The Irish wolfhound is the preferred symbol of the island, according to a public consultation for the redesign of the Irish passport.
The Department of Foreign Affairs received an unprecedented number of responses, with over 10,000 received within the first week and a total of 15,470 respondents during the three-week period.
Participants were asked to select their top three animals and top three vegetation from a provided list of 10 options.
- The top three fauna choices were the Irish wolfhound (77pc), red squirrel (67pc), and red deer (67pc).
- The top three flora choices were the shamrock (66pc), heather (54pc), and bluebell (54pc).
- 81pc of the respondents were from the island of Ireland, 7pc from Britain, 5pc from elsewhere in Europe, and 8pc from outside of Europe.
- The age group with the highest response rate was 25-34 (27pc) followed by 35-44 (23pc), while those aged 65-74 (6pc) and 75+ (1pc) had the lowest response rates.
- The Atlantic salmon was the preferred choice for those aged 45 and above, while the bumblebee was popular among half of the respondents.
- The Connemara pony and Wren were favoured by those over 55, while the humpback whale was more preferred by those aged 16-44.
- The shamrock, heather, and bluebell were the top three flora choices for respondents over age 25. However, those who answered in Irish ranked the shamrock as their sixth favourite.
- The Department of Foreign Affairs will integrate the survey findings into a viable passport design as high-quality design is crucial to the integrity and reputation of the Irish Passport.
The existing passport is ten years old, and frequent redesigns and enhanced security features are recommended by the International Civil Aviation Authority (ICAO) to maintain passport integrity.
The public engagement survey was conducted from June 27 to July 19 and targeted citizens living in Ireland and the Irish diaspora abroad, with promotion through traditional and social media channels.
