Ireland. Ireland’s capital is dublin

1. Ireland

IRELAND
Created by Yulia Artyomova

2.

The coat of arms of Ireland is blazoned as Azure a harp Or, stringed
Argent (a gold harp with silver strings on a blue background).These arms
were adopted by Henry VIII of England when he ended the period of
Lordship of Ireland and declared Ireland to be a kingdom again in 1541.
When the crowns of England, Scotland and Ireland were united in 1603,
they were integrated into the unified royal coat of arms of kingdoms of
England, Scotland and Ireland. The harp was adopted as the emblem of
the Irish Free State when it separated from the United Kingdom in 1922
IRELAND, ALSO KNOWN
AS THE REPUBLIC OF
IRELAND, IS A COUNTRY
IN
NORTH-WESTERN
EUROPE OCCUPYING 26
OF 32 COUNTIES OF THE
ISLAND OF IRELAND.

3. Ireland’s capital is Dublin, a populous and affluent city whose metropolitan area is home to more than one-fourth of the

IRELAND’S CAPITAL IS DUBLIN, A POPULOUS AND AFFLUENT CITY WHOSE METROPOLITAN AREA IS
HOME TO MORE THAN ONE-FOURTH OF THE COUNTRY’S TOTAL POPULATION. THE CITY’S OLD
DOCKSIDE NEIGHBORHOODS HAVE GIVEN WAY TO NEW RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL
DEVELOPMENT. CORK, IRELAND’S SECOND LARGEST CITY, IS A HANDSOME CATHEDRAL CITY AND
PORT IN THE SOUTHWEST. OTHER PRINCIPAL CENTERS INCLUDE WATERFORD, WEXFORD, AND
DROGHEDA ON THE EAST COAST, SLIGO IN THE NORTHWEST, AND LIMERICK AND GALWAY IN THE
WEST.

4. Although Ireland is now both urbanized and Europeanized, its culture retains many unique characteristics, and its people prize

ALTHOUGH IRELAND IS NOW BOTH URBANIZED AND EUROPEANIZED, ITS CULTURE
RETAINS MANY UNIQUE CHARACTERISTICS, AND ITS PEOPLE PRIZE FOLKLORIC AND
SOCIAL TRADITIONS THAT LARGELY DERIVE FROM AND CELEBRATE THE COUNTRY’S
RURAL PAST.
« An acre of stony ground,
Where the symbolic rose can break in
flower,
Old ragged elms, old thorns
innumerable,
The sound of the rain or sound
Of every wind that blows;
The stilted water-hen
Crossing stream again
Scared by the splashing of a dozen
cows »

5. The population of the island of Ireland is about 6.5 million people, of which 4.58 million live in the Republic of Ireland and

THE POPULATION OF THE ISLAND OF IRELAND IS ABOUT 6.5 MILLION PEOPLE, OF WHICH 4.58 MILLION LIVE IN THE
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND AND ANOTHER 1.8 MILLION IN NORTHERN IRELAND. IT IS THE SECOND MOST POPULATED
ISLAND IN EUROPE AFTER THE UK. BU THE WAY, ONLY 9% OF IRISH HAVE NATURAL RED HAIR COLOR. IT IS MORE
RED-HAIRED PEOPLE HERE THAN IN ANY OTHER COUNTRY IN THE WORLD/
During the 2000
census
in
the
United
States,
about 34 million
Americans
reported their Irish
descent,
making
the Irish the second
largest
ethnic
group
after
German
Americans.
Irish
Americans mainly
live in the northeast of the country
(New York and
New England).

6. English language here has official status along with Irish. Almost the entire population owns it, however, the emphasis of the

ENGLISH LANGUAGE HERE HAS OFFICIAL STATUS ALONG WITH IRISH. ALMOST THE ENTIRE
POPULATION OWNS IT, HOWEVER, THE EMPHASIS OF THE IRISH IS VERY PECULIAR, AND
THE BRITISH USUALLY HAVE DIFFICULTY UNDERSTANDING IT. BY THE WAY, MOST LOCALS
ALL SUPPORT UNITED STATE'S POLICY.

