Rí, or commonly ríg (

genitive In grammar, the genitive case ( abbreviated ) is the grammatical case that marks a word, usually a noun, as modifying another word, also usually a noun—thus indicating an attributive relationship of one noun to the other noun. A genitive can ...

), is an ancient Gaelic word meaning '

king King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

'. It is used in historical texts referring to the Irish and Scottish kings, and those of similar rank. While the

Modern Irish Irish (Standard Irish: ), also known as Irish Gaelic or simply Gaelic ( ), is a Celtic language of the Indo-European language family. It is a member of the Goidelic languages of the Insular Celtic sub branch of the family and is indigenous ...

word is exactly the same, in modern

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic (, ; Endonym and exonym, endonym: ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a member of the Goidelic language, Goidelic branch of Celtic, Scottish Gaelic, alongs ...

it is , apparently derived from the genitive. Cognates include

Gaulish Gaulish is an extinct Celtic languages, Celtic language spoken in parts of Continental Europe before and during the period of the Roman Empire. In the narrow sense, Gaulish was the language of the Celts of Gaul (now France, Luxembourg, Belgium, ...

''Rix'',

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

, Spanish , French ,

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

, and German . There were three grades of : a or 'overking' was a major, regional king and superior to a 'king of tribes' or a 'king of bands' either of whom, in turn, were superior to several figures known as 'king of peaks' or 'king of a tribe'.

Three traditional grades

The three traditional grades of in

Gaelic Ireland Gaelic Ireland () was the Gaelic political and social order, and associated culture, that existed in Ireland from the late Prehistory of Ireland, prehistoric era until the 17th century. It comprised the whole island before Anglo-Norman invasi ...

was largely symbolic. As time went on, the real power of many lesser kings could equal or even eclipse those of higher grade.

''Rí benn''

A (king of peaks), or (king of a single tribe), was most commonly a local petty king of a single , although one might be many times the size of another. There are generally estimated to have been between 100 and 150 in Ireland, depending on who really qualified. Importantly, in theory every king of a superior grade was also a himself, and exercised no direct compulsory legal authority outside his own ancestral . Kings were bound to others by military allegiance and the payment of tribute. Examples: * Kings of Thira Dha Locha * Kings of Umaill

''Rí buiden''

A ('king of bands'), also ('king of anytribes') or ('overking'), was a regional king to whom several were subordinate, and often other territories. He was in some sense still a petty king, but could also achieve provincial-level prominence, including, although rarely, the provincial kingship, and was often fully sovereign in any case. Depending on who was counted, there may have been as many as 20 genuine in Ireland at any one time. Examples: *

Kings of Osraige The kings of Osraige (alternately spelled ''Osraighe'' and Anglicised as ''Ossory'') reigned over the medieval Irish kingdom of Osraige from the first or second century AD until the late twelfth century. Osraige was a semi-provincial kingdom in s ...

* Kings of Breifne * Kings of Uí Maine * Kings of Moylurg * Kings of Iar Connacht

''Rí ruirech''

A "king of over-kings", a was often a provincial () or semi-provincial king to whom several were subordinate. They were also referred to as ('ultimate king of every individual'). Several kingdoms belonging to the 1st and 2nd millennia are listed below, but do not all belong to the same periods. No more than six genuine were ever contemporary, with the average being three or four. Originally, there were only five provinces, at least according to legend (see the

Táin Bó Cúailnge (Modern ; "the driving-off of the cows of Cooley"), commonly known as ''The Táin'' or less commonly as ''The Cattle Raid of Cooley'', is an epic from Irish mythology. It is often called "the Irish ''Iliad''", although like most other earl ...

, the actual text thereof). Examples: * Kings of Ulster *

Kings of Munster The kings of Munster () ruled the Kingdom of Munster in Ireland from its establishment during the Irish Iron Age until the High Middle Ages. According to Gaelic traditional history, laid out in works such as the ''Book of Invasions'', the earli ...

* Kings of Mide *

Kings of Connacht The Kings of Connacht were rulers of the ''cóiced'' (variously translated as portion, fifth, province) of Connacht, which lies west of the River Shannon, Ireland. However, the name only became applied to it in the early medieval era, being name ...

* Kings of Leinster

Ard Rí

The , or 'High King' (of Ireland), was traditionally the supreme ruler of all the Irish provinces, subject to no higher domestic authority. While the were in theory subordinate to the high king, Irish stories and mythology relate that the power of the high king varied considerably throughout the office's existence, and he was usually not more than a figurehead exercising

suzerainty A suzerain (, from Old French "above" + "supreme, chief") is a person, state (polity)">state or polity who has supremacy and dominant influence over the foreign policy">polity.html" ;"title="state (polity)">state or polity">state (polity)">st ...

over the largely independent lower kingdoms. According to tradition, the high king was originally crowned at

Lia Fáil The () or (; "Stone of Fál") is a stone at the Inauguration Mound () on the Hill of Tara in County Meath, Ireland, which served as the coronation stone for the King of Tara and hence High King of Ireland. It is also known as the Stone of D ...

