Study into how Irish heritage has shaped lives
ANEW research project that is being carried out in Yorkshire asks its participants a key question: “How has your Irish heritage shaped you, your values and lifestyle?” LISA – Leeds Irish Centre Archive Aural Research Project – is the brainchild of Leeds-Irish historian Bernard McGrath and Christine Byrne, archivist for the Leeds Irish Centre.
Tonight, the pair are launching the pilot study at the centre and want to hear from Irish-born people or descendants who settled in Yorkshire.
“We hope to bring people of Irish ancestry together,” says Christine, of Mayo heritage.
"We want to hear from anyone who migrated here over the past decades to their second, third and fourth generation descendants.”
Bernard, whose family hail from Cavan, added: “We want to record their experiences from how they felt arriving here to what they feel about Irish culture now.
“We think the experiences and thoughts of older migrants compared to those who came after 2000 will be very different and we want to get them on record – either in writing, on film or taping them.
“It is important historically and culturally to get our people’s history recorded so people in future generations can read and understand what their ancestors gave up – their homelands – to survive and prosper.
“Plus, it will be interesting to see how each generation has helped shape the region and put our heritage in context.”
Bernard says Ireland has transformed itself over the past 30 to 40 years into a modern, forward-thinking country and is a very different place compared to the homeland which many senior citizens left.
He says: “How do they correlate? Is there a pre-Celtic Tiger cultural difference between the new and the old Ireland?
“The project will be a snapshot of Irish identity in its many forms. It will be interesting to see if the Irish in Britain think the same or differently than the Irish in Ireland, whatever the generation they are from and how they think the community will be in, say, 30 years’ time.”
Leeds Irish Centre boasts a membership of 1,150 people, offering four function suites, a private members bar and a sports field with changing and showering facilities.
It opened in 1970 after the project began in 1968, backed by brewery Joshua Tetley & Son.
People then travelled from all over Yorkshire and Lancashire to visit the centre and today it works with Irish cultural groups including the Leeds branch of Comhaltas and the Gaelic Athletic Association.
Bernard and Christine want as many people as possible to attend the launch meeting tonight at 6.30pm, when they will explain how the project will work.
Anyone interested is welcome to attend the meeting at the centre on York Road, Leeds, or contact Bernard and Christine on lisaleedsirishcentre@gmail.com