The peoples of Ireland: culture and traditions. Clans and surnames of Ireland Official language of Ireland

The famous Russian poetess Zinaida Gippius once, although she had never seen Ireland, called it "a foggy country with sharp rocks." Now the island of Ireland, on which, in fact, the Republic of Ireland is located, is called the "Emerald Isle", because. the trees and plants are almost green there all year round. However, tourists in Ireland will be interested not only in nature, but also in numerous medieval castles, as well as other attractions, traditional festivals and local alcoholic drinks (Irish whiskey, beer and ale).

Geography of Ireland

The Republic of Ireland is located on the island of Ireland, in northwestern Europe. This country has a land border only with Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK. The island of Ireland is washed on all sides by the Atlantic Ocean (the Celtic Sea in the south, the St. George Canal in the southeast and the Irish Sea in the east). The total area of ​​this country is 70,273 sq. km. The most high peak Ireland - Mount Carantwill, whose height reaches 1041 m.

Capital

The capital of Ireland is Dublin, which now has a population of about 550 thousand people. Historians claim that a Celtic settlement on the site of modern Dublin existed already in the 2nd century AD.

Official language of Ireland

Ireland has two official languages ​​- Irish and English. However, only 39% of the population of Ireland knows the Irish language.

Religion

About 87% of the inhabitants of Ireland are Catholics belonging to the Roman Catholic Church.

State structure

According to the Constitution, Ireland is a parliamentary republic, the head of which is the President, who is elected for a 7-year term.

The executive power belongs to the bicameral Parliament - Oirakhtas, consisting of the Senate (60 people) and the House of Representatives (156 people).

Main political parties– Labor Party, Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil, Sinn Féin, Workers' Party of Ireland, and the Socialist Party.

Climate and weather in Ireland

The climate in Ireland is determined by the Atlantic Ocean and the warm Gulf Stream. As a result, the climate in this country is temperate maritime. The average annual air temperature is +9.6C. The warmest months in Ireland are July and August, when the average air temperature reaches +19C, and the coldest months are January and February (+2C). The average rainfall is 769 mm per year.

Average air temperature in Dublin:

• January - +4С
• February - +5С
• March - +6.5С
• April - +8.5C
• May - +11С
• June - +14C
• July - +15C
• August - +15C
• september - +13C
• october - +11C
• November - +7C
• December - +5С

Seas and oceans

The island of Ireland is washed on all sides by the Atlantic Ocean. In the south, Ireland is washed by the Celtic Sea, and in the east by the Irish Sea. In the southeast, the St. George Canal separates Ireland and Great Britain.

Rivers and lakes

Many rivers flow through Ireland. The largest of these are Shannon, Barrow, Shur, Blackwater, Bunn, Liffey, and Slaney. As for the lakes, of them, first of all, the following should be mentioned: Loch Derg, Loch Mask, Loch Neagh, and Killarney.

Note that Ireland has an extensive network of canals, most of which were built more than 100 years ago.

Story

The first people on the island of Ireland appeared 8 thousand years ago. Then, during the Neolithic, Celtic tribes from the Iberian Peninsula arrived in Ireland. The spread of Christianity in Ireland is associated with the name of St. Patrick, who arrived on this island around the middle of the 5th century.

Since the 8th century, Ireland has been subjected to a century-long invasion of the Vikings. At this time, the country is divided into several counties.

In 1177, a significant part of the territory of Ireland was captured by English troops. In the middle of the 16th century, the British tried to impose Protestantism on the Irish, but they could not do it completely. Thus, to this day, the inhabitants of the island of Ireland are divided into two religious concessions - Catholics and Protestants (in the Republic of Ireland, the majority of the population are Catholics).

In 1801 Ireland became part of Great Britain. It wasn't until 1922, after the Irish War of Independence, that most of Ireland seceded from Great Britain, forming the Irish Free State (but which was part of the Commonwealth of Great Britain). Only in 1949 did Ireland become truly independent. However, Northern Ireland, where the majority of the population is Protestant, is still part of the UK.

In 1973 Ireland was admitted to the EU.

Culture of Ireland

Despite the fact that the British for many centuries tried to include Ireland in their empire, the Irish still managed to maintain their national identity, as well as traditions and beliefs.

The most popular festivals in Ireland are the festival and parade during St. Patrick's Day, the Galway Oyster Festival, jazz festival in Cork, the Bloomsday Festival, and the Dublin Marathon.

Kitchen

Traditional products in Ireland are meat (beef, pork, lamb), fish (salmon, cod), seafood (oysters, mussels), potatoes, cabbage, cheese, dairy products. The most famous Irish dish is Irish stew, which is made from lamb, potatoes, carrots, parsley, onions and cumin.

