People who still think Ireland is part of the UK

whisky_galore · 26-03-2021 6:56am

Nqp15hhu wrote: »

People in Great Britain rarely think of Ireland.

We brood and obsess about GB only all the bloody time, change the record. "The Brits" is our Godwins law.

ittakestwo · 26-03-2021 6:58am

A lot of people now within the UK refer to themselves as English, Scottish, Welsh etc. They see that as thier nation and so don't really care to much about what is part of the UK. A more extreme but similar example would be like saying Ireland is part of the EU. Is everyone here experts on the EU's borders? No because we see ourselves as Irish so we are not overly concerned about the EU.

whisky_galore · 26-03-2021 6:59am

wandererz wrote: »

Part of the problem lies in the fact that in many countries people were and probably still are taught that the UK is composed of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland.

I've heard of hand me downs but +100 year old school text books, really?

26-03-2021 9:26am

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Whatever about yanks, someone from Britain not knowing where their border begins and ends is appalling. And in fact is one of the reasons why Brexit is such a mess. They didn’t discuss the border (the only land border with the EU) during the referendum if I recall.

We are far off their consciousness radar. Particularly in the south of the UK which is densely populated and they have half an eye on the continent. It is a bit like asking someone from Dublin where Rockall is located and what is the legal jurisdiction of the place. They might have heard about it in a song and know it exists, but most people without links to the place just don't have a reason to think all that much about it.

26-03-2021 9:30am

Oranage2 wrote: »

I live abroad and I'm called British or English nearly every day, in the beginning I'd tell them Ireland is independent but now I don't care as much and just say yes,"fancy a cup of tae governor"

Am in the same boat. The misunderstandings would have irritated me when I was younger and I would have been at pains to point out the differences between Irish and British. Eventually you just can't be @rsed anymore, especially when you realise people don't care that much. We drink different tea and have fried breakfasts that are different but basically the same. Big deal. We are like the Koreans to their Japanese.

LMC7 · 26-03-2021 9:33am

I've worked with English people...One rang me and asked what time is it as they thought Ireland might be in a different time zone to them??

Another said he had never heard of John Hume when he died.

To say they know nothing about us is not wrong.
When they politely ask where you are from and you say galway/cork/limerick etc they usually haven't heard of it.

We learn nothing but the British through history in school whereas we never get a mention in their history books.

Nqp15hhu · 26-03-2021 1:02pm

ittakestwo wrote: »

A lot of people now within the UK refer to themselves as English, Scottish, Welsh etc. They see that as thier nation and so don't really care to much about what is part of the UK. A more extreme but similar example would be like saying Ireland is part of the EU. Is everyone here experts on the EU's borders? No because we see ourselves as Irish so we are not overly concerned about the EU.

It’s not that cut and dry, people still have allegiance to the U.K. It’s more that they just think of and travel around Great Britain and ignore the rest of it.

Nqp15hhu · 26-03-2021 1:04pm

LMC7 wrote: »

I've worked with English people...One rang me and asked what time is it as they thought Ireland might be in a different time zone to them??

Another said he had never heard of John Hume when he died.

To say they know nothing about us is not wrong.
When they politely ask where you are from and you say galway/cork/limerick etc they usually haven't heard of it.

We learn nothing but the British through history in school whereas we never get a mention in their history books.

I was asked this too.. though it does kinda make sense... in the summer it’s not dark here until 90+ mins after London.

Duffy the Vampire Slayer · 26-03-2021 1:54pm

Deleted User wrote: »

Am in the same boat. The misunderstandings would have irritated me when I was younger and I would have been at pains to point out the differences between Irish and British. Eventually you just can't be @rsed anymore, especially when you realise people don't care that much. We drink different tea and have fried breakfasts that are different but basically the same. Big deal. We are like the Koreans to their Japanese.

Koreans and Japanese are far more different from each other than Irish and British people.

Idle Passerby · 26-03-2021 3:52pm

In South America when I told people I was from Ireland they heard Holland. Some other European country, close enough as far as they were concerned.

I was at a hen party in Belfast once with English attendees. One of them wanted to wear comedy tri-colour sunglasses and couldn't understand why we advised against it.

26-03-2021 3:56pm

Nqp15hhu wrote: »

I was asked this too.. though it does kinda make sense... in the summer it’s not dark here until 90+ mins after London.

