Irish Culture

Social sciences are fields of knowledge that are related to the different aspects of social groups and the human beings in society, related to the material and immaterial expressions, mainly this kind of science deal with the human activities and behavior  not included in natural sciences. In the evolution of the Irish culture it can be highlighted that they developed a very advanced management of their civilization as a culture even if they suffered of many wars and invasions they kept evolving as one of the most beautiful cultures admired by others.
The Economy of Ireland started near the ice age when the first settlers colonized the country starting with agriculture activities around 4500 BC. followed by the Iron knowledge inherited by the Celts by  350 BC. approximately. Between the 12th century to the 70s most of the Irish products traveled to British which were mainly foodstuffs, then at the 20th century the economy of Ireland developed a diversified economy that made it grow, now Ireland have one of the richest economy in the world.

Economy in Ancient Times

The first colonists of Ireland survived of fishing, gathering and hunting until farming and ceramics become popular until 4500BC.
Now Ireland has evolved so much from its medieval farming and currently Ireland developed one of the most high performance economies. Between the 1993 and 2000 the economy expanded approximately 80%, an amazing achievement for Ireland. Just in the 2000 the Irish economy grow a 10,7 percent, one of the biggest growing rate of Development and Cooperation Organization by the sixth consecutive year . This process is related to the range of factors including the prudent fiscal and monetary management, direct foreign investment, social agreement on policies which facilitated the payment of wage equity, EU structural Funds, a well-trained growing workforce, high-tech export and strong growth in domestic demand.
Decisions on monetary policy, including interest rates, are made by the Executive Council of the ECB. The head of the Central Bank of Ireland is a board member. Other tasks of the Central Bank of Ireland include acting as government agent and banker. The bank is statutorily responsible for the supervision of most financial institutions in Ireland including banks and buildings.
The industrial sector is prominent in the Irish economy, accounting for the 35 percent of GDP, around 90 percent of exports and 29 percent of total employment. The highest growth rates in Irish industry in recent years have been achieved in the field of high-tech manufacturing, which have been attracted overseas investment through a combination of tax initiatives and grants, as well as the location of Ireland within the European Common Market.
Human Geography
The population of Ireland is estimated at 4,203,200 (july 2009). This gives a density of 59,81 inhabitants per square kilometer. The urban population accounts for 61% of total. Over 40% of the population lives in an area of 100 km around Dublin.
The main ethnic groups: Irish 87%, other white 7%, Asian 1,3%, black 1,1%, mixed 1,1% unspecified 1,6%. There are two official languages, English, which is the main and Irish spoken mainly in the western coastal regions.

Population of Ireland

Demography

             Demography is a science whose aim is the study of the human population and their dimension, structure, evolution and general characteristics. According statistics of  the year 2011, the Irish population is estimated at 4,670,976 inhabitants approximately. From this number, 2,332,092 are men, and 2,338,884 are women. The density is about 59,81 per square kilometer, like was mentioned before. Most people lives in the capital of the country, Dublin. However, the Ireland’s density is low for a European country. This is a countrywhere has ended the demographic transition, but the oldest generation are still alive. The aging is low for a birth rate more higher than the rest of Europe, this due to the influence of the Catholic Church in the country.

Pyramid of Ireland population

The distribution by ages are the next: According to statistics of the year 2012, population under 15 years old is 21,1% of total population which male children under 15 are 21,6% of male population and female children under 15 are 20,7% of female population; people 15-64 years old are 67,3% of total population; and population 65 years and over are 11,6% of total population.

Like this country is a developed country, the total median age in the country consists of 34,8 years and life expectancy at birth is 78 years for men and 82,6 years for women. This due to a wide quality health coverage for all population. The birth rate consists of a 14% approximately and fecundity is about a 1,8 child per woman. On the other hand, the mortality rate is very low which is 8% and the infant mortality is 5%.

