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IRELAND

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Ireland is an island in the northwest of Europe with an area of 32,595 sq miles. About 370 km (230 miles) long by 225 km (140 miles) wide, Ireland comprises the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The population of the island of Ireland is approximately 5.8 million people, 4.1 million in the Republic of Ireland and 1.7 million in Northern Ireland. Ireland is the third largest island in Europe.

Geography: Ireland has thirty-two counties, and four provinces: Connacht, Leinster, Munster and Ulster. A ring of coastal mountains surrounds low central plains. About five percent of Irish land is under forest. The island's green vegetation is a product of its mild climate and frequent but soft rainfall. Ireland's most scenic areas lie in the south western and western counties. These areas are largely mountainous and rocky, with beautiful green views.

Irish: is the Celtic language of Ireland. It was brought to Ireland by Celtic invaders in 1000 BC, and to the end of the 18th century, was spoken by the majority of the people. The English language gained ground rapidly and Irish is now spoken regularly only in certain areas in the west of Ireland. It is taught in all schools, but despite active support from the government of Ireland, there are probably fewer than 90,000 speakers. It is the first official language of the Irish Republic and recently became an official language of the European Union (EU).

Literature and the arts: For such a small country, Ireland has made a large contribution to world of art and literature in all its branches, mainly in English. In more recent times, Ireland has produced four winners of the Nobel Prize for literature: George Bernard Shaw, William Butler Yeats, Samuel Beckett, and Seamus Heaney.

James Joyce is widely considered as one of the most significant writers of the 20th century. His novel: Ulysses is considered one of the greatest novels of the 20th century.

Landscape: The Irish landscape is one of Ireland’s greatest attractions. Ireland's most scenic areas lie in the south western and western counties. There are several National Parks filled with towering hills, romantic lakes, and will always remain Ireland's most unspoiled treasures. Magnificent scenery has attracted many visitors to these parks for years.

Climate: The Atlantic Gulf Stream keeps the Irish climate mild most of the year. Average temperatures in winter are 4 - 7o C, and in summer are 14 - 18o C. Rainfall is heaviest in the west and lightest in the southeast, but at all times very unpredictable.

Sport: Gaelic hurling and football are the most popular sports in Ireland - they make up the national sports of Ireland, known as Gaelic Games. All Gaelic games are governed by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA).

Other main sports include: Rugby, Football (soccer), Horse racing and Greyhound racing.

TJ Tierney is an award winning Irish Landscape photographer and a freelance writer.

He frequently writes for the shopping directory http://www.shop-4us.com and the photography directory http://www.goldprints.com

To view or buy some of his images visit his on line gallery at GoldenIrishLight


IRISH NEWS
RTÉ News

O'Brien found not guilty of Meg Walsh murder
9 May 2008 at 3:15pm
John O'Brien has been found not guilty of the murder of his wife Meg Walsh in 2006.

Kilkenny, Dundalk breweries to close
9 May 2008 at 1:13pm
Diageo is to close plants in Kilkenny and Dundalk but brewing will continue at St James's Gate in Dublin.

Woman found dead in Athlone house
9 May 2008 at 1:14pm
Gardaí in Athlone say they are treating the death of a woman in a housing estate in the town as suspicious.

Major fire at Kildare meat factory
9 May 2008 at 1:15pm
A major fire at a Kildare meat factory is being tackled by the county's fire service.

Triumphalist demonstration after rape verdict
9 May 2008 at 1:35pm
Order had to be restored in the Central Criminal Court today after a triumphalist demonstration when a man was acquitted of raping his daughter.

Rice vows to back Lebanese govt
9 May 2008 at 12:28pm
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has said Washington would provide support to the Lebanese Prime Minister battling a deadly offensive by Hezbollah fighters.

WFP resumes Burma food flights
9 May 2008 at 1:15pm
The UN's World Food Programme has said it will resume aid flights to Burma tomorrow.

