Ireland - People
Ireland has the highest birth rate in Europe, the second-lowest death rate and fifth-highest rate of net outward migration. Ethnic groups include Irish 84.5%, other white 9.8%, Asian 1.9%, black 1.4%, mixed and other 0.9%, unspecified 1.6% (2011 est.) The country's extraordinary population dynamics - in fertility, mortality and mobility - have long marked it out as an unusual case among its peers. While there is currently minimal growth in the overall population, the numbers as well as the proportion of the population in the older age groups is increasing rapidly.
Celtic tribes arrived on the island between 600 and 150 B.C. Invasions by Norsemen that began in the late 8th century were finally ended when King Brian BORU defeated the Danes in 1014. Norman invasions began in the 12th century and set off more than seven centuries of Anglo-Irish struggle marked by fierce rebellions and harsh repressions.
The Irish famine of the mid-19th century saw the population of the island drop by one third through starvation and emigration. For more than a century after that the population of the island continued to fall. In 1841 the Republic of Ireland had a recorded population of 6,528,770, the great majority of whom worked in agriculture and lived in the open countryside. Famine and emigration had reduced this figure to 2,971,677 by the time the first census in the newly independent Free State was taken in 1926.
The population began growing again in the 1960s. By 1966 in excess of 50 percent of the recorded population was resident in aggregate urban areas. Over the last 50 years, Ireland's high birthrate has made it demographically one of the youngest populations in the EU. In 1841 the Republic of Ireland had a recorded population of 6,528,770, the great majority of whom worked in agriculture and lived in the open countryside. Famine and emigration had reduced this figure to 2,971,677 by the time the first census in the newly independent Free State was taken in 1926. By 1966 in excess of 50 per cent of the recorded population was resident in aggregate urban areas.
Irish Travellers [aka Gypsies] are a small indigenous minority group that has been part of Irish society for centuries. They have a value system, language, customs and traditions, which make them an identifiable group both to themselves and to others. Their distinctive lifestyle and culture, based on a nomadic tradition, sets them apart from the general population.
According to the 2006 census (Central Statistics Office, 2007a) there were just over 22,000 Travellers living in the Republic of Ireland. The Equal Status Act (Government of Ireland, 2002) defined the Traveller Community as follows: "Traveller community means the community of people who are commonly called Travellers and who are identified (both by themselves and others) as people with a shared history, culture and traditions, including historically, a nomadic way of life on the island of Ireland".
While the general population pyramid is increasingly typical of Westernised developed countries, with relatively large numbers of middle-aged people and increasing numbers of old people, the Traveller population is more reminiscent of a pyramid of a developing country, characterised by high fertility and premature mortality.
The All-Ireland Traveller Health Study (AITHS) was a large-scale study focusing on key aspects of Traveller health, social status and service utilisation. The most striking findings from the AITHS, published in September 2010, relate to the substantially higher levels of mortality and morbidity among Travellers compared with the general population. Life expectancy for male Travellers was found to be 15 years lower than for the general population and 11 years lower for females. The most recently published Census of Population (CSO, 2011) supports these findings and identified considerable disparity in the percentages of Irish travellers aged 65 (2.5%) compared with the general population (11%). While some of this difference is likely to be a consequence of a higher birth rate in the Travelling community, it is unlikely to account for all of the difference.
There was a conclusive drop in Irish fertility rates over the last two decades of the 20th century, from a total fertility rate of 3.55 in 1975 to 1.87 in 1995. This steep decline marks the end of Ireland's position as a demographic outlier in Europe, which has proved a compelling topic of investigation for demographers. It also marks the end of an ideology of largely rural values that placed stringent restrictions on women to secure a vision of society that saw the family as its cornerstone. Analyzed here is the collective impact of women's battles for personal autonomy that have brought about dramatic changes in public policies about contraception, abortion, & divorce, changes that have consistently lagged behind these dramatic shifts in fertility.
The population of Ireland has grown very rapidly in recent decades, and the 2011 Census confirmed a continuation of this trend since the last Census in 2006, though at a more moderate pace. The pace of growth in Ireland was particularly striking in the period from 2001 to 2007 and was much more rapid than in most other EU countries and when compared with average growth across the EU. Since 2007 annual growth rates have declined significantly and are now closer to average EU growth.
Ireland is now in a period of rapid population ageing which will continue for a number of decades. In Ireland, numbers in the older age groups are now growing rapidly in absolute terms and represent an increasing proportion of the total population. Very significant population ageing has taken place across Europe in recent decades. Ireland is at an earlier stage of a similar process and is now experiencing population ageing at a greater rate than most other EU countries. The percentage increase in population over the age of 65 will continue to grow in the coming years at a higher rate than the average for the EU.
As life expectancy continues to increase there is ongoing debate as to whether this will result in increasing morbidity and disability (termed: “expansion of morbidity”), whether it will mean that poor health is deferred until later in life with a significant proportion of lifetime health care costs occurring in the last year of life (termed: “compression of morbidity”), or whether a combination of effects is at play (termed: “dynamic equilibrium”).
Population health at the national level presents a clear picture of rapid decreases in mortality rates accompanied by a rapid rise in life expectancy. Life expectancy in Ireland increased by almost two and a half years from 2004 to 2015, by which time it was above the average for the EU. This improvement was largely due to lower mortality and better survival from conditions such as heart disease and cancer affecting older age groups. The contribution of modern health services to this achievement, while difficult to quantify, has been of unquestionable significance. In the area of health determinants, lifestyle factors such as smoking, drinking, levels of physical activity and obesity continue to be issues which have the potential to jeopardise many of the health gains achieved in recent years.
At the other end of the age spectrum, Ireland has experienced high rates of fertility by EU standards for many years and this continues to be the case. While numbers of births increased substantially from 2005 to 2009, since 2010 there has been a gradual decrease. This is due in part to a reduction in fertility rates but, more significantly, to the fact that the numbers of women in the child-bearing age groups have started to decline in recent years. This is a demographic feature which is likely to result in a steady reduction in numbers of births over the coming decade even if, as expected, Ireland continues to experience fertility rates which are higher than most other EU countries.
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) high fertility scenario (F1) assumes the total fertility rate (TFR) will remain at the level observed in 2010 of 2.1 for the lifetime of the projections up to 2046. The low fertility scenario (F2) assumes the TFR will decrease linearly from 2.1 to 1.8 by 2026, and then stabilise at this level until the end of the projection period in 2046.
Couples and individuals have the right to decide the number, spacing, and timing of their children; manage their reproductive health; and have the information and means to do so, free from discrimination, coercion, and violence. The constitution gives equal status to the mother and the unborn child. In 2013 the country enacted the Protection of Life during Pregnancy Act to permit abortion in limited circumstances such as real and substantive risk to the life of the pregnant women.
Some international and national organizations raised concerns about the lack of legal and medical clarity in implementing the act. Under the act procuring or assisting with an abortion in the country is a criminal offense with a maximum penalty of 14 years’ imprisonment, although the statute had not been used.
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