| History
The Durham Irish Association was established in 2003 by a group of concerned people of Irish descent interested in preserving and celebrating Irish culture and heritage in the Durham Region of Ontario.
The Irish community has very strong roots in the Durham Region. Indeed, Irish people were some of the very first settlers in the area and have made many contributions to the area’s history.
The DIA is concerned that, with the recent decline in emigration from Ireland to Canada, Irish traditions and culture are in danger of becoming a thing of the past.
As a non-profit, non-political and non-sectarian association the DIA is totally inclusive and strives to bring together people from all corners of Ireland, and others of similar views to preserve the strong Irish traditions of song, story, music dance and sport.
The following statistics are from the 2006 Census of Canada. [4]
Canadians of Irish descent by province and territory
| Province/Territory |
Irish Canadian
population |
Percentage of Population |
| Newfoundland and Labrador |
107,390 |
21.5% |
| Prince Edward Island |
39,170 |
29.2% |
| Nova Scotia |
195,365 |
21.6% |
| New Brunswick |
150,705 |
21.0% |
| Quebec |
406,085 |
5.5% |
| Ontario |
1,988,940 |
16.5% |
| Manitoba |
151,915 |
13.4% |
| Saskatchewan |
145,480 |
15.3% |
| Alberta |
539,160 |
16.6% |
| British Columbia |
618,120 |
15.2% |
| Yukon |
5,735 |
19.0% |
| Northwest Territories |
4,860 |
11.8% |
| Nunavut |
1,220 |
4.2% |
| Canada |
4,354,155 |
13.9% |
|
