Ireland is known as the land of saints and scholars, but it’s also the land of craftspeople! Ireland has a long tradition of developing textile, leather, wood, and metal crafts. Knowing the history of these crafts will make you treasure them even more. Here is the brief history of some of our best-selling Irish crafts! The Irish Sweater The Irish sweater you know and love originated on the Aran Islands, off the western coast of Galway and Doolin. Off the mainland, the Aran Islands are the last point of land until you reach America; covered in stone, the stark landscape...
Ireland is old… like, really, really, really old. As Americans, I think it’s hard for us to fathom the ancient structures that are found in Ireland. I will never forget being in class with our professor and one of the American students exclaiming with awe that one of the local pubs was founded in 1811. Our professor laughed and said, “I’m Irish. 1811 was practically yesterday!” The professor had a point. In Ireland, the modern exists adjacent to the ancient. On an anthropological tour of the area that I lived, our guide pointed to an ancient neolithic tomb, two large...
Kirsten Fedorowicz studied abroad in Ireland in January-May 2017. She now works as a Content Writer for Biddy Murphy. When I arrived in Ireland for my study abroad tenure, I was surprised to see two languages appear on all of the street signs. As we road on our bus through western Ireland on that first day, I noticed how different the street signs were from my native Michigan. On each sign we passed, the English name for something- a town, the airport, the nearest exit- appeared below another language, which I soon learned was Irish.... A language I didn’t know...
The Celtic Cross is one of Ireland’s most recognisable symbols dating back to the Early Middle Ages. They were made famous by the high cross, featured in many churches and graveyards. The origins of the Celtic Cross is not very well known however, many people believe that the circle represents a halo, while others see the ring as Roman sun-god, Invictus. There are many famous Celtic Crosses and High Crosses in Ireland, especially across Ireland’s ancient east - let’s take a look at my top 3! Clonmacnoise Located in the Clonmacnoise monastery, this is Ireland’s most famous high cross dating...
