“If everyone had the wit and humor of the Irish, the world would be a much cheerier place.”

There is no denying the Irish have a great sense of humor; it seems wit is part of their national DNA.  But why are the Irish so damned funny?

While researching my Irish great-grand parents I could not help but get side-tracked by stories that may or may not have been true, but were so hilarious that I had to stop and read them.  I don’t think it’s possible to study Irish culture and not come across humorous legends, poems, songs, toasts, folklore, stories, sayings– and my personal favorite; the Irish proverbs. 

But given that Irish history (like many European country’s histories) included political wars, religious struggles, famine and destruction, how is it possible that this culture remained light-hearted and witty? 

I believe it is in their genes. The Irish people have vast imaginations and even before recorded history each village had a Seanchai, a person whose job it was to recount stories and events. They were known to tell wildly exaggerated tales and these stories were passed down from generation to generation.  Coming from gregarious and charismatic forefathers it’s no wonder they spawned a nation of comical people.  Irish poets amuse us with their limericks, musicians entertain us with their boisterous pub songs, and children laugh with delight while re-telling silly fairy tales.  The light-hearted humor is engrained in the Irish; it is simply a part of who they are. Luckily, they have shared some of the best legends and folklore with the rest of the world.  We all know and love Irish leprechauns, shy fairies, castle ghosts, and of course, St. Patrick.  Halloween is a holiday celebrated around the world, and we have the Irish to thank for that too. They even originated the word “Blarney” and have succeeded in convincing millions of tourists to kiss an old piece of limestone in order to glean some wit and wisdom for themselves. The irony is that the word itself means “to charm or persuade”–and the Irish have done just that in having foreigners line up and pay money for it.    

We may not ever discover just how this culture of facetious people came about, but I know that the Irish have a keen ability to laugh at themselves and that has been a great advantage for them through the years.  I think we could all use a bit of Irish humor in our lives so I would like to share a few of my favorite Irish Proverbs:

1. Diplomacy is the ability to tell a man to go to hell so that he will look forward to the trip.
2. Death is a poor man’s doctor.
3. A narrow neck keeps the bottle from being emptied in one swig.
4. Many an Irish property was increased by the lace of a daughter’s petticoat
5. If you lie down with dogs you will rise with fleas.
6. Drink is the curse of the land. It makes you fight with your neighbor. It makes you shoot at your landlord-and it makes you miss.
7. The older the fiddler, the sweeter the tune.
8. A silent mouth is musical.
9. The road to Heaven is well sign-posted, but it is badly lit at night.
10. You can’t build a barrel round a bung hole.