Irish Language

Stapleton, Theobald (‘Teabóid Gálldubh’) (c.1589–1647), priest and author, was born probably in Kilkenny, son of John Stapleton and his wife Fionnuala (née Nic Conmara). He was of English extraction, and his Irish sobriquet ‘Gálldubh’ signified ‘dark foreigner’. Details of his…

Stokes, Whitley (1830–1909), lawyer and Celtic scholar, was born 28 February 1830 in Dublin, the eldest son of Dr William Stokes (qv), heart specialist, and his wife, Mary, daughter of John Black of Glasgow. The Stokes children were raised…

Strachan, John (1862–1907), philologist and celticist, was born 31 January 1862 in Keith, Banffshire, Scotland, son of James Strachan, owner of Brae farm, and Ann Strachan (née Kerr). He was educated at Keith grammar school and entered King's College, Aberdeen, in 1877 at the age of…

Thomson, George Derwent (Seoirse Mac Tomáis) (1903–87), classical scholar and writer, was born 19 August 1903 in West Dulwich, London, the eldest of a family of three sons and two daughters born to William Henry Thomson, an accountant, and his wife Minnie (née Clements). Inheriting an…

Thurneysen, Rudolf (1857–1940), Celticist, was born on 14 March 1857 in Basel, Switzerland, son of Eduard Thurneysen, silk manufacturer, and Eliza, daughter of Peter Merian, sometimes rector and professor of the natural sciences at the university of Basel. Among his teachers at the…

Todd, James Henthorn (1805–69), librarian and scholar, was born 23 April 1805 at Kildare St., Dublin, eldest son among fifteen children of Charles Hawkes Todd (qv), professor of surgery,…

Tuibear, Risteard (Richard Tipper) (d. 1730), Gaelic scholar and scribe, may have been born in Mitchelstown near Mulhuddart in the parish of Castleknock, Co. Dublin, son of Éamonn Tuibear. His mother's name is unknown, as are his parents' occupations. Variations of his surname include…

Ua Duinn, Gilla-na-Náem (c.1102/3–1160), chief poet in Leinster, was historian and lector of the school of Inis Clothrann in Loch Ree (Inchcleraun, Co. Longford). The Uí Duinn were a branch of the Uí Riacáin lineage of the Uí Fhailge of Leinster. Poems attributed to him…

Ua hartacáin, Cináed (d. 975), was a poet who, according to a note in the Annals of Ulster, belonged to the sept of Cernach Sotal, who held lands in Brega. A kinsman, Fiachra Ua hArtacáin (d. 978), was abbot of Iona. It has been persuasively argued that Ua hArtacáin was already…

Ua Lothcháin, Cúán (d. 1024), poet to Máel-Sechnaill, king of Mide, was a native of Tethba in the kingdom of Mide. His family belonged to the Uí Lothcháin, rulers of Gailenga Móra (in present-day Co. Meath and Co. Longford), and were descendants of Cormac Gaileng. He composed…

Ua Úathgaile, Dublittir (fl. c.1080–1120), author and scholar, was associated with the church of Killeshin, Co. Laois. He belonged to the Uí Bairrche. The medieval Irish genealogies preserve the name of Úathgal son of Sóergal, progenitor of the Uí Úathgaile and likely to…

Uí Choisdeailbh, Eibhlín (Edith Costello) (1870–1962), folksong collector, Irish language enthusiast, and political activist, was born 27 June 1870, probably in the Strand union workhouse, St Pancras, London. She was christened Edith Drury and raised a member of the Church of…

Ussher, Percy Arland (1899–1980), essayist and translator, was born 9 September 1899 at Battersea, London, son of Beverly Ussher, inspector of schools, and Emily Ussher (née Jebb). Educated at Abbotsholme School, Derbyshire, he had radical journals posted to him from Ireland, and so…

Wagner, Heinrich Hans (1923–88), linguistic scholar, was born 16 January 1923 in Zurich, Switzerland, elder of two sons of Heinrich Wagner, businessman, and his wife Eliza (née Siegfried), both of Zurich. His mother, the daughter of a restaurateur, spoke German (her native tongue),…

Walsh (Bhailís, Wallis, Uailis), Francis (Proinsias) (1654–1724), lexicographer and Franciscan priest, was born in the Fingal area of north Co. Dublin. Nothing is known of his family or early education. He entered the Franciscan order and was ordained (1677) in the Irish Franciscan…

Walsh, Edward (1805–50), translator, poet, and schoolteacher, was born in Derry city, where his father, an evicted small farmer who became a sergeant in the north Cork militia was posted during the Napolelonic period; his mother was from a more genteel background. After the battle of…

Wilson, Charles Henry (c.1755–1808), writer and linguist, was born in Bailieborough, Co. Cavan, son of an anglican clergyman; no other details are known of his family. He received a classical school education and attended TCD before…

Windisch, Wilhelm Oscar Ernst (1844–1918), Sanskrit and Pali scholar and celticist, was born 4 September 1844 in Dresden, Germany, son of a teacher, was educated at the Kreuzschule in Leipzig, and went on to Leipzig University (1863), where he studied classical and comparative philology…

Young, Matthew (1750–1800), clergyman, Irish scholar, and natural philosopher, was born 3 October 1750 at Castlerea, Co. Roscommon, fourth son of Owen Young, a minor landowner who impoverished his family through dissolute habits, and Olivia Maria Young (née Bell). He was educated at the…

Young, Rose Maud (Ní Ó hÓgain, Róis) (1865–1947), Irish-language scholar, was born 30 October 1865 in Galgorm Castle, near Ballymena, Co. Antrim, fifth daughter among seven daughters and five sons of John Young (1826–1915) and his first wife, Grace (née Savage). John Young was a…

Zeuss, Johann Kaspar (1806–56), philologist, linguist, and founder of Celtic studies, was born 22 July 1806 in the village of Vogtendorf, near Kronach in Upper Franconia, Germany, fourth among six children of Michael Zeuss, stonemason, and Margaretha Zeuss (neé Hanna). Although he…

Zimmer, Heinrich (1851–1910), philologist, historian, and Celtic scholar, was born 11 December 1851 in Castellaun in the Rhineland, Germany, son of a peasant farmer. After pursuing his early education at Kreuznach, he spent some time at the universities of Strasburg, Tübingen, and…