Classes That Bring Ireland to Life

Study basic Irish language, grammar, and vocabulary — then hear Gaelic spoken firsthand on your journey, especially on the Aran Islands where it's still the first language.

Discover how Ireland and its culture were formed, from Pre-Celtic Ireland (c. 2500 BC) through the path to independence (1916–1922) — including Catholic Emancipation, the Famine, and emigration.

• Pre-Celtic Ireland (c. 2500 BC)
• Early Christian Ireland to the Vikings (c. 458–900)
• The Normans and Ireland (c. 1200–1400)
• Daniel O’Connell and Catholic Emancipation
• The English and the Anglo-Irish in Ireland
• The Famine and Emigration (c. 1850)
• From Rising to Independence (c. 1916–1922)

Learn how the Irish helped build American settlements and how that legacy still shapes American culture — from Ulster emigration to the Famine years and beyond.

• Ulster Men and Women Emigrate to the Colonies (c. 1750)
• The Famine and Mass Emigration (c. 1860–1900)
• The Irish and the Towns: New York, Boston, Chicago
• “From Shanty to Lace Curtains”: the Irish Join the Middle Classes
• Irish Contributions to the United States
• Famous Irish Men and Women

A study of Ireland’s writers, playwrights, and poets.

• Paul Durcan
• Brian Friel
• Seamus Heaney
• James Joyce
• Hugh Leonard
• Frank O’Connor
• Liam O’Flaherty
• J.M. Synge
• Oscar Wilde
• W.B. Yeats

Explore Ireland’s currency, education, genealogy, and geography — plus the European community, law, media, politics, and social concerns.

Learn, participate in, and enjoy the traditional folk dances of Ireland.

A study of contemporary Irish drama. In groups, students study an assigned historical Irish figure, write a limerick, and prepare a creative group performance.