Irish diaspora

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The Irish diaspora consists of Irish emigrants and their descendants in countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Bermuda, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, South Africa and states of the Caribbean and continental Europe. The diaspora, maximally interpreted, contains over 80 million people, which is over fourteen times the population of the island of Ireland itself (5.6 million in 2002).

There are sizeable Irish communities in every EU member state as well as Japan, Argentina, and Brazil. The diaspora was caused by a number of factors, including ethnic cleansing, political and religious oppression, joblessness, and hunger in a sometimes harsh land.

The term Irish diaspora is open to many interpretations. One, preferred by the government of Ireland, is defined in legal terms: the Irish diaspora are those of Irish nationality habitually resident outside of the island of Ireland. This includes Irish citizens who have emigrated abroad, and their children, who are Irish citizens by descent under Irish law. It also includes their grandchildren in cases where the grandchildren were registered as Irish citizens in the Foreign Births Register held in every Irish diplomatic mission. Under this legal definition, the Irish diaspora is considerably smaller than in the popular imagination - some 3.0 million persons, of whom 1.2 million are Irish-born emigrants. This is still an extraordinarily large ratio for any nation.

However, to general understanding, the Irish diaspora is not limited by citizenship status, leading to an estimated (and fluctuating) membership of 80 million persons - the second and more emotive definition. The Irish Government acknowledged this interpretation - although it did not acknowledge any legal obligations to it - when Article 2 of Bunreacht na hÉireann (Constitution of Ireland) was amended in 1998 to read "[f]urthermore, the Irish nation cherishes its special affinity with people of Irish ancestry living abroad who share its cultural identity and heritage." Added to this are the significant number of "Scotch-Irish" or, more properly, Scots-Irish or Ulster-Scots.

This was demonstrated in 2002 when a group of Argentineans with Irish great-grandparents attempted to register themselves as Irish citizens. Their applications were rejected because the right to register as an Irish citizen terminates at the third generation. This contrasts with citizenship law in Italy, Israel, Japan and other countries which make no legal reference to cherishing special affinities with their diasporas but which nonetheless permit legal avenues through which members of the diaspora can register as citizens.

The diaspora to America was immortalized in the words of many songs including the famous Irish ballad, "The Green Fields of America":

So pack up your sea-stores, consider no longer,
Ten dollars a week is not very bad pay,
With no taxes or tithes to devour up your wages,
When you're on the green fields of America.

The experience of Irish immigrants in America, where they often fought for jobs that were more cheaply performed by black slaves and freemen, or were recruited off the docks by the US Army, has not always been harmonious, however, as indicated by another traditional song, "Paddy's Lamentation".

Hear me boys, now take my advice,
To America I'll have ye's not be going,
There is nothing here but war, where the murderin' cannons roar,
And I wish I was at home in dear old Dublin.

Britain

Main article: Irish community in Britain

As late as the early 1990s, the Irish-born in Britain were still viewed with mixed feelings by a small and very conservative minority, due in part to the IRA's 20-year bombing campaign in Britain starting in the early 1970s. The Irish have traditionally been involved in the building trade, following an influx of Irish workers, or navvies, who built the canal, road and rail networks in the 19th century. Since the 1950s and 1960s in particular, the Irish have become assimilated into the indigenous population. There are now well in excess of one million Irish born residents, with some estimates putting the total Irish diaspora in Britain at as much as 20 percent of the population, or 12 million. This is largely due to the flow of immigrants from Ireland during the many famines there and particularly 'The Great Famine' of 1845 - 1850. Immigration continued into the next century, when the numbers of immigrants during the 1950's and 1960's began to increase, many settling in the larger cities and towns of Britain. London once more holds an official St. Patrick's Day which had previously been cancelled in the 1970s because of terrorist activity.

Also, the prevalence of Irish immigration to Glasgow, led to the formation of the Celtic Football Club, by Marist, Brother Walfrid, to raise money to help the community

Europe

Irish links with the continent go back many centuries. During the early Middle Ages, many Irish religious went abroad to preach and found monasteries. Saint Brieuc founded the city that bears his name in Brittany, and Saint Colmán founded the great monastery of Bobbio in northern Italy.

