The ''Gáe Bulg'' () (also ''Gáe Bulga'', ''Gáe Bolg'', ''Gáe Bolga''), meaning "spear of mortal pain/death", "gapped/notched spear", or "belly spear", was the name of the spear of Cúchulainn in the

Ulster Cycle The Ulster Cycle ( ga, an Rúraíocht), formerly known as the Red Branch Cycle, is a body of medieval Irish heroic legends and sagas of the Ulaid. It is set far in the past, in what is now eastern Ulster and northern Leinster, particularly coun ...

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 C ...

. It was given to him by his martial arts teacher, the warrior woman

Scáthach Scáthach () or Sgàthach ( gd, Sgàthach an Eilean Sgitheanach) is a figure in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. She is a legendary Scotland, Scottish Women warriors in literature and culture, warrior woman and martial arts teacher who train ...

, and its technique was taught only to him. It was made from the bone of a

sea monster Sea monsters are beings from folklore believed to dwell in the sea and often imagined to be of immense size. Marine monsters can take many forms, including sea dragons, sea serpents, or tentacled beasts. They can be slimy and scaly and are ofte ...

, the Curruid, that had died while fighting another sea monster, the Coinchenn. Although some sources make it out to be simply a particularly deadly

spear A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with fire hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fasten ...

, others—notably the

Book of Leinster The Book of Leinster ( mga, Lebor Laignech , LL) is a medieval Irish manuscript compiled c. 1160 and now kept in Trinity College, Dublin, under the shelfmark MS H 2.18 (cat. 1339). It was formerly known as the ''Lebor na Nuachongbála'' "Book ...

—state that it could only be used under very specialized, ritual conditions: In other versions of the legend, the spear had seven heads, each with seven barbs. In the '' Táin Bó Cuailnge'', Cúchulainn received the spear after training with the great warrior mistress Scáthach in

Alba ''Alba'' ( , ) is the Scottish Gaelic name for Scotland. It is also, in English language historiography, used to refer to the polity of Picts and Scottish people, Scots united in the ninth century as the Kingdom of Alba, until it developed i ...

. She taught him and his foster-brother,

Ferdiad Ferdiad (; also ''Fer Diad'', ''Ferdia'', ''Fear Diadh''), son of Damán, son of Dáire, of the Fir Domnann, is a warrior of Connacht in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. In the ''Táin Bó Cúailnge'', Ferdiad finds himself on the side of the ...

, everything the same, except she taught the Gáe Bulg feat only to Cuchulainn. He later used it in single combat against Ferdiad. They were fighting in a ford, and Ferdiad had the upper hand; Cúchulainn's charioteer,

Láeg Láeg, or Lóeg, son of Riangabar, is the charioteer and constant companion of the hero Cú Chulainn in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. His horses are Liath Macha and Dub Sainglend. Cú Chulainn sends Láeg to the Otherworld with Lí Ban, ...

, floated the ''Gáe Bulg'' down the stream to his master, who cast it into Ferdiad's body, piercing the warrior's armor and "coursing through the highways and byways of his body so that every single joint filled with barbs." Ferdiad died soon after. On a separate occasion, Cúchulainn also killed his own son,

Connla Connla or Conlaoch is a character in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology, the son of the Ulster champion Cú Chulainn and the Scottish warrior woman Aífe. He was raised alone by his mother in Scotland. He appears in the story '' Aided Óenfhir ...

, with the spear. In both instances, it was used as a last resort, as once thrown it proved invariably fatal. Cúchulainn's use of the Gáe Bulg in the '' Táin Bó Cuailnge'' exemplifies its deadliness and the gruesome condition in which it leaves its victims. This can be seen in the fact that after it is used, one must literally cut into the victim to retrieve it. This was the case in Cúchulainn's slaying of Ferdiad. As it is stated in Ciaran Carson's translation of The Táin:

Etymology

Traditionally, the name has been translated as "belly spear", with the second element of the name, ''bulga'', being treated as a derivative of

Old Irish Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic ( sga, Goídelc, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ga, Sean-Ghaeilge; gd, Seann-Ghàidhlig; gv, Shenn Yernish or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive writt ...

bolg "belly, sack, bag". Several notable Celtic scholars, including

Joseph Loth Joseph Loth (27 December 1847 – 1 April 1934) was a French linguist and historian who specialised in the study of Celtic languages. Early life Loth was born in Guémené-sur-Scorff, Brittany. After his studies at Sainte-Anne-d'Auray, he bec ...

and

Kuno Meyer Kuno Meyer (20 December 1858 – 11 October 1919) was a German scholar, distinguished in the field of Celtic philology and literature. His pro-German stance at the start of World War I in the United States was a source of controversy. His brother ...

, have preferred to derive it rather from Old Irish ''bolc'' "gap, breach, notch" (cognate with Welsh ''bwlch''), suggesting a linguistic link with the second element in the name of

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 ...

's sword, ''

Caladbolg ''Caladbolg'' ("hard cleft", also spelled Caladcholg, "hard blade") is the sword of Fergus mac Róich from the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology.James MacKillop, ''Dictionary of Celtic Mythology'', Oxford University Press, pp. 64-65 Fergus calls h ...

'' and

King Arthur King Arthur ( cy, Brenin Arthur, kw, Arthur Gernow, br, Roue Arzhur) is a legendary king of Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In the earliest traditions, Arthur appears as a ...

's sword ''

Caledfwlch Excalibur () is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes also attributed with magical powers or associated with the rightful sovereignty of Britain. It was associated with the Arthurian legend very early on. Excalibur and the Sword in the ...

''. Linguist

Eric Hamp Eric Pratt Hamp (November 16, 1920 – February 17, 2019) was an American linguist widely respected as a leading authority on Indo-European linguistics, with particular interests in Celtic languages and Albanian. Unlike many Indo-Europeanists, wh ...

derives the second element, ''bulga'', from a

Proto-Celtic Proto-Celtic, or Common Celtic, is the ancestral proto-language of all known Celtic languages, and a descendant of Proto-Indo-European. It is not attested in writing but has been partly Linguistic reconstruction, reconstructed through the compar ...

compound ''*balu-gaisos'' meaning "spear of mortal pain/death spear" (comparable to

''fogha'' "spear, dart", from Proto-Celtic ''*uo-gaisu-''). Once the second element ''*gaisos'' "spear" was no longer recognizable to Irish speaker, its Old Irish cognate, ''gáe'', was reattached to the beginning for clarification, forming a new, tautological compound.Schrijver, Peter. Studies in British Celtic Historical Phonology., Rodopi, 1995, p. 384 (for etymology of Irish ''fogha'').

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gae Bulg Ulster Cycle Mythological weapons Spears

Etymology

See also

References