Seanchaí

[1] In the Gaelic culture, long lyric poems which were recited by bards (filí; filidhe in the original pre-1948 spelling) in a tradition echoed by the seanchaithe.

After the destruction of Gaelic civilization in the 1600s as a result of the English colonialism, these more formal roles ceased to exist and the term seanchaí came to be associated instead with traditional storytellers from the lower classes.

[2] The seanchaithe made use of a range of storytelling conventions, styles of speech and gestures that were peculiar to the Irish folk tradition and characterized them as practitioners of their art.

Members of the Irish Cultural Revival took a great interest in the art of the seanchaí, and through them the stories that they told were written down, published, and distributed to a global audience.

[2] At events such as mummers' festival in New Inn, County Galway, and the All-Ireland Fleadh Ceoil storytellers who preserve the stories and oratory style of the seanchaithe continue to display their art and compete for awards.