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Conall Corc and the Corco Luigde
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 02 December 2020
Extract
In 1941 I published and translated in this periodical an early Irish text which I called “The Exile of Conall Corc” because owing to a defective beginning the title had not been preserved. In the introduction to the text I listed among the sources dealing with Conall Corc, who as an early and semi-historical king of Munster supposedly reigned about 400 A.D., an account of him which the editor Kuno Meyer entitled “Conall Corc, and the Corco Luigde,” since, being an extract from a larger work, it lacked a separate heading of its own. Various reasons now prompt me to attempt a translation of it. One of them naturally is the intrinsic interest of the subject matter, for Conall Corc, who is a vivid and picturesque member of “The Royal Cycle” of ancient Ireland, had a varied career which deserves to be better known than it actually is. Another reason is that several scholars, especially in recent years, have urged me to make an English rendering so that those who are not familiar with the Irish language at least may have access to the legendary as well as folkloristic elements that are implicit in “Conall Corc and the Corco Luigde.” And the third reason is that more than a decade ago having received the aid of the late Professor Thurneysen in the elucidation of some of the difficult passages, an aid which I here gratefully acknowledge, I feel that the present translation, now that he is dead, will preserve at least to some extent his interpretation of the text.
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References
1 lvi, 937-950.
2 Being unfamiliar at the time that I drew up the foregoing list of sources with the unpublished account of his conception in The Book of Lecan, I now print it along with a translation in the appendix to the present article.
3 Anecdota from Irish Manuscripts, iii (1910), 57-63.
4 It forms part of “The Laud Genealogies and Tribal Histories,” ed. K. Meyer, Z.C.P., viii (1912), 315, n. 1.
5 It is regrettable that Professor Thurneysen did not have an opportunity to review the final version of my translation. If he had had this opportunity, he might have wished to modify it in certain respects.
6 See note 137 of the translation.
7 Compare R. Thurneysen, “Zu Cormacs Glossar,” Festschrift Ernst Windisch (Leipzig, 1914), p. 9.
8 For example, mogaid (59, 16) in Old Irish would be a u-stem.
9 Cf. T. Ó Máille, “Miscellanea,” Ériu, x (1926-28), 110, 111.
10 Cf. T. Ó Máille, The Language of the Annals of Ulster (Manchester, 1910), pp. 62-68.
11 Cf. Ó Máille, op. cit., pp. 114-116. Since according to Ó Máille final -th changes to -d(h) in the eighth century, the presence of numerous instances of -th in “Conall Corc and the Corco Luigde” argues for an early date of composition.
12 Note, however, righe Chaissil (60, 15) where righe is feminine.
13 Cf. Ó Máille, op. cit., p. 124.
14 According to Ó Máille, op cit., p. 180, the first example of the independent objective pronoun in the “Annals of Ulster” is recorded in 1099 a.d.
15 In Saltair Na Rann, which was written in 987 a.d., this distinction is no longer carefully maintained; cf. Ó Máille, op. cit., p. 174.
16 Noteworthy is inid · chuimser (57, 19) for which one expects inid · chumis, the pres. subj. 2nd sg. of con · ic. Is the deponent inflection due to the influence of the preceding inda · aiccither, or is it possible that con · ic once possessed a deponential present subjunctive? At all events, it always had a deponential preterite.
17 John Strachan, “Contributions to the History of the Deponent Verb in Irish,” Transactions of the Philological Society, 1891-94, p. 558, observes: “Judging simply from probabilities, I should hesitate to place any tale in which the deponent inflection is well preserved later, at the latest, than about the middle of the ninth century, but that as yet is only a subjective opinion.”
18 For other instances of tricho, see D. A. Binchy, Crith Gablach (Dublin, 1941), p. xvi.
19 Compare R. Thurneysen, Handbuch des Alt-Irischen (Heidelberg, 1909), i, 473, and my forthcoming article in Language.
20 In the Old Irish Glosses, pretonic di · and do · generally are written do ·, but the prep. di is distinguished in most cases from the prep. do. This distinction also prevails in “Conall Corc and the Corco Luigde.”
21 See K. Meyer, “Miscellanea Hibernica,” University of Illinois Studies in Language and Literature, ii (1916), No. 4, p. 51.
22 Ibid., p. 51.
23 See Thurneysen, op. cit., i, 482 C.
24 Parallel to slogeth is toceth on the basis of which Professor Osborn Bergin, “Varia I,” Ériu, xii (1938), 215, assumes the existence of a seventh-century toreth for torad.
26 Purposely omitted are Lochrae (58, 17; 62, 20), slogeth (60, 10) and slog (61, 5) because before gutturals Ó was not diphthongized consistently even after the Old Irish period; cf. T. Ó Máille, The Language of the Annals of Ulster (Manchester, 1910), p. 76.
26 See Ó Máille, op. cit., pp. 116, 117.
27 Perhaps mention also should be made of the archaic name Luigthech, gen. Luigthig (57, 4, 5, 17, 24) for later Lugaid, gen. Luigdech; cf. O. Bergin, “Varia I,” Ériu, xii (1938), 232, 233.
