Somewhere in Ireland, there is a townland your family once called home. A parish register with their names written in faded ink. A port where they said goodbye. Irish Roots Project exists to help you find it — whether you are tracing your family tree for the first time, claiming Irish citizenship through your ancestry, or planning the trip back.
New here? Follow these six guides in order — each one builds on the last.
New to Irish Genealogy Research
Follow these six guides in order — each one builds on the last.
Not sure which record to look for first?
Get the Irish Genealogy Starter Checklist — the ten records to find first, and exactly which free database holds each one.
Citizenship by Descent
Ireland has one of the most generous citizenship-by-descent programs in the world. If you have an Irish-born grandparent — and in some cases a great-grandparent — you may be entitled to Irish citizenship and an EU passport through the Foreign Births Register.
Who qualifies, how the Foreign Births Register works, costs and timelines.
Am I Eligible?Every pathway — parent, grandparent, great-grandparent — and the edge cases.
Foreign Birth RegistrationThe full FBR application, step by step from documents to approval.
Through a GrandparentOne Irish-born grandparent and the three-generation document chain.
Through a Great-GrandparentThe one scenario where it works — and your options if it doesn’t.
Documents You NeedThe FBR checklist by generation, and where to order each certificate.
How Long It TakesAn honest timeline for documents, FBR processing, and the passport stage.
Dual Citizenship & EU PassportWhat Irish citizenship really delivers: EU rights, UK access, and more.
Descent vs NaturalisationRequirements, cost, and certainty compared — and when the choice is yours.
Do You Need a Solicitor?Most applications need no lawyer. Who genuinely does, and the red flags.
Not sure if you qualify? Work through every pathway in the Eligibility Guide.
Genealogy Research Guides
Ireland’s census substitute, and how to search the famine-era survey free.
The 1922 Records FireWhat burned, what survived, and the workaround for every loss.
Irish Emigration RecordsShips, ports, and passenger lists — and finding the home townland.
Irish Genealogy GlossaryTownlands, register Latin, and the terms that unlock every record.
Looking for the databases themselves? See the full directory: Irish Genealogy Databases & Free Research Tools.
Free trial
Ready to start researching your Irish family?
Start a free MyHeritage trial to build your family tree and search historical records and other family trees as you work through these guides.
Irish Surname Origins
The Gaelic patronymic system, the Norman and planter layers, sept geography.
The Most Common Irish SurnamesMurphy, Kelly, O’Brien and the rest: meanings, septs, and home counties.
O’, Mc & Mac PrefixesWhat the prefixes mean, the Mc-vs-Mac myth, and why they vanished.
Anglicized SurnamesThe five ways Irish names were changed — and how to reverse them.
Researching Your SurnameThe seven-step workflow: variants, heartland mapping, and cluster searching.
DNA Testing for Irish Ancestry
DNA testing can reveal living Irish relatives and confirm family connections that paper records alone cannot — especially valuable given how many Irish records were lost in 1922.
All four services compared: database strengths, match tools, and the right pick.
MyHeritage vs AncestryDNAWho holds your diaspora cousins, who holds Ireland, and the upload strategy.
Find Irish Relatives With DNATurn a match list into living relatives — clustering, contact, and the records loop.
Start at the hub: DNA Testing for Irish Ancestry: Reviews, Comparisons & Guides.
Planning Your Trip to Ireland
The research to finish first, the itinerary that works, and the townland day.
Visiting Your Ancestral TownlandReading the ground, working the graveyard, and door-knocking etiquette.
EPIC & the Family History CentreWhat each offers, the genealogist consultation, and how to sequence a visit.
Find Living Relatives in IrelandTrace the sibling who stayed, walk the line forward, and make the approach.
Stories & Community
Behind every genealogy search is a human story. These guides explore the Irish diaspora experience and what it means to reconnect with a heritage that spans generations and continents.
Why millions left — from the Ulster streams to the famine flood — and where they went.
The Great FamineWhy the potato’s failure broke Ireland, and what it means for your research.
Reclaiming Your Irish HeritageWhat the reclaiming actually consists of, and where to begin — tonight.