The “two sides” are the nationalist or republican community, who are usually (but not always) Catholic and identify as Irish; and the unionist or loyalist community, largely Protestant, who identify as British and wish to remain in “the union” that forms the United Kingdom of Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
What is the Protestant side of Belfast?
The east of the city is predominantly Protestant, typically 90% or more. This area, along with the north of the city, is the main growth pole of the Protestant population.
How Belfast is divided?
The city is traditionally divided into four main areas based on the cardinal points of a compass, each of which form the basis of constituencies for general elections: North Belfast, East Belfast, South Belfast, and West Belfast. These four areas meet at Belfast City Centre.
What are the two main sides of the conflict in Northern Ireland?
“The Troubles” refers to the three-decade conflict between nationalists (mainly self-identified as Irish or Roman Catholic) and unionists (mainly self-identified as British or Protestant).
Are loyalists and unionists the same?
Like other unionists, loyalists support the continued existence of Northern Ireland within the United Kingdom, and oppose a united Ireland. Unlike other strands of unionism, loyalism has been described as an ethnic nationalism of Ulster Protestants and “a variation of British nationalism”.
Is North Belfast Protestant or Catholic?
These figures based on the 2021 census at district level mask wide variations on smaller scales. In the Belfast City Council and Derry and Strabane District Council areas, the figures at ward level vary from 99% Protestant to 92% Catholic.
Is Belfast still divided?
In Belfast, the 1970s were a time of rising residential segregation. It was estimated in 2004 that 92.5% of public housing in Northern Ireland was divided along religious lines, with the figure rising to 98% in Belfast. Self-segregation is a continuing process, despite the Northern Ireland peace process.
Is Belfast more Irish or British?
In 2021: 42.8% identified as British, alone or with other national identities. 33.3% identified as Irish, alone or with other national identities. 31.5% identified as Northern Irish, alone or with other national identities.
Is all of Belfast black and white?
Belfast (2021 movie) The past is rarely black-and-white. But in Belfast, it is. The highly personal film from writer-director Kenneth Branagh follows 9-year-old Buddy (Jude Hill) as his family grapples with the onset of the nationalist conflict known as the Troubles in Northern Ireland.
What are the loyalist areas in Belfast?
On its western edge Ardoyne borders on the Crumlin Road and Woodvale Road, two mainly loyalist areas. To the south of Ardoyne there are a number of interface areas on the Oldpark Road. The Torrens area was a heavily fortified loyalist enclave on the road access onto which is severely restricted.
Why Northern Ireland is separate?
In the 1918 Irish general election, the pro-independence Sinn Féin party won the overwhelming majority of Irish seats. Sinn Féin’s elected members boycotted the British parliament and founded a separate Irish parliament (Dáil Éireann), declaring the independent Irish Republic covering the whole island.
Is Dublin Catholic or Protestant?
Irish Christianity is dominated by the Catholic Church, and Christianity as a whole accounts for 82.3% of the Irish population. Most churches are organized on an all-Ireland basis which includes both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
Why did Ireland and Northern Ireland split?
The Unionist governments of Northern Ireland were accused of discrimination against the Irish nationalist and Catholic minority. A campaign to end discrimination was opposed by loyalists who said it was a republican front. This sparked the Troubles (c.
What religion are unionists?
Catholic Unionist is a term historically used for a Catholic in Ireland who supported the Union which formed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and subsequently used to describe Catholics who support the Union between Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
What do Irish Unionists want?
Unionism is a political tradition on the island of Ireland that favours political union with Great Britain and professes loyalty to the British Crown and constitution.
Are unionists Irish?
The Irish Unionist Alliance (IUA), also known as the Irish Unionist Party, Irish Unionists or simply the Unionists, was a unionist political party founded in Ireland in 1891 from a merger of the Irish Conservative Party and the Irish Loyal and Patriotic Union to oppose plans for home rule for Ireland within the United
Which parts of Belfast are Catholic?
West Belfast
The Falls Road (from Irish túath na bhFál ‘territory of the enclosures’) is the main road through West Belfast, Northern Ireland, running from Divis Street in Belfast City Centre to Andersonstown in the suburbs. The name has been synonymous for at least a century and a half with the Catholic community in the city.
What are the IRA fighting for?
The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various paramilitary organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dedicated to irredentism through Irish republicanism, the belief that all of Ireland should be an independent republic free from British rule.
Do Catholics still live in Belfast?
Results from the 2021 census released on Thursday showed that 45.7% of inhabitants are Catholic or from a Catholic background compared with 43.48% from Protestant or other Christian backgrounds.
Is East Belfast Protestant or Catholic?
The Short Strand (Irish: an Trá Ghearr) is a working class, inner city area of Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is a mainly Catholic and Irish nationalist enclave surrounded by the mainly Protestant and unionist East Belfast.
Are there still peace walls in Belfast?
Are there still peace walls in Belfast? Yes, at least east 40 of them throughout Belfast, separating suburbs. In West Belfast, the most prominent of the peace walls can be found between The Falls Road and Shankill Road. Additionally, there are peace walls in North Belfast, East Belfast, Portadown, and Derry.