Halloween, Irish Culture and the Lynch Legend!
Welcome to Episode 2 of No Pressure English — in this episode of the podcast, we will explore Halloween culture in Ireland and its roots in the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, the haunting legend of the Lynch family in Galway, and what people around the world still believe about the supernatural. Perfect for intermediate and advanced learners who want to improve their English through immersive storytelling and Irish culture.
What You’ll Learn in This English Podcast Episode:
- Vocabulary related to history, emotions and storytelling
- Natural conversational English at an intermediate/advanced level
- Irish culture, myths and Celtic traditions
- Modern beliefs about the supernatural from a YouGov survey
Transcript:
Hello, how are we?
You’re very welcome to this week’s episode of the podcast. I hope you’re doing very well. It’s absolutely miserable here in Ireland this morning. Grey skies, misty rain. It’s the full Irish October experience really.
We’re on the run up to Halloween, and there’s that familiar autumnal scent in the air. I don’t know if you feel it where you are, but here in Ireland, the change in the season is almost tangible. There’s a smell, a kind of earthy nostalgia that comes with the shift in weather, and I think Halloween captures that perfectly.
Halloween, of course, comes from the old Celtic festival, Samhain, which marks the end of the harvest and the beginning of winter. But also it’s known as the meeting point between the world of the living and the dead. That’s what makes this time of year so fascinating. It’s kind of a mix of change, memory, and mystery.
So let’s get into today’s story. Today we’re heading west to Galway, a vibrant port city on Ireland’s Atlantic coast. Historically, Galway was a major trading hub full of ships coming and going between Ireland and many countries, in particular Spain and Portugal. You can still feel those international roots in the city’s streets and culture today.
I highly recommend Galway if you’re visiting Ireland. It’s very multicultural, and it just has a wonderful feeling about the place. I don’t think there’s anywhere else like Galway, and I just highly, highly recommend it.
And this brings us to one of the most famous Irish legends, which is said to have taken place there: the story of the Lynch family. Now this tale supposedly dates back to 1493. It centres around the mayor of Galway at the time, a man named James Lynch and his son, Walter.
The story goes that Galway’s mayor had strong trading ties with Spain. One version of this myth says that a Spanish merchant who had previously hosted Lynch sent his son Gomez to stay with the Lynch family, something like an early form of the Erasmus, I guess. Another version claims Gomez was simply a Spanish sailor who found himself in Galway for a period of time.
Either way, Gomez and Walter became friends. Gomez was charming, foreign and exotic, a bit of a celebrity in Galway at the time. Remember, this was the 1400s. A Spaniard walking the streets of a small Irish port town would have been quite the novelty.
But then things got complicated. Walter had a girlfriend, a young woman he was courting, which is an old way to say wooing, which is an old way to say he was trying to start a relationship or they were in the early stages of a relationship with marriage as the objective.
Anyway, he became convinced that she was infatuated with Gomez. It appears that the young woman’s father invited Gomez to dinner to show hospitality to the young man in a foreign land. Now Walter saw Gomez leaving the house after the meal, and jealousy took over.
Convinced of this betrayal, Walter flies into a rage and stabs Gomez down by the water and tosses him into the ocean. The following day, the body is found, and all eyes are on Walter.
The mayor is faced with a dilemma. The mayor, Walter’s father, suddenly found himself trapped between politics and parenthood. He had a dead Spaniard in his town and a son guilty of murder. To preserve peace and protect Galway’s international trade relations, the mayor made an unthinkable decision.
He sentenced his own son to death. According to the legend, he personally carried out the execution, hanging Walter from the window of their home. If you visit Galway today, you can still see what’s known as Lynch’s window, said to be the exact window where it happened.
Now, in reality, this myth is said to have taken place in the late 1400s, and the story only surfaces around 200 years later in written accounts. The validity of the story is doubtful. There is a window that you can visit, which is not where the original Lynch house was, but I think it’s on Market Street. If you Google Lynch’s window, anyway, you’ll find it and be able to visit it if you do go to Galway.
This also leads to another claim, which is quite intriguing. Many say this event gave rise to the English word lynch, to lynch someone, meaning to execute someone without a proper trial, usually by a mob acting as judge and jury. Now historians argue about this. It’s probably not the true linguistic origin, but as a piece of folklore, it’s quite powerful.
Anyway, whether the story is true or not, it still haunts Galway in a sense. The earliest written accounts don’t appear until centuries later, so who knows what’s fact and what’s fiction. But there’s something about it that feels right; right maybe isn’t the right word, but there’s something about it that feels appropriate for this time of year. A story of guilt, loss, and things that don’t quite rest.
And speaking of things that don’t quite rest, on a lighter note, there’s been this YouGov survey that I’d like to finish this week’s episode off with to get away from the heavy murder story, huh?
So, essentially, there’s been this YouGov survey. Side note: YouGov is very interesting just for English language learning because there are loads of surveys on interesting topics. I’ll share all the links in any case on the description of this episode so that you can access different things in English related to Galway if you’re inclined to investigate (more) this myth or other stories around Galway.
But I’ll also link this particular study. So, this study focused on five categories or five topics and asked people if they believed in the existence of these things. So the categories were werewolves, vampires, the Loch Ness monster (Nessie), witches with magic powers and ghosts.
