The Aran Islands’ barren beauty and dramatic coastline have made it a very popular location for tourists, artists, writers and nature lovers, and the Aran Islands have been used in many television and film productions.
Cultural Traditions
The Aran Islands have a unique lure for artists and tourists alike due to their deep connections with Ireland’s cultural history. Irish is still spoken as the primary language on the islands and there remain strong local communities based around traditional industries such as fishing, farming and textile making.
The link between these three industries is symbolised by the Aran jumper or mens fisherman sweater. They are made by local people using wool from sheep bred on the islands and adorned with ornate and deeply personal patterns evoking the sea and fishing communities.
Knitting History into Sweaters
Traditionally, Aran sweaters, like those available from https://shoparan.com/mens-aran-sweaters/mens-fisherman-sweaters/, were made by local women for the men of the community to wear when they went to sea to provide a living for their families. Not only did this knitting industry clothe their community, but the women were also able to provide a supplementary income for their homes.
Aran sweaters are warm, hard-wearing and yet breathable – suitable for men facing the harsh Atlantic winds at sea while working hard to retrieve their catch. The jumpers were knitted with elaborate patterns and stitches that evoke the sea and fishing traditions.
The basket weave symbolises a basket of fish, and the diamond stitch evokes the criss-cross pattern of fishing nets. Finally, the classic cable knit symbolises the ropes of the fishing boats.
Families and villages often created their own unique patterns, and this had another, sadder purpose. The mortality rate of fishermen at sea was high and the pattern on the jumper could tell the finders which community the fisherman had come from, and even which family he belonged to.
