The ‘New’ Irish: Over Half A Million Non-Irish Nationals Now Live Here

Over half a million non-nationals are now living in Ireland, new figures can reveal.

The number of foreigners calling Ireland their home has soared by a massive 143 per cent in the last decade, according to last year’s Census.

And the majority of them have chosen to stick out the recession with us.

Some 544,357 non-Irish people from 199 different nations are living here. This is more than the amount of people living in Connacht.

This number has grown by 30 per cent since the last Census in 2006.

The figures reveal Galway is the Ireland's most multi-cultural city.

It is our Polish friends that represent the largest group of non-nationals in Ireland, their population has almost doubled since 2006 to 122,585. This is approximately the same as the whole population of Louth.

People from the UK are the second largest group living in Ireland.

Dublin City had the most non-Irish nationals than any area in the country, tipping Fingal in North County Dublin and Cork County to the top post.

Leitrim and Longford had the lowest numbers.

The figures also revealed that it is Galway that is the most multi-cultural area in the country, with nearly 20 per cent of its residents recorded as non-Irish.