Leave a Comment on Traditional Irish Farming Tools: Drill/Drag Stones
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Traditional Irish Farming Tools: Drill/Drag Stones

These distinctive holed stones were once an important part of an Irish farmers tool kit.

2 Comments on Nan O’Toole: A Folk Medicine Practitioner from Galway
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Nan O’Toole: A Folk Medicine Practitioner from Galway

Nan O’Toole sold fish in Eglinton Street and was also known to have cures for many ailments….

6 Comments on Wayside funerary crosses, an ancient tradition from Kilmore, Co. Wexford
Continue Reading... Wayside funerary crosses, an ancient tradition from Kilmore, Co. Wexford

Wayside funerary crosses, an ancient tradition from Kilmore, Co. Wexford

In the parish of Kilmore, in the very south of Co. Wexford, persists a peculiar funerary custom that may have…

Leave a Comment on False burials and dangerous water: Whit Sunday in Irish Folklore
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False burials and dangerous water: Whit Sunday in Irish Folklore

Whit Sunday (or Whitsun) is an important Christian festival that celebrates the Pentecost. It normally falls on the seventh Sunday…

7 Comments on Animal ‘Sacrifice’ and Blood Letting, Saint Martin’s Feast in Ireland
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Animal ‘Sacrifice’ and Blood Letting, Saint Martin’s Feast in Ireland

Today, the 11th of November, is the feast of St. Martin of Tours. He was a particularly popular saint in…

10 Comments on St. John’s Eve or Bonfire Night; Irish Folklore
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St. John’s Eve or Bonfire Night; Irish Folklore

June 23rd, is St. John’s Eve, or as it is known in many parts of Ireland, Bonfire Night. It was…

8 Comments on Halloween in Irish Folklore
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Halloween in Irish Folklore

These folklore accounts detail some of superstitions and festivities which once surrounded Halloween in Ireland. They are based on information…

Leave a Comment on Signs of the Weather from the Sky, the Sun, the Moon, the Stars and the Rainbow: Folklore from Co. Galway
Continue Reading... Signs of the Weather from the Sky, the Sun, the Moon, the Stars and the Rainbow: Folklore from Co. Galway

Signs of the Weather from the Sky, the Sun, the Moon, the Stars and the Rainbow: Folklore from Co. Galway

This folkore account details some of the signs associated with approaching weather systems. It is based on information supplied in…

Leave a Comment on Churching the Cow: Folklore from Co. Galway
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Churching the Cow: Folklore from Co. Galway

These two fascinating folklore accounts from Co. Galway detail a practice known as ‘churching the cow’. It was carried out…

2 Comments on A Fairy Fort: Folklore from Co. Sligo
Continue Reading... A Fairy Fort: Folklore from Co. Sligo

A Fairy Fort: Folklore from Co. Sligo

This Irish folklore account relates to a ringfort in Co. Sligo and is based on information supplied by Mary Brennan…