#kilkeel

[llyfrenfys]

In which I try not to be That Guy TM when it comes to Irish ancestors: An exploration of ancestry, diaspora and culture

Because of The Horrors TM in my life atm I've been looking into my biological family tree. I'm adopted but estranged from my adoptive family and I never met my biological family since I was adopted just short of my 2nd birthday. I've been tracing my ancestry for about 3 years now and it's genuinely quite stress relieving to me. It's also fun and challenging from a research standpoint - putting together my own family tree gave me the skills to write articles like this one I wrote in 2022 about historical Welsh queer people, for example.

Lately, I've been finding out more about my Irish ancestors while an adoptee (and thus not knowing any of my biological family) - but also doing this as a Celticist and tired of people doing the 'my sister's friend's cousin's father's mother was Irish' thing. This has created an almost unbearable tension between curiosity at my own ancestry while trying not to be That Guy who finds out about one (1) Irish ancestor hundreds of years ago and is weird about it.

Especially since mine are quite distant ancestors - my great, great, great grandparents were born in Dublin and in a tiny village in County Down called Dunnaman (near Kilkeel). However, they were Irish Catholics and emigrated to Liverpool in the 1870s - all of their subsequent children and grandchildren were born in Liverpool and all of the above + great grandchildren were raised Catholic - including my grandmother (who died before I was born). So there was an obvious attempt to maintain that heritage. There's even evidence my great, great, great grandmother at least spoke Irish (which, as she was born in County Down, would have been Ulster Irish).

The problems with uncritically throwing oneself at an ancestor's nationality:

Now, not all North Americans of Irish (or Welsh, Scottish, Italian, Scandinavian, German etc.) descent do this - but there's a very vocal set of North Americans of Irish descent who find awe and interest in their ancestry - which is actually quite a positive thing! - however, due to either temporal or cultural disconnect, they may end up doing or saying things (and not necessarily with bad intentions) which can have a negative impact on the Irish and the Irish language (or [nationality] and [language(s) associated with that nationality].

I'm reminded of the time an American commented on a Welsh language rights post I made in support of Welsh speakers, but they accidentally ended up using a white nationalist slogan by mistake. It can be a minefield - and with regards to Ireland specifically, mistakes like that can be so much worse. To literally give my own (mild) example, today I decided to relearn Irish (since I haven't spoken any in years since being taught basics at undergrad) and picked up a blank notebook I bought at Tesco the other week, while completely forgetting the inside cover of the notebook was orange. I was planning on decorating the notebook anyway and painted it a different colour. While I know that nobody would really hold it against me if I didn't change the colour, I just know that walking around with an orange notebook filled with Irish I'm relearning because of interest in my Catholic ancestors could be a confusing set of messages, at the very least. If you don't understand why this is, look up the meanings of the colours on the flag of Ireland.

Which is to say, even those of us in Northern Europe who have significantly greater physical proximity to Ireland than North America (and therefore should know better) still can and do get things wrong. And not just benignly wrong like in my case.

The tendency for some North Americans of Irish descent (Canada isn't exempt from this) to conflate Irish ancestry with a contemporary connection to the modern countries located on the island of Ireland as a whole can have results ranging from 'a bit weird' to 'jesus fucking christ'. As a Celticist, I've seen far, far too many Americans of Irish descent try to weigh in on modern Irish politics without any background knowledge or tact at all - and naturally they stake their claim on modern Irish politics entirely on the premise of having distant Irish ancestors. Or, even worse, things start to get all phrenological.

'Irish blood' and the nonexistence thereof:

'Irish blood' is continually evoked by some to validate their sense of 'Irishness' and the obsession with '[insert nationality] blood' is a distinctly North American phenomenon- likely related to or an offshoot of the concept of 'blood quantum', in which enrolment into some Native American nations and tribes is determined by how much 'Native blood' a person has. Notably, many people who would ostensibly have been described under this system as 'full blood' were registered by the US as 'half blood'. This is a method of genocide intended to wipe out tribes and nations by imposing strict measures of who does or does not qualify to enrol into a tribe or nation. This concept seems to have been extrapolated over time (in a North American context at least) into the idea of descent from other nationalities' being measured in a similar or adjacent way. This is how you end up with some North Americans declaring they are '1/8 Italian and 1/4 Irish' on their dad's side etc. While in Europe (where these nationalities hail from, crucially) this practice is seen as a really weird way to describe your ancestry. In general, it's simply 'my 4 times grandfather came from Spain' or 'my great great grandfather on my dad's side came from Finland' etc. if it comes up at all. For various political reasons, many Europeans with descent from multiple other European nationalities may choose to omit to mention descent from certain nationalities, especially if in recent history there has been conflict between their birth nation and an ancestor's nation. The most famous example of this is literally the British royal family changing their surname from the German Saxe-Coburg and Gotha to the more 'British sounding' Windsor in 1917 due to the onset of the First World War.

