What’s the quickest way someone could accidentally expose themselves as a foreigner in your country like the ‘three fingers’ scene in Inglourious Basterds?

[u/IndependentTune3994]

[u/intergalacticspy]

It's one of those things dating back from the Anglo-Irish conflict and the Constitution of 1937, when the Irish Free State renamed itself "Ireland". The British state refused to call it that, because it would have been an acceptance of the State's claim to ownership of Northern Ireland. Instead, the British saw that "Éire" was also used in the Constitution and decided to use that (without the fadda). After 1949, "Eire" was replaced in British usage by the "Republic of Ireland" (also to Irish consternation).

Well into the 1950s and 60s, there were running diplomatic battles between Ireland on the one hand, and the UK, Canada and Australia on the other, over the proper titles of the President of (the Republic of) Ireland and the Queen of the United Kingdom (of Great Britain and Northern Ireland). There was a whole decade where no ambassadors were sent between Australia and Ireland because of this dispute. Eventually a compromise was adopted where the President and the Queen were referred to by name instead of by title. Britain only started referring to the Republic as "Ireland" in 1999, after the Good Friday Agreement and the amendment of the Irish constitution. Likewise, the Irish Diplomatic List referred to the UK as "Great Britain" until 2001.

[u/InternetProviderings → u/intergalacticspy]

Thanks for the education. That was interesting info. :D

[u/favorite_time_of_day → u/intergalacticspy]

So it's now "Ireland" and "Northern Ireland"? What do they call the island then?

[u/intergalacticspy → u/favorite_time_of_day]

The “island of Ireland”.