28 See R. Thurneysen, “Das Alter der Würzburger Glossen,” ZCP, iii (1901), 48, 49.
29 Cf. Thurneysen, op. cit., p. 51.
30 See K. Meyer, “Zur Metrik von Saltair na Rann,” Sitzungsb. der Kgl. Preuss. Akad. der Wissensch., 1918, p. 874 and n. 2. In this article Meyer lists without further discussion several of the archaic features in “Conall Corc and the Corco Luigde” as evidence for his statement that the text “dem 8. Jahrhundert angehört.”
1 Fíu may be a mistake for bui, “was”; yet, a few lines later fíu occurs again.
2 In other texts her name is given as Bolc, Bolea or Bolcobar (see Appendix); cf. T. F. O'Rahilly, Early Irish History and Mythology (Dublin, 1946), p. 49, n. 3.
3 The request was irrefusable because if the king refused she would satirize him so that he would lose thereby his honor.
4 Lit.: “concerning sleeping.”
5 Lit.: “It is of it.”
6 Laer Derg, “Red Mare,” was the nickname of Fedelm.
7 See note 5.
8 Lit.: “the descendants of the mare's son.”
9 The Irish kings often made expeditions to levy taxes. Apparently one of the words for the exaction of tribute is indrud, of which indraide seems to be a by-form, so that occindraide should be occ indraide. Apart from several examples in the Irish Laws, indraide likewise occurs in the account of Corc's birth in The Book of Lecan (see Appendix). Probably, therefore, it is not a corruption of indrud. For a discussion of both forms, compare R. Thurneysen, Die Bürgschaft im irischen Recht (Abhdl. der Preuss. Akad. der Wissensch. Jahrgang 1928, Phil.-Hist. Kl. Nr. 2, Berlin, 1928), p. 48, n. 4.
10 Lit.: “a place in which is.”
11 Andesses is attested in two other sources : in The Book of Lecan version of Corc's birth (see Appendix), where it is written as two words and esiss; and in “Compert ConCulainn nach der Handschrift von Druim Snechta” (ed. R. Thurneysen, Zu irischen Handschriften und Literatturdenkmälern, Abhdl. der Kgl. Gesellsch. der Wissensch. zu Göttingen, Phil.-Hist. Kl., N.F., Band xiv, Nr. 2, Berlin, 1912), p. 36, where it is spelled atdises, atidis es, and adasis. Yet neither the meaning nor the component elements of this verb are clear. Although Professor Thurneysen, op. cit., p. 39, n. 5, suggests several possible etymologies, he arrives at no definite conclusions.
12 Lit.: “on it”; that is, “on the basis of the protection which the witch had granted.”
13 Lit.: “she.” Presumably Fedelm—not Bolce— is meant.
14 There should be a period after fair because im · thegeth begins a new sentence.
15 The conjectural translation of camrud assumes that this word is composed of com- and bruith so that it once signified literally “a mutual cooking or boiling.” The Book of Lecan version of Corc's birth, on the other hand, has cunrad, “compact, bargain” (see Appendix), but that is hardly the original reading.
16 Oenne is really two words: the numeral oen followed by the fully stressed partitive gen. 3rd pl. of the pers. pron., the normal spelling of which is aí or áe.
17 For a, one expects an as in l. 14. Probably the copyist carelessly omitted the bar of suspension over the vowel.
18 Perhaps, however, the con of conloisc is the preverb and not the conj. In that case, retain the present punctuation of the text.
19 See note 5.
20 Observe the use of the jussive subjunctive in the Irish text.
21 Lit.: “any place in which.”
22 Lit.: “it.”
23 Lit.: “them.”
24 Lit.: “It is in it that is your pre-eminence.”
25 Lit.: “ít is then indeed.”
26 The prototonic ro-pret. 3rd sg. of fo · acaib, “leaves” would be normally · fargab, but even in Old Irish such forms as · fargbai are recorded.
27 Lit.: “their two brothers.” For the nasalization of athair, see O. Bergin, “Varia,” Ériu, XI (1932), 146, 147.
28 Lit.: “two brothers.”
29 for sesca read sescait.
30 Probably oc crich should be (h)i crich as in line 29.
31 Fur with an unhistorical initial f is the dat. sg. of or, “confines, boundary.”
32 Lit.: “Crimthan.”
33 Lit.: “sent from him.”
34 Lit.: “to the levying of the tribute.”
35 For dáil viôir one expects dál mór, unless, of course, the copyist construed dáil móir as the direct object of co · fairnic. Like Óenach, dál means “an assembly,” but since the dál seems to have been concerned especially with legal matters, this word frequently signifies also “a lawsuit, a legal case.”
36 Fo · fuaslaice should be emended to fa · fuaslaici, the fa · of which contains the infixed objective pers. pron. 3rd sg. masc. Originally this verb must have differed in meaning from to · fuasilcea on p. 57, l. 19, but that difference is no longer apparent.
