Blasket Centre acquires rare letters
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THE Blasket Centre in Dún Chaoin has acquired two letters written by famed Blasket writer Tomás Ó Criomhthain to his son, also Tomás, who emigrated from the island to Springfield, Massachusetts.
The letters, which are written in English, were donated to the centre and to the Irish people by relatives of Tomás Ó Criomhthain in America and will go on display in the centre this year.
"They were written in November of 1931 and January of 1932. It was commonplace for Irish speakers to write in English in those days even though they didn't speak much English. They were taught to read and write in English at school at a time when speaking Irish at school was discouraged and often punished," Micheál de Mordha, Director of the centre, told The Kerryman.
"One of the letters refers to a visit to Tomás on the island by Pádraig Ó Siochrú – or An Seabhach – who was one of the people who had encouraged him to write An tOileanach. He brought a present of tobacco and a bottle of whiskey to Tomás, according to the letter. Tomás tells his son that 3,000 copies of An tOiIeanach have been sold and that he also had a visit from a young Dutch woman who wanted to translate the book," he added.
Mr de Mordha has just returned from attending a function at Elm College, near Springfield, where Dr Micheál Ó Cearna, a native of the Great Blasket, was the guest of honour.
Last September Dr Ó Cearna was conferred with an Honorary Degree from NUI Maynooth in the Blasket Centre and he has now donated his conferring cap and gown to the centre and these will also be going on public display.
