Liam Ó Briain (16 September 1888 – 12 August 1974) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

language expert and political activist. Born in

North Wall, Dublin North Wall () is an area east of the inner north side of Dublin, along the River Liffey. It contains the entire north side of Dublin Docklands and includes the International Financial Services Centre, Spencer Dock, and further east the main p ...

as William O'Brien, he took an interest in the

Irish language Irish ( Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...

from an early age and while still at the O'Connell School started using the Irish version of his name. He also attended meetings of the

Gaelic League (; historically known in English as the Gaelic League) is a social and cultural organisation which promotes the Irish language in Ireland and worldwide. The organisation was founded in 1893 with Douglas Hyde as its first president, when it emer ...

, then attended

University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 33,284 student ...

(UCD) on a scholarship, where he studied French, English and Irish, receiving a BA and an MA.Paul Rouse, "Ó Briain, Liam", ''Dictionary of Irish Biography'' UCD decided to start awarding one annual scholarship for overseas travel in 1911, and Ó Briain won the first one, using it to visit Germany and study under

Kuno Meyer Kuno Meyer (20 December 1858 – 11 October 1919) was a German scholar, distinguished in the field of Celtic philology and literature. His pro-German stance at the start of World War I in the United States was a source of controversy. His brother ...

and

Rudolf Thurneysen Eduard Rudolf Thurneysen (March 14, 1857 – 9 August 1940) was a Swiss linguist and Celticist. Biography Born in Basel, Thurneysen studied classical philology in Basel, Leipzig, Berlin and Paris. His teachers included Ernst Windisch and H ...

. After three years, he returned home, where he rejoined the Gaelic League and began teaching French at UCD. He also joined the

Irish Volunteers The Irish Volunteers ( ga, Óglaigh na hÉireann), sometimes called the Irish Volunteer Force or Irish Volunteer Army, was a military organisation established in 1913 by Irish nationalists and republicans. It was ostensibly formed in respon ...

then, the following year, Seán T. O'Kelly convinced him to join the

Irish Republican Brotherhood The Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB; ) was a secret oath-bound fraternal organisation dedicated to the establishment of an "independent democratic republic" in Ireland between 1858 and 1924.McGee, p. 15. Its counterpart in the United States ...

. During the Easter Rising, Ó Briain saw action with the

Irish Citizen Army The Irish Citizen Army (), or ICA, was a small paramilitary group of trained trade union volunteers from the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union (ITGWU) established in Dublin for the defence of workers' demonstrations from the Dublin M ...

. He came into conflict with his commander,

Michael Mallin Michael Thomas Christopher Mallin ( ga, Micheál Ó Mealláin; 1 December 1874 – 8 May 1916) was an Irish republican, Socialist and devout Catholic who took an active role in the Easter Rising of 1916. He was a silk weaver, the co-founder wi ...

, as he wanted to pursue a strategy without the Dublin brigade being "cooped up in the city". However, Mallin overruled him and insisted they should focus on taking

Dublin Castle Dublin Castle ( ga, Caisleán Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a former Motte-and-bailey castle and current Irish government complex and conference centre. It was chosen for its position at the highest point of central Dublin. Until 1922 it was the s ...

.Charles Townshend, "Easter 1916: The Irish Rebellion", p.93 He spent two months in prison and six at an internment camp before being released to discover that he had been fired from his job, but quickly obtained a professorship in Romance languages at

University College Galway The University of Galway ( ga, Ollscoil na Gaillimhe) is a public research university located in the city of Galway, Ireland. A tertiary education and research institution, the university was awarded the full five QS stars for excellence in 201 ...

(UCG). Around this time, Ó Briain joined

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur G ...

, and he stood unsuccessfully for the party in Mid Armagh at the 1918 Irish general election, taking 5,689 votes. His campaign led, indirectly, to another prison sentence. On release, he was appointed as a judge in the then-illegal republican court system, and visited both France and Italy to try to source weapons for the

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various paramilitary organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dedicated to irredentism through Irish republicanism, the belief th ...

. In November 1920, he was again arrested and interned for just over a year, thereby missing the conclusion of the Irish War of Independence. By the time he was released, the

Anglo-Irish Treaty The 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty ( ga , An Conradh Angla-Éireannach), commonly known in Ireland as The Treaty and officially the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was an agreement between the government of the ...

had been signed; he supported this, and took no further part in militant activity. In the newly independent Ireland, Ó Briain remained a professor at Galway. He also stood in the 1925 Seanad election, although he was not successful. He was the founding secretary of the

Taibhdhearc na Gaillimhe An Taibhdhearc is the national Irish language theatre of Ireland. It was founded in 1928. The word ''taibhdhearc'' appears as a gloss for the Latin ''teatrum'' (theatre) in an old Irish document, derived from roots meaning "dream" and "glance ...

theatre, also acting in many of its productions, and spent much time translating works from English and the Romance languages into Irish. He stood to become president of UCG in 1945, but was not elected, and in the 1940s and 1950s was best known for his many appearances on television and radio. On 1 September 1921 he married Helen Lawlor. The couple's only child was the journalist Eibhlín Ní Bhriain.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:O Briain, Liam 1888 births 1974 deaths 20th-century Irish people Academics of University College Dublin Academics of the University of Galway Alumni of University College Dublin Irish language activists Writers from Dublin (city) People of the Easter Rising People of the Irish War of Independence Irish-language writers Irish expatriates in Germany Sinn Féin parliamentary candidates