Approximately 800 years have passed since the introduction of the English language to Ireland and 400 since the establishment of an Irish Literature in English. However, for complex socio-political reasons there is, as yet, no comprehensive dictionary of the English of Ireland to which readers of Irish Literature – and indeed, of any aspect of Irish studies – can turn to for assistance when they encounter completely unfamiliar words and phrases, or apparently familiar words used unconventionally by Irish writers. This work is designed to provide the general reader, as well as the specialist, with direct and easy access to this important but elusive and often-overlooked element of Irish Literature. Quotations from writers ranging from AE to Zozimus (including all four Nobel Laureates in literature: Yeats, Shaw, Beckett and Heaney) are used to illustrate vocabulary and idioms. Also are included are illustrative quotations from English writers , such as Spenser and Thackeray, who wrote about Ireland. From archaeology (crannog) to zoology (graunogue), almost every aspect of Ireland and Irish life is reflected here in the mirror of art. "Text is a close fit with entries (words and phrases) moving beyond literature from archaeology to zoology and every field of Irish studies, providing definitions and OED-like citations with coded attributions (you look up Heaney, SA, and find of course Sweeney Astray ). From a Baby Power to a shoneen to a townie, all are seriously and wittily glossed making this a browser's delight, with very conscientious cross-referencing."-- Books Ireland Richard Wall is at University of Calgary. Orders are despatched from our UK warehouse next working day.