Wednesday 30 November 2016

Irish Roots Magazine publishes its 100th edition

http://www.irishrootsmedia.com/shop-product/Print-Issues/Issue-100---Winter-2016/169
100 editions of insightful, entertaining and
reliable news and features since 1992
Irish Roots Magazine has just published its 100th issue – a terrific achievement for Ireland's only independent genealogy magazine, now run by Maureen and Julie Phibbs, a mother and daughter team based in County Wicklow.

This quarter’s edition brings reflections and forecasts about the past, present and future of Irish genealogy, and reproduces a nostalgic feature, written by the late Tim Cadogan for the first edition of the magazine in 1992, exploring the impact on public libraries of developments then taking place in family history research.

In it, he writes: "In the course of the past 20 years, genealogical research has advanced from the low-profile mildly eccentric activity of times past to a high-profile semi-commercial activity, increasingly targeted by tourism interest as another aspect of our heritage that can be exploited. I must confess to a twinge of regret at the arrival of the new and aggressive approach to genealogy."

More than two decades later, such feelings are still being expressed by those of us getting a bit long in the tooth, even at we delight in the latest online releases of records that were previously difficult, inconvenient and time-consuming to access. I'm sure these conflicting sentiments will still be being discussed among genealogists in another 20-odd years!

But back to the contents of the magazine... There is also a mammoth listing of 100 research tips and ideas to inspire you. It's full of research techniques, notes of record collections you may have overlooked, historical context details that may cast a new light on some aspect of your family history, and background explanations to give you a better understanding of some of the major genealogical record sets.

Other research features include overviews of sources for tracing ancestors in County Waterford and New Zealand; an article explaining the Brehan Laws of Gaelic Ireland; news and views from around the industry; a review of the many record collections released online during the last quarter; letters to the editor; Q&A; and much more.

Irish Roots Magazine is available in print via good newsagents, and by post or by digital format at the Irish Roots Media website. You can also download a free sample of this special edition.