Irish New Zealanders are New Zealanders who are of Irish ancestry or New Zealanders who originate from Ireland.
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The Irish diaspora in the nineteenth century reached New Zealand, with many Irish people immigrating predominantly to Auckland, Canterbury and West Coast. With the Irish immigration to New Zealand, the Irish people established Catholic churches and schools especially in Auckland. Currently, there are roughly 600,000 New Zealanders today of Irish ancestry, with Irish culture influencing the culture of New Zealand.
The descendants of the Irish people and their culture has been mixed with modern-day New Zealand culture being inspired by other New Zealand European cultures. However unlike many Scottish settlers in Otago and Southland the Irish settlers were more spread out across the country, resulting in a visible Irish communities in New Zealand to mix with other communities. Job opportunities for Ireland-born New Zealanders were a struggle, with many bias being towards Irish people, however this did not stop many joining the New Zealand Police Force with 40% being of Irish ancestry into the 1930s. Although the Irish national public holiday, St. Patrick's Day is still widely celebrated in New Zealand with over 65 pubs around the country.
Irish culture in New Zealand
During the immigration of many Irish settlers, especially in the nineteenth century, would have called themselves British instead of Irish probably because loyalty towards the British Empire increased with many other European settlers in New Zealand. Many New Zealanders today still celebrate St. Patrick's Day, however Irish influence in New Zealand culture is not as influential as the Scottish and English cultures brought to New Zealand.
Irish Immigration to New Zealand; 1840 - 1915
Irish immigration towards New Zealand during the Irish diaspora in the nineteenth and early twentieth were predominantly from the region of Ulster. Immigration from the region of Leinster however, was quite common to New Zealand from 1840 towards 1852. However immigration during the Irish diaspora from Connaught was uncommon, making up a small percentage of Irish immigration in New Zealand.