The People's Republic of Cork

So when Ky and I were traveling a year ago, almost to the day, we pretty much circled the Republic of Ireland. Cork was our third city and one of the things that entertained both Ky and myself the most about Cork was the fact that they had t-shirts for sale promoting the "peoples republic of Cork". I don't know what Ky thought, but I thought that they were way cool - trendy almost. What I did not realise was how important this motto was to the actual people of Cork... I began to learn a little about it as I read my book, Rebels of Ireland; I started to understand the drive for home rule* (they didn't have home rule from the 12th-20th centuries) and the passion Cork people had for Ireland (and somehow Cork) as its own republic.

Since moving here I have learned much more about Cork - not nearly enough, though. I have learned that Cork has one of the most distinct accents - probably the first one that outsiders (like meself) are able to distinguish: they say things like, "Cark" and "tis a grand soft day, to be sure, to be sure" and are VERY proud to be Cork people! And (I don't mean this to be disrespectful at all) it seems like "Cork People" are a step removed from the rest of the Republic of Ireland - not nearly as much as Dubliners are, though. They are their own special (in a good way) brand of people!

At the moment, I am reading a book partially set in West Cork and I am learning about some of this Republican/IRA mentality - some of its motivations and some of its reactions to political scenarios and some of its paranoias and some of its proactivity. I am by no means an expert, BUT... I am attempting to grasp the concept of Cork People. It helps that one of my best friends here in Eire is from Cork, so I get some insight from her... but it wasn't until tonight when she brought a friend from home over to visit that I got a glimpse of what Cork - the REAL Cork - must be like, for some people at least.

This friend is a really great guy: passionate, political, real. and boy, is he passionate about Ireland! He's grown up with stories about his grandfather in the early 20th century, fighting for Ireland, for home rule and against the Union with England, and it is real to him - more real than I personally can ever imagine. He is the first Irishman I have met since being here who absolutely ADORES his nation and the struggles of his grandfather are palpable when he speaks of them. In the Celtic Tiger generation, where, because of its recent (and first) economic boom, the young people are pretty far removed from the trauma and suffering the Irish people have faced, this young man stands with pride in his nation and does not forget a past that wasn't so long ago.

I was impressed with him, with his fire and conviction. It was nice to meet an Irishman in real life like the ones I see in books... thought I'd share. :)

* mini-history lesson, the basics:
800 yrs ago, Ireland was invaded by the Normans;
400 yrs ago, they were invaded by the British via Cromwell;
1798, Wolf Tone and the United Irishmen united with France in an attempt to fight for home rule and lost (long story);
1800, Ireland became part of the United Kingdom and lost the Irish parliament;
1916, Easter Rebellion, where a few Irish Republicans attempted to gain control of Dublin and lost;
1916, the British reaction to the Easter Rising was overzealous and ultimately resulted in a nationwide anti-British rebellion involving guerilla warfare;
1921, Michael Collins signed the Anglo-Irish treaty which gave Ireland home rule over 26 counties and keeping 6 counties in the North of Ireland under British rule;
1922-23, Irish Civil War against the treaty, fighting for a United Ireland
Most of the rest of the 20th century involved guerilla warfare and animosity over the lost counties.