Topic outline of the Republic of Ireland

:"For an alphabetical index of this subject, see the List of Ireland-related articles."

Ireland is a country in Northern Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned in 1921. It is bordered by Northern Ireland (part of the United Kingdom) to the north, by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and by the Irish Sea to the east. Legally, the term Republic of Ireland (Irish: "Poblacht na hÉireann") is the "description" of the State but "Ireland" is its "name". [ [http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/1948/en/act/pub/0022/sec0002.html#zza22y1948s2 Section 2] of the Republic of Ireland Act 1948 (Irl).]

Ireland is one of the richest, most developed and peaceful countries on earth, having the fifth highest gross domestic product per capita, second highest gross domestic product (purchasing power parity) per capita and having the fifth highest Human Development Index rank. The country also boasts the highest quality of life in the world, ranking first in the Economist Intelligence Unit’s Quality-of-life index. Ireland was ranked fourth on the Global Peace Index. Ireland also has high rankings for its education system, political freedom and civil rights, press freedom and economic freedom; it was also ranked fourth from the bottom on the Failed States Index, being one of the few "sustainable" states in the world.

Ireland is a member of the EU, the OECD and the UN. Ireland's policy of neutrality means it is not a member of NATO. Ireland's population is the fastest growing in Europe, with an annual growth rate of 2.5%.

The following topic outline is provided as an overview of and introduction to Ireland:

__TOC__

* Pronunciation:
* International rankings of Ireland
** 120th largest country
** 121st most populous country

Geography of Ireland

: "Main article: Geography of Ireland"

* Ireland is: a country, on an island
* Location:
** Northern Hemisphere and Western Hemisphere
** Atlantic Ocean
** Eurasia
*** Europe
**** Northern Europe
***** British Isles
****** Ireland (the island)
**** Western Europe
** Extreme points of Ireland
* Population: 4,339,000 people (2007 estimate) - 121st most populous country
* Size: unit sqkm|70273|0|lk=on - 120th largest country
*

Environment of Ireland

* Climate of Ireland
* Ecology of Ireland
** Ecoregions in Ireland
** Renewable energy in Ireland
* Geology of Ireland
* Protected areas of Ireland
** Biosphere reserves in Ireland: None
** National parks of Ireland
* Wildlife of Ireland
** Flora of Ireland
** Fauna of Ireland
*** Birds of Ireland
*** Mammals of Ireland

Natural geographic features of Ireland

:"Main article: Landforms of Ireland"

* Fjords of Ireland
* Glaciers of Ireland
* Islands of Ireland
* Lakes of Ireland
* Mountains of Ireland
** Volcanoes in Ireland
* Rivers of Ireland
** Waterfalls of Ireland
* Valleys of Ireland
* World Heritage Sites in Ireland

Regions of Ireland

: "Main article: Regions of Ireland"

* Provinces of Ireland

Ecoregions of Ireland

: "Main article: Ecoregions of Ireland"

Administrative divisions of Ireland

: "Main article: Administrative divisions of Ireland"

* Counties of Ireland
** Municipalities of Ireland

Counties of Ireland

The counties of the Republic of Ireland:

* County Carlow
* County Cavan
* County Clare
* County Cork
* County Donegal
* County Galway
* County Kerry
* County Kildare
* County Kilkenny
* County Laois
* County Leitrim
* County Limerick
* County Longford
* County Louth
* County Mayo
* County Meath
* County Monaghan
* County of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown
* County of Fingal
* County Offaly
* County of South Dublin
* County Roscommon
* County Sligo
* County Waterford
* County Westmeath
* County Wexford
* County Wicklow
* North Tipperary
* South Tipperary

The counties arranged in other ways:
* List of Irish counties by population
* List of Irish counties by area

Municipalities of Ireland

* Capital of Ireland
* Cities of Ireland

Demography of Ireland

: "Main article: Demographics of Ireland"

Government and politics of Ireland

: "Main article: Government of Ireland and Politics of Ireland"

* Form of government: parliamentary representative democratic republic
* Capital of Ireland: Capital of Ireland

* Elections in Ireland
** (specific elections)
* Political parties in Ireland
* Political scandals of Ireland
* Taxation in Ireland

Branches of the government of Ireland

Executive branch of the government of Ireland

* Head of state: President of Ireland, Mary McAleese
* Head of government: Prime Minister of Ireland, Brian Cowen
** Deputy Prime Minister of Ireland, Mary Coughlan
* Cabinet of Ireland
** Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
** Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism
** Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
** Minister for Community
** Minister for Defence
** Minister for Education and Science
** Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment
** Minister for the Environment
** Minister for Finance (Ireland)
** Minister for Foreign Affairs
** Minister for Health and Children
** Minister for Justice
** Minister for Social and Family Affairs
** Minister for Transport
* State-sponsored bodies of the Republic of Ireland
* Civil service of the Republic of Ireland