Another traditional Irish dish is boiled bacon with cabbage. Ireland is also famous for its traditional soda bread and cheesecake.

Everyday non-alcoholic drinks in Ireland are tea and coffee (think of the famous Irish coffee, which includes whiskey, brown sugar and whipped cream). As for alcoholic beverages, the Irish prefer whiskey, beer and ale.

Landmarks of Ireland

Despite the fact that Ireland is a small country, it still has a lot of interesting sights. The top ten of them, in our opinion, are the following:

Cities and resorts

Most big cities Ireland - Cork, Limerick, and, of course, Dublin. The largest of them is Dublin, which is now home to about 550 thousand people. In turn, the population of Cork is more than 200 thousand people, and Limerick - about 100 thousand people.

Souvenirs/Shopping

Tourists from Ireland usually bring traditional Irish sweaters from the Aran Island (we recommend buying white Aran sweaters, not colored ones), Waterford Crystal glassware, tweed suits, linen, Irish music CDs, fishing tackle, and, of course, Irish whiskey.

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(3.6 million people). The Irish and their descendants make up the largest ethnic community in the US, where they include about 40 million people; they also live in Northern Ireland, Australia (4 million), Great Britain (3 million), Canada (2.2 million), New Zealand (0.5 million). The total number of people with Irish roots is estimated at 54 million (2006). The Irish belong to the Atlanto-Baltic race of the large Caucasoid race. The Irish language is spoken in the west and south of Ireland, in the northern Irish counties of Fermanag and Armag, in some parts of the USA and Canada. Most Irish people speak English. Believing Irish are predominantly Catholics.

The ethnic basis of the Irish was made up of the Celtic tribes of the Gaels, who migrated from the European continent in the 4th century BC. After the adoption of Christianity (5th century) and the formation of independent states on the island, an Irish ethnic community developed. Since the 12th century, English settlers began to master Ireland. The colonization of Ireland proceeded especially intensively from the 17th century. The English persecuted the language, culture of the indigenous population, sought to assimilate the Irish. However, the Irish managed to defend their cultural independence and preserve their national identity. As a result of mass emigration since the middle of the 19th century, the population of Ireland has been steadily declining. If in 1845 8.5 million people lived on the island, then in 1911 - only 4.4 million. The main directions of emigration were the USA, Canada, Australia, Great Britain. The Irish left their homeland not only for economic reasons, but also in an effort to avoid oppression, including on religious grounds. As a result of the Irish War of Liberation (1919-1921), a compromise British-Irish Treaty (1921) was concluded on granting Ireland the status of a dominion. Northern Ireland (Ulster) remained under British control. In 1949 Ireland was proclaimed a republic. However, emigration processes continued until the 1960s. In 1961, the population of Ireland decreased to 2.82 million people, and only then began to increase.

The share of the urban population is constantly increasing, in 1996 the city dwellers made up 58% of the country's population; the largest cities are Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Dun Laere, Galway, Waterford, Dundalk, Wexford. IN agriculture animal husbandry predominates (cattle, sheep). The Irish traditionally grow wheat, barley, oats, potatoes, and fish. In food, traditionally, a large place is occupied by potato dishes, dairy products, oatmeal, fish. The most popular drink is tea. Type of village settlements, yes small villages cumulus layout. In the west, Celtic buildings have survived - stone houses with low ceilings and sloping thatched or thatched roofs. In other areas, they have been replaced by stone or frame (with walls made of concrete blocks) houses, with gable or four-slope tiled roofs. The walls are plastered inside and out and painted in bright colors. National clothes - a one-color (usually orange) skirt (kilt), a long jacket, a light shirt without a collar, a large cloth beret - are practically not used. Festive clothes are dominated by green color which is considered national.

In the calendar cycle, along with rituals and customs common with other European nations, Celtic holidays are celebrated, for example, Samhain - the beginning of the year according to the Celtic calendar (November 1). On August 1, on the feast of Lugnazad, the beginning of the harvest and other harvesting activities is celebrated. Irish national species sports - harling (a kind of hockey), Gaelic football. The oral art of the Irish, both in Irish and in English, is peculiar (historical songs that reflect the national liberation struggle of the Irish).

Irish roots

The surname Kennedy is very common in the United States. Not as widely as, say, the Smiths (for some reason, the blacksmith profession - after all smith- this is a blacksmith - it was especially recorded in surnames), but it is common. This is probably due to the fact that there are three large branches of this genus, which differ significantly in their origin and development - English, Scottish and Irish.

