Togail bruidne Da Derga

Table of contents :
IMG_0001
IMG_0002
IMG_0003
IMG_0004
IMG_0005
IMG_0006
IMG_0007
IMG_0008
IMG_0009
IMG_0010
IMG_0011
IMG_0012
IMG_0013
IMG_0014
IMG_0015
IMG_0016
IMG_0017
IMG_0018
IMG_0019
IMG_0020
IMG_0021
IMG_0022
IMG_0023
IMG_0024
IMG_0025
IMG_0026
IMG_0027
IMG_0028
IMG_0029
IMG_0030
IMG_0031
IMG_0032
IMG_0033
IMG_0034
IMG_0035
IMG_0036
IMG_0037
IMG_0038
IMG_0039
IMG_0040
IMG_0041
IMG_0042
IMG_0043
IMG_0044
IMG_0045
IMG_0046
IMG_0047
IMG_0048
IMG_0049
IMG_0050
IMG_0051
IMG_0052
IMG_0053
IMG_0054
IMG_0055
IMG_0056
IMG_0057
IMG_0058
IMG_0059
IMG_0060
IMG_0061
IMG_0062
IMG_0063
IMG_0064
IMG_0065
IMG_0066
IMG_0067
IMG_0068
IMG_0069
IMG_0070
IMG_0071
IMG_0072
IMG_0073
IMG_0074
IMG_0075
IMG_0076
IMG_0077
IMG_0078
IMG_0079
IMG_0080
IMG_0081
IMG_0082
IMG_0083
IMG_0084
IMG_0085
IMG_0086
IMG_0087
IMG_0088

Citation preview

MEDIAEVAL AND MODERN IRISH SERIES

MEDIAEVAL AND MODERN IRISH SERIES Volume VIII

Published I. BuILE SuIBHNE, ed. J. G. O'Keeffe. n. TROMDAMH GuAIRE, ed. Maud Joynt. Out of print. III. COMPERT CON CULAINN AND OTHER STORIES, ed. A. G. van Hamel. v1. Sel'iLA MueeE MEie DATH6, ed. Rudolf Thurneysen. VII. FEIS TIGHE CHONAIN, ed. Maud Joynt. Out of print. VIII. ToGAIL BRUIDNE DA DERGA, ed. Eleanor Knott. IX. CATH MAIGHE LENA, ed. Kenneth Jackson. Out of print. x. IMMRAMA, ed. A. G. van Hamel. Out of print. XI. CRiTH GABLAeH, ed. D. A. Binchy. XII. DESIDERIUS, by Florence Conry O.F.M., ed. T. F. O'Rahilly. xm. MESeA ULAD, ed. J. Carmichael Watson. XIV. SERGLIGE CoN CuLAINN, ed. Myles Dillon. xv. AIRNE FiNGEIN, ed. Joseph Vendryes. XVI. FINGAL RONA.IN AND OTHER STORIES, ed. David Greene. xvn. MERUGUD UILIX MAiee LEIRTIS, ed. Robert T. Meyer. xvm. SellLA CANO MEie GARTNAiN, ed. D. A. Binchy. XIX. AIDEAD MuIReHERTAIG MEie EReA, ed. Lil Nie Dhonnchadha. xx. CATH FINNTRAGHA, ed. C. O'Rahilly. XXI. FLED DUIN NA NGED, ed. Ruth Lehmann. Out of print. xxu. TA.IN B6 FRAfcH, ed. Wolfgang Meid. XXIII. STORIES FROM THE AeALLAM, ed. Myles Dillon. XXIV. CAITHREIM CELLAIG, ed. Kathleen Mulchrone. (From TAIN B6 FRAieH.)

I

TOGAIL BRUIDNE DA DERGA Edited by ELEANOR KNOTT

In Preparation FLED BRieEND, ed. Proinnsias Mac Cana. AISLINGE MEie CoN GLINNE, ed. Kenneth Jackson.

THE DUBLIN INSTITUTE FOR ADVANCED STUDIES 1975

CONTENTS IX

PREFACE

First published 1936 Reprinted, 1963, 1975

GRAMMATICAL INTRODUCTION

xvi

TOGAIL BRUIDNE DA DERGA

1

iv 2

47

VARIANTS FROM RIA D ABBREVIATED TITLES

69

NOTES

71

.

GLOSSARY • INDEXES

Printed in Great Britain at the University Press, Oxford by Vivian Ridler Printer to the University

.

.

