What is Bloomsday?

The first celebration of Bloomsday took place on the second anniversary of the publication of Ulysses, in 1924. This is recorded in a letter Joyce sent to a patron of his, Harriet Shaw Weaver, where he noted that a group of people had sent him white and blue dyed hortensias, signifying the colours of his book.

The next major celebration marked the publication of the French translation of Ulysses, as well as 25 years since the 16 June 1904. Adrienne Monnier, publisher of the French translation and partner of the original publisher Sylvia Beach, hosted a ‘Déjeuner Ulysse’, a luncheon, appropriately held in the Hôtel Léopold.

In 1954, on the 50th anniversary of Ulysses, the first known Bloomsday celebrations in the style we know today, took place in Ireland. A cousin of James Joyce, Tom Joyce and a collection of Joyce’s other admirers, including Dublin born poet, Patrick Kavanagh, visited some of the landmarks outlined in the novel.

They began their excursion at the Martello Tower in Sandycove, where the book begins, and ended at Davy Byrnes pub on Duke Street, where Leopold Bloom ate a sandwich and drank wine.

The group read parts of Ulysses while drinking, eating and enjoying the escape the story offered them. This Bloomsday adventure was organised by John Ryan, an Irish businessman and artist, who also filmed some of the landmarks the group visited.

The images above were taken on this excursion and are part of the Wiltshire Collection and courtesy of the National Library of Ireland.

Today, both in Dublin and around the world, Joyceans and Ulysses admirers replicate the style and story of this novel. The traditions first displayed in 1954 have continued for decades since.

Bloomsday takes many different forms, from walking tours following the route and timeline of the story from 8AM through to the early hours of the following morning to Joycean breakfasts of kidneys and Guinness, to dramatic readings, costume contests, re-enactments, talks and exhibitions.

Many people dress up in the classic Edwardian fashion, including the infamous straw boater hats and bow ties, as well as Joyce’s classic bowler hats. Bloomsday is now one of the largest literature festivals in Dublin, with over 100 events taking place across the 11-16 June each year.

Bloomsday is one of Ireland’s most eccentric cultural exports – equal parts homage, performance and inside joke. Because only Joyce could turn a single day, a lot of internal monologue and a pork kidney into high art – and have it go global.

Bloomsday around the world

Bloomsday’s international charm lies in the fact that even a famously challenging to read novel could unite readers, revellers and curious onlookers, from Dublin to Tokyo. What may have started amongst Joyce’s friends and fans as a literary in-joke, has now become a worldwide celebration of wit, wordplay and walking tours, all with a side of whimsy. Celebrations take place each year in cities and towns across the globe.

Bloomsday was first celebrated in the United States in 1962, when the Joyce Society of New York delivered a full-length reading of Ulysses in the Gotham Book Mart. This is a tradition that continues today, and is just one of many events all around the world where Joyceans and fans alike gather, just like in Dublin, to celebrate this great literary work.

Have a look through some of the Bloomsday events that have taken place around the world in recent years.

James Joyce changed the course of literature, and in doing so, had a huge impact on what it has meant to be an Irish writer. This year, as we celebrate Bloomsday, we are also looking beyond Ulysses and Joyce’s other works.

Ireland is an island of writers, punching far above our small size in the literary world across the years. Generations of Irish writers, spanning the range of creative genres from fiction to poetry and drama to literary essays, have left a large cultural imprint on the world.

Ireland has produced numerous renowned writers and poets including the likes of W.B. Yeats, Samuel Beckett, Oscar Wilde, Seamus Heaney, Edna O’Brien, Bram Stoker and Maeve Binchy, as well as contemporary writers such as Claire Keegan, Sally Rooney, Roddy Doyle and Colm Tóibín, and many more.

Bloomsday may begin with Joyce, but it’s the perfect moment to celebrate the full spectrum of Irish literary brilliance. Whether you love epic experiments, razor-sharp short stories, page turning novels or lyrical poetry, there’s an Irish writer who has the perfect story for you – so don’t be afraid to look beyond.

Learn about the inspiring work of Irish writers around the world.