The Irish branch (the main meanings of the word - fast, lively, hot) turned out to be the most common and successful, despite the fact that its representatives overwhelmingly adhered to the Catholic religion, which until the second half of the 20th century was not used in the country (especially in the central states and West) with special honor. It came to the point that Catholics were not considered patriots, they were reproached for being more loyal to the Pope than to the American people. This pseudo-patriotic anti-Irish hysteria reached a particular intensity in 1928, when the governor of the state of New York was nominated for the presidency - the Irishman and Catholic Al Smith, who was accused of allegedly serving not his country, but the "Antichrist in Rome."

At the same time, in opposition to overt discrimination, Irish Americans were distinguished by some qualities that contributed to their survival, advancement, and business activity. John Kennedy, the future 35th President of the United States, as a senator, recalling, however, the past of his "small people" back in his homeland, but clearly referring to his relatives in America, said in 1957: "All of us, according to the origin of the Irish, are bound by a chain that leads to past experience; an experience that exists only in memory and legend, but which is real to those who have it. The special properties of the Irish are an emerald thread woven into the fabric of their past, it is their constancy, endurance, faith carried through centuries of foreign oppression ... centuries during which they experienced poverty, disease and hunger ... ”(21) Echoing John, a famous American the poet Robert Frost, presenting Kennedy with a book of his poems on the day of his presidential inauguration, inscribed on it: "Be more Irish than Harvard" (22) .

It was this dual commitment - stubborn and insurmountable, despite all difficulties and obstacles - national and religious ties - that was the basis of unity within the Kennedy family itself, mutual support, readiness to help each other, sacrificing their own ambitions and sometimes even material interests, highly revered in this family - makes it possible to fully agree with the members of the family, who more than once called their clan a clan. After all, a clan (a word borrowed by the ancient Irish, as well as the Scots and Walloons from their distant Gaelic predecessors) is “a group of families whose heads are descended from a common ancestor” (23) . Strictly speaking, there is a limitation in the anthropological literature. A clan is a clan that originates from a mythical or legendary ancestor, the exact genealogical chain to which members of the clan do not trace (24) . But in everyday life, this limitation is usually neglected.

Let us turn to the family tree of the Kennedy clan. This will not be difficult to do, because, unlike many other prominent Americans, the Kennedy brothers (the president and senators) knew only three generations of their ancestors. More precisely, even they only heard something about them, and in more detail their fate, and even then in the most general terms (with the exception of the father) historians and journalists were able to restore already at the time when the family became famous.

The grandfather of Joseph Kennedy, who became a millionaire and a very influential political figure, was the father of the president and two senators, was Patrick Kennedy. He was a tenant of a tiny plot of land in the town of Dunganstown (County Wexford) in the south-eastern part of Ireland. Having left his parents early, Patrick led a miserable existence like his neighbors, and indeed the majority of the population of the Green Island.

Journalist Richard Whalen, author of a biography of Joseph Kennedy, believes that the Irish were the poorest and most backward people in Europe (25). He's certainly exaggerating, but he doesn't stray too far from the truth. The Irish, indeed, in their overwhelming majority, were a poor but proud people, nourishing their honor with legends and myths about ancient times, when they bravely fought the British and other aliens and defeated them in difficult battles or died bravely in an unequal battle on the battlefield.

The Catholic faith helped the Irish to maintain courage and love of life. The church, led from the distant Vatican by a pope who was considered a demigod, was the only national institution that survived after the Green Isle became a colony of Great Britain in the middle of the 17th century.

Naturally, Patrick was a faithful Catholic and a regular parishioner of the local church, whose priest willingly absolved him of a few sins. The Church gave hope for salvation in another world, for the prospects for improving one's existence in the earthly world were by no means encouraging.

Patrick Kennedy's potato crop was barely enough to feed himself and sell the leftovers at a nearby market. The proceeds went to the landlord's rent and a minor inventory upgrade. Any improvement in the quality of life could not even be conceived. Patrick was accustomed to such an existence by his parents, and he considered his life to be quite natural. It seemed perfectly normal that he sleeps on a damp earthen floor, works from early morning until late at night and counts not only a small fraction of the remaining coins, but also potatoes, which must be stored until the next harvest, leaving the necessary part as planting material.

In 1845, however, disaster struck. From no one knows where the potato disease that came from (it was said that it was brought from across the ocean - apparently, the unfortunate Europeans learned to blame the prosperous Americans for their troubles back in those days) led to the fact that almost the entire main product of subsistence and marketing for the Irish peasantry rotted at the root. The crop failure was followed by famine in the full sense of the word, and after it, as is usually the case, epidemics of typhus and cholera. Nevertheless, the landlords demanded payment of the rent in full.

