Róise Mhic Ghrianna (13 March 1879 – 6 April 1964) was a traditional
Irish-language
Irish ( Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was th ...
singer and storyteller.
Early life and family
Róise Mhic Ghrianna was born Róise Ní Cholla in Seascann an Róin, near
Dungloe
''An Clochán Liath'', known in English as Dungloe or Dunglow ( ), is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. It is the main town in The Rosses and the largest in the Donegal ''Gaeltacht''. Dungloe developed as a town in the middle of the 18th century ...
, County Donegal on 13 March 1879. She was one of five children of Tomas Ó Colla, farmer, and his wife, Maighréad. Maighréad's father was Seán Hiúdaí Mac an Bhaird, who was a noted musician. Mhic Ghrianna's father died when she was four years old. Her mother married Antain Ó Gallchóir two years later, and the family moved to his home on Árainn Mhór (Arranmore Island). Antain Ó Gallchóir was a butcher and also known as the last great storyteller on the island. The island was Irish-speaking, but her schooling was through English at Scoil na Leidhbe Gairbhe. From age 9, Mhic Ghrianna spent every spring on Inis na gCaorach, harvesting
kelp
Kelps are large brown algae seaweeds that make up the order Laminariales. There are about 30 different genera. Despite its appearance, kelp is not a plant - it is a heterokont, a completely unrelated group of organisms.
Kelp grows in "underwat ...
and doing housework. After she left school, she worked in Lagán, in Gleann Mornáin, County Tyrone and later on the banks of
Lough Swilly
Lough Swilly () in Ireland is a glacial fjord or sea inlet lying between the western side of the Inishowen, Inishowen Peninsula and the Fanad Peninsula, in County Donegal. Along with Carlingford Lough and Killary Harbour it is one of three glaci ...
for three years all together. Following this she travelled between Ireland and Scotland picking potatoes.
Mhic Ghrianna married Séamas Mac Grianna, a local from Árainn Mhór she had known since childhood, when she was 29. From his father, the couple received half of his farm, around three acres on which they built a small cottage. Mhic Ghrianna lived in this house until her death. Her husband worked in Scotland annually from May to December. During this time Mhic Ghrianna kept a small farm, with a donkey and a cow. From 1934, her husband collected the
dole
Dole may refer to:
Places
* Dole, Ceredigion, Wales
* Dole, Idrija, Slovenia
* Dole, Jura, France
** Arrondissement of Dole
* Dole (Kladanj), a village at the entity line of Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina-Republika Srpska
* Dole, Ljubušk ...
, making
creels and baskets for extra income.
Singing and storytelling
Mhic Ghrianna was visited by Rev.
Cosslett Ó Cuinn
The Rev. Canon Cosslett Quin, in Irish Cosslett Ó Cuinn (Derriaghy, County Antrim, 27 February 1907 - 6 December 1995) was a priest of the Church of Ireland who translated the New Testament into Irish.
Quin was born to Charles Edward Quin, rector ...
in 1940, when he transcribed some of her stories and songs. This recognition gave her some confidence as a traditional singer and
seanchaí
A seanchaí ( or – plural: ) is a traditional Gaelic storyteller/historian. In Scottish Gaelic the word is (; plural ). The word is often anglicised as shanachie ( ).
The word ''seanchaí'', which was spelled ''seanchaidhe'' (plural ''se ...
as up to this point her only audience was her husband.
Padraig Ua Cnáimhsí, the principal of the school in Árainn Mhór, visited her in 1951 when he transcribed 70 of her songs. He told the
Irish Folklore Commission
The Irish Folklore Commission (''Coimisiún Béaloideasa Éireann'' in Irish) was set up in 1935 by the Irish Government to study and collect information on the folklore and traditions of Ireland.
History
Séamus Ó Duilearga (James Hamilton Dela ...
and
Radio Éireann
Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...
about Mhic Ghrianna, who sent
Seán Ó hEochaidh and
Proinsias Ó Conluain
Proinsias is a given name. Notable people with the name include:
People
* Proinsias De Rossa (born 1940), Irish Labour Party politician
* Proinsias Mac Airt (1922–1992), Irish republican activist
* Proinsias Mac Aonghusa (1933–2003), Irish ...
respectively. Ó Conluain's recordings of her from 1953 were broadcast on Radio Éireann in a programme about Mhic Ghrianna's life. She was also visited by
Séamus Ennis
Séamus Ennis ( ga, Séamas Mac Aonghusa; 5 May 1919 – 5 October 1982) was an Irish musician, singer and Irish music collector. He was most noted for his uilleann pipe playing and was partly responsible for the revival of the instrument duri ...
when he was working for the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
folklore commission in the 1950s.
Mhic Ghrianna died 6 April 1964. The Ó Conluain recordings from 1953 were later edited by
. The resulting work was released as an album by RTÉ with an accompanying booklet called ''Róise na nAmhrán: songs of a Donegal woman''. Ua Cnáimhsí wrote her life story, ''Róise Rua'', which was published in 1983. The book won a prize at the 1983
in Dublin.