Seven Elements of Culture
Culture is made up of seven elements. Social organizations, customs and traditions, language,
religion, arts and literature, forms of government and economic systems. On this page, I will be showing you how Irish culture represents each of these elements.
religion, arts and literature, forms of government and economic systems. On this page, I will be showing you how Irish culture represents each of these elements.
Social organizationsOne of Ireland's many social organizations is the Irish
Republican Army (IRA) – founded in the early 20th century with the goal of creating a united Ireland. They fought the British in the Irish War of Independence which resulted in the creation of the Free Irish State and Northern Ireland. The IRS uses terror and assassination in protest of British rule. It is estimated to be a small organization with only several hundred members. There most famous act of terrorism was Bloody Friday. It occurred in 1972 in Belfast when 22 bombs went off in about one hour and killed 9 people and injured 130. There most famous assassination was in1979, when Lord Mountbatten, Queen Elizabeth II's uncle, was killed by someone blowing up his boat. |
Form of GOvernmentIreland had their own system of law, culture, language and social organizations. The Norman invasion in 1169 from England changed that as it became a British Colony until 1921. Over that 800 year period, men and women protested the British rule and campaigned for their independence. In 1921 after the Irish war of Independence, Ireland was divided into two parts– the Irish Free State, known today as Ireland, and Northern Ireland which is
currently still ruled by the British. Today, both Irelands have separate parliments and are democratic. |
LanguageToday, the official language of Ireland is English.
The second language of Ireland is Gaelic, an old language used before the British rule. During the British rule, it was illegal to speak Gaelic because they didn’t understand it. Very few villages continued to pass Gaelic on to the next generation because it was slowly forgotten during the centuries the British rule. Northern Ireland changed over to speaking only English, like Britain. After the independence of Ireland, it became a class in school so students could learn Ireland's language. Gaelic slowly started coming back, but even today it is not very common to see this generation speaking Gaelic. |
ReligionThe main religion in Ireland is Catholicism. When settlers first immigrated to Ireland before the British rule, they were Catholic. At that time, British people were Protestant and thought that everyone else should be Protestant too because they didn’t agree with the
ideas of Catholicism. In 1495, Henry VII was the first king to attempt to take over Ireland. This was one of the main reasons why Britain kept trying to gain control over Ireland. The British were finally successful in 1534. |
ARTS
ArtistsIrish-born Charles Jervas was the best portrait painter in the early 18th century. Hugh Howard was another portrait
painter from Dublin, second after Jervas. James Latham from Tipperary was the first major Irish portrait artist. His type of work inspired many other artists to pursue portrait drawing. At the time, typical Irish art was of natural landscapes. By the 19th century, Irish artists changed the style of painting. They added more variety of landscapes and scenes and created different styles of painting. |
LITERATURE/POETRY Ireland's most well-known poet is William Butler Yeats born in Dublin more than a century ago. He wrote almost four hundred poems, many based on episodes and experiences in his life which interests and attracts readers. C.S. Lewis, born in Belfast, wrote the very famous Chronicles of Narnia, a series of fantasy books. In recent times, three of the seven books were made into movies. Another of Ireland's many famous poets is Oscar Wilde. Born in Dublin, he followed his parents footsteps and became a poet. He wrote 86 poems and expressed his dramatic, eventful life in them. Like William Butler Yeats, this made him popular. irish dancingIrish traditional dance was created when settlers first settled in Ireland. They brought their culture's dance and favorite music to Ireland and eventually these dances made the Irish traditional dances.
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To read poems by William Butler Yates and Oscar Wilde: http://www.online-literature.com/ To read the Chronicles of Narnia: http://www.freebooks2u.com/ |
irish Sports
GAELIC FOOTBALL
Ireland has it's own one of a kind sport called Gaelic football. It is described as a mix of rugby, basketball and soccer because both the feet and hands are involved.
A ball smaller than the normal soccer ball is used in this game and may
be carried in the players' hands for four steps before that player has to either
pass the ball to another player or do a solo, dropping the ball and kicking it
back into the players' hands. Also, one basketball dribble is allowed in between each solo, kick, or
throw. To score, the ball must be put over the crossbar(goal) which is guarded by a goalie.
It takes a lot of skill and physical strength to play Gaelic football. There are 15 players on a team. This is a game not a very well-known sport outside of Ireland, but has been around for a long time, since the early 19th century. However, the first official game of gaelic football was played in1887.
Ireland has it's own one of a kind sport called Gaelic football. It is described as a mix of rugby, basketball and soccer because both the feet and hands are involved.
A ball smaller than the normal soccer ball is used in this game and may
be carried in the players' hands for four steps before that player has to either
pass the ball to another player or do a solo, dropping the ball and kicking it
back into the players' hands. Also, one basketball dribble is allowed in between each solo, kick, or
throw. To score, the ball must be put over the crossbar(goal) which is guarded by a goalie.
It takes a lot of skill and physical strength to play Gaelic football. There are 15 players on a team. This is a game not a very well-known sport outside of Ireland, but has been around for a long time, since the early 19th century. However, the first official game of gaelic football was played in1887.
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HURLING Hurling is similar to lacrosse, hockey and involves some baseball skills(swinging the sticks, catching the ball in the air). The sticks, flat headed clubs, are called hurley's and the ball is called a sliothar. It is a very fast sport, maybe even the fastest sport played on grass because the ball travels at high speeds from player to player across the field. Hurlers can catch the ball in their hand, but can only pass by swinging it with their stick or kicking it. Points are scored by a player using hockey swings, lacrosse swings or baseball-like swings to put the ball into the net. Hurling has been around for at least 2,000 years, longer than gaelic football. In some traditional irish legends, the heroes are professional hurlers. |