This lecture will introduce the seminal monthly bilingual Irish-English newspaper An Gaodhal, the first serial dedicated to providing content to an Irish-language readership. An Gaodhal was established, edited, and printed from 1881 to 1898 in Brooklyn, New York, by Micheál Ó Lócháin (c.1836-1899) from Milltown, Co. Galway, who came to be regarded as the father of the Irish-language movement in America, a movement that inspired the emergence of the Gaelic League at home in Ireland. The contents of An Gaodhal reflect the cultural interests of Irish speakers in New York, Ireland, and the wider diaspora; Irish American life; New York history; and the development of the Irish language during the Celtic Revival period. A partnership between University of Galway and New York University is currently working to create a fully searchable digital edition of An Gaodhal by training artificial intelligence how to read the Cló Gaelach script printed in the newspaper.
Deirdre Ní Chonghaile is a writer, musician, broadcaster, and curator from the Aran Islands. Her 2021 book Collecting Music in the Aran Islands: A Century of History and Practice, published by the University of Wisconsin Press, has been described as “one of the most important and fascinating books about Irish traditional music in recent memory.” It won the Michael J. Durkan Prize 2021 for Books on Language and Culture from the American Conference for Irish Studies and was awarded a Special Commendation for the NUI Irish Historical Research Prize 2023. Deirdre curated the 2022 exhibition on the life and legacy of Prof. Tomás Ó Máille, which toured Ireland and the UK throughout 2023 and 2024. She also helped develop a digital platform for his archive of over 500 wax cylinder recordings of Irish speakers and singers from every county West of the Shannon. Most recently, she was Associate Research Scholar at Glucksman Ireland House, New York University, working on a digital edition of the world’s first Irish-language newspaper An Gaodhal.
Date: Monday 4 November 2024
Time: 20:00/8pm
Venue: Harbour Hotel, Galway