Irish gatherings in antiquity that have survived into modern times, and their ritual functions. Continue reading
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Srúill dhorcha Dark stream and other poems
D’fhiafraigh sí san amhrán/
arbh eol duit cad is grá ann
She asked in the song if you knew what love was but didn’t hear your answer, and the world went on its way, Continue reading
Flann O’Brien: an interview with Rónán McDonald
Joyce had a huge influence on Flann O’Brien. Like others of his generation, he struggled to get out from under the Joycean shadow Continue reading
The Accents Lost Along the Way
Unlike most who come to Australia, Susie Harris avoided all other Irish people. Continue reading
Food and Drink Invented by the Irish
There is controversy about who invented the spirit drink called whiskey, uisce beatha in Irish, but we do know that the world’s oldest licensed whiskey distillery is Bushmills. Continue reading
Poems of Reflection from Colin Ryan
In that other universe you won’t make the same mistakes; Sa chruinne eile úd/
ní dhéanfaidh tú/
na dearmaid chéanna Continue reading
Whitethorn: A Tale of Irish Folklore, Bees & Colour-Changing Flowers
The fascinating world of whitethorn: its diverse names, folklore and myths, its significance in beekeeping.common names include hawthorn, May bush, fairy tree, and quick thorn. Continue reading
Irish Folklore inspires an Irish-Australian artist
Hawthorns are also associated with fertility, their musk-scented flowers blooming as harbingers of Spring. Their fruit ripens in time for Halloween, symbolizing death and rebirth. They stand as protectors, symbols of birth, death, and renewal, embodying a liminal space where exchanges occur between the human and spirit worlds. Continue reading
Stardust
My aunty and uncle said we were too young to go to the Stardust yet, but promised that when I came up next time we could go, we would be both sixteen then. Continue reading
Cluas Mhara Sea Ears
by Méabh O’Leary Irish-born Méabh O’Leary was prompted to write this poem about an abalone shell she found along the seashore on the Mornington Peninsula. ‘It reminds me of my childhood in Ireland, collecting shells from the strands and placing them to my ear to hear the sea within. Now as an adult in Australia, … Continue reading
Tinteán 