Country Data Sheet: Ireland
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Country Data Sheet for the Republic of Ireland
Melissa Daugherty
Clarion University of Pennsylvania
Country Data Sheet: Ireland
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Basic Country Information
The Republic of Ireland is located on an island in the North Atlantic Ocean in Western
Europe. The Irish Sea separates the sovereign state from the United Kingdom, which lies to the
west. According the Central Intelligence Agency, the Republic of Ireland takes up an area 70,
273 sq km and consists of five-sixths of the island of Ireland (2012). The northern part of the
island is occupied by Northern Ireland, who is part of the United Kingdom. In 1921 what is now
the Republic of Ireland and Great Britain agreed to a cease fire, ending the Anglo-Irish War.
The Irish Free State was created in 1922 and Ireland was officially free of British rule, but the
predominately Protestant six counties in Northern Ireland chose to remain part of the United
Kingdom and a bloody civil war ensued (BBC, 2013). It was not until 1998 on Good Friday that
a peace treaty was signed by Great Britain, Ireland (or, the Republic of Ireland), and the
Northern Ireland counties stating that Ireland no longer had claim to Northern Ireland. There is
still political unrest in Northern Ireland and over 3,500 people have been killed since 1969 over
the conflict over differences between the Protestant unionists and Catholic nationalist groups
(Archick, 2013).
The topography of Ireland features coastal mountains in the west and center of the island,
lowlands, lakes, bogs, and plenty of green hills. According to National Geographic, the
population of Ireland is 4,125,00, with 1,015,000 of those people residing in the capital city of
Dublin (2013). Other major cities include Cork, Galway, Limerick, and Waterford. The
country’s official language is Irish, or Irish Gaelic, but few people still speak the language,
resulting with English being the most commonly spoken language. The predominant religion is
Roman Catholicism and the average life expectancy is 77 (BBC, 2013). Ireland has an
impressive literacy rate of 99% (CIA, 2013). Ireland was one of twelve EU nations to adopt the
Euro as their form of currency in 2002. Ireland’s GDP is $195.4 billion, as of 2012. Since the
world financial crisis, economic activity has dropped and in 2008 Ireland entered a recession in
the first time in over ten years. Their once thriving construction and domestic property markets
collapsed, causing property prices to skyrocket. Due to the lack of new business investors and
consumer spending Ireland’s economy now relies more on their exports, which are dominated by
outside countries (Trading Economics, 2013. Ireland has a GNP of 34347 EUR million. The
unemployment rate is 14.7% and 5.5% of the population lives under the poverty line (CIA,
2013).
Major Public Libraries
The National Library of Ireland is located in the capital city of Dublin and can be found
online at http://www.nli.ie/. The National Library was established by the Dublin Science and Art
Museum Act in 1877 because it was thought that the collections in the Royal Dublin Society
should be housed somewhere accessible for the benefit of society. It was agreed at the time that
the library would be under the order of a council of twelve trustees, eight of whom would be
appointed by The Royal Dublin Society and four by the government. This carried on until the
library was deemed a cultural institution in 2005 under the National Cultural Institutions Act.
The first librarian, William Archer, made sure the library was one of the first to implement the
Country Data Sheet: Ireland
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Dewey Decimal System. Now, the Council of Trustees has been replaced by a Library Board.
Their goal is to preserve and expand the collection in special regards to detail involving the
preservation of Irish heritage, along with serving the patrons of Ireland and other countries. The
library is made up of different committees who oversea individual branches of the library and a
director whose job is carry out administrative duties combined with tasks set by the Library
Board.
The National Library is a closed stack reference library, meaning that materials may not
be checked out and must remain in the library. Patrons may fill out a request form and look at
materials in the reading rooms. Anyone can get a “library ticket” if they have some form of
photo identification. The library provides a full online catalog, an online librarian question
service, and houses a special collection/department for those researching genealogy. The
collection itself includes: print, microfilm, digital resources, manuscripts, prints, drawings,
ephemera, photographs, maps, music, and papers that W.B Yeats’ family donated. It houses the
most extensive collection of Irish documentary material in the world and is open six days a
week. Similar to the Library of Congress, the National Library of Ireland receives a copy of
everything published in the Republic of Ireland. It purchases materials printed in Northern
Ireland and other countries. Currently, the library is offering a paid, nine month conservation
training internship to student who has recently graduated from a conservation program. This is
opportunity is provided by the library and Heritage Council of Ireland, which maintains the
library’s goal of preserving their country’s cultural history.
