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Ulster University - Coleraine

Celtic Studies - Research

Overview

In REF 2014 the Irish and Celtic Studies Research Institute was assessed as having:

100% outstanding or very considerable impact in research

66% of overall research world-leading or internationally excellent

90% of research environment internationally excellent or world-leading

The subject has a high income stream, and staff and student support arrangements and postgraduate training are excellent. The Institute is committed to fully supporting its postgraduate students.

Specialisms include medieval Irish language and literature, textual scholarship, the transmission of senchas and historical verse, voyage literature, the Gaelic manuscript tradition, bardic poetry, place-names research, dialectology, lexicography, minority languages, language policy and planning, contact linguistics and language change, sociolinguistics, the syntax and semantics of the verb in Irish, modern and contemporary Irish literature, creative writing, Gaelic literature in translation, applied language studies (CALL, digitization, language corpora) and Irish folklore, oral tradition and heritage studies.

Postgraduate supervision is available in almost all aspects of Irish language and literature.

Summary

The research infrastructure provided by the University is of a high quality. PhD opportunities in Irish and Celtic are overseen by both the Doctoral College on Belfast and Magee campuses and by the Research Unit for Modern Languages and Linguistics who work in close partnership.

The main objective of the Celtic Studies team is to foster and develop a vibrant research culture and ethos in all aspects of its work. This is reflected in a variety of ways, such as the number of high-quality publications by members of the group, externally-funded research projects, the organization of conferences and colloquia, international collaborations, and the large number of PhD Researchers and research degrees awarded.

PhD Researchers are of central importance to the research culture of the subject: they maintain close contact with their supervisors and other staff; they are allocated dedicated space; and they are closely integrated into the fabric of the subject as a whole.

Current Projects

The Research Unit for Modern Languages and Linguistics is engaged in a number of academic scholarly initiatives in the area of Irish and Celtic Studies, including:

Stories of the Sea: A Typological Study of Maritime Memorates in Modern Irish and Scottish Gaelic Folklore Traditions (AHRC-funded project)

Concise Irish-English/English-Irish Dictionary (RCUK-funded project)

POOLS; Tools for CLIL Teachers; COOL
Societas Celto-Slavica Learned Association

Éigse Loch Lao

Éigse Cholm Cille

An Atlas of the Verbal Morphology of the Gaelic Linguistic Traditions

Irish Language Rights: A Framework for Compliance

Language attainment In Irish medium schools

Post-print MSS Cultures on the Atlantic Fringe

European Scholars Collecting Irish Folklore in Traditional Ireland

About

Resources in Irish and Celtic Studies

Research students in Irish and Celtic studies are allocated dedicated space to carry out their research and they have access to computers, library carrels, and the Language Resource Centre. The University and Research Unit have materials on first and second language acquisition and learning; Modern Irish lexicographical data; a collection of Irish manuscripts of 18th and 19th century texts relating to south-east Ulster; the Enrí Ó Muirgheasa library collection containing important works from the period 1880-1940. The University also collaborates with a number of other Universities on minority language research, corpus linguistics and other projects.

Internet Resources

This guide contains pointers to Internet resources of interest to students and staff in Irish Studies at Ulster. It is not a comprehensive list but is intended to help you begin exploring the Internet: General Irish and Celtic Studies Sites, Irish and Scottish Place-names, Language, Newspapers and Magazines, Dictionaries and Encyclopaedias, Media, Literature, Electronic Journals (mainly table of contents only), Celtic Culture, Electronic Databases, Music, Discussion Lists, Booksellers and Publishers, Institutions specialising in Irish, Gaelic and Celtic Studies.

Entry requirements

Applicants should hold, or expect to obtain, a First or Upper Second Class Honours Degree in a subject relevant to the proposed area of study. We may also consider applications from those who hold equivalent qualifications, for example, a Lower Second Class Honours Degree plus a Master's Degree with Distinction.

In exceptional circumstances, the University may consider a portfolio of evidence from applicants who have appropriate professional experience which is equivalent to the learning outcomes of an Honours degree in lieu of academic qualifications.

Additional information for International applicants may be found
https://www.ulster.ac.uk/doctoralcollege/postgraduate-research/apply/int...

English language requirements

In order to be admitted to research study at Ulster, you will need to provide evidence of your English language proficiency as part of your application.

https://www.ulster.ac.uk/doctoralcollege/postgraduate-research/apply/eng...

Duration

PhD Research
You can study for a PhD on a full (3 years) or part-time (6 years) basis and by the end of your programme, you will have produced a body of work that makes a contribution to knowledge in your chosen field.

We have various routes to obtaining a PhD - for example, in some areas you can submit a practical element as part of your submission, such as a piece of art or a musical composition.

