This week in the Lyric Feature, on Sunday 30th November at 6 pm on RTÉ lyric fm, poet Theo Dorgan is in Galicia.
As Theo explains below, the links – poetic, mythological, historical and cultural – go back thousands of years.
Galicia, on the northwest corner of Spain, is where the Milesians came from, the last settlers who took power in Ireland before the Normans came, according to An Leabhar Gabhála, The Book of Invasions. The Galicians are not considered as among the Celtic nations in modern times because theirs is not a living Celtic language. Nevertheless the region contains abundant archaeological evidence of a common culture.
In this programme we explore what is, in effect, a heritage gap, a lacuna in memory. Through interviews with scholars and specialists, currach builders and historians, we begin to see the possibilities of rebuilding our links with these half-lost cousins.
The Galicians are far more aware of Ireland than we are of them. The revival of Galego between the 19th and 20th centuries is inspired by the example of the Gaelic League. Galician and Irish poetries are beginning to discover each other, thanks to the translation work of the poet Keith Payne. Galician musicians in the traditional idiom are inspired by Irish counterparts.
At the centre of the documentary, the transcendental singer Su Garrido Pombo offers a glimpse of the riches in store for us should we reach out to rebuild an ancient connection.
Our Half-Lost Cousins, presented by Theo Dorgan, is the Lyric Feature on Sunday 30th November at 6 pm and will be available after broadcast as a Lyric Feature podcast - listen to more from The Lyric Feature here.
