The last glaciation in the Western Mourne Mountains,Northern Ireland

During the late‐Midlandian (25–13 ¹⁴C ka BP), the last Irish Ice Sheet was thicker in the Western Mourne Mountains than previously argued. Geomorphological and sedimento‐logical analysis shows that regional ice from the Irish Ice Sheet spilled over the mountains, reaching a major limit 5 km along Pigeon Rock Valley. These findings differ from the previous view that a local valley glacier occupied the valley during this period. The pattern of deglaciation was reconstructed using glacial and periglacial evidence. A complex topographic environment in the upper reaches of the valley suggests that regional ice stagnated as it wasted away. During the Nahanagan Stadial (Younger Dryas, ca. 11–10 ka ¹⁴C BP) an arcuate ridge was formed on the western flank of the valley. Calculations suggest that the Equilibrium Line Altitude, influenced by topographic conditions favourable for snow accumulation, was approximately between 1736 m and 1386 m lower during the Nahanagan Stadial than at present.     

Lest the Lowliest Be Forgotten: Locating the Impoverished in Early Medieval Ireland

In early medieval Ireland (ca. a.d. 400–850), every person's rank in society was codified in documents and visibly apparent by their material possessions. Early Irish literature is overwhelmingly concerned with the negotiation of status, but it is focused primarily on the rights and responsibilities of the nobility and wealthy farmers. Those of lower status are often ignored, and it has been difficult as archaeologists to agree on what constitutes a lower class site or artifactual assemblage. This paper addresses these arguments and challenges the belief that the lowest members of medieval Irish society are invisible to archaeology due to their impoverished existence.     

Migration in childhood and its impact on national identity construction among migrants from Northern Ireland

While there is currently only a tiny literature available on Northern Ireland migration, nothing at all has as yet been published relating to the subject of the province's child migrants. This paper focuses on the migration experiences of individuals who migrated as children to and from Northern Ireland, based on interview narratives collected during the course of two studies on contemporary migration from Ireland, North and South, conducted from 2004 to 2008. In all cases, these experiences triggered identity issues for the individuals which have played out subsequently in their lives in different ways. In particular, the author seeks to understand how the memory of these events continues to construct present realities for these individuals. What awareness did these children have of sectarianism, of the Northern Ireland conflict? What was their reception in the host country and upon return to Northern Ireland? How have these experiences contributed to their identities in the present and their sense of belonging to Ireland, North and South?     

Ideological content and institutional frameworks: Unionist identities in Northern Ireland and Scotland

This article examines the complex interactions between British national identity and the territorial identities of Northern Ireland and Scotland. We argue that the current literature on national identities in Britain misunderstands the nature of British identities in Northern Ireland and Scotland. Indeed, much of this literature wrongly defines Unionists in both of these areas. By examining the content of British national identity, a comparison of Scotland and Northern Ireland reveals that Unionism finds political significance through an ideological project committed to the Union. However, we also have to account for the differences in the Unionist ideology of Scotland and Northern Ireland. We argue that the institutional framework in which these identities and ideologies are exercised explains this variation. Overall, we argue that the debate on nationalism in the United Kingdom has not adequately shown how the integrative functions of British national identity can co-exist with the separatist nature of territorial national identity.     

Ethnonationalism and attitudes towards gay and lesbian rights in Northern Ireland

Disputes over gay and lesbian rights occupy a central place on both national and international agendas in recent years. This is also the case in societies emerging from chronic ethnonational conflict where debates over gay and lesbian rights vs. ethnic‐based rights predominate. While much scholarly work focuses on the influence of socio‐demographic factors in determining attitudes toward gay and lesbian rights in postconflict societies, to date, the role of political influences, such as ethnonationalism, is noticeably under‐researched. It is with this omission in mind that this paper focuses on the influence of ethnonationalism, or congruency in religious, national and communal identity, on attitudes towards gay and lesbian rights issues. Using nationally representative data from Northern Ireland, the results suggest that while ethnonationalism is a key predictor of attitudes among Protestants, it is socio‐demographic factors, such as gender, age and educational attainment, that are the primary determinants of Catholic views.     

Irish language education and the national ideal: the dynamics of nationalism in Northern Ireland

Since the beginning of the Northern Ireland conflict in the late 1960s, Irish nationalism has been identified as a prominent force in the political culture of the state. Recent studies have suggested, however, that the ‘Nationalist’ population has become increasingly content within the new political framework created by the peace process and the aspiration for Irish unity diminished. In placing the Northern Ireland situation within the theoretical framework of nationalism, this paper will analyse how these changing priorities have been possible. Through an analysis of Irish language study in Northern Ireland's schools, the paper will examine how the political ideals espoused by the nationalist Sinn Féin Party reflected the priorities of the ‘nationalist community’. It will be contended that the relationship between the ideology and ‘the people’ is much more complex than is often allowed for and that educational inequalities are a significant contributing factor to this.     