90? At most 30-35. The west of Ireland is probably later than you. Longitude matters more than latitude in this case.

Fun fact I learned today. Bremen in Germany is pretty much the exact same latitude as Dublin and it’s longitude is almost exactly as far west from the 15° meridian as we are from Greenwich. So their subsets and sunrises are almost exact the same as Dublin. To a minute. Cork in comparison is a few minutes off.

26-03-2021 3:59pm

Idle Passerby wrote: »

In South America when I told people I was from Ireland they heard Holland. Some other European country, close enough as far as they were concerned.

I was at a hen party in Belfast once with English attendees. One of them wanted to wear comedy tri-colour sunglasses and couldn't understand why we advised against it.

Why would Holland be better known? Islands are fairly easy to memorise. My only time in Central America I got a beer for being Irish - in Mexico.

I mean if you were doing a quiz about American states and somebody was asked about Wisconsin and couldn’t find it you wouldn’t think he was that thick, but if asked about Hawaii and couldn’t find it you would start to think it.

Duffy the Vampire Slayer · 26-03-2021 4:18pm

Idle Passerby wrote: »

In South America when I told people I was from Ireland they heard Holland. Some other European country, close enough as far as they were concerned.

I was at a hen party in Belfast once with English attendees. One of them wanted to wear comedy tri-colour sunglasses and couldn't understand why we advised against it.

Same. They sound alike, and South Americans often assume all the small European nations are English speaking.

Deleted User wrote: »

Why would Holland be better known? Islands are fairly easy to memorise. My only time in Central America I got a beer for being Irish - in Mexico.

I mean if you were doing a quiz about American states and somebody was asked about Wisconsin and couldn’t find it you wouldn’t think he was that thick, but if asked about Hawaii and couldn’t find it you would start to think it.

It's bigger and is better at soccer. And most people don't know Ireland is an island. How many Irish people know the geography of Latin American nations? Mexico isn't in Central America for instance.

Idle Passerby · 26-03-2021 4:25pm

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Why would Holland be better known? Islands are fairly easy to memorise. My only time in Central America I got a beer for being Irish - in Mexico.

I mean if you were doing a quiz about American states and somebody was asked about Wisconsin and couldn’t find it you wouldn’t think he was that thick, but if asked about Hawaii and couldn’t find it you would start to think it.

I couldn't tell you why they'd heard of Holland but not Ireland, but no matter how many times I corrected them, they still thought that's what I was saying. I did get greeted with Cead míle fáilte on the street by a native in Equador once though, so its the same as any place, some people have good knowledge of other countries, some haven't a clue.

The J Stands for Jay · 26-03-2021 4:49pm

joe40 wrote: »

That is surprising, I have yet to meet an Irish person that thought that.

It probably doesn't come up in conversation as much for non-Donegal people. There are people who genuinely don't know it, and there's a much larger group who pretend not to know for the 'bantz'.

The J Stands for Jay · 26-03-2021 4:52pm

Nqp15hhu wrote: »

Also I have noticed that people in the Republic don't use the proper meaning of the term UK, they use 'UK' to refer to the rest of the country excluding Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland is part of the UK, the correct term is Great Britain.

True, but it's actually much more common for British people to refer to Britain as the UK, to the exclusion of NI. TBH, I don't understand why they don't properly abbreviate their country to UKoGB&NI.

The J Stands for Jay · 26-03-2021 4:56pm

LMC7 wrote: »

I've worked with English people...One rang me and asked what time is it as they thought Ireland might be in a different time zone to them??

Maybe they'd seen the news about the EU wanting to end daylight savings?

whisky_galore · 26-03-2021 5:07pm

Idle Passerby wrote: »

In South America when I told people I was from Ireland they heard Holland. Some other European country, close enough as far as they were concerned.

I was at a hen party in Belfast once with English attendees. One of them wanted to wear comedy tri-colour sunglasses and couldn't understand why we advised against it.

Where you from?

Ireland.

Iceland?

Hamsterchops · 26-03-2021 5:29pm

air assault wrote: »

Before anyone says part of Ireland is still part of the UK, I'm aware of that.

I remember watching a video on YouTube where there's an Irish guy from the IDA or some organization like that discussing trade on an American tv show. One of the panelists was totally confused why Ireland used the Euro and Scotland uses the pound. He seemed to be oblivious that we are an independent country.

