Catholics. The island is broken up into two distinct regions. The Republic of Ireland consists of twenty-six counties, which make up the southern region. This area is predominantly Roman Catholic. Northern Ireland is made up of the six northern counties, which are under British rule and predominately Protestant. Both sides use propaganda to spread their ideas and gain support. They each have organizations, such as the I.R.A., in the south, and the U.V.F., in the north, which use peaceful methods such as newspapers and murals along with violence to fight for their cause. In Northern Ireland the Protestants used their position in the government to spread anti-Catholic propaganda and persecute the Catholic citizens.
Violence, terror, suffering and death. The conflict that has been burning in Northern Ireland seems to be an unstoppable battle and it has flooded over the land of Northern Ireland. The struggle for power and the persistence of greed have fueled the raging fires of the opposing groups. The conflict in Northern Ireland has been discussed continually over the past few decades. Ever since the beginning of the “Troubles,” organizations have been scavenging to find a plan that will cease the violence. Throughout my research for this project, the questions of what are the main sources of conflict in Northern Ireland and why have they continued today guided me to many fascinating pieces of evidence that provided me with a more compassionate view of the situation of Northern Ireland. My research topic was very broad and to get down into a more explicit viewpoint, I chose to search for my sources by selecting three disciplines.
Modern American culture thrives on the ancient religions of the Greeks and Romans. The Hellenistic myths are kept alive today in the popular culture of the western world. Yet little is commonly known of the religions and myths of the ancient people just to the north of the Romans; the Celts (7). The Celtic region spanned the British Isles, and the north western portion of the European continent from prehistoric times until the Roman invasion in the first century where the region shrunk to Ireland and Scotland (7). Though many conquered cultures managed to survive through Roman rule, the Celts did not (5). This essay explores the limitations of our knowledge of the Celtic religion, and ancient Irish culture, it details how we know what we know about Celtic beliefs, discusses the evolution of Irish culture from the early third century, up until the sixteenth century, and looks at the specific myths that have managed to survive to present day.
Upon hearing the term ‘Celtic,’ the first things that come to mind are the awe of their intricately patterned jewelry, lively music, and the flowing tunics they wore. These people are also known for being fierce warriors and for their superstitious, nature-centered religion. Celtic customs are still alive and well in places like Ireland and the western reaches of Britain, but within this essay I shall explore their origins and traditions.
To start with, Irish people are known for their sense of humor, their hardworking, loyal, love tall tales, and especially the love of their family. There are also many stereotypical characteristics that we are given such as: all Irish people are drunks (now I can not totally argue with that because most Irish people do enjoy their alcohol), we all have red hair, that the way we speak is so beautiful and poetic when in all reality it is like “where the bloody hell are you?” There are many more stereotypical characteristics we are
Not a unified and separate country until 1921, Northern Ireland has had cultural, financial, and economic that makes it stand affront from the rest of the Emerald Isles. With its close proximity to England and the immigration all through the 1600s of English and Scottish, Northern Ireland has become more anglicized th...
Walsh’s, Ford’s and Toibin’s works help influence the way Ireland is perceived nowadays. Despite what some people may think, Ireland and it’s people lives do not revolve around Pubs and alcohol. The country relies heavily on their culture and customs. Religion, music and food are three ways my family celebrates our Irish heritage. Those three parts of the Irish culture are only a small portion of what it means to be Irish.
Ronsley, Joseph, ed., Myth and Reality in Irish Literature, Wilfrid Laurier University Press, Canada, 1977
To prove my point that the Irish people share the same language I will explain the unique qualities that the Irish culture possesses. Many of these qualities are unique to the people of this region. The first is the Irish language. It is often referred to as Gaelic, but I have found that it is just called the Irish language now. This language is one of the oldest in Europe and it boasts one of the earliest written literatures in the entire world. A study was conducted b...
McCann et al. Belfast: Institute of Irish Studies, 1994, 95-109).