Micheal O Mainnin

Micheal O Mainnin is a Professor in the School of Arts, English and Languages at Queen's University Belfast, specializing in Modern Languages. He holds a PhD from Queen's University Belfast (2002) and previously earned a BA (1984) and MA (1987) from NUI Galway. His research focuses on onomastics, dialectology, and the intersection of language and identity in Ireland and Scotland, with particular attention to medieval and modern periods. He directs the Northern Ireland Place-Name Project and co-leads the AHRC-funded MEITS project on multilingualism. His work includes editing journals like Léann and Ainm, and he teaches Irish phonetics, Scottish Gaelic literature, and late medieval Gaelic texts.

His research spans topics such as early medieval Armagh topography, Gaelic literary traditions, and minority language policies in France and Ireland. He has supervised postgraduate studies on sociolinguistics, dialectology, and medieval literature. His contributions include digitizing Irish dialect materials and analyzing place-name connections between Ireland and Scotland. He actively engages with public media, discussing language preservation and cultural heritage in Northern Ireland.

• Education: BA (NUI Galway, 1984), MA (NUI Galway, 1987), PhD (Queen’s University Belfast, 2002)
• Projects: Northern Ireland Place-Name Project (Director), MEITS (Co-Investigator)
• Teaching: Irish phonetics, Scottish Gaelic language/literature, medieval Gaelic studies
• Grants: AHRC Open World Research Initiative (OWRI)