7. Plant and animal life

PLANT AND ANIMAL LIFE
Ireland was almost completely covered by glaciers during the Ice Age, and its
plant and animal life are thus mainly—but not entirely—the result of the
subsequent migration of species from other areas. As long as there was a land
connection between Ireland and what was to become the rest of the British
Isles, most species arrived overland from northern Europe. Irish plant and
animal life nevertheless possess certain unique features owing partly to
climatic conditions and partly to the fact that Ireland became separated
from Britain by the Irish Sea sometime before Britain itself became separated
from the European continent.

8.

. The western highlands are home to
such hardy species as St. Dabeoc’s
heath, Irish spurge, Eriocaulon
aquaticum (a pipewort with North
American affinities), and the Irish orchid
(a species of Mediterranean origin).
Scattered over the island are sundew,
foxglove, bell heather, sheep’s bit, bog
asphodel, and yellow fleabane, yet it is
Ireland’s extensive and verdant
grasslands that leave the most lasting
impression. Prior to the 17th century the
Irish midlands had great forests of
broad-leaved trees, but by the end of
the 19th century the once large forests
had been reduced to about 1 percent
of the total land area. Now the island is
mainly devoid of broad-leaved
woodlands, and government-sponsored
reforestation programs have chiefly
favoured fast-growing sitka spruce.

9. Common English animals such as the weasel and the mole do not exist in Ireland, which also has no snakes. Tradition ascribes

COMMON ENGLISH ANIMALS SUCH AS THE WEASEL AND THE MOLE DO NOT EXIST IN IRELAND, WHICH ALSO HAS NO SNAKES.
TRADITION ASCRIBES THE ABSENCE OF SNAKES TO BANISHMENT AT THE HANDS OF ST. PATRICK; IN FACT, BEFORE THEIR
INTRODUCTION AS PETS AND IN ZOOS IN THE 20TH CENTURY, SNAKES HAD NOT LIVED ON THE ISLAND FOR THE THOUSANDS OF
YEARS SINCE THE ICE AGE. IN ADDITION, THERE ARE ONLY TWO KINDS OF MICE—AS OPPOSED TO FOUR IN BRITAIN—AND THE ONLY
REPTILE FOUND IN IRELAND IS A SPECIES OF LIZARD. ENDEMIC MAMMALS INCLUDE THE IRISH STOAT AND THE IRISH HARE. DEER HAVE
INCREASED IN NUMBER SINCE THE MID-19TH CENTURY, BUT THE GIANT IRISH ELK HAS LONG BEEN EXTINCT. IRELAND ABOUNDS IN
BIRDLIFE, NOTABLY WATERFOWL. NUMEROUS SPECIES THAT BREED IN ICELAND AND GREENLAND IN THE SUMMER SPEND WINTER IN
IRELAND, AND MANY MORE MIGRATORY SPECIES STOP THERE IN THE SPRING AND THE FALL.

10. The shamrock

THE SHAMROCK
The tradition of wearing Shamrock to
celebrate Saint Patrick seems to date from
the seventeenth or eighteenth century. This
was a very turbulent time in Irish history. The
suppression of the Gaelic way of life by the
ruling British invaders resulted in many aspects
of the Catholic religion in Ireland being
forced underground. Strict laws were
enforced which prevented the Catholic
population from attending schools so 'hedgeschools' were operated in secret.
These were schools run outdoors in secluded
places (sometimes literally 'under a hedge!).
The teaching of religion was also forbidden so
it is only to be expected that teachers would
use naturally available resources to inform
their pupils. Thus the Shamrock plant was used
to illustrate the message of the Christian Holy
Trinity.

11. Thanks for your attention

THANKS FOR YOUR ATTENTION