Later major groups included the Connachta, Ciannachta, Eóganachta. Religion has played a significant role in the cultural life of the island since ancient times (and since the 17th century plantations, has been the focus of political identity and divisions on the island). [213] Paddy Barnes secured bronze in those games and gold in the 2010 European Amateur Boxing Championships (where Ireland came 2nd in the overall medal table) and 2010 Commonwealth Games. The most recent genetic research strongly associates the spread of Indo-European languages (including Celtic) through Western Europe with a people bringing a composite Beaker culture, with its arrival in Britain and Ireland dated to around the middle of the third millennium BC. Much of Ireland was woodland until the end of the Middle Ages. To the authorities, counterintelligence was a fundamental line of defence. The executive is jointly headed by the first and deputy first minister, with the ministries being allocated in proportion with each party's representation in the assembly. However, both the IFA and FAI continued to select their teams from the whole of Ireland, with some players earning international caps for matches with both teams. Mass emigration became deeply entrenched and the population continued to decline until the mid-20th century. [211] The horse racing sector is largely concentrated in the County Kildare.[212]. As of 2006[update], 4.3 million Canadians, or 14% of the population, were of Irish descent,[168] while around one-third of the Australian population had an element of Irish descent. "Women and political change in Ireland since 1960. [17] The earliest evidence of human presence in Ireland is dated at 10,500 BC, demonstrated by a butchered bear bone found in a cave in County Clare. Other groups, on both the unionist side and the nationalist side, participated in violence and a period known as the Troubles began. [14] Gaelic Ireland had emerged by the 1st century AD. The substance of the Agreement (formally referred to as the Belfast Agreement) was later endorsed by referendums in both parts of Ireland. Large wind farms have been constructed in Cork, Donegal, Mayo and Antrim. [225] A typical family, consisting of a man, a woman and four children, would eat 18 stone (110 kg) of potatoes per week. [19] The earliest evidence for farming in Ireland or Great Britain is from Ferriter's Cove, County Kerry, where a flint knife, cattle bones and a sheep's tooth were carbon-dated to c. 4350 BC. [151][152] A land of green fields for crop cultivation and cattle rearing limits the space available for the establishment of native wild species. [145][146] Until the end of the Middle Ages, Ireland was heavily forested with native trees such as oak, ash, hazel, birch, alder, willow, aspen, rowan, yew and Scots pine. Ireland has a total area of 84,421 km (32,595 sq mi), of which the Republic of Ireland occupies 83 percent. Phytogeographically, Ireland belongs to the Atlantic European province of the Circumboreal Region within the Boreal Kingdom. The state was neutral during World War II, but offered clandestine assistance to the Allies, particularly in the potential defence of Northern Ireland. The invasion was legitimised by the provisions of the Papal Bull Laudabiliter, issued by an Englishman, Adrian IV, in 1155. Traditional regional foods can be found throughout the country, for example coddle in Dublin or drisheen in Cork, both a type of sausage, or blaa, a doughy white bread particular to Waterford. These are Census data from the official governmental statistics agencies in the respective jurisdictions: Early Peoples of Britain and Ireland: A-G Christopher Allen Snyder, "A History of Ireland: From the Earliest Times to 1922" By Edmund Curtis. A population of over 8 million in 1841 was reduced to slightly more than 4 million by 1921. In 1922 having seceded from the United Kingdom under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, it became the Irish Free State. In turn, Henry accepted the title of Lord of Ireland which Henry conferred on his younger son, John Lackland, in 1185. More than one million people died from starvation and disease, with an additional million people emigrating during the famine, mostly to the United States and Canada. In the west, around County Galway and County Donegal, is a medium to high grade metamorphic and igneous complex of Caledonide affinity, similar to the Scottish Highlands. Wheat and barley were the principal crops.[22]. The latter part of the nineteenth century saw a rapid replacement of Irish by English. In common with the rest of Europe, Ireland experienced unusually cold weather during the winter of 2010-11. Some previously extinct birds, such as the golden eagle, have been reintroduced after decades of extirpation.