Irish language

The counties of Ireland (Irish: Contaetha na hÉireann) are historic administrative divisions of the island. They began as Norman structures, and as the powers exercised by the Cambro-Norman barons and the Old English nobility waned over time, new offices of political control were established at a county level. The number of counties varied depending on the time period, however thirty-two is the traditionally accepted and used number.

In 1921, upon the partition of Ireland, six of the traditional counties became part of Northern Ireland. In Northern Ireland, counties ceased to be used for local government in 1973. Districts are instead used. In the Republic of Ireland, some counties have been split, resulting in the creation of new counties: there are currently 26 counties, 3 cities and 2 cities and counties that demarcate areas of local government in the Republic.

The Oireachtas (/ˈɛrəktəs/ EH-rək-təs; Irish: [ˈɛɾʲaxt̪ˠəsˠ]), sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the bicameral parliament of Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of the president of Ireland and the two houses of the Oireachtas (Irish: Tithe an Oireachtais): a lower house called Dáil Éireann and an upper house called Seanad Éireann.

The houses of the Oireachtas sit in Leinster House in Dublin, an eighteenth-century ducal palace. The directly elected Dáil is the more powerful of the houses of the Oireachtas.

53°20′26″N 6°15′14″W / 53.34055°N 6.254021°W / 53.34055; -6.254021Seanad Éireann (/ˈʃænəd ˈɛərən, ˈʃænəð/ SHAN-əd(h) AIR-ən; Irish: [ˈʃan̪ˠəd̪ˠ ˈeːɾʲən̪ˠ]; "Senate of Ireland") is the upper house of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (the lower house).

It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its members are known as senators (Irish: seanadóirí, singular: seanadóir). Unlike Dáil Éireann, it is not directly elected but consists of a mixture of members chosen by various methods. Its powers are much weaker than those of the Dáil and it can only delay laws with which it disagrees, rather than veto them outright. It can introduce new legislation. Since its establishment, it has been located in Leinster House.

The president of Ireland (Irish: Uachtarán na hÉireann) is the head of state of Ireland and the supreme commander of the Irish Defence Forces. The presidency was established by the Constitution of Ireland in 1937. The first president assumed office in 1938, and became recognised internationally as head of state in 1949 after the coming into effect of the Republic of Ireland Act. The president's official residence and principal workplace is Áras an Uachtaráin in Phoenix Park, Dublin.

The presidency is a predominantly ceremonial institution, serving as the representative of the Irish state both at home and abroad. Nevertheless, the office of president is endowed with certain powers which have constitutional importance. While Éamon de Valera described his intentions for the office as being 'mainly to guard the Constitution', such a description is depricated by academic commentators, with the leading constitutional text noting "the Constitution is extremely sparing in its attribution of any independent functions to the office at all".

The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon nomination by Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legislature) and the office-holder must retain the support of a majority in the Dáil to remain in office.

The Irish word taoiseach means "chief" or "leader", and was adopted in the 1937 Constitution of Ireland as the title of the "head of the Government or Prime Minister". It is the official title of the head of government in both English and Irish, and is not used for the prime ministers of other countries, who are instead referred to in Irish by the generic term príomh-aire. The phrase an Taoiseach is sometimes used in an otherwise English-language context, and means the same as "the Taoiseach".

The Constitution of Ireland (Irish: Bunreacht na hÉireann, pronounced [ˈbˠʊnˠɾˠəxt̪ˠ n̪ˠə ˈheːɾʲən̪ˠ]) is the fundamental law of Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. It guarantees certain fundamental rights, along with a popularly elected non-executive president, a bicameral parliament, a separation of powers and judicial review.

It is the second constitution of the Irish state since independence, replacing the 1922 Constitution of the Irish Free State. It came into force on 29 December 1937 following a statewide plebiscite held on 1 July 1937. The Constitution may be amended solely by a national referendum. It is the longest continually operating republican constitution within the European Union.

The Northern Ireland Executive (Irish: Feidhmeannas Thuaisceart Éireann, Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlan Executive) is the devolved government of Northern Ireland, an administrative branch of the legislature – the Northern Ireland Assembly, situated in Belfast. It is answerable to the assembly and was initially established according to the terms of the Northern Ireland Act 1998, which followed the Good Friday Agreement (or Belfast Agreement). The executive is referred to in the legislation as the Executive Committee of the assembly and is an example of consociationalist ("power-sharing") government.

The Northern Ireland Executive consists of the first minister and deputy first minister and various ministers with individual portfolios and remits. The main assembly parties appoint most ministers in the executive, except for the Minister of Justice who is elected by a cross-community vote. It is one of three devolved governments in the United Kingdom, the others being the Scottish and Welsh governments.

The North/South Ministerial Council (NSMC) (Irish: An Chomhairle Aireachta Thuaidh-Theas, Ulster-Scots: North South Meinisterlie Council) is a body established under the Good Friday Agreement to co-ordinate activity and exercise certain governmental powers across the whole island of Ireland.

The Council takes the form of meetings between ministers from both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland and is responsible for twelve policy areas. Six of these areas are the responsibility of corresponding North/South Implementation Bodies. The body is based in the city of Armagh in Northern Ireland.

Plantations in 16th- and 17th-century Ireland (Irish: Plandálacha na hÉireann) involved the confiscation of Irish-owned land by the English Crown and the colonisation of this land with settlers from Great Britain.

The main plantations took place from the 1550s to the 1620s, the biggest of which was the plantation of Ulster. The plantations led to the founding of many towns, massive demographic, cultural and economic changes, changes in land ownership and the landscape, and also to centuries of ethnic and sectarian conflict.

Youghal (/ˈjɔːl/ YAWL; Irish: Eochaill, meaning 'yew wood') is a seaside resort town in County Cork, Ireland. Located on the estuary of the River Blackwater, the town is a former military and economic centre. Located on the edge of a steep riverbank, the town has a long and narrow layout. As of the 2022 census, the population was 8,564. The town is in a civil parish of the same name.

As a historic walled seaport town on the coastline of East Cork, and close to a number of beaches, it has been a tourist destination since the mid-19th century. There are a number of historic buildings and monuments within the town's walls, and Youghal is among a small number of towns designated as "Irish Heritage Ports" by the Irish Tourist Board.