1. favourite place in your country?
honestly i dunno because i haven’t even gotten to travel around and see the beauty of my little country much :( i really love the cliffs of moher, brú na bóinne (palace of the boyne), doolin cave, the giants causeway, and some places in dublin but it’s hard to pick one

5. favourite song in your native language?
a lot of my favourite songs are actually modern pop songs that have been roughly translated to irish (or have totally different lyrics but the same tune)!! a few of my favourites include taistealaí fánach (wayfaring stranger), scaití (counting stars), diabhail (demons), nuair táim imí (when i’m gone/cup song), can’t hold us, and riptide!
in terms of traditional songs, they’re all passed down through generations and though they generally keep the same tune throughout the years there’s no Official version of each i can link you to since they’re so old, but i love the lyrics to these: trasna na dtonnta (over the waves), mo ghile mear (my gallant darling), amhrán na bhfiann (the soldier’s song - our national anthem), aaaaand there’s more i can’t think of right now but i’ve already listed too many aksdjshj

13. does your country (or family) have any specific superstitions or traditions that might seem strange to outsiders?
hmmm i dunno how many of these are specific to just ireland but. there’s the superstition that if you damage a fairy fort (remains of ring forts/other circular dwellings in ireland) you’re gonna have some sort of shit happen to you as the “fairies’ revenge” and you’re pretty much asking for it. there’s also a superstition where if you see a lone magpie, you have to say hello to it or salute it to ward off the sorrow a single magpie supposedly brings. if your nose is itchy it’s a sign of an upcoming fight, and to prevent it someone has to slap your hand and you have to slap their hand back. putting shoes on the table will ruin your life. if you step on a crack in the pavement you’ll break your mother’s back (ik this one is popular in other countries too). you have to bless yourself when you pass a church or graveyard or you’re basically being blasphemous (not TOO many do this tho). lighting three cigarettes with the same match brings bad luck. if a truck passes you with bales of hay, you get to make a wish, but if you look at the hay again your wish won’t come true. if you sweep your floor on a monday morning you’re sweeping out any good luck for the week.
i’m not sure i can really think of traditions because a lot of integral irish culture stuff that we always say “only irish people will understand!!” about is really stuff that is totally normal/that LOTS of people do haha

thank you!!

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