Tracey Hayes

Thesis

Eagle Folklore in Ireland’s National Folklore Collection

Supervisors: Catriona Kennedy, Harrie Neal and Tiber Falzett

Research

My research looks at folklore related to eagles (Golden and White Tailed) as documented in Ireland’s National Folklore Collection. The Collection is the legacy of the work of Irish Folklore Commission (An Coimisiún Béaloideasa Éireann) which was established in 1935, a time by which eagles had become extinct in Ireland with the last recorded Golden eagle dated to 1912. As such, the archive offers a valuable insight into popular perceptions of these birds at a moment when they had just become extinct, and as such allows us to interrogate folk perspectives on extinct species, and how vernacular worldviews and practices relate to ecological issues such as species conservation status and extinction. This project is funded by the Leverhulme Centre for Anthropocene Biodiversity. 

Before beginning my PhD I completed my M.A. in Irish Folklore and Ethnology at University College Dublin in 2023. Following completion of my M.A. I lectured on various folklore modules in the School of Irish, Celtic Studies and Folklore.

Papers and Publications

Conference Papers

• ‘Seeking Out the Extinct: Lessons from the Archive’. Paper presented at (Super)naturecultures: More-Than-Natural Encounters & Traditional Knowledge Systems in the North Atlantic. University College Dublin, 2 March 2026. 

Publications

•  ‘She’s our cow you know:’ stories of the Glas Ghaibhneach: local lore, migratory legend,’ Folk Life 64, no. 1 (2026): 1–21,