Ah, St Patrick’s Day, the day when all the stereotypes about the Irish are rolled out. You know the ones – Ireland is a green land populated by redheaded leprechauns and drunks dressed in Aran jumpers who spend their days fighting (preferably the Brits) and praying. All that's followed by a big feed of potatoes, washed down by pints of Guinness and copious amounts of whiskey.
While there’s some truth in those tropes – at 10 percent, Ireland does have the most redheads per capita in the world (myself included), plus Aran jumpers are gorgeous – the ‘Oirish’ stereotypes can get old.
Photo: Afp/Commons/supplied
Earlier this week, Oscars host Jimmy Kimmel addressed the record ‘green wave’ of nominations for Irish people this year by telling the global audience that “five Irish actors are nominated tonight, which means the odds of another fight on stage just went way up”. A couple of days earlier, a skit on US comedy show Saturday Night Live showed a couple of characters dressed as Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell, nominated for their co-starring roles in The Banshees of Inisherin, babbling incomprehensibly in a dig at Irish accents.
Photo: Screenshot
Jokes about potatoes might not come so thick and fast if people knew that millions of people starved to death during 1845 and 1852 due to the potato famine in Ireland.
So perhaps this St Paddy's Day it's time to celebrate another side of Irish culture.
Síana Clifford Photo: Supplied
Ireland has its own language, Gaeilge (Irish), which, like Te Reo, was effectively stolen during colonisation. Irish has been a compulsory subject at school for decades, but it gained a bad rep and was even proclaimed to be a dead language, largely due to the uninspiring way it was taught. It's currently being revived, with TV and radio stations dedicated to the language and Irish-speaking pop-up events and festivals around the country. The runaway success of An Cailín Ciúin (The Quiet Girl), the first Irish-language film to be nominated for an Oscar and the winner of best film awards at many international festivals over the last year, has also played a part.
Ireland has a rich literary tradition, which some say dates back to the stories transcribed by monks in the sixth century. Stories, especially mythological tales, were orally passed down generations before then. More recently, Ireland has often punched above its weight when it comes to famous and awarded novelists, poets and playwrights such as Jonathan Swift, W.B. Yeats, James Joyce, Seamus Heaney, Samuel Beckett and Oscar Wilde.
The fact that these writers were all men is in some part due to the control the Catholic church had over Ireland for many years. But that influence is waning, and novelists including Edna O’Brien, Anne Enright, Claire Keegan, Doireann Ní Ghríofa, Naoise Dolan, Marian Keyes, Maeve Binchy and Sally Rooney have been busy redressing the balance.
Music is another cornerstone of Irish culture and well-known names have had great success over the years whether it be in traditional folk music (The Fureys, The Dubliners), more modern music (U2, The Corrs, The Cranberries) or those who sort of straddle the two. Clannad and Enya, for example, incorporate elements of the ancient art of sean nós singing. There's also a new generation of exciting Irish artists, including Cmat, Fontaines D.C., Pillow Queens and Denise Chaila, who are worth checking out as a more contemporary reflection of Irish society.
Hurling in action. Photo: Creative Commons
On the sports field, Gaelic football and hurling (camogie when played by women) are sports that are unique to Ireland and enjoy a huge following in the country even though they’re little-known elsewhere. Hurling in particular is a seriously exciting watch, which is no surprise given it’s the fastest game on grass in the world. Plus we’re not too shabby at rugby either (eh All Blacks?!).
Finally, food. Yes I have a great grá (love) for potatoes (I’m not mad) but there’s more to Irish food than spuds. Ireland is very close to Aotearoa New Zealand in its farming traditions so there is plenty of dairy (the cheeses would rival any fine fromage) and quality grass-fed proteins to get stuck into. We’re an island too, so seafood is also a highlight. One of my first meals when I get home is always a proper Irish breakfast: rashers, sausages (easily the best in the world), black and white pudding, tomatoes and eggs, all accompanied by slices of Irish brown bread slathered in butter.
If you love all things Irish, the good news is there are now two days to officially celebrate them. On 1 February, Ireland marked the first-ever Brigid’s Day national holiday in honour of Brigid, Celtic pagan goddess and matron saint. This new annual holiday specifically celebrates Irish mná (women).
As the old saying goes, 'there’s room under Brigid’s cloak for everyone'. Come join us as we celebrate today, because we love having everyone along to enjoy the craic with us. Just cool it on the drunk jokes.
Síana (pronounced 'Sheena') Clifford is an Irish writer and editor living in Tāmaki Makaurau.