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They were originally from the borderlands of England and Scotland. They were settled in Northern Ireland because they were Protestants and the king wanted to put Protestants there. Many of them left Ireland for America. They are one of the biggest European groups in America that settled. Either #2 or #3 behind the English and maybe the Germans.
Most of the Irish in the south are actually scots Irish. Especially if they are also Protestant. The Irish Catholics settled mostly in the north east.
They are genetically pretty much northern English. The people from the Scottish borderlands are different from the Scottish highlanders.
If they were born in Scotland then they would just be Scottish. Similar to Ireland. Scots Irish makes as much sense as English Irish. Those two Island's are filled with people who descended from each other's lands. They have been integrating for thousands of years so they all have mixed Irish, English, Scottish, Welsh ancestry. Never heard of Any Irish Unionists declaring themselves as Scots Irish however. They either call themselves Irish Unionists or Northern Irish. Just trying to make sense of these labels lol
The northern Irish (Protestants) are not the same as the rest of Ireland (Catholic). They are literally still 2 different countries to this day.
The scots Irish are genetically from the borderlands of Scotland and England. They are not Irish. They are not Scottish highlanders. They are also called Ulster Scots and scotch Irish. Anybody who hasn’t heard of this term probably shouldn’t be trying to educate anybody in this thread.
I had my DNA done and have an extensive, well documented family tree. My most recent immigrant ancestor was a great, great, great, great-grandmother. The rest were here by the mid 1700’s, and many came from the 1630’s to 1670. My DNA results say I’m 54% England and Northwest Europe, 17% Sweden and Denmark, 14% Scottish, 4% Irish, 3% French, 2% Jewish, 2% Balkans, 2% Germanic Europe and 2% Wales. I had a German Jewish immigrant in 1759.
The ethnicities overlap some geographically. The vast majority of my immigrant ancestors were split between England and Germany. My mom’s people were early South Carolina settlers who stayed put and my dad’s were early Virginia and North Carolina settlers whose descendants migrated to southern Indiana. I realize this is anecdotal, but it offers a little glimpse into typical white people’s ancestry in America when all of their immigrant ancestors arrived so long ago.
British heritage groups are lower because fewer of them came over. The population of the US in 1776 was merely 2.6 million. By 1850 it was almost 24 million but few of these new migrants were actually British. British migration to the US was significantly lower for obvious reasons after 1776. The most obvious is two American wars with the UK over a few decades which created anti-British sentiment in the US which lasted way into 19th century. Second The UK was now focused on colonizing two new nations, New Zealand and Australia and cities were setup all over these nations in the 19th century so clearly why go to a hostile Republic like the US when there are exciting new colonies to go to that share a similar culture to your own and values.
Meanwhile In a century alone just after the 1812 war right up until the 20th century around 5 million Irish people arrived which dwarfs the numbers of British ancestry and the Germans were even more numerous by far outnumbering every other ancestry in the US. I've often wondered why there isn't that same connection to Germany among many Americans as they have for the likes of Italy and Ireland and I've read a number of reasons for this. I've also always wondered why after almost two centuries when it's migration was at it's peak why do so many people still have a connection to Ireland even though they are now just the mainstream?
In Australia things make a bit more sense. English and Irish make most of the heritage of the entire country. However today only 10% of people here claim to be Irish due to their heritage while Australian is the second highest group. The top group in Australia is actually English. The reason for this is obvious. Right up until a few decades ago the English made up the VAST number of migrants to Australia thus with such a fresh connection to their motherland many still don't fully recognise themselves as Australian just yet. In the second highest group, Australian, these people would have lineage so far back to England, Ireland and Scotland that they no longer associate themselves with it. People don't tend to associate themselves with a particular heritage here after a long period of time but in the US people still do. It's just different which I find interesting
In america the British are also the biggest heritage group of white Americans by far. The English that settled this country completely dominant in numbers the number of any other groups. It’s why we still speak English and always have. Most of the other Europeans that moved here married into other English families. The scots Irish also originate in the borderlands of Scotland and England and there were more of them than there were Irish Catholics. The entire region of the American south is British. There are pockets of French and even smaller pockets of German but probably 90% of the are is majority british. And when you factor in black Americans, almost all of them have a small amount of European dna, if their ancestors have been here for centuries. And if this is the case, it is almost always English or scots Irish .
Even when white Americans take ancestry tests they almost always come up as being mostly British. If you don’t believe me then look some up yourself.
I have done ancestry for a few of my friends. Only 1 person I have done it for had no British. My girlfriends dad. His family was from rural Pennsylvania and they are 100%. Everybody else, even my mixed race friends, even my friends that swore they were German, they all have some part of British. My friend who thought he was completely German is half English and Scots Irish. My dad is completely English and scots Irish and he thought we were completely German lol.
If your family history involves being in america for a while and you don’t know where your ancestors came from. Then there’s a pretty good chance you are English.
I had my DNA done and have an extensive, well documented family tree. My most recent immigrant ancestor was a great, great, great, great-grandmother. The rest were here by the mid 1700’s, and many came from the 1630’s to 1670. My DNA results say I’m 54% England and Northwest Europe, 17% Sweden and Denmark, 14% Scottish, 4% Irish, 3% French, 2% Jewish, 2% Balkans, 2% Germanic Europe and 2% Wales. I had a German Jewish immigrant in 1759.
