Philip Bocht Ó hUiginn, Irish

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

, died 1487.

Background

Ó hUiginn was a member of a

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 ...

-based family of

bards In Celtic cultures, a bard is an oral repository and professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's an ...

. His father was Conn Crosach, but nothing else is known of his place within the family, or where he lived. His obituary in the

Annals of Ulster The ''Annals of Ulster'' () are annals of History of Ireland, medieval Ireland. The entries span the years from 431 AD to 1540 AD. The entries up to 1489 AD were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luin� ...

describes him as an observant

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 ...

brother. His membership of this order led to his nickname ''bocht'' (poor), as the Franciscans observed vows of

poverty Poverty is a state or condition in which an individual lacks the financial resources and essentials for a basic standard of living. Poverty can have diverse Biophysical environmen ...

Poems

Ó hUiginn's poetry is exclusively religious. Clearly highly trained, he utilised the strict '' Dán Díreach'' form of Classical Modern Irish. Much of his verse used complex and very difficult metres with ease and to good effect. Frequently invoking Saint Francis and

Saint Michael Michael, also called Saint Michael the Archangel, Archangel Michael and Saint Michael the Taxiarch is an archangel and the warrior of God in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. The earliest surviving mentions of his name are in third- and second- ...

, they however show little of

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

and are more of a type associated with lay bards. They give almost no glimpse of his personal life and times. His compositions however enjoyed a high level of popularity among fellow poets in his lifetime, Twenty-eight poems are ascribed to him. Twenty-seven are in McKenna's 1931 edition, while poem 58 of ''Dioghluim Dána'' gives him as its author in one manuscript. Ó hUiginn was further distinguished by being the first Irish poet to have his work published in Gaelic. ''Tuar feirge foighide Dé'' was published in Irish script in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

in 1571.

Obituary

Ó hUiginn's death was noted in the

, ''sub anno'' 1487. It accorded him the status of best and most prolific composer of religious verse ''"in recent times"'', again suggestive of his popularity in his lifetime. His place of death is unknown.

External links

* http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/surname/index.cfm?fuseaction=Go.&UserID= * http://celt.ucc.ie/published/G402081/index.html * http://bill.celt.dias.ie/vol4/index.php?letter=o&typeID=1

References

* ''Philip Bocht O hUiginn'', ed. Lambert McKenna, Dublin, 1931. * ''Dictionary of Irish Biography'', pp. 575–76, Cambridge, 2009. {{DEFAULTSORT:O hUiginn, Philip Bocht Writers from County Mayo People from County Sligo 15th-century Irish poets Irish male poets Irish-language writers

Background

Poems

Obituary

See also

External links

References