MPhil:
The MPhil programme is studied over a 2 year period on a full-time basis or 4 years on a part-time basis.

We would recommend that you contact one of our academic staff whose interests align with your own to discuss your intended research prior to submitting an application.

Careers or further progression

Careers and opportunities

PhD graduates are recognised by employers to hold valuable transferrable skills, as the nature of the degree trains candidates in creativity, critical inquiry, problem solving, negotiation skills, professionalism and confidence.

The most recent Ulster survey of PhD graduates found that 92% had secured employment within the first year since graduation (HESA Destination of Leavers Survey 2015), and while two thirds end up in the Higher Education or Research sectors, the range of skills acquired equips the remainder for employment in a wide range of contexts.

Further enquiries

Contact supervisor
Dr Maxim Fomin
Telephone
+44 28 7167 5213

Email
m.fomin@ulster.ac.uk

Comment

Research facilities and groups
Resources in Irish and Celtic Studies
Research students in Irish and Celtic studies are allocated dedicated space to carry out their research and they have access to computers, library carrels, and the Language Resource Centre. The University and Institute have materials on first and second language acquisition and learning; data banks on errors and error analysis; Modern Irish lexicographical data; a collection of Irish manuscripts of 18th and 19th century texts relating to south-east Ulster; the Enrí Ó Muirgheasa library collection containing important works from the period 1880-1940. The University also collaborates with a number of other Universities on minority language research, corpus linguistics and other projects.

Internet Resources
This guide contains pointers to Internet resources of interest to students and staff in Irish Studies at Ulster. It is not a comprehensive list but is intended to help you begin exploring the Internet: General Irish and Celtic Studies Sites, Irish and Scottish Place-names, Language, Newspapers and Magazines, Dictionaries and Encyclopaedias, Media, Literature, Electronic Journals (mainly table of contents only), Celtic Culture, Electronic Databases, Music, Discussion Lists, Booksellers and Publishers, Institutions specialising in Irish, Gaelic and Celtic Studies.

Princess Grace Irish Library (PGIL)
EIRData 2000 is an extensive set of electronic literary text files dealing with Irish literary authors and their works in all periods, and is a tribute to Irish achievements in literature as well as testament to the Princess Grace's attachment to her Irish roots. The project is conducted by the University under the aegis of the Princess Grace Foundation (Monaco) with funding dedicated for the purpose by the Ireland Fund Princess Grace Memorial Library in Monaco. PGIL EIRData is an ambitious Internet project in Irish studies comprising an extensive set of digital records dealing with Irish literary authors and their works in all periods. It is the most comprehensive reference source of its kind in any medium, thus providing a robust and uniquely flexible platform for future advances in Irish cultural informatics.

Application date

Apply

We are delighted that you are considering Ulster University for your research studies. Full details on the application process and further guidance on how to apply, and what you will need to upload as part of your application, is available at the link below.

Once you have identified supervisors, discussed a research proposal and are ready to make an application, please apply using the online application system.

Ulster University welcomes applications from all sections of the community and from persons with disabilities. It is University policy to assess all applications using academic criteria and on the basis of equality of opportunity and you should be assured that reasonable adjustments will be made should you require them.

Research areas

Staff research areas

Dr Niall Comer
Dr Comer is Lecturer in Irish at Magee and formerly Irish Language Technologist in the Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning. He is President of Conradh na Gaeilge (The Gaelic League) and has completed his doctorate on the place-names of Coleraine and surrounding areas. He supervises in the area of Irish traditional music and place-name tradition.

Professor Ailbhe Ó Corráin
Professor Ó Corráin is Professor Emeritus of Modern Irish. He has published extensively on various aspects of Irish language and literature. Most recently, he published a number of books on the Irish Poet Giolla Brighde O hEodhasa. He also specialises in the Irish grammatical and metrical traditions, Irish verb, language planning, lexicography and Celto-Nordic LInguistic interface.

Dr Liz Doherty
Dr Doherty lectures in traditional music at the Magee campus. As a traditional arts consultant she has worked on various national and international projects, and was a Traditional Arts Specialist with the Arts Council/An Chomhairle Ealaíon (2005-2008). Her research fields include Cape Breton fiddle music, Irish traditional music, Performance – fiddle Safe Trad (Performance Injury Prevention project) and Traditional arts industry.

