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AN IRISH GLOSSARY |
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ALLIANCE PARTY A moderate, centrist, non-sectarian Northern Ireland
party led by Lord (John) Alderdice, now speaker of the Assembly.
BAWN A castle enclosure or castlefold.
BODHRÁN (pronounced bore-run ) A hand-held, shallow, goatskin drum.
B SPECIALS Auxiliary police force of the Stormont government; disbanded
in 1971.
CASHEL A kind of rath , distinguished by a circular outer stone wall
instead of earthen ramparts.
CLOCHÁN A beehive-shaped, weatherproof hut built of tightly fitted stone
without mortar. Clocháns date from the early Christian period.
THE CONTINUITY IRA Small breakaway organization maintaining the armed
struggle against British rule and now thought to have amalagamated with
The Real IRA.
"THE CRACK" Good conversation, a good time, often accompanying drinking.
"What's the crack?" means "what's the gossip?" or "what's going on?"
CRANNÓG An artificial island in the middle of a lake, dating from the
Bronze Age.
CURRACH/CURRAGH Small fishing vessel used off the west coast;
traditionally made of leather stretched over a light wood frame, modern
currachs are of tar-coated canvas.
THE DÁIL Lower house of the Irish parliament.
DOLMEN (or "portal tomb") A chamber formed by standing stones that
support a massive capstone. The capstone often slopes to form the
entrance of the chamber. Dates from the Copper Age (2000-1750 BC).
DRUMLIN Small, oval, hummocky hill formed from the detritus of a
retreating glacier.
DUP The Democratic Unionist Party. A traditionalist, anti-Republican
right-wing party founded by lan Paisley and Desmond Boal in 1971.
Paisley has remained leader since then and is the only European
political leader this century to have founded his own church. The DUP is
fundamentally opposed to the Good Friday Agreement and any loosening of
the bonds with the United Kingdom.
ÉIRE Irish name for Ireland, but officially indicates the 26 countries.
FIANNA FÁIL The largest and most successful of Ireland's two main
political parties since Independence. Essentially a conservative party,
it has its origins in the Republican faction of Sinn Féin, and fought
against pro-Treaty forces in the civil war. During the 1930s, the party
did much to assert Ireland's separateness from Britain.
FINE GAEL Ireland's second largest political party, Fine Gael sprang
from the pro-Treaty faction of Sinn Féin which formed the first Free
State government in 1921. Since that time it has not been able to gain a
strong majority, and periods in office have been in coalitions. It
advocates more liberal policies than Fianna Fáil in terms of social
welfare, but in fact there is very little to distinguish the two main
parties.
FIR Men (sign on men's public toilets).
GAELTACHT Any region in Ireland in which Irish Gaelic is the vernacular
speech; these are chiefly in the west.
GALLERY GRAVE A simple burial chamber of squared stoned, generally found
under a long mound.
GARDAÍ The police force of the Republic of Ireland.
INLA Irish National Liberation Army. Extreme splinter group of the IRA.
Its aim is the creation through physical force of a united socialist
32-county republic.
IRA Irish Republican Army. The upholders of the Irish Fenian tradition,
ultimately dedicated to the establishment of a united 32-county republic
by whatever means possible and notorious both for its bombing campaigns
and the extreme sophistication of its organizational structure.
IRSP Irish Republican Socialist Party. The most revolutionary, if small,
party in Northern Ireland and the political wing of the INLA.
LVF Loyalist Volunteer Force. Banned paramilitary organization based in
and around Portadown, led by Billy Wright until his assassination by the
INLA in the Maze prison, December 1997.
LOYALIST A person loyal to the British Crown, usually a Northern Irish
Protestant.
MARTELLO TOWER Circular coastal tower once used for defence.
MNÁ Women (sign on women's public toilets).
MOTTE A circular mound, flat on top, which the Normans used as a
fortification.
NATIONALISTS Those who wish to see a united Ireland.
THE NORTH Term referring to Northern Ireland used by many people.
OGHAM (rhyming with poem) The earliest form of writing used by the Irish
(fourth to seventh centuries), and found on the edge of standing stones.
Employing a twenty-character alphabet derived from Latin, the letters
were represented by varying strokes and notches, and read from the
bottom upwards.
ORANGE ORDER A Loyalist Protestant organization, found throughout
Northern Ireland, which promotes the Union with Britain. The name comes
from William of Orange ("King Billy"), the Protestant king who defeated
the Catholic James II at the Battle of the Boyne (1690) and at the
Battle of Aughrim (1691). Most Unionist MPs are Orangemen, and outside
of Northern Ireland, Orange Lodges (branches) are found amongst Loyalist
expats .
