another name for Northern Ireland. The name Ulster is often used in news reports, and it is also the name preferred by the mainly Protestant political parties and groups who want Northern Ireland to remain part of the UK. Historical province, northern Ireland. It now forms Northern Ireland and Ulster province of Ireland. The ancient province was home to the Roman Catholic O'Neills (earls of Tyrone), who rebelled against English rule 1600. After they fled, most of the land was confiscated by British King James I and settled with Protestant Scots, Welsh, and English. It was further colonized after Cromwellian settlement in the mid-17th century. In the early 20th century its opposition to Irish Home Rule led to the formation of Northern Ireland