Ethlinn

In Irish mythology, Ethniu (), or Eithne (Modern Irish pronunciation: ) in modern spelling, is the daughter of the Fomorian leader Balor, and the mother of Lugh. She is also referred to as Ethliu (modern Eithle), Eithlionn (genitive; modern Eithleann), and Ethlinn (dative; modern Eithlinn).

Name

Ethniu is a fine example of the difficulty of conducting research into Irish mythology. Her oldest version of her name is probably Ethliu or Ethniu, giving rise to the modern Irish name Eithne. However thanks to changes in the Irish language, the lack of standardised spelling for many centuries, and attempts to anglicise the name, variations have arisen. Linguistic ignorance has further confused the issue: the genitive form of ''Ethniu'' is ''Ethnenn'' (modern ''Eithneann'') and the genitive of ''Ethliu'' is ''Ethlenn/Ethlinn'' (modern ''Eithleann/Eithlinn''), as in ''mac Ethlenn'' ("Ethliu's son"). This genitive has often been taken for a nominative, or a mistaken nominative has been inferred.

Variations and anglicizations include: Ethnea, Eithliu, Ethlend, Ethnen, Ethlenn, Ethnenn, Ethne, Aithne, Enya, Lily, Aine, Ena, Etney, Eithnenn, Eithlenn, Eithna, Ethni, Edlend, and Edlenn.

In the "Wooing of Étaín", we are told that Eithne's other name is Boand and in the Banshenchas Ethniu's "true name" is revealed to be Feada.

Relationships

Eithne is the daughter of Balor and mother of Lugh. In some traditions Eithne is the daughter of Delbáeth, the mother of the Dagda and Ogma, and the wife of Nuada Airgetlám. In a variant version of the birth of Aengus, she is the wife of Elcmar who is seduced by the Dagda: as such she may be a double, and is explicitly named as such, of Boann, who plays that role in the best-known version of the tale.

Although in most texts she is a female figure, there are some in which Ethniu is a male name. In the ancient text ''Baile in Scáil'' ("The Phantom's Ecstatic Vision"), Lugh is said to the son of "Ethliu son of Tigernmas", or the son of "Ethniu son of Smretha son of Tigernmas". James Bonwick identifies Tigernmas, the king who introduced the worship of Crom Cruach, with Balor. R. A. Stewart Macalister also suggests that Cethlenn is originally a variant of Ethlenn arising from the frequent identification of Lugh as Lugh Mac Ethlenn (thus ''Mac Ethlenn'' → ''Mac Cethlenn'').

Mythology

Her union with Lugh's father, Cian (Cían) of the Tuatha Dé Danann, is presented in early texts as a simple dynastic marriage, but later folklore preserves a more involved tale, similar to the birth of Perseus in Greek mythology. A folktale recorded John O'Donovan in 1835 tells how Balor, in an attempt to avoid a druid's prophecy that he will be killed by his own grandson, imprisons Ethniu in a tower on Tory Island