37 Lit.: “he.”
38 Indalani is miswritten for ind-ala n-aí.
39 Lit.: “against the asking of anyone about him.”
40 Actually · tudchissed is the perf. pret. subj. 3rd sg. of do · tét, “comes,” but this verb at an early date also assumes the meaning of téit, “goes.”
41 Gāet is a mistake for gōete.
42 Note the suffixed personal pronoun in gontit, the syncopated form of gonit-it.
43 Lit.: “for it.”
44 As · renair should be as · renar.
45 Lit.: “to him (do-ssom).”
46 Lit.: “Corc.”
47 Lit.: “came to Crimthan.”
48 The ar of arna is Middle Irish for Old Irish ol.
49 Lit.: “of.”
50 Fúite should be fóite (from fóidthe).
51 Corrig should be written as two words: co rrig.
52 Lit.: “to his death.”
53 Amies signifies “disadvantage, hurt.”
54 Fortgithe, the past participle of for · tuigethar, “covers (over),” here seems to mean “covert, cryptic, occult.”
55 Scotland, of course, is to be understood by “yonder.”
56 Apparently coca is corrupt for ōac, “young man, warrior.” In “The Exile of Conall Corc,” ed. V. Hull, PMLA, lvi (1941), 940, it is, however, Gruibne who finds Corc.
57 For éccess, “scholar,” one expects the gen. sg. écciss if coca is really a mistake for ōac.
58 The copyist has omitted carelessly the prep. i before suidiu.
59 Lit.: “his advantage was written.”
60 Di · fochrathar should be di · fochtrathar. The f, however, is unhistorical.
61 This Feradach, whose sobriquet find-fechlnach means “fair [and] fortunate,” is the king of the Picts, but there exists another Feradach who is an Irish sovereign.
62 Lit.: “it is then that.”
63 Since gubae is a neuter į-stem, read a ngubae, the a being the neuter form of the def. art.
64 Whether do · fornic has been correctly translated is questionable because do · airic generally signifies “comes, comes to an end, is completed.”
66 Presumably .i. is an error for im. The bar of suspension over the i may have been left out by the copyist.
66 Lit.: “his son of the king.”
67 For inna one expects in, but instances of inna as the nom. pl. masc. of the def. art. occur even in Old Irish.
68 The object pronoun is represented by the -us of crecsus which when unsyncopated would be crecais-us. Usually this verb denotes “to sell,” but sometimes it apparently is synonymous with crenaid, “buys”—at least to judge by the glosses to the verbal noun creic; cf. R. Atkinson, Glossary to Brehon Laws (Dublin, 1901), p. 187.
69 Presumably dia · tā should be dia-tāt.
70 Perhaps cona sain-biadaib should be translated “with special services” since fobiad can signify “subsidiary service” in the Irish laws.
71 Toracht seems to be approximately equivalent in meaning to torad, “fruit, produce.”
72 The whole of the preceding paragraph is in the nature of an interpolation concerning primarily Niall's loss of his son.
73 Lit.: “incantations of druids.” Ferlaise is corrupt for felbaise or possibly for felbasa. Compare co felbasaib on p. 61 and fo-bith ind [$fD] elbais on p. 62.
74 Connermatad should be co · ndermatad, with which compare dia · ndermatad in 1. 31. In neither instance is · dermatad derived from di · ruimnethar but from its verbal noun dermat.
75 In Old Irish this verb sometimes has an s-preterite beside the customary suffixless preterite. Even so, one expects for · aithmensatar rather than for · aithmenastar.
76 Lit.: “that it was in Scotland that he was.”
77 Ar · bertar seems to be a mistake for ar · bertatar.
78 Lit.: “to giving to him.”
79 The preterite indicative of the copula frequently has a modal force.
80 Gabthe is a jussive subjunctive.
81 For this idiom, see V. Hull, “Gabaid Láim,” ZCP, xxi (1938), 33-47.
82 Alaile stands for alailiu.
83 For bebthilim, read bebthe lint.
84 For are · toing, see H. Pedersen, Vergleichende Grammatik der keltischen Sprachen (Göttingen, 1911, 1913), ii, 653, <849 4). There is, however, no need to assume two pre-verbs, air- and fo-, as Professor Pedersen does; air- alone suffices to account for the forms that he lists.
85 Lit.: “I shall not go past you.” In Contributions to a Dictionary of the Irish Language, T—tnúthaigid, ed. D. Greene and E. G. Quin (Dublin and London, 1943), col. 138 (d), this idiom is rendered: “I will not break my word to you (?).” Other examples are needed before its precise force can be determined.
86 Here “you” is the second person plural of the personal pronoun referring to the mother, her husband, and her daughter, namely, Corc's wife.
87 Lit.: “on the day of a year.” The Irish text adds ol Corc, “Corc said.”
88 For this meaning of fo · cíallathar, which signifies usually “cares for, takes heed of,” compare, for example, fon · rochled, “we have been prepared,” W. Stokes and J. Strachan, Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (Cambridge, 1901), i, 624, 1. 28.