In Ireland, there is no great contrasts of population density. While the east and southeast are slightly more populated, the zone nearer to Great Britain is the most populated. The center and the west has suffered much migration processes throughout the twentieth century, both external and internal, toward the industrial cities of the east. The north and the northwest has been historically, the least populated area. On the island, people other countries emigrated massively in the nineteenth century when belonged to the British crown, towards the colonies and to the United States. In the mid-nineteenth  century, Ireland was the double of people that at present, but the crisis of the cultivation of potato (1846-1849) caused a great deal of death and a massive emigration. The momentum emigration was maintained during the greater part of the twentieth century because Ireland has always been a relatively poor country within Europe, and the relatively high birth rate.

Evolution of Irish population

Education in Ireland

            The compulsory education is free for Irish people from the six to fifteen years. The tree last years (12 to 15 years old) consist of Junior Cycle of the basic secondary education which is developed in four types of schools: Voluntary secondary schools, professionals, integrated and communitarian schools.

All concludes with a common examination of the State: the Junior Certificare whose approved indispensable for access to university education or vocational training.

Studying a foreign language is optional. French is the most sought among students, followed by German, Spanish and Italian.

The non-compulsory education is also free and consists of a two-year cycle which ends with the consideration of the Secondary School Certificate (Leaving Certificate).

Traditionally, Higher education and non-university includes the university sector, community colleges/technical and technological colleges of education. All are funded by the State or they are self-employes.

Universities and colleges offer different programs which are:

– First cycle: 3 or 4 years, with exceptions for certain disciplines.

– Second cycle: From one to three years.

– Doctorate.

Finally, different aspects of social sciences were analyzed showing us how this little country survived to many invasions and crisis and rises for a good balance of its potential globally. How was appreciated before, Ireland is a country which other countries deserve to follow and imitate in different situations of life. Ireland have demonstrated the capability and prosper of a developed country where people around the world would like to be there enjoying that this country offers.

Sources

– WorldStat info. Revised on October 23th http://es.worldstat.info/Europe/Ireland

– Unknown author. Revised on October 23th http://www.guiadelmundo.org.uy/cd/countries/irl/Indicators.html

– Anthropological Association of Ireland. Revised on October 22th http://www.anthropologyireland.org/

– Miquel, J. El progreso irlandés, con una demografía joven, contrasta con la envejecida Francia. Forum Libertas.com. Revised on October 22th http://www.forumlibertas.com/frontend/forumlibertas/noticia.php?id_noticia=18

– Zaiat, A. El bazar. Página 12. Revised on October 23th http://www.pagina12.com.ar/diario/economia/2-121892-2009-03-21.html

In spite of the little size of Ireland, it did not mean that this beautiful country had not a rich literary tradition. The Irish Literature is not the same as anywhere else in the world. Written expressions and writers has a great importance not only in Ireland, but around the world too.Writers actively participate in political and historical events. It is not strange to see them in advertising signal or another common activities. This respect of their works is related for a great history of literary expressions from ancient times. Two reasons are relevant to show why the literature is important in Ireland: the language conflicts by invaders and the difference with the conqueror which produced identity struggles.

Origin and early Irish Literature
Irish literature has its origins in the Middle Ages XVII century and is considered as the Gold Age of Irish Literature. The oldest Irish-Gaelic script is found in the manuscript of Wurzburg, and dating from around 700.
The fundamental age of literature began at V and VII centuries in which the literary oral tradition morphed into written. The Filidh and Bardh were the wisdom, history and tradition guardians, ancestors of the current writer and were just kinds of druids. Druids were those kept the royal power of Ancient Ireland, and were more important than Kings and Chieftains. The bards were people that had to be educated by 20 years in which they learn by heart the stories, tales, epics and genealogies of his people, they were the voice and memory  of the people and in the same time they composed their own verses.
With the arrival of Christianity in Ireland the tradition was not lost. Only modified and adapted to the new times.

A bard in a feast

In the V century St. Patrick begins his campaign of evangelization of Ireland as he commanded priest to found monasteries but with little Christian formation. More than one of these priests may have came from the druidic social group which surely would have a easier acceptance by the people. Here Irish Literature suffered a turn. These poorly educated Christian monks knew very well the stories of his country, isolated from the rest of Europe created a tailor made Christianity that changed so conspicuously, bequeathing important things like private confession of sins . This Irish Christianity less rigid and independent of continental Europe, is what causes all this early literature come to us.
Then the Irish monks became familiar with the Latin they forced the alphabet and made a Gaelic hybrid, by this way these old stories were transmitted with some additions from Christian tradition. Is worth nothing that the Irish Celts did not ignore the writing but the OGHAMIC alphabet was sacred of ritual nature and reserved for the priestly class.

