General Information About Ireland  

Introduction

When usually we say "Ireland", it means "The Republic Of Ireland". This is located in south part of Ireland Island, and the north part  of the island is "The Northern Ireland" is not the own country but belongs to The Great Britain Of United Kingdom. This small island is divided by two nations. Sometimes people say "Ireland is dangerous", but The Republic Of Ireland is not that country. In northern Island, they are still armed and have IRA issue.  When I say "Ireland", it means "The Republic Of Ireland". Ireland is next island across the Eurasian Continent from Japan. However, we have many differences ,but at the same time we can find some similar points. Ireland is the very far, but near country from Japan. 

Symbols of the country

Irish Harp

                                  Irish Harp is small and can be played with holding arms. The flam is made of wood and it sounds very soft and beautiful.

 Shamrock 

 The well known legend of the Shamrock connects it definitely to St. Patrick and his teaching. Preaching in the open air on the doctrine of the trinity, he is said to have illustrated the existence of the Three in One by plucking a shamrock from the grass growing at his feet and showing it to his congregation.

Flag

 The colors shows Catholic in green, protestant in orange and unite between them, love and peace in white.

National Anthem 

Tune（Ｎｏｗ　Ｐｌａｙｉｎｇ）

The Soldier's Song 

We'll sing a song, a soldier's song, 

With cheering rousing chorus, 

As round our blazing fires we throng, 

The starry heavens o'er us; 

Impatient for the coming fight, 

And as we wait the morning's light, 

Here in the silence of the night,

 We'll chant a soldier's song.

Chorus:　Soldiers are we whose lives are pledged to Ireland; 

Some have come from a land beyond the wave. 　

Sworn to be free,

 No more our ancient sire land 

Shall shelter the despot or the slave. 

Tonight we man the gap of danger

 In Erin's cause, come woe or weal 

'Mid cannons' roar and rifles peal, 

We'll chant a soldier's song. 

In valley green, on towering crag, 

Our fathers fought before us, 

And conquered 'neath the same old flag

 That's proudly floating o'er us. 

We're children of a fighting race, 

That never yet has known disgrace, 

And as we march, the foe to face, 

We'll chant a soldier's song. 

Chorus

 Sons of the Gael! Men of the Pale! 

The long watched day is breaking; 

The serried ranks of Inisfail 

Shall set the Tyrant quaking. 

Our camp fires now are burning low; 

See in the east a silv'ry glow, 

Out yonder waits the Saxon foe, 

So chant a soldier's song. 

Chorus

Where is Ireland located?

The island of Ireland lies off the north-west coast of the continent of Europe between 51 1/2^o and 55 1/2^o north latitude and 5 1/2^o and 10 1/2^o west longitude. In short, Ireland is next to U.K. 

Dublin, The Capital of Ireland is located south east in Ireland. Usually when we go to Ireland, we arrive there. 

How big is Ireland?

The total area of Ireland is 32,595 square miles(84,421 square kilometers), Ireland (Republic) comprises 27,136 square miles(70,282 square kilometers) and Northern Ireland 5,459 square miles (14,139 square kilometers). The greatest length of the island from north to south is 302 miles(486kilometers) and the greatest width, from east to west, is 171 miles(375kilometers). There are 1,970 miles of coastline(3,172 kilometers).

This is almost same size as Hokkaido of Japan!!

How is the climate?

Population

According to the 1996 census, the population of Ireland is 3,626,087. This population is almost same as the population in Shizuoka, Japan. I mentioned that Hokkaido is almost same size as Ireland, but population of Hokkaido is 5,692,217.   A high proportion of the population is concentrated in the younger age-groups, with approximately 47% aged under 25 and about 24 % aged under 15. What a surprise is Irish people whose ancestor were originally from Ireland are more than 70,000,000 all over the world. 

Language

The First Language is Gaelic and The Second one is English. They speak Gaelic especially in west part like Galway, but normally speak English. Irish English sounds different from British and American English. First you might feel difficult to understand, but after a while you would feel easier to understand than other English. 

Irish People

Generally speaking, Irish people are well known as people who are cheerful, friendly, generous and love dancing, singing, and drinking. I like to add to some words " smart, patient, wit and brave ".  First, Vikings made attacks on them, and later they were under the rule of Britain for 700 years. For 400 years, the governor of general from Britain ruled Ireland, and finally they could get their own country in this century. Britain persecuted Irish people because of religious issue. Irish people couldn't have own land and choose the work. What is worse, they couldn't  grow anything but potato basically because of British rule. Then, when they had famine and illness like the plague, the population decreased less than half of the number because many people died and emigrated to other countries. However, the respectable point is they never yield to submission in their mind. Therefore it is very natural they are patriotic. I don't think any Japanese has patriotism in youth, but they do even in youth. Now many emigrants began to come back to their country " Ireland " and  they have been growing on economy.

　 Do you know about Irish literature?

    Ireland is famous not only in music but in literature. Four people who are W. B. Yeats (1923 ),  Gorge. B.  Shaw(1925), Samuel Beckett (1969)and Seamus Heaney(1995) got The Nobel Prize in literature.    Not only them, Oscar Wild, J. Joyce( Ulysses ),  Jonathan Swift( Gulliver's Travel ) are also very famous, too. Irish literature used to be introduced as British literature, because at that time, they were ruled by Britain. But actually they were Irish. Some books are difficult to read, but why don't you try it? 

 
© copyrighted 2001 by Chizuko M