Cork 2005 Project

Title

Cork 2005 Project

Subject

Interviewing and radio project exploring migration, cultural contact and the social and physical landscape of Cork City in 2004 and 2005 and in the past, comprising of forty audio interviews and resulting in six half-hour radio programmes and a book.

Description

The Cork 2005 Project was carried out and funded as part of Cork’s tenure as European Capital of Culture in 2005. Building on the theme ‘City of Culture’, the project explored the questions: ‘What is the everyday culture of Cork City?’ and ‘Who are the people of the city?’, and aimed to broaden our archival holdings to reflect the increased numbers of migrants making their home in the city. 37 ethnographic interviews were carried out with Cork residents, more than two-thirds of whom had come to Cork from elsewhere, exploring their relationship with the cultural and social landscape of the city. The interviews include accounts of family life and growing up in Argentina, Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, China, England, Germany, India, Iraq, Israel, Kurdistan, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Poland, Slovakia, South Africa Ukraine, and the United States.

A six-part radio series, entitled ‘How’s it goin’, boy?’ was broadcast on Cork Campus Radio in 2005, and a book of the same name was published in 2006. You can listen to the radio programmes on our website: How's it goin', boy? Radio Series.

The interviews in this collection all have a similar structure. We asked all interviewees to describe their childhood neighbourhoods and communities and to discuss their relationship with Cork city in the present day. We also discussed experiences of migrancy, first impressions and cultural contact with those who had come to Cork from elsewhere and with Corkonians who had experience of migration. Interviewees came from diverse areas including Australia, the Marsh, Nigeria, Brittany, Gurranabraher, Russia, Evergreen Street, Spain, Poland and Kurdish Iraq.

The collection project was carried out from March 2004 – June 2005. Interviewers on the project: Jennifer Butler; Lee Cassidy; Sean Claffey; Diane Hoppe; Dolores Horgan; John Mehegan; Clíona O’Carroll; Mary O’Driscoll; Noel O’Shaughnessy: Frances Quirke. Cork 2005 Special Project Co-ordinator: Clíona O’Carroll Project photography: Fawn Allen CFP Project Manager: Mary O’Driscoll CFP Research Director: Marie-Annick Desplanques ‘How’s it Goin’, Boy?’ radio series producer: Clíona O’Carroll ‘How’s it Goin’, Boy?’ radio series editor: Colin MacHale Support: the post of Special Project Co-ordinator and production costs were funded by Cork 2005. Ongoing support was from Northside Community Enterprises, Foras Áiseanna Saothair (FÁS) and University College, Cork.

For further description of the Cork 2005 project, see:

O’Carroll , Clíona and Desplanques, Marie-Annick (2006) ‘Cultures of Cork: Community, Ethnicity and Broadcasting’, in: Sociedade da Información en Espacios Periféricos, Novas Formas de Exclusión Social. Santiago de Compostela: Servizo de Edición Dixital da Universidade de Santiago de Compostela.

O'Carroll, Clíona (2013) 'Public folklore operating between aspiration and expediency: The Cork Folklore Project'. Irish Journal of Anthropology, 16 (1): 23-30.

For the dissemination content see:
‘How’s it Goin’, Boy? radio series (six thirty-minute episodes, broadcast 2005 and available on the Cork Folklore Project website)

O'Carroll, Clíona for the Cork Northside Folklore Project (2006) How's it goin', boy? Dublin: Nonsuch Publishing.

Catalogue project description written by: Clíona O’Carroll

Date

2004-2005

Coverage

37 ethnographic interviews carried out with Cork residents, more than two-thirds of whom had come to Cork from elsewhere, exploring their relationship with the cultural and social landscape of the city in 2004/2005 and in the latter half of the twentieth century. The interviews include accounts of family life and growing up in Argentina, Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, China, England, Germany, India, Iraq, Israel, Kurdistan, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Poland, Slovakia, South Africa Ukraine, and the United States.

Relation

Published Material;
‘How’s it Goin’, Boy? radio series (six thirty-minute episodes, broadcast 2005 and available on the Cork Folklore Project website)

O'Carroll, Clíona for the Cork Northside Folklore Project (2006) How's it goin', boy? Dublin: Nonsuch Publishing.

Catalogue project description written by: Clíona O’Carroll

Source

Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive

Rights

Cork Folklore Project


This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Language

English

Type

Audio

Format

37 MiniDisc

Collection Items

Billy McCarthy: Childhood, Catholicism, GAA.
Billy, a one-time Cork Folklore Project member of staff and long-term collaborator, was born in Cork in 1941 and grew up with his six siblings in Quaker Road. His mother was born in Cork and his father came from Dunmanway. Billy attended St Marie’s…

Mary O’Driscoll: America, Blackrock, Customs, Festivals, Fleadh, Fitzgerald’s Park, Immigration, Miltown Malbay, Poverty, Traditional Irish Music, Willie Clancy,
Mary at the time of this recording was the Cork Folklore Project's manager,
She was born in Des Moines Iowa, in the United States and moved to Minneapolis, St. Paul, Minnesota when she was 8 years old. She had one sister who died when she was 10…

Eileen Claffey: Childhood Games, Food, Farming, Festivals, Irish Language,
Eileen grew up on a farm in Inchaclough, West Cork with one brother and four sisters. She was the third child. They had a cousin and a neighbour’s child living with them. Her parents were hardworking– her mother used to work at least 12 hours a day.…