The Irish Gael goes through four historical periods;
-Oghamic Scrips between 300 and 500 AD.
-Archaic Irish between 600 and 900.
-Middle Irish from 900 to 1200.
-Modern Irish from 1200 to our days.

The English rule that made many changes to the Irish Literature and to the island began in 1200 approximately, until now in the case of northern Ireland (the six counties of Ulster that remain in the hands of the crown after the division of the island in 1921). Irish writers living in Ireland or elsewhere always wrote about the island, they had a peaceful relationship with their country, some of the scripts were written from self-imposed exile in many cases. The permanent self reference of Irish literature has to do with the need to maintain the identity of the conquered and oppressed people for centuries.

This early literature conditions by a certain extent all subsequent Irish Literature.

Modern Irish Literature

Despite of the decline of the Irish culture by the British invasion in the Ireland history, there was considerable concern to keep the ancient traditions and customs. This brought as a consequence an increase in the use of Gaelic language, the official language Ireland. This was the most important event of the modern Irish literature: the “Gaelic Revival”, produced in the end of the nineteenth century. A group of writers fight to avoid the disappearence of the Irish which it resulted the creation of the Irish Literary Revival, supported by authors like William Butler Yeats (who won the first Irish Nobel Prize) who rescued all text with Lady Gregory, Samuel Ferguson, Standish Hayes, Douglas Hyde (who created the Gaelic League), Thomas McDonagh, Aubrey de Vere and others. They are in charge of the translation in old Gaelic and English of tales, stories, epic poems and legends, and they bring it with a new boost. Gaelic and English language share this same geographical place where any of these languages dominate to other.

There exists other important writers with different styles in Ireland. Even, there are authors who don’t live in their country, but they have never left their origin and maintain writing for Ireland. Some of the most important writers were considered British in the time when Ireland were part of the British Empire. Some important writers well known in the world are:

Bram Stoker (1847-1912), Irish novelist and writer known by his novel “Dracula” (1897) which is an icon of horror stories and nuances of vampirism.

Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), one of the most important playwright. He was a celebrity to those years by his wit. He was an important writer and poet, too.

Samuel Bekett (1906-1989) was an Irish playwriter, novelist, criticer and poet. He was important by being a representative of the literary experimentalism of the twentieth century. Known for his book: “En attendant Godot”.

Seamus Heany (1939) is a writer and Irish academic. He was very affected by the conflich between Catholics and Protestants because he is catholic. His work shows a great rhythm flexibility and put full energy in his words. He was one of the person who revived the Gaelic language and preserved the Irish culture against the domination of the English language:
“Be advised my passport’s green.
No glass of ours was ever raised
to toast the Queen.”

Any Irish writer has to live with the Gaelic and English language. All names are expressed in these oficial languages, but the increase of the Irish culture and language can be apreciated in different dairy situations like school, work, etc. In spite of his historical domination, Gaelic language is used in TV channels, news, magazines and are mainly use by writers. However, this mixture of language and dialects in the island (Scottish English, Anglo Irish, Hiberno-English) keep to enrich the literature in the country and it follows surprising to people in the world.

Sources

–       Arnold, B. (1977). A Concise History of Irish Art. W. W. Norton & Co Inc; Revised edition.

–       Gutierrez, B. Heany: “La pasion es lo que salva una lengua”. La voz de las Asturias. Revised on 02/10/12 http://archivo.lavozdeasturias.es/html/199310.html

–       Viviana O´Connell -revised on 02/10/2012, Literature of Ireland. Literature and history. Also found in the webpage http://www.almargen.com.ar/sitio/seccion/literatura/litirland/

– Fahy Club, student association, written by Alberto Blanco; poet and editor Publisher – La jornada semanal – 14/December/2002) revised on 01/10/1012. Irish literature. also found in http://members.tripod.com/fahyclub_exalumnos.ar/literatura_irlandesa.htm