northern irish

People usually of Scottish and English ancestory living in the 6 Northern Counties of Ireland known as Ulster.Although technically not British, neither are they Irish. They have their origins in the English forcing Scottish settlers into the North of Ireland, during the 16th century.This was to dilute the rebellious Irish Catholic population with Scottish Protestants. As they centuries progressed they did not truly assimilate with the Native Irish, whom they considered to be their enemies, but instead remained somewhat isolated from the rest of the population. When the Anglo-Irish Treaty was signed in 1922 after Ireland's War For Independence, the 6 counties to the North (Fermanagh, Antrim, Tyrone, Londonderry, Armagh, and Down) opted to remain within the direct rule of the British government. The result was a semi-independent state which is today called Northern Ireland. Northern Irish people have suffered a brutal history of conflict between the opposing Catholic and Protestant factions. Today, however the conflict has quieted down a great deal and Northern Irish people enjoy a prospering, rebuilt,country.