Nessa Ní Shéaghdha or Nessa O (14 March 1916 – 11 April 1993) 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 ...
Celtic Studies scholar.
Biography
Nessa Ní Shéaghdha was born to Seán Pádraig Ó Séaghdha and Kitty Nic Caochlaoich on 14 March 1916 at 20 Aran Road,
Drumcondra, Dublin
Drumcondra () is a residential area and inner suburb on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. It is administered by Dublin City Council. The River Tolka and the Royal Canal flow through the area.
History
The village of Drumcondra was the central a ...
. Her father was an important industrial and nationalist figure in Ireland. They had six children in total: Ní Shéaghdha had a brother and four sisters.
She attended Scoil Bhríde and Scoil Chaitríona before going on to study in
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 collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...
in 1936. She trained under
Osborn Bergin
Osborn Joseph Bergin (26 November 1873 – 6 October 1950) was a scholar of the Irish language and early Irish literature, who discovered Bergin's Law.
He was born in Cork, sixth child and eldest son of Osborn Roberts Bergin and Sarah Reddin, a ...
and
Gerard Murphy, completing a degree in Old Irish. Ní Shéaghdha then completed her master's degree under Bergin. She started working in the ''Leabhair ó láimhsgríbhinigh'' project, which was established in 1937 and aimed to provide "readers of modern Irish" with texts which had not been printed previously. Working for Gerard Murphy and with Máire Ní Mhuirgheasa, Ní Shéaghdha created the second and third volume in the series: ''Trí bruidhne'', 1941. Ní Shéaghdha edited ''Bruidhean Chéise Coruinn'', ''Bruidhean Bheag na hAlmhan'' and ''Bruidhean chaorthainn'' with
Máirín Ní Mhuiríosa, drawing from manuscripts in the National Library of Scotland. Ní Shéaghdha spent time in Edinburgh. It was there she made friends with
Sorley MacLean. He fell in love with her and she was the inspiration for several of his poems.
Ní Shéaghdha also edited and translated a number of texts of histories of Ireland and mythologies including ''
Tóruigheacht Dhiarmada agus Ghráinne''.
Although she had to stop working for a time, Ní Shéaghdha was a graduate of the School of Celtic Studies at the
Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies
The Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS) ( ga, Institiúid Ard-Léinn Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a statutory independent research institute in Ireland. It was established in 1940 on the initiative of the Taoiseach, Éamon de Valera, in Dub ...
from 1950 to 1954. She retired in 1981 after working as a scholar and Research Assistant. She continued working on her project of cataloging Irish manuscripts after she retired. Ní Shéaghdha also gave lectures in the Universities and acted as an external examiner.
Personal life
Ní Shéaghdha married David J. Doran in 1939. They had a son and three daughters. The family lived in ''Corca Dhuibhne'',
Dundrum, Dublin
Dundrum (, ''the ridge fort''), originally a town in its own right, is an outer suburb of Dublin, Ireland. The area is located in the Dublin postal districts, postal districts of Dublin 14 and Dublin 16. Dundrum is home to the Dundrum Town Centr ...
.
Once her family was older she worked part-time, from 1954 to 1981. Not being able to work had an impact on the progression of her career, which can be seen when reflected against the lives of some of her classmates. She died 11 April 1993. She is buried in
Enniskerry
Enniskerry (historically ''Annaskerry'', from ) is a village in County Wicklow, Ireland. The population was 1,889 at the 2016 census.
Location
The village is situated on the Glencullen River in the foothills of the Wicklow Mountains in the ea ...
,
County Wicklow
County Wicklow ( ; ga, Contae Chill Mhantáin ) is a county in Ireland. The last of the traditional 32 counties, having been formed as late as 1606, it is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is bordered by t ...
.
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Bibliography
* ''Stair fhír-cheart ar Éirinn'', (1941)
* ''Agallamh na seanórach'', (1942–5)
* ''Tóruigheacht Dhiarmada agus Ghráinne'', (1967)
* ''Translations and adaptions into Irish'', (1984)
* "Collectors of Irish manuscripts: motives and methods" in ''Celtica'' xvii (1985)
* "Irish scholars and scribes in eighteenth-century Dublin" in ''Eighteenth-Century Ireland'', iv (1989), 41–54.
External links
List of Works
* Dàin do Eimhir (1943).
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shéaghdha, Nessa Ní
1916 births
1993 deaths
Writers from Dublin (city)
Academics of the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies
Celtic studies scholars