upon the Hill of Tara in Meath, in the Kingdom of Mide. When stood upon by a candidate for the throne, if they were the rightful High King of Ireland, the stone monument was said to loudly roar in joy. The stone was supposedly split by the sword of

Cú Chulainn Cú Chulainn ( ), is an Irish warrior hero and demigod in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology, as well as in Scottish and Manx folklore. He is believed to be an incarnation of the Irish god Lugh, who is also his father. His mother is the ...

when it refused to acknowledge his preferred candidate Lugaid Riab nDerg, following which it never called out again. *

High King of Ireland High King of Ireland ( ) was a royal title in Gaelic Ireland held by those who had, or who are claimed to have had, lordship over all of Ireland. The title was held by historical kings and was later sometimes assigned anachronously or to leg ...

In Scotland, the initially had very little centralized power. Instead, he exercised suzerainty over the lower kingdoms, much like his Irish counterpart. This would change as Scotland combined into a more centralized state, and the High King gathered more power over regional monarchs. This was to the point where the regional Kings were referred to as ''earls'' by the English rather than the proper term, ''Rí''. * High King of Scotland * Style of the monarchs of Scotland

Scotland

Scotland had a variety of as well. In addition to the monarch or 'high king' there were others, although these are conventionally styled only ''lords'' in the English language. *

Lord of the Isles Lord of the Isles or King of the Isles ( or ; ) is a title of nobility in the Baronage of Scotland with historical roots that go back beyond the Kingdom of Scotland. It began with Somerled in the 12th century and thereafter the title was ...

* Lords of Galloway * Lords of Argyle There were also a number of Kings of Moray, who are commonly styled

mormaer In early medieval Scotland, a mormaer was the Gaelic name for a regional or provincial ruler, theoretically second only to the King of Scots, and the senior of a '' Toísech'' (chieftain). Mormaers were equivalent to English earls or Continenta ...

s in later Scottish tradition, but properly styled in contemporary Irish sources. The famous Macbeth of Scotland is argued to have begun his career as of Moray.) A number of Scottish monarchs styled themselves 'High King of Scotland,' 'High King of Picts,' or 'High King of Alba,' using the following variants of the term : * * * * * Other than the Irish/Scottish Gaelic titles, some styled themselves in Latin: * * ('King of All the Provinces of the Picts')

Notes

References

* Bhreathnach, Edel (ed.), ''The Kingship and Landscape of Tara''. Dublin:

Four Courts Press Four Courts Press is an independent Irish academic publishing house, with its office at Malpas Street, Dublin 8, Ireland. Founded in 1970 by Michael Adams, who died in February 2009, its early publications were primarily theological, notably ...

for

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. 2005. * Byrne, Francis J., ''Irish Kings and High-Kings''. Dublin: Four Courts Press. 2nd edition, 2001. * Charles-Edwards, T. M., ''Early Christian Ireland''.

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press was the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted a letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it was the oldest university press in the world. Cambridge University Press merged with Cambridge Assessme ...

. 2000. * Cowan, Edward J., "The Historical Macbeth", in ''Moray: Province and People''. ed. W. H. D. Sellar. Edinburgh: Scottish Society for Northern Studies. 1993. 117–142. * Dillon, Myles, "The consecration of Irish kings", in '' Celtica 10'' (1973): 1–8. * Dillon, Myles, ''The Cycles of the Kings''. Oxford. 1946. * FitzPatrick, Elizabeth, ''Royal Inauguration in Gaelic Ireland c. 1100–1600: A Cultural Landscape Study''. Boydell Press. 2004. * Hamp, Eric P., "Scottish Gaelic ''morair''", in ''Scottish Gaelic Studies XIV Part II'' (1986): 138–141. * Jaski, Bart, ''Early Irish Kingship and Succession''. Dublin: Four Courts Press. 2000. * MacCotter, Paul, ''Medieval Ireland: Territorial, Political and Economic Divisions''. Dublin: Four Courts Press. 2008. * MacNeill, Eoin, ''Celtic Ireland''. Dublin: The Academy Press. 1981. Reissue with new intro. and notes by Donnchadh Ó Corráin of original Martin Lester Ltd edition, 1921. * Nicholls, K. W., ''Gaelic and Gaelicized Ireland in the Middle Ages''. Dublin: Lilliput Press. 2nd edition, 2003. * Ó Corráin, Donnchadh
"Nationality and Kingship in Pre-Norman Ireland"
1975. * Richter, Michael, ''Medieval Ireland: The Enduring Tradition''. Dublin: Gill & Macmillan. 1988. * Watkins, Calvert, "Italo-Celtic Revisited", in Birnbaum, Henrik and Jaan Puhvel (eds.), ''Ancient Indo-European Dialects''.

University of California Press The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by faculty ...

. pp. 29–50. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ri Royal titles Irish kings Gaelic nobility of Ireland Kingdom of Scotland Scottish royal houses