The Irish Tradition

The old order of transhumance and open range cattle breeding died out to be replaced by a structure of great landed estates, small tenant farmers with more or less precarious hold on their leases, and a mass of landless labourers. This situation continued up to the end of the 19th century, when the agitation of the Land League began to bring about land reform. In this process of reform, the former tenants and labourers became land owners, with the great estates being broken up into small- and medium-sized farms and smallholdings.

The process continued well into the 20th century with the work of the Irish Land Commission.

This contrasted with Britain, where many of the big estates were left intact. One consequence of this is the widely recognised cultural phenomenon of "land hunger" amongst the new class of Irish farmer. In general, this means that farming families will do almost anything to retain land ownership within the family unit, with the greatest ambition possible being the acquisition of additional land. Another is that hillwalkers in Ireland today are more constrained than their counterparts in Britain, as it is more difficult to agree rights of way with so many small farmers involved on a given route, rather than with just one landowner.

The majority of the Irish calendar today still reflects the old pagan customs, with later Christian traditions also having significant influences. Christmas in Ireland has several local traditions, some in no way connected with Christianity. On 26 December St. Stephen's Day , there is a custom of " Wrenboys " [3] who call door to door with an arrangement of assorted material which changes in different localities to represent a dead wren "caught in the furze", as their rhyme goes.

The national holiday in the Republic of Ireland is Saint Patrick's Day , that falls on the date 17 March and is marked by parades and festivals in cities and towns across the island of Ireland, and by the Irish diaspora around the world. The festival is in remembrance to Saint Patrick , the patron saint of Ireland. Pious legend credits Patrick with the banishing of the snakes from the island, and the legend also credits Patrick with teaching the Irish about the concept of the Trinity by showing people the shamrock , a 3-leaved clover, using it to highlight the Christian belief of 'three divine persons in the one God'.

The holiday is celebrated by Irish Protestants the vast majority of whom live in Northern Ireland and is notable for the numerous parades organised by the Orange Order which take place throughout Northern Ireland.

These parades are colourful affairs with Orange Banners and sashes on display and include music in the form of traditional songs such as The Sash and Derry's Walls performed by a mixture of Pipe, Flute, Accordion, and Brass marching bands. Brigid's Day 1 February, known as Imbolc or Candlemas also does not have its origins in Christianity, being instead another religious observance superimposed at the beginning of spring.

The Brigid's cross made from rushes represents a pre-Christian solar wheel. The last is still widely observed as Halloween which is celebrated all over the world, including in the United States followed by All Saints' Day , another Christian holiday associated with a traditional one. Important church holidays include Easter, and various Marian observances. Christianity in the form of both Roman Catholicism and Protestantism is the most widely practiced religion in Ireland.

Ireland is a place where religion and religious practice have always been held in high esteem. The majority of people on the island are Roman Catholics ; however, there is a significant minority of Protestants who are mostly concentrated in Northern Ireland , where they make up a plurality of the population. These are also joined by numerous other smaller denominations including Baptists , several American gospel groups and the Salvation Army. In addition to the Christian denominations there are centres for Buddhists , Hindus , Bahais , Pagans and for people of the Islamic and Jewish faiths.

In the Republic of Ireland , the last time a census asked people to specify their religion was in The result was In Northern Ireland in , the population was The Leprechaun has been estimated to figure to a large degree in Irish folklore. According to the tales, the leprechaun is a mischievous fairy type creature in emerald green clothing who when not playing tricks spend all their time busily making shoes, the Leprechaun is said to have a pot of gold hidden at the end of the rainbow , and if ever captured by a human it has the magical power to grant three wishes in exchange for release.

Legend has it he built the Giant's Causeway as stepping-stones to Scotland, so as not to get his feet wet; he also once scooped up part of Ireland to fling it at a rival, but it missed and landed in the Irish Sea — the clump became the Isle of Man and the pebble became Rockall , the void became Lough Neagh. The many legends of ancient Ireland were captured by Lady Gregory in two volumes with forwards by W. These stories depict the unusual power and status that Celtic women held in ancient times.

Culture Name

Halloween is a traditional and much celebrated holiday in Ireland on the night of 31 October. In Ireland, traditional Halloween customs include; Guising — children disguised in costume going from door to door requesting food or coins — which became practice by the late 19th century, [17] [18] turnips hollowed-out and carved with faces to make lanterns, [17] holding parties where games such as apple bobbing are played. For a comparatively small place, the island of Ireland has made a disproportionate contribution to world literature in all its branches, in both the Irish and English languages.