[144]. When taking both into account, a study concluded that modern Celtic speakers in Ireland could be thought of as European "Atlantic Celts" showing a shared ancestry throughout the Atlantic zone from northern Iberia to western Scandinavia rather than substantially central European. This completed a comprehensive systemic effort to materially disadvantage Roman Catholics and Protestant Dissenters, while enriching a new ruling class of Anglican conformists. Supplies come from the Corrib Gas Field, off the coast of County Mayo, with a decreasing supply coming from the Kinsale gas field off the County Cork coast. Many survived into late medieval times, others vanished as they became politically unimportant. The two countries have a long land border separating them. [198], George Johnstone Stoney introduced the term electron in 1891. Ireland has an ancient industry based on peat (known locally as "turf") as a source of energy for home fires. The Republic of Ireland is a member of the European Union while the United Kingdom is a former member, having both acceded to its precursor entity, the European Economic Community [EEC], in 1973, and as a consequence there is free movement of people, goods, services and capital across the border. Ireland (/ˈaɪərlənd/ (listen); Irish: Éire [ˈeːɾʲə] (listen); Ulster-Scots: Airlann [ˈɑːrlən]) is an island in the North Atlantic. [98] The government's reaction to confrontations was seen to be one-sided and heavy-handed in favour of unionists. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. – on the European continent  (green & dark grey)– in the European Union  (green). The representative for this region is David McNeice. Under the emerging Penal Laws, Irish Roman Catholics and Dissenters were increasingly deprived of various and sundry civil rights even to the ownership of hereditary property. Over the following century, the population was reduced by over half, at a time when the general trend in European countries was for populations to rise by an average of three-fold. Aside from the development of the linen industry, Ireland was largely passed over by the industrial revolution, partly because it lacked coal and iron resources[71][72] and partly because of the impact of the sudden union with the structurally superior economy of England,[73] which saw Ireland as a source of agricultural produce and capital.[74][75]. [36] In his later work, Geography, Ptolemy refers to Ireland as Iouernia and to Great Britain as Albion. Northern Ireland has produced two World Snooker Champions. [113] Historically important monastic sites include Glendalough and Clonmacnoise, which are maintained as national monuments in the Republic of Ireland. [82] This completed a process of gradual separation from the British Empire that governments had pursued since independence. Aquatic wildlife, such as species of sea turtle, shark, seal, whale, and dolphin, are common off the coast. This country report on the Republic of Ireland is associated with the review of UK TNE in Ireland carried out in 2017. [100] Owing to the civil unrest during the Troubles, the British government suspended home rule in 1972 and imposed direct rule. He, along with his expedition, made the first ascent of Mount Erebus and the discovery of the approximate location of the South Magnetic Pole. Foster points to three factors: Irish feminism, largely imported from America with liberal stances on contraception, abortion, and divorce undermined the authority of bishops and priests. The system is similar to that of France or the United States, except that the President is not an executive. Porter remains very popular, although it has lost sales since the mid-20th century to lager. English Crown control remained relatively unshaken in an amorphous foothold around Dublin known as The Pale, and under the provisions of Poynings' Law of 1494, the Irish Parliamentary legislation was subject to the approval of the English Privy Council.[61]. The Oireachtas (equivalent to the parliament) consists of the Dáil Éireann (the lower House) and the Seanad (the 'upper House'). Extinct species include the Irish elk, the great auk, brown bear and the wolf. John Lighton Synge made progress in different fields of science, including mechanics and geometrical methods in general relativity. Ireland has four provinces, including the Ulster Province that also englobes Northern Ireland. [197] William Thomson, or Lord Kelvin, is the person whom the absolute temperature unit, the kelvin, is named after. Ireland has made a large contribution to world literature in all its branches, both in Irish and English. Destination Ireland, a Nations Online Project country profile of the Republic of Ireland, the sovereign state on the island of Ireland. Retrieved 30 November 2012. Violence had decreased greatly after the Provisional IRA and loyalist ceasefires in 1994 and in 2005 the Provisional IRA announced the end of its armed campaign and an independent commission supervised its disarmament and that of other nationalist and unionist paramilitary organisations.