The Dublin City Public Library is not far from the National Library, but serves as a
functioning, lending library. The main library is part of system including over twenty public
libraries in Dublin alone. The goal of the DCPL is to “maximise opportunity for all - individuals
and communities - through guided access to ideas, learning, literature, information and heritage
resources supported by cultural programming” (Dublin City Public, 2013). Their website
provides copies of their collection and acquisition policy, terms of membership, and acceptable
internet use policy. Anyone who is a resident of Dublin City or County can get a free
membership with one form of photo identification and another proving you live in Dublin, like a
utility bill for example. Patrons can make an online account to renew, reserve, and check their
accounts online. The library itself offers books clubs, free internet, personal learning
opportunities where participants can earn credit, home delivery, story time, homework help,
databases, business information, and writing groups. The library has its own Twitter account and
regularly updated blog. According to their 2011 statistics, the library had 153,859 members,
2,802,825 actual library visits, 755,094 virtual visits, and checked out 2,346,642 materials. The
central library has over 130,000 items in the adult, junior, and music collection.
Cork City Libraries, http://www.corkcitylibraries.ie/, offer many of the same services as
the DCPL system. It consists of six libraries that house almost 500,000 materials including
books, music, and multimedia. The internet is not free and costs users €1 per hour. According to
2011 studies, the library received 2.5% of the city budget, received 738,149 visitors, and checked
out 1,011,062 materials. Basic cards are free for patrons living in Cork who are under the age of
18, over the age of 65 and adults who fall under the following categories: those with or caring for
someone who is disabled, single parents, full time students, asylum seekers, or those who are
unemployed. A general membership for any other adult is €15. Checking out music and DVDs
for anyone is an additional €5. The library’s objectives are to be a resource for young people,
Country Data Sheet: Ireland
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information and learning, and culture and imagination. Library staff is hired by the Cork City
Council Personnel Department
Major Academic Libraries
Ireland has seven public universities and the two most popular are Trinity College Dublin
and University College Dublin (Top Universities, 2013). Trinity College was established in
1592. It bases its mission around tradition and places value in providing a liberal environment
that nurtures independent thought. The library houses over 5 million printed volumes and is a
legal deposit; meaning that publishers and distributors are required to provide it was a copy of
every new work. The Old Library and Book of Kells have helped make Trinity College the
second most popular tourist attraction in Ireland. The Old Library was build back in 1712 and is
home to the Long Hall, which houses 200,000 the library’s most cherished and dated books. The
Old Library also houses the Book of Kells exhibit. The Book of Kells has been featured at the
library since the 19th century and dates back to the year 800 (Trinity College Dublin, 2013).
University College Dublin is Ireland’s largest university and focuses on technologies and
science. It is a leading research institute and is home to scholars from over 120 countries. The
school is home to five different libraries that all focus on a different area of study. The library’s
goal is inspire learning, foster innovation, and preserve Ireland’s heritage. The University has
over 30,000 students and boasts two million library visitors a year (University Dublin College,
2013).
School Libraries
Information on the number of materials and staff located in public and academic libraries
in the Republic of Ireland is abundant, school library information, however, is hard to come by.
