Connotations
Unlike Paddy, another derogatory term for an Irish person, Taig usually implies that the person has Irish nationalist sympathies. Also, whereas Paddy is often used in a jocular context or incorporated into mournful pro-Irish sentiment (i.e. the songs Poor Paddy On The Railway and Paddy's Lament), the term Taig remains a slur in almost every context. It has also been used to describe Irish Catholics perceived as a threat to law and order. Sometimes the term is widened to include all Roman Catholics.
Teague has been reclaimed by some Irish nationalists as an ironic self-identifier in the same way that other terms of disparagement have been adopted by certain people they describe. In contemporary sources, the difference in spelling between taig and teague often indicates a difference in connotation akin to the difference between nigger and nigga.
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