[101]. There has also been significant immigration from Lithuania, Czech Republic and Latvia. As the term British Isles is controversial in relation to Ireland, the alternate term Britain and Ireland is often used as a neutral term for the islands. In August 2012, McIlroy won his 2nd major championship by winning the USPGA Championship by a record margin of 8 shots. There is continued debate over the missions of Palladius and Patrick, but the consensus is that they both took place[46] and that the older druid tradition collapsed in the face of the new religion. The implementation bodies are: Waterways Ireland, the Food Safety Promotion Board, InterTradeIreland, the Special European Union Programmes Body, the North/South Language Body and the Foyle, Carlingford and Irish Lights Commission. Traditionally, Ireland is subdivided into four provinces: Connacht (west), Leinster (east), Munster (south), and Ulster (north). During its first decade, the newly formed Irish Free State was governed by the victors of the civil war. After many years of revolution, Ireland gained its independence from the United Kingdom in 1922 and has been an independent country since then. A destination", "For First Time, Croke Park Is Ireland's Common Ground", "Review of the Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund", "Kildare at the heart of the Irish bloodstock industry", "RTÉ News: Irish boxer loses out on Olympic gold", "Katie Taylor wins World Boxing Championships", "Séamus Brennan, Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism comments on victory by Padraig Harrington in the 2007 British Open Golf Championship", "Peter Dawson speaks about golf's Olympic ambition", "Feast and Famine: a History of Food and Nutrition in Ireland 1500–1920", "Irish Whiskey's Growth Not Just About Luck", Environmental Institute, University College Dublin, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, List of World Heritage Sites in the Republic of Ireland, List of national parks of the Republic of Ireland, Public holidays in the Republic of Ireland, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ireland&oldid=1015065582, Pages with non-numeric formatnum arguments, Articles incorporating a citation from the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia with Wikisource reference, Pages containing links to subscription-only content, Wikipedia indefinitely semi-protected pages, Wikipedia indefinitely move-protected pages, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in Hiberno-English, Articles using infobox islands with additional info, Wikipedia articles needing page number citations from October 2019, Articles with unsourced statements from October 2019, Articles lacking reliable references from October 2019, Articles with unsourced statements from February 2016, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2006, All articles containing potentially dated statements, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2013, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2019, Wikipedia articles with MusicBrainz area identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Source 2: The Irish Times (November record high), 16th and 17th centuries: confiscation and redistribution of land in the, Ferriter, Diarmaid. In the monastic culture that followed the Christianisation of Ireland, Latin and Greek learning was preserved in Ireland during the Early Middle Ages in contrast to elsewhere in Western Europe, where the Dark Ages followed the Fall of the Western Roman Empire. An example of this new cuisine is "Dublin Lawyer": lobster cooked in whiskey and cream. [154], Forested areas typically consist of monoculture plantations of non-native species, which may result in habitats that are not suitable for supporting native species of invertebrates. The headquarters of the GAA (and the main stadium) is located at the 82,500[205] capacity Croke Park in north Dublin. [128] The most arable land lies in the province of Leinster. Gaelic football, hurling and handball are the best-known of the Irish traditional sports, collectively known as Gaelic games. He had mathematician John Nash as one of his students. Despite their country's neutrality, approximately 50,000[85] volunteers from independent Ireland joined the British forces during the war, four being awarded Victoria Crosses. [109], The GDP per capita in the Republic of Ireland was $78,335 (nominal) as of 2018,[108] and in Northern Ireland (as of 2016) was €23,700. Apart from Spain, Irish households have the largest average size in the EU. Michael Carruth won a gold medal and Wayne McCullough won a silver medal in the Barcelona Olympic Games. [38][39] Ptolemy records sixteen nations inhabiting every part of Ireland in 100 AD. [157] The island has a small Jewish community. [60], By the end of the 15th century, central English authority in Ireland had all but disappeared, and a renewed Irish culture and language, albeit with Norman influences, was dominant again. For example, Armagh, with 14,590 is the seat of the Church of Ireland and the Roman Catholic Primate of All Ireland and was re-granted city status by Queen Elizabeth II in 1994 (having lost that status in local government reforms of 1840). From the mid-14th century, after the Black Death, Norman settlements in Ireland went into a period of decline. In 1782, Poynings' Law was repealed, giving Ireland legislative independence from Great Britain for the first time since 1495. The Northern Ireland Secretary is a cabinet-level post in the British government. However, some clubs based outside Belfast thought that the IFA largely favoured Ulster-based clubs in such matters as selection for the national team. This has been facilitated by the two jurisdictions' shared membership of the European Union, and there have been calls from members of the business community and policymakers for the creation of an "all-Ireland economy" to take advantage of economies of scale and boost competitiveness.