Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill
Illustration — Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill in Belfast in May 2010 Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill (born 1952) is a modern Irish poet whose works have been described as having a "major influence in revitalizing the Irish language in modern poetry".
Also recorded as Nuala Ni Dhomhnaill
Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill

Ériugena · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Born
- 1952 · Lancashire.
- Nationality
- Ireland
- Occupation
- poet · writer
- Fields
- poetry
- Education
- University College Cork
- Languages
- Irish
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Illustration — Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill in Belfast in May 2010 Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill (born 1952) is a modern Irish poet whose works have been described as having a "major influence in revitalizing the Irish language in modern poetry".
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Note VALÉORINE
Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill (born 1952) is an Irish poet and writer. The poet was born in Lancashire.
Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill studied at University College Cork. The poet is a member of Aosdána. Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill is active in poetry. Languages used include Irish.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 26 September 2026
VALÉORINE
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
Documentary evidence
Evidence Panel
original value insufficient · checked 25 September 2026
- Identity
- resolved
- Independent source families
- 0
- Admitted assertions
- 0
- Open conflicts
- 0
Authority files
wikidata · Q467612 · wikipedia · Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill
In this article
Biography
Biography
Born in Lancashire, England, of Irish parents, she moved to Ireland at the age of 5 and was brought up in the Corca Dhuibhne Gaeltacht and in Nenagh, County Tipperary. Her uncle, Monsignor Pádraig Ó Fiannachta of Dingle, was an authority on Munster Irish. Her mother brought her up to speak English, though she was an Irish speaker herself. Her father and his side of the family spoke very fluent Irish and used it every day, but her mother thought it would make life easier for Nuala if she spoke only English instead. She studied English and Irish at UCC in 1969 and became part of the 'Innti' group of poets. In 1973, she married Turkish geologist Doğan Leflef and lived abroad in Turkey and Holland for seven years. One year after her return to County Kerry in 1980, she published her first collection of poetry in Irish, An Dealg Droighin (1981); She later became a member of Aosdána. Ní Dhomhnaill has published extensively and her works include poetry collections, children's plays, screenplays, anthologies, articles, reviews and essays. Her other works include Féar Suaithinseach (1984); Feis (1991), and Cead Aighnis (1998). Ni Dhomhnaill's poems appear in English translation in the dual-language editions Rogha Dánta/Selected Poems (1986, 1988, 1990); The Astrakhan Cloak (1992), Pharaoh's Daughter (1990), The Water Horse (2007), and The Fifty Minute Mermaid (2007). Her poem Dubh (ar thitim Shrebenice, 11ú Iúil, 1995), known in English as Black (on the fall of Srebrenica, 11 July 1995) and reflecting her reaction to the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, was translated to English by Paul Muldoon are included in An Leabhar Mòr (2008). Selected Essays appeared in 2005. Her poem, 'Mo Ghrá-Sa (Idir Lúibini)', is part of the Leaving Certificate curriculum for Irish. She played a minor role as the Irish oral examiner in the 1997 film, How to Cheat in the Leaving Certificate. She writes poetry exclusively in Irish and is quoted as saying that the "Irish is a language of beauty, historical significance, ancient roots and an immense propensity for poetic expression through its everyday use". Ní Dhomhnaill also speaks English, Turkish, French, German and Dutch fluently. Ní Dhomhnaill's writings focus on the rich oral tradition and heritage of Ireland and particularly draw upon ancient stories from Irish folklore and Irish mythology, in combination with contemporary themes of feminism, sexuality, and culture. Her mythopoeia poetry expresses an alternative reality and she often speaks about her reasons for both retelling and reimagining myths that are an integral part of Irish literature and Irish culture. Ní Dhomhnaill has stated that "Myth is a basic, fundamental structuring of our reality, a narrative that we place on the chaos of sensation to make sense of our lives".
Personal life
Personal life
Ní Dhomhnaill's husband died in 2013. She lives near Dublin and is a regular broadcaster on Irish radio and television.
Plays
Plays
• Jimín (Children's drama, Dublin, 1985) • Na Peirsigh (translation of Aeschylus, Amharclann na Péacóige, Dublin, 2024)

Memorial plaque, Pfad der Visionäre - Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill, Friedrichstraße 245-246, Berlin-Kreuzberg, Deutschland
OTFW, Berlin · Self-photographed
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
1952
Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill born at Lancashire.
Poetry: selected editions
• Rogha Dánta/Selected Poems (Raven Arts, 1986, Translated by Michael Hartnett)
Poetry: main collections
Poetry: main collections
• An Dealg Droighin (Cló Mercier, 1981) • Féar Suaithinseach (Maigh Nuad, 1984) • Feis (Maigh Nuad, 1991) • Pharaoh's Daughter (1990) • The Astrakhan Cloak (1992, Translated by Paul Muldoon) • Spíonáin is Róiseanna (Cló Iar-Chonnachta, 1993) • Cead Aighnis (An Sagart, An Daingean, 1998) • The Water Horse: Poems in Irish (Gallery, 1999, Aistriúcháin le Medbh McGuckian agus Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin) • The Fifty Minute Mermaid (Gallery, 2007, translated by Paul Muldoon) • Northern Lights (Gallery Press, 2018)
Essay Collections
Essay Collections
• Selected Essays (New Island, 2005) • Cead Isteach / Entry Permitted (University College Dublin Press, 2017)
Documents and archives
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- “Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q467612: Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill
Unverified · Wikidata
Awards and honours
Ní Dhomhnaill has received many scholarships, prizes, and bursaries. She has also won numerous international awards for works which have been translated into French, German, Polish, Italian, Norwegian, Estonian, Japanese and English. She is one of Ireland's most well-known Irish language writers. She was Ireland Professor of Poetry from 2001 to 2004, and the first Professor of Irish (language) Poetry. Her papers are collected at Boston College's Burns Library. In March 2018, she received the Zbigniew Herbert International Literary Award for her achievements in poetry.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Wake Forest University Press. Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill.
- 2.Renowned author and academic, Monsignor Pádraig Ó Fiannachta, has died. Radio Kerry. 15 July 2016.
- 3.Allen Randolph, Jody. "Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill." Close to the Next Moment: Interviews from a Changing Ireland. Manchester: Carcanet, 2010.
- 4.De Breffny, Brian. Ireland: A Cultural Encyclopedia. Thames and Hudson. 166. 1983.
- 5.An Leabhar Mòr/The Great Book of Gaelic. 2008.
- 6.Phillips, Adam. Like a mermaid out of water. The Observer. 27 January 2008.
- 7.The Ireland Chair of Poetry Trust. Professor Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill.
- 8.Irish poet awarded Herbert Prize.
Bibliography printed in the source article · 2
- Hawley, John C. Cross-Addressing: Resistance Literature and Cultural Borders. SUNY Press. 1996. 0791429288.
- Se-well, Frank C. Modern Irish Poetry: A New Alhambra. OUP Oxford. 2001. 0191584355.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Partially resolvedauthority record
Unverified
People, houses and institutions
Knowledge graph
People, houses and institutions
Teachers, collaborators, publishers and institutions recorded against this person, each on a stated basis.
Studied at
1- University College CorkOrganisation
Established from a fact already recorded on a verified source.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Books
38,661 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Ntone EdjabeAuthor
- Ntozake ShangeAuthor
- Nu'man ibn Bashir al-AnsariAuthor
- Nuala ArcherAuthor
- Nuala Nic Con IomaireAuthor
- Nujood AliAuthor
- Numa Pompilio LlonaAuthor
- Numa SadoulAuthor
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a work by Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.