Thread: My family roots, one side clear the other side dark.

Originally Posted by Latindancer

Oh yes....and Irish monasteries helped keep culture alive during the Dark Ages.

I've read a book in regards to Lantindancers quote. Very interesting read about medieval European history.

From the fall of Rome to the rise of Charlemagne - the "dark ages" - learning, scholarship, and culture disappeared from the European continent. The great heritage of western civilization - from the Greek and Roman classics to Jewish and Christian works - would have been utterly lost were it not for the holy men and women of unconquered Ireland.

In this delightful and illuminating look into a crucial but little-known "hinge" of history, Thomas Cahill takes us to the "island of saints and scholars, " the Ireland of St. Patrick and the Book of Kells. Here, far from the barbarian despoliation of the continent, monks and scribes laboriously, lovingly, even playfully preserved the west's written treasures. With the return of stability in Europe, these Irish scholars were instrumental in spreading learning. Thus the Irish not only were conservators of civilization, but became shapers of the medieval mind, putting their unique stamp on western culture.

About Thomas Cahill
Born In New York City To Irish-American Parents And Raised In Queens And The Bronx, Cahill Was Educated By Jesuits And Studied Ancient Greek And Latin. He Continued His Study Of Greek And Latin Literature, As Well As Medieval Philosophy, Scripture And Theology, At Fordham University, Where He Completed A B.A. In Classical Literature And Philosophy In 1964, And A Pontifical Degree In Philosophy

I find that every time a thread is started with anything related to Ireland or it's history the same bigoted twits weigh in with the same tired old prejudiced rubbish. I have wanted to start a thread in regards to Irish/British co-joined histories but it would probably need it's own moderator to delete all the dross that would get posted.

Originally Posted by DrB0b

Those three centuries were the period they were working on the concept of guerilla warfare.

Yep. Bit of homework was required, but good on them they got it right.

Originally Posted by rebbu

I have wanted to start a thread in regards to Irish/British co-joined histories

I've tried that. It's not worth the effort. You are absolutely right about the twits.

I know my Dad's fathers family originally from Kent in England started teamsters in Australia setting up Bullock teams and the associated unions.

I have always been dead against unions and my father was surprised considering my heritage.

My father did his male side tree back to mid 1300's turns out genetically I'm from Suffolk somewhere!
Quite impressive as he drew it himself.

Originally Posted by DrB0b

Originally Posted by ENT

Sez you.

Interesting how the Irish or Scots words for whisky are derived from the Latin aqua vitae, a word introduced by Catholic priests to Ireland in the middle ages.

Uisce Beatha is a translation of aqua vitae, not a derivation. It's good to see that in a world of constant change you remain as useless at languages as ever.

So which came first, the donkey or the cart?
You're just pedantically splitting hairs again Gob, as the term is clearly derived from Latin roots, as the term is a loan translation at best.

Derived or translated from Latin aqua vitae, the term uisce beatha or whisky was introduced to Ireland along with the process of distillation in the 14th century at the earliest, not invented, dreamed up, nor created there in the first place.

Distillation was known to the Greeks in the 4th century BC, nearly 2,000 years before it's use in Ireland, and spread from there to Egypt, by the 3rd century AD. Chinese were distilling alcohol in the 2nd century AD.

Originally Posted by DrB0b

Originally Posted by BaitongBoy

^ And, if you note, that was in the 14th century following which there wasn't another "invention" for 3 centuries!...Good on them, I say...They were happy enough with only whiskey for quite some time...Heh...

Those three centuries were the period they were working on the concept of guerilla warfare.

Which they fkd up entirely, with Irish killing more Irish than the British army ever did, approximately 60% of the dead were killed by republicans, 30% by loyalists and 10% by British security forces between 1969 and 2001. (Wikipedia)

The problem is : when you go back to about 1800, you have approximately 64 ancestors. And every generation it doubles.

So when I found my mother's father's mother's mother, I realized she was one of 8 great great grandmothers.

Originally Posted by Latindancer

....and Irish monasteries helped keep culture alive during the Dark Ages.

Until the Vikings arrived and thoroughly manked coastal Ireland from Galloway to Dublin, 795 and 1014 AD, looting and destroying all the monasteries they could find intact, after the warring Irish tribes had previously destroyed a majority of them in their inter-tribal wars. Nearly all those monasteries were in accessible coastal areas, not far inland in the bogs. The Vikings incidentally founded Dublin in the process, just south of the old Roman holiday camp at Dundalk.

