Why the Name?
When we formed the company in 2002, we searched for a name that would
be a metaphor for our strengths and business approach.
Then we rediscovered the "coracle," a traditional watercraft
that is nimble, versatile and practical—all useful traits in rapidly
changing technology industries.
Round or oval-shaped, coracles are carefully hand crafted of willow
or ash laths woven together in a basketwork pattern. The hull is covered
with fabric or hides and sealed. To navigate, a coracle oarsman holds
the paddle in two hands over the bow, carefully cutting a figure "8" in
the water. Coracles once served to ferry people across rivers, but now
are used to fish for prized salmon and sea trout.
Like its namesake, Coracle Group is quick and versatile. It’s
an intelligent resource for technology companies focused on the ultimate "catch"—market
success.
The History of Coracles
Today coracles are most often spotted in the waterways of Wales in western
England, but they have a long history.
One of the earliest mentions of coracles is in The History of
Herodotus, written about 424 BC. The Greek historian describes "boats round
like a shield" traveling "down the river to Babylon." Descended
from vessels described by Roman writers, coracles have been used in
Great Britain (Wales, Scotland and Ireland) for centuries. The Irish
often favored a similar but larger craft, the currach or curragh. In
an account from 100 BC, Julius Caesar writes of ocean-going currachs
with sails that roved the North Atlantic. According to legend, in the
sixth century St. Brendan may have journeyed to America in a currach.
The coracle is truly a universal design. Variations appear in the Ku-dru
of Tibet, the bamboo boat of Vietnam, the quffa and zaima of Iraq, the
parisal of India and the bullboat of the Mandan Native American tribe.
To learn more about coracles, please explore the following links:
Coracle / from Wikipedia
Official Coracle Society Web site
Credits:
Many thanks to coracle experts Martin Fowler, Terry Kenny and Christopher Sauvarin
in the United Kingdom who generously contributed information and photos
for this site.