It seems to crop up now and again. It really annoys me and shows people ignorance. What's everyone's thoughts.....

Here's the video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpasQJJF-h0

The reason is simple, ignorance.

Large swathes of the population in England know and see Irish people as part of the family, like the Scots, the Welsh or the Cornish people, they see Ireland on the map as being part of this group of islands, so they mistakenly think we're also part of the UK.

We on the other hand look at it through a different lens, as we've spent the last 100 years trying to distance ourselves from the rest of these islands, not withstanding the fact that we also want Northern Ireland to leave the UK.

Geography says England, Scotland, Wales, NI & Ireland are all part of this little group of islands, politics says otherwise . . .

ShatterAlan · 26-03-2021 5:39pm

Gregor Samsa wrote: »

Ask most people in Ireland what the constitutional situation of Puerto Rico is, and they're not going to have a clue. Does the average person know that France's biggest land border is with Brazil? And it also has a border with Canada? Some people might know that Principality of Andorra is an independent country, but do they know that the Princes that are the heads of state are the President of France and the Bishop of Urgell, Spain?

Not everyone in the world should be expected to know the ins and outs of a small nation with a complicated history.

I work for an American company. I've come across this countless times, people referring to us as the UK.

But by the same token, the company's HQ is just outside Minneapolis. We'd often refer to it as the "Minneapolis office". But this is incorrect, and doesn't make any sense to them. The office isn't in Minneapolis, it's in a different city, and they would never refer to it as such. It would be like someone referring to an office in Bray as "the Dublin office". As you get further from a place, the resolution decreases and the details become less apparent.

I can understand a guy down the pub not knowing the fundamentals of the territorial dispute regarding Western Sahara but if you're a panelist on a fcuking show about trade and you don't know the currency of an OECD country or even its international boundaries then you shouldn't be on the damn panel. Maybe better off on some bullcrap Discovery Channel show about extreme hoarding.

Hotblack Desiato · 26-03-2021 8:09pm

DuffleBag wrote: »

The crux of this is the Irish guy should've nipped it in the bud early and instead of "why would we use the pound" he should've killed it and say Ireland isn't part of the UK.

Because it wasn't immediately clear that he was referring to the pound sterling not the Irish pound.

Amirani wrote: »

Sport and commerce we just don't - we haven't done anything particularly special in either.

Ryanair, Europe's biggest airline.

Most aircraft in the world which are leased are leased from a company based here.

Most of Alitalia's fleet has EI- registrations, because in Italy the registration goes with the country of the aircraft owner not the aircraft operator.

Hundreds of EI- planes globally which have never set a wheel on Irish tarmac.

The Economist wrote:

In Brussels, Ireland’s commissioner Philip Hogan is in charge of trade, one of the few briefs where the European Commission, rather than eu governments, is supreme.

Oh well. Just a few weeks before Golfgate!

Nor is Ireland shy about using its cultural clout. Alongside more subtle overtures, the push for the Security Council seat involved free tickets to Riverdance and a u2 gig. The best that Canada could muster was Celine Dion.

:pac::pac::pac:

Deleted User wrote: »

We are far off their consciousness radar. Particularly in the south of the UK which is densely populated and they have half an eye on the continent. It is a bit like asking someone from Dublin where Rockall is located and what is the legal jurisdiction of the place. They might have heard about it in a song and know it exists, but most people without links to the place just don't have a reason to think all that much about it.

Jaysus, we're being compared to a tiny uninhabited rock now :rolleyes:

Nqp15hhu · 26-03-2021 8:47pm

Deleted User wrote: »

90? At most 30-35. The west of Ireland is probably later than you. Longitude matters more than latitude in this case.

Fun fact I learned today. Bremen in Germany is pretty much the exact same latitude as Dublin and it’s longitude is almost exactly as far west from the 15° meridian as we are from Greenwich. So their subsets and sunrises are almost exact the same as Dublin. To a minute. Cork in comparison is a few minutes off.

Not true at all. I lived in East Anglia for four years, it was dark by 10pm there in the summer at the absolute latest. Meanwhile here the sun is still up at that time.

Nqp15hhu · 26-03-2021 8:48pm

McGaggs wrote: »

True, but it's actually much more common for British people to refer to Britain as the UK, to the exclusion of NI. TBH, I don't understand why they don't properly abbreviate their country to UKoGB&NI.

