The island of Ireland is split into 32 different counties, and from 1800 until 1921 the whole island was a part of the United Kingdome of Great Britain and Ireland (although Britain had been a controlling presence on the island for considerably longer than this). In 1921 the island was split into two separate states, where the six counties with the highest population of Protestants formed part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the other 26 counties became the Independent Republic of Ireland. From 1821 until 1841, the population of these 26 counties was growing steadily, until the Great Famine from 1845 to 1849 swept across the island, particularly devastating the west and south.

The famine was caused by a Europe-wide potato blight that contributed to mass starvation and death throughout the continent, although it's impact on Ireland was much harsher than anywhere else. The potato blight affected Ireland so severely as the majority of potatoes in Ireland were of a single variety which allowed the disease to spread much faster than in other countries. People in the west and south of Ireland were particularly dependent on potatoes, and these areas were affected more heavily than the north and west, where flax and cereals were the staple. As the potato blight spread, the population became increasingly reliant on dairy and grain products, however a lot of these resources were relocated by the British military to combat food shortages in Britain. Due to disproportional dependency on potatoes, and mismanagement by the British government, over one million people died and a further one million emigrated. The Great Famine lasted from just 1845 to 1849, but it's legacy caused almost a century of population decline, and to this day, the population of Ireland has never exceeded it's pre-famine levels.

The population decline continued well into the twentieth century, during which time the Republic of Ireland achieved independence from the British Empire. After centuries of fighting and rebellion against British rule, Irish nationalists finally gained some independence from Britain in 1921, establishing an Irish Republic in the 26 counties. There was a lot of conflict in Ireland in the early 1900s, through the War of Independence and Irish Civil War, however the population of the Republic began growing again from the 1960s onwards as the quality of life improved and the emigration rate declined. The population was at it's lowest from 1926 to 1971, where it remained at just under three million, but in the following fifty years the population has grown by over two million people.

In 1821, Ireland's population was just over 6.8 million people. During this time, the entire island was a part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, after both islands were united by the Acts of Union in 1800. From the graph we can see that the population enjoyed steady growth between 1821 and 1841, and it rose by almost 1.4 million people in this time. However the Great Famine, which lasted from 1845 to 1849, had a devastating impact on the population, causing it to drop from 8.18 million in 1841 to 6.55 million in 1851. The Great Hunger The famine was caused by a Europe-wide potato blight that contributed to mass starvation and death throughout the continent, although it's impact on Ireland was much harsher than anywhere else. The potato blight affected Ireland so severely as the majority of potatoes in Ireland were of a single variety which allowed the disease to spread much faster than in other countries. As the potato blight spread, the population became increasingly dependent on dairy and grain products, however a lot of these resources were relocated by the British military to combat food shortages in Britain. Due to disproportional dependency on potatoes, and mismanagement by the British government, over one million people died and a further one million emigrated. The Great Famine lasted from just 1845 to 1849, but it's legacy caused almost a century of population decline, and to this day, the population of Ireland has never exceeded it's pre-famine levels. Road to recovery The population decline continued well into the twentieth century, during which time the Republic of Ireland achieved independence from the British Empire. After centuries of fighting and rebellion against British rule, Irish nationalists finally gained independence from Britain in 1921, although the six counties with the largest Protestant populations formed Northern Ireland, which is still a part of the United Kingdom today. In spite of the conflict that overshadowed Ireland for much of the twentieth century, which claimed the lives of thousands of people (particularly during the Northern Irish Troubles), and despite Ireland's high emigration rate, the population began growing again in the second half of the 1900s. The population was at it's lowest from 1926 to 1961, where it remained around 4.3 million, but in the following half-century the population grew by over two million people, reaching 6.4 million in 2011, although this number is still lower than in 1821. Gender stats The difference between the male and female populations throughout Ireland's recent history has also remained relatively low. The largest difference occurred in 1831, where there are 170,000 more women than men, although these figures do not include military personnel which would reduce the difference significantly. The gap then remains under 60,000 throughout the twentieth century.