Vegetation history at the multi-period prehistoric complex at Ballynahatty,Co. Down,Northern Ireland

Palaeoecological methods can provide an environmental context for archaeological sites, enabling the nature of past human activity to be explored from an indirect but alternative perspective. Through a palynological study of a small fen peatland located within the catchment of a multi-period prehistoric complex at Ballynahatty, Co. Down, Northern Ireland, we reconstruct the vegetation history of the area during the early prehistoric period. The pollen record reveals tentative evidence for Mesolithic activity in the area at 6410–6220 cal BC, with woodland disturbance identified during the Mesolithic–Neolithic transitional period ca. 4430–3890 cal BC. A more significant impact on the landscape is observed in the Early Neolithic from 3950 to 3700 cal BC, with an opening up of the forest and the establishment of a mixed agricultural economy. This activity precedes and continues to be evident through the Mid-Neolithic during which megalithic tombs and related burial sites were constructed at Ballynahatty. Due to chronological uncertainties and a possible hiatus in peat accumulation in the fen, the contemporary environment of the Ballynahatty timber circle complex (constructed and used ca. 3080–2490 cal BC) and henge (dating to the third millennium cal BC) cannot certainly be established. Nevertheless, the pollen record suggests that the landscape remained open through to the Bronze Age, implying a long continuity of human activity in the area. These findings support the idea that the Ballynahatty prehistoric complex was the product of a gradual and repeated restructuring of the ritual and ceremonial landscape whose significance continued to be recognised throughout the early prehistoric period.     

Archaeological applications of testate amoebae analyses: a case study from Derryville,Co. Tipperary,Ireland

The value of testate amoebae in the reconstruction of changes in surface wetness from ombrotrophic mires is well known, but the potential value of such records in specifically archaeological investigations has not yet been investigated. This note describes the analysis of testate amoebae for a sediment sequence from the multi-period wetland archaeological site of Derryville, Co. Tipperary, Ireland. The reconstructed watertable is presented and plotted against the range of dates from excavated archaeological features in the wetland area. The data demonstrate a clear association between periods of low watertable and increased anthropogenic activity as reflected by site construction. The value of testate amoebae in future integrated archaeological investigations of wetland systems is discussed.     

The Partisan Impacts of Non-Partisan Redistricting: Northern Ireland 1993–95

Space is manipulated for political purposes in a great variety of ways, and its restructuring is frequently a focus of conflict. The nature of such conflict is explored here.¹ Legislation requires that all parliamentary constituencies in the United Kingdom are periodically reviewed by independent Boundary Commissions. The Fourth Periodic Review in Northern Ireland began in 1993 and coincided with a period of intense political activity, associated with what was commonly termed 'the peace process'. Political parties, anxious to ensure that the resulting boundaries favoured their partisan interests (and, in the case of Sinn Fein, keen to establish their democratic bona fides ), invested considerable effort in their attempts to influence the outcome. The Commissions' recommendations became the subject of claim and counter-claim regarding bias towards one or other of the province's two main communities – Nationalist and Unionist – and as a result of that conflict, they were revised with priority given to a different criterion. This paper evaluates those claims with a close inspection of the redistricting process, illustrating how an ostensibly non-partisan process is partisan in both its conduct and its outcome.     

Implementing political agreement in Northern Ireland: Planning issues for Irish language policy

This paper examines the place of the Irish language in the context of the political agreement recently reached in Northern Ireland. Language planning issues are seen to turn on critical relationships between the emergent legislative framework and local Irish-speaking communities in the region. A model for community-based language planning initiatives is proposed as a means of ensuring the effective engagement of language policy with Irish-speakers. It is suggested that the issue of language rights is likely to become much more pressing as the new institutions of state seek to reflect the socio-political diversity of the region.     

A multi-proxy palaeoenvironmental investigation of the findspot of an Iron Age bog body from Oldcroghan,Co. Offaly,Ireland

In 2003, the remains of an Early Iron Age bog body, known as ‘Oldcroghan Man’, were recovered during the cutting of a drainage ditch in a bog in the Irish Midlands. Only some fingernails and a withe fragment remained undisturbed in situ in the drain face, providing the sole evidence for the original position of the body. A detailed reconstruction of the depositional context of the body has been undertaken through multi-proxy analyses of a peat monolith collected at the findspot. The palynological record shows that the surrounding area was the focus of intensive human activity during the Later Bronze Age, but was largely abandoned during the Bronze Age–Iron transition in the mid-first millennium BC. In the mid-4th century BC, a bog pool developed at the site, evidenced in the stratigraphic, plant macrofossil, testate amoebae and coleopteran records. Plant macrofossil and pollen analysis of peat samples associated with the fingernails suggests that the body was deposited in this pool most likely during the 3rd century BC. The absence of carrion beetle fauna points to complete submergence of the body within the pool. Deposition occurred shortly before or around the time that the surrounding area again became the focus of woodland clearance, as seen in the extended pollen record from the peat monolith. This period corresponds to the Early Iron Age in Ireland, during which renewed cultural connections with Britain and continental Europe can be seen in the archaeological record and widespread forest clearance is recorded in pollen records from across Ireland. The palaeoenvironmental results indicate, therefore, that the demise of Oldcroghan Man took place at a pivotal time of socio-economic and perhaps political change.     

