Early Irish Literature :: Medieval to 17th Century:: Irish Culture.ie : A Guide to Irish Culture on the Web

A Guide to Irish Culture
on the web

Early Literature
Medieval to 17th Century

Giolla Mochuda Mor Ó Caiside & Tomas Ó Caisaide The earliest renowned Cassidy poet is Giolla Mochuda Mor Ó Caiside (also identified as Gilla Mo Dutu Ua Casaide). In 1147, Ó Caiside composed Banshenchas (The Lore of Woman), which is a list of famous married women in ancient world and Irish history and literature. (nb scroll down the page) Irish Poety And The Cassidy Contribution
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Banshenshus, Part I The poem consists of 900 lines of verse. Eventually, the entire poem will posted on the Web site. The following translation was by Margaret (Maighréad ni) C. Dobbs from 1934. The Cassidy Clan

CELT Irish Bardic Poetry By Bardic Poetry I mean the writings of poets trained in the Bardic Schools as they existed in Ireland and the Gaelic parts of Scotland, down to about the middle of the seventeenth century. In Scotland, indeed, they lingered on till the eighteenth century. At what time they were founded we don't know, for the Bardic order existed in prehistoric times, and their position in society is well established in the earliest tradition. – Osborn Bergin, Irish Bardic Poetry (Dublin: Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies 1970). Note: contains the original Gaelic texts of numerous bards. Corpus of Electronic Texts (UCC)

Imbas Forosnai Imbas Forosnai is the subject of an entry in Cormac’s Glossary. This entry is of special interest for two reasons. In the first place, it purports to give us a recipe of the means employed by the ancient Irish poets (filid) to obtain inspiration. In the second place, in an interesting colophon, it claims to tell us something specific of Saint Patrick’s attitude to the filid and to poetry.– Nora K. Chadwick, Scottish Gaelic Studies, vol 4, part 2, Oxford University Press (1935)
Part of Molly Kathryn McGinn’s website

Mac Dathó’s Pig The Scél Mucci Mic Dathó, or "Story of Mac Dathó's Pig," is regarded as one of the best of the Irish sagas. It belongs to the heroic cycle of Ulster, depicting some of the events which lead to the Táin Bó Cúalnge, the Cattle Raid of Cooley. Many, in fact, consider it to be a parody of earlier heroic tales. The earliest known manuscript version of the tale is from the 12th century, but the time period in which the story takes place seems to be around the beginning of the Christian era. This text and the Index to Proper Names are from N. Kershaw Chadwick, An Early Irish Reader, Cambridge University Press.
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MS Detail from the Book of Leinster Facsimile of a portion of page 113b of the Book of Leinster, published by the Royal Irish Academy House, 1880 (Dublin). Steve Taylor, Vassar College

Medieval Irish Poetry Poetry * Poems, with translations * Irish poetic forms * Poets * Bards * Accompanists * Audience * Critics * Bibliography * Links. Compiled and translated by Maureen S. O’Brien.

Pangur Bán This poem was found in the margins of a manuscript in the Monastery of St Paul, Carinthia, Austria. It seems to have been written by an Irish monk, sometime around the ninth century. With English Translations by Frank O’Connor and Eavan Boland. Seamus Cooney, Western Michigan University

Táin Bó Cúalnge The Cattle-Raid of Cooley (Táin Bó Cúalnge) is the central epic of the Ulster cycle. Queen Medb of Connaught gathers an army in order to gain possession of the most famous bull in Ireland, which is the property of Daire, a chieftain of Ulster. Because the men of Ulster are afflicted by a debilitating curse, the seventeen-year-old Cuchulain must defend Ulster single-handedly. Steve Taylor, Vassar College

The Seanchie’s Tale including The Story of MacDathó’s Pig, The Birth of Cuchulainn, The Boyhood Deeds of Cuchulainn, The Birth of Fin MacCumhail, Briciu’s Feast, The Conquest of the Sons of Mill, Cuchullain’s Fight with the Sea, The Second Battle of Mag Tured, Tir na nÓg – Oisin and Niamh, The Voyage of Bran to the Land of the Living, and The Fenian Cycle. Huathe, The Sacred Fire.

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A Guide to Irish Culture on the web

A Guide to Irish Culture
on the web