The Irish exit, Dutch leave, French goodbye, whatever mildly ethnic slur you want to call it, is when you leave an event without saying goodbye to anyone. Is it rude? Well, yes, often, but it can also be a relatively low level rudeness depending on the circumstances.

Unforgivable circumstances:

• On an actual date with another person (unless they are being abusive, etc etc, caveats)
• Small gatherings where your absence would be easily noticed
• Any hosted event (you must always thank and say goodbye to your hosts- even at something as big as a wedding)
• When you are supposed to be giving a ride to someone (unless you ghost away into the night together)

Forgivable circumstances:

• A large, casual gathering such as 20ish friends hanging out at a bar
• Casual, group oriented events such as a end of school picnic (though I would consider this just…leaving)
• Anytime trying to say goodbye would disrupt the event (such as a religious service or when there are speeches happening. Though you should try to avoid leaving in these instances except when you are ill or have other extreme circumstances.)
• When it’s a large family gathering where goodbyes take an hour (jk! love your family!)

When else do you find Irish exits acceptable/unacceptable? Let me know in the comments!