Royal Irish Academy
Encyclopedia
The Royal Irish Academy (RIA) , based in Dublin, is an all-Ireland, independent, academic body that promotes study and excellence in the science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...

s, humanities
Humanities
The humanities are academic disciplines that study the human condition, using methods that are primarily analytical, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from the mainly empirical approaches of the natural sciences....

 and social sciences
Social sciences
Social science is the field of study concerned with society. "Social science" is commonly used as an umbrella term to refer to a plurality of fields outside of the natural sciences usually exclusive of the administrative or managerial sciences...

. It is one of Ireland's
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

 premier learned societies and cultural institutions and currently has around 420 Members, elected in recognition of their academic achievements. The Academy was established in 1785 and granted royal charter
Royal Charter
A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...

 in 1786. Until the late 19th century it was also the owner of the main national collection of Irish antiquities. It presented its collection of archaeological artefacts and similar items, which included such famous pieces as the Tara Brooch
Tara Brooch
The Tara Brooch is a Celtic brooch of about 700 AD generally considered to be the most impressive of over 50 elaborate Irish brooches to have been discovered...

, to what is now the National Museum of Ireland
National Museum of Ireland
The National Museum of Ireland is the national museum in Ireland. It has three branches in Dublin and one in County Mayo, with a strong emphasis on Irish art, culture and natural history.-Archaeology:...

, but retains its very significant collection of manuscripts.

Mission statement

The Academy has issued the following mission statement:
The Royal Irish Academy, the academy for the sciences and humanities for the whole of Ireland will vigorously promote excellence in scholarship, recognise achievements in learning, direct research programmes and undertake its own research projects, particularly in areas relating to Ireland and its heritage.

It will reflect upon, advice on and contribute to public debate and public policy formation on issues of major interest in science, technology and culture.

It will continue to offer an independent forum to Irish scholars, it will provide a network of support for scholarly disciplines through its network of national committees and commissions, it will maintain and enhance its unique library, it will publish scholarly papers and it will represent the world of Irish learning internationally.

Membership

Election to Membership of the Royal Irish Academy is a public recognition of academic excellence. It is the highest academic honour in Ireland. Those elected are entitled to use the designation
Designation
Designation may refer to:* Professional certification* Designation , an official classification determined by a government agency or historical society- See also :* United States Department of Defense aerospace vehicle designation...

 “MRIA
MRIA
MRIA may refer to:* Members of the Royal Irish Academy are permitted to use the letters MRIA after their names to indicate their election to the Academy.* Antonov An-225...

” after their name. The criterion for election to Membership is a significant contribution to scholarly research as shown in the candidate’s published academic work. To be elected, a candidate has to be proposed and recommended by five Members. Presently, twenty Members are elected each year, equally divided between the sciences and humanities. Membership is open only to those resident in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

.

Honorary Membership can be awarded to persons who have made outstanding contribution to their academic discipline, but who are normally resident outside the island of Ireland. At least two existing Members must propose and recommend a candidate for Honorary Membership. Honorary members are entitled to use the designation “Hon. MRIA” after their name.

Notable members

  • Francis Beaufort
    Francis Beaufort
    Rear-Admiral Sir Francis Beaufort, FRS, FRGS was an Irish hydrographer and officer in Britain's Royal Navy...

    , hydrographer and originator of the Beaufort Wind Scale
  • J.P. Beddy, public servant
  • Sir William Betham
    William Betham
    Sir William Betham was an English herald and antiquarian, the Ulster King of Arms from 1820 until his death in 1853. He had previously served as the Deputy Ulster from 1807 to 1820.-Life:...

     (1779–1853), Ulster King of Arms
    Norroy and Ulster King of Arms
    Norroy and Ulster King of Arms is one of the senior Officers of Arms of the College of Arms, and the junior of the two provincial Kings of Arms. The current office is the combination of two former appointments...

     1820-1853
  • Frederick Boland
    Frederick Boland
    Frederick Henry Boland was an Irish diplomat, who served as ambassador to Britain and the first Irish Ambassador to the United Nations....

    , diplomat
  • Andrew Nicholas Bonaparte Wyse, civil servant
  • Hugh Carleton, 1st Viscount Carleton, eminent judge and politician.
  • Arthur Cox, solicitor
  • Éamon de Valera
    Éamon de Valera
    Éamon de Valera was one of the dominant political figures in twentieth century Ireland, serving as head of government of the Irish Free State and head of government and head of state of Ireland...

    , Taoiseach
    Taoiseach
    The Taoiseach is the head of government or prime minister of Ireland. The Taoiseach is appointed by the President upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas , and must, in order to remain in office, retain the support of a majority in the Dáil.The current Taoiseach is...

