Scotch-Irish (or
Scots-Irish)
Americans are
American descendants of
Presbyterian and other
Ulster Protestant Dissenters from the Irish province of
Ulster who migrated to
North America during the 18th and 19th centuries. While an estimated 36 million Americans (12% of the total population) reported Irish ancestry in 2006, and 6 million (2% of the population) reported Scottish ancestry, an additional 5.4 million (1.8% of the population) identified more specifically with Scotch-Irish ancestry. The term
Scotch-Irish is used only in the
United States, with people in
Great Britain or
Ireland who are of a similar ancestry identifying as
Ulster Scots.