And it’s quite surprising, really. I don’t know, it’s fun. It’s a funny (thing)… I don’t know, I don’t know who responded to this directly, but in any case, we have 8% of people who think that vampires and werewolves exist.
And then we have, it looks like, 12% that believe that Nessie in Scotland, the Loch Ness monster, exists. There are some people who say, I don’t know, and they’re sitting on the fence, but there is* quite a good percentage of people who think, okay, Loch Ness Monster, it’s around.
Then witches with magic powers – we’re going back in time with this one; we have 21%. Wow, okay, one in five thinks that there are witches with magic powers. And finally, and I think this is the most interesting one at this time of year, 28% of people believe that ghosts probably do exist.
Sorry, 38%, so almost 40%. There are some others on the fence here. 45% in total would not rule it out. They’re quite sure – they’re either in the yes or the maybe camp. But yeah, that’s quite significant.
So I suppose on that note, it does show something fascinating. We still want to believe that the line between worlds is thin, that something might linger. Maybe it’s just our way of feeling close to the people we’ve lost. I don’t know. And sure, look, who knows? Even the wind feels different this time of year… and it’s carrying a lot of memories.
So I’m going to let you go on that note. I hope you’ve enjoyed this episode… on the, well, I suppose it was a mix of history, myth, legend, and Halloween atmosphere. Take care of yourselves and have a great week. Ciao.
Comprehensive Glossary
miserable (adj) – very unpleasant weather; cold, wet, and grey
misty (adj) – with very light rain or fog in the air
on the run up to (phrase) – in the period leading up to; approaching
autumnal (adj) – relating to autumn/fall; having characteristics of that season
tangible (adj) – able to be felt or perceived clearly; almost physical
earthy (adj) – relating to soil or the ground; natural and organic
Celtic/Samhain – ancient Irish festival marking the end of harvest and beginning of winter (pronounced “SOW-in”)
vibrant (adj) – full of energy and life; lively
trading hub (noun) – a centre of commercial activity where goods are exchanged
multicultural (adj) – containing many different cultures
supposedly (adv) – according to what is said or believed, but not confirmed
dates back to (phrase) – originates from; has existed since
Erasmus (noun) – European student exchange program (used here as comparison)
exotic (adj) – foreign and unusual; from a distant place
celebrity (noun) – state of being well-known; famous person
novelty (noun) – something new, unusual, or interesting because of being unfamiliar
courting (verb) – old-fashioned term for dating with intention to marry
wooing (verb) – trying to win someone’s romantic affection
infatuated (adj) – having intense but short-lived feelings of attraction
hospitality (noun) – friendly and welcoming treatment of guests
betrayal (noun) – act of being disloyal or breaking trust
flies into a rage (phrase) – suddenly becomes extremely angry
tosses (verb) – throws casually or carelessly
dilemma (noun) – difficult situation requiring choice between two options
preserve (verb) – maintain; keep safe; protect
unthinkable (adj) – too terrible or shocking to be considered
sentenced (verb) – officially declared punishment for a crime
carried out (phrase verb) – performed; executed; completed
execution (noun) – carrying out of death penalty
surfaces (verb) – appears; comes to light; emerges
validity (noun) – quality of being true, accurate, or acceptable
doubtful (adj) – uncertain; not likely to be true
intriguing (adj) – fascinating; arousing curiosity
to lynch someone (verb) – to kill someone illegally, usually by hanging, without a proper trial
mob (noun) – large, disorderly crowd, often violent
judge and jury (phrase) – the people who decide guilt and punishment in court
linguistic origin (noun phrase) – the source or beginning of a word in language history
folklore (noun) – traditional stories and beliefs of a community
haunts (verb) – continues to trouble or be remembered; also, to visit as a ghost
appropriate (adj) – suitable; fitting for the situation
YouGov – British market research company conducting public opinion surveys
inclined (adj) – having a tendency or desire to do something
investigate (verb) – examine; research; look into carefully
categories (noun) – groups or classes of things
werewolves (noun) – mythical creatures that transform from human to wolf
vampires (noun) – mythical undead beings that drink blood
Loch Ness monster/Nessie – legendary creature said to inhabit Scottish lake
witches (noun) – people (traditionally women) believed to have magic powers
ghosts (noun) – spirits of dead people believed to appear to the living
sitting on the fence (idiom) – being undecided; not taking a position
rule it out (phrase verb) – eliminate as a possibility; decide something is not true
significant (adj) – important; notable; meaningful
linger (verb) – stay in a place longer than necessary; persist
Resources mentioned in this episode –>
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samhain
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Lynch_fitz_Stephen
https://www.libraryireland.com/articles/WardenGalwayDPJ1-29/index.php
https://yougov.co.uk/society/articles/52619-ghosts-magic-do-britons-believe-in-the-supernatural
Alternatively, you can watch the video below and turn on the subtitles by clicking the CC button in the top right corner:
If you liked this episode, you may enjoy the following:
https://nopressureenglish.com/podcast/episode-1-a-political-scandal/
https://nopressureenglish.com/podcast/episode-3-how-old-are-you-in-english/
