Val Noone

Who is Val Noone?

Doctor Val Noone is an Australian historian who has written extensively on social history and has a particular interest in the history of the Irish language in the south-east of Australia in its social, cultural and linguistic aspects. He is an Honorary Fellow of the School of Historical and Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne.

He acquired a degree in Biblical studies, philosophy and theology at Corpus Christi College in Melbourne, and did his doctoral thesis on religious attitudes to war. He spent a number of years as a Catholic priest and retains a strong interest in the social history of the Church.

He has published many books, articles and reviews, and has been a co-contributor to historical articles in Irish published by the Irish journal Feasta. He is a member of the Irish Language Association of Australia and was the editor of Táin, the magazine of the Irish Australian Network, which ceased publication in 2007. His most notable recent work is Hidden Ireland in Victoria, an overview of the history of the Irish language in the State of Victoria, Australia.

He was awarded a medal of the Order of Australia in June 2009.