On April 27, Friends From Afar welcomed its third guest, Therese Healy, the General Consul of Ireland in Shanghai. During her short stay in our city, she was invited by the library to share Irish culture with the audience.
After a general introduction of the country, Irish English, the national character of Irish, the aspects Irish and Chinese share in common as well as the differences we have were particularly brought to discussion during the event.
Different from British and American English universally known to us, Irish English shows its features in terms of often-used words, expressions as well as the logic, most of which are influenced by Gaeilge, the Irish language. “Craic” is a word frequently used in Ireland, especially when Irish people talk about a party. “Good craic”, “Mighty craic”, “Savage craic”, “Deadly craic” refer to different degrees of how good the atmosphere is of the party. “Grand” is another often-used word in the circumstances when Irish is asked “how are you”, which means just so so.
“Sociable” is the word Therese Healy used to describe the general character of Irish people. “We are very open and we like to connect with people”, She said. She also shared the Kiss the Blarney Stone legend, the stone of which could make people become eloquent and persuasive, and she joked “most Irish people don’t need to kiss that stone. We already are.”
When asked about how Irish people regard life and death, Therese Healy said they held a different view from most Chinese have. “Life and death are the two sides of a coin. When somebody die, we also celebrate life. It is important to recognize how valuable they were and how a big part of the community they belonged to.”
Friends From Afar is a newly cross-culture series of interviews conducted by International Exchange & Research Department of Hangzhou Public Library. Please stay tuned for the next to come!
