I saw a documentary about the Celts and it was long and detailed but it concluded that looking at the DNA tests, the cultures and things such as artefacts, the Irish have little in common with the Celts. Dont shoot me I'm as suprised as you all are!!!
Some of my extended family have Irish blood in them so I'm just curious.
2006-10-14 23:44:48 · 14 answers · asked by vaivagabundo 5 in Society & Culture ➔ Other - Society & Culture
the programme concluded that the people in Ireland and Britain thought to be of Celtic ancestry are really native Irish and native Britons.
2006-10-14 23:56:55 · update #1
The culture of the aboriginal Irish was transformed by the arrival of Celtic culture from continental Europe between 600 BC and 150 BC. Despite assertions to the contrary, only a small number of Celts may have ever settled in Ireland. Irish insular culture therefore may have developed as a result of cultural exchange with the Celtic groups that did settle, those on mainland Europe, the peoples of Britain and the native Irish.
One legend states that the Irish were descended from Míl Espáine, a king from Spain. The character is almost certainly a mere personification of a supposed migration by a group or groups from Hispania to Ireland, but it is supported by the fact that the Celtiberian language is more closely related to Insular Celtic than to any other.
2006-10-14 23:50:15 · answer #1 · answered by ? 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Well the thing is that the history of Europe is complicated - people moved about - intermarried etc.
Also the celtic people where not a unified group. At the time when the celts lived in britain and europe there were about halfa million people in the whole of the uk, they lived in little tribes - didnot really get on and fought a lot.
There was some celtic unification when the romans came but britain and ireland have always been quite a mongral breed. We spent most of our history getting invaded, ganging up with different groups against other groups.
So there are celtic blood about mixed in with other blod lines out there.
2006-10-14 23:51:23 · answer #2 · answered by Bebe 4 · 4⤊ 0⤋
There is no evidence of an invasion of Ireland by the celts. No signs of war, no caches of armour, nothing. This is also similar in Britain, when the country was "Anglo-Saxonised". So the theory that Ireland was invaded by a different group of people has some huge problems with it. It seems to be more like a cultural invasion, where ideas and customs and language changed, than an invasion in a real sense.
2006-10-17 05:24:27 · answer #3 · answered by Woodpigeon 4 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Irish are from a Celtic origin. The thing with the Celts is that they moved and changed so often that the original Celts don't match up much with any race. From wars, movement, and invasions over time they ended up a bunch of new races. It's complicated. The Celts were also very secretive so it's hard to tell what else they were up to...
2006-10-14 23:52:02 · answer #4 · answered by Belly 2 · 1⤊ 2⤋
What do you call Celts?
The majority of Scots come from Irish settlers who left Ireland centuries ago, do you call them Celts, if so then why doubt the Irish.
Do you call the Welsh Celts, a lot of the Irish that went to Scotland were decended from Welsh settlers from centuries before they moved to Scotland.
Do you call the Cornish Celts?
2006-10-14 23:50:20 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
I don't know if Irish were originally Celts, I am Irish myself but wouldn't be surprised about a germanic ancestry.
I don't have any link here, but I read about a mumified family of Celts found in some desert in China, they have red hair and are wearing kilts. If true it suggests prehistoric peoples travelled more widely than we give them credit for
2006-10-14 23:53:36 · answer #6 · answered by angle_of_deat_69 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Only the true Northern settlers are Celts they imigrated there long before King James settled all the english Cathlic to the south & started calling them Irish & trys to make the Celt which religion, why else do ya think their still fightin.
2006-10-14 23:53:40 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 3⤋
Ireland was invaded...I believe the original celts were from Greece. The blue eyed, curly red/blonde irish looks decend from the Vikking invaders. I am Irish...with black hair and brown eyes...no blue eyes among my siblings. It is not the wide gene pool like the English...who could be anything.
2006-10-14 23:55:12 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 3⤋
Oh thats interesting. I was just wondering if the Irish were Celtic or not. Are they not scandinavian or something else?
2006-10-14 23:47:55 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Perhaps their blood remained the same, but they adopted cultural things from their Celtic neighbors.
2006-10-15 01:31:07 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