In the years 1846-1849, at least a million Irish people died of hunger and disease, and about a million more, despairing of maintaining a tolerable existence in their homeland, went to emigrate to that very simultaneously blessed and cursed overseas country from which, according to rumors, misfortune fell upon Ireland. (26) .

The area where Patrick lived suffered slightly less than the western part of Ireland. However, he understood that new troubles were still to come, and he decided to emigrate, especially since the landlord had already increased the payment for his land. Fortunately, the young man was not yet burdened with a family.

Having received the blessing of a local priest as a devout Catholic, in October 1848 he loaded his miserable possessions onto a cart and set off along a washed-out dirt road to the nearby large port of New Ross - which was, fortunately, only six miles from his native town.

From here, Patrick crossed over to Liverpool, the nearest British port from which it was possible to cross the ocean. The nearest transatlantic steamer, the Washington Irving, was bound for Boston. There were seats in the lowest class on the ship. A painful journey across the ocean began in almost hard labor conditions, which lasted more than six weeks: the holds, where passengers who bought cheap tickets were accommodated, were overcrowded, almost no people were allowed on deck. There was a hell of a stench, as there were no sanitary and toilet facilities. Passengers were supposed to be fed according to the rules, but the meager rations, which were often not given out at all, were completely insufficient to even minimally stifle hunger.

According to contemporaries, about a third of the Irish emigrants who went to America died on board the ships or almost immediately after their arrival at their destination. The fatal disease was called starvation fever or starvation typhus. It is no coincidence that such vessels were called floating coffins (27) .

Patrick proved to be hardy enough to endure this terrible journey. Arriving in Boston on April 22, 1849, he chose to live in, of course, the cheapest area of ​​the city. There was simply no strength to move further, and other Irish people preferred to stay on the coast, especially since here one could find work in shipbuilding docks. The Irish did not dare to go west in search of a better life, like the "pioneers" from England, also because they tried to live in communes, supporting each other and coming to the rescue if necessary. Their sense of individualism appeared and intensified later, as new generations adapted to American realities.

The construction of merchant ships was carried out at a rapid pace, and the need for cheap labor force was great. It became even more tangible just in time for the end of the first half of the 19th century in connection with the construction of a sugar factory and a small metallurgical enterprise in Boston.

Boston is the capital and The largest city Massachusetts, the most significant center of the region known as New England. The city was founded in 1630 by Puritan colonists. Its ethnic composition changed with the beginning of mass immigration from Europe. Irish and Italian immigrants brought Catholicism, and soon the Catholic religious community became the largest in the city.

At the same time, the Irish contributed to the spread of their habit in Boston - after work, they did not go home, but to a tavern, where they spent several hours drinking wine and good conversation. At the same time, disputes and quarrels often arose, turning into fights, sometimes into stabbing. Cartoons often appeared in Boston newspapers depicting Irish immigrants as drunkards, hooligans, and generally subhuman. Often they were defended by the local organization of the Democratic Party, seeking to attract new voters. Gradually, a tradition arose - the former Irish became democrats, and the most active of them sought to create a political dossier for themselves in this particular party.

Block after block came under the influence of these activists, who opposed the respectable Yankees, who usually rallied around organizations of the Republican Party. The primary cells of the Irish Democrats were pubs and taverns, which turned into political clubs, whose members stood up for each other and gradually expanded their influence.

On Noodle Island in east Boston, Patrick was able to rent a tiny "corner" in a crowded home. An idea of ​​the conditions under which immigrants lived here is given by the report of the committee on health issues, which in 1849 surveyed the Irish quarter of Boston. “The whole area,” said the report, “is a genuine beehive filled with human beings, without any amenities and basically without the most ordinary [living] conditions; in many cases [people] gathered together are like animals, regardless of sex or age, regardless of dignity; adult men and women sleep together in the same dwelling, and sometimes ... in the same bed ”(28) .

In order to somehow feed himself, Patrick worked at the shipyard from dawn to dusk at the most menial jobs (usually the working day lasted 14 hours), receiving one dollar a week. A few years later, however, he managed to at least slightly break out into the people - he became a cooper - a master specialist in the production of barrels, slightly rising above the bulk of the impoverished Irish immigrants.