[104]. There are frequent horse race meetings and greyhound stadiums are well-attended. However, a number of finds of Roman coins have been made, for example at the Iron Age settlement of Freestone Hill near Gowran and Newgrange. The republic today ranks amongst the wealthiest countries in the world in terms of GDP per capita[102] and in 2015 was ranked the sixth most developed nation in the world by the United Nations' Human Development Index. [114], The Dublin region receives the most tourists[113] and is home to several of the most popular attractions such as the Guinness Storehouse and Book of Kells. Irish culture has had a significant influence on other cultures, especially in the field of literature. With the Acts of Union in 1801, Ireland became a part of the United Kingdom. [147] Only about 10% of Ireland today is woodland;[9] most of this is non-native conifer plantations, and only 2% is native woodland. [233] Whiskey forms the basis of traditional cream liqueurs, such as Baileys, and the "Irish coffee" (a cocktail of coffee and whiskey reputedly invented at Foynes flying-boat station) is probably the best-known Irish cocktail. The Vikings were involved in establishing most of the major coastal settlements in Ireland: Dublin, Limerick, Cork, Wexford, Waterford, as well as other smaller settlements. In Northern Ireland, English is the de facto official language, but official recognition is afforded to Irish, including specific protective measures under Part III of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. [118] Most of Ireland's gas comes through interconnectors between Twynholm in Scotland and Ballylumford, County Antrim and Loughshinny, County Dublin. They share an open border and both are part of the Common Travel Area. The Taoiseach (equivalent to a prime minister) is selected by the parliament. In English, Jonathan Swift, often called the foremost satirist in the English language, gained fame for works such as Gulliver's Travels and A Modest Proposal. Inspiration, stories, and information on places to stay, things to do and what's on in Ireland. A similar genetic replacement happened with lineages in mitochondrial DNA. [204] Many other sports are also played and followed, including boxing, cricket, fishing, greyhound racing, handball, hockey, horse racing, motor sport, show jumping and tennis. A war of independence in the early 20th century was followed by the partition of the island, creating the Irish Free State, which became increasingly sovereign over the following decades, and Northern Ireland, which remained a part of the United Kingdom. Francis Ysidro Edgeworth's contribution of the Edgeworth Box remains influential in neo-classical microeconomic theory to this day; while Richard Cantillon inspired Adam Smith, among others. The Norman rulers and the Gaelic Irish elites intermarried and the areas under Norman rule became Gaelicised. The provinces as well as all cities and legal towns with more than 2,500 inhabitants. In cities, heat is generally supplied by natural gas or heating oil, although some urban suppliers distribute sods of turf as "smokeless fuel" for domestic use. It covers about five-sixths of the island of Ireland. Norman settlements were characterised by the establishment of baronies, manors, towns and the seeds of the modern county system. The Act was passed but with the "temporary" exclusion of the six counties of Ulster that would become Northern Ireland. [233] Typically CNBC states Irish whiskey is not as smoky as a Scotch whisky, but not as sweet as American or Canadian whiskies. In the middle years of the 20th century, as Irish society was modernising, traditional music had fallen out of favour, especially in urban areas. The Irish Volunteers split into two groups. These were a set of laws designed to prevent the assimilation of the Normans into Irish society by requiring English subjects in Ireland to speak English, follow English customs and abide by English law. Precipitation falls throughout the year but is light overall, particularly in the east. As with electricity, the natural gas distribution network is also now all-island, with a pipeline linking Gormanston, County Meath, and Ballyclare, County Antrim. Ireland's pre-Christian heritage fused with the Celtic Church