The Multicultural Club started again in September this year. We have many new members and meet every week to discuss all things multicultural and to showcase new languages and to promote cultural diversity in our community. Wishing you the best for the holidays.
OurMulticulturalprefectsMariamandNinoarealwaysverykeentopromoteculturein ourschoolcommunity.Here,theytellusaboutbeingMulticulturalprefectsinColáiste Bríde.
When I decided to apply for a Multicultural prefect position, I wanted to promote diversity and understanding within the Coláiste Bríde community. By taking on this role, my aim is to create a friendly and understanding environment for all of the students of Coláiste Bríde coming from diverse backgrounds, and to share their experiences, traditions, values, and interests I want to ensure that students coming from various backgrounds feel respected, recognised, and represented in our school community
I like being Multicultural prefect in Coláiste Bríde because our school is a very culturally diverse school. I am very proud of my Georgian culture and heritage and it is very important to promote your cultural identity in school
Multicultural Club
Every Tuesday at Lunchtime in T9
Nino is called after St Nino, one of the most famous Georgian Saints.
OurDeputyHeadgirlElizabeta,tellsusaboutherroleintheColáisteBrídecommunity.
Make sure to follow us on X @cbmulticultural. We issue a new greeting in a different language every week, so if you would like to contribute message us.
My name is Elizabeta, and I have been living in Ireland for the past five years. During my time here, I have actively engaged in my school community, starting as a member of the Student Council, where I had the opportunity to voice the opinions of my peers and contribute to positive changes in our school environment. My passion for mathematics and computer science led me to become a prefect in these subjects, allowing me to support fellow students in their learning journeys. Currently, I am honoured to serve as the Deputy Head Girl, where I continue to foster leadership and collaboration within our school. I am excited about the future and look forward to making a meaningful impact in our community.
By Elizabeth Berisha, 6th Year, Rang Daragh
THis term Mariam and Nino taught us lots of key phrases in Georgian. Everyone in Multicultural club was shown how to write their name in Georgian font. Ms O Gorman’s name is on the top left hand corner ofthe white board
Think Languages Day took place in Coláiste Bríde on 19th November 2024. We will have a full report on this in next term’s edition
Juanna,a1styearstudentinourschool,describesthefestivalofOnaminKerala,India.
Onam is an annual harvest and cultural festival celebrated in Kerala, India. It is a 10-day Hindu festival that takes place in the beginning of the Malayalam month Chingam (August to September). The festival is associated with welcoming King Mahabali, whose spirit is believed to visit Kerala during this time Onam includes a variety of cultural events and is celebrated with joy and enthusiasm by people of all communities.
Legend
Legend has it that Mahabali, the mythical beloved king of Kerala, visits his subjects on the day of Thiruvonam, after ascending from the netherworld Mahabali, a devotee of Lord Vishnu, was a righteous and charitable man and treated all his subjects equally. There was no poverty, crime or cruelty during his rule. Despite Mahabali being a demon king, the state was at its most glorious phase and his people adored him. Mahabali’s fame grew with each passing day which enraged the devas Afraid of losing power, they begged Lord Vishnu to aid them in stopping Mahabali
As a result, Lord Vishnu as a small boy called Vamana, visited Mahabali asking for land which could be covered in three steps. Mahabali granted the boy’s wish. Vamana began to grow, covering the entire universe with the first two steps Seeing that there was no more land left, the king bowed before the boy, offering his head for the next step Satisfied by the king's devotion, Lord Vishnu blessed Mahabali and sent him to Pathala or the netherworld, with permission to visit his subjects once every year.
Traditions
People decorate their houses with Pookalam and cook traditional meals called Onam sandhya which is served on banana leaves while wearing traditional clothes.
This 10-day festival also involves boat races called Vallam Kali, Tiger dances, tug of war and many other fun activities.
Pookalam – One of the vibrant parts of the Onam celebrations is the making of Athappookkalam (flower carpet). Athappookkalam/Pookalam is symbolic of prosperity and joy. It is believed that these pookkalams are made to welcome Mahabali
Onasadhya is a traditional vegetarian feast of Kerala. It consists of 26 various dishes such as par boiled rice, side dishes, savouries, pickles and desserts spread out on a plantain leaf
By wearing traditional sarees, ladies perform traditional dance called thiruvathira. Girls wear pattupavada, a two-piece dress consisting of a Top and a Lehenga (skirt) The traditional attire for men during Onam is the “mundu” or “lungi” paired with a shirt. This is a simple and comfortable outfit that is widely worn during the festival Onam is a celebration of unity and prosperity. Even though it’s a Hindu festival, all Keralites celebrate Onam together as one
By Juanna Elise Sanjo, 1st Year, Rang Maolruain
Darina,
Ukrainian is a distinctive member of the Slavic language family, part of the Eastern Slavic group along with Russian and Belarusian. It has developed its own unique character through a blend of historical influences Polish, due to historical interactions, has contributed many loanwords, especially in cultural and administrative contexts Russian influence has introduced some modern vocabulary and expressions Turkish language has left its mark in southern Ukraine, with terms related to trade and daily life, a result of the Ottoman Empire’s presence. Additionally, Ukrainian has absorbed Hungarian terms in western regions close to Hungary and German words related to technical and scientific fields
Spoken by over 40 million people, primarily in Ukraine and among global Ukrainian communities, the language has endured through numerous historical challenges and stands as a symbol of national identity and cultural pride.
