1. What is the capital city of Ireland?
Dublin
Dublin, on Ireland's east coast, is the capital and biggest city of the Republic of Ireland.
2. Ireland is traditionally divided into four provinces. Which of these is one of them?
Leinster
Ireland's four traditional provinces are Leinster, Munster, Connacht and Ulster. Kerry, Cork and Dublin are counties or cities, not provinces.
3. How many of Ireland's traditional counties lie within Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom?
Six
Ireland has 32 traditional counties in total. Six of them, in the province of Ulster, make up Northern Ireland.
4. How many counties are there across the whole island of Ireland?
32
There are 32 counties in total: 26 in the Republic of Ireland and 6 in Northern Ireland.
5. What is the longest river in Ireland?
The River Shannon
The River Shannon flows for about 360 kilometres, making it the longest river in Ireland or Britain.
6. Which river flows through the middle of Dublin?
The River Liffey
The River Liffey flows through Dublin and out into the Irish Sea.
7. Ireland's highest mountain, found in County Kerry, is called what?
Carrauntoohil
Carrauntoohil, in the Macgillycuddy's Reeks range in County Kerry, is Ireland's highest peak.
8. Famous limestone cliffs on the west coast, in County Clare, are known as what?
The Cliffs of Moher
The Cliffs of Moher rise steeply from the Atlantic Ocean in County Clare and are one of Ireland's best known landmarks.
9. Which sea separates Ireland from Great Britain?
The Irish Sea
The Irish Sea lies between Ireland and Great Britain.
10. Ireland is often given which nickname, because of its green countryside?
The Emerald Isle
Ireland is nicknamed the Emerald Isle for its lush, green landscape.
11. What is the second biggest city in the Republic of Ireland?
Cork
Cork, in the south of Ireland, is the Republic's second biggest city after Dublin.
12. A striking formation of thousands of hexagonal rock columns on the coast of County Antrim is called what?
The Giant's Causeway
The Giant's Causeway, in Northern Ireland, was formed by an ancient volcanic eruption that left behind thousands of tightly packed rock columns.
13. A group of scenic lakes in County Kerry, popular with visitors, are known as what?
The Lakes of Killarney
The Lakes of Killarney, surrounded by mountains, are among Ireland's most visited natural landmarks.
14. Newgrange, a huge stone tomb in County Meath older than the pyramids of Egypt, was built by whom?
Neolithic farmers, thousands of years ago
Newgrange was built by Neolithic farming communities around 5,000 years ago, making it older than both the pyramids and Stonehenge.
15. Who is traditionally credited with bringing Christianity to Ireland in the 5th century?
Saint Patrick
Saint Patrick is traditionally credited with spreading Christianity across Ireland in the 400s.
16. Saint Patrick's Day, Ireland's national day, is celebrated on which date?
17 March
Saint Patrick's Day falls on 17 March every year and is celebrated by Irish communities around the world.
17. Early Irish monasteries became famous across Europe for producing what?
Beautifully decorated, illuminated manuscripts
Monks in early Irish monasteries hand copied and richly decorated religious texts, earning Ireland a reputation as a land of learning.
18. Which famous illuminated manuscript, made by monks over a thousand years ago, is on display in Dublin today?
The Book of Kells
The Book of Kells, a richly decorated copy of the four Gospels, was created by monks around the year 800 and can be seen at Trinity College Dublin.
19. Vikings founded a trading settlement that grew into which Irish city, around the year 841?
Dublin
Viking raiders and traders founded a settlement on the River Liffey that grew into the city of Dublin.
20. Anglo-Norman lords from England and Wales first invaded Ireland in which year?
1169
Anglo-Norman forces first landed in Ireland in 1169, beginning centuries of English involvement in Irish affairs.
21. The Plantation of Ulster, in the early 1600s, involved the English government doing what?
Settling English and Scottish colonists on land in Ulster
During the Plantation of Ulster, land was taken from Irish landowners and given to settlers from England and Scotland.
22. What crop failure caused the Great Famine of the 1840s in Ireland?
The potato crop failed due to blight
A fungus called potato blight repeatedly destroyed the potato harvest that most Irish families depended on for food.
23. Roughly how many people are thought to have died during the Great Famine of the 1840s?
About a million
Historians estimate that roughly a million people died from starvation and disease during the Great Famine.
24. Besides the deaths it caused, what else did the Great Famine bring about on a huge scale?
Mass emigration, especially to the United States
Around a million more people left Ireland during and after the Famine, many of them emigrating to the United States, Britain and Australia.
25. The Easter Rising, a rebellion against British rule in Ireland, took place in which year?
1916
The Easter Rising broke out in Dublin in 1916, during the First World War.
26. The Easter Rising of 1916 was centred on which Dublin building, used as the rebels' headquarters?
The General Post Office
Rebels took over the General Post Office on O'Connell Street and used it as their main base during the Easter Rising.
