THE ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY IS IRELAND'S LEADING BODY OF EXPERTS IN THE SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES

The Royal Irish Academy/Acadamh Ríoga na hÉireann champions research. We identify and recognise Ireland’s world class researchers. We support scholarship and promote awareness of how science and the humanities enrich our lives and benefit society. We believe that good research needs to be promoted, sustained and communicated. The Academy is run by a Council of its members. Membership is by election and considered the highest academic honour in Ireland.

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Irish and International Journal Collections

The Academy Library holds major national and international journal collections of historic and current interest to research.

Periodicals of Irish Interest

The Academy Library subscribes to periodicals of Irish interest principally in the fields of Archaeology, Celtic Studies and Local History. The Library has extensive holdings of the publications of many long-established local historical and archaeological societies in Ireland, and also subscribes to more recently established local periodicals -- treasure troves for archaeologists and local historians alike. The Library does not collect current newspapers.

Periodicals received on exchange

During the nineteenth century, the Royal Irish Academy established exchange agreements with Academies and learned societies in other countries. The majority of exchange arrangements were with institutions on mainland Europe, with a smaller number in Asia and the Americas. Some periodical publications in the sciences and humanities continue to be acquired by this means. The Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, the early publications of the Institut de France and of the Academy of Sciences, St Petersburg, are among the valuable periodical holdings in the Library.

Library Periodicals Catalogue

The online catalogue itemises the current and retrospective titles held by the Academy. This catalogue does not index the individual articles within these periodicals.

Periodicals published by the RIA

From its inception the Academy has published periodicals, commencing with the Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy, vols 1-33, 1787-1907; followed by the Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy, vols 1-23, 1836-1901. From 1902 to the present, Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy has been published in three sections:

  • Proceedings of the RIA, Section A (Mathematical, Astronomical and Physical Sciences), vols 24-67, 1902-1969; Proceedings of the RIA, Section A (Mathematical and Physical Sciences), vol. 68-101, 1969-2001; Mathematical Proceedings of the RIA, vol. 102A-, 2002-.

  • Proceedings of the RIA, Section B (Biological, Geological and Chemical Science), vols 24-92, 1902-1992; Proceedings of the RIA, Section B (Biology and Environment), vols 93-100, 1993-2000) Biology and Environment: Proceedings of the RIA, vol. 94B-, 2001-.

  • Proceedings of the RIA, Section C (Archaeology, Linguistics and Literature), vols 24-67, 1902-1969; Proceedings of the RIA, Section C (Archaeology, Celtic Studies, History, Linguistics and Literature), vol. 68-, 1970-.

Articles published in the Transactions of the RIA and Proceedings of the RIA down to 1970 are indexed in four volumes of printed indexes: Index to the Serial Publications of the Royal Irish Academy, 1786-1906; 1907-32; 1932-53; 1953-70. Articles published since 1971 in Proceedings of the RIA (Sections A, B & C) are catalogued on the online main catalogue.

The Academy also publishes Ériu, vol. 10-, 1926-, Irish Journal of Earth Sciences, vol. 6-, 1984-, Irish Studies in International Affairs, vol. 1-, 1979-. Full details of the Academy’s current periodical publications, including some online full-text versions, are available on the ‘publications’ section of the RIA website.

 Guides to Irish interest material published as periodical articles

To trace periodical articles by particular authors or on specific topics in Irish history, consult the free Irish History Online bibliography, http://www.irishhistoryonline.ie/, maintained by Irish History Online under the auspices of the Royal Irish Academy. Coverage is most comprehensive for late twentieth-century publications, although the scope of the Irish History Online bibliography is being extended retrospectively, as well as being updated as new material is made available in print.


For bibliographic records of articles of Irish interest published in Irish periodicals prior to 1966, see also R.J. Hayes (ed.), Sources for the History of Irish Civilization: Articles in Irish Periodicals (9 vols, Boston, 1970). An online version of ‘Hayes’ is available at http://sources.nli.ie/

Bibliographic records for publications in the field of Celtic Studies prior to 1972 can be traced in bibliographies by R.I. Best and R. Baumgarten which are still available in print from the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, School of Celtic Studies. The same institute also plans to publish online versions of these bibliographies. http://bill.celt.dias.ie

  • R. I. Best, Bibliography of Irish philology and manuscript literature: publications 1913-1941 (Dublin 1969).

  • R. I. Best, Bibliography of Irish philology and of printed Irish literature, to 1912 (Dublin, 1913).

  • R. Baumgarten, Bibliography of Irish linguistics and literature 1942-1971 (Dublin, 1986).

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