Séamus Ó Grianna (; 17 November 1889 – 27 November 1969; locally known also as Jimí Fheilimí) 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 ...

writer, who used the pen name Máire.

Biography

Born to Feidhlimidh Mac Grianna and Máire Eibhlín Néillín Ní Dhomhnaill into a family of poets and storytellers in

Ranafast Ranafast or Rinnafarset, officially only known by its Irish language, Irish name Rann na Feirste () is a Gaeltacht village and townland in the Rosses region of northwest County Donegal, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Name Ranafast, or sometimes ...

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconn ...

, he attended local primary school until the age of 14. He spent several years at home and as a seasonal worker in Scotland. He attended an

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 ...

summer college in 1910 and taught for a while for 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 ...

. He trained formally as a teacher in St. Patrick's College,

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

, 1912–14, and taught mostly in County Donegal until 1920. He became involved with political matters and was interned as a

republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

during the Irish Civil War. He worked subsequently as a translator for An Gúm (a part of the Department of Education), in the

Irish Civil Service The Civil Service ( ga, An Státseirbhís) of Ireland is the collective term for the permanent staff of the departments of state and certain state agencies who advise and work for the Government of Ireland. It consists of two broad components, ...

, and on Irish dictionaries in the

Department of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

. He expressed bitterness with Irish language politics, however, and in 1966 joined the "

Language Freedom Movement Founded in 1966, the Language Freedom Movement (Irish: Gluaiseacht Saoirse Teanga) was a political organisation opposed to some aspects of the state-attempted revival of the Irish language in the Republic of Ireland, which had the backing of seve ...

" along with other Irish language writers and translators such as Maighréad Nic Mhaicín. His prolific literary output, spanning more than fifty years and including novels, short stories, essays, autobiography, and his famous ''Rann na Feirste'', is a romantic and nostalgic celebration of his native place, its rich oral tradition, poetic speech, colourful characters, local lore, and varied landscape. He was the most influential of the Donegal school of regional writers and the

Gaeltacht ( , , ) are the districts of Ireland, individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home. The ''Gaeltacht'' districts were first officially reco ...

writer most widely read and imitated by native speakers and learners of Irish during the twentieth century. He was the brother of fellow writer

Seosamh Mac Grianna Seosamh Mac Grianna (20 August 1900 – 11 June 1990) was a writer from County Donegal. He was born into a family of poets and storytellers, which included his brothers Séamus Ó Grianna and Seán Bán Mac Grianna, in Rann na Feirste, County ...

. Séamus Ó Grianna's novel '' Caisleáin Óir'' was developed into a musical and was premiered in An Grianán Theatre,

Letterkenny Letterkenny ( ga, Leitir Ceanainn , meaning 'hillside of the O'Cannons'), nicknamed 'the Cathedral Town', is the largest and most populous town in County Donegal, a county in Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. Letterkenny lies on the R ...

, County Donegal in 2000. It was written by Leslie Long, Kathleen Ruddy and Phil Dalton. It has since had several sell-out runs in County Donegal.

List of works

* ''Caisleáin Óir''. Mercier Press, Dublin 1994 (novel) * ''Castar na Daoine ar a Chéile''. Scríbhinní Mháire 1. Edited by Nollaig Mac Congáil. Coiscéim, Dublin 2002 (novel and journalism) * ''Cith is Dealán''. Mercier Press, Dublin and Cork 1994 (short stories) * ''Cora Cinniúna'' 1-2 (two volumes of short stories) An Gúm, Dublin 1993 * ''Cúl le Muir agus scéalta eile''. Oifig an tSoláthair, Dublin 1961 (short stories) * ''Na Blianta Corracha''. Scríbhinní Mháire 2. Edited by Nollaig Mac Congáil. Coiscéim, Dublin 2003 (journalism) * ''Nuair a Bhí Mé Óg''. Mercier Press, Dublin and Cork 1986 (autobiography) * ''An Sean-Teach''. Oifig an tSoláthair, Dublin 1968 (novel) * ''Suipín an Iolair'', Clóchuallucht Chathail, Tta., Baile Átha Cliath 1962 (novel) * ''Tairngreacht Mhiseoige''. An Gúm, Dublin 1995 (novel)

References

External links

Feidhlimidh 'ac Grianna (c1851–1944) of Rannafast, Annaghery, Co Donegal
at Acmhainní Gaedhilge {{DEFAULTSORT:Ogrianna, Seamus 1889 births 1969 deaths Irish civil servants Irish-language writers Irish male short story writers Alumni of St Patrick's College, Dublin People of the Irish Civil War (Anti-Treaty side) People from County Donegal Irish male novelists 20th-century Irish novelists 20th-century Irish male writers 20th-century Irish short story writers