The island's most widely known literary works are undoubtedly in English. Three of the four Nobel prize winners were born in Dublin Heaney being the exception, having lived in Dublin but being born in County Londonderry , making it the birthplace of more Nobel literary laureates than any other city in the world. Poetry in Irish represents the oldest vernacular poetry in Europe, with the earliest examples dating from the 6th century.

The early history of Irish visual art is generally considered to begin with early carvings found at sites such as Newgrange and is traced through Bronze age artefacts, particularly ornamental gold objects, and the Celtic brooches and illuminated manuscripts of the "Insular" Early Medieval period. During the course of the 19th and 20th centuries, a strong indigenous tradition of painting emerged, including such figures as John Butler Yeats , William Orpen , Jack Yeats and Louis le Brocquy.

The Irish tradition of folk music and dance is also widely known. In the middle years of the 20th century, as Irish society was attempting to modernise, traditional Irish music fell out of favour to some extent, especially in urban areas. Young people at this time tended to look to Britain and, particularly, the United States as models of progress and jazz and rock and roll became extremely popular.

During the s, and inspired by the American folk music movement, there was a revival of interest in the Irish tradition. Before long, groups and musicians like Horslips , Van Morrison and even Thin Lizzy were incorporating elements of traditional music into a rock idiom to form a unique new sound. During the s and s, the distinction between traditional and rock musicians became blurred, with many individuals regularly crossing over between these styles of playing as a matter of course.

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Irish and English are the most widely spoken languages in Ireland. English is the most widely spoken language on the island overall, and Irish is spoken as a first language only by a small minority, primarily, though not exclusively, in the government-defined Gaeltacht regions in the Republic. A larger minority speak Irish as a second language, with In contrast Northern Ireland , like the rest of the United Kingdom, has no official language. English, however, is the de facto official language.

Several other languages are spoken on the island, including Shelta , a mixture of Irish, Romany and English, spoken widely by Travellers. Some other languages have entered Ireland with immigrants — for example, Polish is now the second most widely spoken language in Ireland after English, Irish being the third most commonly spoken language. There are many references to food and drink in early Irish literature.

irish culture, traditions, customs of ireland that live on

Honey seems to have been widely eaten and used in the making of mead. The old stories also contain many references to banquets, although these may well be greatly exaggerated and provide little insight into everyday diet. There are also many references to fulacht fia , which are archaeological sites commonly believed to have once been used for cooking venison. The fulacht fia have holes or troughs in the ground which can be filled with water.

Meat can then be cooked by placing hot stones in the trough until the water boils. Many fulach fia sites have been identified across the island of Ireland, and some of them appear to have been in use up to the 17th century. Excavations at the Viking settlement in the Wood Quay area of Dublin have produced a significant amount of information on the diet of the inhabitants of the town.

The main animals eaten were cattle, sheep and pigs, with pigs being the most common. This popularity extended down to modern times in Ireland. Poultry and wild geese as well as fish and shellfish were also common, as were a wide range of native berries and nuts, especially hazel. The seeds of knotgrass and goosefoot were widely present and may have been used to make a porridge. The potato would appear to have been introduced into Ireland in the second half of the 16th century, initially as a garden crop. It eventually came to be the main food field crop of the tenant and labouring classes.

As a food source, the potato is extremely efficient in terms of energy yielded per unit area of land. The potato is also a good source of many vitamins and minerals, particularly vitamin C especially when fresh. As a result, the typical 18th- and 19th-century Irish diet of potatoes and buttermilk was a contributing factor in the population explosion that occurred in Ireland at that time.

However, due to the political rule of the time, the majority of Irish produce root crops, cereals and animal produce was exported to Britain, leaving few strains of potato as the sole food source for the Irish. This, along with the spread of potato blight led to shortages and famine, the most notable instance being the Great Irish Famine — , which more or less undid all the growth in population of the previous century.

The cause of which is attributed by some to an adherence to laissez faire economic policies by the government which kept food exports at the pre famine level leading to disease, death and emigration. In the 20th century the usual modern selection of foods common to Western cultures has been adopted in Ireland. Both US fast-food culture and continental European dishes have influenced the country, along with other world dishes introduced in a similar fashion to the rest of the Western world.

