Black Irish (folklore)
Mythical ethnic identity / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The term "Black Irish" was initially used in the 19th and 20th centuries by Irish-Americans to describe people of Irish descent who have black or dark-coloured hair, blue or dark eyes, or otherwise dark colouring.[1][2] This meaning is not often used in modern Ireland,[3] where "Black Irish" usually refers to Irish people of African descent.[4]
The first use of the term "Black Irish" is tied to the myth[5][6][7] that they were descended from Spanish sailors shipwrecked during the Spanish Armada of 1588.[6][8][9][10] However, no anthropological, historical, or genetic research supports this story. Some theorists assert that the term was adopted in some cases by Irish-Americans seeking to conceal interracial unions with African-Americans, paralleling the phrase "Black Dutch" which was also used in the United States to hide racial identity.[11][12][13] Likewise, the concept of "Black Irish" was also used by some Aboriginal Australians to racially pass themselves into white Australian society.[14] In the earlier parts of the 19th century, "Black Irish" was sometimes used in the United States to describe biracial people of African and Irish descent.[9][10]
By the 20th century, "Black Irish" had become a performative identity played out by Irish-Americans authors such as F. Scott Fitzgerald and Robert E. Howard. In Ireland, in the 21st century, Black Irish is used primarily to refer to Irish nationals of African descent, and the American meaning is rarely used. According to the 2022 census, 67,546 people identify as Black or Black Irish with an African background, while 8,699 people identify as Black or Black Irish with any other Black background.[4]