Nope, UK stands for the whole thing so there is no issue with that. British politicians use Britain and UK interchangeably.

Junkyard Tom · 26-03-2021 9:58pm

We don't get nearly enough credit for inventing the Breakfast Pizza.

Cake Man · 26-03-2021 11:32pm

I live abroad (Australia) and the majority here wouldn’t have a clue that Ireland is seperate to the UK. And that’s with around 20-25% of Australians having some Irish ancestry. There was a Scottish fella I worked with here a few years ago, one of the smartest and technically competent fellas I ever worked with and he’d often say to me “so, are you heading back to the UK for a visit anytime soon?”

I was only on a call this morning with some lads from Puerto Rico and he asked a question “do you guys in the UK.....” referring to me in Australia. So in their minds, any country even in the British commonwealth classifies as UK so if they struggle to get that right there’s little hope they’d distinguish Ireland being seperate to the UK!

To be fair I can see where the confusion may be. I was telling a lad in work a while ago about how the north was part of the UK and he just couldn’t wrap his head around how that was the case....but also being on the island of Ireland. I then confused him further saying GB was just England, Scotland and Wales but UK was the same but also included NI....but at the same time the “British Isles” (a non political term) encompasses all of those plus ROI. For the lols I then mentioned how we use euros but the rest use sterling....but how NI sterling is slightly different to English sterling and that NI sterling notes wouldn’t be taken on the English mainland! Then mentioned how the Irish rugby team encompasses the whole island but the soccer teams are seperate....but GB compete as one at the Olympics! You have to admit it’s all a tad confusing for anyone looking in from the outside!

Five Eighth · 26-03-2021 11:39pm

Cake Man wrote: »

I live abroad (Australia) and the majority here wouldn’t have a clue that Ireland is seperate to the UK. And that’s with around 20-25% of Australians having some Irish ancestry. There was a Scottish fella I worked with here a few years ago, one of the smartest and technically competent fellas I ever worked with and he’d often say to me “so, are you heading back to the UK for a visit anytime soon?”

I was only on a call this morning with some lads from Puerto Rico and he asked a question “do you guys in the UK.....” referring to me in Australia. So in their minds, any country even in the British commonwealth classifies as UK so if they struggle to get that right there’s little hope they’d distinguish Ireland being seperate to the UK!

To be fair I can see where the confusion may be. I was telling a lad in work a while ago about how the north was part of the UK and he just couldn’t wrap his head around how that was the case....but also being on the island of Ireland. I then confused him further saying GB was just England, Scotland and Wales but UK was the same but also included NI....but at the same time the “British Isles” (a non political term) encompasses all of those plus ROI. For the lols I then mentioned how we use euros but the rest use sterling....but how NI sterling is slightly different to English sterling and that NI sterling notes wouldn’t be taken on the English mainland! Then mentioned how the Irish rugby team encompasses the whole island but the soccer teams are seperate....but GB compete as one at the Olympics! You have to admit it’s all a tad confusing for anyone looking in from the outside!

Good man. A great conversation over a few pints. Don't forget to add that we don't refer to Britain as the 'mainland'. We have our own mainland.

ittakestwo · 27-03-2021 2:31am

Britain makes up over 97% of the population of the UK. While NI makes up the rest of the UK. Also a person from all of the UK is a British citizen. So Britain and the UK are often used interchangeably although they are obviously different things. It is similar with Holland and the Netherlands. Holland is an area within the Netherlands but not equal to the Netherlands.

What is interesting about the UK it's name is made up of a geographical area and a political area. GB being a geographical area and NI being a political area.

SmartinMartin · 27-03-2021 2:54am

Cake Man wrote: »

I live abroad (Australia) and the majority here wouldn’t have a clue that Ireland is seperate to the UK. And that’s with around 20-25% of Australians having some Irish ancestry. There was a Scottish fella I worked with here a few years ago, one of the smartest and technically competent fellas I ever worked with and he’d often say to me “so, are you heading back to the UK for a visit anytime soon?”

I was only on a call this morning with some lads from Puerto Rico and he asked a question “do you guys in the UK.....” referring to me in Australia. So in their minds, any country even in the British commonwealth classifies as UK so if they struggle to get that right there’s little hope they’d distinguish Ireland being seperate to the UK!

