what does it mean to be scots irish
Scotch-Irish Americans Scotch-Irish (or Scots-Irish) Americans are American descendants of Presbyterian and other Ulster Protestant Dissenters from various parts of Ireland, but usually from the province of Ulster, who migrated during the 18th and 19th centuries.[2][3] While an estimated 36 million Americans (12% of the total population) reported Irish ancestry in 2006, and 6 million (2% of the population) reported Scottish ancestry,[4] an additional 5.4 million (1.8% of the population) identified more specifically with Scotch-Irish ancestry. The term Scotch-Irish is used primarily in the United States,[5] with people in Great Britain or Ireland who are of a similar ancestry identifying as Ulster Scots people. Most of these emigres from Ireland had been recent settlers,[citation needed] or the descendants of settlers,[citation needed] from the Kingdom of England or the Kingdom of Scotland who had gone to the Kingdom of Ireland to seek economic opportunities and freedom from the control of the episcopal Church of England and the Scottish Episcopal Church. These included 200,000 Scottish Presbyterians who settled in Ireland between 1608-1697. Many English-born settlers of this period were also Presbyterians, although the denomination is today most strongly identified with Scotland. When King Charles I attempted to force these Presbyterians into the Church of England in the 1630s, many chose to re-emigrate to North America where religious liberty was greater. Later attempts to force the Church of England's control over dissident Protestants in Ireland were to lead to further waves of emigration to the trans-Atlantic colonies.[6]
Ulster Ulster (/ˈʌlstər/; Irish: Ulaidh pronounced [ˈul̪ˠəi] or Cúige Uladh pronounced [ˈkuːɟə ˈul̪ˠə], Ulster Scots: Ulstèr[5][6][7] or Ulster)[8][9][10] is a province in the north of the island of Ireland. It is made up of nine counties, six of which are in Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom) and three of which are in the Republic of Ireland. It is the second largest (after Munster) and second most populous (after Leinster) of Ireland's four provinces, with Belfast being its biggest city. Unlike the other provinces, Ulster has a high percentage of Protestants, making up almost half of its population. English is the main language and Ulster English the main dialect. A minority also speak Irish, and there is a Gaeltacht (Irish-speaking region) in the west. Lough Neagh, in the east, is the largest lake in the British Isles, while Lough Erne in the west is one of its largest lake networks. The main mountain ranges are the Mournes, Sperrins, Croaghgorms and Derryveagh Mountains.