Ireland+-+Steven+Slocum

The Irish Flag is a tri color flag in which the stripes run vertically. The flag proportion is 1:2 (length twice the width). The Green represents Gaelic tradition of Ireland. The Orange represents the followers of William the Orange. The White represents peace, or a truce between them. For more info: [|click here]

//**Physical Geography**// Absolute Location: 53 degrees 20' N, 006 degrees 15' W is accurately depicted as the absolute location of Dublin. Nowhere in Ireland, can you be more than 70 miles from the coast. It is made up of a lot of lowland areas, and this is due mostly in part of the [|glaciers] that covered ireland in the ice age period.

//** [|Population] **// The island is divided between the Republic of Ireland, which covers just under five-sixths of the island, and Northern Ireland, a part of the United Kingdom, which covers the remainder and is located in the northeast of the island. The population of Ireland is approximately 6.2 million people. Just under 4.5 million live in the Republic of Ireland and just under 1.8 million live in Northern Ireland. 



//**Economy **// Ireland is a small, modern, trade-dependent economy. Ireland was among the initial group of 12 EU nations that began circulating the euro on 1 January 2002. GDP growth averaged 6% in 1995-2007, but economic activity has dropped sharply since the onset of the world financial crisis, with GDP falling by over 3% in 2008, nearly 8% in 2009, and 1% in 2010. Ireland entered into a recession in 2008 for the first time in more than a decade, with the subsequent collapse of its domestic property and construction markets. Property prices rose more rapidly in Ireland in the decade up to 2007 than in any other developed economy. 



//**Government **// **//﻿//**Ireland is a parliamentary democracy. The National Parliament consists of the President and two Houses: a House of Representatives and a Senate. he sole and exclusive power of making laws for the State is vested in Parliament. The functions and powers of the President, D�il and Seanad derive from the Constitution of Ireland and law. <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Political Parties:


 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Labour Party
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Fine Gael
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> Fianna F�il
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> Sinn F�in
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> Socialist Party
 * <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> People Before Profit Alliance

= //Customs// = The priest that presides over a wedding is invited to the reception. Mead wine is served, warm, at weddings. Usually the wedding cake is a lot like Christmas fruit cake. It almost always has fruit. If a fork falls off the table a woman is coming to visit; a knife means a man. When you have an itchy nose you should playfully hit everyone you are with and say "itchy nose" to insure you won't get into a fight with them. Instead of playing "Punch Buggy" Where American's say "Punch buggy [colour of the Volkswagen Beetle that they see on the road], no punch backs!" Irish people say "Yellow registration, no returns". Yellow registrations are a type of license plate on cars in the United Kingdom and every so often you see one in the Republic of Ireland that are from Northern Ireland. When there is an electrical storm, you should cover all the mirrors in the house or turn them around. Your 21st birthday is the most important birthday. It is when you are considered an adult and it is a tradition to be given "the key to the house". Some 21st birthday cards still have keys on them as the symbol. Irish dancers must wear their hair in curls. On St. Stephen's Day, the 26th of December which is known to the English as Boxing Day, Irish children dress up and go door to door singing and performing. Sometimes they are given money, cookies, cake, tea, oranges, or nothing at all. Also, common things that of as Irish but really are not: -Corned beef -Kissing the Blarney Stone (mainly a tourist attraction).



//**<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">Culture **// <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> Irish and English are the most widely spoken languages in Ireland. English is the most widely spoken language on the island overall, and Irish is spoken as a first language only by a small minority, primarily, though not exclusively, in the government-defined Gaeltacht regions. The Leprechaun figures large in Irish folklore. A mischievous fairy type creature in emerald green clothing who when not playing tricks spend all their time busily making shoes, the Leprechaun is said to have a pot of gold hidden at the end of the rainbow, and if ever captured by a human it has the magical power to grant three wishes in exchange for release. The Irish tradition of folk music and dance is also widely known. In the middle years of the 20th century, as Irish society was attempting to modernise, traditional Irish music fell out of favour to some extent, especially in urban areas. Young people at this time tended to look to Britain and, particularly, the United States as models of progress and jazz and rock and roll became extremely popular. Sport in Ireland is popular and widespread. Throughout the country a wide variety of sports are played, the most popular being Gaelic football, hurling , rugby union , soccer and hockey. <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%; line-height: 0px; overflow: hidden;"> <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%; line-height: 0px; overflow: hidden;">

//**<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Ethnic/Religious Make-Up **// <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Ireland is made up of many different ethnic groups. The orignal natives of Ireland are known as the Irish and they have been there since the beginning of Ireland. Ulster Scots are another group that resides in Ireland. They travelled from the Lowland Scotland and England and made their way into Ireland to settle. Those are the two major groups. The major religious make-up of Ireland is as follows: Roman Catholicism at 86.4% and Protestant at 13.6%. Christianity is really prevalent throughtout ireland. <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">  <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">

<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">//**Questions**// <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">  <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">1. Ireland major food crop before their famine was what? <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> a. **Potatoes** <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> b. Bananas  <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> c. Broccoli  <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> d. Brussel Sprouts   <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">2. The Irish Flag is made up of which colors? <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> a. Black, Red, Yellow <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> b. Orange, White, Blue  <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> //**c. Green, White, Orange**// <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> d. Black, Green, Yellow