Celtic Studies

The course is an introduction to early Irish society and culture. The period covered was one of great change for Irish society: the arrival of Christianity with a new language, the rise of new, forceful power groupings, and the opportunities and challenges posed by the intrusion of the Vikings. Underlying these transformations there was continuity and we examine the evidence for the survival of earlier belief, specifically in burial records and the role of women in the administration of associated rituals. We look at the institution of kingship, with rituals & taboos grounded in Paganism.  We consider the position of slaves in Irish society, their role in the running  the household, in labor, and intensive agricultural economy. Students engage with myth and saga literature of the time to deepen the their understanding of early Irish culture and society.

This course examines the emergence of the Celts in the earliest historical record. Students learn to outline the history of the Celtic peoples from the earliest evidence; describe the impact on early European history of the migration of Celtic speaking peoples; discuss how the Celts were viewed by Classical authors; and to show an understanding of the diverse range of sources for the period including archaeological, historical, and linguistic.

The course provides an introduction to selected genres of Celtic literature from the early modern and modern periods, and an understanding of the social and historical background that gave rise to the texts studied. Two strands make up the course, one dealing with the Scottish Gaelic tradition and the other looking at Early Modern and Modern Irish literature. English translations are used throughout the course, and no knowledge of the original Celtic languages is required. The course is aimed at students who have successfully completed Celtic Civilization 1A and 1B, as well as Heroes, Wonders, Saints and Sagas: Medieval Celtic Literature in Translation, but it is also open to anyone who has taken a course in a literary or historical or similar subject at university level and wishes to explore the Celtic tradition. The course does not provide a comprehensive survey of the two literatures studied, but rather to examine in greater depth certain periods or themes or genres which are characteristic of the tradition, which offer cross-cultural comparisons within the Celtic world, and which are amenable to study through translation. For history students, the course offers insight into the nature and working of the two literary traditions; for literature students, enhanced understanding of the social and political background to the selected parts of Scottish Gaelic and Early Modern and Modern Irish literature; for students of Celtic Studies, the opportunity to range widely in the early modern and modern fields.