merrion street

Tuesday, 15 April, 2014: Jimmy Deenihan TD, Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, will this evening at 6.15 pm formally launch the Irish Association of Professional Historians (IAPH), and website, in the Royal Irish Academy, Dawson Street, Dublin 2.

The aims of the IAPH will be to:

· Provide a professional affiliation and platform for historians;

· Encourage professional development through the provision of up-to-date specialised training for its members;

· Provide access to quality assured professional historical services for individuals, groups and organisations through its website and members profiles;

· Promote excellence in historical research and encourage the study of the past among professional and the general public;

· Facilitate collaboration and co-operation among historians through the provision of scheduled events.

In his address, Minister Deenihan said:

"The establishment of the Association is particularly timely having regard to the fact that as a nation we are currently journeying through our Decade of Centenaries, a programme of commemorations relating to the significant events in Irish history that took place between 1912 and 1922. This period was one of the most eventful in Ireland’s history. From the campaign for Home Rule, through World War 1 and the Easter Rising of 1916 to the foundation of the Free State, this was a decade of great change. Campaigns for social reforms — highlighted by the suffrage movement and the 1913 Lockout, for example — also went hand in hand with political events.

"Last year my Department provided funding to the IAPH to help its establishment and towards the creation of its website. A unique feature of the new website is its Directory of Irish Professional Historians. This will provide a searchable database of all members with details on their individual area of expertise. The database is a significant resource for anyone who wants to locate experts or compile collaborative projects. I commend Dr Kelly Fitzgerald and Dr Róisín Higgins and their team for their work in the establishment of the Irish Association of Professional Historians."