People of Northern Ireland

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The people of Northern Ireland are all people born in Northern Ireland and having, at the time of their birth, at least one parent who is a British citizen, an Irish citizen or is otherwise entitled to reside in Northern Ireland without any restriction on their period of residence, under the Belfast Agreement. Under the agreement, people of Northern Ireland have the right to identify either as Irish or British, or both, and their entitlement to Irish citizenship and British citizenship is recognised by the Government of Ireland and the Government of the United Kingdom.[1]

Most Northern Irish people either identify as Northern Irish, Irish or British, or a combination thereof.[2]

National identity

File:Map of predominant national identity in the 2011 census in Northern Ireland.png
Map of predominant national identity in the 2011 census in Northern Ireland. Stronger blue is more British. Stronger green is more Irish.

In Northern Ireland, national identity is complex and diverse. The question of national identity[3] was asked in the 2021 census with the three most common identities given being British, Irish and Northern Irish. Most people of Protestant background consider themselves British, while a majority of people of Catholic background are Irish. This has origins in the 17th-century Plantation of Ulster.

In the early 20th century, most Ulster Protestants and Catholics saw themselves as Irish, although Protestants tended to have a strong sense of Britishness also.[4] Following the Home Rule Crisis and Irish War of Independence, Protestants gradually began to abandon Irish identity,[4] as Irishness and Britishness came to be seen increasingly as mutually exclusive. In 1968 – just before the onset of the Troubles – 39% of Protestants described themselves as British and 20% of Protestants described themselves as Irish, while 32% chose an Ulster identity.[5] By 1978, following the worst years of the conflict, there had been a large shift in identity amongst Protestants, with the majority (67%) now calling themselves British and only 8% calling themselves Irish.[5][6] This shift has not been reversed.[6] Meanwhile, the majority of Catholics have continued to see themselves as Irish.[5]

From 1989, 'Northern Irish' began to be included as an identity choice in surveys, and its popularity has grown since then.[6] Some organizations have promoted 'Northern Irish' identity as a way of overcoming sectarian division. In a 1998 survey of students, this was one of the main reasons they gave for choosing that identity, along with a desire to appear 'neutral'.[7] However, surveys show that 'Northern Irish' identity tends to have different meanings for Catholics and Protestants.[7] Surveys also show that those choosing 'Northern Irish' alone regard their national identity as less important than those choosing British and Irish.[7]

In recent Northern Ireland censuses, respondents could choose more than one national identity. In 2021:[8]

  • 42.8% identified as British, alone or with other national identities
  • 33.3% identified as Irish, alone or with other national identities
  • 31.5% identified as Northern Irish, alone or with other national identities

The main national identities given in recent censuses were:

National identity of Northern Ireland residents[9][8]
Identity 2011 2021
British only 39.9% 31.9%
Irish only 25.3% 29.1%
Northern Irish only 20.9% 19.8%
British & Northern Irish 6.2% 8.0%
Irish & Northern Irish 1.1% 1.8%
British, Irish & Northern Irish 1.0% 1.5%
British & Irish 0.7% 0.6%

The numbers for each identity were as follows:

Template:Bar chart1,073,200 respondents total.Template:Bar chart

1,137,546 respondents total.

National Identity by Religion (2011)[10]

Those people in Northern Ireland who fall into the category of other religions amounts to less than one percent of the population.

National Identity All Catholic Protestant and other Christian Other religions No religion
British 48.4% 12.9% 81.6% 50.1% 55.9%
Irish 28.4% 57.2% 3.9% 12.4% 14.0%
Northern Irish 29.4% 30.7% 26.9% 18.0% 35.2%
English, Scottish or Welsh 1.6% 0.8% 1.5% 2.9% 5.2%
All other 3.4% 4.4% 1.0% 29.1% 7.1%

Detail by Religion (2011)[11]

Note that Northern Ireland is made up of approximately 42% Protestant; 41% Roman Catholic; 17% no religion; and 0.8% other religions.

