What are people from Ireland?

Terrin   Thu Feb 01, 2007 7:04 pm GMT
Hi, I've a question on what people from Ireland are called. I know the Brits, Scots, Americans, etc. but I've never heard the name for residents of the Green Isle. Replies?
Guest   Thu Feb 01, 2007 7:08 pm GMT
The Irish
Damian in Edinburgh   Thu Feb 01, 2007 11:24 pm GMT
Paddies
02IH   Fri Feb 02, 2007 9:43 am GMT
Not all Irishmen are "Paddies" or "Micks" of course.

I'm sure the Reverend Ian and his ilk would take some exception to such a sobriquet.

People from Ireland are Irish, Irishmen and/or Irishwomen.
Jessyca   Fri Feb 02, 2007 5:10 pm GMT
"Paddies"

Isn't "Paddies" the racist name for Irishmen?
Lazar   Sat Feb 03, 2007 12:06 am GMT
The adjective is "Irish", and the noun is "Irishman", "Irishwoman", or "Irish person", with the collective form "the Irish". The other terms are offensive.
Guest   Sat Feb 03, 2007 5:40 pm GMT
"The other terms are offensive."

Terms with an 's'? I've only heard one: "Paddy"
Lazar   Sat Feb 03, 2007 6:02 pm GMT
There's also "Mick" and "Harp".
Damian in Edinburgh   Sat Feb 03, 2007 6:18 pm GMT
I don't think that all Irish people are offended by the term "Paddy". It can be taken as just an informal abbreviation for the common Irish name Patrick. I'm pretty sure that many guys called Patrick are called Paddy for short and if some regard it as derogatory then I suppose it's their option to do so. Maybe it all depends on context.
Lazar   Sat Feb 03, 2007 6:35 pm GMT
<<It can be taken as just an informal abbreviation for the common Irish name Patrick. I'm pretty sure that many guys called Patrick are called Paddy for short and if some regard it as derogatory then I suppose it's their option to do so.>>

That's a completely different thing; I was referring to ethnic nicknames, not abbreviated individual names. It goes without saying that someone named Patrick might go as "Paddy", or someone named Michael might go as "Mick". But that has absolutely *nothing* to do with what I was talking about.

Let me make myself abundantly clear and specify that if you're talking to an Irish person who's not named Patrick and you call him "Paddy", it will be quite likely to cause offence. (Duh!)

My advice is to avoid all ethnic nicknames, because they almost invariably have some derogatory aspect.
another guest   Sat Feb 03, 2007 11:20 pm GMT
"My advice is to avoid all ethnic nicknames, because they almost invariably have some derogatory aspect. "

What if you're joking around with your friends? For example, if I was American and joking around with my other American mates, calling them "yanks"?
zzz   Sat Feb 03, 2007 11:28 pm GMT
>> What if you're joking around with your friends? For example, if I was American and joking around with my other American mates, calling them "yanks"?<<

I don't know how to get it through your thick skulls, but guys, "Yank" does not mean American. It means a Northeasterner. Using it to refer to all Americans, is unheard of in the US. The result would be blank stares, or confusion.
Lazar   Sun Feb 04, 2007 6:20 am GMT
<<For example, if I was American and joking around with my other American mates, calling them "yanks"?>>

The problem is that we Americans never call ourselves "Yanks". We do *occasionally* use the term "Yankee" to refer specifically to Northeasterners or New Englanders, but that's about it.

Regardless of the specifics, your question is basically about the use of in-group nicknames. If you and a friend or family member are both of a certain ethnicity, then you're generally "allowed" to use at least a mildly derogatory nickname for such ethnicity.
another guest   Sun Feb 04, 2007 3:38 pm GMT
Jesus, it doesn't have to be Americans! It can be Germans calling eachother Krauts or Frenchmen saying Frogs! Any country, any race!! You don't have to be so damned defensive...
another guest   Sun Feb 04, 2007 3:39 pm GMT
Oh...I, um, didn't see your last paragraph, Lazar...Sorry, mate...