High Kings Of Ireland
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High Kings 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 legendary figures. Medieval and early modern Irish literature portrays an almost unbroken line of High Kings, ruling from the Hill of Tara over a hierarchy of lesser kings, stretching back thousands of years. Modern historians believe this scheme was crafted in the 8th century from the various genealogical traditions of powerful dynasties, and intended to justify their status by projecting it far into the past. Dáibhí Ó Cróinín, "Ireland, 400–800", in Dáibhí Ó Cróinín (ed.), ''A New History of Ireland 1: Prehistoric and Early Ireland'', Oxford University Press, 2005, pp. 182–234. John T. Koch explains: "Although the kingship of Tara was a special kingship whose occupants had aspirations towards supremacy among the kings of Ir ...
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Anachronistic
An anachronism (from the Greek , 'against' and , 'time') is a chronological inconsistency in some arrangement, especially a juxtaposition of people, events, objects, language terms and customs from different time periods. The most common type of anachronism is an object misplaced in time, but it may be a verbal expression, a technology, a philosophical idea, a musical style, a material, a plant or animal, a custom, or anything else associated with a particular period that is placed outside its proper temporal domain. An anachronism may be either intentional or unintentional. Intentional anachronisms may be introduced into a literary or artistic work to help a contemporary audience engage more readily with a historical period. Anachronism can also be used intentionally for purposes of rhetoric, propaganda, comedy, or shock. Unintentional anachronisms may occur when a writer, artist, or performer is unaware of differences in technology, terminology and language, customs and att ...
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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)">state or polity who has supremacy and dominant influence over the foreign policy and economic relations of another subordinate party or polity, but allows internal autonomy to that subordinate. Where the subordinate polity is called a vassal, vassal state or tributary state, the dominant party is called the suzerain. The rights and obligations of a vassal are called ''vassalage'', and the rights and obligations of a suzerain are called suzerainty. Suzerainty differs from sovereignty in that the dominant power does not exercise centralized governance over the vassals, allowing tributary states to be technically self-ruling but enjoy only limited independence. Although the situation has existed in a number of historical empires, it is con ...
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Adomnán
Adomnán or Adamnán of Iona (; , ''Adomnanus''; 624 – 704), also known as Eunan ( ; from ), was an abbot of Iona Abbey ( 679–704), hagiographer, statesman, canon jurist, and Christian saint, saint. He was the author of the ''Life of Columba'' (), probably written between 697 and 700. This biography is by far the most important surviving work written in early-medieval Scotland, and is a vital source for our knowledge of the Picts, and an insight into the life of Iona and the early-medieval Gaels, Gaelic monk. Adomnán promulgated the Cáin Adomnáin, Law of Adomnán or "Law of Innocents" (). He also wrote the treatise ('On Holy Places'), an account of the great Christian holy places and centres of pilgrimage. Adomnán got much of his information from a Franks, Frankish bishop called Arculf, who had personally visited Egypt, Rome, Constantinople and the Holy Land, and visited Iona afterwards. Life Adomnán was born about 624, a relative on his father's side of Col ...
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Threefold Death
The threefold death, which is suffered by kings, heroes, and gods, is a reconstructed Proto-Indo-European theme encountered in Indic, Greek, Celtic, and Germanic mythology. Some proponents of the trifunctional hypothesis distinguish two types of threefold deaths in Indo-European myth and ritual. In the first type of threefold death, one person dies simultaneously in three ways. He dies by hanging (or strangulation or falling from a tree), wounding, and by drowning (or poison or burning). These three deaths are foretold, and are often punishment for an offense against the three functions of Indo-European society.Mallory, J. P., Adams, Douglass Q., Encyclopedia of Indo-European Culture, p. 577 The second form of the threefold death is split into three distinct parts; these distinct deaths are sacrifices to three distinct gods of the three functions. Literary sources Welsh legend In Welsh legend, Myrddin Wyllt (one of the sources for Merlin of Arthurian legend) is associate ...
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Áed Dub Mac Suibni
Áed Dub mac Suibni (died c. 588) was an Irish king of the Dál nAraidi in the over-kingdom of Ulaid (in modern Ulster). He may have been king of the Ulaid. Áed was succeeded by his great-nephew Fiachnae mac Báetáin. Áed Dub — Black Áed — killed the last High King of Ireland to undergo the pre-Christian inauguration ritual, Diarmait mac Cerbaill. Tradition has Diarmaid die a mythic threefold death, and some version make Áed Diarmaid's foster-son. The Annals of Tigernach report, more prosaically, that Diarmaid was killed by Áed Dub in 565 at Ráith Bec, on the plain of Mag Line (Moylinny, near Larne), in the lands of the Dál nAraidi. Adomnán's account In Book I, Chapter 36 of Adomnán of Iona's ''Life of Saint Columba'', it states that Áed Dub was later ordained as a priest, an ordination that Adomnán describes as a sham because of his history of violence. He writes that when Columba learned of this, he prophesied that although Áed would live for ma ...
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Diarmait Mac Cerbaill
Diarmait mac Cerbaill (died ) was King of Tara or High King of Ireland. According to traditions, he was the last High King to follow the pagan rituals of inauguration, the ''ban-feis'' or marriage to goddess of the land. The last High King to observe the ancient pagan Feis Temrach or Assembly of Tara which took place on Samhain every three years to pass or renew laws, approve annals and records. While many later stories were attached to Diarmait, he was a historical ruler and his descendants were of great significance in Medieval Ireland. Sources It is believed that the earliest of the Irish annals which came to make up the lost ''Chronicle of Ireland'' were kept as a contemporary record from no later than the middle of the 7th century, and may be rather older as it has been argued that many late 6th century entries have the appearance of contemporary recording. There is general agreement that the annals are largely based, in their earliest contemporary records, on a chronicl ...
