Aed, or Aodh, is the prince of the Daoine Sidhe and a god of the underworld in

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 ...

. He is known from inscriptions as the eldest son of

Lir Lir or Ler (meaning "Sea" in Old Irish; ''Ler'' and ''Lir'' are the nominative and genitive forms, respectively) is a sea god in Irish mythology. His name suggests that he is a personification of the sea, rather than a distinct deity. He is na ...

, High King of the Tuatha de Dannan, and Aoibh, a daughter of

Bodb Dearg In Irish mythology, Bodb Derg (Old Irish, ) or Bodhbh Dearg (Middle Irish and Modern Irish, ) was a son of Eochaid Garb or the Dagda,"The Children of Lir". P.W. Joyce (translator). 1879. ''Old Irish Romances.'' C. Kegan Paul & Co. and the Dagda' ...

. Aed is elsewhere described in the ''

Dindsenchas ''Dindsenchas'' or ''Dindshenchas'' (modern spellings: ''Dinnseanchas'' or ''Dinnsheanchas'' or ''Dınnṡeanċas''), meaning "lore of places" (the modern Irish word ''dinnseanchas'' means "topography"), is a class of onomastic text in early Ir ...

'' as being the Dagda's son and brother of

Cermait In Irish mythology, Cermait (modern spelling: Cearmaid), also anglicized as or Kermit, of the Tuatha Dé Danann was a son of the Dagda and brother of Aed and Aengus.

and Aengus killed by Corchenn of Cruach for seducing Corchenn's wife.

Etymology

Aed's name is derived from the Old Irish word for fire, derived from a Proto-Indo European verb meaning "to burn" or "to kindle". In the Dindsenchas, he is given the epithet "of the wind-swift horses" and called "Aed Luirgnech," meaning "big-shins".

Children of Lir

According to tradition, Aoibh died in childbirth after bearing Lir four children (two sets of twins):

Fionnuala In Irish mythology, Finnguala (modern spellings: Fionnghuala, Fionnuala , or Finola; literally meaning "white shoulder") was the daughter of Lir of the Tuatha Dé Danann. In the legend of the '' Children of Lir'', she was changed into a sw ...

and Aodh were the first pair and Fiachra and Conn were the second.

Aoife Aoife ( , ) is an Irish feminine given name. The name is probably derived from the Irish Gaelic ''aoibh'', which means "beauty" or "radiance". It has been compared to the Gaulish name ''Esvios'' (Latinized ''Esuvius'', feminine ''Esuvia''), whic ...

, the second wife of Lir, and in some versions of the story, the sister of Aobh, was very jealous of the children and conspired to kill them on a journey to see Bodb Dearg, the former King of the Tuatha de Dannan. But for love of the

Children of Lir The ''Children of Lir'' ( ga, Oidheadh chloinne Lir) is a legend from Irish mythology. It is a tale from the post-Christianisation period that mixes magical elements such as druidic wands and spells with a Christian message of Christian faith ...

, the servants of Aoife would not slay the children, and so she cursed them to live as swans for 900 years: 300 upon

Lough Derravaragh Lough Derravaragh ( ga, Loch Dairbhreach) is a lake in County Westmeath, Ireland, north of Mullingar between Castlepollard, Crookedwood and Multyfarnham. Lough Derravaragh sits on the River Inny which flows from Lough Sheelin on its way t ...

, 300 in the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...

, and 300 on the open sea. Legend says they kept their voices and learned all the songs and tales of Ireland, as well as the many languages brought by travelers from distant places. There are numerous variations on the culmination of the story after the breaking of Aoife's curse, and most are obviously influenced by stories from

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

. For more on the story, see the article on the Children of Lir.

Son of the Dagda

As son of the

Dagda The Dagda (Old Irish: ''In Dagda,'' ga, An Daghdha, ) is an important god in Irish mythology. One of the Tuatha Dé Danann, the Dagda is portrayed as a father-figure, king, and druid.Koch, John T. ''Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia' ...

, Aed, described as "faultless" and a bright faced youth was reportedly killed on Benn Bain Baith by Corrgend of Cruach, and buried at Ailech of Imchell. Corrgend killed Aed for having an affair with Corrgend's wife Tethra. Corrgend is described as a hero swift of hand and every man's foe who could not find rest and refuge in fields, wood, or sea or anywhere under the white sun after killing Aed. The Dagda cursed Corrgend, so that he could not remove Aed's body from his back until he found an appropriate stone to mark Aed's grave. The

, described as king of the

Tuatha Dé Danann The Tuath(a) Dé Danann (, meaning "the folk of the goddess Danu (Irish 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 deity, ...

, pursued Corggend until he was "storm beaten," then forced Corggend to dig Aed's grave. Here Aed is explicitly described as son of the Dagda and brother of Aengus and Cermait.''The Metrical Dindsenchas''
poem 22 "Ailech I"

References

*Encyclopedia of Gods, Michael Jordan, Kyle Cathie Limited, 2002 {{Irish mythology (mythological) Irish gods

Etymology

Children of Lir

Son of the Dagda

See also

References