IRA

IRA is an acronym with several different meanings.

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• Irish Republican Army; several paramilitary groups claim the title:
• The Army of the Irish Republic: It fought the Irish War of Independence against British rule.
• Irish Republican Army (1922-1969): Those who opposed the Treaty (described in official circles as Irregulars). They split in 1926 when Éamon de Valera and Frank Aiken formed Fianna Fáil.
• Official IRA: In 1969, the IRA split when more traditional republicans left the increasingly leftist organisation, forming the Provisional IRA. The remainder, now called the "Official" IRA, has formally been on ceasefire since the 1970s and is no longer militarily active. It underwent a further split when more militant elements left in 1974 to form the INLA.
• Provisional Irish Republican Army: The current dominant republican paramilitary group, to which the term "IRA" nearly always refers today. It is in association with (Provisional) Sinn Féin.
• Continuity Irish Republican Army: A breakaway from the Provisional IRA, formed in 1986 by those opposed to Sinn Féin taking seats in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament.
• Real Irish Republican Army: A breakaway from the Provisional IRA formed after the 1990s ceasefires.
• Individual Retirement Account, a private retirement account in the United States that enjoys certain tax benefits.
• Indian Rights Association, an advocacy and lobbyist group for the rights of Native Americans, founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1882.
• International Reading Association, a membership organisation of literacy professionals.
• I.R.A. or Ideas de Revolución Adolescente ("Ideas of Adolescent Revolution"), a Colombian punk band.
• Inverness Royal Academy, a secondary school in Inverness, Highland region, Scotland. See Education in Scotland.

See also Ira for non-acronyms.

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