HWS NORTHERN IRELAND | NOTES FROM AN IRISH PERSON
So! Now that the UK bros have come out, I wanted to write a few notes regarding my favourite member so far (for obvious reasons) Northern Ireland!
Being Irish myself, born and bred, (Republic of Ireland though) I wanted to clarify or clear up any possible misconceptions about him that could arise in the future, plus touch on the history. I know UK bros have only been released earlier this week, but I felt this was pertinent to write! So let me bullet point and be as clear as I can, hopefully~ ^^
Just a warning, I will be touching very lightly on history that still exists in in living Irish memory, as well as other possible historical/political stuff.
The term is 'Northern Ireland'. It is not proper to call him 'North Ireland', as that is just incorrect. However, I use North as a shorthand because it's easier to say! The rest of the island of Ireland is the 'Republic of Ireland', or just Ireland in this case. (NOT Southern Ireland! That term doesn't exist.)
Northern Ireland has been variously described as a country, a state, a province, a region etc. However, none of them really describes what North is. He just sort of exists.
Northern Ireland doesn't really have a flag either! There are several versions and the 'correct' one is up to interpretation depending on one's views.
The Northern Irish identity started to be established during the Scottish Plantation of Ulster which began in 1609. Essentially, Great Britain was attempting to colonise the island of Ireland. Failed plantations were carried out in the rest of Ireland beforehand, but the Plantation of Ulster was a huge success. (In my honest opinion, North shouldn't have been an older UK brother, but I digress!)
The Troubles that occurred between Ireland and Northern Ireland (1960s - 1990s) is still a sensitive issue that's still in people's recent living memory. Now, when it comes to depicting this, I personally say to throw caution to wind, but I wouldn't say that topic is off limits. In fact, I'd love to see how people interpret this in a Hetalia context.
Gaeilge, or Irish Gaelic, is a spoken language in Northern Ireland, though like the rest of Ireland, English is the predominant language. ( :'D )
In conclusion, I encourage people to check out the very interesting history of Northern Ireland from the plantations onwards! I'm in love with the personality he had been depicted with so far, even if the design is a bit of a surprise. I can't wait to see what the fandom and Himaruya does with North and his brothers (And the Republic of Ireland if we get lucky!) Thanks for reading, and I hope this is helpful~
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