Welcome to the summary page for FabulousFusionFood's Manx recipes for recipes from the Isle of Man, part of the Celtic world. This page provides links to all the Manx recipes presented on this site, with 50 recipes in total.

The Isle of Man (Manx: Mannin [ˈmanɪnʲ], also Ellan Vannin [ˈɛlʲan ˈvanɪnʲ]), also known as Mann (/mæn/), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Governor. The government of the United Kingdom is responsible for the isle's military defence and represents it abroad.

The Isle of Man has been occupied since before 6500 BCE Prior to the 5th century CE, the island's inhabitants probably spoke a Brythonic form of Celtic, allied to the languages spoken in Britain. Gaelic cultural influence began in the 5th century AD, when Irish missionaries following the teaching of St. Patrick began settling the island, and the Manx language, a branch of the Goidelic languages, emerged. In 627, King Edwin of Northumbria conquered the Isle of Man along with most of Mercia. In the 9th century, Norsemen established the thalassocratic Kingdom of the Isles, which included the Isle of Man. Magnus III, King of Norway from 1093 to 1103, reigned as King of Mann and the Isles between 1099 and 1103.

In 1266, King Magnus VI of Norway sold his suzerainty over Mann to King Alexander III of Scotland under the Treaty of Perth.[13] After a period of alternating rule by the Kings of Scotland and England, the island came under the feudal lordship of the English Crown in 1399. The lordship revested in the British Crown in 1765, but the island did not become part of the 18th-century Kingdom of Great Britain, nor of its successors, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the present-day United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It has always retained its internal self-government. In 1881, the Isle of Man Parliament, Tynwald, became the first national legislative body in the world to give women the right to vote in a general election, although this excluded married women.

The Manx name of the Isle of Man is Ellan Vannin: ellan (Manx pronunciation: [ɛlʲan]), a Manx word meaning 'island'; Mannin (IPA: [manɪnʲ]) appears in the genitive case as Vannin (IPA: [vanɪnʲ]), with initial consonant mutation, hence Ellan Vannin, 'Island of Mann'. The short form used in English is spelled either Mann or Man. The earliest recorded Manx form of the name is Manu or Mana.

After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, many Cornish/Dumnonian Britons settled in western Armorica to escape the Saxons and the region started to be called Britannia, although this name only replaced Armorica by the end of the fifth century and into the sixth century CE.

The Old Irish form of the name is Manau or Mano. Old Welsh records named it as Manaw, also reflected in Manaw Gododdin, the name for an ancient district in north Britain along the lower Firth of Forth.[24] In the 1st century AD, Pliny the Elder records it as Monapia or Monabia, and Ptolemy (2nd century) as Monœda (Mοναοιδα, Monaoida) or Mοναρινα (Monarina), in Koine Greek. Later Latin references have Mevania or Mænavia (Orosius, 416), and Eubonia or Eumonia by Irish writers. It is found in the Sagas of Icelanders as Mön.

The name is probably cognate with the Welsh name of the island of Anglesey, Ynys Môn, usually derived from a Celtic word for 'mountain' (reflected in Welsh mynydd, Breton menez, and Scottish Gaelic monadh), from a Proto-Celtic *moniyos.

The name was at least secondarily associated with that of Manannán mac Lir in Irish mythology (corresponding to Welsh Manawydan fab Llŷr).[29] In the earliest Irish mythological texts, Manannán is a king of the otherworld. In Manx mythology, the island was ruled by the sea god Manannán, who would draw his misty cloak around the island to protect it from invaders. One of the principal folk theories about the origin of the name Mann is that it is named after Manannán.

For centuries, the island's symbol has been the so-called 'three legs of Mann' (Manx: Tree Cassyn Vannin), a triskelion of three legs conjoined at the thigh. The Manx triskelion, which dates back with certainty to the late 13th century, is of uncertain origin. It has been suggested that its origin lies in Sicily, an island which has been associated with the triskelion since ancient times. According to mythology, however, the three legs of Mann represent the god Manannán who traversed the island with his three legs that span like a wheel. The principle of threes is also a feature of Insular Celtic symbology and mythology across the British Isles.

The official languages of the Isle of Man are English and Manx. Manx has traditionally been spoken but has been stated to be 'critically endangered'. However, it now has a growing number of young speakers. It is increasingly evident on the island: for instance, in public notices and its increasing use in the Tynwald ceremony.

Manx is a Goidelic Celtic language and is one of a number of insular Celtic languages spoken in the British Isles. Manx has been officially recognised as a legitimate autochthonous regional language under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, ratified by the United Kingdom on 27 March 2001 on behalf of the Isle of Man government.

Manx is closely related to Irish and Scottish Gaelic but is orthographically sui generis.

Food and Cuisine:

In the past, the basic national dish of the island was spuds and herrin, boiled potatoes and herring. This plain dish was supported by the subsistence farmers of the island, who for centuries crofted the land and fished the sea. Chips, cheese and gravy, a dish similar to poutine, is found in most of the island's fast-food outlets, and consists of thick cut chips, covered in shredded Cheddar cheese and topped with a thick gravy. However, as of the Isle of Man Food & Drink Festival 2018, queenies have been crowned the Manx national dish with many restaurants, hotels and pubs serving locally farmed queen scallops.

Seafood has traditionally accounted for a large proportion of the local diet. Although commercial fishing has declined in recent years, local delicacies include Manx kippers (smoked herring) which are produced by the smokeries in Peel on the west coast of the island, albeit mainly from North Sea herring these days. The smokeries also produce other specialities including smoked salmon and bacon. It should be noted, however, that the smoking of meat and fish is a relatively recent introduction to the island (since c. 1900) and is not a traditional method of preserving food.

Crab, lobster and scallops are commercially fished, and the queen scallop (queenies) is regarded as a particular delicacy, with a light, sweet flavour. Cod, ling and mackerel are often angled for the table, and freshwater trout and salmon can be taken from the local rivers and lakes, supported by the government fish hatchery at Cornaa on the east coast.

Cattle, sheep, pigs and poultry are all commercially farmed; Manx lamb from the hill farms is a popular dish. The Loaghtan, the indigenous breed of Manx sheep, has a rich, dark almost gamey meat that has found favour with chefs, featuring in dishes on the BBC's MasterChef series.

Manx cheese has also found some success, featuring smoked and herb-flavoured varieties, and is stocked by many of the UK's supermarket chains. Manx cheese took bronze medals in the 2005 British Cheese Awards, and sold 578 tonnes over the year. Manx cheddar has been exported to Canada where it is available in some supermarkets.

Beer is brewed on a commercial scale by Okells Brewery, which was established in 1850 and is the island's largest brewer; and also, by Bushy's Brewery and the Hooded Ram Brewery. The Isle of Man's Pure Beer Act of 1874, which resembles the German Reinheitsgebot, is still in effect: under this Act, brewers may only use water, malt, sugar and hops in their brews.