This data collection contains data primarily from both the 1841 and 1851 Census of Ireland used in Fernihough and Ó Gráda (2022). Also contained, where available, are population counts from the 1821 and 1831 censuses. The data collection also includes an amended version of the Civil Parish Shapefile from townlands.ie (OpenStreetMap Ireland, 2020). Both data sources were adjusted to ensure concordance. The towlands.ie data is open data is open data, licensed under the Open Data Commons Open Database License (ODbL). Please contact Alan Fernihough for further details or queries.

The “shapefile” files are the GIS files one needs to load the spatial boundaries. The census data is included in the “data.csv” file and one must merge this to the shapefiles to work with these data. However, this is a simple process. The file “load and join.R” is an example of how this could be performed using the R statistical software package.

Was early 19th century Ireland overpopulated and fertility at an unsustainable level, or did other factors cause the Great Irish Famine? Did the famine-induced migration to Britain spread infectious diseases and have a substantial impact on British mortality rates? Similarly, what impact did the famine have on the British labour force and economy generally? This research project will answer these questions.

The Great Famine was a watershed in global history. It was the last major famine to occur in a Western economy, and had long-run impacts. The enduring legacy of the famine has sparked the interest of numerous novelists and playwrights.

Earlier this year, news that media group Channel 4 was considering commissioning a Great Famine-based sitcom stoked an intense public debate. Many felt that this would trivialise the tragedy. The length and breadth of this debate underlined the immense interest that still surrounds the famine. However, the spectrum of opinions as to the causes and consequences of the famine also highlighted the need for further historical research.

Let the Data Speak

Joel Mokyr's influential 1983 book Why Ireland Starved redefined famine research. Before, famine-related research was largely based on qualitative assessments that left ample room for both conjecture and, rhetoric, and errors. Unlike previous researchers, Mokyr, wanted to let the data decide whether or not it was Ireland's overpopulation that caused the famine. To do this he gathered data on the population density of Irish regions and found that it was Ireland's least densely populated regions that were the ones that suffered worse during the famine. Mokyr's test did not support the overpopulation theory (captured by what is known as the Malthusian model).

I hasten to add that the Malthusian model cannot be considered to have been refuted by this finding. For one thing, the possibility that more sophisticated econometric techniques and improved data will reverse the finding cannot be ruled out. (Mokyr, 1983).

Whilst striking, Mokyr's analysis was based on variation between relatively few data points (Ireland's 32 counties), as the quote above testifies. This study is motivated by the above quote. Better data (from over 3,000 civil parishes) and more sophisticated econometric techniques exist, and therefore Mokyr's findings can at last be re-evaluated, something this project will do.

Mokyr's philosophy of letting the data speak, can also be applied to help uncover some of the Great Famine's consequences. Specifically, this project will quantify the impact that famine-induced migration had on Britain.

The famine caused a mass movement of the Irish population to Britain. Before the famine, there were around 430,000 Irish born in Britain. By 1851, the Irish-born population had grown to 730,000. This crisis-driven mass-migration echoes Europe's migration crisis today, as people flea from war-torn and economically desolate nations in Africa and Asia. In this sense, the Great Irish Famine provides a form of historical natural experiment from which we can learn from and gain a greater understanding of the consequences of mass migrations.

What effect did the Irish famine have on Britain? This research will use newly available census data (released as part of the ESRC-funded ICeM project) to uncover how the Irish famine influenced the British economy and labour force. For example, did the influx of Irish in certain cities such as Liverpool and Manchester boost demand and help to speed up economic growth, or did this migration depress the wages of locals and therefore stifle economic advancement? In addition, this project will also use newly available records of regional mortality to calculate what impact, if any, the Great Famine had on mortality in England and Wales. If the Irish famine caused elevated levels of mortality, this implies that the ultimate death toll of the Irish famine is underestimated.