Very little factual information is provided about the state of school libraries in Ireland. The
SLARI, or School Library Association in the Republic of Ireland, was created as a part of the
School Library Association of the UK in 1995 and then accepted into the official branch in 200l
(SLARI). They provide members with lots of tools to advocate or even develop your own school
library, but not hard evidence of the current condition of school libraries. SLARI supports the
Junior Certiticate School Program (JCSP). This program is based on assisting failing schools
with adopting a developed curriuculum framework and training teachers who want to create
student-centered classrooms in order to ensure their classes succeed (JSCP, 2013). One study
this group did was to select 11 pilot schools and staff them with a full-time, fully trained librarian
and fully stocked 21st century library. Over three years of interactive library lessons reading
scores improved, attendance went up, along with many other satisfying developments. A
publication put out by The National Children’s Strategy Research Series titled “The Young
People and the Public Libraries in Ireland: Issues and Opportunities” reflects on this article and
points out that “professional librarians are only employed in a minority of second-level schools”
and most them are through the JSCP program (2010). School libraries are beginning to be
recognized as a necessary asset to public education, but the process is in the beginning.
Country Data Sheet: Ireland
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Education for Library Students and Professional Organizations
Students wishing to pursue a career in library science in Ireland have a multitude of
options. UCD has a School of Information and Library Studies that offers undergraduate,
graduate, and doctoral level courses. At the undergraduate level students can focus on
Information and Library Studies, which requires 30 credits along with a 20 credit minor in
another subject. In order for students to gain entry level qualification and be recognized by the
LAI (Library Association of Ireland) they must also complete six weeks of full time library
information service experience or work (UCD, 2013).
Throughout this research, I have already reflected on two professional library
organizations in Ireland, SLARI and LAI. The SLARI, or School Library Association of the
Republic of Ireland, is a school library support organization and part of the SLA, or School
Library Association. In 2004 they developed their policy titled “The School Library in the 21st
Century: An Agenda for Change” stating that Ireland needs to establish a comprehensive system
of school libraries throughout Ireland, provide public funding to support high library standards,
and provide students with highly qualified librarians (SLARI, 2013). They have events along
with an annual conference and offer support to school librarians. The LAI, or Library
Association of Ireland, represents all libraries and librarians in Ireland. Their objective is to
promote and develop high standards of librarianship and of library and information services in
Ireland (LAI, 2013). They have monthly council meetings, an annual conference, different
sections for different types of libraries, guidance in all realms of librarianship, advocacy and
press statements, and publish a monthly journal titled An Leabharlann.
Overall, I was surprised to find such a strong public and academic library program and a
struggling school program. I think it shows a global connection with how our country’s budgets
are hitting both of us in the same place.
References
Archick, Kristen. (2013, January 10). Northern Ireland: The peace process. Retrieved
from http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RS21333.pdf
BBC. (2013, July 24). BBC News-Ireland country profile. Retrieved from
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-17473476
Central Intelligence Agency. (2013, July 10). The World Factbook. Retrieved from
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ei.html
Junior Certificate School Programme. (2013). Research: Library. Retrieved from
http://jcspliteracy.com/rch_library.php#
Library Association of Ireland. (2012). About us. Retrieved from
https://www.libraryassociation.ie/library-association-ireland/about-us
National Geographic. (2013). Ireland facts. Retrieved from
Country Data Sheet: Ireland
http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/countries/ireland-facts/
School Library Association of the Republic of Ireland. (2013). About us. Retrieved
from http://www.slari.ie/index.php/about/
Top Universities. (2013). Study in Ireland. Retrieved from
http://www.topuniversities.com/where-to-study/europe/ireland/guide
The National Children’s Strategy Research Series (2010 May). Young people and
public libraries in Ireland: Issues and opportunities. Retrieved from
http://www.dcya.gov.ie/documents/publications/young_people_and_public_librar
ies_may2010.pdf
Trading Economics. (2013, July 27). Ireland gross national product. Retrieved from
http://www.tradingeconomics.com/ireland/gross-national-product
Trinity College Dublin. (2013, July 24). Trinity College Dublin: The University of
Dublin, Ireland. Retrieved from http://www.tcd.ie/
University Dublin College. (2013, July 4). UCD School of information and
library studies. Retrieved from http://www.ucd.ie/sils/undergraduateprogrammes/
University Dublin College. (2013, July 4). Welcome to the UCD library. Retrieved
from http://www.ucd.ie/library/
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