Shoneenism is a term used in Ireland to describe an ostensible Irishman who is viewed as adhering to Anglophile snobbery. One suggested etymology is seoinín, "Little John", referring to John Bull. The term is always uncomplimentary; the diminutive ending ‘een’ (Gaelic ín), when used in this manner has a loading of contempt. The shoneen or adherent of shoneenism, is characterized by his admiration for the people and culture of upper class England, and by his corresponding disdain for his native customs and traditions, especially the Gaelic language, Gaelic games and traditional music.
Since the eighteen hundreds, the words 'shoneen' and 'shoneenism' have been used as terms of derision by Irish nationalists. The following lines written around the year 1890, have been attributed to land-leaguer, John Honohan of Donoughmore, County Cork:
There is not in this wide world a creature so mean,
As that mongrel of mongrels, the Irish shoneen!
Irish politicians still take pains to avoid the label, since historically it has jeopardized their chances of re-election.
Comparison with "West Brit"
The word shoneen is sometimes erroneously interchanged with the term 'west-Briton', but the two are not the same. The term 'west-Briton' refers to a person of English culture living in Ireland, especially if he or she speaks with an English accent. It is normally used to contend that the person so described is out of touch with Irish people and their concerns. Significantly, the term is not used to describe someone whose culture and speech patterns are Scottish or Welsh. By contrast, the shoneen is very much a native, looking up to and frequently imitating the English, while clearly not English himself. Thus the shoneen is not a west-Briton; that is what he would like to be.
The slang term "West Brit", popular among Irish nationalists during the late twentieth century is different again, in that it refers neither to the social attitudes nor to the cultural attributes of the designee, but to his political position. The shoneen is no different from the generic snob in admiring the upper classes and despising the lower. Where he differs is in his association of England with all things upper-class and his identification of his own cultural forms as low-class and undesirable. For those holding such beliefs, the large English working class with its distinctive norms and mannerisms has always posed a problem.