Library Catalog
- HOLLISHOLLIS is the library's main search interface. It includes the Harvard library catalog as well as a huge (and more heterogeneous) collection of citations for a variety of materials, including articles and book chapters. HOLLIS does not search the full-text of books and articles, though you find occasional exceptions.
Find Tales and Myths
Please note that your professor has posted tales and myths for you to choose among on the course website. The small selection below is available to supplement those; consult professor Chadbourne before deciding to write about any tales or myths that she has not provided to you directly.
- Ancient Irish Tales byPublication Date: c1936
- Celtic Heritage: Ancient Tradition in Ireland and Wales byPublication Date: 1961This text may serve as a reference to original tales. “The chapters are well referenced to original literary sources and to selected modern works.” However, be prepared: “the chapter notes are inconveniently bunched together at the end of the book, and their elaborate contractions necessitate further consultation of a long list of abbreviations in which the bibliography is cast” (quoted from a review in volume 35 of the journal Antiquity, by T.G.E. Powell).
- Irish Texts Society (Series)The Irish Texts Society issues annotated editions of texts in Irish with English translations and related commentaries. A selection of these include tales and myths of Ireland. Please sort through the short list of results to identify these, and click on the "Online" link to access them.
- Motif Index of Early Irish Literature byPublication Date: 1952Quotation from the preface: “The present work is designed as a supplement to Professor Stith Thompson's Motif-Index of Folk-Literature (6 vols.). Bloomington and Helsinki, 1932ff. It follows Professor Thomp son's method of classification and enumeration, numbers not occurring in Professor Thompson's work being marked with an asterisk. In attempting to fit the motifs of early Irish tradition into Professor Thompson's classification, the compiler, contrary to the preference of some Celticists, has generally identified the aes sidhe and the Tuatha D4 Danann as "fairies," and their dwell ings as "fairyland." He has also sought, with questionable success, to differentiate between "gods" and "fairies." Users of this book are warned against accepting indiscriminately as ancient Celtic divinities all of the personages identified as such by modern scholars. This index is intended primarily for the use of students of folklore and custom and of comparative literature. To this end, the references to early Irish or Hiberno-Latin sources are fre quently supplemented by references to modern scholarly works in which motifs found in Celtic are cited for purposes of com parative study in various fields of literary or cultural history, such as mediaeval romance. A few references to early Welsh documents have also been added, and, though no effort has been made to cover modern Irish folklore, scattered references to that field have also been inserted. To insure as wide usefulness as possible, preference is given to translations contained in books of relatively easy accessibility, and more than one reference is frequently given to different translations of a single motif.” See also: Motif Index, What it Is and What it Does from the British Columbia Folklore Society. To help you understand the citations, the "Bibliography and Abbreviations" section starts on page xv of the print volume (or p. 23 of the scan)..
- Motif-Index of Folk-Literature byPublication Date: 1932-36.a classification of narrative elements in folk-tales, ballads, myths, fables, mediaeval romances, exempla, fabliaux, jest-books, and local legends. Be aware, this covers folktales worldwide, and is not limited to Ireland.
- Types of the Folk Tale byPublication Date: 1971Antti Aarne's Verzeichnis der Märchentypen (FF communications no. 3) translated into English and enlarged by Stith Thompson. Be aware, this covers folktales worldwide, and is not limited to Ireland.
Find Scholarly Articles
While these databases are online and contain many full text materials, you may sometimes encounter citations without a link to full text. In these cases, there is often an option for obtaining the full text, whether through a scanning or borrowing service. Please ask me.
- Academic Search PremierA multi-disciplinary database that includes citations and abstracts from over 4,700 scholarly publications (journals, magazines and newspapers). Full text is available for more than 3,600 of the publications and is searchable.
- Anthropology PlusA compilation of the Anthropological Index Online and Anthropological Literature databases, this resource is an extensive index of bibliographic materials covering the fields of anthropology, archaeology and related interdisciplinary research.
- AnthroSourceProvides current content from AAA's diverse portfolio of 35 anthropological publications which includes journals, books, monographs, bulletins and newsletters.
- Arts & Humanities Citation Index (via Web of Science)Arts & Humanities Citation Index, published by the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI), is a multidisciplinary database covering the journal literature of the arts and humanities.It indexes 1,100 of the world's leading arts and humanities journals, as well as covering individually selected, relevant items from over 7,000 major science and social science journals. Because the information stored about each article includes the article's cited reference list (often called its bibliography), you can also search the database for articles that cite a known author or work.
- Bibliography of Irish Linguistics and Literature (BILL) byA specialist reference tool for scholars and students of Irish language and literature. Contains citations to over 6000 articles from more than 400 different periodical titles, and to over 800 monographs and miscellanies. All material is classified according to author, format of publication, and subject, and it is possible to browse through the contents of the bibliography under each of these headings. References are culled from publications from around the world and no restriction of language has been imposed on their choice.
- CSANA BibliographyProduced by the Celtic Studies Association of North America, this bibliography indexes a broad range of materials, including scholarly journal articles relevant to the study of Celtic languages and literatures.
- JSTORProvides page images of back issues of the core scholarly journals in the humanities, social sciences, and basic sciences from the earliest issues to within a few years of current publication. Users may browse by journal title or discipline, or may search the full-text or citations/abstracts. New issues of existing titles and new titles are added approximately on a weekly basis. Nota bene: In the "Advanced Search," you may limit your search to both folklore and Irish studies.
- MLA International BibliographyConsists of bibliographic records pertaining to literature, language, linguistics, and folklore, and includes coverage from 1963 to the present. The MLA International Bibliography provides access to scholarly research in over 3,000 journals and series. It also covers relevant monographs, working papers, proceedings, bibliographies, and other formats.