During the Counter-Reformation, Irish religious and political links with Europe became stronger. Leuven in Belgium grew into an important centre of learning for Irish priests. The Flight of the Earls in 1607 led much of the Gaelic nobility to flee the country, and after the wars of the 17th century many others fled to Spain, France, Austria, and other Catholic lands. The lords and their retainers and supporters joined the armies of these countries, and were known as the Wild Geese. Some of the lords and their descendents rose to high ranks in their adoptive countries, such as the French royalist Patrice de MacMahon, who became president of France. The French Cognac brandy maker, James Hennessy and Co., is named for an Irishman. In Spain and its territories, many Irish descendants can be found with the name Obregón (O'Brian), including Madrid-born actress Ana Victoria García Obregón.

During the 20th century, certain Irish intellectuals made their homes in continental Europe, particularly James Joyce, and later Samuel Beckett (who became a courier for the French Resistance).

Eoin O'Duffy led a brigade of 700 Irish volunteers to fight for Franco during the Spanish Civil War. William Joyce became an English-language propagandist for the Third Reich, known colloquially as Lord Haw-Haw.

Bermuda

Bermuda was England's second (third, if Ireland is included) succesful overseas territory to be established (as an extension of the first, Virginia), and is the oldest remaining. Settlement, which began accidentally in 1609, was primarily by English indentured servants, but there were four minority groups by the end of the 17th Century. These were Native American slaves, free and enslaved blacks, Irish prisoners-of-war (POW), and ethnically-cleansed civilians, sold into slavery for seven years, and smaller numbers of Scottish POWs. The Irish and Scots slaves were the result of Oliver Cromwell's invasions of their countries in the 1650s, in order to force his protectorship upon them. In Ireland, this had been preceded by a native uprising against the Anglo-Irish settler state, and Cromwell's response was the large-scale ethnic cleansing of parts of Ireland, and the repopulation of those areas with new settlers from England and Scotland. The Irish proved to be troublesome slaves, in Bermuda. Following the uncovering of a plot between Irish and black slaves to overthrow the colony, a ban was placed on the importation of any further Irish. Over the following century, the Irish and Scots, who were ostracised by the white-Anglo majority, combined with Bermuda's blacks and Native Americans (and some part of its white-Anglo majority) to create a single demographic group, which, in the spirit of racial polarisation, is known as black. With the large scale emigration, primarily of white-Anglo Bermudians, during that time, blacks were left with a slight majority. The Irish (and other non-African) roots of Bermuda's black population are rarely mentioned, today. The area with the strongest awareness of both its Irish and Native American origins is Saint David's Island, at the east of the archipelago. The western-most island is Ireland Island. The origin of this name is uncertain. Popular myth in Bermuda attributes it to the large number of Irish convicts who laboured there in the 19th century, during the building of the dockyard (these included the nationalist politician John Mitchel). This explanation is patently false as many records show the island bore that name two centuries before. Although there is little surviving evidence of Irish culture, elderly islanders, who can remember when marine turtles were hunted in Bermuda, described the method of capyure as being the laying of a net to one side of the reptile, and the throwing of a cilig (a length of rope with one end knotted round a stone) into the water on the opposite side. Hearing the splash of the cilig, the turtle moves away from it, into the net. The word cilig appears to be meaningless in English, but in some dialects of Gaelic is used as an adjective meaning "easily deceived". Characteristics of older Bermudian accents, such as the pronounciation of the letter 'd' as 'dj', as in Bermudjin (Bermudian), may also indicate an Irish origin. Later Irish immigrants have continued to contribute to Bermuda's makeup, with names like Crockwell (Ó Creachmhaoil) , and O'Connor now being thought of, locally, as Bermudian names.

United States

Main article: Irish Americans

The classic image of an Irish immigrant is led occasionally by racist and anti-Catholic stereotypes. In modern times in the U.S., the Irish are perceived as hard workers. Most notably they are associated with the positions of policeman, fireman, Catholic Church leaders and politicians in the larger Eastern-Seaboard metropolitan areas. Irish Americans number over 44 million, making them the second largest ethnic group in the U.S., after German Americans. The largest Irish American communities are in New York, Chicago and Boston. New York, New York and Savannah, Georgia hold the first- and second-largest Saint Patrick's Day parades in the USA, respectively. At state level, California has the largest number of Irish Americans. In percentage terms, Boston is the most Irish city in the U.S., and Massachusetts the most Irish state.

