Dr. Ciara Breathnach
Biography
Ciara Breathnach is Associate Professor in History at the University of Limerick. She has managed over 2 million Euro in competitive funding and has held nine visiting international fellowships. Breathnach is currently Visiting Professor at Corpus Christi College, University of Cambridge and held a Fulbright Scholar Award in 2022 at New York University AY2022/23.She has published widely on Irish socio-economic, gender, cultural and health history. Her current monograph is Ordinary lives, death and social class: Dublin City Coroner's Court, 1876-1902 (Oxford University Press, 2022). It won the American Conference of Irish Studies, James S. Donnelly Sr. Prize for Books on History and Social Sciences in June 2023.
She is co-editor a forthcoming volume:
Ciara Breathnach and Ian Walsh (eds.), Inquest Reports of Dr Joseph E. Kenny, Dublin City Coroner, 1900 (Irish Manuscripts Commission, Dublin, in press).
She is author of The Congested Districts Board of Ireland, 1891-1923, poverty and development in the West of Ireland (Dublin, 2005) and editor/co-editor of eight volumes/proceedings. Apart from chapters in edited volumes, she has published articles in high-ranking journals such as, Urban History, Annales de démographie historique, Medical History, The History Teacher, Health and History, Journal of the History of Childhood and Youth, Nursing History Review, Social History of Medicine, Gender & History, Urban History, Medical Humanities, Cultural and Social History, Social History, Irish Historical Studies, Immigrants and Minorities, History of Family: an International Quarterly, the Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History, Historical Research: the Bulletin of the Institute for Historical Research and New Hibernia Review.
She is currently a member of the Irish Manuscripts Commission, she is a former member of the National Archives Advisory Council (2017-2022), the Board of the National Library of Ireland (2015-2020) and the Heritage Council (2012-2016). Breathnach has held several research awards as Principal or Co-Investigator and was an Irish Research Council Laureate Awards 2017/32 recipient for a project entitled Death and Burial Data: Ireland 1864-1922 (2018-2023).
Research Interests
Dr Ciara Breathnach is Associate Professor in History at the University of Limerick. She has published widely on Irish socio-economic, gender, cultural and health history. Her current monograph is Ordinary lives, death and social class: Dublin City Coroner's Court, 1876-1902 (Oxford University Press, 2022).She has held the following Awards and Fellowships:
2022 Fulbright Scholar, New York University.
2021 Irish Research Council, Research Ally Award.
2019 Excellence in Teaching Award, Centre for Teaching and Learning, UL, Faculty of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences winner.
2019 Visiting Research Leaders Fellowship, University of Wollongong
2017 Visiting Fellowship, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.
2016 CRF/RSE European Visiting Research Fellowships, Royal Society of Edinburgh, with Prof Oonagh Walsh at Glasgow Caledonian University, Scotland, UK.
2013-2014 Foundation for Women in Medicine Fellow, Center for the History of Medicine, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA.
2013-2014 Faculty Fellow, Faculty of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Limerick.
2012-2013 Visiting Fellow, Institute of Historical Research, London.
2012 (September) Visiting Faculty, New York University.
2012-2013 Flaherty Visiting Fellow, University of Massachusetts, Boston.
Professional Activities
Award
- 2014 - Harvard University, Foundation for Women in Medicine Fellow, Center for the History of Medicine,
- 2013 - Flaherty Visiting Fellow
- 2013 - IRC, Main Principal Investigator
- 2012 - Visiting Fellow
- 2012 - Visiting Faculty
- 2010 - Principal Investigator
- 2005 - Royal Irish Academy, British- Irish Exchange scheme
- 2004 - Royal Irish Academy, British- Irish Exchange Scheme
Committee
- 2012 Heritage Council of Ireland,
- 2007 Society for the Study of Nineteenth Century Ireland,
- 2005 Committee member of the National Library of Ireland on Genealogy and Heraldry.,
Association
- 2010 President, Society for the Study of Nineteenth-Century Ireland
- 2007 Secretary, Society for the Study of Nineteenth Century Ireland
Education
- 2003 UCC - PhD
Language
- Gaeilge
Peer Reviewed Journals
Sexual assault and fatal violence against women during the Irish War of Independence, 1919-1921: Kate Maher's murder in context
Breathnach, C;O'Halpin, E (2022) Sexual assault and fatal violence against women during the Irish War of Independence, 1919-1921: Kate Maher's murder in context. LONDON Bmj Medical Humanitiesbmj Medical Humanities :94-103
Read more
Evolving as Necessity Dictates: Home and Public Health in the 19th and 20th Centuries
Apple, RD;Breathnach, C;Bryder, L;Greenlees, J (2018) Evolving as Necessity Dictates: Home and Public Health in the 19th and 20th Centuries. NEW YORK : SPRINGER PUBLISHING CO Nursing History Review :48-54
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Review of Lisa Marie Griffith and Ciarán Wallace (eds), Grave Matters: Death and Dying in Dublin 1500 to the Present
Ciara Breathnach (2017) Review of Lisa Marie Griffith and Ciarán Wallace (eds), Grave Matters: Death and Dying in Dublin 1500 to the Present. Social History Of Medicine :701-711
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Review of, Sarah Anne Buckley, The Cruelty Man
Breathnach, Ciara (2014) Review of, Sarah Anne Buckley, The Cruelty Man. Irish Historical Studies
Read moreCiara Breathnach, Review of She said she was in the family way': pregnancy and infancy in modern Ireland, Elaine Farrell (ed).
