2nd International Conference on the Early Medieval
Toponymy of Ireland and Scotland – The Earliest Strata
An Dara Comhdháil Idirnáisiúnta ar Logainmníocht
Luathmheánaoiseach na hÉireann agus na hAlban
The 2nd International Conference on the Early Medieval Toponymy of Ireland
and Scotland is to be held at Queen’s University, Belfast, on 12-14 November
2009. The venue is the Queen’s Drama and Film Centre at 20, University
Square.
The theme of this year’s conference is “The Earliest Strata of Irish and
Scottish Names”. The event is being organised by a committee of research
students comprising Paul Tempan and Judyta Szacillo of QUB, Kelly Kilpatrick
of Wadham College, Oxford University, Liam Ó hAisibéil of NUI Galway and
Peter McNiven of the University of Glasgow. The conference will be run as a
student-led training initiative, with half of the papers (8 out of 16) being
delivered by research students. The proceedings will be published in QUEST
the postgraduate e-journal of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities at Queen’s
University, Belfast.
Dr. Nollaig Ó Muraíle of NUI Galway and Prof. Thomas Owen Clancy of the
University of Glasgow have kindly agreed to give keynote papers on early
place-names and the linguistic situation at the dawn of history in Ireland and
Scotland respectively. Eight papers will be delivered each day on Thursday
and Friday, 12th-13th November and on Saturday 14th there will be an
excursion to Eamhain Macha / Navan Fort and the city of Armagh, including a
guided tour of Eamhain Macha and environs led by Dr. Kay Muhr (Northern
Ireland Place-Name Project) and Dr. Richard Warner (Ulster Museum). The
full programme will be posted on-line shortly.
CALL FOR PAPERS: Papers are invited on aspects of Irish and Scottish
place-names before 1000 AD. Since the theme of this year’s conference is the
earliest strata of place-names, we would particularly welcome papers on
topics such as Irish and Scottish hydronymy, names on Ptolemy’s maps,
names of early royal and sacred sites, ogamic population group names, links
with Continental Celtic and Indo-European names, and possible pre-Celtic
names/elements. However, we will consider papers on other topics which fit
into the broader theme of early medieval place-names.
Length of papers: 40 minutes (30 mins. plus 10 for questions). The working
language of the conference will be English (though we expect plenty of Irish,
Gaelic and perhaps other languages to be spoken in the subsequent
discussions).
Send details of proposed papers by e-mail – as soon as possible, but at the
latest by 30th September 2009
to Paul Tempan
Irish and Celtic Studies
Queen's University Belfast
Tel: 028 90973890
Email: p.tempan@qub.ac.uk