Lorcán Ó Muireadhaigh (1883–1941) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

Roman Catholic priest,

Irish language Irish (an Caighdeán Oifigiúil, Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic languages, Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European lang ...

educator and nationalist activist. Another Gaelicisation of his name (as per the Ulster Biography) is Lorcan Ó Muireadhaigh.Other spelling variations can be found a
UCD/folklore
He was born Laurence Patrick Murray in

Carlingford, County Louth Carlingford (; ga, Cairlinn) is a coastal town and civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of Parish (administrative division), administrative parish used for Local government in England, local government. It is a territorial ...

in 1883. He was educated locally and at

St Patrick's College, Armagh St Patrick's Grammar School ( ga, Scoil Ghramadaí Naomh Pádraig), Armagh, is a Roman Catholic boys' non-selective voluntary grammar school in the city of Armagh, Northern Ireland. The present-day school was officially opened on Thursday, 27 O ...

, before going to

Maynooth Maynooth (; ga, Maigh Nuad) is a university town in north County Kildare, Ireland. It is home to Maynooth University (part of the National University of Ireland and also known as the National University of Ireland, Maynooth) and St Patrick ...

Seminary in 1901. Ó Muireadhaigh wrote articles for the ''Louth Archaeological Journal'' and ''Irisleabhar Maighe Nuadhat''. He travelled as a student to

St Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County, Minnesota, Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississip ...

in the United States, was ordained priest there in 1910, and became a mathematics teacher at the College of St Thomas. Following the foundation of

Omeath Irish College Omeath (; or ''Uí Meth'') is a village on the Cooley Peninsula in County Louth, Ireland, close to the border with Northern Ireland. It is roughly midway between Dublin and Belfast, very near the County Louth and County Armagh / County Down bor ...

in 1912, he spent every summer teaching in the Omeath

Gaeltacht ( , , ) are the districts of Ireland, individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home. The ''Gaeltacht'' districts were first officially recog ...

. In 1917 he lost his position at the College of Saint Thomas for refusing to take an oath of allegiance, and returned to Ireland as stoker on a ship because the British Embassy refused him a visa. In 1918 he was appointed curate in the parish of

Clonfeacle Clonfeacle is a civil parish in County Armagh and County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is split across the historic baronies of Armagh and Oneilland West in County Armagh and Dungannon Lower and Dungannon Middle in County Tyrone. The Parish conta ...

, where he taught Gaelic and Irish dancing. In 1921 he became Religious Inspector for schools; he remained in that position for the next sixteen years. In 1924 he established the Gaelic monthly, ''An tUltach'' (''The Ulsterman''). In 1925 he founded St. Brigid's College in Ranafast, County Donegal. In 1926 he established the Gaelic League Provisional Council for the nine counties of Ulster and County Louth. He was an active supporter of the

Gaelic Athletic Association The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA; ga, Cumann Lúthchleas Gael ; CLG) is an Irish international amateur sporting and cultural organisation, focused primarily on promoting indigenous Gaelic games and pastimes, which include the traditional ...

and served as a team coach. His publications include ''Ceolta Omeith'' (1920; a collection of songs) and ''Pota Cnuasaigh'' (1924).

Notes and references

External links

Dictionary of New Ulster Biography online

1883 births 1941 deaths 20th-century Irish Roman Catholic priests Alumni of St Patrick's College, Maynooth University of St. Thomas (Minnesota) faculty People from Carlingford, County Louth Irish-language writers Irish scholars and academics {{RC-clergy-stub