The NEH Endowment for Northern Medieval Vernacular Literature was established through a challenge grant made in 1999. Notre Dame was one of eight universities to receive the funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities, an independent agency of the United States Government which makes grants for projects in history, languages, philosophy, and other areas of the humanities. The University received funds to support faculty fellowships and acquire northern medieval vernacular literature for both the Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies and the Medieval Institute.

The NEH Endowment allows the Hesburgh Libraries to build collections in the medieval vernacular literature of Northern Europe, with special attention to English, Irish, and Old Norse materials. These new materials in creative literature complement the Medieval Institute’s existing collections in continental medieval history, philosophy, and theology, as well as its excellent collections in Dante, medieval Byzantine studies, and medieval universities.

With the support of this fund, the Libraries are able to fill glaring gaps in serial holdings and acquire retrospective titles needed to give more depth to its collections. It allows the Libraries to concentrate on acquiring editions and primary sources vital to research and add to its secondary literature in areas such as linguistics. Notre Dame is widely recognized as having one of the finest and most accessible collections in the world for medieval scholarship, and the support of the NEH has greatly contributed to this prominence.