Part00 - Part01 - Part02 - Part03 - Part04 - Part05 - Part06 - Part07 - Part08 - Part09

Irish FAQ: Introduction [0/10]

Newsgroups: soc.culture.irish,soc.answers,news.answers
From: irish-faq@salmon.muc.de (Irish FAQ Maintainer)
Subject: Irish FAQ: Introduction [0/10]
Followup-To: soc.culture.irish
Supersedes: <cultures/irish-faq/part09_866059107@salmon.muc.de>
Sender: cpm@salmon.muc.de (Christian Murphy)
Expires: Tue, 5 Aug 1997 02:00:01 GMT
Organization: private site in Munich, Germany
Message-ID: <cultures/irish-faq/part00_868154401@salmon.muc.de>
Date: Sun, 6 Jul 1997 02:00:01 GMT
Summary: information of interest to people who read soc.culture.irish

Archive-name: cultures/irish-faq/part00
Last-modified: 16 Jun 97
Posting-Frequency: monthly
URL: http://www.muc.de/~cpm/irish-faq/

Part zero of ten.


FAQ = Frequently Asked Questions

[ A table of contents follows the introduction.  If you are not already
reading this on the web, you can find a nicely formatted version of this
FAQ at http://www.muc.de/~cpm/irish-faq/part00.html ]

This document summarises answers to some questions that are asked a
lot on soc.culture.irish.  (It also contains answers to questions that
are not asked very frequently, but are thought to be useful anyway.)
The answers come from a lot of people who have volunteered their time
to write them at various times and places.  Originally, this document
was part of the soc.culture.celtic FAQ (maintained by Craig Cockburn,
then by Godfrey Nolan, who wrote most of the Irish part, but now not
kept up to date).  Now this FAQ covers soc.culture.irish, though a lot
of the original answers are still present, almost unchanged.

The answers here are not _the_ answers to your questions.  No article
posted to a soc.* newsgroup can ever contain _the_ answers if the
questions are interesting.  However, the answers should be as fair
and accurate possible without being bland or burdensome.  Please send
comments and corrections to the the maintainer.

Currently, the maintainer is me, Christian Murphy <cpm@muc.de>, but I
prefer if you send FAQ related messages to <irish-faq@salmon.muc.de>.
If you have a question that is not answered in the FAQ, it is a much
better idea to ask in soc.culture.irish than to ask me personally.  I am
not an expert in things Irish, just the guy who edits and posts the FAQ.
The newsgroup is also the right place to discuss controversial questions.

Craig Cockburn is thinking of reviving the soc.culture.celtic FAQ
(which is still worth a look, even in its present unmaintained state).
Craig now has a FAQ for soc.culture.scottish that may also be of interest.

Accented characters (fadas) are represented using the ISO-8859-1 character
set, which can be used to represent all western European languages.
Some newsfeeds may chop the top bit, leaving accented characters mangled.
If this happens, ask your news provider for an "8-bit clean feed" (and
we're not talking about a feed of drink here!).  Slashes for accents
are ugly and unnecessary.

Again, please let me know if you find any inaccuracies in the FAQ!
I cannot check everything and some things are bound to get out of date.
The FAQ is corrected and updated fairly regularly, usually at least
every month.  If you are reading a version that is more than a couple of
months old, it may be worth getting the current version.

I'd like to thank the following people, who have
contributed to the health and well-being of the FAQ by sending
comments/suggestions/updates/corrections/additions or posting interesting
information to soc.culture.irish.