Common meals include pizza, curry, Chinese food , and lately, some west African dishes have been making an appearance. The proliferation of fast food has led to increasing public health problems including obesity , and one of the highest rates of heart disease in the world. All the ingredients are fried , although more recently the trend is to grill as many of the ingredients as possible. These advertisements however, do not explain the health and vigor of native Irish people while eating their traditional diets high in both fat and meat. In tandem with these developments, the last quarter of the century saw the emergence of a new Irish cuisine based on traditional ingredients handled in new ways.

Culture of Ireland

This cuisine is based on fresh vegetables, fish, especially salmon and trout , oysters and other shellfish, traditional soda bread , the wide range of hand-made cheeses that are now being made across the country, and, of course, the potato. Traditional dishes, such as the Irish stew , Dublin coddle , the Irish breakfast and potato bread , have enjoyed a resurgence. Schools like the Ballymaloe Cookery School have emerged to cater for the associated increased interest in cooking with traditional ingredients.

Pub culture pervades Irish society, across all cultural divides. The term refers to the Irish habit of frequenting public houses pubs or bars.

Alternative Names

Traditional pub culture is concerned with more than just drinking. Typically pubs are important meeting places, where people can gather and meet their neighbours and friends in a relaxed atmosphere; similar to the cafe cultures of other countries. Pubs vary widely according to the clientele they serve, and the area they are in. Best known, and loved amongst tourists is the traditional pub, with its traditional Irish music or "trad music" , tavern-like warmness, and memorabilia filling it. Often such pubs will also serve food, particularly during the day.

Many more modern pubs, not necessarily traditional, still emulate these pubs, only perhaps substituting traditional music for a DJ or non-traditional live music. Many larger pubs in cities eschew such trappings entirely, opting for loud music, and focusing more on the consumption of drinks, which is not a focus of traditional Irish culture. Such venues are popular "pre-clubbing" locations. Clubs usually vary in terms of the type of music played, and the target audience.

Belfast has a unique underground club scene taking place in settings such as churches, zoos, and crematoriums. A significant recent change to pub culture in the Republic of Ireland has been the introduction of a smoking ban , in all workplaces, which includes pubs and restaurants. Ireland was the first country in the world to implement such a ban which was introduced on 29 March Nevertheless, the atmosphere in pubs has changed greatly as a result, and debate continues on whether it has boosted or lowered sales, although this is often blamed on the ever-increasing prices, or whether it is a "good thing" or a "bad thing".

National and international organisations have labelled Ireland as having a problem with over-consumption of alcohol. This meets the Health Service Executive 's definition of binge drinking. Sport on the island of Ireland is popular and widespread. Throughout the island a wide variety of sports are played, the most popular being Gaelic football , hurling , soccer, rugby union and hockey. In Ireland many sports, such as rugby union, Gaelic football and hurling, are organised in an all-island basis, with a single team representing the island of Ireland in international competitions.

Other sports, such as soccer, have separate organising bodies in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Traditionally, those in the North who identify as Irish, predominantly Catholics and nationalists, support the Republic of Ireland team. The best selling of these is the Irish Independent, which is published in both tabloid and broadsheet form. The Irish Times is Ireland's newspaper of record. Green has become the most Irish hue. This is in part because this temperate island is literally very green with foliage.

The green shamrock, with its three leaves, is what St. Patrick purportedly used to teach the Christian Trinity to potential converts.

Irish Culture - Traditions That Live On

And although blue was the color originally associated with St. Patrick's Day , green eventually became the symbolic color of choice. This is because natives who supported Irish-Catholic nationalism often pinned shamrocks to their clothing. During one rebellion, a group of soldiers even went so far as to dress in green uniforms to draw attention to their desire for an independent Ireland. In the mid's, famine struck Ireland.

Many Irish left behind their homeland and dispersed throughout the world, taking their traditions and customs with them. Much of the Irish culture is tinged with the struggles of their long oppression and suffering, yet in each song, dance, and delicious family recipe is steely resolve and hope. And there's one slice of their culture in particular that speaks to the root of what it means to be Irish — the food.

On the next page you'll read more about how Irish culinary choices are intertwined with the culture as a whole.