(), abbreviated , is an Irish-language

idiom An idiom is a phrase or expression that largely or exclusively carries a Literal and figurative language, figurative or non-literal meaning (linguistic), meaning, rather than making any literal sense. Categorized as formulaic speech, formulaic ...

that can be translated variously as ''soldiers of Ireland'', ''warriors of Ireland'', ''

volunteers Volunteering is an elective and freely chosen act of an individual or group giving their time and labor, often for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergenc ...

of Ireland''O'Leary, Brendan. ''Terror, insurgency, and the state: ending protracted conflicts''. University of Pennsylvania Press, 2007. p 190. or ''Irish volunteers''. In traditional Gaelic script, it is written .

Irish Volunteers/Irish Republican Army

, the singular of , comes from the

Old Irish Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic (, Ogham, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ; ; or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic languages, Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive written texts. It was used from 600 to 900. The ...

word , meaning a young man or (by analogy) a young warrior. The phrase was coined as an Irish-language name for the Irish Volunteers of 1913, and it was retained despite the Volunteers becoming known in English as the

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various Resistance movement, resistance organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dominantly Catholic and dedicated to anti-imperiali ...

(IRA) during the War of Independence of 1919–1922. The name has also been used by several other paramilitary groups calling themselves the "

" since 1920. These groups each claim to be the sole legitimist modern successors to the original Irish Volunteers and Irish Republican Army, and they have refused to recognise the authority of (variously) the Defence Forces, Northern Ireland and the Ireland; as such, each of these groups claims the sole right to use the name . Such groups have included the

Provisional IRA The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), officially known as the Irish Republican Army (IRA; ) and informally known as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary force that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland ...

, the Continuity IRA and the Real IRA. Some IRA splinter groups have used in English-language contexts, abandoning the label ''Irish Republican Army''. An early instance was formed in 1956 by members of the Dublin Brigade who followed Joe Christle after his expulsion from the IRA; they formed an alliance with Saor Uladh shortly before the IRA Border Campaign eclipsed them. Two dissident republican groups formed in the 2000s were named : a Continuity IRA splinter group first reported on by the Independent Monitoring Commission in 2006, and a Real IRA splinter group which began claiming responsibility for attacks in 2009. A suppression order made by the Irish state in June 1939 under the Offences Against the State Act 1939 stated that "the organisation styling itself the Irish Republican Army (also the I.R.A. and ic)" was to be considered an unlawful organisation within the context of the act.

National Army

In 1922, the Anglo-Irish Treaty created the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State (6 December 192229 December 1937), also known by its Irish-language, Irish name ( , ), was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-ye ...

, and its

Provisional Government A provisional government, also called an interim government, an emergency government, a transitional government or provisional leadership, is a temporary government formed to manage a period of transition, often following state collapse, revoluti ...

formed the National Army. To establish itself as carrying on the tradition of the pre-independence movement, the Army adopted as its Irish language name, and also adopted the cap badge and buttons of the Irish Volunteers; the badge incorporates the title in its design.

Defence Forces

Since 1924, has remained the official Irish-language title for the Defence Forces, which are recognised by the Irish Government as the only legitimate armed forces of the Republic of Ireland.From 1922 to 1937, this state was the

, and since 1937 was Ireland or . The Irish Government passed an act in 1948 under which the name ''Ireland'' can also be used in English-language legal documents as a description of the state.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oglaigh na hEireann Military of the Republic of Ireland Irish Republican Army Military history of Ireland Irish words and phrases