Kerry Association of NSW

Kerry County Association (NSW) - Contact Details

For information on how to get involved with the Kerry Association and events in New South Wales, contact Elaine Stack.

E-mail: nellanddoll@yahoo.com.au 

Mob: 0414 433 953

 

 

CONGRATULATIONS TO CAROLINE HARNEY, THE

WINNER OF THE 2011 SYDNEY ROSE OF TRALEE.

 

The Rose of Tralee festival is an international competition which is celebrated among Irish communities all over the world. The festival takes its inspiration from a nineteenth century ballad of the same name about a woman called Mary O'Connor, who because of her beauty was called The Rose of Tralee.

The festival has its origins in the local Carnival Queen, once an annual event in Tralee, Kerry. In 1957, the Carnival Queen became part of the new Race Week Festival. In 1959, local businessmen sponsored the competition and it became the Rose of Tralee. Originally, only women from Tralee were eligible to compete, in the early 1960s it was extended to include any women from Kerry, and in 1967 it was further extended to include any women of Irish birth or ancestry.

The Rose of Tralee festival is now held annually at the end of August in Tralee, County Kerry, to choose a young woman to be crowned the Rose. The winning Rose is the woman deemed to best match the attributes relayed in the song: "lovely and fair". The winner is selected based on her personality, rather than appearance, and should be a good role model for the festival and for Ireland during her travels around the world. The festival bills itself as celebration of the "aspirations, ambitions, intellect, social responsibility and Irish heritage" of modern young women.

Each of the 32 counties in Ireland select a Rose and there is also a Rós Fódhla representing the Gaeltacht or Irish-speaking areas in Ireland. Regional finals are held in June where six Irish girls are selected to take part in the International Rose of Tralee festival. The contest final is broadcast in August over two nights by RTÉ. There are international Roses chosen from around the world who also participate in the Rose of Tralee festival. The Sydney Rose of Tralee competition is organised by the Kerry Association of New South Wales. If you'd like more information about the festival or would like to join in the competition and festival, contact the Kerry Association (details below).

Visit:

• Rose of Tralee International Festival Official Website 
• Rose of Tralee pages on The Irish Diaspora (blog)
• Rose of Tralee 2010 notes (blog)

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