Scotch-Irish

American  

[skoch-ahy-rish] / ˈskɒtʃˈaɪ rɪʃ /

noun

1. (used with a plural verb) the descendants of the Lowland Scots who were settled in Ulster in the 17th century.

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adjective

1. of or relating to the Scotch-Irish.

2. of mixed Scottish and Irish descent.

Commonly Confused

See Scotch.

Etymology

Origin of Scotch-Irish

First recorded in 1735–45

Example Sentences

The terms Scots-Irish, Scotch-Irish and Ulster-Scots relate to people who left Scotland, settled as part of the Ulster plantation and then moved on to North America.

From BBC • Aug. 13, 2025

So too each will highlight a geographical place that shaped him: The Whitney will focus on South Carolina, where Johns grew up, the son of generations of Scotch-Irish farmers stretching back to the American Revolution.

From New York Times • Sep. 13, 2021

Jordan Vilchez’s parents were Berkeley progressives in the 1960s — her father African-American, her mother Scotch-Irish.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 19, 2018

Earlier this year, a previously little-known author named JD Vance published the memoir Hillbilly Elegy, covering his Scotch-Irish ancestry and his childhood move from Jackson, Kentucky, to Middletown, Ohio.

From Salon • Jan. 8, 2017

But all the rest of my folks that I know about were Scotch-Irish.’

From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers