The Literary and Historical Society (L&H) awards the James Joyce Award to outstanding individuals at the forefront their fields. The L&H is the oldest debating society in University College Dublin (UCD).

The James Joyce Award, also known as the Honorary Fellowship of the Society, is an award given by the Literary and Historical Society (L&H) of University College Dublin (UCD) for those who have achieved outstanding success in their given field; recipients have ranged from ranged from respected academics, lauded political figures, skilled actors and, like James Joyce himself, writers.

 

Each year the L&H welcomes esteemed guests to address our society members. It is the highest award that an Irish University society can give. It is named after one of the society's most distinguished alumni, James Joyce, the author of Dubliners, Ulysses, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and Finnegans Wake. Joyce was a student in UCD from 1898 to 1903, where he studied modern languages. In 1900, he presented a paper "Drama and Life" to the society. He also ran for the top position of Auditor and Treasurer, but failed to be elected on both occasions. 
 

Award winners come to address members of the society, and past recipients include: JK Rowling, Noam Chomsky, Emeli Sandé, Will Ferrell, Martin Freeman, Sir Alex Ferguson, Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. 

A full list of all recipients, including those pictured below, can be found here.