“it’s a small world” is one of the most beloved attractions at Disneyland. It takes guests on a boat ride around the world, while listening to a catchy (perhaps too catchy) song that is sure to stay in your head for days (or weeks)—it is “likely is the most-played song in global history until streaming services,” according to the Library of Congress. As we listen to the song, we pass by children of different nations across the globe, surrounded by important symbols of each nation.
One of my favorites has always been Ireland. I am a proud Irish descendant, so I always enjoy that it is represented in the attraction. And I love green (particularly, Kelly Green), and this part of the attraction is one big vibrant section of green.
So what major symbols were chosen to represent Ireland—besides the color green—in it's a small world?
Let me pose that question another way: When you think of the symbol of Ireland, what comes to your mind? Perhaps a shamrock? Maybe a leprechaun? I bet the words “St. Patrick’s Day” flit through your mind.
Well, what if I told you, it is none of these things?
What if I told you it is a harp! And right there in the Disney attraction is a large gold and green harp. And identifying the reason why the harp is the symbol of Ireland takes us back in time.
But first, a short history of the attraction itself.
"It’s a small world" and the New York World’s Fair
The attraction opened up in 1966 after an enormously successful run at the New York World’s Fair in 1964–65. If you fear dolls, this is not the ride for you. About three hundred Audio-Animatronics dolls fill the space, all set within beautifully crafted and designed sets. I’ve always loved the individualized costumes that costumer Alice Davis crafted by hand.
Fun fact: Alice Davis was married to famed Imagineer Marc Davis.
At the New York World’s Fair, it’s a small world was a temporary exhibit designed for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and this is why it takes us on a boat voyage to different nations, where the child dolls sing the catchy ditty about world peace: Let’s not forget that the Cold War was occurring when it’s a small world was created and there were fears over another world war, especially with the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962—there is a reason for that line of the song that mentions hopes and fears. [1]
"it's a small world" and an important Irish icon
This is also why the attraction at the World’s Fair and then at Disneyland incorporates important icons from different nations—these visual icons, often drawn from famous art and architecture, represent different nations. Imagineers, artists, and designers included large shamrocks for Ireland, but the harp stands prominently to signify the island nation!
Let’s go find out why and how it relates to Irish identity.
The harp in Irish history
As an instrument, the harp dates back thousands of years and was played in different areas of the world. It has long been important in Irish history and to Irish identity. Imagine bards singing histories and myths accompanied by the harp more than a thousand years ago. Over time, it also became a political icon, symbolizing Irish resistance and freedom from foreign powers.
In Ireland, a very famous medieval king named Brian Boru (c. 941–1014) was supposedly a fan of the harp. Boru is important in Irish history for becoming the first High King who united peoples across Ireland and for fighting against Norse invaders seeking control of parts of Ireland. He'd die fighting against the Norse at the Battle of Clontarf in 1014, but his forced would prevail—it's considered a really important moment in Irish history! So, we have one famous Irish king who united people and loved the harp.
The Irish were famous for their harping. Even Prince John (the future King of England), who disparaged the Irish and Irish culture as he traveled around after the Norman invasion in 1185, admitted that the Irish played the harp well. His account helped to cement Ireland’s connection with the harp.
“The only thing to which I find that this people apply a commendable industry is playing upon musical instruments… they are incomparably more skillful than any other nation I have ever seen. For their modulation on these instruments, unlike that of the Britons to which I am accustomed, is not slow and harsh, but lively and rapid, while the harmony is both sweet and gay… It must be remarked… that both Scotland and Wales strive to rival Ireland in the art of music.” [2]
Fun fact: The real life Prince John influenced Disney's Robin Hood (1973).
The harp becomes reinforced as a symbol of Ireland
At different moments from the 13th century onward, the harp appeared on insignia associated with Ireland. It appeared on a flag first used by Eoghan Ruadh Ó Néill in 1642.