Motorcyclist dies in Antrim crash
9 May 2008 at 10:46am
A 20 year-old man has been killed in a road accident in Co Antrim.

Gardaí seek to retain cash seized in Limerick
9 May 2008 at 8:17am
Gardaí are making court applications to retain the cash seized during yesterday's operation in Limerick.

Harney 'concerned' over nurses' hours
9 May 2008 at 1:15pm
The Minister for Health is deeply concerned that so many hospitals have failed to reach agreement on cutting nurses' hours.

Thieves target Cork amusement centre
9 May 2008 at 11:03am
A large amount of coins were stolen from an amusement centre in Youghal, Co Cork, in the early hours of this morning.

Union calls decentralisation plan 'incoherent'
9 May 2008 at 1:16pm
The union representing senior civil service grades has called for an urgent review of the decentralisation scheme.

Final day for NI investment conference
9 May 2008 at 1:17pm
A major conference in Belfast aimed at securing US investment in Northern Ireland ends today.

Former leaders join FG to call for Lisbon Yes
9 May 2008 at 1:18pm
Peter Sutherland and Garret FitzGerald joined Enda Kenny this morning in calling for a Yes vote in next month's Lisbon referendum.

Lab tester chosen in cancer screen plan
9 May 2008 at 9:24am
The rolling out of a free national cervical screening programme has moved a step closer.

Court rules Fritzl to be kept in custody
9 May 2008 at 1:19pm
An Austrian court has ordered Josef Fritzl, who kept his daughter in a cellar for 24 years, to be kept in custody for a further month.

PSNI officer injured in Belfast incident
9 May 2008 at 9:19am
A police officer was injured this morning near south Belfast in an operation to stop a man travelling erratically in a car.

Soldier dies following shooting in Cork
9 May 2008 at 10:34am
A soldier has died following a shooting incident at Collins' Barracks in Cork city this morning.

Bulmers workers fired over YouTube video
9 May 2008 at 9:10am
Cider company Bulmers has confirmed that it has fired eight workers over a YouTube video.

NI mountain fire may have been deliberate
9 May 2008 at 9:06am
A mountain fire that ran for several kilometres is believed to have been started deliberately.

Body of missing Kerry man found
9 May 2008 at 9:05am
The body of a man who was reported missing in Co Kerry yesterday evening has been found.

Cinnlínte Nuachta
9 May 2008 at 6:20am
Tá fear as Port Láirge faighte neamhchiontach i ndúnmharú a mhná céile i 2006.

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Migration Is The Human Heart On A Journey Of Hope.

They estimate that there are 70,000,000 people world wide that can claim Irish ancestry. At least 50% of those are said to live in the U.S. Many of those people, often referred to as ex-pats (expatriates), left Ireland to find work. They became recognised in their adopted countries for their hard work reliability and adaptability. The Irish work ethic has been the hallmark of the Irish workers leading them to become vital members of their communities.

Now many of these Irish XPats and/or their children are looking back to the land of their origins to see where they came from. To see what has shaped them into the people that they have become today. Searching for their Celtic roots as some have put it.

For many Irish living abroad this means the regular trip home to Ireland to visit family members or old friends. For others it means the once in a lifetime journey back to the "Emerald Isle", a country that they may never have been to previously, to visit the ancestral home or village their of parents, who due to their new circumstances and/or the pace of life, never managed to return to.

This site is intended to be a window into Ireland for those who for many reasons may never visit Ireland or if they have been, may never return. It is for the people, whether of Irish origin or not, who want to feed their interest in Ireland and those who have a curiosity or eve just a mild interest in all things Irish.

The links on these pages include sites of cultural, sporting and musical interest. Though not necessarily a tourist guide or even a travel site there are links to sites where you can book accommodation, rent a car and plan your vacation here. You can purchase traditional jewellery and other gifts, download pictures trace your genealogy or just read the latest news items in the national and local papers here in Ireland. In case you forgot what it looks like we have links to some Irish webcams and photo sites.