     1932–1948; 1951–1954; 1957–1959 and President of Ireland
    President of Ireland
    The President of Ireland is the head of state of Ireland. The President is usually directly elected by the people for seven years, and can be elected for a maximum of two terms. The presidency is largely a ceremonial office, but the President does exercise certain limited powers with absolute...

     1959–1973
  • James Gandon
    James Gandon
    James Gandon is today recognised as one of the leading architects to have worked in Ireland in the late 18th century and early 19th century. His better known works include The Custom House, the Four Courts, King's Inns in Dublin and Emo Court in Co...

    , architect
  • Henry Grattan
    Henry Grattan
    Henry Grattan was an Irish politician and member of the Irish House of Commons and a campaigner for legislative freedom for the Irish Parliament in the late 18th century. He opposed the Act of Union 1800 that merged the Kingdoms of Ireland and Great Britain.-Early life:Grattan was born at...

    , politician
  • William Rowan Hamilton
    William Rowan Hamilton
    Sir William Rowan Hamilton was an Irish physicist, astronomer, and mathematician, who made important contributions to classical mechanics, optics, and algebra. His studies of mechanical and optical systems led him to discover new mathematical concepts and techniques...

    , mathematician
  • Walter Heitler
    Walter Heitler
    Walter Heinrich Heitler was a German physicist who made contributions to quantum electrodynamics and quantum field theory...

    , physicist
  • Thomas Dix Hincks
    Thomas Dix Hincks
    Thomas Dix Hincks was an Irish orientalist and naturalist.Hincks was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He was ordained a Presbysterian minister and worked at the Old Presbyterian Church on Princes Street in Cork. After teaching in the Cork Institution, which he founded, he taught in Fermoy,...

     (1767–1857) orientalist and naturalist
  • Richard Kirwan
    Richard Kirwan
    Richard Kirwan FRS was an Irish scientist. He is remembered today, if at all, for being one of the last supporters of the theory of phlogiston. Kirwan was active in the fields of chemistry, meteorology, and geology...

    , chemist, meteorologist, and mineralogist
  • Seán Lemass
    Seán Lemass
    Seán Francis Lemass was one of the most prominent Irish politicians of the 20th century. He served as Taoiseach from 1959 until 1966....

    , Taoiseach
    Taoiseach
    The Taoiseach is the head of government or prime minister of Ireland. The Taoiseach is appointed by the President upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas , and must, in order to remain in office, retain the support of a majority in the Dáil.The current Taoiseach is...

     1959–1966
  • F. S. L. Lyons
    F. S. L. Lyons
    Francis Stewart Leland Lyons was one of Ireland's premier historians.-Biography:Lyons was born in Derry, Northern Ireland, in 1923, but soon moved to Boyle in County Roscommon where his father was a bank official...

    , historian
  • Gearóid Mac Eoin
    Gearóid Mac Eoin
    Gearóid Mac Eoin is an Irish academic whose studies have focused especially on aspects of Irish language, literature and history.-Background and education:...

    , linguist and historian, member since 1975.
  • Eoin MacNeill
    Eoin MacNeill
    Eoin MacNeill was an Irish scholar, nationalist, revolutionary and politician. MacNeill is regarded as the father of the modern study of early Irish medieval history. He was a co-founder of the Gaelic League, to preserve Irish language and culture, going on to establish the Irish Volunteers...

    , politician and historian
  • William Hunter McCrea, astronomer
  • Frank Mitchell, historian
  • Michael Morris
    Michael Morris
    Michael Morris may refer to:*Michael Morris, 1st Baron Killanin , Irish lawyer and political figure, became the first Lord Killanin in 1900....

    , 3rd Baron Killanin
    Baron Killanin
    Baron Killanin, of Galway in the County of Galway, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1900 for the Irish lawyer and politician Michael Morris, Baron Morris, Lord Chief Justice of Ireland from 1887 to 1889 and a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary from 1889 to 1900...

     and President of the International Olympic Committee
    International Olympic Committee
    The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...

  • Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh
    Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh
    Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh served as the fifth President of Ireland, from 1974 to 1976. He resigned in 1976 after a clash with the government. He also had a notable legal career, including serving as Chief Justice of Ireland.- Early life :Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh, one of four children, was born on 12 February...

    , Attorney General
    Attorney General of Ireland
    The Attorney General is a constitutional officer who is the official adviser to the Government of Ireland in matters of law. He is in effect the chief law officer in Ireland. The Attorney General is not a member of the Government but does participate in cabinet meetings when invited and attends...

     1946–1948, 1951–1953 and President of Ireland
    President of Ireland
    The President of Ireland is the head of state of Ireland. The President is usually directly elected by the people for seven years, and can be elected for a maximum of two terms. The presidency is largely a ceremonial office, but the President does exercise certain limited powers with absolute...