National Identity All Catholic Protestant and other Christian Other religions No religion
British only 39.9% 10.3% 68.3% 42.4% 42.9%
Irish only 25.3% 53.2% 2.1% 8.1% 9.4%
Northern Irish only 20.9% 26.9% 14.5% 12.0% 23.7%
British and Northern Irish only 6.2% 0.9% 11.1% 3.3% 7.9%
Irish and Northern Irish only 1.1% 2.0% 0.2% 0.5% 0.8%
British, Irish and Northern Irish only 1.0% 0.8% 1.0% 1.0% 2.1%
British and Irish only 0.7% 0.8% 0.5% 0.7% 1.0%
English, Scottish or Welsh only 1.0% 0.6% 0.8% 2.1% 3.5%
Other 4.0% 4.7% 1.6% 29.9% 8.7%
Total 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0%

National Identity by District (2011)[12]

File:National Identity Northern Ireland Districts 2011 Census.png
Map of districts of Northern Ireland colour coded to show the predominant national identity. Stronger green indicates a higher proportion of people describing themselves as Irish. Stronger blue indicates a higher proportion of people describing themselves as British. Percentages show the difference between the proportion of people describing themselves as Irish and the proportion of people describing themselves as British. Data from 2011 census
District British Irish Northern Irish English, Scottish or Welsh All Other
Antrim 55.2% 20.1% 30.4% 2.3% 3.9%
Ards 73.6% 7.5% 31.9% 1.9% 1.5%
Armagh 44.4% 32.4% 27.1% 1.1% 3.9%
Ballymena 69.0% 11.1% 27.9% 1.4% 3.8%
Ballymoney 60.6% 16.4% 30.9% 1.7% 1.7%
Banbridge 61.1% 16.2% 31.8% 1.5% 1.8%
Belfast 43.2% 34.8% 26.8% 1.5% 5.1%
Carrickfergus 76.5% 5.3% 30.3% 2.1% 1.8%
Castlereagh 66.2% 14.7% 31.3% 1.5% 2.6%
Coleraine 62.4% 14.5% 31.6% 2.0% 3.2%
Cookstown 37.3% 33.5% 32.1% 1.2% 3.7%
Craigavon 48.3% 25.6% 28.7% 1.4% 6.4%
Derry 23.7% 55.0% 24.6% 1.4% 2.0%
Down 40.2% 32.2% 34.1% 1.9% 2.0%
Dungannon 30.9% 38.8% 27.1% 0.9% 9.6%
Fermanagh 37.2% 36.1% 29.5% 1.7% 3.1%
Larne 69.8% 10.1% 31.4% 2.1% 1.2%
Limavady 42.2% 32.0% 30.7% 1.5% 1.4%
Lisburn 55.6% 24.7% 28.7% 2.0% 2.4%
Magherafelt 31.4% 42.7% 29.8% 1.0% 2.8%
Moyle 38.6% 34.1% 32.1% 2.2% 1.4%
Newry and Mourne 20.2% 53.0% 27.6% 1.2% 4.3%
Newtownabbey 66.5% 13.4% 31.2% 1.3% 2.4%
North Down 71.1% 9.1% 33.0% 3.0% 2.4%
Omagh 28.6% 40.9% 32.7% 1.1% 3.4%
Strabane 33.0% 39.2% 31.8% 1.4% 1.3%

National identity by religion or religion brought up in for each district (2011)[12]

