Ulster English is a variety of Irish English spoken in Northern Ireland. Most people from the province of Ulster speak this variety that shows a high linguistic diversity. This variety is peculiar because of the contact between the indigenous Irish speakers and the English and Scottish settlers that arrived during the plantation period of the British Empire. However, although there are not that many inhabitants in this country, around 1,811 million, there are some characteristic features that can be seen in only certain parts of this diverse nation.
In the following map we can see the tree main varieties that can be found in Northern Ireland: Ulster Scots, Mid-Ulster English and South-Ulster English. In the lower part of the map we can also see Hiberno-English, a variety from the Republic of Ireland that also affects the Northern Irish ones because of their contact in the border. Before analysing any of the varieties it is important to notice that although Donegal and Monaghan are not a part of Northern Ireland, they share Northern Irish varieties because of their closeness to the country and because they are inside de province of Ulster as well.
There is no such “country” as Ulster. The state of Northern Ireland, comprising all but three counties of the ancient province Ulster, was engineered in 1921 to form what was then seen by most Irish people as a temporary state-let. Take a look at similar, arbitrary maps of Africa and Asia made up in drawing rooms in Whitehall during the heyday of Empire and you’ll see a pattern emerging of political and ethnic strife. This is no coincidence. (Joe Downes)
Ulster Scots is mainly spoken in the northern part and has its origin in the Scottish immigrants. Some linguists consider it a variety of Scots rather that a variety of English. For this same reason, speakers of Ulster Scots are usually mistaken as Scottish.
Other variety, South Ulster English, can be found around the border with the Republic of Ireland and it is a mix of between Hiberno-English and Ulster Mid English. This variety is influenced by the contact with others because of its location.
The last variety and for many linguists, the most important one because of its number of speakers is Mid-Ulster English. This variety is often referred to as Standard Northern Irish because it is the most spoken and the one used in the two main cities; Belfast and Derry-Londonderry.
In the following link there are some recordings of speakers of the different varieties of Northern Irish English.
In order to study Northern Irish English, it is very important to be aware of its history because it has had a great influence in both the culture and the language of the nation. For this very reason, it is such a hard task to classify each variety, because the contact between different varieties is still constantly changing the language. However, although there is a clear cultural and political difference between Catholics and Protestants in the country, they do not use distinctive features in their speech and therefore; cannot be distinguished by the way they speak.
The following video “Why are there so many Northern Irish accents?” is in my opinion quite interesting because it explains the many accents that can be found across Northern Ireland and why there are so many. It also takes into account how each speaker is influenced by society and all the external elements of their context.
Sources:
- BBC Northern Ireland. (6 de February de 2015). YouTube. Recuperado el 25 de November de 2016, de Why are there so many Northern Irish accents?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXbcYwJiU7M
- Paper, T. (2013). Varieties of English. Northern Irish English: Located between Hiberno-English and Ulster Scots!?Munich: GRIN Verlag.
- Trawick-Smith, B. (27 de September de 2014). Dialect Blog. Recuperado el 25 de November de 2016, de Scotland borders language: http://dialectblog.com/2014/09/27/scotland-borders-language/
- Universitat Duisburg Essen. (s.f.). Uni-De. Recuperado el 25 de November de 2016, de English in Ulster: https://www.uni-due.de/VCDE/VCDE_Ulster_English.htm
