The provided bar chart illustrates the amount of Irish language speakers in proportions by province in the Republic of Ireland in five different years.
Overall, it can be seen that, initially, the number of native speakers in Ireland was considerably lower at around 30%, then it experienced sharp increase to 41% in 1996 and later rose slightly by negligible 1% in 2002. Regarding the provinces, Connacht made up the largest part of overall share, whereas Leinster was the province with the least number of Irish speakers.
Turning to the details, Connacht reported the highest percentage of citizens who are fluent in Irish, starting at just under 40% in 1981, at which point it remained stable until 1986. Then it saw marginal growth in 1991, constituting the two fifth of overall share, after which this trend rose sharply to 43% in 1996. By the end of the period it reached a peak at 44%, showing a slight rise. The figure for Munster was not quite as high in numbers of its Irish speaking residents as one for Connacht, however wintessed almost the same upward trend. It started at approximately 35%, then went up slightly to 37% in 1991. Then it leapfrogged to 45% in 1996, after that hit the peak of 47%.
As regards Ulster, it began at 30%, experiencing negligible changes in the first decade, before experiencing remarkable increase in 1996 to 39%, then slightly rising to 42% by 2002. Leinster denostrated the lowest rate, pointing at 27% in 1981, and this trend fluctuated between 22% and 24% in the following years. By 1996 the number of people speaking Irish rocketed to 37% and grew to 38% in 2002.