APPLICATION DEADLINE: Please note that applications are due by 10 pm on March 1!

COURSE INFORMATION:

Students enroll in ANTH 341: Folklore of Ireland and the British Isles (3 cr) as well as one of the following courses:
ANTH 329: Peoples and Cultures of Ireland (3 credits)*
IIAS 304: Special Topics in Irish and Irish American Studies (3 credits)

*Students who have taken ANTH 329 can enroll in ANTH 319: Special Topics in Anthropology (3 credits)


PROGRAM INFORMATION:

1. ANTH 341: Folklore of Ireland and the British Isles: The unique feature of the program is that two towns, Strokestown (County Roscommon), and Skibbereen (County Cork), are of great historical importance because of the Great Irish Famine (aka An Gorta Mór, The Great Hunger) of 1845-1852. A good portion of this course will be devoted to the particulars of this event, especially those that deal with the oral and folk traditions of pre-and post-Famine Ireland (food, proverb, song, story, cures, curses and blessings, etc.). The legacy of the Great Famine (i.e., the global diaspora, the political and social repercussions, etc.) will also be examined.

2. ANTH 329: Peoples and Cultures of Ireland, or IIAS 304, Special Topics in Irish and Irish American Studies, will provide students with opportunities to study the Peoples of Ireland from ancient to contemporary times. To be included will be such topics as the Ireland’s archaeological background, its ancient and Celtic/Christian landscape (i.e., holy wells, standing stones, portal dolmens, etc.), its flora and fauna, its foodways, its music, song and dance, its sports, and its types of rural employment (i.e., fishing, farming, sheepherding, etc.)

Daily schedule: Weekdays will be organized as follows:
- Morning classes at Rossa College, 9:30am-12:30 pm
- Lunch, 12:30pm-1:30pm
- Afternoon work in the field, 1:30pm-4:30pm
- Break, 4:30-6pm.
- Group meal, 6:30pm-7:30pm
- Free time OR scheduled evening entertainment (i.e., film, dance, music, etc.), 7:30pm+.

Itinerary:
- May 14th: Fly from U.S. to Dublin, Ireland
- Day 1 (May 15th): Students will convene in Dublin, Ireland, where they will spend the first day and evening. Students will visit O’Connell Street and Dublin’s interactive museum, Epic Ireland.
- Day 2 (May 16th): Students will travel to Strokestown, County Roscommon, where they will spend the second day and evening. Students will visit the Strokestown Famine Museum and the home of landlord Denis Mahon.
- Day 3 (May 17th): Students will travel to Skibbereen, County Cork; settle into their field site and prepare for the study abroad experience.
- Day 4-5 (May 18th-19th): see daily schedule, above
- Day 6-7 (May 20th-21st): field trips, TBA
- Day 8-11 (May 22nd-25th): see daily schedule, above
- Day 12 (Friday, May 26th): See daily schedule, above. 1:30-4:30pm: Final Examinations. 6:30pm: Group banquet and closing ceremonies.
- Saturday, May 27th: Return to Dublin, return to USA, etc.


PROGRAM DIRECTOR:

Dr. E Moore Quinn
Department of Sociology and Anthropology
quinne@cofc.edu
843-953-7306

Dr. Quinn is a scholar of Ireland, its language, its culture, and its folkways. A member of the Irish and Irish American Studies Steering Committee at the College of Charleston, Quinn travels frequently to Ireland. In the summers of 2015 and 2016, she visited the sites of this proposed study abroad program. Quinn has also written and published on aspects of the Great Irish Famine (Quinn 2009; 2010; 2016, in press), and several related topics.

Note: For questions regarding on-site program details and course content, please contact Dr. Quinn. Any inquiries regarding application processing, billing, or financial aid opportunities can be directed to the Center for International Education (contact information listed above).