John MacInnes (

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...

: ''Iain MacAonghuis'', ''Iain mac Ruairidh mhic Iain mhic Iain mhic Néill mhic Mhaol Mhoire mhic Iain mhic Mhaol Chaluim''), 3 April 1930 in

Uig, Lewis Uig ( gd, Ùig ), also known as ''Sgìr' Ùig'', is a civil parish and community in the west of the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland. The Parish of Uig is one of the four civil parishes of the Isle of Lewis. It contains the district ...

– 10 May 2019, was a Scottish

Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...

scholar and authority on Scottish Gaelic

oral tradition Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication wherein knowledge, art, ideas and cultural material is received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another. Vansina, Jan: ''Oral Tradition as History'' (1985 ...

. He was born in

, but grew up on Raasay, and took an active interest in Gaelic tradition while still young and made a conscious effort to seek it out amongst his family and community. In 1948, John MacInnes went to study at the University of Edinburgh and was awarded a scholarship in Gaelic established by the Church of Scotland. In 1958, MacInnes was appointed to a Junior Research Fellowship in the School of Scottish Studies and spent years conducting fieldwork amongst Gaelic speakers in Scotland and in Nova Scotia, Canada. He gained his PhD from the University, on the subject of Gaelic poetry, in 1975. MacInnes formally retired from the School of Scottish Studies in 1993. John MacInnes penned a significant body of seminal articles on aspects of

linguistics, folklore, oral narrative, song, dance, history and indigenous beliefs which continue to inform contemporary scholarship. A thorough bibliography and selection of these essays was published as ''Dùthchas nan Gàidheal''. A special issue of the journal ''Scottish Studies'' contains biographical information and a range of articles celebrating and extending MacInnes’ intellectual and cultural legacy. In 2015, John MacInnes was recognised with the 'Services to Gaelic' Award by The Scottish Traditional Music Hall of Fame, and received the award for 'Best Contribution' from the Daily Record and Bòrd na Gàidhlig Scottish Gaelic Awards in the same year. He was married to Wendy MacInnes (née Dunn) with whom he had two children, Ruairi and Catríona. He has two grandchildren, Sinéad and Roddy.

Bibliography

Books

* ''Dùthchas nan Gàidheal: Selected Essays of John MacInnes'' (2006) (edited by Michael Newton)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:MacInnes, John 1930 births 2019 deaths Scottish Gaelic language activists People from the Isle of Lewis Oral historians Scottish scholars and academics Historians of Scotland 20th-century Scottish historians Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Historians of Canada Scottish linguists Dance historians Scottish music historians Scottish folk-song collectors Celtic studies scholars