Whose Day Is It Anyway? St. Patrick's Day as a Contested Performance of National and Diasporic Irishness

Abstract

One of the more intriguing aspects of St. Patrick's Day celebrations as a nationalised ritual of a performed Irishness, both within and outside Ireland, is the extent to which it represents a dialogue between territorialised and diasporic expressions of Irish identity, and claims of belonging to Irishness. St. Patrick's Day celebrations in English cities are a particularly intriguing example of this contestation, due to the proximity of the two countries and the historical structural and cultural constraints on the public performance of Irish identity in England, as well as their more recent reinvention within celebratory multiculturalism. This article examines how debates around the authenticity of St. Patrick's Day parades in English cities are employed in the identity work of individual Irish people. In doing so, it provides insight on the tensions between Irishness as transnational, diasporic, and ethnic, as experienced in England.

The Role and Status of English in Spanish-Speaking Argentina and Its Education System

“…2 This brief scenario suffices to portray the associations with colonialism and imperialism that this historical event has for most Argentineans and the impact it has had on the formation and development of a national identity through its inclusion as an Efeméride in the primary and secondary systems of education at a national level. 3 Similar intricate connections among politics, historical events, and their commemorations, nationhood, and the media have been pointed out by scholars in other countries such as China (Kuever, 2012), Chile (Tjaden, 2012), México (Hoyo, 2012), Ireland and England (Scully, 2012), Malaysia (Chung, 2012), and Canada (Mock, 2012) as well as transnationally as in the case of Romani/Gypsy organizations (Kapralski, 2012), for example.…”

On the causal relationship between participation in national commemorations and feelings of national belonging

“…Fox 2006;Scully 2012;Späth 2013). Qualitative and quantitative methods both have their strengths and weaknesses (Matthews and Ross 2010), and in order to gain a reliable and valid understanding of the relationship between national commemorations and national belonging it is important to complement these insightful studies with research that uses quantitative methods such as survey data (Sorek 2011).…”

“…For example, in a study of the relationship between participation in St Patrick's Day celebrations and national identity, one of the respondents said: "Patrick's Day will show you and everyone, who're Irish, they'll all appear here in hundreds and thousands … dressed in their green and white, and … we send a great message across the city and across the world" (Scully 2012). In other words, people with strong feelings of national belonging more often participate in national days, not only for themselves, but also to send a message to out-groups.…”

“…Only by studying the feelings and behaviour of citizens we are able to understand whether participation in national commemorations enhances feelings of national belonging or not (Farquet 2014;Fox and Miller-Idriss 2008;Späth 2013). Finally, most empirical studies on the relationship between national commemorations and national belonging employ qualitative research methods such as participant observation and in-depth interviews (Fox 2006;Scully 2012;Späth 2013). As Schwartz and Schuman (2005) noted, it is necessary, however, to complement these studies with survey data when aiming to truly understand the link between individual beliefs and commemorations.…”

Ireland's Diaspora Strategies and Economic Development

“…In Ireland, the flow of remittances has more than 3 billion pounds from England. [6] Human capital means the education exchanges, cooperation researches, and immigration forms to contribute to the home country. Cultural capital is to build and promote their country's unique humanities, history, and sports, including of the tourism industry to increase the national soft power, to attract diaspora and affinity diaspora to contribute the homeland's construction.…”