The ethnicities overlap some geographically. The vast majority of my immigrant ancestors were split between England and Germany. My mom’s people were early South Carolina settlers who stayed put and my dad’s were early Virginia and North Carolina settlers whose descendants migrated to southern Indiana. I realize this is anecdotal, but it offers a little glimpse into typical white people’s ancestry in America when all of their immigrant ancestors arrived so long ago.
I want to get my percentage breakdown done. All I have done is traced the lines back. Super interesting.
Many do not provide the census information, so I wouldn't count on their "statistics". It was taken during the "health emergency. Illegals do not generally participate in most areas of the country, and questions have become more intrusive, so I know others are no longer participating. They were pretty desperate for info during COVID, as they came to the door when I didn't complete the "survey", I asked what type of questions they needed answers to, so much more than ever before. Many avoid them, and they will ask neighbors to tell them about the "people next door" in order to get a count.
So, I wouldn't count on government statistics for anything!
Going to the door when they don’t complete the survey is something they have always done. The questions involve how many people live in your house, what state were they born in, hold old are they, and what is their race. That’s pretty much it.
British heritage groups are lower because fewer of them came over. The population of the US in 1776 was merely 2.6 million. By 1850 it was almost 24 million but few of these new migrants were actually British. British migration to the US was significantly lower for obvious reasons after 1776. The most obvious is two American wars with the UK over a few decades which created anti-British sentiment in the US which lasted way into 19th century. Second The UK was now focused on colonizing two new nations, New Zealand and Australia and cities were setup all over these nations in the 19th century so clearly why go to a hostile Republic like the US when there are exciting new colonies to go to that share a similar culture to your own and values.
Meanwhile In a century alone just after the 1812 war right up until the 20th century around 5 million Irish people arrived which dwarfs the numbers of British ancestry and the Germans were even more numerous by far outnumbering every other ancestry in the US. I've often wondered why there isn't that same connection to Germany among many Americans as they have for the likes of Italy and Ireland and I've read a number of reasons for this. I've also always wondered why after almost two centuries when it's migration was at it's peak why do so many people still have a connection to Ireland even though they are now just the mainstream?
In Australia things make a bit more sense. English and Irish make most of the heritage of the entire country. However today only 10% of people here claim to be Irish due to their heritage while Australian is the second highest group. The top group in Australia is actually English. The reason for this is obvious. Right up until a few decades ago the English made up the VAST number of migrants to Australia thus with such a fresh connection to their motherland many still don't fully recognise themselves as Australian just yet. In the second highest group, Australian, these people would have lineage so far back to England, Ireland and Scotland that they no longer associate themselves with it. People don't tend to associate themselves with a particular heritage here after a long period of time but in the US people still do. It's just different which I find interesting
You're underestimating two factors for the British-descended population. For one, the natural growth. People had a lot of children in those days and America offered the vastness of resources that allowed those to prosper. There's millions of Americans today who descend from British immigrants who arrived prior to 1776. That was a significant core population from which to grow.
Secondly, migration from Britain to the U.S. has actually been more consistent than migration from Ireland and other places. Most of the big 'source' countries primarily provided immigrants in major waves (for Ireland the middle of the 19th century, for Germany the late 19th century, for Italians and Poles the early 20th century) while migration from England and Scotland just 'quietly' continued from early colonial days through to the present day (in smaller numbers of course). By 1920 there were actually again more UK-born people in America than Ireland-born and that has continued to this day.
I do not believe American independence was as significant a problem for immigration from Britain as you say. Culturally, America would have been perceived as an easy fit for the British regardless of independence. I don't think it's so much that British migration stopped, it's that the migrant waves from 1830 through 1930 from other countries in Europe simply were absolutely enormous due to the big-time push factors in those countries. Ireland in particular emptied out to a degree perhaps no other country had ever done due to emigration.
If they were born in Scotland then they would just be Scottish. Similar to Ireland. Scots Irish makes as much sense as English Irish. Those two Island's are filled with people who descended from each other's lands. They have been integrating for thousands of years so they all have mixed Irish, English, Scottish, Welsh ancestry. Never heard of Any Irish Unionists declaring themselves as Scots Irish however. They either call themselves Irish Unionists or Northern Irish. Just trying to make sense of these labels lol
Scots-Irish = Ulster Scots basically.
As stated by other replies, these are Lowland Scots/Northern English that moved to Northern Ireland before coming to America. The confusion is that many of them called themselves Irish until the Catholic Irish began immigrating to the U.S. in large numbers. Their numbers are under reported in the U.S., and most of the "Irish" you see in southern counties should actually be Scots-Irish.
If they were born in Scotland then they would just be Scottish. Similar to Ireland. Scots Irish makes as much sense as English Irish. Those two Island's are filled with people who descended from each other's lands. They have been integrating for thousands of years so they all have mixed Irish, English, Scottish, Welsh ancestry. Never heard of Any Irish Unionists declaring themselves as Scots Irish however. They either call themselves Irish Unionists or Northern Irish. Just trying to make sense of these labels lol
They're called Scots or Scotch-Irish because they would have a cultural memory of being Scottish and attending a Presbyterian church, but they would also have a memory of their folks having come over from Ireland and their grandparents may have birthplaces in Co. Antrim or Down.
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