Why Boston/New England Irish identity is so pronounced

[King of Kensington]

More than 40% of Boston area Irish Americans report only Irish ancestry, which is pretty remarkable considering they're mostly fourth and fifth generation Americans at this point (even in places known for a strong Irish presence like NY, Philly, Chicago etc. it's only around 30%).

I think this article explains it pretty well:

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http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/12/7/1167967/-Who-Am-I-Not-So-Irish-After-All-A-Big-Genealogy-Surprise-Part-2

[Blue3]

My family thought we were 12.5% Irish. One of my cousins is obsessed with Ireland and being Irish. Another other cousin and I did some genealogy work and found out that line is actually Scottish, about a year ago, and now she's heartbroken.

Being Irish is just very popular... just like everyone wishes they have even 1% Native American blood nowadays too.

I think both are just very romanticized through popular culture.

[Tetro Kornbluth]

The issue here is that Irish controlled the local RC churches in the Northeast for a very long period, which meant is more likely for Southern Europeans, French Canadians, etc (and there are quite a lot of those in the NE) mix with Irish people, have half-Irish children, and identify with Irishness.

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Because the Celts who were the original Irish, who were caucasian heritage,  UK's associate themselves with Scottish or Irish roots. Americans do the same with Boston.