89 Lit.: “It is thereupon that.”
90 Co · fesar-su should be emended to co · fesar-sa.
91 Lit.: “whether it will be possible with me.”
92 Lit.: “that which is (a n-as) a yearning to traversing.” Presumably Corc longs to cross the sea from Scotland back to Ireland, but he is not certain whether he will be successful in his venture.
93 Corc and his wife probably agreed to meet later at an appointed place; however, she is not again mentioned.
94 It is not stated who his foster brother is.
95 For this idiom, see note 81.
96 Lit.: “his bloods were shed from him,” where suile is an error for fuili. Compare the frequent collocation telcud fola, “bloodshed.” Did Corc bleed through his efforts not to depart because of the incantation upon him while his foster brother struggled with him in order to bring him to the coast?
97 Lit.: “and he gave his urine.”
98 Lit.: “and it.”
99 See note 5.
100 Lit.: “there is the sickness of urine on the Ui Carpri.” The Ui Carpri, apparently an Irish sept living among the Picts, also may have sought to prevent Corc's return to Ireland and, therefore, in revenge may have had this affliction imposed upon them.
101 To · ndemi is the pret. 3rd sg. of do · dímen, “binds, makes fast” and hence here “lands.”
102 Although the Picts were most numerous in Ulster, they inhabited other parts of Ireland.
103 That ciallith is miswritten for giallith, the imperat. 2nd pl. of gíallaid, is supported by giallsait in l. 16. The giving of hostages is a symbolic act; thereby the giver acknowledges the suzerainty of the receiver.
104 The translation of aurthuili is based on the conjecture that it is a compound of air-, “fore-” and tuile, “flood, tide.” So far, it apparently is recorded in other sources only in personal or place names; cf. T. Ó Máille, On the Language of the Annals of Ulster (Manchester, 1910), p. 183; J. O'Donovan, Annals of Ireland: Three Fragments (Dublin, 1860), p. 54; J. O'Donovan, Annala Rioghachta Eireanno: Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland (Dublin, 1848-51), anno 699; E. Hogan, Onomasticon Goedelicum (Dublin and London, 1910), p. 72.
106 The h of dob · hí, the pres. subj. 3rd sg. of do · ic, seems to be inserted to indicate that the stress falls on the í.
100 At times ath · gaib, “distrains,” has this secondary meaning.
107 Lit.: “closed in about him.”
108 Since the text definitely states on p. 57, 1.23, that Crimthan had not left any offspring, it is not unreasonable to suppose that dibert a Mann expresses approximately the same idea. If that supposition is correct, then perhaps dibert a chlann is intended for dibreithe o chlainn, “barren of progeny.” At all events, dibreithe in the sense of “barren, sexually impotent” is well attested; cf. J. O'Donovan, Supplement to O'Reilly's Irish-English Dictionary (Dublin, 1864), p. 618.
109 Conderbailt should be conid · ērbailt, the id of which is the neuter infixed pronoun 3rd sg. that always is used with this verb.
110 The correct spelling of Darfne is Dáirine; cf. T. F. O'Rahilly, Early Irish History and Mythology (Dublin, 1946), pp. 7, 455.
111 For berti, read berte.
112 Attarlee should be written as two words: altar lee.
113 Lit.: “and that.”
114 In-nit ought to be i unit.
115 In place of ro · luasetar, one expects fo · luasatar.
116 Dess-Mumu is the present-day Desmond.
117 Immedon is really two words: i mmedon.
118 Tosarglith perhaps should be emended to tos · ārlaith, the ro-preterite of a compound of téil, “goes,” the preverbs of which may be to and ad or ess. For other examples, see K. Meyer, Fianaigecht (Dublin and London, 1910), p. 20.
119 Immithnith looks as if it were a mistake for immid · nith in 1. 27, in which case the root may be sed- preceded by the preverbs imb and ni. Between these preverbs, then, is infixed the masculine 3rd sg. personal pronoun (here employed reflexively) which is id in relative clauses. But even so, immid · nith ought to be immid · neith, the preterite 3rd sg. of imm · neat, “settles down (?), alights (?)”; cf. O. Bergin, “Ar-neut, in-neuth, ”Ériu, x (1921-23), 111. In view of this fact, read perhaps in both instances immid · ndích from imb-di-fich-, “to protect, to shelter,” as suggested by Dr. D. A. Binchy and Dr. 0. Bergin in their notes to R. Thurneysen's Grammar of Old Irish (Dublin, 1946), p. 685.
120 Isinnditt is obviously corrupt for isind nit which occurs in 1. 28.
121 Lit.: “That will be the number of your sons, that is, five sons.”
122 See note 119.
123 For the Nad of Nad-Fraich, consult J. MacNeill, “Notes on the Distribution, History, Grammar, and Import of the Irish Ogham Inscriptions,” Royal Ir. Acad. Proc, xxvii (1909), Sect. C, 369-370.
