Celtic tribes arrived on the island between 600-150 B.C. Invasions by Norsemen that began in the late 8th century were finally ended when King Brian BORU defeated the Danes in 1014. English invasions began in the 12th century and set off more than seven centuries of Anglo-Irish struggle marked by fierce rebellions and harsh repressions. A failed 1916 Easter Monday Rebellion touched off several years of guerrilla warfare that in 1921 resulted in independence from the UK for 26 southern counties; six northern (Ulster) counties remained part of the UK. In 1948 Ireland withdrew from the British Commonwealth; it joined the European Community in 1973. Irish governments have sought the peaceful unification of Ireland and have cooperated with Britain against terrorist groups. A peace settlement for Northern Ireland is being implemented with some difficulties. In 2006, the Irish and British governments developed and began to implement the St. Andrews Agreement, building on the Good Friday Agreement approved in 1998.

Western Europe, occupying five-sixths of the island of Ireland in the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Great Britain
53 00 N, 8 00 W
Europe
total: 70,280 sq km ; land: 68,890 sq km ; water: 1,390 sq km
slightly larger than West Virginia
total: 360 km ; border countries: UK 360 km
1,448 km
territorial sea: 12 nm ; exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
temperate maritime; modified by North Atlantic Current; mild winters, cool summers; consistently humid; overcast about half the time
mostly level to rolling interior plain surrounded by rugged hills and low mountains; sea cliffs on west coast
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m ; highest point: Carrauntoohil 1,041 m
natural gas, peat, copper, lead, zinc, silver, barite, gypsum, limestone, dolomite
arable land: 16.82% ; permanent crops: 0.03% ; other: 83.15% (2005)
NA
46.8 cu km (2003)
Total: 1.18 cu km/yr (23%/77%/0%) ; Per capita: 284 cu m/yr (1994)
NA
water pollution, especially of lakes, from agricultural runoff
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling ; signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Marine Life Conservation
strategic location on major air and sea routes between North America and northern Europe; over 40% of the population resides within 100 km of Dublin
4,109,086 (July 2007 est.)
0-14 years: 20.8% (male 442,664/female 413,556) ; 15-64 years: 67.5% (male 1,387,803/female 1,385,355) ; 65 years and over: 11.7% (male 212,782/female 266,926) (2007 est.)
total: 34.3 years ; male: 33.5 years ; female: 35.1 years (2007 est.)
1.143% (2007 est.)
14.4 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
7.79 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
4.82 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female ; under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female ; 15-64 years: 1.002 male(s)/female ; 65 years and over: 0.797 male(s)/female ; total population: 0.989 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
total: 5.22 deaths/1,000 live births ; male: 5.72 deaths/1,000 live births ; female: 4.69 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
total population: 77.9 years ; male: 75.27 years ; female: 80.7 years (2007 est.)
1.86 children born/woman (2007 est.)
0.1% (2001 est.)
2,800 (2001 est.)
less than 100 (2003 est.)
noun: Irishman(men), Irishwoman(women), Irish (collective plural) ; adjective: Irish
Celtic, English
Roman Catholic 88.4%, Church of Ireland 3%, other Christian 1.6%, other 1.5%, unspecified 2%, none 3.5% (2002 census)
English (official) is the language generally used, Irish (Gaelic or Gaeilge) (official) spoken mainly in areas located along the western seaboard
definition: age 15 and over can read and write ; total population: 99% ; male: 99% ; female: 99% (2003 est.)


conventional long form: none ; conventional short form: Ireland ; local long form: none ; local short form: Eire
republic, parliamentary democracy
name: Dublin ; geographic coordinates: 53 19 N, 6 14 W ; time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) ; daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
26 counties; Carlow, Cavan, Clare, Cork, Donegal, Dublin, Galway, Kerry, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Leitrim, Limerick, Longford, Louth, Mayo, Meath, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon, Sligo, Tipperary, Waterford, Westmeath, Wexford, Wicklow ; note: Cavan, Donegal, and Monaghan are part of Ulster Province