Where it gets really weird (and also very offensive and rude) is when cultural stereotypes get invoked alongside the whole 'blood' thing in usually quite damaging and/or disparaging ways. I've seen way too many North Americans of Irish descent claim they're alcoholics because they have 'Irish blood' or even worse, claim it's normal to domestically abuse their spouses because of it!! (Genuine thing I have seen btw). Same goes for claiming to be a naturally good chef because of 'Italian blood' and so on. As a general rule, people from the place where your ancestors were from don't generally like to be inherently be considered drunks or prone to violence due to their nationality. Or have weird and inaccurate idealisms projected onto their language or cuisine.

Aren't there any positives?

It wouldn't be fair to make a post like this without mentioning some of the positives that can come from interest in an Irish ancestor. Like I mentioned at the start of this post, I myself felt inspired to relearn Irish because of my own Irish ancestors. I was taught the Connacht dialect at undergrad, however, since my ancestor was from County Down, I'm going to try and learn Ulster Irish instead. One doesn't need Irish ancestors to learn Irish of course - when I learned I wasn't aware I had any Irish ancestors. But being inspired to learn Irish because of an ancestor can't hurt and directly increases the number of Irish speakers in the world (provided you keep at it). This is a net positive for the language as a whole.

Similarly, people who have educated themselves on Irish politics because of their ancestry and genuinely learned something are also a positive thing to come out of discovering Irish ancestors. In my experience, these people are the kind of people I enjoy talking to about being a Celticist because they actively want to learn and respect the cultures being talked about. Which is huge to me!

Conclusion:

As a Welsh speaker whose national identity is more-or-less Jan Morris-esque, my Irish ancestry is an interesting facet of my ancestry I simply didn't know about before. And being an adopted person, I can sympathise with the general sentiment of a lot of white North Americans of feeling disconnected or alienated from any ancestral heritage. The conditions which create That Guy TM as described above rely on that sense of alienation to propagate a very ineffective, tactless and often very insensitive approach to Irish and other European cultures. But the important thing is that that approach can be challenged by people genuinely interested in their ancestry who are also conscientious of the living versions of the cultures their ancestors hailed from.

For me, that means learning Irish in a dialect my ancestors are likely to have spoken. I also visited the library today to check out some books on the Irish emigration to England and the sociopolitical reasons behind that emigration. I know the broad strokes, but the details are desirable to know to get a better idea of the why and how the country of my birth had a hand in creating the conditions which led my ancestors to emigrate in the first place. I think the world would be a better place if people took the time to understand the history and politics of ancestors which don't share their nationality.

As always, reblogs and thoughts are welcomed and encouraged!

Thank you for reading to the end - and if you'd like to support me, please see my pinned post. Diolch!

[saintmeghanmarkle]

Removing the titles etc by u/Mickleborough

Removing the titles etc There frequently are calls for the Sussexes to be stripped of their titles; taken off the line of succession; removed as a Counsellor of State (Harry, that is).Let’s recognise these measures for what they are: punitive. In my opinion, these measures wouldn’t stop the Sussexes from doing what they do.Removing the titles wouldn’t change the fact that Harry’s the son of a king. In fact, it’d make that fact clearer: he’d be called Prince Harry, and most people are aware that the son of a king’s a prince - not a duke. As for Princess Henry - we all know that’d rapidly turn into Princess Muggin.It might work if the King did a more radical Queen Margrethe and declared that Harry would thenceforth bear the title Earl of Dumbarton, one of Harry’s lesser known titles. (Baron Kilkeel would be ideal, but we can’t hope for miracles.) Queen Margrethe‘s actions raised eyebrows, even though they were directed at her grandchildren of the junior line. For the King to remove his son’s Prince title would be unprecedented and possibly give rise to criticism.Taking Harry off the line of succession’s equally excessive, as he hasn’t been guilty of anything truly heinous, such as treason or murder. Besides, he might repent, in which case, he’d be a useful spare (as opposed to a useless spare).Unpopular opinion this might be, my opinion’s that the Royal Family’s dealing with the matter quite well by freezing out Harry and his hideous wife. Harry’s shown himself as being desperate for any interaction with them - they equally have politely refrained. The Harry would like to see King / King too busy to see Harry / Harry didn’t try to see King / King gave Harry a chance to see him rumours are too exhausting and undignified - never explain, never complain. At the end of the day, it’s clear that Harry’s no longer of the Royal Family.We’ve seen that there are other ways of achieving result - the pool of Counsellors of State has been widened, so - like succeeding to the throne - Harry’s prospects have been diluted. He’s on his way to being a footnote. post link: https://ift.tt/9KfN76Q author: Mickleborough submitted: May 24, 2024 at 08:49PM via SaintMeghanMarkle on Reddit disclaimer: all views + opinions expressed by the author of this post, as well as any comments and reblogs, are solely the author's own; they do not necessarily reflect the views of the administrator of this Tumblr blog. For entertainment only.

