Ireland had its own parliament from 1295 to 1800. The 1801 Act of Union joined Ireland with Great Britain, under the name United Kingdom. The union ended in 1922, with the creation of the Irish Free State, encompassing 26 of the island's 32 counties. The six northern counties make up Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK.
The Republic of Ireland separated from the British Commonwealth in 1949. It joined the European Union in 1973.
From the 17th to early 20th century, an estimated 7 million people emigrated from Ireland to North America. Many fled English domination, religious persecution and poverty; waves of desperate immigrants left during the famine years.
Ireland's economy, fueled by development funding from the European Union and the International Fund for Ireland, has experienced such a dramatic turnaround in the past decade that it has become known as the "Celtic Tiger."