following the missions of Saint Patrick in the 5th century. The British–Irish Intergovernmental Conference provides for co-operation between the Government of Ireland and the Government of the United Kingdom on all matters of mutual interest, especially Northern Ireland. How can this be increased? In 1166, Mac Murrough had fled to Anjou, France, following a war involving Tighearnán Ua Ruairc, of Breifne, and sought the assistance of the Angevin King Henry II, in recapturing his kingdom. The Republic qualified for the World Cup finals in 1990 (reaching the quarter-finals), 1994, 2002 and the European Championship in 1988, 2012 and 2016. In 1171, Henry arrived in Ireland in order to review the general progress of the expedition. In 1922, the country’s name was the Irish Free State. These missions brought written language to an illiterate population of Europe during the Dark Ages that followed the fall of Rome, earning Ireland the sobriquet, "the island of saints and scholars". Since the European Union expanded to include Poland in 2004, Polish people have made up the largest number of immigrants (over 150,000)[172] from Central Europe. Irish losses during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms (which, in Ireland, included the Irish Confederacy and the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland) are estimated to include 20,000 battlefield casualties. Other notable 18th-century writers of Irish origin included Oliver Goldsmith and Richard Brinsley Sheridan, though they spent most of their lives in England. Lastly, the Milesians (Gaels) were said to have reached Ireland from either northern Iberia or southern Gaul. Both also referred to their respective teams as Ireland. ", "Tartessian: Celtic from the Southwest at the Dawn of History", "The Longue Durée of Genetic Ancestry: Multiple Genetic Marker Systems and Celtic Origins on the Atlantic Facade of Europe", "Ptolemy's Map of Ireland: a Modern Decoding", "Scion of traitors and warlords: Why Bush is coy about his Irish links", "The Great Irish Famine: Laws that Isolated and Impoverished the Irish", "Charles James Fox, the Repeal of Poynings Law, and the Act of Union: 1782–1801", "Théâtre de tous les peuples et nations de la terre avec leurs habits et ornemens divers, tant anciens que modernes, diligemment depeints au naturel par Luc Dheere peintre et sculpteur Gantois[manuscript]", "A Short History of Ireland: The Curse of Cromwell", "Laws in Ireland for the Suppression of Popery", "Ireland AD 1750–1900 The Industrial Age", "1841: A window on Victorian Britain – This Britain", "Ireland Learns to Adapt to a Population Growth Spurt", Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, "Ireland's Economy Suffered Record Slump in 2009", "How much discrimination was there under the Unionist regime, 1921–1968? For example, whilst from the Middle Ages until the arrival of the potato in the 16th century the dominant feature of the Irish economy was the herding of cattle, the number of cattle a person owned was equated to their social standing. English rule was reinforced and expanded in Ireland during the latter part of the 16th century, leading to the Tudor conquest of Ireland. City status in Ireland is decided by legislative or royal charter. Each language has produced noteworthy literature. The island's culture shares many features with that of Great Britain, including the English language, and sports such as association football, rugby, horse racing, and golf. This church levy, called Peter's Pence, is extant in Ireland as a voluntary donation. [12] The Irish climate is influenced by the Atlantic Ocean and thus very moderate,[13] and winters are milder than expected for such a northerly area, although summers are cooler than those in continental Europe. Kathleen Lonsdale, born in Ireland and most known for her work with crystallography, became the first female president of the British Association for the Advancement of Science.[200]. Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton, an Irish explorer, was one of the principal figures of Antarctic exploration. At least six of these policy areas must have an associated all-island "implementation bodies," and at least six others must be implemented separately in each jurisdiction. [77] By the end of the decade, half of all immigration to the United States was from Ireland. The country is sometimes called the Republic of Ireland in order to distinguish between the territory of the Irish state and island proper, but Ireland is its official name. [201] The All-Ireland Football Final is the most watched event in the sporting calendar. The Republic of Ireland occupies more than 80% of the island of Ireland. The Ulster plantations gave it a permanent foothold in Ulster, and it remained the official and upper-class language elsewhere, the Irish-speaking chieftains and nobility having been deposed. Dublin, with over 1 million residents in the Greater Dublin Area, is the largest city on the island. The temperate Irish climate is suited to sport angling. English is the main language spoken. In 2000, the Helvick oil field was discovered, which was estimated to contain over 28 million barrels (4,500,000 m3) of oil.