About this prize
Michael J. Durkan (1925 – 1996), a former treasurer of the ACIS, was born in Louisburgh, County Mayo, where many of his Durkan family still live. Michael received a B. A. from St. Patrick’s College, Maynooth, and originally studied for the priesthood. His true vocation led him to a diploma in library studies from University College Dublin, where he also studied Irish literature. He and his wife, the former Yvonne Walsh, immigrated to the United States, where they raised their four children, whose names declare their Irish heritage: Ciaran, Michael, Maeve, and Niall. Beginning in 1958, Michael was an associate librarian at Wesleyan University, where he also served as head of the catalog department and rare books librarian. In 1976, he became the head librarian at Swarthmore College, where his family and friends had established a memorial fund to support the library’s collections and the visits of Irish writers to the college. He co-edited bibliographies of Sean O’Casey and Seamus Heaney, and he was co-author of a catalogue of the Yeats collection in Olin Library at Wesleyan.
It is impossible to do justice to Michael’s kindness, generosity, and humanity in a paragraph. He was a tolerant and open-minded man, a reader and scholar as well as a raconteur who enjoyed parties and social life. Those who knew him can testify to his many lovely qualities and also to his wit. Michael looked like an ambassador and spoke with the courtesy and ease of a diplomat, yet he would laugh readily at a naughty joke.
Michael Joe was an Irish speaker, a lover of books, and a good friend to many Irish poets and Irish Studies scholars; he is appropriately honored and commemorated in an award for Irish language and culture.
Prize Committee
Chair: Zan Cammack
Eligibility and Submission Instructions
The Michael J. Durkan Prize for Books on Language and Culture honors single-author or co-authored (up to two authors) scholarly works that illuminate Irish cultural expression—across theatre, film, visual and material arts, music, dance, performance, and related fields—including those that cross or extend beyond traditional disciplinary boundaries.
Books submitted for this prize must have a publication date matching the year of the award (2026). Single-author and co-authored books (by no more than two authors) will be considered. Edited collections, fiction, poetry, and anthologies of literature are not eligible. Submissions must be in English or Irish. Works originally published in another language and translated into English or Irish will be considered.
No book may compete for more than one of the four disciplinary prizes (Donnelly, Durkan, McCaffrey, Rhodes), but an author’s first scholarly monograph may be submitted to the Donald Murphy prize committee in addition to one of the four disciplinary committees. An Irish-language book may be submitted for a maximum of two of the following awards: the Duais Leabhar Taighde na Bliana (Irish Language Prize), a disciplinary prize, and the Donald Murphy prize if applicable. Committee chairs may choose to reassign entered works to a more appropriate prize if necessary.
The prize includes a cash award of $500 USD. The award money will be split in the case of co-authored texts.
Books may be submitted for consideration by anyone (author, publisher, or other party). All nominations must be submitted through the online form below.
Authors of nominated books are responsible for sending copies of the book to the committee members, whether directly or through their publisher. The addresses of the committee members will be provided to authors when their book is nominated. Hard copies are strongly preferred, but e-copies (such as PDFs) will be accepted if necessary to meet the deadline (especially if your book is scheduled for publication in November or December). Authors are particularly reminded that, whether they mail books themselves or ask their publishers to do so, responsibility rests with the author to ensure that the postmark deadline of January 1, 2027, is observed. Late submissions will NOT be accepted.
For more information, contact the chair of the ACIS awards committee, ACIS vice president Sarah Townsend ([email protected]).