I have been interested in the melungeons for years.....mostly because of the various "lost" groups of Europeans that settled in this country very early on. Melungeon is now starting to become a catch all phrase for almost every dark haired group that genealogists are trying to categorize. The term Black Irish has nothing to do with the Melungeon. Some folks seem to believe that the "Black Irish" were the result of Spanish ship wrecked off the coast of Ireland. I, myself, think that it is just a term used for an Irishman with dark hair and a dark eye.....as if an Irishman with dark hair was something odd...:-)) When I have traveled in Ireland, I do believe I have met as many dark haired Irish as I have redheads..:-) So....whatever the heck Black Irish means....it probably means something different to every person that ever hurled it as an epithet at another person. We surely can be unkind to one another...can't we??? ...........Judy :-)) *********************************************************** cato@primary.net ***********************************************************