CASE STUDY F 3.3 Changing Migratory


Patterns in Ireland Troughout Irish history, migration trends have been greatly impacted on by the economic situation of the country. In times of economic growth, Ireland has experienced high levels of net immigration – along with high levels of net emigration during economic recession. Our migratory history dates back to the Great Famine (1845–9) in which over 1 million people died and 1 million people emigrated. Te Irish emigrated to countries such as the US, Canada, Britain and Australia, as these were English-speaking countries. Te majority of emigrants at this time came from the West of Ireland and other undeveloped rural areas. Tis emigration had a major impact on marriage and birth rates: they declined greatly, as the majority of emigrants were young females. Aſter the Famine, emigration continued. Tis, combined with older marriage ages and reduced birth rates, caused population decline.


Emigration: 1950s


Ireland experienced a deep economic recession throughout the 1950s, which led to roughly 408,000 people emigrating between 1951 and 1961. Te people who leſt during this period were economic migrants who leſt in search of work – particularly in Britain and the US, since both of those countries were experiencing economic booms at that time. By 1961, the Republic of Ireland’s population had fallen to 2.82 million from a high of 6.5 million in 1841. As it was mainly young people from rural Ireland who were leaving, these areas became severely depopulated and developed high dependency ratios.


: Fig. 3.6 Irish men and women emigrating from 1950s Ireland.


Immigration: 1960s and 1970s


Tis was a period of economic prosperity, as Ireland began to experience rapid economic development. As a result, Ireland experienced a reversal in migration patterns: emigration from Ireland decreased steadily, while immigration increased. Tis allowed Ireland to experience a slight net immigration for the first time in over 120 years as more job opportunities became available.


Over 58,000 people emigrated in 1958 alone: This was the worst year on record for emigration of Irish people.


During this time, the then Taoiseach – Sean Lemass – launched several programmes for economic expansion, as foreign direct investment and free trade were promoted through attractive grants, newly built industrial estates and financial incentives, e.g. tax-free exports. As a result of this, manufacturing jobs were created through large MNCs who were attracted to Ireland. Outward migration decreased as there were large employment increases throughout the country with over 300 foreign companies operating in Ireland by 1966.


74 ELECTIVE 5 PATTERNS AND PROCESSES IN THE HUMAN ENVIRONMENT


Note!


This question appears very frequently on both the Higher and Ordinary Level papers. More recent questions on the topic have asked students to begin discussing migratory patterns in Ireland from 1950 onwards.


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