Dr Maxim Fomin
Dr Fomin has research interests in Early Irish and its comparison with other Indo-European linguistic and cultural traditions, including Armenian, Latin, Sanskrit and Greek. He has published extensively on the question of kingship in early Ireland and India and was Assistant Editor of the AHRC- funded eDIL project, the digitization of the Royal Irish Academy's Dictionary of the Irish Language and published Instructions for Kings. Secular and Clerical Images of Kingship in Early Ireland and Ancient India. Heidelberg, 2013. Dr Fomin is Principle Investigator on the AHRC-funded Stories of the Sea: Maritime Memorates in Irish and Scottish Gaelic Folklore Traditions, and also specialises in oral heritage and material culture of the modern-age Celtic traditions. He is a founding member and Secretary of Societas Celto-Slavica and is co- editor of the Society's academic series. He also specialises in Irish folklore and oral tradition, having supervised students in the areas of Irish folklore collection, Irish story-telling and the Irish belief system with an emphasis on the Otherworld. .

Dr Art Hughes
Dr Hughes has written on various aspects of Irish and the other Celtic languages, including work on the Irish revival in Belfast in the 18th and 19th centuries, Irish place-names, the dialects of Ulster Irish, bardic poetry and the influence of the Irish language on Ulster English and recently published Late Old Irish lenition and the modern pan-Gaelic verb, pp. 310, Curach Bhán, Berlin 2013. He is on the editorial board of the Journal of Celtic Linguistics and is Celtic languages and literature review editor for Seanchas Ard Mhacha.

Dr Nioclás Mac Cathmhaoil
Dr Mac Cathmhaoil is Lecturer in Irish at the Magee campus. A specialist in Ulster Irish of the 18th and 19th centuries, he was awarded his doctorate in 2010 for a thesis on the author and scribe Muiris Ó Gormáin which has been published as Muiris Ó Gormáin: Saol agus Saothar Fileata. Cló-Iarchonnacht. He is Principal Investigator on the project between Ulster and University of Copenhagen exploring the influence of the printed medium on the oral traditions of Ireland and Scandinavia.

Professor Séamus Mac Mathúna
Professor Mac Mathúna is Professor Emeritus and has published widely on various aspects of Irish language and literature. His research interests include medieval voyage literature, Irish linguistics, bardic poetry, minority languages, and Irish lexicography. Founding President of Societas Celto- Slavica, he is joint editor of the Society's scholarly journal, sits on the Editorial and Management Boards of the Dictionary of Modern Irish (Foclóir na Nua-Ghaeilge) based in the Royal Irish Academy, and is consultant editor and external reader for the academic series Studia Celtica Upsaliensia. Chair of the 2008 UK Research Assessment Exercise's Celtic Studies Sub-Panel, he is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and Member of the Royal Irish Academy. With Professor Ó Corráin, he is Co-Editor- in-Chief of the Collins Concise Irish Dictionary.

Dr Gearóid Ó Domagáin
Dr Ó Domagáin is Lecturer in Modern Irish working on the Concise Irish-English/English-Irish Dictionary. He was awarded his doctorate on the present state of Irish in the parish of Gort a' Choirce, Co. Donegal, in 2009. His is course director for the MA in Modern and Contemporary Irish at the Belfast campus.

Dr Caoimhín Ó Dónaill
Senior Lecturer in Irish, Dr Ó Dónaill has research interests in Early Irish and in the application of technology to the study of Modern Irish. He is Ulster's representative on the Tools for CLIL Teachers, has been a researcher on the research project Linking Dictionaries and Texts, specialises in Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL), and has published an edition of Talann Étair in the Maynooth Monograph Series of the Department of Old Irish at NUI, Maynooth..

Dr Malachy O'Neill
Dr Ó Néill is Provost of the Magee campus since 2016. He works closely with Irish language public organisations across the island of Ireland, and has extensive links with the USA and Canada in the field of Irish Studies. His doctorate – an edition of An Leabhar Eoghanach – was awarded in 2007. Formerly editor of An tUltach (2007-10), Dr Ó Néill is Irish language editor of Dúiche Néill.

Dr Frank Sewell
Dr Sewell has research interests in Modern and contemporary writing in Irish, bilingual writing in Ireland, translation, creative writing, and international aspects of Irish literature, especially Russian and Slavonic links. He has written extensively on all of these areas and has received a number of prestigious awards for his work, including the Arts Council Literature Award in 1999 and 2001. He is author of Modern Irish Poetry: A New Alhambra (Oxford: OUP, 2000), published in 2001 and Selected Poems: Seán Ó Ríordáin. Yale University Press 2014.

Dr Peter Smith
Dr Smith has research interests in both modern and medieval Irish, Irish folklore and folk song, and sociolinguistics. Among his publications is a Bibliography of Irish literature relating to South-East Ulster and a number of articles in peer-reviewed publications on Irish historical verse. In 2008 he published Three Middle-Irish Historical Poems Ascribed to Gilla Cóemáin: A Critical Edition of the Work of an 11th-Century Irish Scholar and Politics and Land in Early Ireland: A Poem by Eochaid Úa Flainn. Éitset áes ecna aíbind, Berlin: Curach Bhán Publications, 2013.