Sign in

John Gallagher

@earlymodernjohn.bsky.social
12K followers 3.1K following 2.3K posts

Irishman between Yorkshire & Addis Ababa. Historian of language, education, migration at the University of Leeds. Editor of Renaissance Studies. Occasional BBC radio presenter. Writing a book about multilingual London. Learning Amharic/አማርኛ እየተማርኩ ነው. Dad!

PostsRepliesMedia
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Please join me in a campaign harassment against Oxford University Press and Quentin Blake until they agree to the release of Learning Languages in Early Modern England: Junior Pop-Up Edition
2160
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
My fourth consecutive bedtime reading a book called Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site and I think I'm just about ready to come out against child literacy. I'm going to become the reverse Dolly Parton and devote my fortune to taking books away from children.
201137
Reposted by John Gallagher
Emile Chabal @emile-chabal.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
I am not given to hyperbole when it comes to university industrial relations, but this feels like an existential event. The heart of the university is being torn out, with long-lasting consequences. These strikes are a last-ditch attempt to stop that. Will anyone listen?
16229
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
M.R. James and me Tell each other scary tales When I blow on this ancient whistle I see a creepy Danish king stalking me I wanna be a bishop — M.R. James says "beware of cats on the stairs in the presbytery" But when mouths and fur both haunt you That's just about as normal as things can be
0110
Reposted by John Gallagher
Liesbeth Corens @onslies.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
FEEST! @emlcjournal.bsky.social bestaat tien jaar en dat verdient taart! Als ook een panelgesprek over de toekomst van onderzoek naar de vroegmoderne Nederlanden, en een museumbezoek met flitspresentaties door auteurs van ons jubileumnummer. Gratis registratie: www.eventbrite.com/e/tienjarig-...
invite for the 10 year anniversary of the Early Modern Low Countries journal at the Hof van Busleyden (in Mechelen) on 4 December between 13:00 and 17:00
1125
Reposted by John Gallagher
Brodie Waddell @brodiewaddell.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
It was somewhat delayed, but we've now got a booking link for Rosamund Oates's talk on deafness on Thursday! Sign up here: www.history.ac.uk/news-events/...
history.ac.uk
Silent Histories: Deafness in Early Modern England
12115
Reposted by John Gallagher
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
If anyone has reading they'd recommend on sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Mombasa, I'm all ears!
21012
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
A really fascinating read.
0103
Reposted by John Gallagher
James Butler @piercepenniless.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
When was the last time our Secretary of State for Culture displayed anything approaching this degree of public enthusiasm for our world-class arts industry? Has she been seen anywhere? Given impending charter renewal... did she even bother to visit a single prom?
321328269
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
If anyone has reading they'd recommend on sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Mombasa, I'm all ears!
21012
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
I will always remember fondly the student who finished an essay with the line "In conclusion, the early modern period marked a massive shit in European history."
48810109
Reposted by John Gallagher
Natasha Constantinidou @nconstantinidou.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
📢This Thursday! The first #EarlyModern Hellenism colloquium for this semester hosted by me and @hlamers.bsky.social ✨Anastasia Stylianou (warburginstitute.bsky.social) will discuss ‘Uncovering the Hidden Histories of England’s ‘Invisible’ Greeks, c.1450-1715' 📆 24 Sept, 15:00-16.00 CET Link below 👇
Image of the Greek Patriarch of Constantinople Kyrillos Loukaris (1572-1638)
158
Reposted by John Gallagher
Daniel Carey @danielmcarey.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
"It's like Tunisia in the 1970s." Overheard in a discussion about Gweedore in County Donegal that took place outside McMahon's cafe in Glasnevin, Dublin. Context: unknown
1152
Reposted by John Gallagher
Josephine Quinn @josephinequinn.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Apparently I'm giving an inaugural lecture - all very welcome! Thurs October 8th, 5pm, drinks to follow.
1329
Reposted by John Gallagher
Annalisa Nicholson @apuddleofmuddle.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
✏️ Mark your diaries! Next month @cemskcl.bsky.social, Kerry Apps, Hannah Dawson, Catharine MacLeod, & ME will be talking about Restoration women, their libertinism, their consumerism, & their contact with the expanding world. Book here & spread the word 🌍 kingsearlymodern.co.uk/events/world...
kingsearlymodern.co.uk
Worldly Women at the Court of Charles II: Exile, Excess, and the Expanding World — CEMS KCL Blog
Join CEMS for a conversion on women and the Restoration, featuring Dr. Annalisa Nicholson, Dr. Kerry Apps, Dr. Hannah Dawson, and Catherine MacLeod.
