Celtic Studies

Celtic languages are presently spoken in Scotland, Wales, Ireland, on the Isle of Man, in Cornwall and in Brittany, as well as in a small number of diasporic communities. This course explores the emergence of these Celtic speech communities into the historical record in the Middle Ages, the social, political and cultural forces which have shaped their development, and their current prospects for survival. The impact of the development of central state authorities, the protestant Reformation, wider British and French politics, the Enlightenment, Romanticism, the emergence of the modern nation-state, contemporary minority discourses will be considered. Literary and other sources in the various Celtic languages (in translation) will be used to explore these themes. While the focus will be sociolinguistic and literary, linguistic characteristics of the languages will be referred to from time to time.

This course provides an introduction to Scotland's long history as an independent kingdom between the 10th and the early 18th century. It examines the land and people as a way of considering broad themes in a specific and immediate setting. The central theme is Scotland's development as a European state and society through the medieval and early modern periods and the parallel processes which witnessed the development of a sense of Scottish nationhood. Issues of cultural expression and change, and of religious reform and conflict provide strands for discussion which stress the experience of this land in its wider context. The course places particular emphasis on the use of museum collections and built heritage as evidence for the unique history of this land.

The course introduces students to practical elements of Irish-language culture through a 4-day, residential course based in the Waterford Gaeltacht (Irish-speaking area), one hour from UCC. Through classes and field-trips, the students participate in cultural activities relating to famine- and agrarian-history, landscape, music, dance, storytelling etc. in an Irish-speaking environment.

The course focuses on Gaelic song and its role in society. The approach is thematic, and the areas to be addressed include song and sense of place, religion, the emigrant experience, the role of the township bard, and community and labor. The aim is to show how song interacts with the community. Performance is emphasized, and the course draws on recordings housed in the School of Scottish Studies Archives at the University of Edinburgh as well as on live sung examples.

This course focuses on early (i.e. pre 12th-century) Irish saga literature in which a variety of texts, mainly from the Ulster, Mythological and King cycles, are read in translation and discussed in class. 

This course examines the practice of folk medicine in Ireland, in the past and in the present. Irish popular tradition includes a great richness of material on this subject, encompassing a wide range of healing agents and media, from botanical remedies to prescribed rituals and actions, and from specific locations to particular individuals who were credited with special powers. The importance of ritual behavior will be examined, as will the position of the healer in the community. The course looks at what we might learn about the dynamics of popular tradition, and the ways in which popular tradition functions, from an examination of folk healing practices. The remarkable resilience of many such practices is also explored. 

This course offers the opportunity to learn the basics of Gaeilge (Irish, or “Irish Gaelic”), Ireland’s first official language. In addition to acquiring core skills, students also explore cultural topics in their linguistic context.