Maol Muire Ó hÚigínn, also Maol Muire Ó Huiginn (

Anglicised Anglicisation or anglicization is a form of cultural assimilation whereby something non-English becomes assimilated into or influenced by the culture of England. It can be sociocultural, in which a non-English place adopts the English language ...

: Miler O'Higgin; died

1590 Events January–March * January 6 – García Hurtado de Mendoza becomes the new Viceroy of Peru (nominally including most of South America except for Brazil). He will serve until 1596. * January 10 – Construction of th ...

at Antwerp), was an Irish

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clergyman Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

. A

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

, he was appointed

Archbishop of Tuam The Archbishop of Tuam ( ; ) is an Episcopal polity, archbishop which takes its name after the town of Tuam in County Galway, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The title was used by the Church of Ireland until 1839, and is still in use by the Cathol ...

by the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

on 24 March 1586, and died in office. Ó hÚigínn was a son of Mathghamhain mac Maol Ó hÚigínn of Dougharane, Leyeny,

County Sligo County Sligo ( , ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region and is part of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. Sligo is the administrative capital and largest town in ...

, a descendant of

Tadg Óg Ó hUiginn Tadg Óg Ó hUiginn (born c.1370, died 1448) was an Irish poet. Life and background Ó hUiginn was a member of a well-known Irish family of bards, based in Connacht. His father, Tadhg Mór Ó hUiginn, died in 1391, while all that is known of h ...

(died 1448). His brother was the poet

Tadhg Dall Ó hÚigínn Tadhg, also Taḋg ( , ), (pronunciations given for the name ''Tadhg'' separately from those for the slang/pejorative ''Teague''.) commonly anglicized as "Taig" or "Teague", is an Irish and Scottish Gaelic masculine name that was very common ...

. Little is known of Ó hÚigínn's early life, but Tadhg Dall was fostered at Tír Conaill with the ruling Uí Domnaill family, and Maol Muire may have gone there with his brother. According to McGettigan, "A later source states that in his youth Maol Muire was an accomplished poet and harpist and also something of a philosopher." Ó hÚigínn was educated on the continent, where he took degrees in canon law, civil law and theology. This high standard of education led to his consecration as Archbishop of Tuam in April 1586. He left for

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

sometime prior to 1590, possibly as a result of the severity of the rule of Richard Bingham. He was on his way back from Rome when he died at the episcopal palace at

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

on 5 August 1590, and was buried in the Cathedral of Our Lady within the city. Some of Ó hÚigínn's poems are extant. One, on the uncertainty of life, begins its twelve verses: , (). Another, in praise of Ireland, is one hundred and thirty-six verses long. Its first line is: , (). Several other of his poems on religious subjects survive. Ó hÚigínn's poems were still known by poets and historians, and continued to be copied in manuscripts well into the 19th century.

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