Ireland
Kategorie: Geografia (celkem: 1046 referátů a seminárek)
Informace o referátu:
- Přidal/a: anonymous
- Datum přidání: 05. července 2007
- Zobrazeno: 1649×
Příbuzná témata
Ireland
When t left Ireland in the August of 1969, neither I nor my irtsh friends had any idea that it would be 21 years before we would meet again. But on 27th in Dublin to take part in the 41 st International Summer School of University College Dublin, which attracted participants from 28 countries. Its theme last year was Ireland: Tradition, crisis and transition. Though we often read about problems in Northern Ireland very little is known about the Republic of Ireland. Here is some data: Geographical situation: Ireland is an island separated from Britain by the Irish sea which varies between 95-200 km across. Total area: 84,421 sq km (the Irish Republic 70,282 sq km.). Population: With approximately 3.5 mil. people, the Republic of Ireland is one of the least densely populated countries in Europe. Language: According to the Constitution, Irsh is the first official language, but today it is spoken only in the west of the country. Irish is a Celtic language related to Scottish Gaelic, Welsh and Breton. Irish is taught at schools and it is even one of the official languages of the European Community.English, however, is the most commonly used language. Political system: Parliamentary democracy. The president is the head of the state; he is elected to a 7 year term by direct vote of the people. National flag: A tricolour of green, white and orange vertical stripes. Administrative: There are 4 historical provinces - Ulster, Munster, Leinster and Connacht divided into 32 counties (6 counties of Ulster are administered by the -U. K.). Currency: The Irish pound is divided; into 100 pence. The Capital: Dublin (925,000), other large cities: Cork (173,000), Dun Laoghaire, Limerick. History: Ireland's story is a long one, we can trace it back to 5000 B.C. The Iron Age is connected with the Celts; who were Christianized in the 5th century. The early Christian Ireland is presented to visitors by the scripture crosses and round towers which are one of the most striking features of the Irish landscape; there are about 80 of them on the sites of the early monasteries. They were built as belfries but they also served as places of refuge during invasions. Norse riders appeared on the east coast in 1170. The history over the following seven hundred years is the story of the gradual spread of this Norman, (and later English), conquest over the whole island, during which the old Gaelic order largely disappeared.Systematic "plantation" in which Irish landholders were supplanted by English or Scottish settlers began in the 16th century, continued especially, under Oliver Cromwell. The Reformation became identified with the invaders. After the Battle of the Boyne (1690) the Catholics were deprived of their civil and religious rights and Ireland became a British colony. One of the most important events in Irish history was the Great Famine in 1848, produced by the failure of the potato crop in 1845 through 1847. We must realize the fact that Ireland had in 1841 over 8 million inhabitants; during the famine more than a million died and over a million. emigrated. The first political mass movement for emancipation started in the first half of the 19th century, led by Daniel O'Connel. During the 1st World War, the Easter Rising of 1916 proclaimed an Irish Republic but the leaders were cruelly persecuted. The Irish Parliament (Dáil Eireann) in 1919 ratified the Republic and elected a government with the first President Eamon de Valero. Its authority was based on popular support except in the Protestant areas in the north-east. The Anglo-Irish Treaty signed in 1921 recognized the Irish Free State, but 6 counties of Ulster became part of the United Kingdom.In 1948 the government repealed the External Relations Act (l936) and provided that the description of the State should be the Republic of IreIand. The British Government stated that they regarded this step as placing Ireland outside the Commonwealth. Modern irish history is bloody and complicated. But it is necessary for Catholics as well as Protestants to look for ways of coexisting peacefully on the island which they share and whose history they inherit. People often ask me - what is Ireland like? Tourist booklets say that it is a magical, ancient country. The prevailing features are an open,. friendly atmosphere you meet everywhere, a bit of exaggerated nationalism, and a warm patriotism. The old Irish. saying goes: A stranger is a friend you have yet to meet. Dublin is Ireland's capital city, founded by the Vikings a thousand years ago. It is a cosmopolitan city with a strong historical flavour, particularly of the 18th century Georgian period. It's a bustling city of elegant taurants, pubs and famous shops. Being in Dublin you will realize with a bit of sorrow that the beauty of the old town with its unique Georgian architecture is gradually disappearing and being replaced by modern buildings.
In the centre of fashionable shops on Grafton Street near the statue of Molly Malone you may meet a lot of young people from the Continent who come to Ireland to learn English and this educational tourism is worth £ 50 million a year to the state. And if you wish to leave overcrowded O'Connel Street with its statue of the national hero, take a bus tour to nearby Wicklow mountains - the "Garden of Ireland" full of fascinating variety and beauty - where, in an ancient monastic settlement in Glendalough, you can glimpse the mysterious and moving history of this country.