In medieval Irish myth, the Fir Bolg (also spelt Firbolg and Fir Bholg) are the fourth group of people to settle in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. They are descended from the Muintir Nemid, an earlier group who abandoned Ireland and went to different parts of Europe. Those who went to Greece became the Fir Bolg and eventually return to Ireland, after it had been uninhabited for many years. After ruling it for some time and dividing the island into

provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...

, they are overthrown by the invading

Tuatha Dé Danann The Tuatha 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 Gaelic ...

. Carey, John
''The Irish National Origin-Legend: Synthetic Pseudohistory''
. Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic, University of Cambridge, 1994. pp. 1–4

Myth

'' Lebor Gabála Érenn'' tells of Ireland being settled six times by six groups of people. The first three—the people of Cessair, the people of Partholón, and the people of Nemed—were wiped out or forced to abandon the island. The Fir Bolg are said to be descendants of the people of Nemed, who inhabited Ireland before them. All but thirty of Nemed's people were killed in warfare and disaster. Of this thirty, one group flees "into the north of the world", one group flees to Britain, and another group flees to Greece. Those who went into the north became the

(or Tuath Dé), the main pagan gods of Ireland. Those who went to Greece became the Fir Bolg. ''Lebor Gabála Érenn'' says that they were enslaved by the Greeks and made to carry bags of soil or clay, hence the name 'Fir Bolg' (men of bags). The ''

Cath Maige Tuired ''Cath Maige Tuired'' (modern spelling: ''Cath Maighe Tuireadh''; ) is the name of two saga texts of the Mythological Cycle of Irish mythology. It refers to two separate battles in Connacht: the first in the territory of Conmhaícne Cúile Tu ...

'' says that they were forced to settle on poor, rocky land but that they made it into fertile fields by dumping great amounts of soil on it. After 230 years, they leave Greece at the same time as the Israelites escaped from Egypt. In a great fleet, the Fir Bolg sail to

Iberia The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, compri ...

and then to Ireland. Led by their five chieftains, they divide Ireland into five provinces: Gann takes North

Munster Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...

, Sengann takes South Munster, Genann takes

Connacht Connacht or Connaught ( ; or ), is the smallest of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, C ...

, Rudraige takes

Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...

, and Slánga takes Leinster. They establish the High Kingship and a succession of nine High Kings rules over Ireland for the next 37 years. The seat of the high-kings is established at Tara, a site with significance through Medieval times as a source of religious and royal power. The last High King,

Eochaid mac Eirc In Irish mythology Eochaid (modern spelling: Eochaidh), son of Erc, son of Rinnal, of the Fir Bolg became High King of Ireland when he overthrew Fodbgen. He was the first king to establish a system of justice in Ireland. No rain fell during his ...

, is the example of a perfect king. The Fir Bolg are also said to have included two sub-groups known as the

Fir Domnann The Fir Domnann were a people named in Irish legendary history. The name ''Fir Domnann'' is based on the root ''dumno''-, which means both 'deep' and 'the world'. The suffix -''on''- often occurs in Gaulish and British divine names. The tribal n ...

and Fir Gáilióin. After 37 years, the Tuath Dé arrive in Ireland. Their king, Nuada, asks to be given half the island, but the Fir Bolg king Eochaid refuses. The two groups meet at the Pass of Balgatan, and the ensuing battle—the First Battle of Mag Tuired—lasts for four days. During the battle, Sreng, the champion of the Fir Bolg, challenges Nuada to single combat. With one sweep of his sword, Sreng cuts off Nuada's right hand. However, the Fir Bolg are defeated and their king, Eochaid, is slain by the three sons of Nemid. Sreng saves them from total destruction, however. According to some texts, the Fir Bolg flee Ireland. According to others, the Tuath Dé offer them one quarter of Ireland as their own, and they choose

. They are mentioned very little after this in the myths. The ''

Historia Brittonum ''The History of the Britons'' () is a purported history of early Britain written around 828 that survives in numerous recensions from after the 11th century. The ''Historia Brittonum'' is commonly attributed to Nennius, as some recensions ha ...

''—which was written earlier than the ''Lebor Gabála''—says there were only three settlements of Ireland: the people of Partholón, the people of Nemed, and the

Gaels The Gaels ( ; ; ; ) are an Insular Celts, Insular Celtic ethnolinguistic group native to Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. They are associated with the Goidelic languages, Gaelic languages: a branch of the Celtic languages comprising ...