Breathnach, C (2013) Ciara Breathnach, Review of She said she was in the family way': pregnancy and infancy in modern Ireland, Elaine Farrell (ed).. Irish Historical Studies
Read moreIntroduction: Power, the State and institutions in Ireland,
Breathnach, C, Chambers L. and McElligott, A (2012) Introduction: Power, the State and institutions in Ireland,. Irish Historical Studies :1-5
Read moreRegistered 'Unknown' infant fatalities in Ireland, 1916-32: gender and power
Breathnach, Ciara: O'Halpin Eunan (2012) Registered 'Unknown' infant fatalities in Ireland, 1916-32: gender and power. Irish Historical Studies :70-89
Read moreEven 'Wilder Workhouse Girls': The Problem of Institutionalisation among Irish Immigrants to New Zealand 1874
Breathnach, C (2011) Even 'Wilder Workhouse Girls': The Problem of Institutionalisation among Irish Immigrants to New Zealand 1874. Journal Of Imperial And Commonwealth History :771-794
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The Role of Women in the Economy of the West of Ireland, 1891-1923
Breathnach, Ciara (2004) The Role of Women in the Economy of the West of Ireland, 1891-1923. New Hibernia Review
Read moreBooks
Ordinary lives, death and social class: Dublin City Coroner's Court, 1876-1902
Ciara Breathnach (2022) Ordinary lives, death and social class: Dublin City Coroner's Court, 1876-1902 . Oxford : Oxford University Press
Read moreThe Congested Districts Board of Ireland, 1891-1923: poverty and development in the west,
Breathnach, C (2005) The Congested Districts Board of Ireland, 1891-1923: poverty and development in the west,. Dublin : Four Courts Press
Read moreBook Chapters
Towards Model Checking Product Lines in the Digital Humanities: An Application to Historical Data
Breathnach C.;Ibrahim N.;Clancy S.;Margaria T. (2019) Towards Model Checking Product Lines in the Digital Humanities: An Application to Historical Data. New York : Springer Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics) :338-364
Read more
Crime and Punishment: Whiteboyism and the Law in Late Nineteenth-Century Ireland
Ciara Breathnach and Laurence M. Geary (2017) Crime and Punishment: Whiteboyism and the Law in Late Nineteenth-Century Ireland. Liverpool : Liverpool University Press Crime in C19th Ireland :149-174
Read more it would be preposterous to bring a Protestant here': religion, provincial politics and district nurses in Ireland, 1890-1904',
Breathnach, Ciara (2015) it would be preposterous to bring a Protestant here': religion, provincial politics and district nurses in Ireland, 1890-1904', . London : Institute of Historical Research Healthcare in Ireland and Britain 1850-1970: voluntary, regional and comparative perspective :161-180
Read moreMedical Humanities: new frontier or back to the past?
Breathnach, C. and Walsh O., (2014) Medical Humanities: new frontier or back to the past?. Dublin : Humanities Serving Irish Society Restating the Value of the Humanities :36-40
Read moreObituaries in provincial Irish newspapers, 1830-1900'
Breathnach, C, Butler, D (2013) Obituaries in provincial Irish newspapers, 1830-1900'. Dublin : Irish Academic Press James Kelly and Marian Lyons (eds), Death and Dying in Ireland, Britain, and Europe: Historical Perspectives (Irish Academic Press, Dublin and Portland, 2013)
Read moreLady Dudley’s district nursing scheme and the congested districts board, 1903-1923
Breathnach C. (2012) Lady Dudley’s district nursing scheme and the congested districts board, 1903-1923. Gender and Medicine in Ireland 1700-1950 :138-153
Read moreThe Congested Districts Board and Public Health'
Breathnach, Ciara (2012) The Congested Districts Board and Public Health'. New York : Syracuse University Press Gender and Medicine in Ireland, 1700-1951 :258-281
Read moreRecruiting Irish migrants for life in New Zealand, 1870-1875
Breathnach, C (2008) Recruiting Irish migrants for life in New Zealand, 1870-1875. Ireland, Australia and New Zealand: history, politics and culture :32-45
Read moreSmallholder housing and public Health, 1892-1915
Breathnach, C (2007) Smallholder housing and public Health, 1892-1915. Dublin and Portland : Irish Academic Press Framing the West: images of rural Ireland 1891-1920 :179-196
Read moreintroduction
Breathnach, C (2007) introduction. : Irish Academic Press Framing the West, images of rural Ireland, 1891-1920 :xiii-xxi
Read moreHistorical sources pertaining to Travellers, 1824-1925
Breathnach, C (2006) Historical sources pertaining to Travellers, 1824-1925. Portraying Irish Travellers, histories and representations :17-31
Read moreEdited Books
Other Journals
Archival transcriptions, practice-based learning and research data in undergraduate medical history
Ciara Breathnach, Kirsten Mulrennan and Sineád Keogh (2021) Archival transcriptions, practice-based learning and research data in undergraduate medical history. The History Teacher :1-34
Read moreConference Publications
Civic Cultures Workshop, Centre for Historical Research, UL
Breathnach, Ciara (2007) Civic Cultures Workshop, Centre for Historical Research, UL.
