Museum of Country Life
Turas na mBan Conference
3, Oct 2007 - 13:12

          
Turas na mBan
Celebrating the Journey of Women

Friday 12th October & Saturday 13th October, 2007
Knockranny House Hotel, Westport, Co Mayo  
Hosted by Meitheal Mhaigheo Teo.

      "Women's folklore tells us things that social strictures or psychological repression prevent women from otherwise saying - things at variance with the official ideal of culture. Narratives sometimes express ideas and feelings that would never emerge from a questionnaire or an interview, or they may express them more powerfully" (Rosan A Jordan, 1985).

The weekend will also include workshops on Samhain, Sean Nós Dancing, an Exhibition on the Clew Bay Folklore Project, Wine Tasting and Traditional Music.
 
The objective of the Conference is to celebrate the experiences of women in several contexts from pre-history to the present day. The reinterpretation of Irish history and history has produced volumes of work by academics on women's history and gender history over the past two decades. This conference is an "everyperson's" celebration of the contribution of women from the goddess to governance.

Conference Package:
Refreshments on arrival, formal dinner on Friday night, full lunch on Saturday, all tea/coffee breaks- EUR175
Accommodation: A limited number of rooms are available at the Knockranny House Hotel at a special rate of EUR120 B&B (single occupancy) or EUR95 per person sharing. Tel 098-28600.
Enquiries: 094-9256745 or margeburke@gmail.com

Conference Programme
Friday 12th October 2007

2.00pm      Justin Sammon
      CEO Meitheal Mhaigheo

      Official Opening- Enda Kenny, T.D.
      Leader, Fine Gael

2.30pm      Mary O'Rourke, T.D.
      A Political Journey
      Mary O'Rourke, T.D.Elected to Dail Eireann May 2007. Appointed Leader of Seanad Eireann Sept 2002. Former Minister for Public Enterprise & Transport 1997-2002 and former teacher. First elected Nov 1982. Senator 1981-82. Former Seanad Spokesperson on Northern Ireland.

3.15pm      Tea/ Coffee

3.30pm      Dr.Ríonach Uí Ogain
      Sorcha Ní Ghuairim- Traditional Singing

      Ríonach uí Ógáin, MA, PhD (National University of Ireland) is a Senior Lecturer and Archivist with Irish Folklore. She has published numerous articles on traditional song and music and has lectured widely on the subject.

4.30pm      Discussion
      A short discussion period
     
6.30pm      Wine tasting with Cabot and Co

8.00pm      Conference Dinner
      Knockranny House Hotel

Till late      Traditional music

Saturday October 13th 2007

10.00am   Dr Edel Breathnach
      Abbess or Wife:Women in Medieval Ireland
      Dr Edel Breathnach, 1992-2000 Tara Research Fellow, Discovery Programme. Published two volumes on Tara'Tara: a select bibliography' and (editor)'The kingship and landscape of Tara'. 2002 - with the Micheal O Cleirigh Institute UCD. At present national coordinator of the 'Louvain 400'  celebrations and Project Manager in the Institute.

10.45am   Mark Patrick Hederman, Glenstal Abbey
      Creativity and the feminine
      Mark Patrick Hederman, Glenstal Abbey, is a philosopher and monk. A founding editor of the cultural       journal The Crane Bag, he is also the author of The Haunted Inkwell, Art and our Future(The Columba Press) and the bestseller, Kissing the Dark(Veritas)
     
11.30a.m.   Tea/ Coffee

12.00pm   Dr Angela Bourke
      Singing to the Dead: Women's Poetry of Lamentation
      Professor Angela Bourke MRIA, UCD School of Irish, Celtic Studies, Irish Folklore and Linguistics, is joint editor of The Field Day Anthology, vols 4&5:Irish Women's Writing and Traditions (2002) and author of The Burning of Bridget Cleary: A True Story(1999) and Maeve Brennan: Homesick at The New Yorker (2004).Her work includes several research articles on the Irish lament tradition.

1.00pm      Steve Dunford
      Unsung Women
      Steve Dunford, author, artist, musician, historian and retired banker, now lives in Killala, Co. Mayo. He is the author and illustrator of the critically acclaimed books: The Irish Highwayman, Killala: Aspects of its Heritage; A Stroll through Old Killala and In Humbert's Footsteps: Mayo 1798

1.45pm      Discussion
      A short discussion period
     
2.15pm    Lunch

3.30pm      Workshops:
      Scéalta Shamhna - Stories of Halloween
      Sean Nos dancing