 English was first introduced to Ireland in the Norman invasion . It was spoken by a few peasants and merchants brought over from England , and was largely replaced by Irish before the Tudor Conquest of Ireland . It was introduced as the official language with the Tudor and <unk> conquests . The Ulster plantations gave it a permanent foothold in Ulster , and it remained the official and upper @-@ class language elsewhere , the Irish @-@ speaking chieftains and nobility having been deposed . Language shift during the 19th century replaced Irish with English as the first language for a vast majority of the population . 