The Ukrainian alphabet uses the Cyrillic script, similar to Russian and Belarusian It consists of 33 letters, each representing a specific sound This language is phonetic, meaning that words are pronounced as they are written.
Understanding and using Ukrainian language connects people with the rich history and vibrant culture of Ukraine
By Darina Borysovska, 5th Year, Rang Nessa.
Olivia and Jane tell us about Halloween as it is celebrated in Poland and Ireland
All Saints’ Day (Wszystkich Świętych) is an annual national holiday in Poland to celebrate the saints on October 31st and November 1st. It is also known as the Day of the Dead (Święto Zmarłych)
What do people do?
Church services are held to pray to the saints in various towns and cities
Many people in Poland lay flowers and candles on the graves of deceased family and friends in cemeteries. This tradition continues through to All Souls’ Day (Zaduszki), which is on November 2, but it is not a public holiday Symbols
The candles that are laid on graves are specially made so they can burn for many hours. It is believed that these candles help the departed souls find their way through the darkness to their graves to meet their family waiting for them Poles take flower and candles into the cemeteries where graves of family, friends or national heroes are.
By Oliwia Tyczkowska, 2nd Year Rang Caoilte, Halloween In Ireland
Halloween in Ireland has been celebrated for centuries and first originated from a festival called The Festival of Samhain, which dates back over 2,000 years Samhain in Ireland was a Celtic Irish pagan festival that marked the end of the first half of the year and the start of the dark half, the end of harvest season and the beginning of winter It was a time to honour gods and the dead using pagan rituals. As Christianity spread throughout Europe, this tradition quickly died over time.
In its place, Halloween became the main festival though some of the traditions of Samhain still exist. Bonfires are lit during Halloween night – this was meant to protect the community and ward off evil spirits
During Halloween, people often used to dress up to make them look scary, so whenever evil spirits would haunt across the land – they would be scared away
By Jane Dillon, 1st Year, Rang Maolruain.
This year we celebrated Think Languages Day with a Cultural Dress Day.
Cześć, mam na imię Victoria i jestem uczennicą Transition Year. We wtorek wzięłam udział w wydarzeniu Languages Connect Obejrzeliśmy film, w którym ludzie opowiadali o pracy, jaką dostali dzięki nauce języków. Pani Walsh opowiedziała o swoich doświadczeniach z programu ERASMUS i wyjaśniła, na czym on polega. Na koniec mieliśmy warsztaty z języka chińskiego.
Uważam, że to wydarzenie było bardzo ciekawe, bo dowiedziałam się o różnych zawodach, które można zdobyć dzięki językom
Hi, my name is Victoria, and I’m a Transition Year student On Tuesday, I took part in the Languages Connect event. We watched a video where people talked about jobs they got thanks to learning languages Ms Walsh spoke about her experiences with the ERASMUS programme and explained what it is about At the end, we had a Chinese workshop
I think this event was very interesting because I learned about different jobs you can get through languages By Victoria Maliszewska. TYC.
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Many of our students in Coláiste Bríde don’t celebrate Christmas, or they celebrate their own traditions Here Marija and Roya tell us about the holiday period for them.
Hi my name is Roya, and I’m going to tell what I do at Christmas as a Muslim. It’s usually just a normal day like any other day. I wake up and have breakfast like a normal day. Many people are celebrating Christmas, eating turkey and meeting family.I’m there on my couch watching I’m a Celeb or watching a film like The Grinch on Netflix. I don’t really care about Christmas like everyone else, but I do care that I don’t get presents and everyone does! I like Christmas, but I don’t celebrate it. As a Muslin we celebrate Eid. This is the biggest Religious festival for me Everyone visits each other houses and we all feast I really look forward to Eid every year.
By Roya Ahmed, 1st Year, Rang Cronán
In Croatia, we prepare everything on the 24th of December Men are outside of the house in charge of roasting the meat, while women make our traditional foods. On Christmas Eve Day we are all fasting meaning we don’t eat meat. We only eat fish Children decorate the tree and help with the rest of the chores. At night the whole family goes to Midnight Mass and wait for Christmas to come. It is so exciting. When it's finished we go home and eat
On Christmas Day, the children open their presents We call our loved ones and we wish them a Merry Christmas, and then we go to different peoples houses and have a great feast We eat any food that is served and this is a great celebration I love Christmas It is my favourite holiday.
By Marija Jakesevic Orsus, 1st Year, Rang Cronán.