33521
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Adomnán's life of Columba was my Donegal holiday book last year. Medieval saints' lives are underrated as beach reads imo, though this year I branched out and read Gerald of Wales. An awful gobshite but absolutely top tier entertainment nevertheless.
2213
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Have to say looking at the English right I'm starting to wonder if some kind of Great Replacement really would be all that bad an idea.
0343
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
I'm a very slow and dictionary-dependent reader in Amharic but trying to improve by reading Wikipedia articles on topics I'm interested in. Today: fully Ethiopiamaxxing by reading the Amharic Wiki article on coffee while sipping an Ethiopian coffee. And it's working! am.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E1%89%...
am.wikipedia.org
ውክፔዲያ - ቡና
1181
Reposted by John Gallagher
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
To understand and counter disinformation, language skills, area studies expertise, historical knowledge and a wide range of arts, humanities & social science disciplines are requisite. SHAPE subjects are strategically vital for national interests. Is it strategic to let 'the market' shrink them?
thebritishacademy.ac.uk
Mapping SHAPE provision in UK higher education
This new project from the British Academy maps changing provision of SHAPE subjects in UK higher education institutions. It uses data to visually depict contractions and expansions in provision by a v...
13023
Reposted by John Gallagher
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
'Security chiefs will set up a new national centre to tackle disinformation and deepfakes from hostile states such as Russia, Andy Burnham has announced, saying the government had a duty to “stem the poisonous tide” from damaging British interests.' While shrinking provision in Russian language?
theguardian.com
New UK agency will tackle ‘information warfare’ from likes of Russia, Burnham says
PM aims to ‘stem poisonous tide’ of disinformation and deepfakes with National Centre for Information Defence
23613
Reposted by John Gallagher
Dónal Hassett @donalh.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
It is mad to see the impunity with which far right activists have been able to operate especially in the context of mass arrests of the Palestine solidarity movement. This is particularly alarming across the water in Britain where fascist thugs are running riot. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/s...
theguardian.com
Far-right activist Daniel Thomas slashes dinghy in Channel with blade while rescue worker onboard
Thomas called followers to protest against arrival of asylum seekers in Gosport, but Border Force instead transported them to Dover
35918
Reposted by John Gallagher
Chloe Ireton @chloeireton.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
v. honored to learn that Society for Renaissance Studies awarded the Biennial 2026 Book Prize to *Slavery and Freedom in Black Thought in the Early Spanish Atlantic.* Very grateful to the judges for their work, & congratulations to fellow shortlisted authors. More here: rensoc.org.uk/srs-book-pri...
105811
Reposted by John Gallagher
Caroline Dodds Pennock @carolinepennock.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Ditto 30,000 roles in universities in the past three years.
7490180
Reposted by John Gallagher
Willard Foxton @willardfoxton.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
I think it's absolutely mad that today there's a *national news story* about 400 oil platform workers losing their jobs, and the government being blamed. 25% of the UK TV industry lost their jobs in the last 4 years and we never hear a peep about it! Some jobs are 'real jobs' I guess.
641819417
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Genuinely boiling with frustration not at a professional slight or personal insult, but because I have just realised there was a five-day intensive Latin course I could have taken earlier this month and I missed it. The thing about me is that I'm relatable.
3280
Reposted by John Gallagher
Kristof Smeyers @kristofsmeyers.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
6-year fully funded research and teaching assistant job at University of Ghent in the fields of English literature/cultural theory, history/translation history, linguistics, language acquisition, communication. Own projects are welcome! Details: jobs.ugent.be/job/Ghent-As...
jobs.ugent.be
Assistant English
Assistant English
13856
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Personally I think it's helpful that BBC radio stations spend so much time telling me how to listen to BBC radio on my smart speaker. I can't be the only person suffering from a recent major head injury, staring at my smart speaker and desperately wondering what to do next.
4798
Reposted by John Gallagher
Ana Struillou @anastruillou.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Very happy to share my new article (in French!) in the Revue d'histoire moderne et contemporaine in a beautiful issue on the mobility of paper & maritime history 🦑 ⚓ On archives, mobility, and travelling notaries across the Mediterranean ⚓ Don't hesitate to email for a PDF lnkd.in/ef-kjw4e
lnkd.in
LinkedIn
This link will take you to a page that’s not on LinkedIn
12710
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Trying to find a way to enthuse about this that won't cause @mrfw17thc.bsky.social to dust off the Simpsons screengrab of Marge saying the potato is neat but instead it's me and the potato is early modern notaries.
