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Irish Literature and Language (Irish Studies)

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Irish Language

A multi-page research guide to Irish literature resources in the Boston College libraries

What's on This Page

This page has a lot on it. You can use the following anchors (links down the page) to jump straight to a relevant box.

    Biographies

    Online Resources

    Print Dictionaries

    Burns Box

     

    In our very own special collections library (Burns), you'll find a selection of material on your topic. Consider visiting the library and seeing history in your hands. To do so, you should start by searching for material through BC Libraries' catalog and then ordering it (if you haven't registered, you'll be prompted). For a guide on the process, check out the "Finding Burns Material" page.  You might also check out the following recommendations: 

    Burns Library has other Irish language manuscripts available for use in the reading room, including works of Irish poets or authors who write in both English and Irish. 

    To locate these materials, try an advanced search in the library database where language=Irish and Material Type= Archives and Manuscripts

    Find Irish Language Articles

    Historical Surveys of Literature in Irish


    De Blacam, Aodh. Gaelic Literature Surveyed. Dublin: Talbot Press, 1973. (O'Neill Library: PB1306.D44 1973; Burns Library: PB1306.D42 1973 IRISH) This is a description of Irish Gaelic literature, and a guide to its schools and movements.

    Mac Giolla Chriost, Diarmait. The Irish Language in Ireland: from Gíodel to Globalisation. London: Routledge, 2005. (O'Neill Library: PB1214 .M33 2005). Focuses on the Irish language in contemporary society.

    Ó Breasláin, Diarmuid. A Short History of the Irish Language. Béal Feirste: Glor na nGael Bhéal Feirste Thiar, 1995. (O'Neill Library: PB1216.O27x 1995) This history of Irish Gaelic is divided chronologically, from the origins of the language to the role and place of Irish in the Northern Ireland and Irish Republic of the late-twentieth century.

    Ó Cuiv, Brian, ed. A View of the Irish Language. Dublin: Stationery Office, 1969. (O'Neill Library: PB2002.V5; Burns Library: PB2002.V5 IRISH) This book examines the linguistic setting of Irish and the changes the language has undergone in the past 1500 years.  It considers the Irish literary and oral traditions, and the relationship of the Irish language to the Irish nation-state.

    O'Leary, Philip. The Prose Literature of the Gaelic Revival, 1881- 1921. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1994. (O'Neill Library: PB1336 .O43 1994) Examines the genesis and politicization of the late-nineteenth century Gaelic Literary Revival, which he dates from the 1881 publication of An Gaodhal to the 1916 Easter Rising.