[earthmover85]

Post box, Kilkeel Co Down, Northern Ireland 🇬🇧

[stairnaheireann]

#OTD in Irish History | 27 June:

1488 – Sir Richard Edgecombe is sent to Ireland with power to grant pardons; he lands at Kinsale on this date. 1782 – The Relief Act gives Catholics rights concerning their education. 1798 – United Irishmen Rebellion: Northern column remains in camp at Croghan. 1824 – Birth of Robert Nugent in Kilkeel, Co Down, who would go on to become a decorated Brigadier General in the Union forces during the…

[theblogtini]

Big question here: If Archie has children, are they titled? Lilli can't pass her title on but Archie might be able too. A mess.

SO!

Harry's titles are:

Duke of Sussex

Earl of Dumbarton

Baron of Kilkeel

At present, Archie - as his eldest son and heir - is entitled to use the title Earl of Dumbarton, but Harry and Meghan said at his birth that they didn't want that and he was just going to be Master Archie (rather than Lord Archie, Earl of Dumbarton).

When Archie has a son, if Harry is still alive, then his eldest son will be entitled to use the title Baron Kilkeel (using his grandfather's lowest subsidiary title).

Regarding inheritance, the Dukedom of Sussex was made to be hereditary in the male-line, so Archie will one day be Duke of Sussex, and then his son will be Earl Dumbarton, etc.

(NOTE: All 3 titles are HARRY'S titles - Earl of Dumbarton is not Archie's title in his own right [until he becomes Duke of Sussex]. The direct heirs just use the subsidiary titles as courtesy titles.)

As far as ROYAL titles go - HRH and Prince/Princess, Archie's children will not be entitled to those styles and titles and unless a Letters Patent is issued to change it, there is no way around that. If they are born while Charles is still alive, they would be the male-line great-grandchildren of the monarch, and the only male-line great-grandchildren of the monarch who are titled from birth are those who are in the direct line of succession (ie: at that time it would theoretically be George's kids). Archie and Lilibet - at their birth - were male-line great-grandchildren of the monarch and, as we've seen, were not entitled to royal status until their grandfather became king.

If William is King at that point, then Archie's kids would be the great nieces/nephews of the monarch and definitely not entitled to any royal title/style.

There were times in history when there were lots of HRHs and HHs running around, but since Queen Victoria's time there have been moves to limit that. George III's great-grandchildren were the first great-grandchildren of a monarch to be born during their reign and were afforded the style and title of HH Prince/ss from birth (with some of them being elevated to HRH as they rose in the line of succession).

[hrh-the-royals]

(Pictured above, Prince Luca at an inspecting of the troops.)

Prince Luca added to San Sequoia line of Succession, named Crown Prince. - The Windenburg Times

It has been a whirlwind of a week, with more twist being added.

On Monday, Prince Luca had renounced his titles and place in the line of succession.

"Today, I am to officially announce the renouncing of my titles and place in the of the succession for the Windenburg throne. It had always been my goal to serve and carry out my duties. Thus, it does bring me great pain to announce this, I feel as if it is the best course forward. Not only for myself but for my family. I will always value, treasure and appreciate my time and the time I spent serving my country in the armed forces. I will always support the continued growth of Windenburg and I wish to see the royal family continue to prosper."

Luca Louis Aruthur Wolfgang Wettin

It came as a shock not only to the nation but members of the royal family as well. After the announcement, we had heard nothing from the Prince nor his wife. Noelle had not been seen before the announcement and it was reported that Luca met with his family an hour before the news was released. They have not seen him since.

Well, today, it appears the royal household was thrown for a loop at the announcement from San Sequoia Grand Palace.

"Today, we are formally announcing that Crown Princess Colette will be stepping back as Crown Princess. She is now named Her Royal Highness, Princess Colette of San Sequoia. She will also retain her titles as Duchess of Cove, Countess of Courty, Baroness of Vvess. She can be refereed to as the Duchess of Cove as this is the main title she has chosen to use going forward. Luca Louis Aruthur Wolfgang will be invested as Crown Prince of San Sequoia, enacting the Law of Two Kings. He has laid down all previous rights and titles, Crown Prince Luca will also take on the last name of Sorensen. Including his wife, they will be now be titled Their Royal Highness, Crown Prince Luca and Crown Princess Noelle. Also bestowed are now the Duke & Duchess of Kilkeel, Earl & Countess of Kent and the Baron & Baroness of Sussex. They will also reside at Blire Palace. The Line of Succession has thus been updated. 1. Crown Prince Luca 2. Princess Imani 3. Princess Colette 4. Earl of Essex, Henry Taylor 5. Lord William Taylor 6. Lady Layla Taylor 7. Lady Anne Taylor 8. XXXX 9. XXXX 10. XXXX"

Not only that, the Palace released a photo of the new royal family. It was said the photo was taken while Noelle was still pregnant, so it is a more recent photo. They also announced that Noelle had her birth in San Sequoia safely, it was also reported that both the baby and mother are resting well. They announced her as Her Royal Highness, Princess Imani Grace Rose Sorensen. Any further details will be announced at a later date.

