In searching for the next topic for Native American Heritage Month, I came across a reference to the importance of language to native speakers. That resonates with me, as years ago, I began learning Scottish Gaelic. With a daughter who did Scottish Highland Dance and played bagpipes and a son who played the fiddle, I […]
The Importance of Words Read More »
There’s a house nearby that has a TARDIS in the back garden. Have you ever wished you had a time machine? We could have used one last weekend as we traveled back into the past. Our move date looms on the horizon, and I am trying to gather as much information on the Celts as
Traveling through Time Read More »
On my recent foray into the ancient Celts in Hallstatt and Hallein, Austria, I discovered why these areas were so prominent in history. White gold, or salt, was found in those mountains over 7,000 years ago. Neolithic man mined salt up through the Stone Age using picks made of antlers. This mining process became easier
Last year, I dedicated each post in March to the Irish. With St. Patrick’s Day falling in the middle of the month, it seemed appropriate. Now, it seems almost a sacrilege to research the ancient Celtic people in Bohemia rather than those in Ireland this month. But is it? For over a thousand years, the
Searching for Celts Read More »
Whether you celebrate Imbolc, St. Brigid’s Day, Candlemas, Groundhog’s Day, or all of them, the beginning of February is a busy time on the calendar. So where did these all originate? I’ll start with the easy one; Groundhog’s Day. This celebration began in the United States in 1887. It seems to have nothing to do
Several years ago, I took part in the National Geographic Genome Project. This study tracked migrations using DNA samples to compare to indigenous populations. Unlike the genealogical sites that compare submitted data to DNA, this looks at your ethnicity, not individual family members, and compares it to those populations. It was fun to participate and
Have you ever attended a local fall festival? This week marks Lughnasadh, the fourth of the ancient Celtic quarter festivals celebrating the year’s passing. Ancient cultures divided the world into light and dark: day/night, summer/winter, sun/moon, and so on. It helped them understand life and the natural world around them. They began the year with
Celebrating Lughnasadh Read More »