124 By a careless oversight the copyist has omitted the name of the third son. Which one he had in mind is impossible to determine as the genealogies vary in the number of Corc's progeny, but at least they mention Mac Iair.
126 According to the genealogical tracts in the Book of Leinster, the Book of Ballymote, the Book of Uí Maine, Rawlinson B 502 and Laud 610, Corc had a son named Daig “a quo Hui Muiredaig.” In view of this statement the translation assumes that intinmedon muinedaig is to be emended to int inmedonach i Mume, Daig, “the middle one in Munster, Daig.” Another possible emendation, however, is int inmedonach, Muiredach, “the middle one, Muiredach.”
126 Lit.: “more exalted.”
127 See note 62 for the meaning of this collocation.
128 Diaig is a bad spelling for diaid.
129 See note 68.
130 Lit.: “was.”
131 The c of cend should be aspirated.
132 Is hísen a mistake for hi sein, “in that (place)”? Possibly hísen begins a new sentence, in which case read [is] hé-sein, “[it is] he (whom).”
133 Lit.: “whom his father.” Note that maledicere may govern the dative.
134 Lit.: “put from him.”
135 Fert Coirpri means “the tumulus of Coirpre.”
136 For Loch Cend, see T. P. O'Nolan, “Mór of Munster and the Tragic Fate of Cuanu Son of Cailchin,” Royal Ir. Acad. Proc., xxx (1912), Sect. C, 282.
137 Curiously enough nothing is said about Óengus's father Nad-Fraich who was the son of Corc and who succeeded him as king of Munster. A whole generation, therefore, is passed over in silence.
138 Whether the pronoun refers to “West Munster” or to “the stewardship” is unclear. As, however, both words are feminine in Irish, the affixed pronoun -i in gabsi should be -its.
139 Lit.: “he did not let from him.”
140 Lit.: “they.”
141 Lit.: “obtained.” Emend · ētaiset to · ētadsat, the pret. 3rd pl. of ad · cota.
142 Con · bert should be con · breth, the pret. pass. 3rd sg. of con · beir, “conceives,” but sometimes also “gathers.”
143 This is an island situated off the coast of Kerry.
144 For Ingaur mac Maugo read i nGaur mac Maugo, an island near the Great Skellig, the modern name of which is Gar-Inis; cf. E. Hogan, Onomasticon Goedelicum (Dublin and London, 1910), p. 435 s.v. gair mic moga.
145 See note 5.
146 Perhaps is [f] ri is a misunderstanding for is la, “owns, possesses.”
147 Apparently Duai and the various members of the “hosting” are meant.
148 In the Irish text cith should begin a new sentence.
149 Here · forgell is the ro-pret. 3rd sg. of fo · gella. Its verbal noun fuigell occurs in the next line.
150 The c of Chaissil ought not to be aspirated because the preceding acc. sg. righe normally would cause nasalization. As, however, righe, which once was neuter, later is feminine, the copyist, presumably forgetting the syntactical construction, lenited the initial consonant of the ensuing word.
151 Lit.: “of.”
152 Duthaid seems a bad spelling for dúthaig, “due, fitting, hereditary” which is employed here as a substantive. It hardly can be intended for the homonym dúthaig, “district,” because that word is feminine so that nach duthaid would be nacha dúthaige.
153 Lit.: “to them.”
154 Decedibrip is an obvious corruption which can be resolved only by examining all the unpublished Irish genealogical tracts. To judge by the ensuing sentence, it probably contains the name of a place followed by that of the recipient, in which case the second d may be the prep. do, “to.”
155 In “The Laud Genealogies and Tribal Histories,” ed. K. Meyer, ZCP, viii (1912), 305, 334, they are said to be descendants of a certain “Fer Deodai (Deoda).”
156 Apparently eminnmus is a mistake for eum i Maig Innais; at all events, Innais, like Mag Glai, is in the territory of the Corco Modruad.
157 Lit.: “Aran of the east.”
158 Lit.: “that is.”
159 Perhaps the nominative of Ressad is Ress.
160 What aurchrec precisely means is uncertain, but compare taurchrec, “fore-purchase.”
161 Presumably do stands for di.
162 Rú is a species of plant from which red dye was made. It may have been madder.
163 Since the celebrated king Cú-Cen-Máthair was the son of Ailill, maport must be emended to mac Ailella post, and do must be supplied.
164 For irrátha read i rrátha, the accusative plural of ráth.
165 Does this passage signify that in return for obtaining the taxes Mac Intait and Mac Bláichuill forfeited their rights of ownership to the Aran islands in favor of Cú-Cen-Máthair?
166 Lit.: “[It is] thirty of battles that had broken on Óengus mac Nad-Fraich.”
167 A period should be placed after Boinda because tricha commences a new sentence.
168 Lit.: “[It is] thirty of battles that broke before him.”
169 Nuíasun is entirely obscure unless it is miswritten for ni · baí-sum, “he was not.”
170 In sede, “in a seat,” seems to be Latin.
171 Lit.: “it is in that manner that.”
172 Lit.: “in his standing.” The h of hesom represents an aspirated s. In ancient Ireland distinguished leaders sometimes were interred in an upright position.
