Why does ulster have a red hand

Playing the Lotto odds. Green revolution, one tree at a time. Checking Covid certs. Shrinking private rental market. Teacher training and inclusive education. Sign In. Don't have an account? Forgot Password? The sidebar, which is illustrated by a picture of a contemporary loyalist mural, says that the chieftain cut off his right hand.

In fact, the legend is usually told as having the chieftain take his sword in his right hand and cut off his left hand although the mural in your picture shows the severed hand as the right one.

The significance of this point is that it offers a way of distinguishing between the rival representations. If a Red Hand is left, it is likely to have been inspired by the legend; if it is a right hand, it is more likely to be the dextera Dei. The most intriguing section, however, is in the top left hand corner which consists of a white shield and on it a red hand with a history all of its own.

Galicia, northern Spain, 'the land of a thousand rivers', is famous for the 'city of glass', La Coruna, the treacherous shipwrecked coast Costa de la Muerte the Coast of Death and its unmistakably Celtic roots.

Due to centuries of shared fishing traditions and cross-emigration, Galicia has developed a unique culture, but one that is profoundly influenced and inspired by Ireland. The region boasts a folk music tradition with tin whistles, fiddles and bagpipes, a form of traditional dancing and a similarly rich literary and folkloric history. In return Galicia has provided Ireland with one of its most potent symbols. Five hundred years before the birth of Christ the Galician King of Spain Milesius sent his three sons, Ir, Heber and Heremon, to invade and conquer Ireland - promising the island to the first of the siblings to touch its soil.

As the legend goes, each of the parties raced towards the shore and one of the sons cut off his own hand with a sword and throwing it onto dry land so that he could lay claim to the country. It is believed to originate from a mythical tale wherein two chieftains were racing across a stretch of water in a bid to be the first to reach the land and claim it as his own.

Realising his foe would touch the land first, one chieftain cut off his hand and threw it onto the shore, thereby claiming the land before his adversary reached it.

The Red Hand is one of the only emblems in Northern Ireland used by both communities in Northern Ireland although it is more associated with the Protestant community.

Catholics see it as representing the nine counties of Ulster while Protestants see it as representing the six counties of Northern Ireland. The Red Hand of Ulster appears on many murals and flags.