Ireland inherited the imperial System of measurement from Britain

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

, and these units continued to be used after Irish independence. It is principally due to Irish membership in the European Union (EU) that metric units were introduced. Progress towards metrication is mixed. Legally, Ireland

Republic of Ireland

Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...

 has been fully metric since 2005 (albeit with one exception - the pint), but there is also widespread (though decreasing) use of imperial units in everyday conversation.

Metrication

During the First World War and after the Easter Uprising, Charles A Stanuell, former President of the Statistical and Social Inquiry Society of Ireland published a paper advocating the use of the metric system and a decimal currency in Ireland. Metrication

Metrication

Metrication refers to the introduction and use of the SI metric system, the international standard for physical measurements. This has involved a long process of independent and systematic conversions of countries from various local systems of weights and measures. Metrication began in France in...

 began in the State

Republic of Ireland

Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...

 in the 1970s and by 2005 was almost completed; the only exception being that that the imperial pint (568 ml) is still used in bars. In fact, the term a glass of beer means a 330 ml metric measure of beer and is not a half-pint, which is 284 ml.

All other places must sell liquids measured in millilitres and litres. However most people know their height in feet and inches as well as in metres and centimetres, and their weight in stones and pounds

Pound (mass)

The pound or pound-mass is a unit of mass used in the Imperial, United States customary and other systems of measurement...

 as well as in kilograms.

Road Signs

Distance signs had displayed kilometres since the 1990s but road speed limits

Road speed limits in the Republic of Ireland

Road speed limits in the Republic of Ireland apply on all public roads in the country. These are signposted and legislated for in kilometres per hour. Speed limits are demarcated by regulatory road signs . These consist of white circular signs with a red outline. Speed limits are marked in black...

 were in miles per hour

Miles per hour

Miles per hour is an imperial unit of speed expressing the number of statute miles covered in one hour. It is currently the standard unit used for speed limits, and to express speeds generally, on roads in the United Kingdom and the United States. It is also often used to express the speed of...

 until January 2005, when they were finally changed to kilometres per hour. Since 2005 all new cars sold in Ireland have had speedometer

Speedometer

A speedometer is a gauge that measures and displays the instantaneous speed of a land vehicle. Now universally fitted to motor vehicles, they started to be available as options in the 1900s, and as standard equipment from about 1910 onwards. Speedometers for other vehicles have specific names...

s that displayed only kilometres per hour

Kilometres per hour

The kilometre per hour is a unit of speed, expressing the number of kilometres traveled in one hour. The unit symbol is km/h or km·h−1....

, odometer

Odometer

An odometer or odograph is an instrument that indicates distance traveled by a vehicle, such as a bicycle or automobile. The device may be electronic, mechanical, or a combination of the two. The word derives from the Greek words hodós and métron...

s generally became metric as well.

Agriculture

In 1994, The Public Health Act change agricultural measuresment usage for physical measurements such height and weight of livestock from feet, inches and hundredweights to metres and kilograms.

Other

The metric system is the only system taught in schools. Beginning in 1970, textbooks were changed to metric. Goods in shops are labelled in metric units, but sometimes with imperial equivalents (normally products also sold in the U.K.).

Retail items

Household items such as bathroom scales, wash soap, clothing, and measuring tapes are sometimes in dual units, especially those also sold in the United Kingdom.

Height restrictions

Despite metric height restriction signs being legal since 1981, some bridges in Ireland still have height warning signs in feet and inches only.

Pricing on retail

Traders in certain sectors have been slow to change to metric units for fear of their prices seeming to be higher than their competitors. For example, as of 2010, floor coverings such as carpets and tiles are commonly priced per square yard, despite it being mandatory to price in metric units. A square metre is about 20% bigger than a square yard, so a metric-pricing trader might seem at first glance to be more expensive than an imperial-pricing competitor.

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

, which is part of the United Kingdom, continues to use imperial units for some purposes, such as speed limits, and distances shown on road signs, and certain retail items.