Éilís Ní Dhuibhne (pronounced [ˈeːlʲiːʃ n̠ʲiː ˈɣɪvʲnʲə]; born 22 February 1954), also known as Eilis Almquist and Elizabeth O'Hara, is an Irish novelist and short story writer who writes both in Irish and English. She has been shortlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction, and is a recipient of the Irish PEN Award.

Éilís Ní Dhuibhne
Born (1954-02-22) 22 February 1954 (age 70)
Dublin, Ireland
Pen nameEilis Almquist
Elizabeth O'Hara
OccupationWriter, Academic
NationalityIrish
Alma materUniversity College Dublin (UCD)
University of Copenhagen
GenreNovel, Play, Short Story
Website
www.eilisnidhuibhne.com

Biography

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Ní Dhuibhne was born in Dublin in 1954. She attended University College Dublin (UCD), where she studied Pure English for her BA, did an M Phil in Middle English and Old Irish, and finished in 1982 with a PhD in Folklore [1] She was awarded the UCD Entrance scholarship for English, and two post-graduate scholarships in Folklore. In 1978-9 she studied at the Folklore Institute in the University of Copenhagen while researching her doctoral thesis,[2] and in 1982 was awarded a PhD from the National University of Ireland (NUI). About her time in Denmark, Ní Dhuibhne states that she "kind of discovered feminism there", because it "was more liberal and advanced politically and in terms of feminism".[3] She has worked in the Department of Irish Folklore in UCD, and for many years as a curator in the National Library of Ireland. Also a teacher of Creative Writing, she has been Writer Fellow at Trinity College Dublin and is currently Writer Fellow at UCD. She is a member of Aosdána[4] since 2004,[5] an ambassador for the Irish Writers' Centre, and President of the Folklore of Ireland Society (An Cumann le Béaloideas Éireann). Ní Dhuibhne is the Burns Visiting Scholar at Boston College for the fall 2020 semester.[6]

Ní Dhuibhne was married to the Swedish folklorist Bo Almqvist for 30 years until he died suddenly due to a short illness in 2013. She has two children: Ragnar and Olaf.[7] Éilís Ní Dhuibne wrote the memoir Twelve Thousand Days: A Memoir of Love and Loss about her and her late husband's time together, named after the number of days they were married.[8]

Further information on Éilís Ní Dhuibhne's work may be found in Rebecca Pelan, ed, Éilís Ní Dhuibhne: Perspectives. Galway, Arlen House, 2009.[9]

Awards

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List of works

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Novels in English
  • The Bray House (1990)
  • Singles (1994)
  • The Dancers Dancing (1999)
  • Fox, Swallow, Scarecrow (2007)
  • Sister Caravaggio (2014)
Novels in Irish
  • Dúnmharú sa Daingean (2001)
  • Cailíní Beaga Ghleann na mBláth (2003)
  • Hurlamaboc (2005)
  • Dún an Airgid (2008)
  • Dordán (2011)
  • Aisling Nó Iníon A (2015)
Collections
  • Blood and Water (1988)
  • Eating Women Is Not Recommended (1991)
  • The Inland Ice (1997)
  • The Pale Gold of Alaska (2000)
  • Midwife to the Fairies (2003)
  • The Shelter of Neighbours (2012)
  • Little Red and Other Stories (2020)
Children's Books
  • The Uncommon Cormorant (1990)
  • Hugo and the Sunshine Girl (1991)
  • The Hiring Fair (1992)
  • Blaeberry Sunday (1993)
  • Penny Farthing Sally (1996)
  • The Sparkling Rain (2004)
  • Snobs, Dogs and Scobies (2011)
Plays
  • Dún na mBan Trí Thine
    Produced by Amharclann de hÍde and first performed at the Peacock, Dublin, 1995;
  • Milseog an tSamhraidh
    Produced by Amharclann de hÍde and first performed at the Samuel Beckett Theatre, Trinity College, in 1996;
  • The Nettle Shirts
    Produced by the Abbey and performed at the Peacock Theatre, Dublin, in 1998.
Memoirs
  • Twelve Thousand Days: A Memoir of Love and Loss (2018)

References

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  1. ^ "University College Dublin". writing.ie. 16 January 2015. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
  2. ^ "University of Copenhagen". UCD.ie. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
  3. ^ "Twelve Thousand Days: A Memoir of Love and Loss". Belfasttelegraph. Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  4. ^ "aosdana". artscouncil.ie. Retrieved 8 October 2013.
  5. ^ "Biography Ní Dhuibhne". Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  6. ^ "Burns Visiting Scholars - Libraries at Boston College".
  7. ^ "Twelve Thousand Days: A Memoir of Love and Loss". Belfasttelegraph. Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  8. ^ "Twelve Thousand Days: A Memoir of Love and Loss". Belfasttelegraph. Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  9. ^ "Collection 2009".
  10. ^ "Encyclopedia.com entry".
  11. ^ "Ní Dhuibne's Awards". Ricorso. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  12. ^ "Ní Dhuibne's Awards". Ricorso. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  13. ^ "Stewartparkertrust.com". Stewart Parker Trust. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
  14. ^ http://www.eilisnidhuibhne.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=14&Itemid=27 for the entire bibliography, including the awards.
  15. ^ Doyle, Martin. "Ríona Judge McCormack wins Hennessy New Irish Writer award". The Irish Times. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  16. ^ Laura Slattery (16 January 2015). "Éilís Ní Dhuibhne to receive the Irish PEN Award for outstanding contribution to Irish literature". The Irish Times. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  17. ^ "Stewartparkertrust.com". Stewart Parker Trust. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
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