Táin Bó Cúailnge
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Táin Bó Cúailnge
(Modern ; "the driving-off of the cows of Cooley"), commonly known as ''The Táin'' or less commonly as ''The Cattle Raid of Cooley'', is an epic from Irish mythology. It is often called "The Irish Iliad", although like most other early Irish literature, the ''Táin'' is written in prosimetrum, i.e. prose with periodic additions of verse composed by the characters. The ''Táin'' tells of a war against Ulster by Queen Medb of Connacht and her husband King Ailill, who intend to steal the stud bull Donn Cuailnge. Due to a curse upon the king and warriors of Ulster, the invaders are opposed only by the young demigod, Cú Chulainn. The ''Táin'' is traditionally set in the 1st century in a pagan heroic age, and is the central text of a group of tales known as the Ulster Cycle. It survives in three written versions or "recensions" in manuscripts of the 12th century and later, the first a compilation largely written in Old Irish, the second a more consistent work in Middle Irish, ...
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Heroic Age (literary Theory)
{{inline, date=January 2020 In 20th century studies of oral poetry and traditional literature, the Heroic Age was postulated as a stage in the development of human societies likely to give rise to legends about heroic deeds. According to some theorists, oral epic poetry would be created at the same period, and would be transmitted, by singers who displayed less creativity, through later periods. Scholars who adopted the theory of a Heroic Age include: * Maurice Bowra * Hector Munro Chadwick and Nora Kershaw Chadwick A widely shared view was that each society would pass through a Heroic Age only once. This apparently explains why, in the Chadwicks' world survey of oral and traditional poetry, ''The Growth of Literature'', medieval European epics such as the French ''Chansons de geste'' and the Spanish '' Cantar de Mio Cid'' are omitted: those societies are taken to have passed through a Heroic Age earlier. Bryan Hainsworth has suggested that in the various so-called Heroic Ages nam ...
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Fergus Mac Róich
Fergus mac Róich (literally "manliness, son of great stallion") is a character in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. Formerly the king of Ulster, he is tricked out of the kingship and betrayed by Conchobar mac Nessa, becomes the ally and lover of Conchobar's enemy, queen Medb of Connacht, and joins her expedition against Ulster in the ''Táin Bó Cúailnge''. Fergus is described as being of huge size and sexual potency.Whitley Stokes (ed. & trans.)"The Tidings of Conchobar son of Ness" ''Ériu'' vol. 2, 1908 This leads him into many a precarious situation as in the story of the ''Táin Bó Flidhais''. King of Ulster Fergus becomes king of Ulster after his predecessor, Eochaid Sálbuide, is killed, along with the High King Fachtna Fáthach, by Eochu Feidlech in the Battle of Leitir Ruad. While king, he desires Eochaid Sálbuide's daughter Ness, but she will only consent to marry him if he allows her son Conchobar to be king for a year, so his sons will be the sons of a king. T ...
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Dáire Mac Fiachna
In the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology, Dáire mac Fiachna is an Ulster cattle-lord and owner of Donn Cuailnge, the Brown Bull of Cooley, over which the '' Táin Bó Cuailnge'' (Cattle Raid of Cooley) was fought. Following the medieval Irish genealogies, Dáire mac Fiachna appears to have been a paternal relative of Conchobar Mac Nessa. He appears in the Táin Bó Regamon within a ghastly chariot alongside the Morrígan. He is described as a great man wrapped in a red cloak with a forked staff of hazel at his back. The Morrígan first introduces him as ''h-Uar-gaeth-sceo-luachair-sceo'', before later revealing that he is Dáire mac Fiachna, and the owner of Donn Cuailnge. When Queen Medb of Connacht discovered that her husband, Ailill, was considerably wealthier than her due to his possession of one extremely fertile bull, she resolved to even the account by possessing Dáire mac Fiachna's great bull, Donn Cuailnge. Queen Medb sent messengers to Dáire mac Fiachna with a generous o ...
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Cooley Peninsula
The Cooley Peninsula (, older ''Cúalṅge'') is a hilly peninsula in the north of County Louth on the east coast of Ireland; the peninsula includes the small town of Carlingford, the port of Greenore and the village of Omeath. Geography The peninsula contains the Cooley Mountains, the highest of which, Slieve Foy, is also the highest peak in County Louth at . To the north is Carlingford Lough and the border with Northern Ireland; to the south is Dundalk Bay. The peninsula is ringed by the R173 regional road. The peninsula is geologically diverse, with 440-million-year-old Silurian greywacke sandstones in the northwest and southwest, 340-million-year-old limestones in the east, and 60-million-year-old volcanic rocks forming the Cooley Mountains. Antiquity In Irish mythology, Cooley (Old Irish Cúalnge') was the home of the bull Donn Cuailnge, and the site of the ''Táin Bó Cúailnge'', "Cattle Raid of Cooley". Ancient monuments in Cooley include the Proleek Dolmen, wh ...
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Cruachan, Ireland
Rathcroghan () is a complex of archaeological sites near Tulsk in County Roscommon, Ireland. It is identified as the site of Cruachan, the traditional capital of the Connachta, the prehistoric and early historic rulers of the western territory. The Rathcroghan Complex (Crúachan Aí) is a unique archaeological landscape with many references found in early Irish medieval manuscripts. Located on the plains of Connacht (Mag nAí/Machaire Connacht), Rathcroghan is one of the six Royal Sites of Ireland. This landscape which extends over six square kilometres, consists of over 240 archaeological sites, sixty of which are protected national monuments. These monuments range from the Neolithic (4000 – 2500 BC), through the Bronze (2500 – 500 BC) and Iron Age (500 BC – 400 AD), to the early medieval period and beyond. These monuments include burial mounds, ringforts and medieval field boundaries amongst others. The most fascinating of these are the multi period Rathcroghan Mound, ...