Though, during some periods of English rule, the use of the harp was suppressed along with other emblems of Irishness. By the late 18th century, the harp was cemented as a symbol of resistance and the desire for freedom. People were inspired by the French Revolution, and the group known as the Society of United Irishmen formed to help gain more rights for Irish people. The United Irishmen used the harp on banners, flags, and badges as signs of resistance and pride in Irish identity and sovereignty.
Side note: Are you familiar with the saying "Erin Go Bragh"? In Irish, this means Ireland forever, and it too was used on flags carried by the United Irishmen.
Irish people finally achieved sovereignty from England in 1922. This moment cemented the harp as a symbol of Irish identity.
And mostly people were looking to one particular harp, often referred to as “Brian Boru’s harp" or the "Trinity College Harp." It is the oldest of its kind from Ireland!
Brian Boru's harp and John Egan's harps
Today, this revered harp is in the Long Room at Trinity College Library. It is unlikely that it belonged to the Irish king Brian Boru, who died in 1014.
It's a beautiful wooden harp, covered in surface decoration carved into its surface. The harp likely dates to the 14th–15th century, but the myth of it belonging to Brian Boru remains. It has become a symbol of Ireland’s glorious medieval past, filled with heroes like Brian Boru.
John's Egan's harps and Irish nationalism
But I’d be remiss at not looking to another important figure who helped to popularize the harp in Irish history. It’s undoubtedly another reason for Disney’s inclusion of the harp in it’s a small world.
The harp in the attraction is a throwback to harps popularized by John Egan, who was making them in the early 19th century. Remember, this was a time of major movements among Irish people to be independent from England. Egan constructed thousands of harps, including one called the “Royal Portable Harp.” These harps were often made in green, black, and blue and adorned with golden details (including shamrocks and wolfhounds that helped to make them more Irish).
Many of his harps borrowed their shape and size from medieval harps (like the one found in Trinity College Library), and people liked them because they were oh-so portable. He helped to make harps cool again after a period when their popularity declined, helping to further solidify the harp as an icon of Ireland.
The harp in it’s a small world looks a lot like the Egan harps, painted in green and gold.
What about the face on the harp?
You might be wondering about the face that you see on the harp on it's a small world. Neither the Brian Boru harp nor any of the Egan harp's I've shown here have a large face at the top of the harp. Is this a Disney invention?
I think it is yet another nod to Ireland's past, when the harp was used on the coat of arms of Ireland. But not just any harp: a harp with a half-naked woman on it. You can imagine why Disney chose not to include breasts on it's harp for it's a small world....
Side note: the current Irish coat of arms no longer has the nude lady on it, just the harp.
I mentioned above how the harp became really tied to Irish identity, especially as periods of foreign invasions and control occurred. The harp with female bust seems to appear sometime in the 14th century, and was used thereafter for a long time.
If you look at this early 18th century map, you can see that the heraldic symbol for Ireland is the harp with bare-naked lady.
Ireland is the harpiest place on earth
So when you think of Ireland, perhaps now you will think only of harps!
Today, besides in it’s a small world, you can find the harp on Irish passports and official documents, the Irish coat of arms, and Euros. And even Guinness labels! Ireland is really the harpiest place on earth. So it makes sense that the harp also appears on a ride in the happiest place on earth.
If you've enjoyed learning about "it's a small world" and an important Irish icon, then you will definitely enjoy my other posts and newsletter that dives into more Disney art history!
Learn more!
Jayson Kerr Dobney, ”A Portable Irish Harp,” 17 March 2014. The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
An Egan harp in the Yale Music collection.
More about John Egan from the National Museum of Ireland.
Listen to an Egan harp below!
Williams, Maggie. Icons of Irishness from the Middle Ages to the Modern World (The New Middle Ages). Palgrave Macmillan, 2012.
A little old and outdated, but still a useful (and free) resource: Treasures of Early Irish Art, 1500 B.C. to 1500 A.D. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1977.
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