The Irish Connection with St. Valentine

St. Valentine was a third century Christian martyr who was beheaded in Rome around 269 AD. His remains are believed to be held at the Carmelite Church on Whitefriar Street in Dublin. Every year on Valentine´s Day the casket containing the Saint´s remains is carried in solemn procession to the high altar of the Carmelite Church for a special Mass dedicated to young people and those in love.

Family History vs Genealogy

The study of family history is perhaps more interesting than genealogy because it involves not only discovering who your ancestors were but in studying the historical circumstances in which they lived. At the very least Irish history will start to come alive for you while discovering the mysteries surrounding your family will never cease to fascinate.

Planning to find your Irish Roots.

Keep in mind a few things as you plan the research you wish to do† namely:

a.) That Irish surnames were very susceptible to change (in the last century most Irish people spoke Gaelic and the spelling and translation of their names in to English was vague at best). Thus your Irish ancestors may very well have spelt their name very differently to the way you spell it.
b.) Ages and dates of birth or death can be ´out' by up to 10 years because records were not always kept accurately.
c.) You may not be able to go back much further than 1850 – few people can get further than 1750 as records simply don't exist.
d.) It's always worth checking to see if anyone else is researching your family history – there is no point in reinventing the wheel! Plus, you could end up with someone to work with!

Book of Kells - Where to see it.

Check out the ancient Book of Kells, Trinity College, Dublin.

Hollywood Irish

If yo5re looking for a book that contains information on some of the top Irish actors, look no further--HOLLYWOOD IRISH features Liam Neeson, Aidan Quinn, Stephen Rea, Patrick Bergin and Gabriel Byrne.

Available from Roberts Rinehart Publishers.

The Catholic Encyclopedia.

"The Catholic Encyclopedia - 1908 Preface. The Catholic Encyclopedia, as its name implies, proposes to give its readers full and authoritative information on the entire cycle of Catholic interests, action and doctrine."

Catholic Encyclopedia

More Irish in America than Ireland.

There are more people of Irish descent living in the United States today than in Ireland. Few Irish immigrants existed in the British colonies before the American Revolution. However, after nearly one-quarter of Ireland's population either starved to death or died of fever and disease as a result of the Irish Famine of 1845 to 1850, there was a huge emigration of Irish to America.

For Irish Farmers Seeking Info.

The Irish Farmers´ Journal Interactive
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The Irish Farmers´ Journal Interactive site aims to be the best source of Irish agricultural and rural information on the Internet. Knowledge provides the base for all progress. The Irish Farmers´ Journal continues to provide the focus for open debate
on agricultural development as the best source of information for the Irish agricultural industry and the families dependent on it. The Irish Farmers´ Journal Interactive site carries this tradition into the electronic arena.

John F. Kennedy Visited Ireland.

President John F. Kennedy, son of Joseph Kennedy of County Wexford, traveled to Ireland prior to his death in 1963. At that time, he purchased a Connemara pony for his daughter, Caroline, and had it shipped back to America. After his death, the Irish people created a living memorial in his honor.

O´ Really?

"O´" would mean family of. So, a person with the name "O'Rourke," would have a name that literally means "Family of Rourke."

John F. Kennedy Visited Ireland.

President John F. Kennedy, son of Joseph Kennedy of County Wexford, traveled to Ireland prior to his death in 1963. At that time, he purchased a Connemara pony for his daughter, Caroline, and had it shipped back to America. After his death, the Irish people created a living memorial in his honor.

Taking presents home

Food sacks are ideal for wrapping small gifts that you plan to take on a journey. First take the gift, wrap in bubble wrap (if breakable) and then coloured Christmas paper. Place the lot into a sack and tie with coloured ribbon. Festive and fool proof – your prezzies will arrive in one piece and look the part!

Irish Americans of the Silver Screen.

