Thirty academics, from Ireland, Scotland, England, the Faroe Islands, Norway, Sweden, Estonia and the USA, have joined together to honour Professor Seamas O Cathain, Emeritus Professor of Irish Folklore and former Director of the National Folklore Collection, in this festschrift on his 70th birthday. Professor O Cathain is widely known for his contribution to Irish and international folkloristics and the many ways in which he has promoted Irish language and culture. Articles in the festschrift, which cover a broad array of subjects, are in themselves a reflection of Seamas O Cathain's wide-ranging interests and constitute significant contributions to the disciplines of folkloristics, dialectology, and literary and etymological studies. Topics include, among others, folklore collectors and collecting, folklore connections between Ireland and the Nordic countries, folk legends old and modern, folk beliefs and folk customs, as well as issues in Irish, Scottish Gaelic and Cornish linguistics.