The Forgotten Migration
In The Forgotten Migration, Chris Nikkel travels to Canada and Co. Cork to discover a largely unknown 1825 Irish migration to Ontario.
Along the way, Irish Canadian families reveal their rich folk-song tradition, passed down orally before being recorded in the 1950s by the aptly named Folklorist, Edith Fowke.
The rich cache of recorded songs-some 2000 in total-changed the way scholars view folk music in Canada, while also revealing a community holding strong to their Irish identity as they forged a new life in the backwoods of Ontario.
To reconnect with these forgotten emigrants, Amanda Slattery and the Ballyhoura Development Company invite the Ontario-Irish back to County Cork for an emotional commemoration, 200 years after their ancestors left, the first step toward remembering what has long been forgotten.
Told through rarely heard songs, and Canadian and Irish contributors, The Forgotten Migration takes us on a journey through memory, and the deep search for connection between emigrants and their home country.
Presented and produced by Chris Nikkel.
The Forgotten Migration is a Chris Nikkel production for RTÉ lyric fm, made with funding from RTÉ Independent Radio Productions and additional funding from the Royal Irish Academy’s Commemoration Bursary.
RTÉ lyric fm, Sunday 4th January, 6pm-7pm
