Daniel Anthony Binchy (1899–1989) was a scholar of
Irish linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...
and
early Irish law
Early Irish law, also called Brehon law (from the old Irish word breithim meaning judge), comprised the statutes which governed everyday life in Early Medieval Ireland. They were partially eclipsed by the Norman invasion of 1169, but underwe ...
.
He was educated at
Clongowes Wood College
Clongowes Wood College SJ is a Catholic voluntary boarding school for boys near Clane, County Kildare, Ireland, founded by the Jesuits in 1814. It features prominently in James Joyce's semi-autobiographical novel '' A Portrait of the Artist ...
(1910–16),
University College Dublin
University College Dublin (), commonly referred to as UCD, is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 38,417 students, it is Ireland's largest ...
(UCD) and the
King's Inns
The Honorable Society of King's Inns () is the "Inn of Court" for the Bar of Ireland. Established in 1541, King's Inns is Ireland's oldest school of law and one of Ireland's significant historical environments.
The Benchers of King's Inns aw ...
(1917–20) after which he was called to the
bar
Bar or BAR may refer to:
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* Candy bar
** Chocolate bar
* Protein bar
Science and technology
* Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment
* Bar (tropical cyclone), a laye ...
. He also studied at the universities of
Munich
Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
,
Berlin
Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
and
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
. From 1919 to 1920, he was Auditor of the
Literary and Historical Society of UCD.
He served the
Department of Foreign Affairs
In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral re ...
in
Berlin
Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
as
Ireland's first ambassador to Germany, then ruled by the
Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic, officially known as the German Reich, was the German Reich, German state from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional republic for the first time in history; hence it is also referred to, and unofficially proclai ...
, from 1929 to 1932. While there he received instruction in
Old Irish
Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic (, Ogham, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ; ; or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic languages, Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive written texts. It was used from 600 to 900. The ...
from pioneering
Swiss
Swiss most commonly refers to:
* the adjectival form of Switzerland
* Swiss people
Swiss may also refer to: Places
* Swiss, Missouri
* Swiss, North Carolina
* Swiss, West Virginia
* Swiss, Wisconsin
Other uses
* Swiss Café, an old café located ...
Celticist
Celtic studies or Celtology is the academic discipline occupied with the study of any sort of cultural output relating to the Celtic-speaking peoples (i.e. speakers of Celtic languages). This ranges from linguistics, literature and art history ...
Rudolf Thurneysen
Eduard Rudolf Thurneysen (14 March 1857 – 9 August 1940) was a Swiss linguist and Celticist.
Biography
Born in Basel, Thurneysen studied classical philology in Basel, Leipzig, Berlin and Paris. His teachers included Ernst Windisch and ...
. This allowed Binchy to read original manuscripts and begin his study of
early Irish law
Early Irish law, also called Brehon law (from the old Irish word breithim meaning judge), comprised the statutes which governed everyday life in Early Medieval Ireland. They were partially eclipsed by the Norman invasion of 1169, but underwe ...
. He was for a time the main academic investigating the legal system, and for some time, his ideas were the orthodoxy. While his contributions still underlie the foundations, some of his analysis, however, has since been re-examined. Many of his attempts to connect early Irish law to
Celtic law and even to
Indo-European
The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the northern Indian subcontinent, most of Europe, and the Iranian plateau with additional native branches found in regions such as Sri Lanka, the Maldives, parts of Central Asia (e. ...
law have come under considerable doubt. However, his contributions are also lasting on account of his production of numerous translations and editions of legal texts.
From 1949, he worked as a senior professor of
Celtic studies
Celtic studies or Celtology is the academic discipline occupied with the study of any sort of cultural output relating to the Celts, Celtic-speaking peoples (i.e. speakers of Celtic languages). This ranges from linguistics, literature and art h ...
at the
Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies
The Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS) () is a statutory independent research institute in Dublin, Ireland. It was established, under the Institute For Advanced Studies Act 1940, by the government of the then Taoiseach, Éamon de Vale ...
. His activities are affectionately satirized in
Brian O'Nolan
Brian O'Nolan (; 5 October 19111 April 1966), his pen name being Flann O'Brien, was an Irish civil service official, novelist, playwright and satirist, who is now considered a major figure in twentieth-century Irish literature. Born in Straban ...
's poem ''Binchy and
Bergin and
Best
Best or The Best may refer to:
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* Best (surname), people with the surname Best
* Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer
Companies and organizations
* Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain
* Best Lock Corporatio ...
'', originally printed in the ''
Cruiskeen Lawn'' column in the
Irish Times
''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It was launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is Ireland's leading n ...
and now included in ''The Best of Myles''. He was a close friend of
Frank O'Connor
Frank O'Connor (born Michael Francis O'Donovan; 17 September 1903 – 10 March 1966) was an Irish author and translator. He wrote poetry (original and translations from Irish), dramatic works, memoirs, journalistic columns and features on as ...
.
His final major work, the six-volume ''
Corpus Iuris Hibernici
The ''Corpus Iuris Hibernici'' (cited as ''CIH'') is a six-volume collection of the sources for the study of early Irish law (known as Brehon law) edited by D. A. Binchy. It presents a transcription of the manuscripts (Old Irish and Latin) rele ...
'', collected almost all texts in the native Irish legal tradition and thus offers later scholars a firm ground to stand upon.
[D.A. Binchy, Corpus Iuris Hibernici, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies]
Binchy was elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...
in 1962.
He was the uncle of the author
Maeve Binchy
Anne Maeve Binchy Snell (28 May 1939Born 1939 as per biography, ''Maeve Binchy'' by Piers Dudgeon, Thomas Dunne Books 2013; (hardcover), pp. 4, 280, 302; (ebook) – 30 July 2012) was an Irish novelist, playwright, short story writer, column ...
and of the academic
William Binchy
William Binchy is an Irish lawyer. He was the Regius Professor of Laws at Trinity College Dublin from 1992 to 2012.
Education
Binchy was educated at University College Dublin. He is a Barrister-at-Law and practised at the Irish Bar from 1968 t ...
.
References
External links
''Binchy and Bergin and Best'' by Flann O'Brien
{{DEFAULTSORT:Binchy, D. A.
Celtic studies scholars
1899 births
1989 deaths
Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Academics of the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies
Alumni of King's Inns
Alumni of University College Dublin
Ambassadors of Ireland to Germany
Auditors of the Literary and Historical Society (University College Dublin)
Binchy family
Humboldt University of Berlin alumni
Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich alumni
People educated at Clongowes Wood College
University of Paris alumni
20th-century Irish historians
Irish expatriates in Germany
Irish expatriates in France