More than a century later, in 1963, US President John F. Kennedy visited Ireland, where he was solemnly received: Parliament listened with delight to his speech, two universities awarded honorary degrees. John, however, found time to visit the very place from which his ancestor had gone to America. He said: “I am glad to be here. It took 115 years, six thousand miles and three generations for this journey to happen. When my great-grandfather left here to become a cooper in east Boston, he had nothing but a deep religious feeling and a burning desire for freedom. If he hadn't left then, I would be working at the Albatross Company plant right now, across the street” (29) .

In 1850, the Irish, the vast majority of whom belonged to the lowest stratum of the population, made up a significant part of the inhabitants of Boston: out of a total of 187 thousand people, 35 thousand (30), that is, about one-fifth. Most of the inhabitants of the city - primarily wealthy Protestants and members of the middle class who adhered to the same religion, as well as the workers and servants who followed them, treated the Irish with undisguised hostility. Their poverty was explained by laziness, and religious intolerance towards Catholics was fairly mixed with this. Jokes imported from England began to circulate and then came into fashion, in which the Irish were portrayed as stupid, uneducated, uncultured, illiterate, dirty, prone to alcohol abuse.

In turn, the Catholic priests, to whom the Irish immigrants were drawn, encouraged alienation, blaming the Protestant Church for all the troubles and especially for the immorality that reigned everywhere. The local newspaper Pilot (The Host) wrote: "Cooperation between Catholics and genuine Protestants is morally impossible for any length of time" (31) .

Even before leaving for America, Patrick met Bridget Murphy, an Irish girl two years older than him. The young people liked each other, went to emigrate together, and soon after their arrival in Boston they got married, although they still had almost nothing in their souls except youth and a tender mutual feeling. Within a few next years three daughters were born - Mary, Joanna and Margaret - and son John (he lived only a year and a half). Finally, on January 14, 1858, the second son, Patrick Joseph, was born, who was to become the father of our first main character. Less than a year passed, and the head of the family died of cholera.

The original appearance always attracts and attracts the eye. The more unusual a person looks, the more interest arises in his person. Often people change their appearance themselves to stand out from the crowd. But there are peoples who do not need to do anything, they are bright and unusual in themselves.

For example, the Irish, whose appearance can definitely be called memorable and non-standard. Of course, we are not talking about all the representatives of Ireland without exception, but about typical bearers of Irish appearance.

Let's go back to the origins

The Irish people (or Celts) give the general impression of a kind of soulful simpletons, merry fellows and lovers noisy companies and accompanying festivities of drinking.

The Irish are interesting and world famous for their culture. One alone is worth it. It is celebrated with joy by residents of various countries. And Irish tunes are loved by numerous fans. Some of them are even seriously interested in Irish culture and call themselves Celtomaniacs.

The Irish, who are fully consistent with their lifestyle and habits, are one of the most positive peoples in the world.

What did Irish men originally look like?

Initially, Celtic men looked somewhat different than modern ones. Traditionally considered a sign of a real Celt long hair below the shoulders. They wore them straight, combed towards the back of the head, or they made special weaves, Irish braids. Of course, as at any time, there were Irish people who did not adhere to traditions, their heads were decorated with short haircuts.

The same applied to the beard, someone left it, and someone completely shaved off. The nobility was characterized by shaved cheeks and chin and the presence of a mustache above the upper lip.

Depending on where they lived, the Irish, whose appearance in general and the color of their hair in particular, were variable, were proud of their data. Their hair color ranged from very light shades to fiery red. At the same time, the owners of light hair lightened their hair even more with natural means. And the red-haired Irish just had to enjoy their difference.

The Irish were tall, broad shouldered, and athletic. The Celts were very kind to their body and tried to constantly ennoble it.

Over time, as the Celts settled in different regions, typical, pronounced, signs could be somewhat erased due to the creation of interethnic families.

Modern Irish men

Over time, the Irish, whose appearance was originally very pronounced, partly changed.

Habitual blond and red hair is now rather a stereotype. They, of course, are, but literally only a few. Most modern Celts have dark hair and light eyes and freckles are much more common. The faces are narrow in type, one might say sunken. The athletic heroes were replaced by young Irishmen of thin build and average height.

According to the manner of dressing and presenting themselves, there are now different Irish people. Appearance (a photo of an Irish man is presented in the article) can be imagined quite clearly, especially if you talk to them personally. More specifically, three types can be distinguished:

• Street boys who don't hold back much. They smoke and often drink. And they can easily stick to a passerby with stupid questions or mockery.
• "Handsome". The Irish, who clearly speak their roots, take care of themselves, have a beautiful figure, stylish clothes and a well-groomed appearance.
• Ordinary guys. Such people can be found in any country - absolutely unremarkable outwardly personalities, without a special type and distinctive features.