Read moreWomen¿s History and the Everyday. Annual Women¿s History Association of Ireland Conference
Breathnach, Ciara (2007) Women¿s History and the Everyday. Annual Women¿s History Association of Ireland Conference.
Read moreTone to Gonne: Society for the Study of Nineteenth-Century Ireland
Breathnach, Ciara (2007) Tone to Gonne: Society for the Study of Nineteenth-Century Ireland.
Read moreWar and Peace: North East Irish Conference Network conference
Breathnach, Ciara (2007) War and Peace: North East Irish Conference Network conference.
Read moreFrom Voluntary organisation to NGO
Breathnach, Ciara (2006) From Voluntary organisation to NGO. :*-*
Read moreEmpires of Religion Conference
Breathnach, Ciara (2006) Empires of Religion Conference. :*-*
Read moreIrish Economic and Social History Annual Conference
Breathnach, Ciara (2006) Irish Economic and Social History Annual Conference. :*-*
Read moreTaking History into the Future History Teacher's Association of Ireland
Breathnach, Ciara (2006) Taking History into the Future History Teacher's Association of Ireland. :*-*
Read more'Sisters are doing it for themselves¿: Women and Informal Port Economies
* (2005) 'Sisters are doing it for themselves¿: Women and Informal Port Economies. :*-*
Read more14th Irish-Australian Conference
Breathnach, Ciara (2005) 14th Irish-Australian Conference. :*-*
Read moreInternational Federation for research in Women's History
Breathnach, Ciara (2003) International Federation for research in Women's History. :*-*
Read moreResearch Seminar in Contemporary Irish History
Breathnach, Ciara (2003) Research Seminar in Contemporary Irish History. :*-*
Read moreConference Contributions
Medical Identities: Patients and Professionals
Oonagh walsh, Ciara Breathnach and olwen Purdue (2012) Medical Identities: Patients and Professionals .
Read moreSocial History of Medicine conference
Breathnach C (2012) Social History of Medicine conference.
Read moreSociety for the Study of Nineteenth-Century Ireland, UCC
Breathnach, C (2010) Society for the Study of Nineteenth-Century Ireland, UCC.
Read more17th Australasian Irish Studies Conference, QUB
Breathnach, C (2010) 17th Australasian Irish Studies Conference, QUB .
Read moreSociety for the Social History of Medicine Conference, Durham
Breathnach C (2010) Society for the Social History of Medicine Conference, Durham.
Read morePower and History: 29th Irish Conference of Historians
Anthony McElligott, Liam Chambers, Ciara Breathnach and catherine Lawless (2009) Power and History: 29th Irish Conference of Historians.
Read moreVisual, material and print culture in nineteenth-century Ireland,
Breathnach C., Lawless C. (2008) Visual, material and print culture in nineteenth-century Ireland,.
Read moreContinuity and change: history of the European Family
Breathnach C. (2007) Continuity and change: history of the European Family.
Read morePublished Reports
Editorials
Introduction
Breathnach, C,Chambers, L,McElligott, A (2012) Introduction. Irish Historical Studies :1-4
Read moreBook Reviews
THE CRUELTY MAN: CHILD WELFARE, THE NSPCC AND THE STATE IN IRELAND, 1899-1956
Breathnach, C (2014) THE CRUELTY MAN: CHILD WELFARE, THE NSPCC AND THE STATE IN IRELAND, 1899-1956. Irish Historical Studies :354-355
Read more'SHE SAID SHE WAS IN THE FAMILY WAY': PREGNANCY AND INFANCY IN MODERN IRELAND
Breathnach, C (2013) 'SHE SAID SHE WAS IN THE FAMILY WAY': PREGNANCY AND INFANCY IN MODERN IRELAND. Irish Historical Studies :720-721
Read moreOther Publications
THE CRUELTY MAN: CHILD WELFARE, THE NSPCC AND THE STATE IN IRELAND, 1899-1956
Breathnach, C (2014) THE CRUELTY MAN: CHILD WELFARE, THE NSPCC AND THE STATE IN IRELAND, 1899-1956. Irish Historical Studies :354-355
Read more'SHE SAID SHE WAS IN THE FAMILY WAY': PREGNANCY AND INFANCY IN MODERN IRELAND
Breathnach, C (2013) 'SHE SAID SHE WAS IN THE FAMILY WAY': PREGNANCY AND INFANCY IN MODERN IRELAND. Irish Historical Studies :720-721
Read moreIntroduction
Breathnach, C,Chambers, L,McElligott, A (2012) Introduction. Irish Historical Studies :1-4
Read more