A Significant People in the World

Failte!  The minor in Celtic studies is designed to give students an overview of the way of life of the prehistoric, historic, and contemporary Celtic peoples throughout Europe, emphasizing the "Six Celtic Nations" of Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Isle of Man, Cornwall (in England), and Brittany (in France) and the Celts of Iberia from the Iron Age to the 21st century (as well as the Celtic Diaspora to places as far-flung in both space and time as ancient Egypt and Appalachia).  To learn about Celtic peoples is to explore yet another avenue of what it means to be human.

The Commonwealth of Kentucky is rich in Celtic culture and history.  Along with African Americans and German Americans, people of Celtic descent comprise one of the major ethnic groups in the metropolitan area in which Northern Kentucky University is located.  One of Kentucky's proudest and most famous Celtic Americans is boxer Muhammad Ali who has visited his ancestral home in Ireland.    

More than 150 years ago, one of the deadliest anti-immigrant riots in American history, the Bloody Monday Massacre of August 6, 1855, happened in Kentucky along the banks of the Ohio River in the poorest neighborhoods of the city of Louisville.  As many as 150 immigrant men, women, and children, mostly Irish, were slaughtered.   

The Director and Founder of Celtic Studies at NKU is Dr. Michael J. Simonton who can be reached at his office in 217B Landrum or by phone at 859-572-1347 or 5259 or by email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .  Dr. Simonton does ethnographic research mostly in the west of Ireland.  

Celtic studies minors are encouraged to participate in Tuath an Ard Tíre Ardaí: The Celtic Studies Club, as well as the Student Anthropology Society and other student groups.  Each year NKU Anthropology presents the Outstanding Student in Celtic Studies Award. 

NKU Celtic Studies is located in the same metropolitan area as the international Euroceltic Institute, the Irish Heritage Center of Greater Cincinnati, and other Celtic organizations.  Celtic Studies is proud to be on the same campus as WNKU radio's "Celtic Mornings," broadcast every Sunday.  Every April anthropology faculty and alumni host an Anthropology Careers Day program to assist students in Celtic studies and related areas of anthropology.

Click here to see how often each of the anthropology courses below is offered.

Requirements

All NKU students must have at least one major in addition to a minor, a concentration, or a second major.  The minor in Celtic Studies consists of 21 semester hours and requires the completion of the following:

• Four core courses (12 semester hours)
  • HIS 100 History of Europe to 1713
  • ANT 370 Celtic Europe
  • ANT 374 Celtic and Viking Archaeology
  • ENG 477 Irish Literary Renaissance
• Three of the following (9 semester hours)
  • ANT 294 Topics: Anthropology (if Celtic Studies topic)
  • ANT 372 Peasant Societies
  • ANT 376 Irish Society through Film
  • ANT 394 Topics: Anthropology (if Celtic Studies topic)
  • ANT 594 Topics: Anthropology (if Celtic Studies topic)
  • ENG 200 Introduction to Literature (if Celtic Studies topic)
  • ENG 201 Ideas in Literature (if Celtic Studies topic)
  • HIS 353 British History to 1485
  • HIS 486 History of Modern Ireland
  • HIS 494 Seminars (if Celtic Studies topic)
  • HIS 594 Selected Topics: History (if Celtic Studies topic)
  • PHI 394 Topics: Celtic Philosophy and Religion
  • PSC 330 Politics of Europe
  • PSC 394 Topics (if Celtic Studies topic)
  • REL 301 Ancient Religions
  • Other appropriate courses (with permission, if Celtic Studies emphasis)
  • Appropriate study abroad courses (with permission, if Celtic Studies emphasis

  We encourage Celtic Studies minors to participate in geographically and theoretically appropriate study abroad programs. With proper preapproval, they may be substituted for one of the listed electives.

One of a kind!

There are about 20 Celtic studies programs (or related programs, such as Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Manx, Cornish, or Breton studies) in the United States and Canada.  NKU's Celtic Studies program is the only such program in the entire Commonwealth of Kentucky and the Ohio Valley region.

More than a dozen NKU faculty, staff, alumni, and friends who have specialized areas of expertise in Celtic Studies are willing to serve as resources. They can be reached at the following email addresses and welcome your questions:

• Iain Barksdale, Part-time Anthropology Instructor, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Celtic and Viking archaeology; early Christianity; Scotland; Isle of Man; Northern Isles
• Ray Carr, President, Euroceltic Institute, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Celtic heritage
• Kathleen Costello, WNKU Public Radio, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Celtic folk music
• Daniel J. Curtin, Professor of Mathematics, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Ireland; language; traditional music; literature (in English and Gaelic)
• Teresa De Zarn, Part-time Theater Instructor, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Ireland; theater
• Linda Dolive, Professor Emerita of Political Science, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it politics of Celtic Europe
• Terence Fleming, Lecturer in History, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Ireland; recent history
• Perilou Goddard, Professor of Psychology, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Scotland; Cincinnati Caledonian Pipes and Drums; drug policies in the United Kingdom
• Britteny Howell, Part-time Anthropology Instructor, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Scotland
• William Landon, Assistant Professor of History,  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  Scotland; Medieval Celtic Europe
• Francois Le Roy, Assistant Professor of History, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Brittany; history
• Sharlotte Neely, Professor of Anthropology, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it genealogy and Celtic DNA; Celtic ethnicity; Irish and Scots-Irish in Savannah 
• Tamara O'Callaghan, Associate Professor of English and Director of Integrative Studies, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Celtic literature; interdisciplinary studies including Celtic studies
• Kathryn ("Kas") L. Miller Ridiman, Anthropology Alumna, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Celtic reenactments
• Michael J. Simonton, Lecturer in Anthropology, Celtic Studies Director, & Tuath an Ard Tíre Ardaí: Celtic Studies Club Faculty Sponsor This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Iron Age Celts; "Celitc Fringe" nations; gerontology; life histories; contemporary Ireland
• Gary Walton, Assistant Professor of English, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Ireland; literature
• Jeffrey C. Williams, Professor of History, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Scotland; history

Are you on the NKU faculty or staff? Do you have a Celtic Studies specialty, or do you know of someone who does? Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

To declare a minor in Celtic studies, drop by 217C Landrum for about five minutes of paperwork, or click here.

For all sorts of Celtic resources, click here.

To receive announcements about what is happening in Celtic Studies and Anthropology at NKU, add your email address to our Anthropology Email List.