In ceremonies held in Killarney, County Kerry, 3,500 people will officially become Irish citizens today and tomorrow.
Four separate ceremonies will take place at the Gleneagle INEC Arena in Killarney where citizens of more than 130 countries will receive their certificates of naturalisation and swear allegiance to the Irish State.
The ceremonies will take place both today and tomorrow.
The ceremonies will be hosted by Minister of State for Justice James Browne and Minister of State for Disability Anne Rabbitte, and will be presided over by retired High Court Judge Bryan McMahon and retired Judge Paddy McMahon.
Speaking ahead of the ceremonies, Minister Browne said the conferring of citizenship “opens new doors” for people to “enjoy the fundamental rights as set out in the Irish Constitution, to vote in referenda that may change the Constitution, to get and to travel with an Irish passport, to serve on a jury, to run for election to Government”.
“These are life-changing rights and ones which I hope you enjoy,” he added.
Minister Rabbitte said that Ireland is a place of “great diversity and openness”.
“We do not ask of you to relinquish or replace your own sense of identity associated with your homeland when you become an Irish citizen. We want you to bring your culture, history, and traditions with you. By sharing them with us, Ireland is richer for it,” she said.
The majority of the new citizens (375) are from the UK, with Pakistan (282), Syria (159), Poland (170), India (326), and Pakistan (282) making up the top five national groups.
Since they were first held, there have been 158 citizenship ceremonies, during which citizens of more than 180 different nations have received their certificates of naturalisation.
Around 155,000 individuals have acquired Irish citizenship since 2011.
In response to Covid-19 restrictions, Ireland hosted the first e-citizenship ceremony in Europe in July 2020. Three online celebration events were held in 2021 after that.
950 people received Irish citizenship in June during the first in-person ceremonies since the Covid-19 pandemic began.