Irish America
Irish America
There is a lovely story told about a day in the hospitable south of Ireland when a couple of American tourists rolled into the car-park of Lahinch golf club in a gleaming, rented limo. When they asked if a club member might be available to accompany them on their round, a caddie was dispatched up the village to fetch the local butcher. He duly arrived and when the game got … [Read more...] about The Green, Green Greens of Home
DUBLIN: Now comes Sean Doherty, former Minister for Justice in the Irish government, the point man in a major scandal in the early 1980s involving the illegal tapping of phones of leading journalists. Doherty recently declared that he tapped the phones with the full knowledge of party leader Charles Haughcy, and that he personally handed over transcripts of the tapes to … [Read more...] about First Word: Another Year, Another Scandal
Christmas season is the time to eat, drink and be merry! Wherever one goes it seems, someone is slicing up a fruitcake or pouring a glass of holiday cheer. Surrounded as we are by Madison Avenue merchandising it's easy to forget that at this time of year we are participating in one of the oldest rituals known to humankind. Eons before the birth of the Child whom angels praised … [Read more...] about Sláinte! Christmas – Winter Solstice
My recent article on "That's Not an Irish Name" has prompted a lot of comment from readers with interesting names, and theories about their derivation. I must also acknowledge one mistake. Bill Delaney of Philadelphia corrected me on the name Delaney, which had been given as an example of the many Norman names with the prefix "De." Delaney, however, is of course, derived from … [Read more...] about Roots: Unusual Irish Names
In 1863 President Lincoln proclaimed the first national designation of a date for Thanksgiving. He named the fourth Thursday in November and Lincoln's choice remained undisturbed for 75 years. In 1938 President Roosevelt essayed moving the day back a few weeks. He gave as his reason the complaints of merchants that Christmas and Thanksgiving were too close and the public spent … [Read more...] about Hibernia
