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Kansas City Irish Festivals, Music, Pubs, & Events by an Artist in Ireland

My grandfather, my father, and I were all born in the same city, but the name of the state each of us was born in was different.

My grandfather was born in Dublin when it within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. My father was born in Dublin when it was in the Irish Free State. And I was born in Dublin when it was in Ireland, which probably sounds a bit funny - but that’s the stuff people die for, humour.

With the addition of the Irish language as the 21st official EU language, the Irish government has agreed that name plates representing the state will now say ‘Eire Ireland’ instead of just ‘Ireland’, but a slightly confusing article from the AP appears in today’s Kansas City Star and Wichita Eagle, regarding the name of the state you may know as ‘Ireland’ or the ‘Republic of Ireland’.

Simply put, according to the Constitution of Ireland, which was adopted in 1937, the name of the state (what you possibly refer to as the ‘26 counties’) when speaking in English is ‘Ireland’, and when speaking in the Irish language is ‘Éire’.

Ireland became a republic in 1949, with the passing of the Republic of Ireland Act. This introduced the term ‘Republic of Ireland’ as the description of the state, not the name, because a Constitutional referendum would be necessary to change the name enshrined in the constitution.

If you are speaking in English you should not use the term ‘Éire’. The British media do this all the time. Worse the media in Britain frequently refers to the Irish state as the ‘Irish Republic’, ignoring both the constitutional name ‘Ireland’ and the legal description ‘Republic of Ireland’. It would be akin to the Irish media calling the UK, the ‘British Kingdom’.

It is the last paragraph in the AP article that is misleading when it says that in 1949 the state ‘became universally known as the Republic of Ireland’. It didn’t in Ireland itself, or indeed in Britain, but as an alternative English language term for the state it came into formal existence.

So for example in football terms (soccer) when discussing internationally you speak of the Republic of Ireland and of Northern Ireland, two distinct teams. But when you actually go to the game to watch, say, the Republic play France, it is ”C’mon Ireland” that you shout, or “Ireland (clap-clap-clap) Ireland (clap-clap-clap)” etc. - there is no need to qualify with a Republic reference, and it’s not done. Or Allez Les Verdes works if you’re a trouble-maker.

To sum up in practical terms then - and I know you’re loving this - in any context where it’s necessary to distinguish between the state and the island as a whole, use ‘Republic of Ireland’ otherwise carry on using ‘Ireland’. And if you speak Irish, then, and only then, should you use Éire. Puns in English using the word ‘Éire’ grate on Irish people. Same language puns, please.

And for good measure:
  • You can just use the term ‘the Republic’ for short instead of the longer ‘Republic of Ireland’, if you’re chatting with friends.
  • You can drop the fada in ‘Éire’ to make ‘Eire’ (you’re allowed to with capital letters)
  • There aren’t 26 counties in the Republic anymore. Dublin has been carved up for one thing; the 26 refers to the historic counties that aren’t really that historic anyway - borders only cemented a hundred years or so ago with the growth of Gaelic Games.
  • Counties do not have official flags, despite whatever we wave at Croke Park.
  • The term ‘Irish Republic’ was actually the historical name of the state from 1919 to 1922 before it was recognized as a state i.e., when the state was fighting for and winning (partially) independence.

See Also:
    • Dead Irish People in the Midwest
    • Irish Government says US conduct ‘Unacceptable’
    • Bobby Sands

This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 28th, 2006 at 8:52 am and is filed under History, Ireland. You can follow responses via my RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.