     1974–1976
  • John O'Donovan
    John O'Donovan (scholar)
    John O'Donovan , from Atateemore, in the parish of Kilcolumb, County Kilkenny, and educated at Hunt's Academy, Waterford, was an Irish language scholar from Ireland.-Life:...

     (1806–1861), Irish language scholar and place-name expert
  • William Reeves
    William Reeves (bishop)
    William Reeves was an Irish antiquarian and the Church of Ireland Bishop of Down, Connor and Dromore from 1886 until his death...

     (1815–1892), antiquarian and bishop, President of the Academy in 1891
  • Erwin Schrödinger
    Erwin Schrödinger
    Erwin Rudolf Josef Alexander Schrödinger was an Austrian physicist and theoretical biologist who was one of the fathers of quantum mechanics, and is famed for a number of important contributions to physics, especially the Schrödinger equation, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1933...

     (1931), Nobel physics laureate
  • Robert William Smith
    Robert William Smith (surgeon)
    Robert William Smith was an Irish surgeon and pathologist who described Smith's fracture in his 1847 book, the first important book on fractures by an Irish author.- Biography :...

     (1807–1873), surgeon and pathologist
  • James Henthorn Todd
    James Henthorn Todd
    James Henthorn Todd was a biblical scholar, educator, and Irish historian. He is noted for his efforts to place religious disagreements on a rational historical footing, for his advocacy of a liberal form of Protestantism, and for his endeavours as an educator, librarian, and scholar in Irish...

     (1805–1869), biblical scholar, educator, and Irish historian
  • Ernest T.S. Walton
    Ernest Walton
    Ernest Thomas Sinton Walton was an Irish physicist and Nobel laureate for his work with John Cockcroft with "atom-smashing" experiments done at Cambridge University in the early 1930s, and so became the first person in history to artificially split the atom, thus ushering the nuclear age...

     (1935), Nobel physics laureate
  • Robert Anthony Welch
    Robert Anthony Welch
    -Biography:Robert Anthony Welch is Emeritus Professor of English in the Faculty of Arts BA MA PhD FEA MRIA and former Dean of the Faculty at the University of Ulster...

    , author, educator, and literary historian
  • James Dooge
    James Dooge
    James Clement Dooge was an Irish politician, engineer, climatologist, hydrologist and academic. Dooge had a profound effect on the debate on climate change, in the world of hydrology and in politics in the formation of the European Union.Dooge lived a multifaceted existence with his roles...

    , engineer, Government Minister, architect of the European Union. (President of the RIA 1986-1990)
  • Johannes Diderik van der Waals
    Johannes Diderik van der Waals
    Johannes Diderik van der Waals was a Dutch theoretical physicist and thermodynamicist famous for his work on an equation of state for gases and liquids....

     (1837–1923), 1910 Nobel Prize in physics.
  • Isaac Weld
    Isaac Weld
    Isaac Weld was an Irish topographical writer, explorer, and artist.He was born on 15 March 1774 on Fleet Street, Dublin, Ireland....

     (1774–1856), topographical author
  • William Wilde
    William Wilde
    Sir William Robert Wills Wilde MD, FRCSI, was an Irish eye and ear surgeon, as well as an author of significant works on medicine, archaeology and folklore, particularly concerning his native Ireland...

    , polymath
    Polymath
    A polymath is a person whose expertise spans a significant number of different subject areas. In less formal terms, a polymath may simply be someone who is very knowledgeable...

     and father of the playwright, Oscar Wilde
    Oscar Wilde
    Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...


Research Projects

The Academy currently manages a number of high-profile research projects in the sciences and humanities.

Publishing

The Academy is one of the longest-established publishers in Ireland, beginning in 1787. The Academy currently publishes six journals, including Ériu
Ériu
In Irish mythology, Ériu , daughter of Ernmas of the Tuatha Dé Danann, was the eponymous matron goddess of Ireland. Her husband was Mac Gréine ....

. The Academy’s research projects also regularly publish the Irish Historic Towns Atlas series, the Documents on Irish Foreign Policy, Foclóir na nua-Ghaeilge
Foclóir Stairiúil na Nua-Ghaeilge
The ' project was started in 1976 with the aim of creating a historical dictionary for Modern Irish. The dictionary will cover a period from 1600 to the present day....

, the Dictionary of Medieval Latin from Celtic Sources, and the New Survey of Clare Island.

The Academy is committed to publishing work which not only influences scholarship, but also the wider community, for example Flashes of Brilliance by Dick Ahlstrom, and Judging Dev by Diarmaid Ferriter
Diarmaid Ferriter
Diarmaid Ferriter is an Irish author, historian, and university lecturer. He has authored several books on the subject of Irish history. Diarmaid attended St. Benildus College in Kilmacud in Dublin.-Career:...

