ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. Between 1607 and 2007, approximately ten million people left the island of Ireland, seeking new lives in North America, Europe, Asia, and the Pacific, among other destinations. This outflow means that today, around 80 million individuals worldwide claim some connection with Ireland, either as their place of birth or as their ancestral origin. Two main comparative approaches dominate approaches to Ireland's diaspora, the first being contrasts between the Irish and other migrant groups, especially the Scots. Part of the rationale for comparing the Irish and Scottish migrant flows lies in the importance of outward migration for both societies. During the era of mass migration between 1815 and 1930, when at least 50 million people left Europe, the outflow from Britain and Ireland comprised around 18.7 million which was approximately 36 per cent of all European migrants.
