Under the Penal Laws, a Catholic who taught school in Ireland risked a £20 fine and three months in prison. The hedge schools kept going anyway. Here’s what they really were, where they met (mostly not under hedges), what they taught, how parents paid in turf and butter, the poets who taught in them, and how they faded after 1831.
Before a son or daughter left for America, families in rural Ireland held an American wake: a night of music, dancing and drink that ended in keening before dawn. Here’s what happened on the night, the convoy to the crossroads and the station, the ports, the letters and money that followed, how many ever came home, and how to find your own emigrant ancestor.
Watch Ireland face the haka in a figure 8 for Anthony Foley, then beat New Zealand 40-29 in Chicago in 2016 for their first ever win over the All Blacks.
Ten free RTÉ Archive clips and a 1934 travelogue showing how everyday Irish life changed from the 1930s to the 1980s.
Two hearts, a dot for each child and one unbroken line. Here’s what the Celtic motherhood knot means, how to show your children in it, and the honest story of where this modern design came from.
What the Celtic love knot and Serch Bythol mean, how old they really are, the documented love knots of Chaucer, sailors, Welsh lovespoons and Scottish brooches, and how to choose one for a wedding or anniversary.
The Celtic shield knot is sold as the Celtic symbol for protection. The four-cornered shape really is carved on early Irish and British stones, but the name and meaning are modern. Here’s the honest history, with sources.
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.
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.