To be fair I can see where the confusion may be. I was telling a lad in work a while ago about how the north was part of the UK and he just couldn’t wrap his head around how that was the case....but also being on the island of Ireland. I then confused him further saying GB was just England, Scotland and Wales but UK was the same but also included NI....but at the same time the “British Isles” (a non political term) encompasses all of those plus ROI. For the lols I then mentioned how we use euros but the rest use sterling....but how NI sterling is slightly different to English sterling and that NI sterling notes wouldn’t be taken on the English mainland! Then mentioned how the Irish rugby team encompasses the whole island but the soccer teams are seperate....but GB compete as one at the Olympics! You have to admit it’s all a tad confusing for anyone looking in from the outside!

I'm delighted you're enjoying New Zealand.

The J Stands for Jay · 27-03-2021 3:14am

Nqp15hhu wrote: »

British politicians use Britain and UK interchangeably.

Yes, they are often using the wrong term for the geographical area they are trying to refer to.

Tyrone212 · 27-03-2021 3:31am

Cake Man wrote: »

I live abroad (Australia) and the majority here wouldn’t have a clue that Ireland is seperate to the UK. And that’s with around 20-25% of Australians having some Irish ancestry. There was a Scottish fella I worked with here a few years ago, one of the smartest and technically competent fellas I ever worked with and he’d often say to me “so, are you heading back to the UK for a visit anytime soon?”

I was only on a call this morning with some lads from Puerto Rico and he asked a question “do you guys in the UK.....” referring to me in Australia. So in their minds, any country even in the British commonwealth classifies as UK so if they struggle to get that right there’s little hope they’d distinguish Ireland being seperate to the UK!

To be fair I can see where the confusion may be. I was telling a lad in work a while ago about how the north was part of the UK and he just couldn’t wrap his head around how that was the case....but also being on the island of Ireland. I then confused him further saying GB was just England, Scotland and Wales but UK was the same but also included NI....but at the same time the “British Isles” (a non political term) encompasses all of those plus ROI. For the lols I then mentioned how we use euros but the rest use sterling....but how NI sterling is slightly different to English sterling and that NI sterling notes wouldn’t be taken on the English mainland! Then mentioned how the Irish rugby team encompasses the whole island but the soccer teams are seperate....but GB compete as one at the Olympics! You have to admit it’s all a tad confusing for anyone looking in from the outside!

Neither the Irish nor the British government refer to these islands as the British Isles. I personally prefer the Irish Isles.

Professor of Geopolitics at NUI Maynooth Gerry Kearns explained that it is very difficult to take the politics out of it completely.

“Whenever someone refers to all those islands off the coast of Europe as the British Isles,” “they are engaged in some unconscious anglo-centrism.”

“However, as far back as the Act of Union in 1800, which brought Ireland into the United Kingdom, even then it was referred to as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland”.

More than two hundred years after Mr Dee called them the British Isles, the government of the day still decided to include “and Ireland”.

Quite right too. Irish people who call it the British Isles need a good kick up the hole.

ittakestwo · 27-03-2021 5:03am

The geographical name of the island archipelago is the British isles whether you like it or not. Dublin and London when corresponding refer to them as "These islands" probably due to the fact Dublin in the past would have an issue with them referred to the British Isles. Anyway the name Britain originates from the Romans. Seems pety that Irish have a complex with this. Do Brits have a problem with the name of the Irish sea that seperates Ireland to Britain.

Tyrone212 · 27-03-2021 7:33am

ittakestwo wrote: »

The geographical name of the island archipelago is the British isles whether you like it or not. Dublin and London when corresponding refer to them as "These islands" probably due to the fact Dublin in the past would have an issue with them referred to the British Isles. Anyway the name Britain originates from the Romans. Seems pety that Irish have a complex with this. Do Brits have a problem with the name of the Irish sea that seperates Ireland to Britain.

You're wrong. The Romans called Ireland Hibernia. The first use of the term “British Isles”, recorded by the Oxford English Dictionary, was in 1577.
John Dee, a mathematician used the term in a possessive sense. He was close to the Queen. No doubt just an attempt to try to claim ownership over Ireland.

The term "The British Isles" is, quite simply, an anachronistic political designation, and has no basis in geography. Ireland is, quite simply, not a British island. It used to be one in a political sense, but the fact that a piece of it is still in the UK is no real argument for calling the whole place British. British islands include Skye, the Orkneys, Anglesea, etc. They don't include Ireland.

