From Celtic Tiger to the Financial Crisis in Ireland
The latest history of the Irish economy: from Celtic Tiger to the financial crisisCeltic tiger is a term used to describe the economy of Ireland during a period of rapid economic growth starting in the second part of the 1990s and ending in approximately 2007-2008. During that time Ireland experienced a boom which transformed the country from one of the poorest states in Europe into one of the wealthiest. The term Celtic Tiger was first coined by an Irish economist Morgan Stanley and derives from East Asian Tigers: South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan which experienced a similar economic boom to that of Ireland in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
In January 1988 The Economist presented the economy of Ireland in such words:
Take a tiny, open ex-peasant economy. Place it next door to a much larger one, from which it broke away with great bitterness barely a lifetime ago. Infuse it with a passionate desire to enjoy the same lifestyle as its former masters, but without the same industrial heritage of natural resources. Inevitable result: extravagance, frustration, debt... Ireland is easily the poorest country in North-West Europe. Its gross domestic product is a mere of 64% of European Community Average (Poorest of the rich as quoted in Murphy 2000:3)
Nine years later the same magazine described Irish economy as “Europe 's shining light”. “Just yesterday, it seems, Ireland was one of Europe 's poorest countries. Today it is about as prosperous as the European average and getting richer all the time” (Ireland shines). The major reasons for this progress are globalization and Irish membership in the European Union. While the accession of Ireland to the EU in 1973 and a series of EU regulations which first brought destruction to the Irish economy, in the long turn Irish membership in the European Union turned out to be beneficial. First of all, more markets for trade opened. Prior Ireland 's accession to the Union, Irish trade was based predominantly on
In January 1988 The Economist presented the economy of Ireland in such words:
Take a tiny, open ex-peasant economy. Place it next door to a much larger one, from which it broke away with great bitterness barely a lifetime ago. Infuse it with a passionate desire to enjoy the same lifestyle as its former masters, but without the same industrial heritage of natural resources. Inevitable result: extravagance, frustration, debt... Ireland is easily the poorest country in North-West Europe. Its gross domestic product is a mere of 64% of European Community Average (Poorest of the rich as quoted in Murphy 2000:3)
Nine years later the same magazine described Irish economy as “Europe 's shining light”. “Just yesterday, it seems, Ireland was one of Europe 's poorest countries. Today it is about as prosperous as the European average and getting richer all the time” (Ireland shines). The major reasons for this progress are globalization and Irish membership in the European Union. While the accession of Ireland to the EU in 1973 and a series of EU regulations which first brought destruction to the Irish economy, in the long turn Irish membership in the European Union turned out to be beneficial. First of all, more markets for trade opened. Prior Ireland 's accession to the Union, Irish trade was based predominantly on
References: A survey of Ireland: The luck of the Irish”, The Economist. 2004. (http://www.economist.com/node/3261071?story_id=3261071) (date of access: 24 May 2011). “Ireland shines”, The Economist. 1997. (http://www.economist.com/node/149333) (date of access: 24 May 2011). “Ireland 's crash: After the race”, The Economist. 2011. (http://www.economist.com/node/18176072) (date of access: 24 May 2011). Murphy, Antoin E. 2000. The 'Celtic Tiger ' – an analysis of Ireland 's economic growth performance. San Domenico: European University Institute. (http://www.eui.eu/RSCAS/WP-Texts/00_16.pdf) (date of access: 24 May 2011). “Poorest of the rich (Ireland survey)”, The Economist. 1988. (http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-6350723.html) (date of access: 24 May 2011). Walker, Bruce. 2011. “Irish Bank Woes Underline European Financial Crisis”, The New American. ( http://www.thenewamerican.com/world-mainmenu-26/europe-mainmenu-35/6940-irish-bank-woes-underline-european-financial-crisis) (date of access: 24 May 2011).