PASSAGE GRAVE A megalithic tomb from the Neolithic period. A simple
corridor of large, square, vertical stones lead to a burial chamber, and
the whole tomb is covered with earth. The stones are decorated with
simple patterns; double spirals, triangles, zigzag lines, and the sun
symbol.
POTEEN/POITÍN (pronounced potcheen) Highly alcoholic (and often toxic)
and illegal spirit, usually distilled from potatoes.
PUP Progressive Unionist Party. Seen as the political wing of the UVF.
Many of its leading lights are former Loyalist paramilitaries, including
David Ervine, a major player in ensuring Loyalist support for the Good
Friday Agreement.
RATH or RINGFORT A farmstead dating from the first millennium AD. A
circular timber enclosure banked by earth and surrounded by a ditch
formed the outer walls, within which roofed dwellings were built and, in
times of danger, cattle were herded. Today raths are visible as circular
earthworks.
THE REAL IRA Breakaway faction led by the IRA's former quartermaster
which rejects the political process and maintains the armed struggle;
responsible for the Omagh bombing, The Real IRA has attacked RUC and
Army installations and exploded bombs in England, most notably at
Hammersmith Bridge.
REPUBLICANS Supporters of the ideals incorporated in the 1916
Proclamation of the Republic, the overthrow of British rule in Ireland
and the promotion of Irish language and culture.
ROUND TOWER Narrow, tall (65-110ft) and circular tower, tapering to a
conical roof. Built from the ninth century onwards, they are unique to
Ireland. They are found on the sites of early monasteries, and served to
call the monks to prayer. The entrance is usually a doorway 10-15ft
above the ground, which was reached by a wooden or rope ladder that
could be pulled up for safety.
RUC Royal Ulster Constabulary. Northern Ireland's regular, but armed,
police force.
SDLP Social Democratic and Labour Party. The largest Nationalist party,
centrist left, founded in 1970 and led by John Hume since 1979.
SINN FÉIN ("Ourselves Alone") Sinn Féin's history has been colourful,
eventful and characterized by splits. Re-emerging in the 1970s, it
subsequently became a major political force in Northern Ireland, aiming
to achieve national self-determination and the formation of a 32-country
socialist republic, based on the principles of the Proclamation of 1916
and the beliefs of Tone, Pearse and Connolly. It has been labelled by
some as the political wing of the IRA. Its leader since 1983 has been
Gerry Adams who has gradually steered Republicanism towards democratic
resolution of its goals.
THE SIX COUNTIES Nationalist/Republican name for Northern Ireland.
SOUTERRAIN Underground passage that served as a hiding place in times of
danger; also used to store food and valuables.
TAOISEACH Irish prime minister.
TD Teachta Dála. Member of the Irish parliament.
32-COUNTY SOVEREIGNTY COMMITTEE The alleged political wing of The Real
IRA.
TRICOLOUR The green, white and orange flag of the Republic.
THE TWENTY-SIX COUNTIES The Republic of Ireland (Éire).
UDA Ulster Defence Association. A Loyalist paramilitary organization,
the largest in Northern Ireland.
UDP Ulster Democratic Party. Political wing of the UDA, led by Gary
McMichael.
UDR Ulster Defence Regiment. A regular regiment of the British army
recruited in Northern Ireland.
UFF Ulster Freedom Fighters. Another illegal Protestant paramilitary
faction; linked to the UDA.
UKU United Kingdom Unionists. Virtually a one-person Unionist Party,
sharing similar views to the DUP and led by Robert McCartney, MP for
North Down.
ULSTER One of Ireland's four provinces, often erroneously used by
Unionists and journalists as a synonym for Northern Ireland, thus
ignoring the counties of Cavan, Donegal and Monaghan which Ulster also
comprises.
UNIONISTS Those (predominantly Protestant) who wish to keep Northern
Ireland in union with the rest of the United Kingdom.
UUP Ulster Unionist Party. Founded in 1905 by Edward Carson, the UUP was
in power in Northern Ireland from 1921 until the dissolution of Stormont
in 1972. Known as the Official Unionists, the largest party in the North
is led by David Trimble, a key player in the peace process and now First
Minister in the Assembly.
UVF Ulster Volunteer Force. Yet another illegal Protestant paramilitary
organization, originally formed in 1912 to oppose any British plans to
impose a united Ireland on Northern Irish Protestants; banned in 1966
following its random sectarian murders of Catholics.
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