27-03-2021 11:46am

Nqp15hhu wrote: »

Not true at all. I lived in East Anglia for four years, it was dark by 10pm there in the summer at the absolute latest. Meanwhile here the sun is still up at that time.

Not an hour and a half. There’s an hour difference every 15° longitude and you are about 7.3w of Greenwich. (That’s Derry the city). So 30 minutes later by the clock. The latitude adds a bit more but not much.

Nqp15hhu · 27-03-2021 11:50am

Eugh...sunset times 21st June

Sunset Dover: 9:13pm

Sunset Derry: 10:13pm

Sunset Norwich: 9:22pm.

End of civil twilight dover: 10:00pm

End of Civil Twilight Derry; 11:08pm

So that’s at least an hours difference as I just said. You would think you would know not to argue with somebody who has lived in both regions. East Anglia and the SE of England have appallingly early sunset times in comparison to Northern Ireland, especially in the winter.

27-03-2021 11:52am

ittakestwo wrote: »

The geographical name of the island archipelago is the British isles whether you like it or not. Dublin and London when corresponding refer to them as "These islands" probably due to the fact Dublin in the past would have an issue with them referred to the British Isles. Anyway the name Britain originates from the Romans. Seems pety that Irish have a complex with this. Do Brits have a problem with the name of the Irish sea that seperates Ireland to Britain.

They probably named it. It’s the sea to Ireland from their perspective. We would have called it the English sea. Presumably the French named the English Channel.

Anyway I personally don’t care about the British Isles as a geographical term but it does confuse things politically.

27-03-2021 12:12pm

Nqp15hhu wrote: »

Eugh...sunset times 21st June

Sunset Dover: 9:13pm

Sunset Derry: 10:13pm

Sunset Norwich: 9:22pm.

End of civil twilight dover: 10:00pm

End of Civil Twilight Derry; 11:08pm

So that’s at least an hours difference as I just said. You would think you would know not to argue with somebody who has lived in both regions. East Anglia and the SE of England have appallingly early sunset times in comparison to Northern Ireland, especially in the winter.

Your original claim was 90 minutes later than London. The figures I see are 21: 21 and 22:12. A good deal less than 90 minutes.

I was surprised at the 15 minute difference between Dublin and Derry I admit. Must go north for summer sometime. Not Northern Ireland of course, always wanted to visit RathMullen.

Nqp15hhu · 27-03-2021 12:13pm

Just to show the substantial difference:

9:40pm here 10 days before the longest day. At least 20 minutes AFTER sunset in East Anglia and the SE of England.

Pretty big difference is you ask me!!

Nqp15hhu · 27-03-2021 12:18pm

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Your original claim was 90 minutes later than London. The figures I see are 21: 21 and 22:12. A good deal less than 90 minutes.

I was surprised at the 15 minute difference between Dublin and Derry I admit. Must go north for summer sometime. Not Northern Ireland of course, always wanted to visit RathMullen.

Yes but our civil twilight lasts a lot longer not to mention we have nautical twilight all night.

It actually gets dark at night down there in summer.

27-03-2021 12:29pm

Nqp15hhu wrote: »

Yes but our civil twilight lasts a lot longer not to mention we have nautical twilight all night.

It actually gets dark at night down there in summer.

Yeh that's true. Good point. I agree that London's summer sunset sucks.

Baggly · 27-03-2021 4:29pm

Mod

This thread probably needs to get back on topic lest it face closure.

McGinniesta · 27-03-2021 6:17pm

air assault wrote: »

Before anyone says part of Ireland is still part of the UK, I'm aware of that.

I remember watching a video on YouTube where there's an Irish guy from the IDA or some organization like that discussing trade on an American tv show. One of the panelists was totally confused why Ireland used the Euro and Scotland uses the pound. He seemed to be oblivious that we are an independent country.

It seems to crop up now and again. It really annoys me and shows people ignorance. What's everyone's thoughts.....

Here's the video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpasQJJF-h0

Oddly, my parents think that northern ireland isn't part of the uk.

Hamsterchops · 28-03-2021 7:19pm

Tyrone212 wrote: »

You're wrong. The Romans called Ireland Hibernia. The first use of the term “British Isles”, recorded by the Oxford English Dictionary, was in 1577.
John Dee, a mathematician used the term in a possessive sense. He was close to the Queen. No doubt just an attempt to try to claim ownership over Ireland.