6 December 1921 (from UK by treaty)
Saint Patrick's Day, 17 March
adopted 1 July 1937 by plebiscite; effective 29 December 1937
based on English common law, substantially modified by indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
18 years of age; universal
chief of state: President Mary MCALEESE (since 11 November 1997) ; head of government: Prime Minister Bertie AHERN (since 26 June 1997) ; cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president with previous nomination by the prime minister and approval of the House of Representatives ; elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 31 October 1997 (next scheduled for October 2011); note - Mary MCALEESE appointed to a second term when no other candidate qualified for the 2004 presidential election; prime minister (taoiseach) nominated by the House of Representatives and appointed by the president ; election results: Mary MCALEESE elected president; percent of vote - Mary MCALEESE 44.8%, Mary BANOTTI 29.6% ; note: government coalition - Fianna Fail, the Green Party, the Progressive Democrats, and independent members of Parliament
bicameral Parliament or Oireachtas consists of the Senate or Seanad Eireann (60 seats; 49 members elected by the universities and from candidates put forward by five vocational panels, 11 are nominated by the prime minister; to serve five-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Dail Eireann (166 seats; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve five-year terms) ; elections: Senate - last held NA July 2007 (next to be held by July 2012); House of Representatives - last held 24 May 2007 (next to be held by May 2012) ; election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Fianna Fail 28, Fine Gael 14, Labor Party 6, Progressive Democrats 2, Green Party 2, Sein Fein 1, independents 7; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - Fianna Fail 41.6%, Fine Gael 27.3%, Labor Party 10.1%, Sinn Fein 6.9%, Green Party 4.7%, Progressive Democrats 2.7%, other 6.7%; seats by party - Fianna Fail 78, Fine Gael 51, Labor Party 20, Sinn Fein 4, Green Party 6, Progressive Democrats 2, other 5
Supreme Court (judges appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister and cabinet)
Fianna Fail [Bertie AHERN]; Fine Gael [Enda KENNY]; Green Party [John GORMLEY]; Labor Party [Eamon GILMORE]; Progressive Democrats [Mary HARNEY, acting leader]; Sinn Fein [Gerry ADAMS]; Socialist Party [Joe HIGGINS]; The Workers' Party [Sean GARLAND]
NA
AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMIL, UNOCI, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and orange; similar to the flag of Cote d'Ivoire, which is shorter and has the colors reversed - orange (hoist side), white, and green; also similar to the flag of Italy, which is shorter and has colors of green (hoist side), white, and red
chief of mission: Ambassador Michael COLLINS ; chancery: 2234 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 ; telephone: [1] (202) 462-3939 ; FAX: [1] (202) 232-5993 ; consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, New York, San Francisco
chief of mission: Ambassador Thomas C. FOLEY ; embassy: 42 Elgin Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 ; mailing address: use embassy street address ; telephone: [353] (1) 668-8777 ; FAX: [353] (1) 668-9946





