Introduction to Irish Family History

Overview

Overview

Family History isn’t just about the past: learning about our origins allows people to get down to the granular details of our ancestors’ lives. It enables people to construct their own family narrative and their personal identity.  This lecture-only module is taught through a series of eight lectures per term over two terms by Fiona Fitzsimons & Brian Donovan of the Irish Family History Centre (Eneclann).

The course covers a broad sweep of Irish history (1650s to 1950s) and is deeply rooted in the sources. The focus is on the records generated by churches, central and local government, enterprises, families and individuals; exploring what section of the Irish population is documented in these records, and how to interpret the evidence. Where record collections were destroyed, do any collateral records survive that contain relevant information?

The fee includes archival visits and free access to the largest Irish collection online, www.Findmypast.ie. It will also provide support for all participants to construct a simple family history portfolio over sixteen weeks, including creating a family profile; research to collect documentary evidence; building a family tree; and writing a simple report.

Date, Time and Place

This lecture-only module comprises of 16 lectures, eight in semester 1 and eight in semester 2, commencing the week beginning 29 September 2025 and recommencing 19 January 2026.

Lectures take place on Mondays 6 - 7 pm on Trinity Campus. Lectures will be live streamed but not recorded.