OT: How many of us aren't Irish?

scottadm · Post by **scottadm** » Wed Sep 24, 2003 3:13 pm

I have a great, great, great grandmother that was from Ireland. Other than that it is mostly English and German.

cj · Post by cj » Wed Sep 24, 2003 4:09 pm

A little Irish ancestry, though mostly English and Welsh. But my family's been in American since at least the mid-1800s, so I'm not sure. Just mutts!

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Sep 24, 2003 4:16 pm

skh wrote:Not a single drop of Irish blood, though I'm a general middle european mixture from the parts of Germany that once were Danish, or now are Poland or Russia, and the Celts wandered through a long time ago.

Sonja

Well geewhiz, what does it matter?

Anyway the island is connected to the rest of the planet by land eventhough most of that is covered with water.

So in a way we all are Irish or Earthish -

I think from the other replies that a lot of Earthlings have similar genetic memories - I was very moved by the person who could not explain their attraction to Irtrad on TW - funny thing neither can I nor anyother person I ever asked about it.

Like the Blues slide guitar or BG Banjo - it sticks in a persons memory.

I do think though that people with celtic connections are more likely to play Irtrad/Thiertrad than noncelts. Now that said I know there will be millions of people about to say 'ahbut'; Ok that too, I also think some folks have ancestors they don't know about and perhaps it would be better as well.

I did read though - in the Bible or Torah if you happen to read that - that we are descended from the same persons. So none of this makes a bit of sense to me who happens to love Tejano and Chinese Folkmusic...

I am neither Chinese nor Latina!

Confused yet?

You should be - most days I have to plan breakfast before I attempt to toast the bread!

lixnaw · Post by **lixnaw** » Wed Sep 24, 2003 4:26 pm

toasty wrote:
skh wrote:Not a single drop of Irish blood, though I'm a general middle european mixture from the parts of Germany that once were Danish, or now are Poland or Russia, and the Celts wandered through a long time ago.

Sonja

So in a way we all are Irish or Earthish -

wrong, we all belong to the universe, so we're all aliens :roll:

TelegramSam · Post by **TelegramSam** » Wed Sep 24, 2003 4:54 pm

I remember reading somewhere that geneticists can trace all of humanity back to a single mother. I also read that everyone living today who is of even partial European descent can trace their lineage in one path or another back to one or more of Charlemagne's children.

They haven't figured out who the father is yet though

Anyhow, considering that there's less than a 2% difference between me and a chimpanzee, it's safe to say there's even less difference between me and all the other humans on this planet. It really just boils down the fact that we're all part of just one large extended family. Remember that next time you feel like shooting someone for cutting you off in traffic...

lixnaw · Post by **lixnaw** » Wed Sep 24, 2003 5:19 pm

every living thing carry's one and the same cell. that's why nothing can be bad all the way, and we are all related.
but we carry more genetics from our parents then from our ancestors 10 generations back. our kids resemble us more then they do napoleon. we can be proud of our parents, but to me it doesn't matter to let anyone know what i'm proud of. it's the graditute we carry inside us for them. don't take it for granted.

so this topic has a point.

brianormond · Post by **brianormond** » Wed Sep 24, 2003 6:27 pm

-Sandalous!

TelegramSam · Post by **TelegramSam** » Wed Sep 24, 2003 6:29 pm

actually prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells are quite different. You are right that the basic cellular structure of all multicellular organisms are essentially the same though, as all multicellular organisms are composed of eukaryotic cells.

And also, the net genetic pool is essentially the same as 10 generations ago, it's just all the genes have been switched around in different mixes. That's why you resemble mom and pop and not napoleon.

And, in truth, I personally resemble one of my great grandmothers in apperance far more than any of my parents or grandparents, so even that's not a given.

Damn, I spend too much time studying...

Jerry Freeman · Post by **Jerry Freeman** » Wed Sep 24, 2003 6:44 pm

TelegramSam wrote:Damn, I spend too much time studying...

Somebody's gotta do it, Sam.

That's one of the things I like about this place. You can ask just about any question and get a knowledgeable answer.

Best wishes,
Jerry

DCrom · Post by **DCrom** » Wed Sep 24, 2003 7:08 pm

Jerry Freeman wrote:
TelegramSam wrote:Damn, I spend too much time studying...
Somebody's gotta do it, Sam.

