The Dara knot is named after the Irish oak and stands for strength. The knotwork method is early medieval, but I found no Dara knot before the internet age. Here is the evidence, the oak’s real history, and how it compares to the shield and trinity knots.
Two hands, a heart and a crown. Here’s what the Claddagh ring means, which hand and which way to wear it, and the real Galway story behind it, with the legends marked as legends.
Thinking of spending Christmas in Ireland, or coming home for it? Here’s the season week by week, 2026 market dates checked with the organisers, what’s open on the 24th, 25th and 26th, pub laws north and south, transport, December weather and daylight, the Christmas Day swim and St Stephen’s Day racing.
On 26 December, masked figures in straw once knocked on Irish doors with a rhyme about a tiny bird. Here’s the story of Wren Day: how to say Lá an Dreoilín, the old hunt and today’s fake wren, the rhyme, the three legends, and where you can still see the wren boys parade.
Spiced beef is Ireland’s Christmas cold cut, and Cork’s above all. Here’s what it is, why Cork claims it, how long to simmer a bought joint by weight, and a home-cured recipe without saltpetre that follows current food safety advice.
The classic Irish Christmas cake, made weeks ahead and fed with Irish whiskey. One reliable recipe in grams and US cups, every oven setting, a countdown from baking to icing, and how to feed, store, marzipan and royal-ice it.
Merry Christmas in Irish is Nollaig Shona duit to one person and Nollaig Shona daoibh to a group. Here’s how to say it, how to reply and what to write in a card. You’ll also find the Scottish Gaelic version and 35 Christmas words in Irish.
Lough Tay in the Wicklow Mountains looks like a pint of Guinness from above, and the Guinness family owned the land around it for 82 years. Here’s the real story of the lake and Luggala, why the imported sand tale doesn’t stand up, and where to see the Guinness Lake without trespassing.
On 17 November 1953, the last community on the Great Blasket left for the mainland. Here’s why the Kerry island was evacuated, the books its people wrote, who owns it now and how to visit by ferry today.
The clurichaun is the solitary Irish fairy who drinks your best wine and moves house with you. Here is what Croker, Yeats and the Irish dictionary actually say about him, from the Haunted Cellar to The Sandman.
Galore, shamrock, whiskey, banshee and Tory all came into English from Irish or Gaelic. Here are 27 words with the Irish behind each one, how to say it and when it first turned up, plus the famous “Irish” words that probably aren’t.
From the aos sí and the banshee to the dobhar-chú and Balor of the Evil Eye: 23 Irish mythological creatures, grouped by type, with their Irish names, a plain way to say each one, and an honest look at which stories are old and which are modern inventions.
A changeling in Irish folklore was a fairy left in place of a stolen child or young wife. Here are the signs people looked for and the harsh “cures” they tried. Then comes the true story of Bridget Cleary, killed by her husband in Tipperary in 1895, and how the belief is explained today.
Ireland’s vampire, Abhartach, was first printed in full in 1869, and he never drank a drop of blood. Here’s what the old sources really say about him and the Dearg Due, and how a Dublin civil servant called Bram Stoker came up with Dracula.
An easy Irish tea brack for Halloween, with metric and US cups, every oven setting and a safe way to hide the ring. Then what the ring and tokens meant, the name bairín breac, and the yeasted original.