Emigration of Irish People
A short history of emigration and Ireland.
Location: Ireland; Britain; Australia; Canada; United States of America; Europe
Traditions of Emigration in Ireland
The history of Ireland is, in many ways, a story of immigrants and emigrants. The island is home to around 7 million people, but there are an estimated 80 million Irish descendants worldwide.[1][2][3] The custom began with the island's first inhabitants, who set sail for its unknown shores thousands of years ago. Over thousands of years, the island became a magnet for wanderers and invaders. Each new arrival gave to and took from the existing Irish culture.
In the early Christian era, young monks departed for Europe to spread their faith and build new monasteries. They were joined by pilgrims, academics, mercenaries, exiled nobles, and landless laborers, all seeking new opportunities away from the túath. These emigrants laid the groundwork for the later Irish Diaspora.[4]
The Diaspora in Ireland
Monasteries and mercenaries declined over time, but the Irish never lost their "habit of going away."[5] In the 19th century, hardship and a growing population led many young families to seek their fortunes elsewhere. The potato famine of 1845 only sped up their departures. During the devastation, an estimated million people died, and a million more left their homes. The majority settled in Britain, Continental Europe, Australia, Canada, and the United States.[6]
The Irish Diaspora in America
The Irish played a significant role in the history of the United States, despite initial hostility from its earlier immigrants. Four million set sail to America in the 19th century alone. They faced cramped conditions, disease, and an uncertain future in the West.
When they arrived, many found the same barriers they had hoped to leave behind. Businesses advertised open positions with the note, "No Irish Need Apply." Most men could only find work in unskilled labor, while women worked in textiles or as domestic servants. Their families were pushed into impoverished immigrant neighborhoods. Others chose to go west again, this time in wagon trains or along expanding railroads.[7][8][9]
In time, the Irish became one of the largest ethnic groups in the United States. Their culture is now celebrated by citizens of all backgrounds. New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, and San Francisco are all major centers of Irish heritage. Popular Irish holidays in America include St. Patrick's Day and Halloween, an adaptation of Samhain. Today, Irish descendants in America number around 33 million.[10]
Bibliography
"Ireland," The World Factbook, January 12, 2017, Central Intelligence Agency, accessed February 15, 2017.
"Population and Migration Statistics," NISRA, NISRA, accessed February 16, 2017.
Sara O'Sullivan, Contemporary Ireland: A Sociological Map (Dublin: University College Dublin Press, 2007).
Lisa M. Bitel, Isle of the Saints: Monastic Settlement and Christian Community in Early Ireland (Cork: Cork University Press, 1993), 224-230.
Enda Delaney, Demography, State and Society: Irish Migration to Britain, 1921 -1971 (Liverpool: Liverpool Univ. Press, 2000), 1.
James S. Donnelly, The Great Irish Potato Famine (Stroud: The History Press, 2013).
Jay P. Dolan, The Irish Americans: A History (New York: Bloomsbury Press, 2010), 78.
Ibid., 1-26.
Miki Garcia, Ireland's Invasion of the World: The Irish Diaspora in a Nutshell (Dublin: History Press Ireland, 2015).
"Selected Social Characteristics in the United States," U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Commerce, accessed February 14, 2017.
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