Ireland

In the beginning, this island, on the western edge of Europe, was home to Stone Age people. The Céide Fields and Newgrange are just two of the famous monuments that give us clues about how these people lived.
Later on, Vikings from Scandinavia and Normans from Britain settled in Ireland. The marriage of Strongbow, a Norman soldier, to the daughter of the High King of Ireland began the period of English rule in the country. Many rebellions took place against this.
Ireland suffered a terrible famine in the mid 1800s and many people began to emigrate from the country at that time.
In 1921, 26 counties gained independence from Great Britain and became the Irish Free State - known today as the Republic of Ireland. The north-eastern part of the island, known as Northern Ireland, remained part of the United Kingdom.
Nowadays, the Republic of Ireland is part
of the European Union and the eurozone.

capital city.

a former shipyard in the city's Titanic Quarter. The RMS Titanic was built here and visitors can learn about the stories of the Titanic, which hit an iceberg and sank in 1912. Cobh, in County Cork was the last port Titanic visited before it sank.

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people believe was caused by an ancient volcanic eruption.

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of limestone built into the battlements of Blarney Castle. Legends state that if you kiss the Blarney Stone, you will never be short of something to talk about. When kissing the stone, you need to lie down and be upside down to reach it.

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Meath, Ireland. It is thought that Newgrange was constructed over 5,000 years ago. It is a large circular mound with a stone passageway and burial chambers inside. Newgrange is still a mystery to historians because they don’t know how it was built or what it was used for. Knowth and Dowth are two other passage tombs that can be found nearby.

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in Ireland.

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potatoes

black and white pudding

soda bread

Irish coddle

traditionally eaten in Ireland.

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Irish stew

Guinness

potato farls

potato cakes

culture.

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Hinnerk Ruemenapf, Napoleon Sarony,George Charles Beresford, C. Ruf, Roger Pic, Sean O'Connor, Larry D. Moore [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Irish writers

Gaelic Games, Hurling

Irish dancing

Irish music

1903.
In the mid-1990s, the Irish government started St. Patrick’s festival to showcase Ireland and its culture all over the world.
Many places in Ireland celebrate with parades, concerts, outdoor theatre performances and fireworks.
The biggest celebration in Ireland, is in Dublin where the festival lasts five days!

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born in Wales in the 5th century.
He was taken to Ireland as a slave when he was 16.
He escaped after 6 years.
He then became a Christian priest and later a bishop.
He returned to Ireland as a missionary.
He converted many Irish people to Christianity.
He died on March 17th.
St Patrick’s day is on March 17th every year and it is the saint’s feast day. It has evolved from a religious holiday to a worldwide celebration.

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