What did Irish women originally look like?

If you go back to ancient times, the beautiful half of the Irish community was described as follows - long-haired women, and the hair was often much below the waist, an incredible, blinding red color. The hair is very thick, so much so that it was quite difficult for their mistresses to wear it and cope with such wealth. But at the same time, the women themselves looked very impressive - tall and more than large physique. If you do not take into account the incredible length and beauty of the hair, then the Celtic women were very similar to men. And it was not only the appearance, but the real power. Found descriptions read as follows: "Women are able to compete with men in strength, and each can easily fight off even a group of aggressive rivals." Writers defined Irish women as huge, masculine representatives of humanity, with terrible features and a thunderous voice. But, despite such unflattering reviews, the Irish family had a continuation.

Contemporary Irish women

Over the centuries, not only Irish men have changed. The appearance of the woman also changed markedly.

There are two main types of Celtic women:

• Flat broad face with a flat nose. Dark (often blue (rarely green) eyes.
• Elongated face with elongated elongated nose, sunken cheeks. Blond hair and light eyes of various shades.

When looking at a modern Irish woman, there is no feeling that she is beautiful. Even though the girl looks after herself and is fashionably dressed, it seems that "something is missing." Charm, attractiveness, charisma - this is in more not about the Irish. It is important to note here that we are talking about standard, average girls who did not resort to the help of plastic surgeons and the hardware assistance of cosmetologists.

There are practically no thin people among Irish women. From their great-great-great-and so on grandmothers modern women inherited magnificent forms.

And I want to pay special attention to the hair. Celtic contemporaries are absolutely not worried about the look on their heads, and artistic “bumps” are the most common everyday hairstyle.

Irish national clothes

The Irish, whose appearance is very peculiar, originally wore national clothes, unusual and quite interesting.

The Irishman consisted of a long skirt in shades of red or orange (with some exceptions, the skirts could be dark blue or green) and an elongated light shirt. It fit to the waist, the sleeves reached the hands, the neck was most often rounded with frills around. A bodice was worn over the shirt and a fringed shawl over the shoulders. And a large, most often checkered apron was required for the skirt. Here is such a multi-layered, but certainly beautiful and original outfit worn by the Celts in the early centuries.

For men, the skirt (kilt) was much shorter than the women's, mostly yellow-brown. From above the elongated vest and a light shirt. And a cloth beret was obligatory.

At present, the clothing of the Irish only remotely resembles the costumes of their ancestors. Only for family holidays or for any thematic performances, the Irish dress up in national clothes. And basically now they are dressed in the same way as the majority of the world's population. They also follow fashion and try to choose high-quality and stylish things.

The image of the Irish in cinema and literature

in cinema and literary works quite often the Celts (Irish) are mentioned. Appearance, red hair, characteristic of the nationality, special - these are the nuances that are remembered by the viewer and reader and are used by the authors. You can bring the most bright examples use of the image of the Irishman in cinema and literature:

• John (Ron) from the Harry Potter epic. Probably the most famous of the Irish characters. A typical boy, as the majority of the world's population represents an Irish child, has red hair, freckles, a good-natured and open look.
• The famous Leprechaun from the tape of the same name.
• Red-bearded Pirates. Quite often they are found in both literary and cinematic works.
• And even Princess Fiona from Shrek - in her human form Just a standard Irish.

Bright and unusual Irish (appearance, photos of which are described and presented in this material) are popular and interesting, and definitely will not leave indifferent a person who communicates with a Celt for the first time. And even without personal contact, Irish men and women are able to interest, just look at their photos or interesting film with Irish images.

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The beginning of the settlement of the island

Historical studies claim that the first people settled on the island of Ireland about 9,000 years ago. The earliest settlers are virtually unknown. They left behind several unique megalithic structures. The pre-Indo-European population stayed longest in the southwest of the island. The Irish name of the province of Munster - Muma is not explained from the Celtic language and it is believed that the ethnonym of the early inhabitants of the island is preserved in it.

Ancient authors did not leave detailed information about the Emerald Isle. It is only clear that by the beginning of n. e. the island was completely inhabited by the Celts. Irish medieval literature, on the contrary, contains great amount mythical and legendary information about various waves of migrants: Fomorians, Firbolgs, Danu tribes, etc. According to mythology last wave aliens - the Milesians, arrived under the leadership of Mil from the Iberian Peninsula. This is indirectly confirmed by modern genographic projects, indeed the Irish and Basques have the largest number of representatives of the haplogroup R1b.