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Thomas Kinsella
Thomas Kinsella (4 May 192822 December 2021) was an Irish poet, translator, editor, and publisher. Born outside Dublin, Kinsella attended University College Dublin before entering the civil service. He began publishing poetry in the early 1950s and, around the same time, translated early Irish poetry into English. In the 1960s, he moved to the United States to teach English at universities including Temple University. Kinsella continued to publish steadily until the 2010s. Early life and work Thomas Kinsella was born on 4 May 1928 in Inchicore to Agnes (Casserly) and John Kinsella. He spent most of his childhood in the Kilmainham/Inchicore area of Dublin. He was educated at the Model School, Inchicore, where classes were taught in the Irish language, and at the O'Connell Schools in North Richmond Street, Dublin. His father and grandfather both worked in Guinness's brewery. He entered University College Dublin in 1946, initially to study science. After a few terms in college, he ...
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Finnbhennach
In the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology, Finnbhennach ("white-horned" sometimes rendered as "Whitehorn") was an extremely fertile stud bull owned by king Ailill of Connacht. He was originally one of Bodb Dearg's pig-keepers, who fell out with one of his colleagues. The two fought, taking a series of animal and human forms, before finally becoming two worms who were swallowed by two cows and reborn as two bulls, Finnbhennach and Donn Cuailnge. Finnbhennach was born into the herds of queen Medb, but thought belonging to a woman beneath him and joined her husband's herds instead. Donn Cuailnge was born into the herds of Dáire mac Fiachna In the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology, Dáire mac Fiachna is an Ulster cattle-lord and owner of Donn Cuailnge, the Brown Bull of Cooley, over which the '' Táin Bó Cuailnge'' (Cattle Raid of Cooley) was fought. Following the medieval Irish geneal ... of Cooley. He bulled a heifer belonging to the Mórrígan, and the resulting bull-calf fought F ...
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Desmond Kinney’s Mosaic (6179099398)
Desmond or Desmond's may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Desmond'' (novel), 1792 novel by Charlotte Turner Smith * ''Desmond's'', 1990s British television sitcom Ireland * Kingdom of Desmond, medieval Irish kingdom * Earl of Desmond, Irish aristocratic title * Desmond Rebellions, Irish rebellions during the 16th century led by the Earl of Desmond Science and technology * DESMOND (diabetes) (Diabetes Education and Self Management for Ongoing and Newly Diagnosed), a UK NHS diabetes education programme * Desmond (software), molecular dynamics simulation software * Storm Desmond, a windstorm in Britain and Ireland in 2015 Other uses * Desmond (name), a common given name and surname * Desmond (horse) (1896-1913), Thoroughbred racehorse * Desmond's (department store), a former US store * Desmond, slang term for the British 2:2 degree classification See also * Desman, a tribe of aquatic mammals * Clíodhna, principal goddess of Desmond, or South Munster * Limerick Desmond League ...
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National Epic
A national epic is an epic poem or a literary work of epic scope which seeks or is believed to capture and express the essence or spirit of a particular nation—not necessarily a nation state, but at least an ethnic or linguistic group with aspirations to independence or autonomy. National epics frequently recount the origin of a nation, a part of its history, or a crucial event in the development of national identity such as other national symbols. History In medieval times Homer's ''Iliad'' was taken to be based on historical facts, and the Trojan War came to be considered as seminal in the genealogies of European monarchies. Virgil's ''Aeneid'' was taken to be the Roman equivalent of the ''Iliad'', starting from the Fall of Troy and leading up to the birth of the young Roman nation. According to the then prevailing conception of history, empires were born and died in organic succession and correspondences existed between the past and the present. Geoffrey of Monmouth ...
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Early Modern Irish
Early Modern Irish ( ga, Gaeilge Chlasaiceach, , Classical Irish) represented a transition between Middle Irish and Modern Irish. Its literary form, Classical Gaelic, was used in Ireland and Scotland from the 13th to the 18th century. External history The Tudor dynasty sought to subdue its Irish citizens. The Tudor rulers attempted to do this by restricting the use of the Irish language while simultaneously promoting the use of the English language. English expansion in Ireland, outside of the Pale, was attempted under Mary I, but ended with poor results. Queen Elizabeth I however encouraged the use of Irish even in the Pale with a view to promoting the reformed religion. She was proficient in several languages and is reported to have expressed a desire to understand Irish, so a primer was prepared on her behalf by Christopher Nugent, 6th Baron Delvin. Grammar The grammar of Early Modern Irish is laid out in a series of grammatical tracts written by native speakers and int ...
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Middle Irish
Middle Irish, sometimes called Middle Gaelic ( ga, An Mheán-Ghaeilge, gd, Meadhan-Ghàidhlig), is the Goidelic language which was spoken in Ireland, most of Scotland and the Isle of Man from AD; it is therefore a contemporary of late Old English and early Middle English. The modern Goidelic languages—Irish, Scottish Gaelic and Manx—are all descendants of Middle Irish. Grammar Middle Irish is a fusional, VSO, nominative-accusative language. Nouns decline for two genders: masculine, feminine, though traces of neuter declension persist; three numbers: singular, dual, plural; and five cases: nominative, accusative, genitive, prepositional, vocative. Adjectives agree with nouns in gender, number, and case. Verbs conjugate for three tenses: past, present, future; four moods: indicative, subjunctive, conditional, imperative; independent and dependent forms. Verbs conjugate for three persons and an impersonal, agentless form (agent). There are a number of preve ...
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