Projects per year
Personal profile
SUMMARY of research interests (100 words)
I study medieval Britain, Ireland and Brittany, with interests ranging from the sixth century to the twelfth. My research focuses on maritime connections and now-lost kingdoms. Particular areas of interest are the Irish Sea region in the Viking Age; central Britain (northern England and southern Scotland) prior to the Anglo-Scottish border; and connections between northern Britain and Wales. My monograph Gaelic Influence in the Northumbrian Kingdom: The Golden Age and the Viking Age won the Frank Watson Book Prize, 2021. I have been involved in funded projects on Furness Abbey’s links across the Irish Sea and contacts between Britain and Brittany. I am interested in interdisciplinary work, for example combining historical and linguistic evidence through the study of names. From 2016-24 I was the Director of the Regional Heritage Centre, which received an Educate North Award for Community Engagement in 2023. I am committed to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in Higher Education, including the department's Athena Swan Bronze award (2021). I have been awarded a British Academy mid-career fellowship for the academic year 2024/5.
External positions
Honorary Research Fellow, Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic, University of Cambridge
1/09/2016 → …
Co-Investigator, Leverhulme-funded project Brittany and the Atlantic Archipelago: Contact, Myth and History 450-1200
1/09/2015 → 31/08/2019
Co-Investigator, AHRC-funded project: Hagiography at the Frontiers: Jocelin of Furness and Insular Politics
1/07/2010 → 30/06/2012
Keywords
- Early medieval
- Northern English history
- Celtic history
- Onomastics
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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IAA - AHRC Impact Acceleration Account
Rushton, R. (Co-Investigator), Stead, M. (Co-Investigator), Perez Ojeda, D. (Co-Investigator), Brook, R. (Co-Investigator), Baker, C. (Co-Investigator), Fagan, D. (Co-Investigator), Cousins, E. (Co-Investigator), Casey, S. (Co-Investigator), Halliday, E. (Co-Investigator), Flint, A. (Co-Investigator), Jarvis, H. (Co-Investigator), Bye, D. (Co-Investigator), Costa, A. (Co-Investigator), Edmonds, F. (Co-Investigator), Donkersley, P. (Co-Investigator), Findlay, A. (Co-Investigator), Bushell, S. (Co-Investigator), Gillen, J. (Principal Investigator), Tsekleves, E. (Co-Investigator), Tsekleves, E. (Co-Investigator), Newton, R. (Co-Investigator), Ruston, S. (Co-Investigator), Griffiths, R. (Co-Investigator), Davies, J. (Co-Investigator) & Bennett, B. (Co-Investigator)
1/04/22 → 31/03/27
Project: Research
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Brittany and the North: Cross-Channel Connections, Eleventh to Thirteenth Centuries
Edmonds, F. (Principal Investigator)
1/10/24 → 31/05/26
Project: Research
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Victoria County History 2022-2024
Edmonds, F. (Principal Investigator)
1/10/22 → 30/09/24
Project: Research
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Settlement and Landscape in Medieval Lancashire: the Records of the Forest Justice
Edmonds, F. (Principal Investigator) & Ambler, S. T. (Co-Investigator)
Centre for English Local History
1/07/21 → 30/04/23
Project: Research
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The people behind the modern map: The Ordnance Survey name books for Cumberland and Westmorland as sources for social history
Butler, J., Donaldson, C., Edmonds, F. & Gregory, I., 1/05/2026, In: Nomina. 41, p. 145-164 20 p.Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Open AccessFile8 Downloads (Pure) -
The Victoria History of the Counties of England: Westmorland I (Lonsdale Ward)
Rose, S., Edmonds, F., Donaldson, C., Winchester, A. & Garnett, E., 5/08/2025, Boydell and Brewer. 412 p.Research output: Book/Report/Proceedings › Book
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Furness Abbey, the Archbishopric of Niðaróss and the Diocese of Sodor
Edmonds, F. & Thomas, S. E., 22/06/2023, Networks in the Medieval North: Studies in Honour of Jón Viðar Sigurðsson. Allport, B., Bonté, R. & Orning, H. J. (eds.). Turnhout: Brepols Publishers, p. 75-96 22 p. (The North Atlantic World; vol. 5).Research output: Contribution in Book/Report/Proceedings - With ISBN/ISSN › Chapter (peer-reviewed) › peer-review
File55 Downloads (Pure) -
Introduction (Multi-Disciplinary Approaches to Medieval Brittany)
Brett, C., Edmonds, F. & Russell, P., 23/06/2023, Multi-Disciplinary Approaches to Medieval Brittany, 450-1200: Connections and Disconnections. Brett, C., Russell, P. & Edmonds, F. (eds.). Turnhout: Brepols Publishers, p. 1-7 7 p. (Medieval Texts and Cultures of Northern Europe).Research output: Contribution in Book/Report/Proceedings - With ISBN/ISSN › Chapter (peer-reviewed) › peer-review
File86 Downloads (Pure) -
Multi-Disciplinary Approaches to Medieval Brittany, 450-1200: Connections and Disconnections
Brett, C. (Editor), Russell, P. (Editor) & Edmonds, F. (Editor), 23/06/2023, Turnhout: Brepols Publishers. 376 p. (Medieval Texts and Cultures of Northern Europe)Research output: Book/Report/Proceedings › Proceedings
Activities
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Regional Heritage Centre Study Day: ‘Manuscripts and Medieval Life: the Great Cowcher Book of the Duchy of Lancaster’
Wilkinson, O. (Chair), Edmonds, F. (Speaker), Ambler, S. T. (Speaker) & Findlay, A. (Speaker)
18/11/2023Activity: Participating in or organising an event types › Participation in workshop, seminar, course
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The Great Cowcher display: Light Up Lancaster 2023
Edmonds, F. (Speaker) & Ambler, S. T. (Speaker)
2/11/2023 → 4/11/2023Activity: Other activity types › Types of Public engagement and outreach - Festival/Exhibition
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Plenary lecture: 'Crags, cairns and combes: Celtic influences in the Lake District landscape'
Edmonds, F. (Speaker)
24/07/2023Activity: Talk or presentation types › Invited talk
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Place-names and climatic shifts in northern Britain c.900-1300
Edmonds, F. (Speaker)
27/04/2023Activity: Talk or presentation types › Invited talk
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The Medieval Diocese of Sodor: Evidence from Furness Abbey
Edmonds, F. (Speaker)
16/02/2023Activity: Talk or presentation types › Invited talk
Prizes
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Educate North Awards: Community Engagement Award
Edmonds, F. (Recipient), Riches, S. (Recipient), Rose, S. (Recipient) & Michel, A. M. (Recipient), 27/04/2023
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
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Frank Watson book prize (best book on Scottish History)
Edmonds, F. (Recipient), 1/06/2022
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
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Scotland's National Book Awards 2021: History shortlist
Edmonds, F. (Recipient), 2021
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
Press/Media
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BBC History Extra Podcast: 'The Second Norman Conquest'.
30/12/24
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Expert Opinion
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Echoes of History podcast: How the Vikings Shaped Ireland and Britain
6/11/24
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Expert Opinion