Untypically Irish

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Originally Published March 2009

Hi, I'm Jia and I'm Irish.

And according to Matt, today is my day.

I'm not one of those Irish that's just Irish today either. I have a long line of family history stemming from Ireland, all of which I have great pride in. So I thought I'd talk a little today about where I come from, who my family is and what Ireland, and of course Saint Patrick's Day mean to me.

My family wasn't one that came to American from Ireland during the famine. No, my family came much earlier, settling mostly in Massachusetts, and although the history books say that we came from England, thanks to my great Grandmother - who was a genealogy freak - I know exactly where I come from.

Here's the quick version of my family line:

Me
- Mom
-- Grandad
--- Great Grandmother Arretta Hardy
---- Jesse Wallace Hardy
----- Sophia Lois Goodridge
------ Penelope Randolph Gardner (Moved from Mass to Utah where our family settled)
------- Lusannah Bryant
-------- Joshua Bryant
--------- Tabitha Ford
---------- Joseph Ford
----------- Sarah Dingley
------------ John Dingley (This is where my family came to America in 1600's)
------------- Francis Dingley
-------------- Mary Neville
--------------- Sir Edward Neville (Yeah, "Sir Edward". He married Eleanor Windsor which actually makes me related to the English Royal line, but that's a whole other post. Today is about Ireland!)
---------------- George Neville (Middlesex, England)
----------------- Edward Neville (Durham, England)
------------------ Ralph De Neville (Chateau De Beaufort, France)
------------------- Maud De Percy
-------------------- Henry De Percy (Northumberland, England)
--------------------- Eleanor Fitzalan
---------------------- Isabella De Mortimer
----------------------- Maud De Braose (Glamorganshire, Wales)
------------------------ Eve Marshall (Pembroke, Wales)
------------------------- Isabel Fitzgilbert De Clare

-------------------------- Eva McMurrough
--------------------------- Dermot King Of Leinster

(Leinster is one of the Provinces of Ireland, in the east of Ireland and comprises the counties of Carlow, Dublin, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Longford, Louth, Meath, Offaly, Westmeath, Wexford and Wicklow.)

This is only one direct line of my where my family history goes into the great Kings and Queens of Ireland, bringing up surnames like O'Brien, O'Toole and of course McMurrough long before there names ever resembled anything pronounceable to those who didn't speak Gaelic. Here they are anyways tho: Ó Briain, Ó Tuathail, and Mac Murchadha. Due to an extensive family history chart, I've traced nearly every family line back to Ireland.

So I may be like 30+ Generation Irish, but I'm still technically a Princess if you think about it. I still bleed 50 shades of green. I still get homesick for a land I've never stepped foot on, and I long to learn Gaelic, the language of my family.

So today, drown the Shamrock, proudly wear green and give a toast to St. Patrick (who eventually made it possible for my family to accept Christ, and would one day move to America where in Massachusetts they would hear of a man called Joseph Smith, and a man named Brigham Young would lead them to their promised land west.)

Even if you don't think you're Irish, you just might be. And if not, everyone is Irish today, Lá Fhéile Pádraig Shona dhaoibh!

Update: This is one of my all time favourite songs by Celtic Woman. Brings tears to my eyes every time. Celtic Woman will be performing today on Regis & Kelly, so tune in! I think I read somewhere that they'll be performing by FAVOURITE song of theirs Siuil a Run, which you can watch below:







Update x2: Several readers have asked for my recipes for soda bread, colcannon and corned beef and cabbage. Firstly, I do not eat corned beef and cabbage on St. Patrick's Day, and I've never made it myself. It's actually an American tradition, not an Irish one. And the recipes for my soda bread and colcannon are adapted from Irish Culture and Customs (the best website ever).

pictures by frenkieb