District Catholic Protestant and other Christian Other Religion or None
British Irish Northern Irish All Other British Irish Northern Irish All Other British Irish Northern Irish All Other
Antrim 23.1% 43.7% 34.2% 7.1% 80.6% 3.1% 27.8% 3.3% 60.4% 6.5% 26.8% 19.0%
Ards 34.1% 31.7% 38.2% 6.4% 80.9% 3.7% 30.4% 2.2% 67.7% 6.0% 35.1% 9.1%
Armagh 7.1% 62.5% 28.7% 6.2% 81.6% 3.6% 25.7% 2.3% 49.3% 10.5% 25.1% 25.3%
Ballymena 24.6% 38.9% 34.7% 11.0% 83.6% 2.7% 25.7% 2.5% 62.3% 6.5% 28.4% 14.4%
Ballymoney 19.0% 44.5% 38.8% 4.1% 81.1% 2.9% 27.2% 2.2% 65.1% 8.4% 28.0% 13.3%
Banbridge 22.6% 41.7% 39.4% 4.5% 81.2% 3.8% 27.7% 2.0% 59.1% 8.3% 33.8% 11.5%
Belfast 11.7% 64.3% 25.0% 5.6% 78.3% 5.5% 28.7% 3.6% 47.7% 13.3% 27.5% 26.3%
Carrickfergus 41.1% 24.6% 35.6% 10.7% 82.0% 3.0% 29.2% 2.4% 68.3% 5.3% 33.7% 8.5%
Castlereagh 22.1% 50.0% 34.5% 6.3% 81.3% 3.9% 29.9% 2.3% 61.9% 8.9% 33.7% 11.8%
Coleraine 25.0% 39.2% 36.5% 8.4% 79.1% 4.3% 29.3% 2.6% 56.5% 10.3% 33.4% 16.8%
Cookstown 8.1% 53.8% 37.7% 5.2% 82.5% 3.6% 24.0% 2.1% 44.2% 9.1% 24.4% 31.5%
Craigavon 12.2% 51.2% 31.5% 10.6% 82.5% 3.2% 26.3% 2.7% 49.9% 9.1% 26.7% 26.4%
Derry 7.3% 70.5% 24.3% 2.5% 76.7% 7.2% 25.9% 3.5% 39.4% 24.7% 21.9% 26.2%
Down 20.1% 47.4% 37.1% 2.9% 77.4% 5.6% 28.7% 3.6% 52.1% 14.4% 32.1% 16.7%
Dungannon 5.7% 57.6% 28.6% 13.0% 79.6% 4.5% 24.5% 3.0% 33.3% 12.0% 22.8% 42.1%
Fermanagh 11.4% 56.2% 32.4% 4.8% 77.1% 6.2% 25.5% 3.0% 43.4% 16.8% 24.0% 28.1%
Larne 38.8% 30.6% 37.7% 3.0% 81.7% 3.0% 28.6% 2.5% 64.1% 6.5% 35.4% 12.1%
Limavady 18.1% 50.5% 34.4% 2.5% 79.8% 4.1% 24.9% 2.5% 51.4% 10.9% 28.8% 18.7%
Lisburn 16.5% 58.6% 27.8% 4.3% 80.2% 4.7% 29.0% 3.2% 62.2% 8.8% 30.3% 13.9%
Magherafelt 6.5% 62.1% 33.0% 3.8% 82.4% 4.2% 23.1% 2.3% 46.9% 13.4% 30.2% 22.1%
Moyle 14.6% 53.1% 35.3% 2.8% 76.3% 5.0% 27.8% 3.3% 49.4% 17.8% 23.8% 19.8%
Newry and Mourne 7.1% 64.7% 28.0% 5.0% 76.3% 5.8% 26.8% 3.8% 34.6% 22.8% 22.1% 28.9%
Newtownabbey 24.7% 46.1% 34.1% 5.7% 80.9% 3.4% 30.1% 1.7% 63.1% 7.3% 32.1% 12.3%
North Down 37.1% 31.5% 36.1% 9.7% 78.8% 5.2% 31.9% 3.4% 63.7% 7.9% 35.7% 11.6%
Omagh 8.7% 55.7% 36.0% 4.4% 78.5% 4.9% 25.0% 2.5% 40.6% 15.9% 23.7% 28.9%
Strabane 8.9% 57.4% 35.4% 2.6% 79.2% 4.7% 25.2% 1.9% 40.9% 21.1% 25.5% 26.4%

National Identity by Age (2011)[13]

