Since 1998, nearly 1,000 writers have been working on the book, which covers not only Irish culture and history but also less well known fields of Irish achievement like science, engineering and sports. All the basics are here, from Enya to the Easter uprising of 1916. There are simple, intuitive subject headings, even for tourists; check out “bed and breakfast accommodations” or “castles.” The Irish diaspora features, too, with sections on John F. Kennedy and, less plausibly, the ancient Greek astronomer Ptolemy. But there’s also a distinct bias at work in places: the substantial section on “bombing campaigns in Britain” is an attempted justification of republican violence couched as an objective assessment.
Nonetheless, this vibrant, wide-ranging tome is a welcome reminder of the joys of an old-fashioned reference book. The pleasure of flicking through idly lies in the unexpected gems you come across. You might otherwise never discover Agnes Mary Clerke, for instance, born in County Cork in 1842, who learned how to use a tiny telescope as a child and went on to become the most influential writer of her era on astronomy. And who would have guessed the apparently all-Irish “Riverdance” star Michael Flatley was actually born in Michigan, trained in Chicago and first came to fame through the notoriously cheesy Eurovision Song Contest? From Abbeyknockmoy to Zozimus (look ’em up!), The Encyclopaedia of Ireland covers the breadth and richness of this ancient civilization–and its frivolous side, too.