Wild Cattle: Red Deer in the Religious Texts,Iconography, and Archaeology of Early Medieval Ireland

Humans use animals as a means of creating and manipulating relationships with other human beings. This process occurs both through the use of animals for food or raw materials and through the use of animals as literary and artistic symbols. Cervus elaphus is Irelands only indigenous deer species. It is also unique in being the only native Irish, wild animal to appear frequently in medieval texts, iconography, and archaeological deposits. This paper brings together diversesources of information to illuminate how early medieval monasteries used reddeer to establish an identity for themselves and to conceptualize socioeconomic relationships with others.     

Between the devil and the deep blue sea: nationality,power and symbolic trade‐offs among evangelical Protestants in contemporary Northern Ireland1

ABSTRACT. National identity is a symbolically complex configuration, with shifts of emphasis and reprioritisations of content negotiated in contexts of power. This paper shows how they occur in one post‐conflict situation – Northern Ireland – among some of the most extreme of national actors – evangelical Protestants. In‐depth interviews reveal quite radical shifts in the content of their British identity and in their understanding of and relation to the Irish state, with implications for their future politics. The implications for understanding ethno‐religious nationalism, nationality shifts and the future of Northern Ireland are drawn out.     

Deducing rationales and political tactics in the partitioning of Ireland, 1912–1925

Partition is an intrinsically abstract and simplistic blunt instrument applied on a complex mosaic of peculiarities that constitute reality. There are very few modern states that are ethnically or culturally homogenous. In this context, partition is a subjective territorial tactic that can treat or exacerbate symptoms of historical, political, and geographical difficulties. While exhibiting comparative scope, especially to the role of the British State and the dynamics of national majorities and minorities, the circumstances concerning the partitioning of Ireland deviate from patterns gleaned from other examples as the evolving bases of its partition between 1912 and 1925 mutated at various stages with regard to geography, political status, and function. However, Ireland served as an important historical precedent in illustrating the disparity between the original intent and eventual result of its partition. Indeed, one can extrapolate from the Irish example that partition is better understood as a catalytic tactical process that radically reconfigures the political and geographical dimensions of conflict rather than as a decisive political instrument solving it.     

A palynological and geoarchaeological investigation into Bronze Age farming at Belderg Beg,Co. Mayo,Ireland

This contribution describes the results and interpretations of geoarchaeological and palynological analyses of a soil profile near to a ¹⁴C dated Bronze Age roundhouse in a sub-peat field system at Belderg Beg, north Mayo in western Ireland, which displayed field-scale evidence of tillage in the form of cultivation ridges. This evidence of arable cultivation was supported by the presence of quernstones in the roundhouse, but there was no supporting evidence from other forms of socio-economic analysis. Soil micromorphological analysis was employed to define how the ridges were created and with what tools; pollen analysis was used to characterise the surface vegetation and test the purpose of the ridges. The results unequivocally showed that a phase of ard cultivation was followed after a brief hiatus by ridge-and-furrow tillage. There were tentative indications of possible amendment of the earlier, ard-worked soil, and more definitive evidence of midden material addition to the ridged soil. An AMS radiocarbon assay on the base of peat overlying the ridges indicated that tillage occurred in the Mid to Late Bronze Age.     

Reaching across: institutional barriers to cross‐ethnic parties in post‐conflict societies and the case of Northern Ireland

This paper investigates the paradox in post‐conflict societies of continued marginality of cross‐ethnic parties despite significant convergence in public attitudes and identities. In so doing, it examines the argument that parties that attempt to reach across the divide are constrained by consocational institutions designed to accommodate rival identities in such environments. The paper explores this puzzle in the context of Northern Ireland, drawing upon qualitative evidence from elite interviews and focus groups collected in 2012 and 2013. It concludes that cross‐community parties operating in the region do encounter formal institutional barriers, but that such barriers only partially explain the phenomenon and an interplay between formal and informal constraints underlies their position of relatively limited electoral success.     

Cromwell,Parliament, Ireland and a Commonwealth in Crisis: 1652 Revisited*

This article investigates an episode in 1652 which is usually ignored and has never been explained. On 19 May 1652 the Rump Parliament, without forewarning, voted not to renew the office of lord lieutenant and thereby stripped the lord general, Oliver Cromwell of one of his highest and most significant offices. The article seeks to penetrate the wall of silence in the press and in the parliamentary records to see what lay behind this decision, which split the Commons down the middle. It seeks to relate the decision to two very different visions of the settlement to be imposed on Ireland following the rebellion of 1641 and the ‘Cromwellian conquest’ and it suggests that it is likely that the subsequent act of the Rump, which sought the execution of tens of thousands of Irish royalists, the exiling of many tens of thousands more and the herding of almost all of the rest of the catholic population into four counties in the west of England – known to history as the ‘Cromwellian settlement’– was precisely a settlement Cromwell did not want.     

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