173 For nar-rig, read na rrig.
174 Rēthe, the stressed vowel of which is long, must not be confused with rethe, “ram.” The only clue as to its meaning consists in the fact that it is glossed once by ri, “king”; cf. HIL, ii, 202.
176 Since the i of itrochair is the preposition, it ought not to be joined to the verb.
176 Lit.: “to the avenging of.”
177 The nominative of Laisre is Laisir.
178 Lit.: “with.”
179 Should Oatha be Oathan (later Uathan), genitive plural of Uaithni?
180 Áth Da Loarc seems to signify “The Ford of Two Thighs.”
181 Probably Mac Íí ought to be Mac Íath as in the preceding sentence.
182 The i of duilbsi is the suffixed pronoun referring to in dam n-allaith. In “The Expulsion of the Dessi,” ed. K. Meyer, Y Cymmrodor, xiv (1901), 120, it is related that the druids of the Déssi formed a serf into a red cow which then attacked the men of Ossory. When they slew it at “The Ford of the Red Cow,” then they perceived that they really had destroyed the body of a man.
183 Finnglas is the name of a rivulet.
184 See note 5. Presumably battle was joined because the two contending forces rushed from opposite directions at the magical wild stag.
185 Lit.: “he.”
186 There should be a period at this point in the Irish text.
187 How nde is to be emended remains unclear. Either it is miswritten for is de, which occurs in the previous sentence, or it is corrupt for Latin inde—possibly also for Latin unde.
188 Ard nDuach means “The Hill of Daui.”
189 Lit.: “and he.”
190 In place of hi calk, read hic Ath, where ath means “ford.”
191 Is Mac Cercae the victor in these two engagements?
192 Lit.: “so that two battles broke from him.” For con · róemtatar one expects co · rróemdatar.
193 If the translation is correct, then induus should be a ndíís, but perhaps induus is intended for in dtuus, “at first”; cf. Eleanor Knott, “Varia II,” Ériu, xiv (1943), 146. In that case, form in duus would signify “over them at first.”
194 Cath may be a mistake for each, “every,” so that is de cach dilsi la h-Uaithniu should be rendered: “Hence, the Uaithni possessed every proprietary right.”
195 For the two different meanings of dilsi in this sentence, see D. A. Binchy, Críth Gablach (Dublin, 1941), p. 83 s. v. díles.
196 Lit.: “for he.”
197 Whether the infixed r(o) in · deracht hs any force is questionable. At all events, · deracht is the ro-pret. pass. 3rd sg. of di · fich, “avenges,” the prototonic form of which, namely, conid · n-dich, occurs a few words later in the same sentence.
198 In “The Laud Genealogies and Tribal Histories,” ed. K. Meyer, Z.C.P., viii (1912), 308, a battle by the name of “Cennibrae” is mentioned, but it is not at all certain that “Cennibrae” and “Cennibria” are the same place name. Even if they are the same, some preposition such as oc or i must be supplied before “Cennibria.” Is it possible that “Cennibria” stands for cendib fria, “although it [the forfeited property does not belong to her”?
199 Lit.: “for she was with the king.”
200 Apparently for · dibith (for which read for · dibitha?) is the pret. pass. of for · díben, whose verbal noun is fortbe (foirddbe); cf. J. Pender, “K. Meyers Nachträge zu Pedersens Verbalverzeichnis,” ZCP, xviii (1930), 309. But as yet neither the meaning of the verbal noun nor that of the finite verb has been precisely determined.
201 See note 5.
202 Taulach Cronsige signifies “The Hill of Croinsech.”
203 In the legal tracts cuindelc usually is a compact or agreement between brothers about the inheritance of land.
204 Forfia ccondilc Feidlimthi immurgu is corrupt for for · fi a condilo Feidlimith. Feidlimith immurgu. Here for · fi is the pret. 3rd sg. of for · fen, “completes.”
205 Focairc should be fo · cairt.
206 Cinel, the later and also anglicized form of cenel, signifies “sept, family, race.”
207 Only three of the six descendants of Coirpre mac Crimthain actually are named, though in the ensuing paragraph allusion is made to a fourth one called Coirpre.
208 A few lines above, Coirpre, the father of Aed, was said to be the ancestor of Cinel Cathail.
209 Der-Chocuind apparently means “daughter of Cocond.”
210 The epithet tirm-charna, “dry-flesh,” serves to distinguish this particular Eochu from the others by that name.
211 Cailich is the genitive singular of cailech, 'a rooster.“
212 Presumably the appellation au-lethan, “broad-eared,” was applied to Feidlimid because of his conspicuously large ears.
