A new academic study says CS Lewis was born in Belfast in 1898 and maintained strong ties to Ireland throughout his life.

The book Ireland in the Life and Work of CS Lewis by David Clare claims Lewis's Irish origins have been overlooked in many accounts of his work.

Clare writes that Lewis returned to Ireland almost every year until his death in 1963 and continued to identify as Irish.

According to the study, Lewis's background influenced his views on British colonialism and shaped elements of his fiction, including The Chronicles of Narnia.

The author notes that Lewis identified the area around the Cooley Mountains as the real-world place most resembling Narnia.

Clare also links Lewis's concept of transcendent joy to later Northern Irish writers and musicians including Van Morrison, Juliet Turner and Lucy Caldwell.

The study covers Lewis's 1950s marriage and honeymoon, which took place in Down, Louth and Donegal.