Press Release

News Release: 5 February 2010

Minister Cullen congratulates unique Irish Publication on U.S. Award

At the annual meeting today in Washington DC of the Association of American Publishers - Professional/Scholarly Publishing Division - it was announced that the ‘Dictionary of Irish Biography’ edited by James McGuire and James Quinn was honoured with the 2009 American Publishers’ Award for Professional and Scholarly Excellence (PROSE) for Best Multivolume Reference work in the Humanities and Social Sciences.

Congratulating James McGuire and James Quinn on this prestigious award, Minister Martin Cullen said: ‘In a week in which Irish film creativity was recognised with the U.S. Academy Award nominations, it is tremendous that a unique nine volume work the ‘Dictionary of Irish Biography’ which is a collaborative project between Cambridge University Press and the Royal Irish Academy has now been honoured in the United States by its most prestigious scholarly publishing body. James McGuire, James Quinn and the contributors have devoted many years of work to producing this outstanding publication which documents 9,000 lives. Today they have been shown due appreciation by their American peers and we should all be very proud of their achievement.” The Minister added: “This award is further recognition of our cultural impact both at home and particularly overseas, and further enhances our ‘Irishness’ and Ireland’s reputation abroad.”

The Dictionary of Irish Biography is available in print and online, and its production involved 700 contributors. It includes the lives of Irish men and women who made a significant contribution in Ireland and abroad, as well as those born overseas who had noteworthy careers in Ireland from James Ussher to James Joyce, St Patrick to Patrick Pearse, St Brigit to Maud Gonne MacBride to Eamon de Valera.

Editor’s Note: The PROSE awards for Excellence recognise the very best in professional and scholarly publishing by bringing attention to distinguished books, journals and electronic content, published annually in 28 disciplines. The awards have been judged by peer publishers, librarians and medical professionals since 1976. Each year, publishers and authors are recognised at the annual AAP/PSP conference in Washington for their commitment to pioneering works of research and for contributing to the conception, production and design of landmark works in their fields.

ENDS

Issued by: Michelle Hoctor, 01 6313876, Colin Toomey, 01 6313807

Further information: Royal Irish Academy Dublin Tel: 01 6762570

Cambridge University Press, http://dib.cambridge.org/pdf/dib.prelims_v.1.0.pdf