Aidan Hollinshead <aidanh@iol.ie>
Áine McManus <Aine.McManus@maths.anu.edu.au>
Bart Connolly <beacon@cyberia.ie>
Brendan Lawlor <lawlor@lts.sel.alcatel.de>
Dave Westland <D.Westland@axion.bt.co.uk>
Donal Mac Craith <DMaccraith@aol.com>
Fiona C Hyland <fch2@cornell.edu>
Gerard Cunningham
Godfrey Nolan <godfrey@iol.ie>
Ivan Harrow <Ivan.Harrow@analog.com>
Jeanne Cruden <jcruden@gpu.srv.ualberta.ca>
Joe Bernstein <joe@sfbooks.com>
Markie Becker <eeimbr@eei.ericsson.se>
Paul Linehan <linehan@indigo.ie>
Peter Muldoon <peter.muldoon@mb2.tu-chemnitz.de>
Richard Logue <rlogue@donore.compulink.co.uk>
Richard Marsh <legends@indigo.ie>
Robin Popplestone <pop@cs.umass.edu>
Sean V. Kelley <skelley@primenet.com>
Steve McKinty smckinty@sunicnc.France.Sun.COM
Timothy Murphy <tim@maths.tcd.ie> [ no relation! ]


[ Obviously they do not all necessarily endorse the whole of this FAQ. ]


My thanks also to others who contributed but did not want to be named
and anyone I forgot to credit (please let me know!).

( I keep a list of addresses that are not much use at
 http://www.muc.de/~cpm/list.html )


Contents

Part 1: Basics

1) What is the newsgroup "soc.culture.irish" about?
2) Where is the Irish culture?
3) I found a lot of nastiness here.  Are real Irish people like that?
4) Could you please send me the Irish FAQ?
5) What is netiquette?
6) What is a troll?  What should I do when I see one?
7) What are the basics I should know about Ireland?
8) What are the basics about the Republic?
9) What are the political parties and institutions in the Republic?


Part 2: Tourism and the Web

1) How can I contact the Irish Tourist Board?
2) How can I contact the Northern Ireland Tourist Board?
3) How can I contact hostels in Ireland?
4) What festivals are worth visiting?
5) Can I visit Ireland on the web?


Part 3: The Irish Language

1) What kind of language is Irish?
2) Tell me about introductory Courses to the Irish language.
3) Where can I learn Irish abroad?
3) What summer courses in Irish Gaelic are there?
4) Do you know of any Irish language Cassette tapes?
5) What bookstores in the States have Irish books?
6) What is the name of the pin worn by fluent Irish speakers?
7) Where can I find computer terms in Irish?
8) Are there any Irish speakers on-line?


Part 4: Politics

1) What should I call it?
2) What should I call them?
3) Doesn't the Irish constitution lay claim to Northern Ireland?
4) What's special about elections in the Republic?
5) What are the political parties in Northern Ireland?
6) Isn't contraception illegal in the Republic?
7) What about D.I.V.O.R.C.E. ?
8) Can anybody explain the abortion referendum?
9) Wasn't homosexuality banned in Ireland?


Part 5: History

1) Why is Ireland divided?
2) How did the "Troubles" in Northern Ireland start?
3) What books are there on Irish history?
4) Chronological list of dates from Irish History


Part 6: The Famine

1) Why is it important?
2) Why is it controversial?
3) What happened?
4) Why did so many people die?
5) Was the Famine genocide?
6) Any references?
7) Where can I find the opposing point of view?


Part 7: Cuisine (Recipes)

1) Corned Beef & Cabbage
2) Colcannon
3) Irish Soda Bread
4) Shortbread
5) Boxty
6) Potato Cakes


Part 8: Miscellaneous

1) I'm considering looking for a job in Ireland.  Any hints?
2) Where can I get information about moving back to Ireland?
3) How do I apply for Irish citizenship?
4) I'm in the States: which Irish embassy or consulate should I contact?
5) I'm an American student: can I get a working visa?
6) I'm looking for XXX from Ireland: how can I reach him/her?
7) Who are the black Irish and the shanty Irish?
8) Who are the Scotch-Irish?
9) What are Claddagh rings?


Part 9: Irish Names

1) Does anyone have a list of Irish names?
2) How do you pronounce that?
3) Are there any books of Irish names?
4) I'm looking for information about a family name: where does it comes


Part 10: Glossary

1) Geography
2) Irish Language
3) Irish Politics
4) NI Politics
5) NI Paramilitaries
6) Government
7) Semi-State Bodies
8) Taxation & Spending
9) Other Bodies