Seán 'ac Dhonncha (alternatively, Seán 'ac onna, Johnny Joe Pheaitsín, 2 October 1919 – 1996) was a traditional Irish singer. Born in Carna, Conamara,

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

the son of a fisherman, his siblings were Joe, Matt, Páraic,Bairbre, Bríd, Máiréad, Nóra, Eilís and Mary. A schoolfriend of Seosamh Ó hÉanaí, 'ac Dhonncha won a scholarship to Coláiste Éinde and qualified as a primary teacher in 1940. He taught in

County Cavan County Cavan ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Cavan and is based on the hi ...

from 1947, and later spent twenty five years as principal of

Ahascragh Ahascragh () is a village in east County Galway, Ireland. It is located north-west of Ballinasloe on the Ahascragh/Bunowen River, a tributary of the River Suck. The R358 road (Ireland), R358 Regional road (Ireland), regional road passes through ...

national school. He was the first traditional singer to record with

Gael Linn Gael Linn () is a non-profit and non-governmental organisation focused on the promotion of the Irish language and the arts. The organisation's funding includes government and lottery sources. History Gael Linn was founded in May 1953, followin ...

; won a gold medal at the 1953 Oireachtas; and was awarded the Gradam Shean-Nós Cois Life in 1995. In 1971, Claddagh Records released ''An Aill Báin (The White Rock): Songs in Irish and English from Connemara''. In 1994, Cló Iar-Chonnachta released a CD of his songs in Irish and English, entitled ''Seán 'ac Dhonncha: An Spailpín Fánach."'' He married Bríd Ní Eidhn in 1956. They had children Féilim, Páraic, MacDara, Seán, and Sinéad.

References

*''"The Encyclopaedia of Ireland,"'' 2003;

External links

* https://sites.google.com/site/seanacdhonncha/biography * https://sites.google.com/site/seanacdhonncha/biography-of-sean * https://archive.comhaltas.ie/people/65 1919 births 1996 deaths Claddagh Records artists Heads of schools in Ireland Irish folk singers Irish-language singers People educated at Coláiste Éinde Musicians from County Galway 20th-century Irish male singers People of Connemara {{Ireland-singer-stub