Ireland

Did you know?

The Vikings founded Dublin in 988.

The "Oscar" statuette handed out at the Academy Awards was designed by Cedric Gibbons, who was born in Dublin in 1823 and later emigrated to the US. MGM’s top set designer from the 1920s right on through to 1950s, he won the Oscar many times.

US President Barack Obama’s maternal great, great, great grandfather Fulmuth Kearney came from Moneygall, in County Offaly. Mr. Kearney came to America in 1850.

The Irish sport “hurling” has ancient Gaelic origins and is the world’s fastest field team sport. It is played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar. There is a similar game for women called camogie.

Facebook chose to locate its European headquarters in Dublin. It was selected because of its highly skilled workforce. Google, Amazon and eBay all have their European headquarters in Dublin.

Slang

Craic - pronounced “crack” means fun. “Let’s go and have some craic”