Irish mythology Irish mythology is the body of myths native to the island of Ireland. It was originally passed down orally in the prehistoric era, being part of ancient Celtic religion. Many myths were later written down in the early medieval era by Ch ...

, Finnguala (modern spellings: Fionnghuala, Fionnuala , or Finola; literally meaning "white shoulder") was the daughter of Lir of the

Tuatha Dé Danann The Tuath(a) Dé Danann (, meaning "the folk of the goddess Danu"), also known by the earlier name Tuath Dé ("tribe of the gods"), are a supernatural race in Irish mythology. Many of them are thought to represent deities of pre-Christian Gae ...

. In the legend of the '' Children of Lir'', she was changed into a swan and

curse A curse (also called an imprecation, malediction, execration, malison, anathema, or commination) is any expressed wish that some form of adversity or misfortune will befall or attach to one or more persons, a place, or an object. In particula ...

d by her stepmother, Aoife, to wander the

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

s and

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of w ...

s of

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, with her brothers Fiachra, Conn and Aodh, for 900 years until saved by the marriage of Lairgren, son of Colman, son of Cobthach, and Deoch, daughter of Finghin, whose union broke the curse. 'The Song of Fionnuala', with lyrics by

Thomas Moore Thomas Moore (28 May 1779 – 25 February 1852) was an Irish writer, poet, and lyricist celebrated for his ''Irish Melodies''. Their setting of English-language verse to old Irish tunes marked the transition in popular Irish culture from Irish ...

Silent, O Moyle , Thomas Moore - N. Clifford Page
/ref> speaks of her wanderings. The name is anglicized as Fenella. The shortened version Nuala is commonly used as a first name in contemporary Ireland.

People

People named Fionnuala * Fionnuala Boyd * Fionnuala Carr *

Fionnuala Ellwood Fionnuala Ellwood (born 3 July 1964 in Dublin, Ireland) is an actress best known for portraying Lynn Whiteley in the ITV soap ''Emmerdale'' between 1989 and 1994. Early life She attended Wilmslow County Grammar School for Girls. Career Other ...

* Fionnuala Kenny * Fionnuala McCormack * Fionnuala Ní Aoláin * Fionnuala Ní Fhlatharta * Fionnuala Ní Flaithbheartaigh * Fionnuala Sherry * Fionnuala Sweeney People named Fionnula * Fionnula Flanagan People named Finola * Finola Dwyer *

Finola Hughes Finola Hughes (born 29 October 1959) is an English actress, best known for her role as Anna Devane on the ABC soap operas '' General Hospital'' and '' All My Children'', and her portrayal of Laura in the 1983 film '' Staying Alive'', the seq ...

* Finola Moorhead * Finola O'Donnell * Finola O'Farrell

References

Mythological cycle Shapeshifting Legendary birds Female legendary creatures {{Celt-myth-stub