A source close to Levi spoke to us. "It's been shocking announcement after shocking announcement. The family had heard no words from Luca about this. Levi is extremely hurt. They thought he was simply stepping back, they had no idea that this was in the works."

People close to King and Queen have also said that they've expressed their disappointment. "They understood that the couple needed to take a step back. Noelle couldn't handle it and Luca is besotted with her. Still, this he should've known better. Will they be able to see their granddaughter? Everything is a mess and a headache was caused….they're not sure how they will be able to recover from this."

Some have also noted the silence of Noelle in all of this. "She was barely speaking to the family anyway. June's christening was the last time anyone saw her. Everyone believes she pushed him to do this, she was always trouble but they didn't think it'd go this far."

Certainly, this has caused a lot of shock and upset. Everyone will be alert in the following days.

[duchessofostergotlands]

If Archie and Lili get married and have kids, would their kids have titles? Would they be able to if they wanted to give their kids titles?

Archie’s children will have courtesy titles which differ depending on who’s still alive. The eldest boy will be either Baron Kilkeel, Earl of Dumbarton or His Grace The Duke of Sussex. After Archie becomes Duke his other sons would be Lord x Mountbatten-Windsor and daughters would be Lady x Mountbatten-Windsor. While he’s an Earl they would be The Honorable x Mountbatten-Windsor. Lili’s children wont have titles unless their father does. None of them will be prince/ss. And only a monarch can give people titles. At most Archie could choose not to style his children a certain way but it’s still their title

[kamakaz1e]

https://gofund.me/bcea4c79 #gofundme

[paganplaces]

Kilkeel Portal Tomb

The Kilkeel portal tomb (also known as “the Crawtree Stone”) is an unexcavated megalithic structure located in the northern part of Kilkeel (Irish: Cill Chaoil – “Church of the Narrow”), in the southernmost area of County Down, Northern Ireland.

Read more at: https://paganplaces.com/places/kilkeel-portal-tomb/

[neyatimes]

The Twelfth: 'I bring my boys to the Twelfth like I did as a child'

The Orange Order and approximately 600 bands are taking part in parades at 18 locations on Wednesday to mark the Twelfth of July. As well as Belfast and Ballymena, parades are being held in towns including Ballinamallard, Magherafelt and Kilkeel. Bangor, Northern Ireland’s newest city, is also hosting a demonstration. You can read more about the Twelfth of July celebrations here. #Twelfth #bring…

[qudachuk]

James Carlisle, 42, of Harbour Road faces the charges over a domestic incident in County Down.

[12blogmk]

The Boo Radleys: From Glastonbury to Britpop return, via the classroom

Now teaching IT in Kilkeel, bassist Tim Brown is scratching an itch to be back on stage with his band.

[go-scottishgal14]

better yet, refer to them as the "Dumbartons"...Markle didn't want Archie to have this title as the word "Dumb" is part of it...she would go absolutely ape shit if people called out to them, "Hey, Dumbartons!! over here...." Baron of Kilkeel has no annoyance factor for them at all...

I have decided that, considering Harry and his wife have 3 titles….they use two of those titles when in that area…well, they don’t live in the UK….so…they don’t need the Duke and Duchess titles. I think we should refer to them as….Baron and Baroness Kilkeel.  Meet….

Baron and Baroness Kilkeel….If the Royal website has been changed, their title that they so desperately need should be changed as well…this title was created by Queen Elizabeth…so Harry would have a Northern Ireland title….

Seriously think about it. They don’t live in the UK. They live in the US, they can be called Baron and Baroness just as easily. They gave up Duke and Duchess status when they left….

[jareckiworld]

Nevill Johnson (1911-1999) — Kilkeel  (oil on canvas, 1946)

[citizen69]

Moyad Road, Co. Down, 1955

[vintageoculus]

No masks on public transport shocks the nation! by National Library of Ireland on The Commons Via Flickr: A tourist car in Kilkeel, Co. Down is well loaded with lots of tourists, and a far cry from today’s experience. This is one of those special photographs from the Lawrence Collection where Mr. French kindly arranged to have posters and signs to assist our Flickroonies in their endeavours! Photographer: Robert French Collection: Lawrence Photograph Collection Date: Circa 1865-1914 1890 NLI Ref: L_CAB_03814 You can also view this image, and many thousands of others, on the NLI’s catalogue at catalogue.nli.ie