Thomas and Kathleen O’Donnell’s sponsorship of a second faculty position, the Patrick B. O’Donnell Chair in Irish Studies, will enable the Institute to bring in a visiting faculty member to the Irish Studies program, particularly in untaught or under-taught fields. This year’s Patrick B. O’Donnell Chair is noted Irish folklorist Diarmuid Ó Giolláin from University College Cork. Dr. Ó Giolláin’s visit is also funded in part by the Donald Keough Fund for Irish Studies.

Currently serving as Head of the Department of Folklore and Ethnology at University College, Cork, Dr. Ó Giollain’s field is Irish folklore and Irish Catholic popular culture. We anticipate that he will teach courses here in both fields. In the Fall of 2002, he was a visiting professor at Notre Dame where his teaching received rave reviews. He has close ties here--two relatives are buried in the C.S.C. cemetery. He is the author of two major books—Locating Irish Folklore: Tradition, Modernity, Identity (2000) and The Native/Venacular and the World (2005)--and over thirty-five articles and papers. The latter include his chapter on “Revisiting the Holy Well” for the Keough-Naughton Institute volume, Irish Catholics: Belief, Practice and Representation; his study of “The Pattern” or feast day for an Irish parish’s local saint for the collection, Irish Popular Culture 1650-1850; and his entry on “Traditional Popular Religion” for the Macmillan Encyclopedia of Irish History and Culture.

Along with the rest of the Department of Irish Language and Literature faculty, Dr. Ó Giollain’s teaching and research will help the Department and the Keough-Naughton Institute continue to contribute to the Catholic mission of the university.

We thank Tom and Kathleen again for their warm generosity which has made a lasting impact on the development of the Keough-Naughton Institute and Irish Studies at the University of Notre Dame.