Community Chat

[Oznell]

Oh, another fun folktale I forgot to tell about it, is, that at one point in time the castle's kitchen fell into the sea!   Hope not with the cook in it!

Edited to add--  Oh, agreed, @BlueFinch --  can't imagine the difficulties of building it, perched as it is on its basalt cliff on the sea....

[grandma r]

@Oznell. The setting is breathtaking.   The virtual reconstruction is beautiful.   It always amazes me to see what is still standing after all of this time.  

Thanks for sharing.

[Kalli]

My fil built many houses to supplement his regular income and feed his family.  He used to say if you build your house on the top of a hill, you'll love the view but you'll hate the wind.  Looking at this castle makes me think of that.

My family has the McDonald name in our ancestry.  I wonder if McDonald and McDonnell were once one and the same family?

Lovely picture, btw. 

[Oznell]

Kalli,  good question,  the names share the same root, but over time, the Irish form came to be more likely "McDonnell",  and the Scottish, "MacDonald".   Yet, there's cross-pollination, and you can find both names, in both countries.

Since both names go back, in the mists of time, to the same root, you could very well claim a connection to the castle!

[MoJoV]

@Oznell When I saw the title of the thread, before I saw the author's name I thought...I bet that's an Oznell thread. Bingo!!  Always something great from you.  Lovely.

[Kalli]

@Oznell funny you should say that.  My grandfather would roll over in his grave if he heard that there was a possibility his last name originated in Scotland instead of Ireland!  I'm laughing just thinking of seeing his reaction! He was a bit opinionated and fiercely loyal to Ireland. When Grandpa first met my dad, he told my dad that he (my dad) wasn't really Irish because my dad's last name started with Mac instead of Mc. Grandpa was proud of the "Mc" in his name.  Our roots are from Ireland and Grandpa never viewed the Scots as being friends of the Irish. 

Oh, well, great memory of my grandfather! And thanks for all the info. I had forgotten all about that story my dad told of meeting his soon to be fil for the first time. To hear my dad tell it, Grandpa was NOT impressed at all especially due to this Mac/Mc thing. Grandpa did not want his daughter dating some dude with relatives in Scotland! haha!

Obviously my dad won Mom's heart, married her and they did name one of my brothers after Grandpa, which softened him up a bit.  But of course, for a long time Grandpa viewed my dad as the one who stole away his only daughter. I sure miss my parents and grandparents. But this was always such a funny family story. Everytime my dad told it we'd all laugh, including my mom.  

[on the bay]

@Kalli,

I just read your post and this is funny to me too because my grandmother was just the opposite of your grandfather! She never wanted to think of herself as having anything to do with any Irish anything; (her husband was Irish) but she came from a Scottish background. She didn't like the Irish probably because she didn't like her husband lol! Anyway, it's funny isn't it?

[Oznell]

What a kind thing to say, @MoJoV --  thank you.

Oh, yes, @Kalli ,  and @on the bay ,  thank you, great points!  Feelings can "run high" over there.  Love your family stories.  

The traditional rivalries between Scot and Irish, Ulster and the Republic, Protestant and Catholic,  certainly are part of the historical mix.

I find all the Celtic lands--  Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and little corners like Cornwall, the Isle of Man, and Brittany in France--  all so interesting.   

[Duckncover]

The first picture is wonderful...it has haunting presence. Somehow, the other renderings lose the history and mahpgic of the original photo, showing the castle in its actual state.

[Kalli]

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@on the bay wrote:

@Kalli,

I just read your post and this is funny to me too because my grandmother was just the opposite of your grandfather! She never wanted to think of herself as having anything to do with any Irish anything; (her husband was Irish) but she came from a Scottish background. She didn't like the Irish probably because she didn't like her husband lol! Anyway, it's funny isn't it?

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@on the bay , that IS funny!  It's also interesting that many of our ancestors were still so connected to and proud of their nationalities. 

My family finally found out why my dad's very Irish name started with "Mac" instead of "Mc".  Turns out it was originally Mc and my Dad's father changed it because one of his siblings had a bad reputation and he decided to separate himself from any connection to that person.  There's more to this story but I'll leave it at that.