213 Lit.: “and.”
214 The substantivized adjective mes-chorach, here employed as a sobriquet, seems to denote “one who is limited with respect to the contracts that he legally can make.” For further examples, see Contributions to a Dictionary of the Irish Language, M, ed. Maud Joynt (Dublin and London, 1939), col. 114.
216 Focairc is an obvious mistake for fo · cairt, but its meaning in this passage is open to question.
216 Do should be da.
217 According to K. Meyer, Fianaigecht (Dublin and London, 1910), p. 9, n. 1, the nominative of this place name is Féic.
218 For ir-roi, read i rroi.
219 Arade should be written as two words: ara de.
220 See note 180.
221 The translation of to · ffid is purely conjectural. Perhaps to · fuit (earlier to · tuit), “falls” is here intended.
222 Fedlimthid ought to be Fedlimtheo, for which compare Feidlimthea on p. 62, 1. 1.
223 The prep. hi ought to be separated from the noun maccu.
224 See note 5.
226 Since there is an eightfold division of property, “three” may be an error for “two.” 226 Síad stands for is íad.
227 Dāl signifies “a sept” or “a tribe.”
228 See note 217.
229 See note 81.
230 Apparently the a of amethalig is the preposition meaning “from,” but the ensuing place name has not been identified.
231 Cluain Uama seems to denote “meadow of the cave.”
232 Lit.: “and.”
233 Whether aired cech etraige has been translated correctly is doubtful because of the place name Aired Cechtraige in Munster, of which aired cech etraige may be a corruption; cf. E. Hogan, Onomasticon Goedelicum (Dublin and London, 1910), pp. 22, 23.
234 Presumably Coirpre and Colman are meant.
235 Is mundi to be emended to Mumoniae, “of Munster”?
236 Do · faeth ought to be do · foeth to rhyme with coem in the next verse.
237 The past participle of snaidid, “craves, planes, cuts,” is snaisse, but whether when substantivized it may be rendered by “bier” requires substantiation.
238 Crom-glass means “bent stream.”
239 As a unit of value in business transactions cumal, “female slave,” constantly is employed in the Irish legal tracts.
240 The first element of many place names is cúl, “nook, corner.”
241 Do · rrochair (earlier di · rrochair) is the perfect 3rd sg. of di · tuit, “becomes forfeit.”
242 For Cula as a by-form of Cul, see E. Hogan, Onomasticon Goedelicum (Dublin and London, 1910), p. 317 s.v. cúl.
243 References to this place name occur in Fianaigecht, ed. K. Meyer (Dublin and London, 1910), pp. 36, 38.
244 Cailc may be corrupt for Caille; cf. E. Hogan, Onomasticon Goedelicum (Dublin and London, 1910), p. 30 s.v. alltraige caille and p. 155 s.v. caoilli.
245 Dorochróch should be emended to do · rrochair (earlier di · rrochair).
246 Arnangell ought to be written as three words: ar na ngell. The second word na is the neuter form of nach, “any.”
247 Lit.: “it is he.”
248 Lit.: “on his head of Corc.”
249 The second n of conid · torbaing has been introduced by analogy with the pres. ind. 3rd sg. do · boing, “levies.” Normally this verb infixes com instead of ro in the perfect tense.
250 The rendering of to · ruarith is a pure conjecture which is based on the assumption that to · ruarith is a compound of reth-. Since the first r probably represents an infixed ro, its preverbs seem to be to and uss.
251 Obviously araill begins a new sentence and, therefore, should be preceded by a period, but its analysis is not clear. Perhaps the pret. 3rd sg. of ar · áli, “enjoins,” is intended; perhaps, however, ar is the conjunction meaning “for,” whereas aill is miswritten for ailt, the pret. 3rd sg. of ailid, “rears.”
252 Eockaith is an error for Eochaich.
253 There should be a period after tótha because dis · lúi apparently is another sentence. In that case, the s of dis · lúi represents the infixed personal pronoun of the third plural, whereas di · lúi may be intended for the pret. 3rd sg. of di · lá, one of whose meanings is “pays off.”
254 See note 5.
255 Lit.: “for his fostering.”
256 See note 5.
257 Lit.: “It is of.”
258 Feidlimthig is an obvious mistake for Feidlimid.
259 Since Feidlimid mac Tigernaich caused Bodumbir to be dug, it seems to have been a fortified earthwork. In his “Contributions to Irish Lexicography,” Archiv fur Celtische Lexikographie, i (1906), 234, Kuno Meyer equates Bodumbir with Badammair, for which see E. Gwynn, The Metrical Dindshenchas, Part III (Dublin and London, 1913), p. 519.
260 Lit.: “It is of him that.”
261 Both the period after Choirpri and the ensuing dixit should be omitted.
262 Lit.: “against my two horses.”
263 As leou is supposed to rhyme with e(o)chu, read lethu for leou.
264 Fedlimthid must be a mistake for Fedlimtheo or for Feidlimthe as in the next sentence, since the genitive is required by the construction.