In 1821, the population of the island of Ireland was just over 6.8 million people. During this time, the entire island was a part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, after both islands were united by the Act of Union in 1800. The population enjoyed steady growth between 1821 and 1841, and it rose by almost 1.4 million people in this time, however the Great Famine, which lasted from 1845 to 1849, had a devastating impact on the population, causing it to drop from 8.18 million in 1841 to 6.55 million in 1851. If applying modern-day borders, the population of Northern Ireland was not growing as fast as the population of the Republic of Ireland before 1841, however it was not as severely affected by the famine, which was hardest felt in the east and south. The Great Hunger The famine was caused by a Europe-wide potato blight that contributed to mass starvation and death throughout the continent, although it's impact on Ireland was much harsher than anywhere else. The potato blight affected Ireland so severely as the majority of potatoes in Ireland were of a single variety which allowed the disease to spread much faster than in other countries. As the potato blight spread, the population became increasingly dependent on dairy and grain products, however a lot of these resources were relocated by the British military to combat food shortages in Britain. Due to disproportional dependency on potatoes, and mismanagement by the British government, over one million people died and a further one million emigrated. The Great Famine lasted from just 1845 to 1849, but it's legacy caused almost a century of population decline, and to this day, the overall population of Ireland has never exceeded it's pre-famine levels. Decline continues through partition The population decline continued well into the twentieth century, during which time the Republic of Ireland achieved independence from the British Empire. After centuries of fighting and rebellion against British rule, Irish nationalists finally gained independence from Britain in 1921, although the six counties with the largest Protestant populations formed Northern Ireland, which is still a part of the United Kingdom today. Although there was much conflict in Ireland in the twentieth century which claimed the lives of thousands of people (particularly during the Northern Irish Troubles), and despite Ireland's high emigration rate, the overall population began growing again in the second half of the 1900s. Recovery The population of the Republic of Ireland was at it's lowest in 1961, with 2.8 million people, which is almost four million fewer people than before the famine. Since then it has grown consistently, reaching 4.6 million in 2011 and expected to reach 5 million people by 2020. In Northern Ireland, the population began growing again from the beginning of the 1900s, but growth has been very slow. The only time it fell was in the 1970s, at the peak of The Troubles, where high unemployment and violence contributed to a lower birth rate and an increase in emigration. From the 1980s onwards, living standards improved and the population began growing again, reaching 1.8 million people in 2011.

Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The purpose of the project was to provide machine-readable economic and social history statistics relating to the whole of Ireland for the period 1821-1971. Further information about the project is available on the QUB Centre for Data Digitisation and Analysis website.


Main Topics:

The main tables are:
Total population grouped by baronies and gender. Also includes the area of each barony (1821-1891).
Total population grouped by electoral divisions and gender. Also includes the area and valuation of each electoral division (1841-1861).
Total population grouped by poor law unions and gender. Also includes the area and valuation of each poor law unions (1841-1901).
Total population grouped by poor law unions and counties and gender. Also includes the area and valuation of each poor law unions (1841-1901).

Please note: this study does not include information on named individuals and would therefore not be useful for personal family history research.

Between 1821 and 1921, the entire island of Ireland was a part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, after both islands were united by the Act of Union in 1800. This graph shows only the population of the six counties of Ireland that would go on to become Northern Ireland. The population was just under 1.4 million in 1821 and grew to 1.7 million in the next twenty years.

Between 1845 and 1849 the Great Famine devastated the overall population of Ireland, causing the deaths of approximately one million people, and causing a further million to emigrate. Although the famine affected the population of the west and south of Ireland much more severely than the north, the population of the six counties still fell by over 200,000 people between 1841 and 1851. The population then continued to fall, reaching it's lowest point in the 1890s where it was 1.2 million. The Northern Irish population then grows slowly until the mid to late 1900s, during which time the state of Northern Ireland was founded in 1921. The population the reaches over 1.54 million in the 1960s, before it falls again in the 1970s. This drop in population coincides with the outbreak and the most violent decade of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, which was a conflict that dominated Northern Irish daily life for decades. However, from 1981 onwards the population grows by 70,000 to 12,000 every ten years, surpassing it's pre-famine level in the 1990s.