The term "The British Isles" is, quite simply, an anachronistic political designation, and has no basis in geography. Ireland is, quite simply, not a British island. It used to be one in a political sense, but the fact that a piece of it is still in the UK is no real argument for calling the whole place British. British islands include Skye, the Orkneys, Anglesea, etc. They don't include Ireland.

The British isles is derived from the fact that Great Britain is at the heart of these islands (geographically speaking), and as such we are a satellite of the main island of Great Britain.

Great in this case meaning Big!

Great Britain is the largest island in Europe and has been called by several variations on a theme stretching back to Roman times. When the Romans left Brittany in Northern France they quickly arrived on an island that was bigger than Brittany, hence big Brittany, Great Britain, Grande Britanique etc etc.

The term is only used in geographical circles. These islands seems to be the main term these days, although flawed as it is also used by several other island groupings on the globe, hence it's not unique to this archipelago.

The UK and Ireland is the political name for these islands. The UK comprising of England, Scotland, Northern Ireland & Wales, with Ireland being Ireland (previously Hibernia)

Duckworth_Luas · 28-03-2021 8:29pm

Hamsterchops wrote: »

The term is only used in geographical circles.:)

I'm a geographer and it is not used in any of our circles, Lord Sutch. In fact the term is used as the primary example of how nomenclature is toxic in geography.

Hamsterchops · 28-03-2021 8:42pm

Duckworth_Luas wrote: »

I'm a geographer and it is not used in any of our circles, Lord Sutch. In fact the term is used as the primary example of how nomenclature is toxic in geography.

I hear it used in the BBC weather forecasts all the time, I hear it used in radio programmes too, even on RTE from time to time. I think it was Tony Robinson of Black Addar fame who told me about the Roman/Brittany connection, and not the other fella.

Admittedly it's not used outside of the weather, but that's mostly based in geography isn't it.

Nqp15hhu · 28-03-2021 8:45pm

It’s used here and in North America too. I have only heard people from the south having gripes over it

ittakestwo · 28-03-2021 8:47pm

Tyrone212 wrote: »

You're wrong. The Romans called Ireland Hibernia. The first use of the term “British Isles”, recorded by the Oxford English Dictionary, was in 1577.
John Dee, a mathematician used the term in a possessive sense. He was close to the Queen. No doubt just an attempt to try to claim ownership over Ireland.

The term "The British Isles" is, quite simply, an anachronistic political designation, and has no basis in geography. Ireland is, quite simply, not a British island. It used to be one in a political sense, but the fact that a piece of it is still in the UK is no real argument for calling the whole place British. British islands include Skye, the Orkneys, Anglesea, etc. They don't include Ireland.

The geographical name of the archipelago is the British isles.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Isles

Duckworth_Luas · 28-03-2021 8:52pm

ittakestwo wrote: »

The geographical name of the archipelago is the British isles.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Isles

A non-political archipelago that includes the Orkney Islands and the Channel Island. Fcuk off!

buried · 28-03-2021 9:02pm

Ahh the 'Gret Britannia' of the Roman days. Seeing how the only indigenous people of what was once 'Britannia' left on that Island now reside in Wales after the Saxons from Germany invaded the place after the Romans legged it, and pushed all the real people of Brittania over into Wales. Then the French Normans came over and literally burned the entire north of England to a crisp and everything in it, the same French lineage that coined the term 'Great Britain' in order to gain control over the America's. Great job all round.

ittakestwo · 28-03-2021 9:20pm

Duckworth_Luas wrote: »

A non-political archipelago that includes the Orkney Islands and the Channel Island. Fcuk off!

An archipelago is a geographical term. Like a peninsula or a continent. People are getting confused between a geographical area and a political area. Political areas are jurisdictions that occupy an area. Some times a political area can be equal to the geographical area like Iceland is the geographical name of the Island and the politcal sovereign country that occupies the island. Spain and Portugal are two political areas that occupy the geographical area that is the iberian peninsula like the Republic of Ireland and the UK are the two political areas that occupy the British Isles archipelago.

Btw if the British Isles is not the geographical name for the archipelago what is? I have never herd of it being called anything else in a geographical context.

Five Eighth · 28-03-2021 9:47pm

British and Irish Isles - just like the British and Irish Lions!

People who still think Ireland is part of the UK

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