The Great Irish Famine in Songs

International audienceIt is a testimony to the power and importance of traditional music and songs, and remarkably so in Ireland, that illiterate people on the threshold of exile or death could find the strength to express their misfortunes in a poetic and elaborate form. This article proposes to examine songs dating from the Great Irish Famine in order to investigate their validity as faithful representations of History and understand why they are so elusive today, whether in public performances or in private circles