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Celtic Christianity
Celtic Christianity is a form of Christianity that was common, or held to be common, across the Celtic languages, Celtic-speaking world during the Early Middle Ages. The term Celtic Church is deprecated by many historians as it implies a unified and identifiable entity entirely separate from that of mainstream Western Christendom. For this reason, many prefer the term Insular Christianity. As Patrick Wormald explained, "One of the common misconceptions is that there was a ''Roman'' Church to which the ''Celtic'' Church was nationally opposed." Some writers have described a distinct "Celtic Church" uniting the Celts (modern), Celtic peoples and distinguishing them from adherents of the Latin Church, Roman Church, while others classify Celtic Christianity as a set of distinctive practices occurring in those areas. Varying scholars reject the former notion, but note that there were certain traditions and practices present in both the Irish and British churches that were not seen ...
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Ulster Cycle
The Ulster Cycle (), formerly known as the Red Branch Cycle, is a body of medieval Irish heroic legends and sagas of the Ulaid. It is set far in the past, in what is now eastern Ulster and northern Leinster, particularly counties Armagh, Down and Louth. It focuses on the mythical Ulster king Conchobar mac Nessa and his court at Emain Macha, the hero Cú Chulainn, and their conflict with the Connachta and queen Medb. The longest and most important tale is the epic '' Táin Bó Cúailnge'' (Cattle Raid of Cooley). The Ulster Cycle is one of the four 'cycles' of Irish mythology and legend, along with the Mythological Cycle, the Fianna Cycle and the Kings' Cycle. Ulster Cycle stories The Ulster Cycle stories are set in and around the reign of King Conchobar mac Nessa, who rules the Ulaid from Emain Macha (now Navan Fort near Armagh). The most prominent hero of the cycle is Conchobar's nephew, Cú Chulainn. The Ulaid are most often in conflict with the Connachta, le ...
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Patrilineality
Patrilineality, also known as the male line, the spear side or agnatic kinship, is a common kinship system in which an individual's family membership derives from and is recorded through their father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritance of property, rights, names, or titles by persons related through male kin. This is sometimes distinguished from cognate kinship, through the mother's lineage, also called the spindle side or the distaff side. A patriline ("father line") is a person's father, and additional ancestors, as traced only through males. In the Bible In the Bible, family and tribal membership appears to be transmitted through the father. For example, a person is considered to be a priest or Levite, if his father is a priest or Levite, and the members of all the Twelve Tribes are called Israelites because their father is Israel (Jacob). In the first lines of the New Testament, the descent of Jesus Christ is counted through the male lineage from Abraham throug ...
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Allodial
Allodial title constitutes ownership of real property (land, buildings, and fixtures) that is independent of any superior landlord. Allodial title is related to the concept of land held "in allodium", or land ownership by occupancy and defense of the land. Most property ownership in common law jurisdictions is fee simple. In the United States, the land is subject to eminent domain by federal, state and local government, and subject to the imposition of taxes by state and/or local governments, and there is thus no true allodial land. Some states within the U.S. (notably, Nevada and Texas) have provisions for considering land allodial under state law, and the term may be used in other circumstances. Land is "held of the Crown" in England and Wales and other jurisdictions in the Commonwealth realms. Some land in the Orkney and Shetland Islands, known as udal land, is held in a manner akin to allodial land in that these titles are not subject to the ultimate ownership of the Crown ...
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Petty Kingdom
A petty kingdom is a kingdom described as minor or "petty" (from the French 'petit' meaning small) by contrast to an empire or unified kingdom that either preceded or succeeded it (e.g. the numerous kingdoms of Anglo-Saxon England unified into the Kingdom of England in the 10th century, or the numerous Gaelic kingdoms of Ireland as the Kingdom of Ireland in the 16th century). Alternatively, a petty kingdom would be a minor kingdom in the immediate vicinity of larger kingdoms, such as the medieval Kingdom of Mann and the Isles relative to the kingdoms of Scotland or England or the Viking kingdoms of Scandinavia. In the parallel mainland Southeast Asian political model, petty kingdoms were known as ''mueang''. By the European High Middle Ages, many post-Roman Early Middle Ages petty kingdoms had evolved into principalities, grand duchies, or duchies. By the European Early Modern era, many of these principalities had been mediatized into larger monarchies, but the ruling fa ...
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Taboo
A taboo is a social group's ban, prohibition or avoidance of something (usually an utterance or behavior) based on the group's sense that it is excessively repulsive, offensive, sacred or allowed only for certain people.''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.Taboo. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2012. Retrieved 21 Mar. 2012 Such prohibitions are present in virtually all societies. Taboos may be prohibited explicitly, for example within a legal system or religion, or implicitly, for example by social norms or conventions followed by a particular culture or organization. Taboos are often meant to protect the individual, but there are other reasons for their development. An ecological or medical background is apparent in many, including some that are seen as religious or spiritual in origin. Taboos can help use a resource more efficiently, but when applied to only a subsection of the community they can also serve to suppress said subsection of the community. A taboo acknowledged by a ...
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