[137]. Half the size of Arkansas, it occupies the entire island except for the six counties that make up Northern Ireland. Republic of Ireland (Éire) News. Henry successfully re-imposed his authority over Strongbow and the Cambro-Norman warlords and persuaded many of the Irish kings to accept him as their overlord, an arrangement confirmed in the 1175 Treaty of Windsor. Twenty-six of these counties are in the Republic of Ireland, and six are in Northern Ireland. Modern Irish literature is often connected with its rural heritage[190] through English-language writers such as John McGahern and Seamus Heaney and Irish-language writers such as Máirtín Ó Direáin and others from the Gaeltacht. Northern Ireland saw much civil unrest from the late 1960s until the 1990s. [191] Although in the early Middle Ages the church was "quite unlike its counterpart in continental Europe",[192] there was considerable interchange between monastic settlements in Ireland and the rest of Europe that contributed to what is known as Gregorian chant. It is a popular tourist destination for surfing and contains 5 Blue Flag beaches and Croaghaun one of the worlds highest sea cliffs. Two-Letter Country Codes ISO 3166-1 ALPHA-2; Three-Letter Country Codes ISO 3166-1 ALPHA-3; Deutsch ; Español ; Français . On 27 June 2012, Northern Ireland's deputy first minister and former IRA commander, Martin McGuinness, shook hands with Queen Elizabeth II in Belfast, symbolising reconciliation between the two sides. Counties in Northern Ireland are no longer used for local governmental purposes,[159] but, as in the Republic, their traditional boundaries are still used for informal purposes such as sports leagues and in cultural or tourism contexts.[160]. The long history of agricultural production, coupled with modern intensive agricultural methods such as pesticide and fertiliser use and runoff from contaminants into streams, rivers and lakes, has placed pressure on biodiversity in Ireland. Scuba diving is increasingly popular in Ireland with clear waters and large populations of sea life, particularly along the western seaboard. However, because of the ecological importance of peatlands in storing carbon and their rarity, the EU is attempting to protect this habitat by fining Ireland for digging up peat. The Irish language has a vast treasury of written texts from many centuries and is divided by linguists into Old Irish from the 6th to 10th century, Middle Irish from the 10th to 13th century, Early Modern Irish until the 17th century, and the Modern Irish spoken today. In a system that developed between the 13th and 17th centuries,[158] Ireland has 32 traditional counties. Irish is the first official language, followed by English. 8. Salient events in the economic history of Ireland include: Ireland is located in the north-west of Europe, between latitudes 51° and 56° N, and longitudes 11° and 5° W. It is separated from Great Britain by the Irish Sea and the North Channel, which has a width of 23 kilometres (14 mi)[125] at its narrowest point. [194] However during the 1960s, there was a revival of interest in Irish traditional music led by groups such as The Dubliners, The Chieftains, The Wolfe Tones, the Clancy Brothers, Sweeney's Men and individuals like Seán Ó Riada and Christy Moore. It was spoken by a few peasants and merchants brought over from England, and was largely replaced by Irish before the Tudor conquest of Ireland. The head of State, the President, is elected for seven years by the adult citizens. The island operates as a single market for electricity. Since the 20th century Irish pubs worldwide have become outposts of Irish culture, especially those with a full range of cultural and gastronomic offerings. Ireland is a home of for 4.75 million people. A ring of coastal mountains surround low plains at the centre of the island. The religious struggles of the 17th century left a deep sectarian division in Ireland. In the 20th century, Ireland produced four winners of the Nobel Prize for Literature: George Bernard Shaw, William Butler Yeats, Samuel Beckett and Seamus Heaney. [76] In the century that followed, an economic depression caused by the famine resulted in a further million people emigrating. Alongside mainstream Western culture, a strong indigenous culture exists, as expressed through Gaelic games, Irish music and the Irish language. There are four professional Irish teams; all four play in the Pro14 and at least three compete for the Heineken Cup. Outside religious establishments, musical genres in early Gaelic Ireland are referred to as a triad of weeping music (goltraige), laughing music (geantraige) and sleeping music (suantraige). During the course of the 19th and 20th centuries, a strong tradition of painting emerged, including such figures as John Butler Yeats, William Orpen, Jack Yeats and Louis le Brocquy.