Culture of IRELAND

Ireland is an island in the Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental
Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on
Earth. Politically, Ireland is divided between the Republic of Ireland, which covers five-
sixths of the island, and Northern Ireland, a part of the United Kingdom, which covers
the remaining area and is located in the north-east of the island. The population of
Ireland is about 6.4 million. Just under 4.6 million live in the Republic of Ireland and
just over 1.8 million live in Northern Ireland.
The culture of Ireland includes customs and
traditions, language, music, art, literature, folklore, cuisine and sports associated
with Ireland and the Irish people. The culture was influenced by Gaelic, Anglo-Norman,
English and Scottish culture.
The most known religious holidays in Ireland are:
Saint Patricks Day
- celebrated on 17 March the
death of the most commonly-
recognised patron saint of
Ireland. On St Patrick's Day it is
customary to
wear shamrocks and/or green
clothing or accessories (the
"wearing of the green"). St
Patrick is said to have used the shamrock, a three-leaved plant, to explain
the Holy Trinityto the pagan Irish. In pagan Ireland, three was a significant
number and the Irish had many triple deities, a fact that aided St Patrick in his
evangelization efforts. The colour green has been associated with Ireland since
at least the 1640s, when the green harp flag was used by the Irish Catholic
Confederation. Green ribbons and shamrocks have been worn on St Patrick's Day
since at least the 1680s. Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, the colour
green and its association with Saint Patrick's Day grew.

Saint Stephens Day - is a Christian saint's day to
commemorate Saint Stephen, celebrated
on 26 December in the Western
Church and 27 December in the Eastern
Church. In Ireland, the day is one of nine
official public holidays. People dress up
in old clothes, wear straw hats and
travel from door to door with fake wrens
(previously real wrens were killed) and
they dance, sing and play music. This
tradition is less common than it was a
couple of generations ago. Depending on
which region of the country, they are
called wrenboys and mummers. A
Mummer's Festival is held at this time
every year in the village of New Inn,
County Galway and Dinglein County Kerry.

The twelfth - is an Ulster Protestant celebration held on 12 July each
year. It originated during the 18th century inUlster,
a province ofIreland that was heavily colonized by Protestant settlers
from Britain. It celebrates the Glorious Revolution(1688) and victory of Dutch
Protestant king William of
Orange overCatholic King of
England James II at the Battle of the
Boyne (1690). Today the Twelfth is
mainly celebrated in Northern
Ireland (where it is a public holiday), but
smaller celebrations are held in other
parts of the world where Orange lodges
have been set up. The Twelfth involves
thousands of participants and spectators.

All saints day is a solemnity celebrated on1 November by
the Catholic Church, and on the first Sunday after Pentecost in Eastern
Catholicism, in honour of all the saints, known and unknown. Christians who
celebrate All Saints' Day and All Souls'
Day do so in the fundamental belief
that there is a prayerful spiritual bond
between those in heaven (the "Church
triumphant"), and the living (the
"Church militant").

Brigit of Kildare - also known as Brigit of Ireland, is one of
Ireland's patron saintsalong with Patrick and
Columba. Irish hagiography makes her an early Irish
Christian nun,
[2]
abbess, and founder of several
monasteries of nuns, including that ofKildare in Ireland,
which was considered legendary and was highly
revered.Her feast day is 1 February, formerly celebrated
as the Imbolcquarter-day of the pagan Irish year, which
marked the beginning of spring, lambing, lactation in
cattle and so on.

The Leprechaun has been estimated to figure to a large degree in
Irish folklore mainly due to popularity overseas,
particularly in the United States of America. The
leprechaun tales are not, contrary to popular belief, well
known in Ireland and are perceived by the native Irish
to be a caricature of a minor tale in the culture of
Ireland. According to the tales, a mischievous fairy type
creature in emerald green clothing who when not
playing tricks spend all their time busily making shoes,
the Leprechaun is said to have a pot of gold hidden at
the end of the rainbow, and if ever captured by a human
it has the magical power to grant three wishes in
exchange for release.

Samhain (pronounced /swn/ sah-win or /sa.n/ sow-in)[1] is a
Gaelic festival marking the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter
or the "darker half" of the year. It is celebrated from sunset on 31 October to
sunset on 1 November, which is nearly halfway between the autumn equinox
and the winter solstice.In the 9th century, the Roman Catholic Church shifted the
date of All Saints' Day to 1 November, while 2 November later became All Souls'
Day. Over time, Samhain and All Saints'/All Souls' merged and helped to create
the modern Halloween.[4] Historians have used the name 'Samhain' to refer to
Gaelic 'Halloween' customs up
until the 19th century.Samhain
was one of the four main festivals
of the Gaelic calendar, marking the
end of the harvest and beginning of
winter.[17] Traditionally, Samhain
was a time to take stock of the
herds and food supplies. Cattle
were brought down to the winter
pastures after six months in the
higher summer pastures.[17] It
was also the time to choose which animals would need to be slaughtered for the
winter. This custom is still observed by many who farm and raise
livestock[2][27] because it is when meat will keep since the freeze has come and
also since summer grass is gone and free foraging is no longer possible. It is
thought that some of the rituals associated with the slaughter have been
transferred to other holidays.