Early history

In the initial period of history, the entire territory of Ireland was divided into independent tuats, areas inhabited by one tribe. Tuath roughly corresponds to the modern barony (in Ireland there is such an unofficial administrative division, a barony is a part of a county that unites several parishes. As a rule, each county includes 10-15 baronies). The leaders of the clans were connected with each other by a complex system of vassal relationships. IN early middle ages the tuats of Ireland were united in five pyatins led by the high king "ard-riag": Lagin (modern Leinster with the royal dynasty of MacMurrow / Murphy), Muman (modern Munster with the royal dynasty of O'Briens), Ulad (modern Ulster with the royal dynasty the O'Neill dynasty), Meade (modern counties of Meath and Westmeath with adjacent territories, the McLaughlin royal dynasty) and Connaught (the O'Connor royal dynasty).

In the IV-V centuries AD. e. the ancestors of the Irish undertook active pirate raids. Wales suffered greatly from them. During the expansion of the Irish kingdom of Dal Ryad, the Picts and the Strathclyde Britons were conquered, which marked the beginning of the resettlement of the Irish Scottish tribe in Scotland and became Starting point formation of the Scottish nation. As a result of one of the pirate raids, Saint Patrick came to Ireland.

During the 5th century, Ireland adopted Christianity. This process proceeded quite peacefully, apparently due to the fact that the priestly class of the Druids, after the numerous defeats of the Celts by the Romans on the continent and in Britain, largely lost its authority. As a result of this non-violent process of adoption of Christianity, Ireland turned out to be one of the few cultures where the pagan heritage was not rejected, but was carefully collected in Christian monasteries. It is thanks to this that the ancient myths and sagas of the Celts have come down to us. Ireland itself became a center of learning for several centuries.

The golden age in the cultural and economic life of Ireland was interrupted by the massive Viking invasions in the 11th century. The Vikings took over the coastal cities. Viking dominion was overthrown after the Battle of Clontarf in 1014. This victory was achieved by High King Brian Boru, progenitor of the O'Briens, who fell in this momentous battle. In 1169, the second massive Norman (Viking) invasion of Ireland began. The expedition of Earl Richard Strongbow, who arrived at the request of King Dermott MacMurrow of Leinster, who had been expelled by High King Rory O'Connor, landed near Wexford. Over the next few centuries, the Normans became more Irish than the Irish themselves. The Normans fully assimilated Irish culture and merged with the indigenous population of the island.

Although formally Ireland has been part of the Kingdom of England since the time of Henry II, active colonization of Irish lands began after the conquest of Ireland by Oliver Cromwell in 1649. During the English colonization, the English landlords (who usually did not even live in Ireland) became the owners of almost all the land on the island, and the Catholic Irish turned into disenfranchised tenants. The Irish language was persecuted, the Celtic culture was destroyed. The rich cultural heritage of the people was preserved mainly by wandering bard poets.

"Great Famine"

The Great Famine was of decisive importance in the historical fate of the Irish people. The failure of the potato crop, which became the staple food of the poor Irish, led to the death of about 1 million people. People were dying of hunger, and from the estates owned by the British, they continued to export food: meat, grain, dairy products.

Masses of poor Irish rushed to the United States and overseas colonies of Great Britain. One immigrant, at the very least settled in a new place, dragged the whole family behind him. Since the Great Famine, the population of Ireland has been steadily declining, this process has been going on since different intensity until the 70s of the 20th century. The Gaelic-speaking areas inhabited by the Irish poor suffered the most from the famine. As a result of increased mortality and mass emigration of the Irish, the scope of the Gaelic language has significantly narrowed, a large number of active native speakers have moved overseas.

At the same time, a large Irish diaspora has developed on the east coast of the United States. For example, there are more descendants of Irish immigrants living in New York than there are Irish people in Ireland proper.

Current state

In the 20th century, the territory of the original residence of the Irish ethnic group was politically divided, most of the island became part of the Republic of Ireland, and part of Ulster (with the exception of the counties of Donegal, Fermanagh and Monaghan) was left as part of the United Kingdom. In this part of Ulster, English colonization was carried out differently, allotments were distributed to small farmers of English and Scottish origin, which led to the fact that the percentage of Protestant colonists exceeded the number of Irish Catholics. The Irish of Ulster waged a long liberation struggle against the English government, not avoiding terrorist methods. The intensity of the confrontation in Ulster began to subside only towards the end of the 20th century.

Irish culture has notable influence to mass global culture. This, in particular, is facilitated by American cinema, which willingly touches on topics one way or another related to Ireland. Many countries celebrate St. Patrick's Day, the fantasy genre has absorbed many layers of Irish mythology, dance and musical culture Irish people are widely known. Among people who are seriously interested in Irish culture, even the term Celtomania has appeared.