We try to present as wide a variety of links giving as broad a view of Ireland as possible. We are open to suggestions and will gladly consider any suggested Irish links for addition to the site if we feel they are in keeping with our theme. If you do have a suggestion please click on, Contact Us, at the bottom of the page to email us.

Ireland the third-largest island in Europe. It is an island in the northern Atlantic west of Britain. Dublin the capital of Ireland, having something for everyone, is a popular travel destination for young and old alike. Ireland was christened the, “Emerald Isle” by Belfast poet William Drennan in 1795. Although it is thought by many to be one of the most beautiful countries in the world the rain is never far away. The heavy rain is responsible for the Emerald grass which adds to the green beauty of the Irish countryside.

The colourful Irish historical background and the still evident culture and lifestyle of its people make Ireland a very attractive holiday destination.

Ireland’s Irish name is Éire, though this is often substituted with the Latin Hibernia, it has in the past attracted many different names. Perhaps the most memorable of these would be "The Land Of Saints And Scholars". This name, of course, came about due to its strong tradition of education and the deeply religious nature of its people.

The economy in Ireland was built on agriculture and fishing. In recent years, it has been recognised that the tourism industry could also be a significant source of income for many people in locations too remote for industry and too unproductive for significant farming. In spite of this newfound interest in tourism there are few parts of Ireland spoilt by this in the way that many other hot spots around the world have been. These days with the spread of the, “Burger Culture” the young Irish people have managed to develop a new culture which, though uniquely Irish, bridges the gap between the thatched cottage and the condominium.

The tourism and hotel industry has become one of the cornerstones of Irish economy. Many of the hotels in Ireland are family owned and can give the personal attention and atmosphere that cannot be matched by bigger hotel groups anywhere in the world. The scenic locations of the Irish hotels offer beauty of a type unseen anywhere else.

If you are planning a trip to Ireland there are links on this page that may by useful. If not then we still have a lot to offer in the line of information, links and photos etc. and there is more to come as we improve the site.

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Origina add 60 new jobs in Dublin
7 May 2008 at 6:01am
Origina, an IT services and and consulting firm have plans to add up to 60 new jobs in the next two years. This will bring the numbers who work for Origina to 120. The ?3million investment is to help to bring the company to be a competitor to the traditional consulting firms. Origina, formally known [...]

Medtronic move to Galway from the US
7 May 2008 at 3:19am
Medtronic (www.medtronic.com) have annoucned plans for wordwide cuts in their staffing. Up to 1,100 jobs worldwide are expected to go, which is almost 3% of it’s workforce. Thankfully this comes with a good note for Jobs in Galway , as Medtronic are moving their endovascular manufacturing operation from Santa Rosa, California, USA to Galway . [...]

Almost 50% more redundancies
5 May 2008 at 6:07am
The DETE (Department of Enterprise Trade and Employment , www.entemp.ie) has published some frightening figures on Irish redundancy rates. Year on year the number of reported redundancies in April rose by 47% between 2007 and 2008. The majority of these job losses were in the construction and manufacturing sectors, making up almost half of the [...]

Italy publishes everyones salary and returns
1 May 2008 at 4:33am
A crazy news story from Italy today, apparently yesterday there was an official website publishing all the salary declarations and tax contributions for everyone in Italy. The tax authority’s website was overload by zealous Italians wondering how much their neighbours to big soccer stars earn. The website was suspended within 24 hours of going live after [...]

Dell cut over 5% in Ireland
30 Apr 2008 at 1:18am
Yesterday DELL (www.dell.com) announced that they will be cutting 250 Irish jobs from the plants in Dublin and Limerick. Overall the company employs 4,500 people in Ireland and this figure reflects just over 5% of their Irish staff numbers. Areas of DELL effected include sales/marketing/finance/tech support as well as other admin roles. Most of the [...]

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