File:National Identity Among Catholics Northern Ireland Districts 2011 Census.png
Map of districts of Northern Ireland colour coded to show the predominant national identity amongst Catholics. Stronger green indicates a higher proportion of Catholics describing themselves as Irish. Blue indicates a higher proportion of Catholics describing themselves as British than as Irish. Percentages show the difference between the proportion of Catholics describing themselves as Irish and the proportion of Catholics describing themselves as British. Data from 2011 census
Ages attained (years) British Irish Northern Irish English, Scottish or Welsh All other
0 to 15 45.1% 31.4% 30.5% 0.9% 3.6%
16 to 24 44.2% 32.3% 29.6% 1.5% 3.3%
25 to 34 40.5% 31.0% 30.0% 1.7% 8.6%
35 to 44 47.3% 28.7% 29.3% 2.1% 4.5%
45 to 54 50.8% 28.3% 28.0% 1.9% 2.2%
55 to 64 54.5% 24.9% 28.8% 1.9% 1.1%
65 to 74 57.5% 21.3% 29.8% 1.7% 0.4%
75 to 84 58.6% 19.6% 29.1% 1.6% 0.3%
85 and over 61.7% 18.0% 26.5% 2.0% 0.2%

National identity surveys

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In 1998 the Northern Ireland Life and Times Survey started asking respondents whether they think of themselves as British, Irish, Ulster, or Northern Irish. According to the 2019 survey of this series, individuals from Northern Ireland identify as:[14]

Template:Graph:Chart
2007 survey: How strongly do you feel yourself to be British[15]/Irish[16]/Ulster[17]/Northern Irish?[18]

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In the 2007 Northern Ireland Life and Times Survey,[19] the question was asked, "thinking about each of these national identities in turn, how strongly do you feel yourself to be [Irish/British/Northern Irish/Ulster?]" Individuals responded for each of the identities as follows:

Northern Irish[18]

  • Very strongly 50%
  • Not very strongly 34%
  • Not at all 15%
  • Don't know 0%

British[15]

  • Very strongly 37%
  • Not very strongly 41%
  • Not at all 22%
  • Don't know 0%

Irish[16]

  • Very strongly 36%
  • Not very strongly 41%
  • Not at all 23%
  • Don't know 0%

Ulster[17]

  • Very strongly 31%
  • Not very strongly 40%
  • Not at all 28%
  • Don't know 1%

Languages

In the 2021 census of Northern Ireland, 95.37% of people spoke English as a First Language, with 1.10% speaking Polish, 0.49% speaking Lithuanian and 0.32% speaking Irish. In the 2021 Northern Ireland Census, 0.32% of the population (5,969 people) reported Irish as their main home language, up from 0.24% (4,164 people) in 2011, a 43% increase. Additionally, 12.4% (228,600 people) reported some ability in Irish, a 23.7% rise from 10.7% (184,898 people) in 2011, reflecting significant growth in Irish language usage, driven by increased Irish-medium education and legislative recognition, such as the Identity and Language Act of 2022. [20] At the same time, 1.14% of the population said they could speak and read Ulster Scots.[21]

Emigration

In 2022, 24,700 people left NI to live elsewhere; just over half of these moved to other parts of the UK.[22]

It is estimated that between 1921 and 1999, about half a million people left NI.[23]

Rural settlements

In 2020, it was noted that 40% of people in NI live in a rural setting.[24] It was also noted that over 49,000 people were involved in the farming industry (1 in 40 people).[25]

See also

References

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  1. ↑ The Good Friday Agreement guarantees the "recognition of the birthright of all the people of Northern Ireland to identify themselves and may identify as Irish or British, However people born in Northern Ireland are automatically British citizens if their parents are British citizens or settled in the United Kingdom,no matter what they identify as, also people in Northern Ireland are entitled to Irish citizenship, which is not automatic and needs to be applied for.Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  2. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  3. ↑ Country of Birth & Nationality Template:Webarchive - 2021 Census
  4. ↑ a b Walker, Brian. "British or Irish - who do you think you are?". Belfast Telegraph, 10 December 2008.
  5. ↑ a b c Moxon-Browne, Edward. "National identity in Northern Ireland". Social Attitudes in Northern Ireland: First Report. Blackstaff Press, 1991.
  6. ↑ a b c Conflict and Consensus: A Study of Values and Attitudes in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. Institute of Public Administration, 2005. pp.60-62
  7. ↑ a b c McKeown, Shelley. Identity, Segregation and Peace-building in Northern Ireland. Palgrave Macmillan, 2013. p.32
  8. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  9. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  10. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  11. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  12. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  15. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  16. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  17. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  18. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  19. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  20. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  21. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  22. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  23. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  24. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  25. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".

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