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Benefits Of Irish Genealogy You Should Know

Genealogy in Ireland has long been disputed. There are several historical reasons for genealogy disputes among Irish populations. Under the Brehon Law, property rights did not lie with individuals or families in early Irish society but rather with a large group of kin, which included second cousins. Therefore, property rights were dependent on who you were related to.

However, even with these problems in record-keeping and lineage, people may be interested in tracing their Irish heritage. Here’s why

Why Tracing Your Irish Heritage is Beneficial?

Tracing your Irish heritage is beneficial for numerous reasons.

Connecting with Distant Relatives

Tracing your Irish genealogy can allow you to connect with relatives you’ve never known. That’s a great starting point for you to learn more about Irish culture and history too.

Learn and Validate Family History

Tracing your Irish heritage allows you to validate information about your family history. Oral family histories aren’t always accurate. However, tracing your Irish roots brings you one step closer to successfully validating your family’s history.

Citizenship

Descendants of Irish citizens can also apply for citizenship even if they weren’t born in Ireland based on lineage. However, the rule for citizenship by descent only extends up to your grandparents. This means that if an older ancestor was an Irish citizen, but your grandparents weren’t, you become ineligible for citizenship. You only require one grandparent to be an Irish citizen to apply through this method.

Attaining Irish citizenship has various benefits. Citizenship allows you to live, work, and vote in Ireland. Ireland is also a member of the European Union, which will enable you to work and live in any European Union member state. Irish citizens are also in an exclusive position where they’re the only nationality globally who can work in both the European Union and the UK without requiring a visa.

Difficulties Tracing Irish Heritage

Difficulties in tracing Irish heritage may arise. Religion played a pivotal part in Irish history, and records are often maintained separately based on the churches followed by families.

The History of Medieval Kilkenny City

For example, Roman Catholic registers date back to the late 1700s. However, if your ancestry originates from Protestant churches, you may find a switch in recordkeeping at the time of conversion.

A large number of records were also lost due to an explosion. Retrieving or restoring those records is impossible, and the information is lost forever.

If your research has gotten stuck, it may be time to contact a professional. If you’re looking to trace your Irish heritage, you can contact My Ireland Family Heritage.

My Ireland Family Heritage helps people trace their ancestors and learn about their lives. We have been serving people for the past 20 years in the fields of Irish genealogy and tourism. Contact them today to trace your family history.

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Customised Genealogy & Historical Tour

Review of My Ireland Heritage Tours Presented on Trip adviser Oct 2024 By • Family TomBarron2013 New York City, NY2

Once in a lifetime experience

Oct 2024 • Family

We highly recommend My Ireland Heritage for anyone who wants to learn and be guided to their Irish “roots” and much, much more. Sean Quinn and Ian Darragh of My Ireland Family Heritage have deep knowledge or the areas we wanted to visit in Meath, Sligo and Kilkenny. While we knew about one side of the family history back to 1690, there was nothing known about the other that arrived in the US in the 1870s.

Ian, Sean, and Nicola did thorough research on our localities and locations from which our ancestors left for America in 1849 and later. In addition, Ian and Sean did separate day-long “recons” in advance of our time with them, seeking out local people and the specific properties with maps and whatever records still available. Their results were absolutely outstanding! In both our cases, they found and took us to our still-existing cottages and shops from the early 1820s.

It was so enjoyable to be with Ian for three days and for a special day with Sean. Whether it was the Newgrange World Heritage sites 5,500 years old , the Battle of the Boyne 1690 , or the local cemeteries and churches of our ancestors. Ian was especially attentive to my wife throughout the travels after she twisted her ankle in a rain-soaked old cemetery.

Throughout the process of trip preparation over months to giving us the final, wonderful books of Meath and Sligo, Aisling was highly professional and responsive with all the many details. The bound books she prepared are treasures! Thanks to all for truly exceptional experiences.

Newgrange World Unesco Site 5500 years old
Battle of the Boyne 1690 AD
Customised Historical Tours Trim Castle
Entrance stone at Newgrange

Self Drive Product

Review of My Ireland Heritage Tours Presented on Trip adviser by Shelley L @ sjlively

Exceptional in every way!

Over the last few months of preparing for our trip, every single detail was meticulously attended, not only professionally, but helpfully, and in such a friendly manner, that I felt as if I knew Sean, Aisling and Ian before I even stepped off the plane.

The amount of work these wonderful people put into our personal history is mindboggling. My mother was an avid amateur genealogist, and had worked for decades to bring to light the trail our family took, but our resources are limited.

Sean knows exactly where to look, and was able to fill in so many gaps that had eluded us for generations. Some of the information he found, unbeknownst even to him, actually solidified the findings we had amassed over the years. Ours was a family in coal mining – I only found on our tour that they had originated from a mining area, and their arrival on the  border coincided exactly with the decline in the mining industry in County Wicklow.

I would have been overjoyed simply with the knowledge of why they left when they did, about 12 years before the famine. Breaking through our brick wall of great grandparents even farther back on the family tree was a dream come true, but to be able to set foot on not only the area they lived, and find that the house is still there was overwhelming. Seeing the family church and cemetery where our ancestors and extended family still rest is a truly moving experience.

The care taken by this company in each and every aspect of the journey cannot be overstated. Only about 2 weeks prior to my trip, Sean contacted me to let me know that he had also stumbled across some of my husband’s family name in the process and included them as well in his research. How often can anyone say that they not only got what they paid for, but more than they ever imagined? I can say that. They were even kind enough to answer a few follow-up questions after my return home, as I was so stunned on my tour with Ian that I didn’t think ask at the time.If you have the opportunity to make the trip to Ireland, contact My Ireland Family Heritage before you go.

If your family was there, Sean will go above and beyond to find them. Even without family, contact them anyway. Ian is a walking encyclopedia of history, and so fun to talk to. Aisling will make sure every “I” is dotted, and every “T” is crossed.  Thank you so much for the trip of a lifetime, and the opportunity to pass on everything we have discovered to future generations

The Consultation at Hotel / Office or by Phone opens all doors
Genealogy gets you off the Beaten Track to see the Real Ireland

Unique to Every Address with My Ireland Family Research