This article examines the ‘Ulster-Scots’ in Northern Ireland – one of many groups calling for cultural recognition on the basis of a putative discrete ethnicity. The article shows how this group metaphorically conceptualize their identity within their internal press media output, specifically the monthly publication The Ulster-Scot. The article draws on the conceptual metaphor approach of Lakoff and Johnson and examines the discursive construction of an Ulster-Scots collective identity and history through an analysis of the metaphors employed. The article argues that a focus on the use of conceptual metaphors within discourses of ethnicity provides a valuable insight into ethnic self-understanding at a given point in time, and that, consequently, this approach is a valuable addition to the analytic repertoire for researchers concerned with issues of emergent ethnicity and the construction ethnic identities in general.