ABSTRACT
In 2011 the Irish Census reported that 17 per cent of the Irish population was not born in Ireland and 12 per cent identified as non-Irish nationals. While 85 per cent of the population indicated that they were white and Irish, there was also a fast-growing 87 per cent increase in the population of people with Asian ethnic backgrounds other than Chinese (Indian, Pakistani, etc.), and most were under the age of 40 (CSO 2012a: 30). A question on foreign languages was asked for the first time on the Census in 2011. The results showed that over half a million (514,068) Irish residents spoke a foreign language at home and that, unsurprisingly, Polish was by far the most common, followed by French, Lithuanian and German.
