Irish people
The population of Ireland is about 6.3 million, but it is estimated that 50 to 80 million people around the world have Irish forebears, making the Irish diaspora one of the largest of any nation. Historically, emigration from Ireland has been the result of conflict, famine and economic issues. People of Irish descent are found mainly in English-speaking countries, especially Great Britain, the United States, Canada and Australia. There are also significant numbers in Argentina, Mexico and New Zealand. The United States has the most people of Irish descent, while in Australia those of Irish descent are a higher percentage of the population than in any other country outside Ireland. Many Icelanders have Irish and Scottish Gaelic forebears.
Status of the Irish language
Irish is a main home, work or community language for approximately 2% of the population of the Republic of Ireland; the population of the Republic of Ireland was shown as 4,761,865 in the 2016 census.
The 2011 census in Northern Ireland showed that Irish is the home language of 0.2% of people, with 6% of people able to speak Irish to varying degrees (see Irish language in Northern Ireland). One in four people (~1.7 million) on the island of Ireland claims to understand Irish to some extent. Estimates of fully native Irish language speakers range from 40,000 up to 80,000 people. Areas in which the language remains a vernacular are referred to as "Gaeltacht" areas.