1100
Reposted by John Gallagher
Society for Renaissance Studies @srsrensoc.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
🕐🕑🕒🕓🕔🕕🕖🕗🕘🕙🕚🕛 Time is ticking! Abstracts are due THIS FRIDAY, 25 September. Get scribbling those 200 words about your exciting research, #earlymodern #skystorians 🕐🕑🕒🕓🕔🕕🕖🕗🕘🕙🕚🕛
289
Reposted by John Gallagher
Society for Renaissance Studies @srsrensoc.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
And the winner of the biennial book prize is 🥁 🥁 🥁 Chloe Ireton and her book Slavery and Freedom in Black Thought in the Early Spanish Atlantic! 🎉 Congratulations @chloeireton.bsky.social!! Find authors’ videos and our judges’ comments for all shortlisted books here: rensoc.org.uk/srs-book-pri...
Chloe L. Ireton, Slavery and Freedom in Black Thought in the Early Spanish Atlantic, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2025)
Rigorously researched, Slavery and Freedom in Black Thought in the Early Spanish Atlantic is a model for how to excavate the archive and how to find and reanimate the lives and hidden voices latent in letters, trials and petitions. It uncovers the rich and varied experiences of those whom European legal codes racialised as Black in the Iberian world. Ireton attends sensitively to the violence and trauma of the history of slavery while unearthing how those with African heritage negotiated the legal ecologies of enslavement and liberation in Spain, its colonies, and other Atlantic colonised spaces. The book brilliantly uncovers a conceptual and intellectual history of Black thought in the evidence of these legal and logistical documents. Its command of materials is impeccable and its blueprint for approaching archival research will be felt across disciplines for many years to come. The committee were unanimous in its decision to award this book the prize.
06020
Reposted by John Gallagher
Ennius @enniusredloeb.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
The autumnal equinox is only a few days away and here's what Stonehenge looked like in the 16th century. BL Add MS 28330; Lucas De Heere, Corte Beschryvinghe van Engheland, Schotland, ende Irland; 1573 CE-1575 CE; England (London); f.36r @blmedieval.bsky.social
112357
Reposted by John Gallagher
Dr Abeba Birhane @abeba.blacksky.app · 20/09/2026
i hate it @wileyonlinelibrary.bsky.social, please kill this
2548779
Reposted by John Gallagher
British History Online @bho.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
An important new resource: Africans in Ireland, 1578 - 1921. africansinireland.com #History #IrishHistory #BlackHistory
africansinireland.com
Africans in Ireland, 1578-1921 – An ongoing research project by W. A. Hart, Jonathan Wright, Nik Ribianszky, and Mark Doyle.
096
Reposted by John Gallagher
Jean-Dominique Delle Luche @jddelleluche.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
1593: ce bon Lorrain, fait le travail qu'aucun Allemand ne veut faire (il est celui qui abat les bêtes à la grande Boucherie), travaille quel que soit l'horaire, il est là depuis six ans, mais le conseil de Strasbourg refuse quand même de lui accorder le droit de bourgeoisie.
Thietrich Wagner aussi Lottringen Mitt beystand Niclaus Hansen des Kuttlers vbergibt per Bittelbronn ein supplication, vermeldt dz bey 6 Jahren er hie gedient von seinen Meistern ein gut zeugnuss, wollte sich auch zu ein Schläger im Schlaghaus gebrauchen lassen, Bitt im dz Burgrecht werden zulassen. Rhattherr zur Blumen Bericht wie sie keinen Deutschen finden können, der sich dazu will gebrauchen lassen, sei ein arbeytsamer gesell, der frühe und statt arbeytt. Erkannt: Man soll im sein begeren abschlagen.
1165
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
There is this kneejerk assumption that Dublin by the eighteenth century (or even before) was an Anglophone city pure and simple and Liam Mac Mathúna's work is brimming with evidence that that's just not true and that the city was home to a vibrant Irish-language culture, written and oral.
