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There is a site on the web devoted to finding out the history of your surname and what is the Irish Equivalent of you surname. It's a pretty spartan affair, but the website is very easy to use.

You can find it here: Sloinne 

Thanks to the Irish Central website for the tip

From the website:

Welcome

'Sloinne' is the Gaelic translation for 'Surname', the purpose of this website is to develop a comprehensive…

Irish Society Writing Contest

The Irish Cultural Society announces its annual writing contest for students in the 9^th through 12^th grades in the Nassau County high…

 While I was researching my Grand- mothers story ; I found it facilitating  that I had know all these things about my grand-mother ; but did not really [in my child's mind] connect them to reality. 

When she spoke about the cabins - as in ' you do not go cabin hunting'  [to her grand-children] - I honestly thought that this was just a phrase she used  to ensure that we did not stay in other peoples homes. 

What in fact she was telling us was that her life had been spent in a…

'The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.'
         -- Edmund Burke

National Army Museum An officer from an Irish regiment of the Spanish army, 1808. The uniform coat would have been sky-blue.

DOMHNAIGH -- On January 11, 1775, Louis De Lacy,…

What’s hard about doing your family tree is finding some branches you’d rather break off, and one that comes to mind is a Kentuckian, a Gregory, whose 19 slaves were identified only by gender and age in the 1850 census, as if they were machine parts rather than human beings. That’s…

"Selma," a new film that just went wide to screens around the US, is an Interesting film, and for me as a student of the American, as well as the Irish, experiences, one well worth the investment to watch. The film narrates…

Nollaig na mBAn ; women’s Christmas  - or Old Chrstmas Day as it later became know as .

For the lucky women who were able to participate in Nollaig na mBan  - it was considered a tradition to be a part of women’s gathering together  for a celebration of their right to a ‘day off’ if you will !.

As it was a common held thought that a women was at the hearth of the family and on beck and call for their menfolk ; being entirely responsible for the whole running of the household…

' For the whole family , makeshift beds lined the wall's with little else in the way of furniture -possibly a couple of chairs, cloths, and well worn blankets that had been given to them by local charities'. 

Mac, Gaelic for "son", is the most common element of Scottish and Irish surnames. In both countries, Mc is always an abbreviation of Mac.…

I found this on the Limerick County Council website and thought I should share. I thought it especially apropos since the exhibition starts with Siege of Limerick and the Flight of the Wild Geese.

(Left: King John's Castle, Limerick)

Friday, 9th January 2015

Private collectors and members of the public are being asked to…

New York -- About 20 stalwarts, including three members of The Wild Geese, trekked to American Irish Historical Society last night in near sub-zero temperatures for a presentation on "…

From November 2013

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I’ve been thinking about the assassination of President Kennedy a lot the last two weeks. I will be…

'Bridget's assumption that that her grandparents had been tenant farmers was gleaned from the many conversations that she would hear her parents and the neighbors talk speak about as times went by . These people who had evicted from their homes as the rich English Landlords all had to try and exist and live by any means available to them '

The only Irish attraction to make Conde Naste Travel Magazine's "20 Most Beautiful UNESCO Word Heritage Sites" was County Antrims's Giant's Causeway.  The 40,000 basalt stone columns that stretch into the sea…

One day I watched my father from high up in the branches of the old Rowan tree that grew close to our house. He was walking down the creamery road, his brown felt hat pushed back on…

Dear Mr MacNamara,

Thank you for your email in response to recent newspaper articles around Hungry, a recently commissioned script from Dublin-based writer Hugh Travers. The script is in the development stage and is not currently planned to air.

As a broadcaster, we always ensure that any programme or series produced on our behalf, complies with guidelines set down by the Ofcom Broadcasting Code.

Finally, please be assured that your concerns around the proposed content…

New York -- News of the passing of former New York state Governor Mario Cuomo reminds me of one of several serendipitous encounters I had with the Governor, whom I once happily envisioned as US president. With his flights of eloquence, his progressive views, and staunch opposition to the death penalty, he seemed to exude the self-assurance and humanism…