. Both of these publications have been accompanied by either a television or a radio series.

Library

See also :Category:Royal Irish Academy Library

The Academy Library holds the largest collection of Old Irish manuscripts in the world. It is an important research centre for studies covering Irish history, language
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...

, archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...

 and the history of Irish science .The Library is home to the sixth-century Latin psalter
Psalter
A psalter is a volume containing the Book of Psalms, often with other devotional material bound in as well, such as a liturgical calendar and litany of the Saints. Until the later medieval emergence of the book of hours, psalters were the books most widely owned by wealthy lay persons and were...

, the Cathach
Cathach of St. Columba
The Cathach of St. Columba is an late 6th century Irish Psalter.It is traditionally associated with St. Columba , and was identified as the copy made by him of a book loaned to him by St. Finnian, and which led to the Battle of Cúl Dreimhne in 561...

, reputedly copied by St Columcille. The Library also holds the personal library of Thomas Moore
Thomas Moore
Thomas Moore was an Irish poet, singer, songwriter, and entertainer, now best remembered for the lyrics of The Minstrel Boy and The Last Rose of Summer. He was responsible, with John Murray, for burning Lord Byron's memoirs after his death...

 and the philological collection of Osborn J. Bergin
Osborn Bergin
Osborn Joseph Bergin was a scholar of the Irish language and Early Irish literature. He was born in Cork and was educated at Queen's College Cork , then went to Germany for advanced studies in Celtic languages, working with Heinrich Zimmer at the Friedrich Wilhelm University of Berlin...

.

Academy Committees

During the 1950s the Academy began forming national committees, each relating to a specific discipline. Today the main focus of the Academy committees is to serve as a strategic vehicle for the disciplines they represent, and to act as a national forum, providing input into policy, research priorities and issues of public concern, such as climate change
Climate change
Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average...

. They also organise public outreach activities, such as lectures and public interviews, and award grants for research and travel. The Academy committees are made up of both Members and non-Members, including representatives from universities, research institutions, government agencies and, where appropriate, industry.

Academy House

In 1852 the Royal Irish Academy moved to its current premises at 19, Dawson Street
Dawson Street
Dawson Street is one of the main streets of central Dublin, running parallel to Grafton Street, to which it is connected by Duke Street and South Anne Street...

, Dublin 2, known as "Academy House". Built in c.1750, the building has some fine decorative plasterwork and a handsome meeting room designed in 1854 by Frederick Clarendon
Frederick Clarendon
Frederick Villiers Clarendon was an Irish Architect noted for his design work on a number of large public buildings in Dublin, including the Natural History Museum and Arbour Hill Prison.- Life :...

 and now used for conferences, exhibitions and public talks. Academy House was home to many of Ireland's finest national treasures, including the Ardagh Chalice
Ardagh Chalice
The Ardagh Hoard, best known for the Ardagh Chalice, is a hoard of metalwork from the 8th and 9th centuries, found in 1868 and now in the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin...

 and the Tara Brooch
Tara Brooch
The Tara Brooch is a Celtic brooch of about 700 AD generally considered to be the most impressive of over 50 elaborate Irish brooches to have been discovered...

, until 1890 when the Academy transferred its collections to the newly established National Museum of Ireland
National Museum of Ireland
The National Museum of Ireland is the national museum in Ireland. It has three branches in Dublin and one in County Mayo, with a strong emphasis on Irish art, culture and natural history.-Archaeology:...

.

Governance

The President and Council are responsible for the Academy's general government and regulation. They are elected annually at the Stated Meeting on 16 March. The President normally serves a three year term of office. The membership of Council is drawn from the Sciences and Humanities sections. Council formulates policies, develops and recommends candidates for membership.

The Executive Committee supports the Council in supervising the day-to-day business of the Academy. The members of the Executive Committee are the President, Senior Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Secretaries of Science and PL&A, Executive Secretary, Secretary for International Relations and a Staff Representative.

The Royal Irish Academy became a prescribed body under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 1997 and the Freedom of Information Act (Amendment) 2003, on 31 May 2006.

See also

  • Dictionary of the Irish Language
    Dictionary of the Irish Language
    Dictionary of the Irish Language: Based Mainly on Old and Middle Irish Materials , published by the Royal Irish Academy, is the definitive dictionary of the origins of the Irish language, specifically the Old Irish and Middle Irish stages; the modern language is not included...

  • Great Book of Lecan
    Great Book of Lecan
    The Book of Lecan is a medieval Irish manuscript written between 1397 and 1418. It is in the possession of the Royal Irish Academy....

  • Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy
    Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy
    The Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy is the journal of the Royal Irish Academy, founded in 1785 to promote the study of Science, Polite Literature and Antiquities....


External links


Science Committees


Humanities and Social Sciences Committees


Research Projects

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