Before the Potato Famines in Ireland, there had been the Penal Laws. Under these laws, non-Conformists or non-Anglicans had certain civil rights suppressed by the British Crown, resulting in the massive migration of several hundred thousand people from Ireland - particularly from the province of Ulster. Because a majority of these were Presbyterians, and many of those had settled in Ulster from Scotland, they became known as the "Scotch-Irish" in America in a steady stream of emigration throughout the 18th Century. The more correct term is Scots-Irish or Ulster-Scots though. Many settled in the mountains of south-east of the USA and due to their affiliation with King William III of Orange, or "King Billy", they became known as "Billy-Boys of the Hills" - later Hillbillies. Some of them wore red or orange neck-scarves to signify that they were signaturees of Ulster's Solemn League and Covenant and were also known as Rednecks. There has been some anti-Protestant sentiment against them, though they are generally less vocal about their Irish heritage, having assimilated more fully into American society. There is some resurgance in interest. Dolly Parton, for example, has recently discovered her Ulster-Scots roots, and John Wayne was quite proud of his "Scotch-Irish" heritage.

However, several tens of thousands of people also left for other places during this time, including Africa, New Zealand, Canada and Britain.

Canada

Main article: Irish Canadians

. See also Irish Quebecers, Irish Newfoundlanders.

Latin America

In the wake of the mid 17th century Cromwellian conquest of Ireland, Oliver Cromwell deported many Irish prisoners of war into slavery or indentured labour in Caribbean tobacco plantations. Most of these forced migrants ended up in Barbados, Monserrat or Jamaica. In addition, many of the Irish Catholic landowning class in this period migrated voluntarily to the West Indies to avail of the business opportunities there occasioned by the trade in sugar, tobacco and cotton. They were followed by landless Irish indentured labourers, who were recruited to serve a landowner for a specified time before receiving freedom and land. The descendants of some Irish immigrants are known today in the West Indies as redlegs. Many of the Wild Geese, expatriate Irish soldiers who had gone to Spain, or their descendants, continued on to its colonies in South America. Many of them rose to prominent positions in the Spanish governments there. In the 1820's, some of them helped liberate the continent. Bernardo O'Higgins was the first president of Chile.

Argentina

In the late 19th century, about 50,000 Irish immigrants were in Argentina. Distinct Irish communities existed, including Irish schools and a news paper, The Southern Cross, until the Peron era in the 1950s. In the 1880's the Argentine government sought to promote immigration from Ireland and sent two agents to Ireland to recruit young and able-bodied migrants. The agents, however, promised more than they could deliver and when 2,000 Irish arrived aboard the City of Dresden ship they were plunged into destitution. News of the scandal, known as the Dresden affair, reached Ireland, and scared away future travellers. Today there are about 500,000 people of Irish ancestry in Argentina.

Che Guevara, whose grandmother's surname was Lynch, was another famous member of this diaspora. Guevara's father, Ernesto Guevara Lynch, said of him: "The first thing to note is that in my son's veins flowed the blood of the Irish rebels". On March 13 1965, the Irish Times journalist Arthur Quinlan interviewed Che at Shannon Airport during a stopover flight from Prague to Cuba. Guevara talked of his Irish connections through the name Lynch and of his grandmother's Irish roots in Galway. Later, Che, and some of his Cuban comrades, went to Limerick City and adjourned to the Hanratty's Hotel on Glentworth Street. According to Quinlan, they returned that evening all wearing sprigs of shamrock, for Shannon and Limerick were preparing for the St. Patrick's Day celebrations. (Scotsman Newspaper, The night Che Guevara came to Limerick, Sun 28 December 2003)

Mexico

Main article: Irish Mexican

Probably the most famous Irishman ever to reside in Mexico is the Wexfordman William Lamport, better known to most Mexicans as Guillen de Lampart, precursor of the Independence movement and author of the first proclamation of independence in the New World. His statue stands today in the Crypt of Heroes beneath the Column of Independence in Mexico City. Some authorities claim he was the inspiration for Johnston McCulley's Zorro, though the extent to which this may be true is disputed.

After Lampart, the most famous Irishmen in Mexican history are probably "Los Patricios". Many communities also existed in Mexican Texas until the revolution there, when they sided with Catholic Mexico against Protestant pro-U.S. elements. The Batallón de San Patricio, a battalion of U.S. troops who deserted and fought alongside the Mexican Army against the United States in the Mexican-American War of 1846 to 1848, is also famous in Mexican history. Álvaro Obregón (O'Brian) was president of Mexico during 1920-24 and Obregón city and airport are named in his honour. Mexico also has a large number of people of Irish ancestry, including the country's current President, Vicente Fox, and the actor Anthony Quinn. There are also monuments in Mexico City paying tribute to those Irish who fought for Mexico in the 1800s. There is a monument to Los Patricios in the fort of Churubusco.