Descendants of the Irish have left their mark in theatre and film. Lionel, Ethel (Grandmother of Drew Barrymore) and John Barrymore are one of the most famous stage families, and are kept good company by stars like James Cagney, John Wayne (Star of The Quiet Man, real name Marion Michael Morrison), Bing Crosby (White Christmas), Gene Kelly (Singing in the Rain), John Ford (Director of Grapes of Wrath/The Quiet Man, real name Sean O´Fearna), Helen Hayes, Maureen O´Hara (The Quiet Man), Grace Kelly (To Catch a Thief), Art Carney and Jackie Gleason (both of The Honeymooners)and Carrol O´Connor (All in the Family), are just a few of the "shining" Irish.

Hibernian Research Company.

Want to find your Irish roots? Try here!:

The contact for the Hibernian Research Company (a genealogy library) is as follows: Hibernian Research Company Ltd., P.O Box 3097, Dublin 6. Ireland, Tel #: 011-353-1-496-6522 Fax: 011-353-1-497-3011.

Make your own Wedding Invites!

We made our own wedding invitations from A4-sized card folded in two, a photo and an insert. Envelopes we bought to match the card.

We printed everything out from this very machine. Saved us a lot of money and they looked ´the part´ - everyone is still talking about them (we posted them in March to give people time to sort their plans out).

How Many Irish Americans?

Approximately 40 million Irish Americans live in the United States today.

Organising an Irish Wedding.

It is wise to begin organising your wedding at least a year in advance - if you want to get marrried in Ireland. The hotel for the reception will need to be booked well in advance.

A site that´ll organise the big day all for you is:

Irish Wedding Day

And even if you´re not planning on getting married it is still a nice site to explore.

Read to find your Roots

When searching for your Irish roots read as much background information as you can. Local library, online, books and magazines all provide useful information, therefore, get submerged in the literature – it'll be a great help in the long run.

Documentation in Genealogy

Document all the research you do as you research your family history. No detail is too small. File everything (either using a computer database or via a filing system) so that you find information back quickly and easily. Documenting in this way will reduce any frustration later.

Black Irish.

This is a term which refers to people who were born in Ireland from the union of Spanish and Irish people.

For more information check out this interesting site:

Black Irish

Fianna Fáil

Pronounced as "fn fäl" this Irish political party was first organized in 1926 by opponents of the Anglo-Irish treaty of 1921 establishing the Irish Free State and setting up Northern Ireland as part of the United Kingdom.

Understanding the Irish Genealogical Records.

Familiarize yourself with the Irish records that are available. Remember – they weren't originally produced specially for future genealogists and interpretation of their contents can often be tricky. Take your time to read and emerge yourself in the information and if you get stuck ask the librarians to help.

Genealogy Service Room.

A starting point for many who are interested in finding their Irish ancestors is the Genealogy Service Room in the National Library of Ireland in Dublin. It is a mine of information and the assistants there offer assistance to anyone who needs it.

Irish Political Parties.

A list of Irish Political Parties can be found at:

Irish Political Parties


This site takes you directly to their official homepages and includes Sinn Fein, Fianna Fáil, and more. Learn about the Irish political system here!

Deepen your appreciation of Irish culture

Even though your search for your Irish roots might not always be completely successful, the whole process of searching, exploring and unraveling the many mysteries which will surface will deepen your appreciation of Irish culture and history and will make future trips back to the homeland all the more special.

Parents, Children and the Internet in Ireland

This is an interesting article about internet usage amongst Irish children.

Irish Kids and the Internet

Richard Harris Dies.

Richard Harris, Irish actor, died aged 72 of Hodgkin's disease Friday 25 Oct 2002. His last role was as the much-loved Professor Albus Dumbledore in the Harry Potter films. Irish Prime Minister, Bertie Ahern called him: “One of Ireland's most outstanding artists”. He will be sadly missed.

Searching for Irish ancestors

Searching for Irish ancestors if you are an emigrant.

Before searching in Irish records find out if you can:
1. The ancestor's county of residence.
2. Dates of birth, marriage, death, religion, parents names, port where they landed – in fact any background information you can find will help make the search more productive.

Don't despair if you don't have all this information – sometimes a surname and a date is enough to start with especially if the surname isn't a very common one.