The Ubiquitous Irish

New Zealand Tablet, 22 September 1921, Page 7

The Übiquitous Irish

HOW THE RACE IS SCATTERED THROUGH THE WORLD. A speaker at the recent reception to his Grace Archbishop Mannix in the Sydney Town Hall referred to the wide dispersal of the Irish race throughout the world. He added that what had been Ireland’s loss in this respect had been the world’s gain. Recently the New York World published statistics showing just how the Irish people are scattered over the earth. These interesting statistics are as follow : Persons Born in Ireland or of Irish Parentage. [ Ireland 4,100,000 Great Britain .... 3,000,000 United States ... ... ... 11,900,000 Canada (including Newfoundland) 1,200,000 Australasia (including New Zealand and Tasmania) ' ... ‘ 1,400,000 South America 1,000,000 Asia ; , ■_ , 100,000 European Continent • ... 399 999 South Africa ... ; ... ’ 100,000 Total 23,100,000 Persons of Irish Grandparentage. Great Britain ... ... ... ... 4.999 000 United States _ ;.. . 5 ... ... 15,000,000 Canada (including Newfoundland) 1,300,000 Australasia (including New Zealand and Tasmania South Africa ... ... ... ... } i OOO South America ... 1,500,000 Asia - •••. , 200,000 European Continent ... ... , 500,000 Total ••• - ... 23,950,000 This calculation, which is based, so, far as they are available, on official returns of nationality, gives us ah Irish race 47,000,000 strong. The actual number of persons in the world at the present time who were born in Ireland of Irish parents is over 8,000,000, while there are nearly 15,000,000 of persons born out of Ireland, but both of whose .parents were Irish. , We have excluded from this any calculation of the number of persons of Irish descent

—that is, persons avlio are more than tAvo generations removed from Ireland. If these Avere included there Avould be found some 10,000,000 more of the Irish race on the European Continent, and another 10,000,000 elseAvhere. As it stands, the Irish race forms on<j of the most numerous races in the Avorld —equal to the French or Italians. There used to be an old boast that the sun npver sets on the English Dominions. It is a literal fact that the sun never sets on the Irish race. No Avonder the Irish question is a Avorld-Avide one.