The Cenél Loairn, the descendants of

Loarn mac Eirc Loarn mac Eirc was a possible king of Dál Riata who may have lived in the 5th century. He was buried on Iona.J. M. P. Calise, Pictish sourcebook, Greenwood Press, 2002. Loarn's main significance is as the eponymous ancestor of Cenél Loairn, a kin ...

, controlled parts of northern

Argyll Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

around the

Firth of Lorne The Firth of Lorn or Lorne ( gd, An Linne Latharnach) is the inlet of the sea between the south-east coast of the Isle of Mull and the mainland of Scotland. It includes a number of islands, and is noted for the variety of wildlife habitats that ...

, most probably centred in Lorne but perhaps including the islands of

Mull Mull may refer to: Places *Isle of Mull, a Scottish island in the Inner Hebrides ** Sound of Mull, between the Isle of Mull and the rest of Scotland * Mount Mull, Antarctica *Mull Hill, Isle of Man * Mull, Arkansas, a place along Arkansas Highway ...

and

Colonsay Colonsay (; gd, Colbhasa; sco, Colonsay) is an island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland, located north of Islay and south of Mull. The ancestral home of Clan Macfie and the Colonsay branch of Clan MacNeil, it is in the council area of Argyll ...

Morvern Morvern, historically also spelt Morven, is a peninsula and traditional district in the Highlands, on the west coast of Scotland. It lies south of the districts of Ardgour and Sunart, and is bounded on the north by Loch Sunart and Glen Tarbert, ...

and

Ardnamurchan Ardnamurchan (, gd, Àird nam Murchan: headland of the great seas) is a peninsula in the ward management area of Lochaber, Highland, Scotland, noted for being very unspoiled and undisturbed. Its remoteness is accentuated by the main access ...

. The boundary to the east was the Druim Alban mountain ridge that separated Dál Riata from Pictland. The chief places of the kingdom appear to have been at Dun Ollaigh, near

Oban Oban ( ; ' in Scottish Gaelic meaning ''The Little Bay'') is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William. During the tourist season, th ...

and

Dunadd Dunadd (Scottish Gaelic ''Dún Ad'', "fort on the iverAdd") is a hillfort in Argyll and Bute, Scotland, dating from the Iron Age and early medieval period and is believed to be the capital of the ancient kingdom of Dál Riata. Dal Riata was a ki ...

near

Crinan Crinan is a name of Gaelic origin and it has a number of contexts: * Crinan, Argyll Crinan ( gd, An Crìonan) is a small village located on the west coast of Scotland in the region known as Knapdale, which is part of Argyll and Bute. Before the ...

. The chief religious site may have been on Lismore, later the seat of the High Medieval

bishop of Argyll The Bishop of Argyll or Bishop of Lismore was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Argyll, one of Scotland's 13 medieval bishoprics. It was created in 1200, when the western half of the territory of the Bishopric of Dunkeld was formed into t ...

Descendants of Loarn

Several

kings of Dál Riata Kings or King's may refer to: *Monarchs: The sovereign heads of states and/or nations, with the male being kings *One of several works known as the "Book of Kings": **The Books of Kings part of the Bible, divided into two parts **The ''Shahnameh'' ...

were members of the Cenél Loairn, and thus claimed descent from Loarn : *

Ferchar Fota Ferchar Fota (''Ferchar the Tall'') (died c. 697) was probably king of the Cenél Loairn of Dál Riata, and perhaps of all Dál Riata. His father is named as Feredach mac Fergusa and he was said to be a descendant in the 6th generation of Loarn mac ...

Ainbcellach mac Ferchair Ainbcellach mac Ferchair was king of the Cenél Loairn of Dál Riata, and perhaps of all Dál Riata, from 697 until 698, when he was deposed and exiled to Ireland. He was a son of Ferchar Fota. He is given the epithet the Good in the ''Duan Alba ...

Selbach mac Ferchair Selbach mac Ferchair (died 730) was king of the Cenél Loairn and of Dál Riata. Selbach's existence is well-attested as he is mentioned repeatedly in Irish annals. Life Selbach mac Ferchair was a son of Ferchar Fota. He ruled as king of the Cen� ...

Dúngal mac Selbaig Dúngal mac Selbaig was king of Dál Riata. His reign can best be placed in the years 723 to 726, beginning with the abdication of his father, Selbach mac Ferchair, who entered a monastery, and ending with the rise of Eochaid mac Echdach of the Ce ...

Muiredach mac Ainbcellaig Muiredach mac Ainbcellaig was king of the Cenél Loairn, and of Dál Riata (modern western Scotland), from about 733 until 736. He was the son of Ainbcellach mac Ferchair. His coming to power is reported in 733, and is not obviously associated wit ...

In High Medieval times the

Mormaers of Moray The title Earl of Moray, Mormaer of Moray or King of Moray was originally held by the rulers of the Province of Moray, which existed from the 10th century with varying degrees of independence from the Kingdom of Alba to the south. Until 1130 th ...

claimed descent from Loarn: * Findláech mac Ruaidrí * Máel Coluim mac Máil Brigti * Gille Coemgáin mac Máil Brigti *

Mac Bethad mac Findláich Macbeth ( – 15 August 1057) was King of Scots from 1040 until his death. He ruled over the Kingdom of Alba, which covered only a portion of present-day Scotland. Little is known about Macbeth's early life, although he was the son of Findlá ...

(also

king of Alba The monarch of Scotland was the head of state of the Kingdom of Scotland. According to tradition, the first King of Scots was Kenneth I MacAlpin (), who founded the state in 843. Historically, the Kingdom of Scotland is thought to have grown ...

) * Lulach mac Gille Coemgáin (also king of Alba) * Máel Snechtai mac Lulaich *

Óengus In Irish mythology, Aengus or Óengus is one of the Tuatha Dé Danann and probably originally a god associated with youth, love,Ó hÓgáin, Dáithí. ''Myth, Legend & Romance: An encyclopedia of the Irish folk tradition''. Prentice-Hall Press, ...

Notes

References

* Bannerman, John, ''Studies in the History of Dalriada.'' Scottish Academic Press, Edinburgh, 1974. * Pestano,Dane, ''King Arthur in Irish Pseudo-Historical Tradition - An Introduction.'' Dark Age Arthurian Books, 2011. * Broun, Dauvit, ''The Irish Identity of the Kingdom of the Scots in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries.'' Boydell, Woodbridge, 1999. * Menzies, Gordon (ed) (1971) ''Who are the Scots: A search for the origins of the Scottish nation''. BBC. * Woolf, Alex, ''From Pictland to Alba, 789-1070'' Edinburgh University Press, 2007. {{Authority control Kings of Dál Riata Medieval Gaels from Scotland