27. The Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921 created which new, self-governing state?
The Irish Free State
The Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed in 1921, created the Irish Free State, a self-governing dominion covering 26 of Ireland's 32 counties.
28. Under the 1921 settlement, six counties in the north-east of Ireland remained part of which country?
The United Kingdom
Six counties in the north-east stayed part of the United Kingdom, forming Northern Ireland, while the rest of Ireland became self-governing.
29. What name was given to the six counties that remained part of the United Kingdom after partition in 1921?
Northern Ireland
Those six counties became known as Northern Ireland, while the other 26 counties eventually became the Republic of Ireland.
30. Ireland formally declared itself a republic, ending its last constitutional ties with the British Commonwealth, in which year?
1949
The Republic of Ireland Act came into force in 1949, formally declaring the state a republic.
31. The Irish language, also called Gaeilge, belongs to which family of languages?
Celtic
Irish is a Celtic language, related to Scottish Gaelic and Welsh.
32. Along with English, what is Ireland's other official language?
Irish
Irish, also called Gaeilge, is an official language of Ireland alongside English.
33. What does the Irish greeting "Dia duit" mean?
Hello
"Dia duit", which literally means "God be with you", is a common way to say hello in Irish.
34. What does the Irish word "Slán" mean?
Goodbye
"Slán" is the everyday Irish word for goodbye.
35. The Irish word "Sláinte", often said when raising a glass, roughly means what?
Good health, or cheers
"Sláinte" literally means "health" and is used as a toast, much like "cheers".
36. What alphabet is written Irish set out in?
The Latin alphabet, the same as English
Modern written Irish uses the same Latin alphabet as English, though it once used a distinct Gaelic script for handwriting.
37. Regions where Irish is still the main everyday spoken language are known by what name?
The Gaeltacht
The Gaeltacht refers to areas, mostly along the west coast, where Irish remains the community's everyday language.
38. The well known Irish phrase "Céad míle fáilte" means what?
A hundred thousand welcomes
"Céad míle fáilte" translates as "a hundred thousand welcomes" and is a traditional Irish greeting.
39. Which Irish writer wrote the novel "Dracula"?
Bram Stoker
Bram Stoker, born in Dublin, wrote "Dracula" in 1897.
40. Which Irish writer wrote "Gulliver's Travels"?
Jonathan Swift
Jonathan Swift, a Dublin born writer, published "Gulliver's Travels" in 1726.
41. Which Irish writer wrote "Ulysses" and "Dubliners"?
James Joyce
James Joyce, born in Dublin, wrote both "Dubliners" and the novel "Ulysses".
42. Which Irish playwright wrote "The Importance of Being Earnest"?
Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde, born in Dublin, wrote the comic play "The Importance of Being Earnest" in 1895.
43. Which Irish poet won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1923?
W. B. Yeats
W. B. Yeats, a poet and one of the founders of the Abbey Theatre, won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1923.
44. Which Dublin born writer wrote the play "Waiting for Godot" and won the Nobel Prize in Literature?
Samuel Beckett
Samuel Beckett, born in Dublin, wrote "Waiting for Godot" and won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1969.
45. Which Irish poet, from County Derry, won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1995?
Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney, born in County Derry, won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1995.
46. Author C. S. Lewis, who wrote "The Chronicles of Narnia", was born in which Irish city?
Belfast
C. S. Lewis was born in Belfast in 1898, before later moving to England.
47. What kind of government does the Republic of Ireland have?
A parliamentary republic
Ireland is a parliamentary republic: an elected parliament makes the laws, and the government answers to it.
48. What is the title of the head of government in Ireland, similar to a prime minister?
The Taoiseach
The head of the Irish government is called the Taoiseach, an Irish word meaning "chief" or "leader".
49. What is Ireland's national parliament called?
The Oireachtas
The Oireachtas is the name for the Irish parliament as a whole, made up of the President and two houses.
50. Ireland's parliament has two houses. What are they called?
Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann
The Dáil is the main elected house, while the Seanad is a smaller upper house.
51. Who is Ireland's head of state, elected directly by the public but with mostly ceremonial powers?
The President
Ireland's President is elected by the public and represents the state, while the Taoiseach runs the government day to day.
52. How long is a single term for Ireland's President?
Seven years
Ireland's President serves a seven year term and may be re-elected once.
53. What are the colours of the Irish tricolour flag, from the flagpole outward?
Green, white and orange
The Irish flag has three vertical stripes: green nearest the pole, then white, then orange.
54. The shamrock, a well known symbol of Ireland, is what kind of plant?
A small plant with three leaves
The shamrock is a small, three leafed plant traditionally linked to Saint Patrick, who is said to have used it to explain the Holy Trinity.