Prior to 1921, the six counties that make up modern-day Northern Ireland were a part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the separate state of Northern Ireland did not exist until after the partition of Ireland in 1921. From 1821 until 1841, both the male and female populations grew by 130,000 each, until the Great Famine of 1845 to 1849 caused a sharp decline in the population in the 1840s. This decline continued until 1891, and the male population of the six counties fell at a slightly higher rate than the female population. The number of men fell by 310,000 between 1841 and 1891, and the number of women fell by 300,000. From 1891 to 1937 growth remains quite low, particularly among women, and then from 1937 the growth rate increases again. There is one more decade where the population dropped, which coincides with the most violent period of the Northern Irish Troubles. This was in the 1970s, where the number of men and women fell by approximately 30,000 each.

Cholera is one of the foremost water-borne diseases of citizens in developing countries without adequate access to clean water or sanitation facilities. Every year, 3 to 5 million people worldwide are infected by cholera, of which more than 100,000 die. Cholera is a re-emerging disease whose spread remains difficult to predict. One way to improve our ability to predict cholera epidemics is to learn from the dynamics of past epidemics. Studying historical cholera epidemics improves our understanding of the natural history of cholera before there were effective public health interventions or public understanding of transmission. Recent examples of studies that revisited cholera epidemics include Bingham and colleagues who studied the role of the water supply in the London outbreak of 1849, and Kuo and colleagues (5) who identified the changing geographical patterns of cholera in Fukushima from 1882 and 1895. Here, the 1848 – 1850 cholera epidemic in Ireland is investigated. This epidemic was part of the second cholera pandemic, during which more than 45,698 cases and 19,325 deaths were reported to Ireland’s Central Board of Health. It began during the Irish famine (1845 – 1852), when, between the censuses of 1841 to 1851, the population of Ireland dropped by 1,622,739 people through starvation, disease, and emigration, to a total population of 6,552,385. Epidemiology of the cholera epidemic of 1848 – 1850 in Ireland The second cholera pandemic began in 1829 in India, and first arrived in Ireland in Dublin in March, 1832. This first arrival of cholera in Ireland spread to the principal towns, but subsided quickly. The famine of Ireland began with the potato blight in 1845, which led to migration of Irish people to cities and workhouses in search of work and food. The first reported case of this epidemic was a man just arrived from Edinburgh and took place on December 4, 1848 in a workhouse in Belfast.

Dieser Datensatz umfasst historische BIP- und Bevölkerungsdaten für regionale Gebietskörperschaften in Belgien, Spanien und dem Vereinigten Königreich. Zu den Einrichtungen gehörten: —Für Belgien: Brüssel, Flandern, Wallonien. —Für Spanien: Andalusien, Aragonien, Asturien, Balearen, Baskenland, Kanarische Inseln, Kantabrien, Kastilien-la Mancha, Kastilien-León, Katalonien, Extremadura, Galicien, La Rioja, Madrid, Murcia, Navarra, Valencia. —Für das Vereinigte Königreich: England, London, Nordirland [seit 1801], (Süden) Irland [1801-1921], Schottland, Wales. Für BIP-Daten abgedeckte Zeiträume: —Für Belgien: 1846-2005. —Für Spanien: 1860-2015. —Für das Vereinigte Königreich: 1707-2017. Für Bevölkerungsdaten abgedeckte Zeiträume: —Für Belgien: 1841-2017. —Für Spanien: 1860-2015. —Für das Vereinigte Königreich: 1801-2017. Quellen, Bestätigung und Zitat: Die Daten wurden vom Verfasser auf der Grundlage verschiedener Quellen zusammengestellt und/oder berechnet, die im Abschnitt „Übersicht“ des Datenblatts aufgeführt sind. Bei der Verwendung der Daten geben Sie bitte die entsprechenden Quellen an, die sich auf den von Ihnen verwendeten Teil der Daten beziehen, sowie den oben genannten Datensatz. Letzte Fassung: 1,0 [24.5.2022].

Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The UK censuses took place on 29th April 2001. They were run by the Northern Ireland Statistics & Research Agency (NISRA), General Register Office for Scotland (GROS), and the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for both England and Wales. The UK comprises the countries of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Statistics from the UK censuses help paint a picture of the nation and how we live. They provide a detailed snapshot of the population and its characteristics, and underpin funding allocation to provide public services.

Census Support provides digitised boundary datasets of the UK, available in many Geographic Information System (GIS) formats. Most of these data are available as Open data under OGL v3 license. Postcode directories are also available although some of these are restricted to members of the academic community under 'Special Conditions'.

There are many digitised boundaries available. The main group of boundaries correspond to the various levels of 2011, 2001, 1991, 1981 and 1971 census geography which are designed to be used for spatial visualisation and analysis of census statistics. Also available are historic boundaries created by the Great Britain Historical GIS Project, held at the UK Data Archive under GN 33288 Great Britain Historical Database, 1841-1939.

Main Topics:
Accommodation type (brief)Accommodation type (detailed)
Adults, Number Employed in Household
Adults, Number in Household
Age
Age of Family Reference Person (FRP)
Age of Household Reference Person (HRP)
Age of Students and Schoolchildren
Amenities
Armed Forces
Bath/Shower and Toilet, use of
Care (unpaid), Provision of
Care, Provision of
Carers and their Economic Activity, Number of
Cars and vans
Central heating
Children
Children, dependent
Communal Establishment Residents
Communal establishment, combined type and management
Concealed families
Country of birth
Country of Birth (additional categories)
Daytime Population
Dwelling Type
Economic Activity
Economic Activity of Associated People Resident in Households
Economic Activity of Full-time students
Economic Activity of Household Reference Person (HRP)
Ethnic group (England and Wales)
Ethnic group (England and Wales) of Household Reference Person
Family composition
Family status
Family type
Health, General
Hours worked
Household composition
Household composition (alternative classification)
Household dependent children
Household deprivation
Household Reference Person indicator
Household size
Household Space Type
Household Type
Households with students away during term-time
Industry
Industry, former
Limiting long-term illness
Limiting Long-Term Illness (LLTI), Household residents with
Limiting long-Term Illness, number of people with in household
Living arrangements
Living arrangements of Household Reference Person (HRP)
Lowest floor level
Marital status
Migration (armed forces)
Migration (Communal establishment)
Migration (People)
Multiple ethnic identifier
Occupancy Rating
Occupation (brief)
Occupation (detailed)
Occupation, former
Pensioner household
People aged 17 or over in household, Number of
Population Type
Public transport users in households
Qualifications (England and Wales)
Qualifications, highest level of (England and Wales)
Qualifications, professional
Religion (England and Wales)
Religion (England and Wales) of Household Reference Person
Resident Basis
Resident Type
Rooms in a dwelling, number of
Rooms, Number of
Rooms, Persons per
Sex
Sex of Household Reference Person (HRP)
Single Adult Households
Social Grade of Household Reference Person (HRP), approximated
Social Grade, approximated
Socio-economic Classification (NS-SeC)
Socio-economic Classification (NS-SeC) of Household Reference Person (HRP)Socio-economic Classification (NS-SeC) of Household Reference Person (HRP), Main categories of
Student accommodation (Standard Output)
Student accommodation Type
Student status
Tenure
Tenure, dwelling
Time Since Last Worked
Travel to Work, distance
Travel to work, Means of
Travel to Work, Method of and Number of Employed People
Working Parents
Year last worked

Census Support provides the following facilities:

• Easy Download
The most regularly requested Census Support boundaries available as ready to use national datasets. The key 2011 and 2001 census boundary datasets and look-up tables for England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales are available through this facility

• Boundary Data Selector
This facility allows selection of boundaries, for the area required, in the format required. For...