Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
cate locations surrounded by widely differing values. The “raw”
I
values
mapped in figure 3.3 alone do not indicate if such clustering is statistically
significant. However, application of this exploratory technique serves
to convey the distinct picture in Northern Ireland, where clusters of
districts having lower percentages of Catholics can be seen in the north-
east area in and near Belfast. Comparing the two maps for Catholics in
figure 3.3 also suggests that the extent of clusters of neighboring North-
ern Ireland districts having low Catholic percentages changed between
1911 and 1961. he maps on the botom tier of the igure are based on the
percentages of district populations who were members of the Church
of Ireland. In all but a few districts south of the border, the proportion
of population in the Church of Ireland was too small to identify spatial
clusters, although, as shown on the 1911 map, a few eastern districts in
the counties of Kildare and Wicklow and along the border itself stand
out as having somewhat higher percentages. These were a throwback to
paterns of colonial setlement in the Pale. By 1961, however, there were
barely any signs of significant clusters in the south. Conversely, north of
the border, clusters of districts with high proportions of population that
identified as Church of Ireland had increased in size. These changes re-
flected an ongoing process of religio-spatial realignment perhaps linked
to but certainly continuing beyond the partition of the island in 1921.
22
Figures 3.4a and 3.4b present another view on these trends, showing
changes in the district-level percentages of
non-
Catholics over the if-
teen years between 1911 and 1926, before and after partition. As with the
maps in figure 3.3, these percentages are based on estimates interpolated
for the 1961 version of the URD framework. Each circle on these scater
plots represents a separate district. Generally speaking, non-Catholic
percentages are higher in districts in Northern Ireland than in the Irish
Free State/Republic of Ireland at both dates. In the Northern Ireland
area it appears that a few districts saw a slight decrease in the percent-
age of non-Catholics by 1926. Otherwise, for other districts north of the
border, there is a high degree of consistency in the percentages at both
dates. This correspondence is indicated by the clustering of the circles
around the upward-sloping regression line and the high R2 value (close
to 1). Clear outliers are also labeled on the chart, including Ballycastle
Urban, Downpatrick, and Portstewart. These districts did not exist in