•

97 150

PREFACE Togail Brnidne Da Derga, to give it its commoner Middle Irish title, 1 is of all the older Irish sagas that of the greatest literary interest. It is a native epic, uninfluenced in its general conception by foreign models. It is true that it seems to lack the freshness and spontaneity of style which are apparent even in the mangled versions which have reached us of Tain Bo Fraich ; the descriptions with which the· greater part of the narrative is occupied are tedious, even where not obscure, to the modern reader, and a curious feature is that the details of the battle to which the narrative leads up arc foretold in the course of these descriptions, so that, as Thurneysen · observes, when the battle actually begins there is nothing left to tell. Yet even this serves to emphasize the basic idea of the tale, the story of a young king foredoomed to a tragic death to which he is relentlessly urged on by fate, 2 his kindliest deeds entangling him most inextricably in the mesh. The grim prophecies of the Jester and Fer Rogain on the deeds of each person described diffuse over the scene the shadows of the coming tragedy. Modern scholarship is vigorously opposed to the conception of Celtic literature inspired by Matthew Arnold, but the reaction, justified as it is, need not drive us to deny that we meet, here and there,. as ,vhitley Stokes recognised, touches of " that magic of Celtic romance, which Matthew Arnold loved and 2 See Dr. E. J. 1 For the original form see Heldensage 622. Gwynn's interesting paper. The idea of fate in Irish literature, Journal of the Ivernian Society 1910.

xi

X

praised." 1 Two Celtic stories have it beyond all others-the Irish Togail Bruidnc Da Derga allO (sic leg.), 518, 817. c. nde each of the two 15. c. de 1216. c. n-ae (n-oi) : see ac. cein: sec cian. ceinniud, cenniud : 1363-4 " hood " Stokes. CJ. cendidc. ceirrn 1036: sec Notes. ceithri num. adj. rn. and n.four: norn. (0. Ir. cethir) 127, 388; dat. 154 (f.); gen. 811, 814. celaid forebodes. augurs : re!. chelas 550 ; pret. p I. 1 celsamar 54\l. cele Ill. 1 vassal, tenant: np. -i 694. 2 fellow. other (person) : for a eh. said the other 450 ; a eh. one another 633.

for gelt 1265 (see Notes); hair, fur 1277. celtar f. a covering : m6r-c. 454. 1 cen• prep. with acc. without. With pron. suff. 3 sg. m. n. cenae : ceni beth . . . cenae acht he though there should not be any other save he 1086. at-bel chenae (sic leg.) I shall die in any case 1438. cheana besides 554. 2 cen : fo eh. hail 359. pho eh. ,j33. cendide f. head-dress, hood : np. - i 748. CJ. ceinniud. cendrach n. (?) the fastening of a millshaft 795. cenel n. tribe, nation 8\l. cenmo-tha besides, except, see Subst. Verb in Gramm. In trod. cenn n. 1 head: gs. for leith a cind 541, np. cenna 86\l. ds. im chind (=chiunn) 1132. ar du chind in preparatfon for thee 286. anais ar c[h ]ind in tsluaig waited for the host 309. as. tar a eend on their behalf 603. do thochur . . . tar a cheann in order to up.set . . . 503. 2 end: delg . . . a eind cacha simni a ,spike out of the end of each rush 112!). slabrad . . . a cinn cacha luirgi a diain out of the end of each staff 1280. co cenn n6maide for nine day8 895. iar cind aimsirc after a time 64. 6n chind mbliadnae (leg. bi.} co araill from one end of the year to the other 602. For i eind, 1497, we should probably read, with U, cind, the old iocativc (Thurn. Handb. §86) at the end of. cennphart a knob : dp. 1272. ce6 mist 997. cerr 547? caer D, cern U. cert 11. ri11ht; legal claim 163. cert-chosair a proper litter S11. cert-rann f. exact share : ,Is. ina chertraind 1014.

'· rtght down to the heels," Contribb. s.v. 5 cert. -cessa : ro-chessa, perf. pass. pl. 1278, see Notes. cest 50, 24i,, etc. (cs- MS.), query. Used to mark an interrog. clause. cet leave.: as exclamation of approval, 215. cet n. a hundred: 490. np. 475, 855, 1082, 1292. gp. 512. dp. cetaib 809. ceta-, as proverb first : cetaimchoichertthar 732, sec Notes. cetamain: ce6 ,vhen thf~ ehnu-;e is one whid1 ta.k"s rel. -n-. as in 660. 8c-l' Thurn., HdlJch. 2!J7, 301, 48\l ff.

nae : sec noi. naill 276: 8c-e Notes. nama only (follows the word it emphasizes): ,wht, . . . n. 81, 1494; cid . . . n. 710, 763. llllIDRe Ill. foe : ap. rn\mtiu (0. Ir. naimtea) 1524; gp. n{,mad 106ii. nate nay 216. nech someone, anyone 187, 312, 439, 1207 ; nec,h dib any of them 1376; do neoeh (atconnarc di . . . of all that I have seen (perhaps from ni in this, but cj. LU 10171) 1002. nel cloud: np. nela feimmid 711 (see Notes), n. femid 767; nela. 7 rl. 870, HOO, 988, 1200. 1 nem n. hem,en, sky: 240 ( ?) ; gs. 11irne 861. 2 nem n. venom : ds. neim 1246. nert n . .strength ds. nirt (=niurt) :{()!),

nesam : see of'us. ni n. a thing, anything 415; 601, n!l, 82G, 1126; ni bu,l i!ire any farther 138; ni dib "".'! of thclll 11H7. ,vith art. and do1nons. a nisin 85, 208, 315; an nisin (-seo) Hi2, :1:J!i, 242, arn, J 184; in nisin :l72; isin lli in (requital for) that which Gil7.

Reo 11c'('b.

nid t:l3 l : see .Notes. no, na Y