Why are Irish civil registration records so often unreliable?

[Elwyn Soutter]

In general, people in Ireland in the 1800s didn’t celebrate birthdays, didn’t have birth certificates or passports (though they might sometimes have had a baptismal cert) and often had little accurate idea of their ages. Most ages on official documents were just a guess.

Alexander Irvine was born in 1863 in Antrim town and became a Minister living in the US. This extract from his book “The Chimney Corner revisited” perhaps explains why people often had to guess their ages:

“My mother kept a mental record of the twelve births. None of us ever knew, or cared to know, when we were born. When I heard of anybody in the more fortunate class celebrating a birthday I considered it a foolish imitation of the Queen’s birthday, which rankled in our little minds with 25th December or 12th July. In manhood there were times when I had to prove I was born somewhere, somewhen, and then it was that I discovered that I also had a birthday. The clerk of the parish informed me.”

I found a letter in parish records in PRONI (the public record office) in Belfast from someone in Pettigoe, Co. Donegal in 1908 writing to his Minister, asking for proof of age (ie a baptismal certificate). All he knew was that he was between “70 and 78 years of age.” He clearly had only the vaguest idea and couldn’t narrow it down to within 9 years. (The likely reason for the letter was that the old age pension was being introduced in 1909 for people aged 70 and over. Documentary proof of age was required. Thus, probably for the first time in his life, establishing his age accurately became relevant to him).

[Sinann]

Micheál Ó Muircheartaigh sports commentator who is still very much alive said he remembers people 'writing home for their age' to the parish priest, most would have been men working on building sites in England, so not too long ago people still weren't sure of their age.

There is also the fine for late registration to be taken into account, a busy farmer wasn't going to travel into town to register a new baby until it suited him and a fib about the birth date was a must if it saved the price of the fine. Which of course is why so many Irish children appear to be baptised before they were born.

[aghadowey]

Illiteracy and lack of good education were not the only factors. In my part of Ireland there was a very good school system from 1820s onwards but there simply wasn't much need to know an exact date, or even year, of birth.

My father-in-law, born before WWI, was never sure of his birthdate (nearest was in early January) although he'd no trouble remembering his wedding date and even the day he got engaged. A relative of my father's, born in 1920s, had 3 birthdays- one on birth certificate, second recorded in baptismal register and third (one family celebrated) was the day his mother said he was born!

And census confusion isn't a recent thing. My father has, and only ever had, 2 daughters. My sister has always been 4 years younger than me. So filling out census form should be easy, right? No, one year my father started by putting in sister first then me younger! (we fixed it before submitted)

[hallmark]

I did Census in 1970's and knocked on one house and the door was open by a lady who was 100% Black Irish, about 4'6" tall, black dress, shawl etc etc...She was almost blind.

She asked me in to help her with the Form.

She had been born on Connemara coast where her folk were Fishermen. She married there to a fisherman from east coast, after marriage she went with him on trawler to her new home on East coast and had never been home since.

Trying to complete the Form she told me her father was 2 when Michael Davitt was born, one of her brothers was born same year as someone else, she was born when some other Politician was only 5, etc etc...

She had no idea of years for when anyone was Born and it was all years when this happened or that happened.

She couldn't read or write.  A remarkable lady that I will never forget, chatted about her life growing up, life on East coast for well over an hour.

Don't think she even knew what the Year was and wasn't important to her    I forget which event she gave for the year she was born but had to look it up when I got home to work out her age/birth year!    She hadn't a clue as to what age she was!