South Africa

Nineteenth-century South Africa did not attract mass Irish migration, but Irish communities were to be found in Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Kimberley, and Johannesburg, with smaller communities in Pretoria, Barberton, Durban and East London. A third of the Cape's governors were Irish, as were many of the judges and politicians. Both the Cape Colony and the colony of Natal had Irish prime ministers: Sir Thomas Upington, "The Afrikaner from Cork"; and Sir Albert Hime, from Kilcoole in County Wicklow. Irish Cape Governors included Lord Macartney, Lord Caledon and Sir John Francis Cradock. Irish settlers were brought in small numbers over the years, as from other parts of the United Kingdom. Henry Nourse, a shipowner at the Cape, brought out a small party of Irish settlers in 1818. In 1823, John Ingram brought out 146 Irish from Cork. Single Irish women were sent to the Cape on a few occasions. Twenty arrived in November 1849 and forty six arrived in March 1851. The majority arrived in November 1857 aboard the Lady Kennaway. A large contingent of Irish troops fought in the Anglo-Boer War on both sides and a few of them stayed in South Africa after the war. Others returned home but later came out to settle in South Africa with their families. Between 1902 and 1905, there were about 5000 Irish immigrants. Place names in South Africa include Upington, Porteville, Caledon, Cradock, Sir Henry Lowry's Pass, the Biggarsberg Mountains, Donnybrook and Belfast.

External links: Irish Police in SA & Research in SA

Australia

Irish Australian is the second largest ethnic group in Australia, numbering 1,919,727 or 9.0 per cent of respondents in the 2001 Census.

It is not clear whether the Irish-born are considered "Irish Australians" or if the term only refers to their Australian-born descendants. The 2001 Census recorded 50,320 Irish-born in Australia, although this is a minimal figure as it only includes those who wrote in "Ireland" or "Republic of Ireland" as their country of birth. Responses which mentioned "Northern Ireland" as birthplace were coded as "United Kingdom". This interpretation may omit as few as 21,500 Irish-born present in the country, as many as 29,500, or possibly even more. Nevertheless the number of persons born in Ireland, north and south, resident in Australia in 2001 may be confidently extrapolated at around 75,000.

According to the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs White Paper on Foreign Policy, there were 213,000 Irish citizens in Australia in 1997, nearly three times the number of Irish-born. Most Irish Australians, however, do not have Irish citizenship and define their status in terms of self-perception, affection for Ireland and an attachment to Irish culture. During the wave of Irish immigration, unlike the United States and Canada Irish Australians did not face ethnic discrimination. (See Irish American, Irish Canadian and White Australia policy).

Irish settlers - both voluntary and forced - were crucial to the Australian colonies from the earliest days of settlement. The Irish first came over in large numbers as convicts (50,000 were transported between 1791 and 1867), to be used and abused as free labour; even larger numbers of free settlers came during the nineteenth century. Irish immigrants accounted for one-quarter of Australia's overseas-born population in 1871. Their children, the first Irish Australians in the sense we understand the term, played a definitive role in shaping Australian history and society.

According to census data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics in 2004, Irish Australians are, by religion, 46.2% Roman Catholic, 15.3% Anglican, 13.5% other Christian denomination, 3.6% other religions, and 21.5% as "No Religion".

See also - Biography

Politicians

Obregón's grandfather is said to have been an Irish railroad worker named O'Brian. Mexico's Obregón city and airport are named in honour of the president.
Guevara's father, Ernesto Guevara Lynch, said of him: "The first thing to note is that in my son's veins flowed the blood of the Irish rebels". On March 13 1965, the Irish Times journalist Arthur Quinlan interviewed Che at Shannon Airport during a stopover flight from Prague to Cuba. Guevara talked of his Irish connections through the name Lynch and of his grandmother's Irish roots in Galway. Later, Che, and some of his Cuban comrades, went to Limerick City and adjourned to the Hanratty's Hotel on Glentworth Street. According to Quinlan, they returned that evening all wearing sprigs of shamrock, for Shannon and Limerick were preparing for the St. Patrick's Day celebrations.

Artists and Musicians

Scientists

Misc

See also - Irish Brigade

See also - Causes of Irish emigration

See also - General

References

  • Gerard Ronan - The Irish Zorro: The Extraordinary Adventures of William Lamport (1615-1659)
  • The Story of the Irish in Argentina, by Thomas Murray (1919)
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