There was buggerall culture left to keep alive.

Originally Posted by ENT

approximately 60% of the dead were killed by republicans

Provisional IRA.

Originally Posted by Latindancer

30% by loyalists and 10% by British security forces between 1969 and 2001.

40% Loyalists.

All kicked off with Bernadette's peace march to campaign for Rights equal to those in the rest of UK.
Resident Protestant Holy man Rev. ian paisley throwing the first brick.

^ Another lapsed Catholic in denial.

Originally Posted by ENT

in denial.

how so ?

I have fair hair and blue green eyes and my father has darker features and brown eyes.

Most of my English mates and who come from southern England are the same as my father particularly with brown eyes and darker features. I have read before the Vikings invaded Britain most of the natives had brown eyes and not the one they sit on.

I guess my fairer features either comes from my grandmother's Irish side or my mother's Scandahooligan blood.

At the end of the day we are all driven by good and bad demons and where that comes from must be our ancestry.

Nice side-step.

So the Irish invented the term "whiskey' derived from uisce beatha, which in turn was derived from aqua vitae, but neither the process of distillation, nor the product thereof was first 'invented' by the Irish.

My great great great great great great x 3 grand father was killed by the then King of England acting for and of behalf of the people of England.

One has to be proud of his achievements even though he failed but gave his life to the cause he believed in.

Originally Posted by billy the kid

Originally Posted by ENT

in denial.

how so ?

The British soldiers weren't Loyalists.

Originally Posted by ENT

2015 Ireland becomes first country to legalise gay marriage by popular vote.

You see, this is why some of your posts are silly: because you don't read beyond the headline or analyse. Some of your posts are good! But some are silly, such as this one.
"By popular vote" is the operative phrase in your post. Other countries legalised gay marriage before Ireland, but not by referendum, per se. Consider your own country for starters.

Originally Posted by Maanaam

Originally Posted by ENT

2015 Ireland becomes first country to legalise gay marriage by popular vote.

You see, this is why some of your posts are silly: because you don't read beyond the headline or analyse. Some of your posts are good! But some are silly, such as this one.
"By popular vote" is the operative phrase in your post. Other countries legalised gay marriage before Ireland, but not by referendum, per se. Consider your own country for starters.

Which country's that?

What's there to analyze in that one simple sentence that I posted?

Did any other country legalize gay marriage by popular vote before Ireland did?

Here's a possibly interesting snippet arising from the history of Irish immigration - quite a number of Irish born women who intermarried with native born Australian men in the 19th century were recorded as dying in childbirth because of the inadequate size of their pelvises, due apparently to the deprivations suffered as chilren during the Great Famine in Ireland. I heard a talk about this on ABC radio given by some researcher who studied the phenomenon for her thesis at university. Gives one pause to reflect on life in those times, I think.

Originally Posted by grasshopper

Irish born women

My Grandmother gave birth 14 times with two sets of twins.

And my English Grandfather was there with her from start to finish.

I don't know about other Irish ladies but my Gran was a little pocket rocket and although she died after falling asleep after cooking for about 30 poeple in 1972 aged 82 is still in my heart and mind.

Originally Posted by ENT

Nice side-step.

So the Irish invented the term "whiskey' derived from uisce beatha, which in turn was derived from aqua vitae, but neither the process of distillation, nor the product thereof was first 'invented' by the Irish.

No, they did not invent the "term" whiskey, they invented the product we now call whiskey or, in Irish, fuisce. It's really not difficult to understand, even for somebody as determinedly stupid as you are. The distilled product we now know as whiskey was invented in medieval Ireland. The process of distillation was not.

There are many products of distillation, whiskey, vodka, brandy, aquavit, grappa, schnapps, perfumes, essential oils, and so on and on and on. They are all products of the process of distillation but they are not, obviously, identical.

One of those products is whiskey. That particular product was invented in Ireland.

Ah so the name change changes the brew, eh? Fuisce now...

Originally Posted by ENT

Ah so the name change changes the brew, eh? Fuisce now...

Surprised you don't know that one, considering the high opinion you have of your etymological skills. Nice bit of back-formation that is. How's your lenition?

How're you at the sets? Your soft shoe shuffling skills are pretty good.