Legislative branch of the government of Ireland

* Oireachtas (bicameral parliament)
** The President of Ireland
** The two Houses of the Oireachtas ( _ga. Tithe an Oireachtais):
*** Upper house: Seanad Éireann
*** Lower house: Dáil Éireann

Judicial branch of the government of Ireland

* Supreme Court of Ireland
* High Court of Ireland

Foreign relations of Ireland

* Diplomatic missions in Ireland
* Diplomatic missions of Ireland
* United States-Ireland relations

International organization membership

Ireland is a member of:
* European Union
* United Nations
* WTO

Law and order in Ireland

: "Main article: Law of Ireland"

* Capital punishment in Ireland
* Constitution of Ireland
* Crime in Ireland
* Human rights in Ireland
** LGBT rights in Ireland
** Freedom of religion in Ireland
* Law enforcement in Ireland
** National law enforcement agencies
*** Airport Police Fire Service
*** Garda Síochána na hÉireann
*** Garda Síochána Reserve
** Local law enforcement agencies
*** Póilíní Airm
*** Dublin Harbour Police
*** Dun Laoghaire Harbour Police

Military of Ireland

: "Main article: Military of Ireland"

* Command
** Supreme Commander of the Defence Forces: President of Ireland, Mary McAleese
*** Ministry of Defence of Ireland
* Forces
**Permanent Defence Forces [The Permanent Defence Forces (of Ireland) are the standing branches of the Irish Defence Forces, and are sometimes referred to as the PDF, the P.D.F. and the Permanent Forces.]
*** Army of Ireland
*** Navy of Ireland
*** Air Force of Ireland
*** Special forces of Ireland
**Reserve Defence Forces [The Reserve Defence Forces (of Ireland) are sometimes referred to as the RDF, the R.D.F., the Reserve Forces and the Reserves.]
***Army Reserve (formerly "An Fórsa Cosanta Áitiúil")
***Naval Service Reserve (formerly "An Slua Muirí")
* Military history of Ireland
* Military ranks of Ireland

Local government in Ireland

History of Ireland

: "Main article: History of Ireland, Timeline of the history of Ireland, and

* Military history of Ireland

Culture of Ireland

: "Main article: Culture of Ireland"

* Architecture of Ireland
* Cuisine of Ireland
* Festivals in Ireland
* Humor in Ireland
* Languages of Ireland
* Media in Ireland
* National symbols of Ireland
** Coat of arms of Ireland
** Flag of Ireland
** National anthem of Ireland
* People of Ireland
** Ethnic minorities in Ireland
* Prostitution in Ireland
* Public holidays in Ireland
* Records of Ireland
* Religion in Ireland
** Buddhism in Ireland
** Christianity in Ireland
** Hinduism in Ireland
** Islam in Ireland
** Judaism in Ireland
** Sikhism in Ireland
* World Heritage Sites in Ireland

The Arts in Ireland

* Art in Ireland
* Cinema of Ireland
* Literature of Ireland
* Music of Ireland
* Television in Ireland
* Theatre in Ireland

Sports in Ireland

: "Main article: Sports in Ireland"

* Football in Ireland

Economy of Ireland

: "Main article: Economy of Ireland"

* Economic rank (by nominal GDP): 32nd (thirty-second)

* Agriculture in Ireland
* Banking in Ireland
** Central Bank of Ireland
* Communications in Ireland
* Companies of Ireland
* Currency of Ireland: the Euro (see also )
* Economic history of Ireland
* Energy policy of Ireland
* Mining in Ireland
* Oil industry in Ireland
* Tourism in Ireland
* Transport in Ireland

* Irish Stock Exchange

Education in Ireland

: "Main article: Education in Ireland"

Infrastructure of Ireland

* Communications in Ireland
** Internet in Ireland
* Energy in Ireland
* Health care in Ireland
* Transportation in Ireland
** Airports in Ireland
** Rail transport in Ireland
** Roads in Ireland
* Water supply and sanitation in Ireland

See also

* List of basic geography topics
* List of Ireland-related articles (alphabetical index)
* List of international rankings

References

External links

* [http://www.gov.ie/aras _ga. Áras an Uachtaráin] — Official presidential site
* [http://www.breakingnews.ie/2004/09/09/story165780.html Irish genes from Spain]
* [http://www.irlgov.ie/ Information on the Irish State] — Governmental portal
* [http://www.irelandstory.com/ Ireland Story] — History, geography and current affairs
* [http://www.nli.ie/fr_offi2.htm Chief Herald of Ireland] — Flags, Seals, Titles
* [http://www.prospect-magazine.co.uk/article_details.php?id=7817 Myths of British ancestry]
* [http://taoiseach.gov.ie/ Taoiseach] — Official prime ministerial site
* [http://www.gov.ie/oireachtas/frame.htm Tithe an Oireachtais] — Houses of Parliament, official parliamentary site
* [http://www.eu2004.ie/templates/homepage.asp?sNavlocator=1 2004 Presidency of the Council of the European Union]