Che Guevara, an Irish rebel – could that really be true?

Maybe not quite, but there is actually some truth to the claim.

Che Guevara was born in Argentina and given the first name Ernesto. As a child he was called 'Ernestito' which means little Ernesto. He later earned the nickname Che, which in Argentine-Spanish means 'man'. Che Guevara's family was of Spanish / Irish descent and his father said of him: "In my son's veins the blood flows from the Irish rebels", probably with reference to the 1916 Irish uprising.

In 1951, while studying medicine, the 23-year-old Guevara and his 29-year-old friend traveled through South America - a journey that took several months and shaped his political views. On the trip, Guevara came into immediate contact with the poverty, exploitation, and oppression that the vast majority of the population suffered under. The experiences of the trip convinced him that only a revolutionary upheaval could eliminate economic inequalities and create social justice. Che Guevara came to play a major role in the Cuban Revolution, which in 1952, after years of guerrilla warfare, brought Fidel Castro and his communist regime to power. All this has secured Guevara an almost mythical status as an icon of the freedom struggle of the oppressed.

Che Guevara's journey in South America is beautifully portrayed in the film The Motorcycle Diaries, which is based on the Argentine's own tales from the trip. Watch it today at Kino Club.