Madam, - As the Irish take a media break from the Lisbon Treaty, this is a good time to look at the other side of Irish life in Europe.
The influence of Irish culture, Irish music and dancing and Irish sport on the rest of Europe has been quite phenomenal.Here are some eye-opening facts.
Emigration from Ireland is now at its highest level since 1989. More Irish people now emigrate to Continental Europe (39 per cent of emigrants), than to the UK (24 per cent) and the US (7 per cent) combined. A quarter-of-a-million Irish people now live in continental Europe. Almost 60 per cent of all foreign trips by Irish people last year were to the Continent.
According to the Central Statistics Office, "the number of overseas visits by Irish residents on continental European routes totalled 4,583,000 in 2007, an increase of 19 per cent on 2006."
Irish people in Europe over the past 30 years have settled and introduced Irish music, dancing, sport, literature and lifestyles to many of our European neighbours. Irish people living in Europe are now central to many cultural societies, as well as keeping alive the ties with Ireland.
There are more than 2,500 Irish pubs in continental Europe. There are 500 Irish and Celtic music festivals, with more than 650 continental-based Irish music bands. Gaelic football is now played in 30 clubs across 14 continental nations. In the Brittany Gaelic Football Championship, there is no Irish player on five of the six participating teams.
The Nordic Irish Dancing Feis attracts 200 Irish dancers young and adult, from Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Russia, Germany and Belgium.
In January it was reported that the Irish population in Spain is in the region of 78,000, roughly equal to Galway city, and 20,000 more than Waterford city.
Irish people living in Europe, Irish residents travelling to Europe, and non-Irish Europeans interested in Irish culture no longer have to search hundreds of different sources to find Irish news, events, sport, entertainment, pubs, societies, embassies. The website www.EuropeanIrish.com connects many of these resources together. - Yours, etc,
SIASY COLLINS, Editor, EuropeanIrish.com, Midleton, Co Cork.