Noreen Hanover: Christmas, Childhood Games, Cinema, Ghost stories, Milk and Cake Shops, Pawnbrokers, St Fin Barre’s Cathedral, Working life,
Noreen grew up during the 1950s in Nicholas Church Place, off Cove Street. She says the house was a tenement house shared with a family who lived upstairs. She went to the South Presentation Convent School. Her father died when she was 10. She left…

Marie-Annick Desplanques: Brittany, Breton, Coiffe, Crêperie, Foodways, France, Children's Games.
Marie-Annick Desplanques grew up in Brittany, west France. She moved about frequently as a child because her father worked on the railways. She discusses food, games, Christmas in France as well as moving to Ireland from Newfoundland and the…

Marcus Bale: Argentina, Alcohol, Buenos Aires, Culture, Folklore, Hanukah, Irish Literature, Jews, Passover, Dance, Drink Culture.
Marcus describes his childhood in Belgrano, Buenos Aires, Argentina and his subsequent move to Ireland. Subjects covered include Marcus’s Jewish upbringing, how he came to live in Ireland, cultural differences between Argentina and Ireland, as well…

Isabelle Sheridan: English Market, Food, Culture
Isabelle Sheridan is from a suburb outside Paris called Le Pleine de Mont Esson. She moved to Ireland in 1986 and eventually established the well-known charcuterie called ‘On the Pig’s Back’ in the English Market in Cork. She discusses her childhood…

Liz Steiner Scott: America, Customs, English market, Children's Games, Maternity, Religion,
Liz was born into an upper middle class, liberal, Jewish family in 1948 in a suburb of New Jersey, USA. She has one brother and one sister. Her maternal grandparents lived close and were part of their family life. Her father commuted daily to New…

Avreimi Rot: Customs, Food, Israel, Religion,
Avreimi grew up in Jerusalem, Israel in a strict orthodox community until he was 14 when he moved to a less religious neighbourhood. He came to Ireland when he was 21. His father became ill with multiple sclerosis when Avreimi was a child.

From…

Rob Stafford: Aboriginals, Australia, Fiddle, Racial Prejudice, Traditional music, Willy Clancy
Rob grew up in Carrigullen, Perth, in Western Australia in a Eucalyptus forested area. He is the second eldest of five children. He has one brother and three sisters.
Describes his neighbourhood as forested where the main source of income was…

Balaska O’Donoghue: Bulgaria, Cork City, Food, Music, Slovakia, Travel, Celebrations
Balaska grew up in the central city area of Kosice , Slovakia until she was 19. Her father was Bulgarian and her mother Slovakian. She has one-half brother. She came to Cork because she met a Cork man whilst visiting London. She spent a lot of time…

Andy Hawkins: Australia, Culture, Celtic Tiger, Coal Quay, Holy Communion, Inishfallen, London
Andy Hawkins was born in The Marsh and lived there until he was 7 when his family moved to Mayfield. He was the youngest of nine. He went to St Francis School. His father ran a small carpentry business in The Marsh. His father died when Andy was…

Kay O’Carroll: The Northside, Emigration, Childhood Games, Music, Tenements,
Kay O’Carroll describes her early life growing up in Gurranabraher giving engaging and colourful detail about childhood games and activities, the community spirit, women’s work, going out to the cinema and show bands as a young woman.

Kay was…

Emeka Ikebuasi: Customs, Nigeria, Political Unrest, Stories, Refugee
Emeka Ikebuasi from Nigeria describes the harrowing political events which led to his family coming to Cork as refugees. He talks, in depth, of his village upbringing in Nigeria and highlights village ceremonies, the telling of stories, witch doctors…

Noreen Geaney: Childhood Games, Céilí, Halloween, School, The Stations.
An account of growing up on a small farm in the Cork countryside and the simplicity of life in the 1950s.
Noreen was born in Cuileann Ui Chaoimh in Co. Cork. She had three sisters and one brother. She attended Owen na Bui National School. She lived…

Stefan Wulff: Germany, Cycling, Currachs, Change,
A detailed interview with German born Stefan Wulff. He gives a really rich account of building currachs, of trips down the Lee and his impressions of Cork from the river side.
Stefan was born in Dortmund, in the Ruhr Valley, Germany. He has one…

Karina Abdulbaneeva: Art, Russia, London, Spirituality, Nature, Nationality, New Year’s Day, Religion,
Russian born Karina Abdulbaneeva, talks about coming to Cork from London in 2001 and her impressions of the smallness and accessibility of the city. She describes the helpfulness of Cork people and the spirituality of the country in which she feels…

Robert Fourie: Hiberno-English, Holy Communion, Language, South Africa,
Robert talks in detail about growing up in South Africa, and makes some observations about Cork places and people.
Robert (b. 1969) is from a gold-mining town in South Africa. He talks about mining conditions there. He comments that South Africa has…

Tony Henderson: Canada, Music, London
Tony grew up in Canada. He came to Cork during the 1990s, and he talks about his impressions of the city.
His father was Irish, his mother English. He talks about growing up in Canada, where he learned the guitar and played in a band. He came to…

Yossi Valdman: Israel, Jaffa, Jews, Customs,
Yossi talks about Israel and his Jewish heritage, and describes coming to Cork and how he experienced life in the city.
Yossi’s father lived in Israel and then moved to Jaffa where he opened a shop. Yossi lived in Jaffa and Israel and then travelled…
View all 37 items