Historical sociology in the field: Teaching Irish identity through field experience

Abstract

Teaching Irish Historical Sociology in the field offers unique opportunities for students to engage with sites critical to the historical development of Irish identity. For the past fourteen years, I have taught an Irish Historical Sociology course in Ireland designed to teach students the contested nature and layers of Irish identity based on the waves of migration that have come to Ireland throughout the centuries. The course begins by examining the earliest people to come to Ireland and then examines the impact of the Celtic Migrations, the introduction of Christianity, the Anglo-Norman invasion/settlement, the Plantation migration, the famine, the Irish revival in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries, as well as changes in demography, economy, and religion in the twentieth century. Through on-site lectures, talks, and experiences in music and dance, the environment, traditional crafts, folklore and heritage, local history, and sports students learn the various groups who came to the island over time and how these groups have shaped Irish identity.