265 The full stop after Fedlimthid is to be deleted because alta stands for ata a, “that are his,” so that ata a indrema file may be rendered literally: “that are his memorials (?) that are.”
266 The translation of indrema, the plural of indrem, is a pure guess. For a collection of references to this word, see HIL, ii, 43.
267 Lit.: “they.”
268 Since this sept refused to give a portion of its patrimony in order to help acquire Bruree, it apparently was excluded from Cashel. An analogous instance of exclusion from Tara is described in The Banquet of Dun Na N-Gedh and the Battle of Magh Rath, ed. J. O'Donovan, Dublin, 1842, p. 4.
269 Lit.: “It is of Cinel Oengusa mac Nad-Fraich, Cashel.” Cenel is an obvious error for the gen. sg. cenēoil.
270 Parallel to the preceding ni · foetaiar ni, so here, too, a second ni should be supplied.
271 See note 5.
272 Another possible translation would be: “Nad-Fraich will be a city.” That, however, seems unlikely in view of the ensuing reference to the possession of Cashel.
273 In the Irish text intí ought to begin a new sentence.
274 For bessa haí Cassel, read bes a haí Cassel which means literally: “that may be of his own, Cashel.”
275 For biad, one expects biaid (earlier bieid).
276 Lit.: “in his hostageship.”
277 For other instances of do · longa, which seems to be synonymous with longaid, “expels,” see K. Meyer, “The Expulsion of the Déssi,” Ériu, iii (1907), 142, as well as Y Cymmrodor, xiv (1901), 132.
278 Commur Tri N-Uisce means “The Confluence of Three Waters.”
279 Lit.: “in.”
280 Compare J. Pokorny, “Beiträge zur Ältesten Geschichte Irlands,” ZCP, xii (1918), 343-345.
281 Presumably the infixed s of nos · gabsat refers to tír, “land,” but in a plural sense.
282 The scribe himself indicates that coiciur is a misspelling for co H-Euchair, since the preceding nó, which here signifies “rather,” often introduces a correction. For Euchair as a place name, see K. Meyer, “The Expulsion of the Dessi,” Y Cymmrodor, xiv (1901), 132, where it is spelled Eochair.
283 Lit.: “namely, it is of it.”
284 In “The Expulsion of the Déssi,” ed. K. Meyer, Y Cymmrodor, xiv (1901), 132 Fothart and Daire Laigen Ar Fothart are called Ath Fothart and Daire Laigen.
1 The Book of Lecan, ed. Kathleen Mulchrone, Dublin, 1937, fol. 219, col. a, ll. 24 and ff.
2 In editing the text, the use of capitals and the punctuation as well as the paragraphing have been made to accord with modern practice. All MS. contractions also have been silently resolved except those that are capable of more than one resolution; these have been italicized.
3 For the corresponding passages in Kuno Meyer's edition, see p. 57, ll. 3-17, and p. 58, ll. 19-24.
1 The MS repeats: As-ber aen n-e, “Ni · cuilliu for uiliu fo acbairib.” Bruindid in tene forsin mac.
2 Lit.: “of the conception of Corc mac Luigdeach, this.”
3 Lit.: “it is for it that used to be said.”
4 Lit.: “concerning sleeping with her.”
5 Lit.: “it is of it.”
6 Actually her name is Feidelm, but she was nicknamed Lair Derg.
7 Lit.: “and it is of it.”
8 See note 5 of the translation of “Conall Corc and the Corco Luigde.”
9 Lit.: “a place in which are.”
10 Ferta is to be construed as a plural noun because of the preceding fuilead, Both fert and ferta(e) exist in the sense of “a burial mound,” but possibly some homonym is here intended.
11 In all probability and essis is a verb even though its analysis is unclear; the scribe therefore, should not have separated and from essis.
12 Usually cundrad signifies “a compact” or “a bargain.” According to “Cóir Anmann: Fitness of Names,” ed. W. Stokes, Irische Texte, iii, ii, 312, the other witches were entitled to proof that Feidelm did not take protection against them wherever they might meet. Perhaps cunrad alludes to this fact.
13 The text is very corrupt. For ni · cuilliu for fuiliu fa achairiu, read ni · cuilliu acht fuile fo an chairiu, which is translated, and compare K. Meyer, “Conall Corc and the Corco Luigde,” Anecdota from Irish Manuscripts, iii, 57, ll. 15, 16.
14 See note 5 of the translation of “Conall Corc and the Corco Luigde.”
16 The infixed pronoun s in dos · fanic seems to have no force. Such otiose infixes are not uncommon in Middle Irish; cf. J. Strachan, “The Infixed Pronoun in Middle Irish,” Ériu, i (1904), 170.
16 See note 65 of the translation of “Conall Corc and the Corco Luigde.”
17 See note 66 of the translation of “Conall Corc and the Corco Luigde.”
18 For anangeill, read inna geill (earlier in geill).
19 Do · beartsad should be emended to dos · heart. Apparently the scribe wrote do · beartsad by analogy with ro · marbsad in the foregoing sentence.