Thomas Francis O'Rahilly was an Irish scholar of the
Celtic languagesThe Celtic languages are descended from Proto-Celtic, or "Common Celtic"; a branch of the greater Indo-European language family...
, particularly in the fields of
Historical linguisticsHistorical linguistics is the study of language change. It has five main concerns:* to describe and account for observed changes in particular languages...
and
IrishIrish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
dialectThe term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...
s. He was a member of the
Royal Irish AcademyThe Royal Irish Academy , based in Dublin, is an all-Ireland, independent, academic body that promotes study and excellence in the sciences, humanities and social sciences. It is one of Ireland's premier learned societies and cultural institutions and currently has around 420 Members, elected in...
.
Biography
He was born in
Listowel,
County KerryKerry means the "people of Ciar" which was the name of the pre-Gaelic tribe who lived in part of the present county. The legendary founder of the tribe was Ciar, son of Fergus mac Róich. In Old Irish "Ciar" meant black or dark brown, and the word continues in use in modern Irish as an adjective...
,
IrelandIreland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. Educated at the
Royal University of IrelandThe Royal University of Ireland was founded in accordance with the University Education Act 1879 as an examining and degree-awarding university based on the model of the University of London. A Royal Charter was issued on April 27, 1880 and examinations were opened to candidates irrespective of...
, he held professorships in Irish at
Trinity College, DublinTrinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
(1919-1929), and in Celtic languages at
University College, CorkUniversity College Cork is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland. The university is located in Cork....
(1929-1935), and University College, Dublin (1935-1941). He was director of the School of Celtic Studies at the
Dublin Institute for Advanced StudiesThe Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies Dublin, Ireland was established in 1940 by the Taoiseach of the time, Éamon de Valera under the . The Institute consists of 3 schools: The , the and the . The directors of these schools are currently Professor Werner Nahm, Professor Luke Drury and...
from 1942 to 1947.
O'Rahilly was known for his sometimes controversial theories of Irish history. In his book Early Irish history and mythology, first published in 1946, O'Rahilly developed a
model of Irish prehistoryO'Rahilly's historical model is a theory of Irish prehistory put forward by Celtic scholar T. F. O'Rahilly in 1946. It was based on his study of the influences on the Irish language and a critical analysis of Irish mythology....
based on critical reading of early Irish literary sources, involving four waves of Celtic-speaking invaders (see
Early history of IrelandThe early medieval history of Ireland, often called Early Christian Ireland, spans the 5th to 8th centuries, from the gradual emergence out of the protohistoric period to the beginning of the Viking Age...
). In a lecture published in 1942 he proposed that there were two
Saint PatrickSaint Patrick was a Romano-Briton and Christian missionary, who is the most generally recognized patron saint of Ireland or the Apostle of Ireland, although Brigid of Kildare and Colmcille are also formally patron saints....
s.
His views on
language contactLanguage contact occurs when two or more languages or varieties interact. The study of language contact is called contact linguistics.Multilingualism has likely been common throughout much of human history, and today most people in the world are multilingual...
and bilingualism were equally controversial. In Irish dialects past and present (1932) he wrote the following about
ManxManx , also known as Manx Gaelic, and as the Manks language, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, historically spoken by the Manx people. Only a small minority of the Island's population is fluent in the language, but a larger minority has some knowledge of it...
:
This view has more recently been challenged by Nicholas Williams, who suggests that Manx is Gaelic pidginized by early contact with Norse, long before there was any English spoken in Man.
Other publications include a series of anthologies of Irish verse published between 1916 and 1927. He founded and edited Gadelica: a Journal of Modern Irish studies, and edited the journal
CelticaCeltica: Journal of the School of Celtic Studies is an academic journal devoted to Celtic studies, with particular emphasis on Irish literature, linguistics and placenames. It was founded in 1946 and has since been published by the School of Celtic Studies at the Dublin Institute for Advanced...
(1946-1950).
His sister
Cecile O'RahillyDr. Cecile O'Rahilly was a scholar of the Celtic languages and the sister of the Celtic scholar T. F. O'Rahilly. She is best known for her editions/translations of the various recensions of the Ulster Cycle epic saga Táin Bó Cúailnge....
was also a Celtic scholar, and published editions of both recensions of the
Táin Bó Cúailngeis a legendary tale from early Irish literature, often considered an epic, although it is written primarily in prose rather than verse. It tells of a war against Ulster by the Connacht queen Medb and her husband Ailill, who intend to steal the stud bull Donn Cuailnge, opposed only by the teenage...
.
He was a brother of
Alfred O'RahillyAlfred O'Rahilly was a noted academic, President of University College Cork and Teachta Dála for Cork City.-Education and academia:Born in Listowel, County Kerry and educated at St...
a noted academic, President of University College Cork and Teachta Dála (TD) for Cork City.
He died in
Dublin.
External links