Dear members of AEDEI

Last December 2007 I was honoured to be elected chair of AEDEI, a position that I accepted both with earnest commitment and profound respect. Since then, it has been my pleasure to contribute to the promotion and development of Irish studies in Spain, and to the expansion of the activities of our association abroad. We can now look back to 2001, when the first Conference of AEDEI was held in Burgos and when AEDEI was founded to make, although so far only briefly, some history.

If we were then a small group of enthusiasts willing to spread our interests and love for all things Irish, we are now a growing community of lecturers, scholars and students who look forward to our annual meetings in a Spanish University, to share our knowledge, our research and our good disposition. Since then, we can now also proudly affirm that many publications have come out of the scholarly work of our members contributing to consolidate the development of Irish studies in Spain. Keeping up with these interests will only prove the strength of our Association and its continuing efforts to be a referent in the field of Irish studies.