From dependent free state to EEC member-state; economic policies 1922-1973 -- A new frontier; the EEC/EU and economic governance: 1973-2011 -- Nature's bounty; agriculture and natural resources -- Late industrialization; from import substitution to foreign direct investment -- From good haircuts to bad bankers; the services sector in the economy -- International trade and economic development -- Investment, credit and economic development -- A European outlier? Demography and the labour force -- Conclusion.