hi there i'm just wanna post this for Americans Coming to Northern Ireland:first of all don't call us Irish not a lot of people in Northern Ireland like to be called "Irish" 2: Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom :England,Scotland , Wales ,Northern ireland , we are not part of the Republic of Ireland , like the USA and Canada we share the same bit of land but we are not 1 country !!! 3: Northern Ireland is not a warzone it is just as beutiful as it is in the Republic you are safer in Belfast than what you would be in any major US city and we NI people do live a normal life , any violence when it happens is only in small area it does not effect our daily lives!!!<BR>4: Northern Ireland people are not being "Repressed" as sum Irish -Americans like to claim we want to remain part of the UK , and are not being forced to !!!<BR>4 come to Northern Ireland have a gret time and remember that the Euro the (www.euro.ie)currency of the Republic of Ireland is not accepted in NI its the UK Pound here (GBP)

Paul, worth pointing this out for our overseas visitors. Many also falsely believe that the Republic of Ireland is part of the United Kingdom which as you've pointed out it is not. A genuine question however, which has puzzled me for years. If you don't like to be called "Irish" what would you prefer to be called, at a guess maybe you personally prefer "British"? But how can that term apply when Northern Ireland, while part of the United Kingdom is not part of Great Britain which as I understand it consists of England, Scotland and Wales? I entirely respect the wishes of any person to choose their nationality, so to speak and fully, appreciate that it can be a topic of some contention in many areas, I'd just like to understand a bit more about your perspective. Thanks.

kieran thanx for your reply, well according to my British passport it says in the Nationality part of it not "UK Citizen" but "British Citizen"<BR>i yes indeed see myself as British and I'm proud to be from NI as well and i'm NOT a orangeman or anything like that !,but i think that if you are British your are from any part of the 4 parts of the UK: be it England , Scotland ,wales or NI , yes i know regional identies exist before people say they are British but i feel i'm proud to be both from NI and from the UK as a whole ,my father is English and he says he is very proud to be English AND British hes 100% proud of both ! hope this helps a Little ! Paul.

Is it ok is i call you unted kindomese?<BR><BR>You should be proud being called Irish

who are you to say what nationality i'm i'm Irish ok ??? how do you like being called a canadian or Mexican when you are not ??? i'm British and proud of and so are most of the People here in NI.

what i mean is that i'm NOT Irish.

Paul,<BR>I'm sure many people will want to visit Northern Ireland (there's that Irish word again -- maybe that's why people call you Irish?) when they read your reasonable and appealing posts -- NOT!!!

well i'm just fed up with ignorance of Americans in general towards NI don't get me wrong i have nothing against America or Americans but some Americans to get there Geography wrong !!!!!!!!!!, it is in no way a put down just a little info i in fact have heard experience of people from here in Northern Ireland in the US and people saying that they are from Ireland when i fact that they took every opportunity to correct them and say they are from Northern Ireland ! like Canada and the USA !!! hello !.

Herein lies the root of the problems in NI. Just over half the population regard themselves as British and have no desire to be part of a united Ireland, the other hals regard themselves as Irish and would no more call themselves British than poke themselves in the eye with a sharp pencil. So depending on who you're talking to from NI, you're gonna get 2 conflicting answers.<BR><BR>Paul, how would you feel about being an entirely independant state with no allegiances to the UK or Ireland. Would that be a solution? I ask out pure interest.

Better yet, Paul, know your spelling. It's hard to take someone seriously who can't spell some. Apparently, "British" schooling hasn't been very effective.

That's interesting...I did not know that, thanks for the info!

well i just have to say that "american " schooling must have not been very good when Americans don't know their geography, and tell you i'm 22 and the schooling here is the best over anywhere else in the UK !

Paul - you made your points, now please don't start insulting all and sundry just because they are asking some questions. Your style comes across as a real rant - do you think this will encourage any visitors to NI? Spelling, punctuation and spacing do all help to keep the tone civilized around here. (no this is not your Mom)

Paul, you may very well be correct when you assert that Americans don't know much about geography (just out of curiosity - what do you base that statement on anyway?), but what you've been talking about is politics, and has nothing to do with geography. And as someone earlier pointed out, I suspect that your political opinions aren't shared by all of your countrymen.

i'm basing my statement on my experience , i'm not attacking anyone i'm just trying to make a point ,i i have been talking about geography not poltics !!!!!!,i just have to say that i has been said on this subject and i consider this closed, i don't see it as a defeat i'm just consider it closed ! thank you all for your posts

i mean politics not poltics thanx paul.

I don't mean to insult anyone, be they British, English, Welsh, Scottish or Irish.<BR>I visited Derry (Londonderry) back in 2000 and took a local walking tour. The tour guide was Irish (so he said and his accent had that lovely Irish lilt) but his heritage was most definitely Irish/Chinese...... It was interesting seeing this very Chinese looking man, talking with a very Irish accent<BR><BR>Paul, I am not from North America, so I think you should aim your comment to all visitors....<BR>I listen to accents. If I hear an English speaker with an Irish accent, I assume that person is from Ireland (North or South). Same with an English speaker, with a Scottish accent. I assume they are Scottish.<BR>I don't differentiate between the Republic & Northern Ireland. And if that upsets you, I am sorry..<BR>Having said that, the next time I visit Northern Ireland, (not for a few more years) I will most certainly take into account your comments.<BR><BR>Now, what is your accent like?? Irish sounding, or English sounding??<BR><BR>

I am from Belfast, and guess what, I consider myself Irish. Regards your passport, it depends on which passport you want to carry - British or Irish - you see mine says Irish Citizen even though I am from the Northern part of Ireland. And remember the NI Pound note is not accepted in England.<BR><BR><BR>

Hi Irish, <BR><BR>I'm just curious about passports - does everyone in NI have the option of getting an Irish passport (by this I am guessing you mean Rep. Ireland) and a GB one?<BR><BR>

brownie the answer to your question is that most people here have British passports but if they Feel Irish they can freely have an Irish Passport and if they like have both British and Irish Passports most people who do this also just do it for handyness to travel on Like a country that needs visas for UK passports but not Irish my friend is one example of this he does not feel Irish but has a Irish passport and his UK one as well for me I just have my UK one i'm entitled to get an Irish if i really want one hope this helps !!