That's one of the things I like about this place. You can ask just about any question and get a knowledgeable answer.

Best wishes,
Jerry

Naw . . . You can ask just about any question and get a knowledgeable-SOUNDING answer.

No offense to Sam - I have no reason to doubt he knows what he's talking about. Not so sure about the rest of us, though.

Jerry Freeman · Post by **Jerry Freeman** » Wed Sep 24, 2003 7:15 pm

(she) Sam, you're confusing people again.

I suppose it doesn't make any difference, as long as I end up thinking my question's been answered. It's all about feeling good, right?

Best wishes,
Jerry

kabili · Post by **kabili** » Wed Sep 24, 2003 7:25 pm

i think sam is along the right lines: when it comes down to the DNA, you can't even tell one "race" from another, much less scots from danes.

i think people's interest in their ancestry is really just a reason to learn more about a specific sub-culture, rather than studying all of them, because studying every culture would be overwhelming. they're all interesting, but it's nice to feel as if you have a connection to one.

Grundz · Post by **Grundz** » Wed Sep 24, 2003 7:41 pm

TelegramSam wrote:Anyhow, considering that there's less than a 2% difference between me and a chimpanzee, it's safe to say there's even less difference between me and all the other humans on this planet. It really just boils down the fact that we're all part of just one large extended family. Remember that next time you feel like shooting someone for cutting you off in traffic...

And there's only a 3& DNA difference between us and Cabbages

I think Douiglas Adams summed up this argument best though, when he wrote "The Restaraunt at the End of the Universe":

It is known that there are an infinite number of worlds, simply because there is an infinite amount of space for them to be in. However, not every one of them is inhabited. Therefore, there must be a finite number of inhabited worlds. Any finite number divided by infinity is as near to nothing as makes no odds, so the average population of all the planets in the Universe can be said to be zero. From this it follows that the population of the whole Universe is also zero, and that any people you may meet from time to time are merely the products of a deranged imagination.

So there are no Irish, English, Australians, Aliens, etc, we're all just imaginary

But until that can be proven, I'm a Scottish, Irish, Cornish Pole with an Australian upbringing

DCrom · Post by **DCrom** » Wed Sep 24, 2003 8:03 pm

kabili wrote:i think sam is along the right lines: when it comes down to the DNA, you can't even tell one "race" from another, much less scots from danes.

i think people's interest in their ancestry is really just a reason to learn more about a specific sub-culture, rather than studying all of them, because studying every culture would be overwhelming. they're all interesting, but it's nice to feel as if you have a connection to one.

You've hit an interest of mine (I used to spend a lot of time on the old soc.couples.intercultural newsgroup before it became a haven for spam, flames, and more spam).

One of the factoids that amused me is that one genetic survey found that there was far more difference, genetically, between east and west Africa, than there was between west Africa and . . . Norway.

It also appears that there is far more genetic variation within most "races" than between them.

I suspect you're right about folk's interest in their ancestry being a way to narrow down the possibilities to a managable size. Being a mutt, I did it the other way - I got interested in things Irish because of the music. Ditto for England - folk music and literature got me going there. I suppose that I could try to justify both with "ancestry", but it's really just interest and accessibility.

I'm interested in things Chinese, but even with a Chinese-literate spouse I know my knowlege there is unlikely to get past the superficial. (Even more superficial than my knowlege of things Irish and English, I mean). I have developed an in-depth appreciation of Chinese food, though

TelegramSam · Post by **TelegramSam** » Wed Sep 24, 2003 8:26 pm

My point is that when you sit down on the bus in the morning, The person next to you really is your brother or sister. I think if people thought about this more, the world would be a lot safer place. As it stands, people make entirely too big a deal out of race. It's totally irrelevant really. You're a human being. That means as a human being, your heritage includes everything from pinatas to the pyramids, it doesn't matter where you "come from" at all. I don't have to be Irish to be legitimately interested in tin whistles any more than I have to be Japanese to be entitled to liking sushi.

Chiff and Fipple Forums

OT: How many of us aren't Irish?

Are you Irish or do you have some Irish ancestors?