23610
Reposted by John Gallagher
Joel Herman @joelherman.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Just stumbled upon this fascinating article by Liam Mac Mathúna on bilingualism in eighteenth-century Dublin. www.societas-celto-slavica.org/series/05/03
societas-celto-slavica.org
Snapshot or Signpost? The Role of English in Tadhg Ó Neachtain’s Early Eighteenth-Century Manuscripts
Snapshot or Signpost? The Role of English in Tadhg Ó Neachtain’s Early Eighteenth-Century Manuscripts
172
Reposted by John Gallagher
Adam Bremer-McCollum @acbm.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Gəʕəz wotd ማኅፈድ፡ /maḫəfäd/ "tower, fortress" as in Hermas, ed. D'Abbadie, 77a.19-22 ወአዘዝዎሙ፡እልክቱ፡ስድስቱ፡ዕደው፡ያምጽኡ፡እብነ፡እም፡ውስተ፡ቀላይ፡ወይሕንጹ፡ወይሰዱ፡ለሕንጻ፡ማኅፈድ። transcr. ⬇️ "Those six guys ordered them to transport stone from the pit for building, to bring it for building a tower."
youtu.be
Leonard Cohen - Tower of Song (Official Audio)
YouTube video by LeonardCohenVEVO
174
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Having spent upwards of an hour and a half in Addis Ababa taxis today has helped confirm my view that they offer the cheapest and most intensive Amharic lessons you can get.
3320
Reposted by John Gallagher
Society for Renaissance Studies @srsrensoc.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Join us on 18th September 2026 for our #SRSlyGood Festival! There are two sessions, The first, at 16:00 BST where our postdoctoral fellows will discuss their latest research and the second, at 17.00BST where the 2026 article prize and book prize will be announced! rensoc.org.uk/announcement...
SRS logo on burgundy background. 'Festival 2026. 18th September 2026, 8.00PDT/11.00EDT/16.00BST/17.00CEST. Register: https://crowdcast.io/c/festival2026'

The image is from a detail of a piece of sixteenth-century needlework depicting a pastoral landscape with cottages, a river, tress, people dancing, and general merriment.
0116
Reposted by John Gallagher
Maggie Fritz-Morkin @emeffem.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
If you like puzzles and hate money, philology might be right for you, I soberly counsel my young students
2449
Reposted by John Gallagher
Wouter Wagemakers @wouterwagemakers.eurosky.social · 15/09/2026
Here is @rachelhealyleckey.bsky.social's wonderful article on Titian's Portrait of a falconer, in which she argues for a new identification of its sitter and a new dating, based on innovative methods.
142
Reposted by John Gallagher
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
And while you luxuriate in our superb back catalogue, you should also consider submitting your next article to Renaissance Studies. We offer expert review, efficient turnarounds, and a swift route to publication after acceptance. Any questions, get in touch!
174
Reposted by John Gallagher
Society for Renaissance Studies @srsrensoc.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
A thread! A thread! 🧵 Get a load of all that #RenaissanceStudies juiciness! 🥰 💫 #Skystorians
081
Reposted by John Gallagher
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
For the last nine months it's been my pleasure & privilege to be the editor of Renaissance Studies, and I think we're well overdue a romp through some fantastic articles we've published this year. See below for some of the finest new research in the interdisciplinary study of the Renaissance! 👇
210337
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
In a charming display of cross-cultural contact, my four-year-old has taken to chanting the seven orders of the letters of the Amharic script to the melody of the Fireman Sam theme tune. It goes down well with the Addis Ababa crowds, I'll tell you that much.
1260
Reposted by John Gallagher
Koji Hirata @khirata.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
I am delighted to announce that I have recently begun a new role of Reviews Editor for The Historical Journal: www.cambridge.org/core/journal... In this role, I commission review essays on all aspects of history since the fifteenth century.
cambridge.org
The Historical Journal | Cambridge Core
The Historical Journal - Sara Caputo, Bronwen Everill, Helen Pfeifer
1143
John Gallagher @earlymodernjohn.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
For the last nine months it's been my pleasure & privilege to be the editor of Renaissance Studies, and I think we're well overdue a romp through some fantastic articles we've published this year. See below for some of the finest new research in the interdisciplinary study of the Renaissance! 👇
210337
Reposted by John Gallagher
Clodagh Tait @clodaghtait.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
In case you missed it when it came out: Judith Hurley and my article on the history and folklore of churching of women after childbirth in Ireland, c1800-2000 is available here: www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1...
tandfonline.com
0157
Reposted by John Gallagher
Nadine Akkerman @misswalsingham.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
📢Here's a fully funded 4-year PhD position at Leiden within the ERC project LangPro led by Dr Alisa van de Haar, and co-supervised by yours truly, on professional opportunities for women in the early modern language sector: careers.universiteitleiden.nl/job/PhD-Posi... Apply by 15 Oct 2026
careers.universiteitleiden.nl
PhD Position Women in the Early Modern Language Sector
PhD Position Women in the Early Modern Language Sector
24556