Welcome to the Centre for Irish Studies

Irish Studies is an integrated, interdisciplinary programme of learning which explores key aspects of the Irish experience in its historical and contemporary settings.

The distinctive features of our taught and research programmes foreground the University’s longstanding commitment to the cultural traditions of the West of Ireland and the research achievements of academic staff across several disciplines.

• Our bilingual approaches to literature, history, and culture enables students to develop a more inclusive and comprehensive approach to cultural production by studying both Irish and English language material.  
• Irish Music and Dance Studies develop the dynamic relationship between students and the artistic practices of the region where the traditions of Irish music and dance are particularly strong.
• Place Studies encourages students to consider the deep attachment to place as a signature element of the Irish imagination, and migration and dislocation as defining aspects of the Irish experience.
• A commitment to interdisciplinarity requires students to work across the traditional boundaries between individual disciplines, including Irish, English, History, Geography, Political Science and Sociology.

The Centre for Irish Studies

Since its inception in 2000, the Centre for Irish Studies at NUI Galway has established itself as one of the premier locations worldwide for interdisciplinary research and advanced teaching on the cultural, social and political endeavours of Irish people.

The Centre’s premises at Martha Fox House were refurbished in 2002 and contain dedicated space for up to twelve research and teaching personnel.  A flexible teaching space accommodates most of our taught programmes and a number of arts and community initiatives which are central to the Centre’s engagement with the broader community.