Skarpi, I think you should change the questions. For example, traditional music is not very strong in Ireland. I was there last year, and we had to look hard for traditional music. It is not common.Rather, you should ask, why are there people all around the world who like it? Then you could demonstrate appealing aspects - the beautiful melodies, the jolly dance music, the unusual tonality of the slow airs, the fascinating work of O'Carolan.
As for the national spirit, I think that's meaningless. There are Scottish, American, and English tunes (mostly older ones) which cannot be told from Irish music.
I bet your audience will be happiest if you just talk about types of music (jig, reel, hornpipe, slow air, ballad) and then play examples for them.