. However, it mentions that a leader called ''Builc'' or ''Builg'' and his followers had taken an island called Eubonia, believed to be the

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

. The ''Lebor Gabála'' adds the Fir Bolg into the scheme and increases the number of settlements to six. It has been suggested that this number was chosen to match the " Six Ages of the World".

Analysis

Today, most scholars regard the ''Lebor Gabála'' as myth rather than history. It is believed the goal of its writers was to provide an epic origin story for the Irish, like that of the

Israelites Israelites were a Hebrew language, Hebrew-speaking ethnoreligious group, consisting of tribes that lived in Canaan during the Iron Age. Modern scholarship describes the Israelites as emerging from indigenous Canaanites, Canaanite populations ...

, which reconciled native myth with the Christian view of history. Ireland's inhabitants (in this case the Fir Bolg) are likened to the Israelites by escaping from slavery and making a great journey to a '

Promised Land In the Abrahamic religions, the "Promised Land" ( ) refers to a swath of territory in the Levant that was bestowed upon Abraham and his descendants by God in Abrahamic religions, God. In the context of the Bible, these descendants are originally ...

'. The pagan gods (the Tuath Dé) are depicted as a group of people with powers of sorcery. The name ''Fir Bolg'' is usually translated in the early literature as "men of bags". The Irish word ''fir'' means "men" and the word ''bolg/bolc'' can mean a belly, bag, sack, bellows, and so forth. Kuno Meyer and R. A. Stewart Macalister argue that the name comes from the term ''Fir i mBolgaib'', meaning " breeches wearers", literally "men in (baggy) breeches", which could be interpreted as a term of contempt for the "lower orders". Macalister suggests this expression had fallen out of use by the time the ''Lebor Gabála'' was written, and the writers tried to make sense of it by creating a story about men with bags.Online Index to the Lebor Gabála Érenn (Book of Invasions) based on R.A.S. Macalister's translations and notes: O - P
Corpus of Electronic Texts, 2008. It has also been suggested that it originally meant men who were "bulging" or "swollen" with battle fury. Koch, John T. ''Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia''. ABC-CLIO, 2006. pp. 749–750 The name may be based on, and cognate with, ''

Belgae The Belgae ( , ) were a large confederation of tribes living in northern Gaul, between the English Channel, the west bank of the Rhine, and the northern bank of the river Seine, from at least the third century BC. They were discussed in depth b ...

''. The Belgae were a group of tribes living in northern

Gaul Gaul () was a region of Western Europe first clearly described by the Roman people, Romans, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and parts of Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, and Northern Italy. It covered an area of . Ac ...

. Some have suggested that the writers named a fictional race, the Fir Bolg, after a real group, the Belgae. T. F. O'Rahilly suggested that Fir Bolg, or Builg, was another name for the

Érainn The Iverni (, ') were a people of early Ireland first mentioned in Ptolemy's 2nd century ''Geography'' as living in the extreme south-west of the island. He also locates a "city" called Ivernis (, ') in their territory, and observes that this se ...

. He believed they were linked to the Belgae and settled Ireland around the 5th century BC. O'Rahilly's theory has been challenged by historians and archaeologists, and is no longer accepted. John Rhys and R. A. Stewart Macalister suggest that the Fir Bolg are the

Fomorians The Fomorians or Fomori (, Modern ) are a supernatural race in Irish mythology, who are often portrayed as hostile and monstrous beings. Originally they were said to come from under the sea or the earth. Later, they were portrayed as sea raider ...

(Fomoire) under another guise. Macalister notes that the Fir Bolg are the only group of settlers who are not harried by the Fomorians. The Tuath Dé fight two similar battles at Mag Tuired, one against the human Fir Bolg and one against the supernatural Fomorians. The Fir Bolg lead the Fomorians to the second battle. The Fomorians seem to have represented the harmful or destructive powers of nature, while the Tuath Dé represented the gods of growth and civilization.Smyth, Daragh. ''A Guide to Irish Mythology''. Irish Academic Press, 1996. p. 74

References

Citations

Sources

* Carey, John (1998) "Fir Bolg: a Native Etymology Revisited" in: ''Cambridge Medieval Celtic Studies'' 16 (Winter 1998), pp. 77–83. * Squire, Charles. ''Celtic Myth and Legend''. London: Gresham, 1910s.

External links

What does the name ‘Fir Bolg’ mean?
''Men of Bags''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Fir Bolg Medieval history of Ireland Mythological Cycle Mythological peoples Tribes of ancient Ireland