At Finte O’Broin we strive to promote the history, identity and culture of Irish clans. Unfortunately, the Irish clan system has, by and large, been lost and there is no cohesive structure or national policy which aims to keep this system alive. We at Finte O’Broin have lobbied the Irish Government and the Office of the Chief Herald in Ireland to adopt some of our policies in the hope that our ancient culture may be kept alive and relevant for generations to come.
Mission Statement:
We aim to promote the history, identity and culture of the Byrne name and all its derivatives through research, gatherings, publications, lectures and charitable activities.
Chieftainship:
We do not use the ancient titles of Chief or Chieftain for any of the individuals involved in our work. Where a reasonably proven link to an ancient lineage has been established through documentation and dna testing, we prefer to use the designation “Guardian of the Name” in order to maintain links to ancient lineages and to keep them alive as much as possible.
Policies and Lobbying:
Finte O’Broin has lobbied the Office of the Chief Herald and the Department of Culture, Heritage and Gaeltacht Affairs to establish a formal register of Irish pedigrees and ancient lineages.
We have lobbied the Office of the Chief Herald to formally adopt a system of recognising Guardians of the Name in order to make the system more relevant in a modern republic and to maintain living links to ancient Irish lineages and to deter bogus claims to hereditary chieftainships.
While there has been agreement on these issues in principle, due to staff shortages and economic restraints, it is unlikely that there will be any developments in the near future. We will, however, continue to lobby and keep these issues on the agenda.
Policies and Beliefs:
We promote the sale of Irish goods throughout the world.
We promote the use of the Irish language whenever possible.
We promote cultural links between Irish clans and other clan systems throughout the world.
We believe that women also should be allowed to become Guardians of the Name.
We promote our work to young people through O’Broin Oige.
We raise money for charitable causes as much as possible and in so doing our clan organisation remains relevant in modern Ireland.
We promote unity among Irish clan societies and encourage all those who believe in the Irish clan system to work together and to bring honour and dignity to their cause.
We believe in the right of Irish clans to self authenticate.
We believe that membership of an Irish clan is by virtue of birthright and should not involve payment of any kind.
We believe that individuals have the right to identify with an Irish clan if they wish to do so and if the clan in question wishes to accept them as members.
We believe that all people are equal and promote the nine grounds of Equality in Ireland namely, religion, gender, age, sexuality, disability, member of the Traveller communitiy, civil status, family status and ethnicity.