Before joining Trinity, I have taught at the University of Greifswald (Germany) for 6 years and at Queen’s Belfast for 3 years, covering Frankish, Anglo-Saxon, Norman, Irish, English and German history throughout the medieval period, but also chronology, palaeography, and Medieval Latin. Presently, I am teaching HI4347 Kings & Saints in early Christian Ireland and HI7165 The Golden Age: Ireland and Europe in the seventh century. I am also convening HI7170 Medieval Sources. I welcome PhD projects on all aspects of early and high medieval Europe (c.AD 400–1200).

My research falls into four categories: My primary field of interest is early medieval scientific thought; I have explored the Irish intellectual milieus of the seventh and early eighth centuries that shaped Bede’s mind and prepared the so-called Carolingian Renaissance, particularly in the field of computus (medieval time-reckoning); also, the question of continuity of late antique learning in the early middle ages is part of this research; more recently, I am involved in research on Visigothic scientifica of the sixth and seventh centuries and the transition period from Latin to Arabic science of the second half of the eleventh and the twelfth centuries. Second, the work on early medieval scientific texts prompted me to analyse the use of the vernacular in monastic teaching and intellectual debate of the time. Third, early medieval Irish history features prominently in my research, with a special interest in Irish kingship and succession, hagiography, as well as the Easter controversy. Fourth, my work at the University of Greifswald (2007–2013) has turned his attention to cultural history in the form of central and late medieval burial practises, especially the separate burial (Getrenntbestattung) of heart and intestines.