Irish population now older, more urban & less Catholic

CSO Statistician Maria Yasin explains that the 1926 data "stands as a baseline for understanding a century of demographic, economic, and social development," allowing us "to see not only how Ireland once was, but how profoundly it has changed".

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CONTRAST O'Connell Street in Dublin in 1920s and, right, capital's main thoroughfare a century later

One of the most striking differences revealed in the data is where we chose to put down roots. The Ireland of 1926 was overwhelmingly rural.

Dublin, while still the capital, accounted for just 17% of the population.

"We were more spread out," Murphy observes. "Dublin accounted for 17% of the population and the counties along the western seaboard had had really good numbers and really I think the story is that sort of rural to urban would definitely become more urbanised over that intervening period".

Today, the capital bursts at the seams, holding 28% of the entire state's population. As Dublin swelled, the West emptied out. Counties like Leitrim, Mayo, and Roscommon suffered heartbreaking double-digit population declines between 1926 and 2022 — Leitrim falling by a staggering 37%, Mayo by 20%, and Roscommon by 16%.

LABOUR

Meanwhile, the modern commuter belt exploded.