Find Contextual Materials
Due to COVID-19, the selected resources have been limited to those available online.
- Dictionary of Irish Biography byPublication Date: 2009-11-19Published in collaboration with the Royal Irish Academy, the Dictionary of Irish Biography is the most comprehensive and authoritative biographical reference work available both in print and online for Ireland. Outlines the careers at home and overseas of prominent men and women born in Ireland, north and south, and the noteworthy Irish careers of those born outside Ireland. Biographical subjects include: artists, scientists, lawyers, actors, musicians, writers, politicians, criminals, and saints.
- Encyclopedia of Folk Heroes byPublication Date: 2001-12-11A wide-ranging and detailed investigation of folk heroes, both fictional and historical, from the earliest times to the present, taken from societies throughout the world as they exist in folktales, folksongs, customs, speech, and other folklore genres. A general index combined with indexes by heroic type and by country/culture make research easy.
- Lives of the Saints byV. 1: January, February, March -- v. 2. April, May, June -- v. 3. July, August, September -- v. 4. October, November, December.
- Oxford Dictionary of National Biography byThe Oxford Dictionary of National Biography is a collection of 50,000 specially written biographies of men and women who have shaped all aspects of the British past, from the earliest times to the end of the year 2000, from the ancient (explorer Pytheas of the 4th Century BC) to the modern (Princess Diana).
Due to COVID-19, the selected resources have been limited to those available online.
- Dictionary of Celtic Mythology byISBN: 0198691572Publication Date: 1998-04-30Offers an exhaustive survey of one of the world's most fertile and exciting mythological traditions. It covers the persons, themes, concepts, places, and creatures of Celtic mythology, in all its ancient and modern traditions.
- The Encyclopaedia of Ireland byPublication Date: 2003-01-01The Encyclopaedia of Ireland contains a full A-Z listing of over 5500 articles on all things Irish, past and present, written by experts in the various fields. All the text has been specially commissioned and written for the Encyclopaedia. From the Mesolithic Age to the 21st century, this reference covers subjects as diverse as: biography, education, art and architecture, topography, sport, literature, history and politics, military, commerce and law, folklore, natural history, science, religion, transport, engineering, diet, food and drink, music and many more.
- Encyclopedia of Folk Heroes byPublication Date: 2001-12-11A wide-ranging and detailed investigation of folk heroes, both fictional and historical, from the earliest times to the present, taken from societies throughout the world as they exist in folktales, folksongs, customs, speech, and other folklore genres. A general index combined with indexes by heroic type and by country/culture make research easy.
- The Encyclopedia of World Culturesv. 1. North America; v. 2. Oceania; v. 3. South Asia; v. 4. Europe (Central, Western, and Southeastern Europe); v. 5. East and southeast Asia; v. 6. Russia and Eurasia/China; v. 7. South America; v. 8. Middle America and the Caribbean; v. 9. Africa and the Middle East; v. 10. Indexes.
Due to COVID-19, the selected resources have been limited to those available online.
- Anthropology OnlineBrings together a wide range of written ethnographies, field notes, seminal texts, memoirs, and contemporary studies, covering human behavior the world over, including previously unpublished material from major archives.
- eHRAF World CulturesThis database contains background information on different ethnic graoups, as well as many ethnographies and other books and articles.To find ethnographies first select "Browse Cultures." Locate the group you are interested in and then click Collection Documents to view works (including ethnographies) about that group.
- Ethnographic Video OnlineA large video streaming library of ethnographic films and documentaries, this database contains classic and contemporary ethnographies, documentaries and shorts from every continent
- Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy byPublication Date: 1787-1906 (Vol. 1 - Vol. 33)Transactions was the foremost Irish learned publication during its 121 years of publication. Among other subjects, it covered the archaeology, linguistics and literature of Ireland. Click on the link, and once inside JSTOR, search the journal; one search example is: (irish OR ireland OR celt*) AND (ethnogr* OR anthropolog*)
Due to COVID-19, the selected resources have been limited to those available online.
- Digital Atlas of Roman and Medieval Civilizations (DARMC)Using geodatabases with multiple data layers, the Atlas allows user to simultaneously track multiple aspects of Roman and medieval civilization in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East. Includes archaeological sites, natural resources, epidemics and disease, immigration, and the spread of monasticism, among many others. The site also includes a searchable Zotero bibliography, a list of map sources, and the DARMC Scholarly Data Series for the databases used in the making of the Atlas, which are downloadable.
- Bibliography of Irish Linguistics and Literature (BILL) byA specialist reference tool for scholars and students of Irish language and literature. Contains citations to over 6000 articles from more than 400 different periodical titles, and to over 800 monographs and miscellanies. All material is classified according to author, format of publication, and subject, and it is possible to browse through the contents of the bibliography under each of these headings. References are culled from publications from around the world and no restriction of language has been imposed on their choice.
- Books of Irish Proverbs (various), linked from HOLLIS Library CatalogIn addition to the sources listed on the page linked here, you may find more Irish proverbs by searching the databases listed in the "Find Scholarly Articles" category, above. While you may show online online results using the "online" refinement on the right side of the HOLLIS screen, please eyeball all of the results first to identify those that may be available online via HathiTrust (these usually won't show up when the online refinement is utilized). Note: While the Harvard Libraries are closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, some of the titles you will find after clicking this link are temporarily available for Check Out via HathiTrust. Step-by-step instructions.
- The Dublin penny journal byPublication Date: Coverage: 1832-1836 (Vol. 1, No. 1 - Vol. 4, No. 208)This journal published articles on antiquarian subjects, language, characters, topography, archaeology, original verse and prose, and Irish proverbs, as exemplified in this article on Irish Proverbs. Search its issues online (hint: search for “proverb,” or “proverbs”).