Ireland is a small, modern, trade-dependent economy with growth averaging 6% in 1995-2007. Agriculture, once the most important sector, is now dwarfed by industry and services. Although the exports sector, dominated by foreign multinationals, remains a key component of Ireland's economy, construction has most recently fueled economic growth along with strong consumer spending and business investment. Property prices have risen more rapidly in Ireland in the decade up to 2006 than in any other developed world economy. Per capita GDP is 40% above that of the four big European economies and the second highest in the EU behind Luxembourg, and in 2007 surpassed that of the United States. The Irish Government has implemented a series of national economic programs designed to curb price and wage inflation, invest in infrastructure, increase labor force skills, and promote foreign investment. A slowdown in the property market, more intense global competition, and increased costs, however, have compelled government economists to lower Ireland's growth forecast slightly for 2008. Ireland joined in circulating the euro on 1 January 2002 along with 11 other EU nations.
$187.5 billion (2007 est.)
$219.7 billion (2007 est.)
5.3% (2007 est.)
$45,600 (2007 est.)
agriculture: 5% ; industry: 46% ; services: 49% (2002 est.)
2.21 million (2007 est.)
agriculture: 6% ; industry: 27% ; services: 67% (2006 est.)
5% (2007 est.)
7% (2005 est.)
lowest 10%: 2.9% ; highest 10%: 27.2% (2000)
32 (2005)
4.7% (2007 est.)
25.4% of GDP (2007 est.)
revenues: $93.85 billion ; expenditures: $91.07 billion (2007 est.)
21.1% of GDP (2007 est.)
turnips, barley, potatoes, sugar beets, wheat; beef, dairy products
steel, lead, zinc, silver, aluminum, barite, and gypsum mining processing; food products, brewing, textiles, clothing; chemicals, pharmaceuticals; machinery, rail transportation equipment, passenger and commercial vehicles, ship construction and refurbishment; glass and crystal; software, tourism
5% (2006 est.)
24.13 billion kWh (2005)
fossil fuel: 95.9% ; hydro: 2.3% ; nuclear: 0% ; other: 1.7% (2001)
24.09 billion kWh (2005)
1 million kWh (2005)
2.045 billion kWh (2005)
0 bbl/day (2005 est.)
192,000 bbl/day (2005 est.)
23,360 bbl/day (2004)
204,400 bbl/day (2004)
0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)
546.7 million cu m (2005 est.)
3.895 billion cu m (2005 est.)
0 cu m (2005 est.)
3.348 billion cu m (2005)
9.505 billion cu m (1 January 2006 est.)
-$12.6 billion (2007 est.)
$124.8 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
machinery and equipment, computers, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; live animals, animal products
US 18.6%, UK 17.7%, Belgium 14.9%, Germany 7.7%, France 5.8%, Italy 4.2% (2006)
$90.35 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
UK 37.5%, US 11.5%, Germany 9.6%, Netherlands 4.6% (2006)
ODA, $719 million (2005)
$831.9 million (2006 est.)
$1.841 trillion (30 June 2007)
$179 billion (2006 est.)
$125.2 billion (2006 est.)
$114.1 billion (2005)
euro (EUR) ; note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries
EUR
euros per US dollar - 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003)
calendar year

2.097 million (2006)
4.69 million (2006)
general assessment: modern digital system using cable and microwave radio relay ; domestic: microwave radio relay ; international: country code - 353; landing point for the Hibernia-Atlantic submarine cable with links to the US, Canada, and UK; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
AM 9, FM 106, shortwave 0 (1998)
2.55 million (1997)
4 (many repeaters) (2001)
1.82 million (2001)
.ie
429,487 (2007)
22 (2000)
1.437 million (2006)

34 (2007)
total: 15 ; over 3,047 m: 1 ; 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 ; 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 ; 914 to 1,523 m: 4 ; under 914 m: 5 (2007)
total: 19 ; 914 to 1,523 m: 3 ; under 914 m: 16 (2007)

gas 1,728 km (2006)
total: 3,237 km ; broad gauge: 1,872 km 1.600-m gauge (37 km electrified) ; narrow gauge: 1,365 km 0.914-m gauge (operated by the Irish Peat Board to transport peat to power stations and briquetting plants) (2006)
total: 96,602 km ; paved: 96,602 km (includes 200 km of expressways) (2003)
956 km (pleasure craft only) (2007)
total: 27 ships (1000 GRT or over) 116,091 GRT/161,808 DWT ; by type: cargo 23, chemical tanker 2, container 1, roll on/roll off 1 ; foreign-owned: 3 (Spain 1, US 2) ; registered in other countries: 18 (Bahamas 2, Bermuda 1, Bulgaria 1, Cyprus 1, Germany 1, Isle of Man 1, Netherlands 9, Panama 1, UK 1, unknown 1) (2007)
Cork, Dublin, Shannon Foynes

Irish Defense Forces (Oglaigh na h-Eireann): Army (includes Naval Service and Air Corps) (2006)
17 years of age for voluntary military service; enlistees under the age of 17 can be recruited for specialist positions (2001)
males age 17-49: 977,092 ; females age 17-49: 978,465 (2005 est.)
males age 17-49: 814,768 ; females age 17-49: 813,981 (2005 est.)
males age 18-49: 29,327 ; females age 17-49: 28,139 (2005 est.)
0.9% (2005 est.)

Ireland, Iceland, and the UK dispute Denmark's claim that the Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm

transshipment point for and consumer of hashish from North Africa to the UK and Netherlands and of European-produced synthetic drugs; increasing consumption of South American cocaine; minor transshipment point for heroin and cocaine destined for Western Europe; despite recent legislation, narcotics-related money laundering - using bureaux de change, trusts, and shell companies involving the offshore financial community - remains a concern

