Homeland Art

The citizens of the United States who claim that their ancestors originated in the west European island of Ireland are the Irish Americans. Around 12% of total American population is reported with Irish ancestry in the year 2006 according American Community SurveyIrish Catholics have been migrating to the US in good numbers even before the revolution, as domestic servants or penal deportations but their numbers increased immensely by the 1820s when mostly males became involved in canal building, lumbering and civil construction works.Small but tight communities developed in growing cities and many of these immigrants went to the big cities such as Boston, Providence and New York City, especially Boston and Chicago, San Francisco, St. Louis, Missouri, Philadelphia and Detroit. Irish Catholic immigrants went directly to the cities, mill towns and railroad or canal construction sites in the east coast and a few became farmers, as manual laborers on canals, railroads, streets, sewers and other construction projects, particularly in New York state. The main business enterprises set up by the Irish were taverns and construction.It was general for Irishmen to be discriminated against in social situations. The Irish Catholics moved rapidly into law enforcement, and built hundreds of schools, colleges, orphanages, hospitals, and asylums. The Irish Americans had a reputation for being very well organized. At least thirteen presidents of the United States have some Irish ancestral origins. Many major cities have elected Irish American Catholic mayors. Indeed, Boston, Cincinnati, Houston, Newark, New York City, Omaha, Scranton, Pittsburgh, Saint Louis, Saint Paul, and San Francisco have all elected natives of Ireland as mayors.

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The name Ireland is derived from the name Eriu along with the German word land. It is the third largest island in Europe and the twentieth largest island in the world which lies to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is surrounded by hundreds of islands and the island of Great Britain lies to the east of Ireland separated by the Irish Sea. The population is approximately under six million. Ireland is subdivided into four provinces of Connacht, Munster, Leinster and Ulster. Ireland has a mild but variable oceanic climate with some extremes. Ireland is covered with almost 10% of forest. Most of the forest is dedicated for commercial production. Ireland has fewer animals and plant species compared to other countries in Europe. Ireland has a wide road network. The vehicles should be driven to the left in Ireland, as in number of other countries. Dublin Airport, Belfast International Airport, Cork Airport and Shannon Airport are the four important international airports in Ireland. The Roman Catholic Church is the largest religious group in Ireland.Ireland has a rich history in science and is very well known for its excellence in scientific research. The most popular sports on the island are the Gaelic Games, Rugby, Golf, Scuba diving, Greyhound racing and horse racing; cricket, tennis, rowing, hockey and most other sports are organized. Irish music has shown a great rise in popularity with people returning to learn about their roots.  A large contribution is made from Ireland to world literature, mainly in English. Irish poetry represents the oldest vernacular poetry in Europe.

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