Referencing the 250th anniversary of the United States in 2026, this conference will focus on the roles of Ireland and Northern Ireland and their peoples in the making of America.
The focus on “the making of America” understands this to refer not only to the period of Revolution but the subsequent development of the US as a democracy as well as the legacy of the Revolution through to the present day. Centrally, the conference will examine how peoples from the island of Ireland took an outsized stake in the American national story and were instrumental in its development with notable impact in its political and popular cultures. This is also the story of the making of Irish American and Ulster Scots cultures and identities as the ethnic passage from emigrant to American shadowed the growth of the young nation.
The conference will put into conversation different histories and frameworks of study of Irish and Ulster/Northern Irish diasporas to produce a more comparative and inclusive understanding of both the similarities and differences in historical development, including patterns of settlement and assimilation. This will include drawing out some of the differences in Irish American and Ulster Scots narratives of American history as well as identifying where, when and how these are connected. It will also raise consideration of the salience of Irish American and Scots Irish communities and identities in contemporary America and their relations with Ireland today.
The conference will also include discussion of the ways in which disciplines and schools of thought (such as Irish Studies, postcolonial studies, diaspora studies, and others) have framed academic understanding of migrations from the island of Ireland to and experiences in the US. It will provide an opportunity to put terms such as “diaspora” and “ethnicity” under fresh critical scrutiny as sociological and cultural concepts, recognising the elasticity of these terms and how they have shape-shifted over time.
Coming at the end of the 250th anniversary year of the US, the conference offers an opportunity to critically reflect on processes of commemoration and also to consider the future of Irish America.
Possible topics include, but are not limited to:
· the civic and political contributions of Irish diasporas
· the intertwined cultures, traditions and languages of Irish diasporas
· patterns of immigration, settlement and assimilation
· literary and cultural representations of diaspora stories
· culture revival, genealogy, heritage and tourism
· diaspora diplomacy and soft power
· commemoration events and narratives
· the salience of “ethnicity” and “diaspora” as sociological and cultural concepts
· comparative frameworks of study of Irish and Ulster/Northern Irish diasporas
Deadline for abstract proposals: 30 August 2026
We accept abstract proposals for individual presentations (≈ 250 words), as well as full panels ( ≈ 250-word description of the panel plus brief abstracts of all papers).
Please, email your proposal to [email protected] as a single attachment, including name, affiliation (if any), and contact email.
Travel Bursaries for Phd and Postdoctoral Researchers
Details will be posted on the conference website shortly.
The conference has received funding support from the Department of Culture, Communication and Sport and from the UCD College of Arts and Humanities seed-funding programme.