"willshak" wrote in message

I have two of yours, but I don't know what Black Irish is.
Mine is N Ireland Catholic.
The other German.

Seems to be some question as to what it is
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a930730.html
Many years ago my grandmother told me that her grandfather's ethnicity was
"Black Irish." Recently I've heard three different explanations concerning
the origin of the term:

(1) It refers to a mixture of Irish and Spanish blood dating from the time
of the Spanish Armada, when many shipwrecked Spanish sailors were washed up
on the Irish coastline and wound up staying.

(2) It refers to a mixture of Irish and eastern European blood.

(3) It refers to a mixture of Irish and Italian blood from the time of the
Roman Empire.