As for the Irish language, only about 20% of the inhabitants of Ireland are fluent in it. dominates English speech. Irish is the native language of only a small number of natives of the Gaeltachts (Gaelic-speaking areas on the western outskirts of the country). The majority of Irish speakers are townspeople who have mastered it consciously in adulthood. The Geltakhts do not represent a single array, and each of them uses very different dialects from each other. About 40% of Irish Gaelic mothers live in County Galway, 25% in County Donegal, 15% in County Mayo, 10% in County Carrie.

There is a standardized literary language "kaidon". His vocabulary is formed mainly on the basis of Connaught dialects. However, kaidon has one interesting feature: the language does not have a standard pronunciation form. Therefore, native speakers of the literary language can have Munster, Connaught or Ulster pronunciation, depending on the basis on which the pronunciation of a particular native speaker is based, the same written text is pronounced differently.

The Catholic faith is defining for the Irish. For a long time belonging to the Catholic Church was, as it were, one of the forms of passive resistance to the English invaders. Therefore, even today, an Irishman who professes a different faith seems exotic.

The Irish during the 2nd half of the 20th century had the highest natural increase among the aboriginal nations Western Europe, which was largely leveled by unabated emigration.

culture

National dances

Traditional Irish dances that developed in the 18th-20th centuries include solo dances, Irish kaylees, set dances ( social dancing), Shan-nose. All types Irish dances performed exclusively to traditional Irish dance tunes: reels, jigs and hornpipes.

National Costume

Irish folk costume - knee-length orange kilt, long jacket, collarless shirt and beret. The costume is almost lost. Only musicians wear it.

Kitchen

Irish surnames

The Irish family system is complex and contains traces of violent historical events. The vast majority of the Irish have ancient family names as surnames, coming from the names of the Gaelic clans. This explains the fact that tens and even hundreds of thousands of people are united under one surname, the descendants of a clan that inhabited a separate tribal territory in the early stages of history - tuat.

Traditionally, surnames beginning with "O" and "Mac" are considered Irish. "O" comes from the Gaelic Ó "grandson, descendant", and Mac is translated as "son". The Gaelic prefixes are often omitted in English writing. For example, such common surnames as Murphy, Ryan, Gallagher are practically not found in the forms O'Murphy, O'Ryan or O'Gallagher. On the contrary, the names of royal dignity are almost always used in their original, full form: O'Brien, O'Connor, O'Neill. Other, less noble surnames simultaneously exist in different records: O'Sullivan - Sullivan, O'Reilly - Reilly, O'Farrell - Farrell. The loss of the Mac prefix is ​​much less common. This type of surname does not belong exclusively to the Irish and is also characteristic of the highlanders of Scotland. Mac surnames dominate Ulster and are more modestly represented in Munster (although the most common Irish surname Mac, McCarthy of Cork and Kerry). Accordingly, there are more surnames starting with O" in the southwestern part of the island.

A huge number of clans formed around the descendants of the Norman conquerors: Butlers, Burks, Powers, Fitzgeralds, etc. The patronymic prefix Fitz is considered a sign of Norman surnames, but FitzPatricks, the ancient kings of Ossory, are Celts, whose original name is MacGilpatrick. There were also reverse cases, when the Norman clans took purely Celtic names. An example of this is the genus Costello (Mac Oisdealbhaigh) (from the Gaelic os - "young deer", "deer" and dealbha - "sculpture"). So the Norman name Jocelyn de Angulo was rethought. The Normans, who originally spoke Old French, brought French-looking surnames to Ireland: Lacy, Devereux, Laffan (from the French l'enfant "child"). Since the first Norman conquerors came to Ireland from Wales, the most common surname of Norman origin is Walsh (Welsh).

In the early Middle Ages, all the seaside urban centers of Ireland were under the rule of the Vikings. Many Irish clans carry the blood of northerners: McSweeney (son of Sven), McAuliffs (son of Olaf), Doyles (descendant of a Dane), O'Higgins (descendant of a Viking).

Irish diaspora

There are between 70 and 80 million people with Irish roots in the world today. Most of the descendants of immigrants from Ireland live in countries in English: USA, Australia, UK. The Irish took a somewhat smaller part in the formation of the population of Canada and New Zealand.

In the US and Australia, the Irish are the second most important ethnic component, in the US after German immigrants, in Australia after the British. Ancestors of US President John Fitzgerald Kennedy Che Guevara, distinguished himself in Notes