
Wheat and barley were the principal crops. The fields were farmed for several centuries between 3500 BC and 3000 BC. An extensive field system, arguably the oldest in the world, consisted of small divisions separated by dry-stone walls. Field systems were developed in different parts of Ireland, including at the Céide Fields, that has been preserved beneath a blanket of peat in present-day Tyrawley. The earliest evidence for farming in Ireland or Great Britain is from Ferriter's Cove, County Kerry, where a flint knife, cattle bones and a sheep's tooth were carbon-dated to c. 4350 BC. Some time before 4000 BC, Neolithic settlers introduced cereal cultivars, domesticated animals such as cattle and sheep, built large timber buildings, and stone monuments. īy about 8000 BC, more sustained occupation of the island has been shown, with evidence for Mesolithic communities around the island. Since 2021, the earliest evidence of human activity in Ireland is dated to 33,000 years ago. Until recently, the earliest evidence of human activity in Ireland was dated at 12,500 years ago, demonstrated by a butchered bear bone found in a cave in County Clare. Later, around 6100 BC, Great Britain became separated from continental Europe. By 14,000 BC this ice bridge existed only between Northern Ireland and Scotland and by 12,000 BC Ireland was completely separated from Great Britain. The relative sea level was less than 50m lower resulting in an ice bridge (but not a land bridge) forming between Ireland and Great Britain. The island's culture shares many features with that of Great Britain, including the English language, and sports such as association football, rugby, horse racing, golf, and boxing.ĭuring the last glacial period, and until about 16,000 BC, much of Ireland was periodically covered in ice. Alongside mainstream Western culture, a strong indigenous culture exists, as expressed through Gaelic games, Irish music, Irish language, and Irish dance. Irish culture has had a significant influence on other cultures, especially in the field of literature. In 2020, the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland included, left what was by then the European Union (EU). In 1973, the Republic of Ireland joined the European Economic Community while the United Kingdom, and Northern Ireland as part of it, did the same. This subsided following the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. Northern Ireland saw much civil unrest from the late 1960s until the 1990s.
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A war of independence in the early 20th century was followed by the partition of the island, leading to the creation of the Irish Free State, which became increasingly sovereign over the following decades, and Northern Ireland, which remained a part of the United Kingdom. With the Acts of Union in 1801, Ireland became a part of the United Kingdom. In the 1690s, a system of Protestant English rule was designed to materially disadvantage the Catholic majority and Protestant dissenters, and was extended during the 18th century. However, English rule did not extend over the whole island until the 16th–17th century Tudor conquest, which led to colonisation by settlers from Britain. Following the 12th century Anglo-Norman invasion, England claimed sovereignty. The island was Christianised from the 5th century onwards.

Gaelic Ireland had emerged by the 1st century AD. The Irish climate is influenced by the Atlantic Ocean and thus very moderate, and winters are milder than expected for such a northerly area, although summers are cooler than those in continental Europe.


Today, woodland makes up about 10% of the island, compared with a European average of over 33%, with most of it being non-native conifer plantations. Much of Ireland was woodland until the end of the Middle Ages. Its lush vegetation is a product of its mild but changeable climate which is free of extremes in temperature. The geography of Ireland comprises relatively low-lying mountains surrounding a central plain, with several navigable rivers extending inland. As of 2022, the population of the entire island is just over 7 million, with 5.1 million living in the Republic of Ireland and 1.9 million in Northern Ireland, ranking it the second-most populous island in Europe after Great Britain.

Geopolitically, Ireland is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially named Ireland), an independent state covering five-sixths of the island, and Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom. Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles, the third-largest in Europe, and the twentieth-largest in the world. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland ( / ˈ aɪər l ə n d/ ( listen) YRE-lənd Irish: Éire ( listen) Ulster-Scots: Airlann ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe.
