If you're Irish come into the Parlour or Céad Míle Fáilte

O'BRIEN CREST

On this years St Patrick's Day as I was doing a myriad of chores around the farm, I began thinking about my own Irish background, our O'Brien family and what it means to be a Celtic Kiwi. Our family have always been very proud of our O'Brien name " Gaelic spelling is "Ua Briain " The name derives from the tenth century King of Ireland Brian Boru, High King of Ireland who was killed at the Battle of Clontarf  at Easter in the year 1014. Our Motto "Lamh laidir an Uachtar" means "The Strong Hand Uppermost" (Spelling) It should be "Lámh Láidir in Uachtar" (Pronounced) Low (rhymes with "cow") LAW-jir un OO-ukh-tur and some dialects would say that first word "lahv". I was named after Brian Boru but my middle name is "Roderick or Ruari" because my Mother insisted on having a Scottish link as she was born in Selkirk, Scotland.

Our Tribal name is Dál gCais ( or Dalcassian in the English) and there were a number of Septs, the largest of which were based in Counties Clare, Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford. It is in these Counties that the majority of our ancestors and their descendants can still be found. There is great excitement in the O'Brien Clan as there are going to be a number of Millennium celebrations associated with Brian Boru in 2014 and we have been invited to a number of these. A large Lotto win would help our cause and enable Lyn and I to attend!

The renaissance of Maori traditions in New Zealand over the past decade or so is interesting as many folk are keen to nominate their tribal affiliations (except when they are in a criminal court apparently) and I am always pleased to associate myself with the Dalcassian tribe, just to keep the balance.

Some years ago I became interested in family Genealogy and joined an online Virtual University for a couple of semesters. Our class had 8400 students and I still communicate with a couple even after 15 years. I was helped along the way in 1996 when an elderly relative, previously unknown to me, was contacted and to my delight he presented me with all his research on our O'Brien family from the late 1800s. My search began in earnest!

Grandad & Dad

My NZ O'Brien connection, Great Grandfather Andrew Patrick O'Brien came from Waterford and although he stated he was a passenger on a ship, we believe he actually was a crew member who deserted in Foxton and then made his way to New Plymouth where he met my Grandmother. She was a young 18 year old immigrant from the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire and they married soon after. I was thrilled and delighted to find that Andrew Patrick O'Brien joined the Armed Constabulary (the forerunner of the NZ Police Force) and was enlisted as a groom and he stated that he had been a member of the Irish Dragoons in Ireland. I was disappointed to then read that he was dismissed after 6 months for punching an Officer! Further research found him appearing in court for fighting in Hawera in the Taranaki District where the family lived. He eventually deserted the family leaving my Great Grandmother Adeline with 7 young children to care for and after numerous brushes with the law, he then headed for the South Island. My Father told me that he used to travel around the South Island and competed at bare knuckle fighting events at 2/6 per tournament which wasn't what you would call a real job and he also lived on the West Coast where he worked as a labourer. He lived in a crib or bach and owned a section of land, but I haven't been able to find where it was and I believe overdue rates could be an issue. He died on 20th December 1934 in Dunedin after living with the Little Sisters of the Poor organisation.

My O'Brien research came to a grinding halt when I found details of Andrew's parents. His Father was named Patrick O'Brien and you can imagine how many Patrick O'Briens there were in Ireland to be investigated. I thought I was onto a winner when I found his Mother's name was Bridget Kent, but once again the name Bridget is very common in Ireland, so until I can find exactly where they came from in Waterford (or perhaps even another county) I am stuck. I often get emails from the USA and these are headed " Dear Cousin etc" and the correspondent is usually looking for a Patrick O'Brien connection. We have always been very proud of our O'Brien name and our Irish links and it hasn't been too difficult to learn the songs and read the history.

Uilleann pipes are still a favourite musical instrument along with the bodhrán and a favourite piper is Brian O'Brien playing "Caoineadh Cu Chulainn"  (pronounced Kweena Coo Hulling’ or Kweena Koo Kulling, depending on your district) It was written by the same musician Mike Whelan from Riverdance and is a haunting lament. You can Google this for a youtube video of him playing http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LLB4LRQ3Jk

I guess things were very tough in New Zealand in the late 1800s with a financial depression, no Social welfare and just the fact that each day was a struggle for ordinary immigrants looking for work. My O'Brien Family obviously had a very tough life, but I have documented some fantastic stories from my NZ O'Brien family over the decades and this has ensured further unabated enthusiasm for my future family research.

Hermione in drydock

My heart sank when I first started looking for my Adeline's family roots as she was a JONES from the Forest of Dean on the Welsh border, but I have had incredible luck and we now have a huge pile of records and data of my Jones Family, some of them Itinerant Tinsmiths who moved around the Gloucester region in England and Wales. Adeline & Andrew were both supposed to have emigrated on the Hermione, but I can only find reference to her as I am convinced he deserted another ship where he was a crew member. (Yet to be proven either way)

Over the years I have had to defend many of the happenings in Ireland becuase of my  O'Brien name, especially with the IRA and the Troubles and I am thankful that none of my family to my knowledge have ever been involved in this awful situation that still simmers away even after the Easter Accords. I know my Father had very strong Republican feelings, but he was from an earlier generation and no doubt been schooled by his Father on which side to support. He told me that he once was asked to take an elderly gentleman with a "gammy leg" to the Auckland CPO to collect his British pension. As they arrived at the Post office, Dad enquired as to which Regiment this chap had served in. "The Black & Tans" he proudly announced. Dad left him standing on the steps and drove away!

For a number of years I was corresponding with a Canadian Brian O'Brien who had started up a world wide database of Brian O'Briens. He said that until the age of 15 years he thought he was the only one, but his database in the 1980s had reached 350 and that was before the Internet. I have also emailed another Brian O'Brien in Cork and he was looking forward to attending the shortest St Patricks Parade in the world in Dripsey, Cork. The parade lasts just 100 yards and travels between the village's two pubs. (They alternate the start and finish each year)

Father  McGrath Headstone

My funniest personal O'Brien experience was when I was a 24 year old convert to Catholicism and about to be married in a Catholic church. When I was first introduced to my local Parish priest, the Reverend Father McGrath, who hailed from Tipperary, he said in his beautiful Irish brogue " Brian O'Brien? And what the hell are you coming to me for Instruction for!" We got on famously and he was a lovely man with a wonderful "Gift of the Gab" and co-incidently he is buried right next to my Mother at Waikumete Cemetry in Auckland. I remember the first night I attended pipe band practice as a teenager, when the Drum Major came to the door, introduced himself and enquired as to my name. When I told him Brian O'Brien, he looked at the green tie I was wearing and said" You must be Joking!" I believe these are called "assumptions" Needless to say it was a very proud drummer who became a life member of the band and who very proudly wore a kilt for more than 50 years. But that is another story!

A young Brian O'Brien
Drummer c1957

Our band performed at many parades and we always had a grand bracket of tunes (called the Irish Bracket!) which was always very popular. I have a number of videos of these parades and on many occasions pipe bands showed no originality and continued to play "Scotland the Brave" instead of "The Wearing of the Green" etc. I remember when we attended the 1st major St Pats parade in Auckland and we played non-stop from the beginning to the end and ONLY played Irish tunes. The Nuns loved it!

I hope you all enjoyed your St Patrick's Day, which seems to have grown substantially throughout the world over the years. I know we do.

Go here for a nice Irish Stew Recipe

http://svkitchen.com/?p=4697