Ireland (0)

Ireland
Position
Ireland is the third largest island in Europe , and the twentieth largest island in the world. It lies to the northwest of Continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands . To the east of Ireland, separated by the Irish Sea, is the island of Great Britain . Politically, the Republic of Ireland (also known simply as Ireland) covers five sixths of the island, with Northern Ireland, part of the United Kingdom, covering the remainder in the northeast.
Climate
Overall , Ireland has a mild , but changeable, Oceanic climate with few extremes. The warmest recorded air temperature was 33.3 °C at Kilkenny Castle, County Kilkenny on 26 June 1887, where as the lowest recorded temperature was -19.1 °C at Markree Castle, County Sligo on 16 January 1881. Inland areas are warmer in summer , and colder in winter - there are usually around 40 days of below freezing temperatures (0 °C) at inland weather stations, but only 10 days at coastal stations. Ireland is sometimes affected by heat waves, most recently 1995, 2003, 2006.
Nature
Ireland has fewer animal and plant species than either Britain or mainland Europe because it became an island shortly after the end of the last Ice Age, about 8,000 years ago. Many different habitat types are found in Ireland, including farmland, open woodland, temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, conifer plantations, peat bogs, and various coastal habitats . Forest covers about 10% of the country . Only 26 land mammal species are native to Ireland, because it was isolated from Europe by rising sea levels after the Ice Age. Some species, such as the red fox, hedgehog, and badger are very common, whereas others , like the Irish hare , red deer and pine marten are less so. Aquatic wild -life - such as species of turtle , shark , whale , dolphin, and others - are common off the coast. About 400 species of birds have been recorded in Ireland. Many of these are migratory, including the swallow . Most of Ireland's bird species come from Iceland, Greenland , Africa among other territories. There are no snakes in Ireland and only one reptile (the common lizard) is native to the country. Extinct species include the great Irish elk, the wolf , the great auk, and others. Some previously extinct birds - such as the golden eagle - have recently been reintroduced after decades of extirpation.
History ****
A long cold climatic spell prevailed until about 9,000 years ago, and most of Ireland was covered with ice. This era was known as the Ice Age.
Population
The populaion of Republic of Ireland is about three and a half million people and two offical languages – English , and Gaelic, which is spoken by about half a million people.
Economy ****
Culture
For an island of relatively small population, Ireland has made a disproportionately large contribution to world literature in all its branches, mainly in English . Poetry in Irish represents the oldest vernacular poetry in Europe with the earliest examples dating from the 6th century ; Jonathan Swift , still often called the foremost satirist in the English language , was wildly popular in his day and remains so in modern times amongst both children and adults. The Irish tradition of folk music and dance is also widely known. In the middle years of the 20th century, as Irish society was attempting to modernise, traditional music tended to fall out of favour, especially in urban areas. During the 1960s , and inspired by the American folk music movement , there was a revival of interest in the Irish tradition. This revival was led by such groups as The Dubliners, The Chieftains, the Clancy Brothers, Sweeney's Men, and individuals like Seán Ó Riada and Christy Moore. Irish and Scottish traditional music share some similar characteristics . The Republic of Ireland has done well in the Eurovision Song Contest, being the most successful country in the competition , with seven wins.
In the 20th century, Irish architecture followed the international trend towards modern, sleek and often radical building styles, particularly after independence in the first half of the century. New building materials and old were utilised in new ways to maximise style, space , light and energy efficiency.