Irish in Great Britain

[Smaug]

Irish in Great Britain

History

There are about 869.093 Irish-born residents in Great Britain, the largest island and principal territory of the United Kingdom, as well as at at least 14.000.000 with Irish ancestry, about 25% of the British population. From the earliest recorded history to the present, there has been a continuous movement of people between the islands of Ireland and Great Britain due to their proximity.

This tide has ebbed and flowed in response to politics, economics and social conditions of both places. Ireland was a feudal Lordship of the Kings of England between 1171 and 1541; a Kingdom in personal union with the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Great Britain between 1542 and 1801; and politically united with Great Britain as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland between 1801 and 1922. Today, Ireland is divided between the independent Republic of Ireland, and Northern Ireland which is part of the UK.

Many were the reasons that took the Irish to leave their island and move to the next on the other side of the Sea of Ireland. The Irish have been settling in Britain since Medieval times, when a significant Irish settlement of western Britain took place. The 'traditional' view is that Gaelic language and culture was brought to Scotland, probably in the 4th century, by settlers from Ireland, who founded the Gaelic kingdom of Dál Riata on Scotland's west coast. It was also in the 4th century AD that Irish raiders settled in Wales extensively, mainly in the Kingdom of Dyfed, their impact being so great that many Gaelic words were introduced into the Welsh language.

However, it was only mere two hundred years ago that the most significant exodus took place, which followed the worst of a series of potato crop failures in Ireland in the 1840s - the Great Famine. It is estimated that more than one million people died, and almost the same again emigrated. A further wave of emigration to England also took place between the 1930s and 1960s by Irish escaping poor economic conditions following the establishment of the Irish Free State.

The immigrants hailed mainly from Ireland's most rural southern and western counties. Cork, Kerry, Galway, Mayo, Sligo, Tipperary and Limerick alone provided nearly half of Ireland's immigrants. County Donegal and Northern Ireland also contributed with many immigrants,as well as Leinster, specially Dublin.

The Irish had an important impact in Britain. Due to their Urban-oriented immigrantion, the working-class is usually associated Irish-Catholic community. They were also responsible for the founding of important football teams such as the Celtic from Glasgow, as well as the founding of many Roman Catholic churches in Britain since the Reformation. Irish events and organizations such as St. Patrick's Day of the Orange Order are well represented amongst Irish-Britons. The main areas where the Irish community can be found are in the cities of London, Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Swansea, Glasgow and Luton.




Notable Irish-Britons

Ian McCulloch, Liverpool


Paul McCartney, Liverpool


Pamela Nash, Airdrie


Kate Bush, London


Peter O'Toole, Leeds


Paul O'Grady, Cheshire


John Lennon, Liverpool


Wayne Rooney, Liverpool


Liam Gallagher, Manchester


Noel Gallagher, Manchester


Catherine Zeta-Jones, Swansea


Shane MacGowan, Pembury


Tony Blair, Edinburgh


David Byrne, Dumbarton

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Danny Boyle, Radcliffe


Jimmy Carr, London


Michael Caine, London


Steve Coogan, Middleton


Morrissey, Davyhulme


Alan Rickman, London

[Graham]

Most of our migrants to Scotland came from Connaught, Donegal to Catholic Ulster. In the North-East to North West. Ireland We also got Protestants migrating back over. Basically the same groups in Ireland we have connections to for thousands of years.


England got it's Irish from mainly Leinster via Dublin to Liverpool & byeond. From the South & East Ireland.

[Smaug]

MMost of our migrants to Scotland came from Connaught, Donegal to Catholic Ulster. In the North-East to North West. Ireland We also got Protestants migrating back over. Basically the same groups in Ireland we have connections to for thousands of years.


England got it's Irish from mainly Leinster via Dublin to Liverpool & byeond. From the South & East Ireland.

Most of Glaswegians seem to be from Donegal and Ulster.

[Graham]

Most of Glaswegians seem to be from Donegal and Ulster.

Yes. Even from the name Scotland itself comes from Ulster & the Scots. We are family.

[Tooting Carmen]

An excellent article. The Irish contribution to the economic and cultural life of the UK has been extraordinary. I will say, however, that the Irish are not easily distinguishable from English, Welsh or Scots except (possibly) when seen in large groups, e.g. rugby teams. Only then do the (albeit minor) differences in phenotype become visible.

[Smaug]

An excellent article. The Irish contribution to the economic and cultural life of the UK has been extraordinary. I will say, however, that the Irish are not easily distinguishable from English, Welsh or Scots except (possibly) when seen in large groups, e.g. rugby teams. Only then do the (albeit minor) differences in phenotype become visible.

I agree, although there are some faces that are very stereotypically Irish, like Rooney's, but most blend in easily. I also noticed that the Irish in Britain can display darker features lilke eyes and hair in Urban-Industrial enviroments, I still don't understand why though.

[Graham]

Some Actors, Sorry if they have been posted

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Scots-Irish.

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Billy Connolly

James McAvoy

Gerrard Butler

Gerard Kelly

Sean Connery

Craig Ferguson

Tony Curran

Tommy Flanagan

Peter Mullan

Rory McCann

[Tooting Carmen]

Micky Flanagan, London comedian of Irish origin


Clare Short, former MP for Birmingham Ladywood, of Irish origin

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Micky Flanagan, London comedian of Irish origin

Looks like this Irish singer I like, whose name on You Tube is "Mr. Whasp":