Gregory Darwin

I am a senior lecturer in Irish, and head of the Celtic section, at Uppsala university, where I teach courses on modern Irish language, literature, and folklore. My research interests include early modern and modern Irish and Scottish Gaelic folklore, Classical reception in Irish-language literature, maritime folklore, magic, and cultural contacts between the Gaelic and Scandinavian worlds.

I received my PhD in Celtic Languages and Literatures from Harvard University in 2019. My doctoral dissertation focused on the migratory legend ML 4080, "The Seal Woman", found in Irish, Scottish, Icelandic, Faroese, and Scandinavian oral tradition, which recounts the ill-fated marriage between a human man and a supernatural woman from the sea, typically described as a mermaid, sjöjungfru, selkie, or similar being.

Prior to beginning at Uppsala university, I have held positions as Lecteur de langue étrangère at Université de Bretagne Occidentale in Brest, where I taught courses on Irish language, literature, sociolinguistics, and historical phonology; and as a postdoctoral researcher at Aarhus University, where I examined the role of Classical tradition in early modern Irish-language political poetry.