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Nemed
Nemed or Nimeth () is a character in medieval Irish legend. According to the '' Lebor Gabála Érenn'' (compiled in the 11th century), he was the leader of the third group of people to settle in Ireland: the ''Muintir Nemid'' (or ''Muintir Neimhidh'', "people of Nemed"), ''Clann Nemid'' (''Clann Neimhidh'', "offspring of Nemed") or "Nemedians". They arrived thirty years after the Muintir Partholóin, their predecessors, had died out. Nemed eventually dies of plague and his people are oppressed by the Fomorians. They rise up against the Fomorians, attacking their tower out at sea, but most are killed and the survivors leave Ireland. Their descendants become the Fir Bolg. Etymology The word ''nemed'' means "privileged" or "holy" in Old Irish, and "seems to have been a designation of a druid".Ó hÓgáin, Dáithí. ''Myth, Legend & Romance: An Encyclopaedia of the Irish Folk Tradition''. Prentice Hall Press, 1991. p. 318 The reconstructed Proto-Celtic language root ''nemos ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lebor Gabála Érenn
''Lebor Gabála Érenn'' (literally "The Book of Ireland's Taking"; Modern Irish spelling: ''Leabhar Gabhála Éireann'', known in English as ''The Book of Invasions'') is a collection of poems and prose narratives in the Irish language intended to be a history of Ireland and the Irish from the creation of the world to the Middle Ages. There are a number of versions, the earliest of which was compiled by an anonymous writer in the 11th century. It synthesised narratives that had been developing over the foregoing centuries. The ''Lebor Gabála'' tells of Ireland being "taken" (settled) by six groups of people: the people of Cessair, the people of Partholón, the people of Nemed, the Fir Bolg, the Tuatha Dé Danann, and the Milesians. The first four groups are wiped out or forced to abandon the island; the fifth group represents Ireland's pagan gods, while the final group represents the Irish people (the Gaels). The ''Lebor Gabála'' was highly influential and was largely ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fomorians
The Fomorians or Fomori (, Modern ) are a supernatural race in Irish mythology, who are often portrayed as hostile and monstrous beings. Originally they were said to come from under the sea or the earth. Later, they were portrayed as sea raiders and giants. They are enemies of Ireland's first settlers and opponents of the Tuatha Dé Danann, the other supernatural race in Irish mythology; although some members of the two races have offspring. The Tuath Dé defeat the Fomorians in the '' Battle of Mag Tuired''. This has been likened to other Indo-European myths of a war between gods, such as the Æsir and Vanir in Norse mythology, the Olympians and Titans in Greek mythology, and the Devas and Asuras in Indian mythology. One theory is that the Fomorians were supernatural beings representing the wild or destructive powers of nature; personifications of chaos, darkness, death, blight and drought. Name In Old and Middle Irish, the race is usually called the ''Fomóire'' or '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Macha
Macha () was a sovereignty goddess of ancient Ireland associated with the province of Ulster, particularly the sites of Navan Fort (''Eamhain Mhacha'') and Armagh (''Ard Mhacha''), which are named after her.Koch, John T. ''Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia''. ABC-CLIO, 2006. p. 1231 Several figures called Macha appear in Irish mythology and folklore, all believed to derive from the same goddess. She is said to be one of three sisters known as ' the three Morrígna'. Like other sovereignty goddesses, Macha is associated with the land, fertility, kingship, war and horses.Mac Cana, Prionsias.The Goddesses of the Insular Celts". ''Celtic Mythology''. Hamlyn, 1970. Proinsias Mac Cana discusses three Machas: Macha, wife of Nemed; Queen Macha, wife of Cimbáeth; and Macha, wife of Crunnchu, who caused the debility of the Ulstermen. Gregory Toner discusses four, with the addition of Macha as one of the three Morrigans. Etymology and alias In modern Scottish Gaelic, the etymo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fir Bolg
In medieval Irish myth, the Fir Bolg (also spelt Firbolg and Fir Bholg) are the fourth group of people to settle in Ireland. They are descended from the Muintir Nemid, an earlier group who abandoned Ireland and went to different parts of Europe. Those who went to Greece became the Fir Bolg and eventually return to Ireland, after it had been uninhabited for many years. After ruling it for some time and dividing the island into provinces, they are overthrown by the invading Tuatha Dé Danann. Carey, John''The Irish National Origin-Legend: Synthetic Pseudohistory''. Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic, University of Cambridge, 1994. pp. 1–4 Myth ''Lebor Gabála Érenn'' tells of Ireland being settled six times by six groups of people. The first three—the people of Cessair, the people of Partholón, and the people of Nemed—were wiped out or forced to abandon the island. The Fir Bolg are said to be descendants of the people of Nemed, who inhabited Ireland befo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Uraicecht Becc
''Uraicecht Becc'' (Old Irish for "Small Primer"; ''uraicecht'' is a variant of ''airaiccecht'' 'air''- 'before' + ''aiccecht'' 'instruction,' from Latin ''acceptum'' 'primer') is an Old Irish legal tract on status. Of all status tracts, it has the greatest breadth in coverage, including not only commoners, kings, churchmen and poets, but also a variety of other professional groups, including judges. However, it does not go into as much detail for each group and level as do other status tracts. T.M. Charles-Edwards suggests that it is "almost certainly of Munster origin", as it asserts the supremacy of the king of Munster above other Irish kings and makes reference to the monasteries of Emly and Cork. Contents The Small Primer goes into detail regarding the poets' place in Irish society. It lists the seven grades of poets, including their honor price, and the pay earned for the various meters they could perform. D.A. Binchy suggested that ''Uraicecht Becc'' (alongside the lega ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lake-burst
A lake-burst (, ) is a phenomenon referred to in Irish mythology, in which a previously non-existent lake comes into being, often when a grave is being dug. Part of the lake-burst stories may originate in sudden hydrographic changes around limestone-based inland plains or turloughs. Other so-called lake-bursts refer to marine estuaries, bays and inlets, such as Galway Bay, Strangford Lough, Dundrum Bay, Belfast Lough, Waterford Harbour and the mouth of the River Erne. Some of these coastal districts were renowned for the drowned prehistoric forests, which gave rise to several flood-myths. Lake-bursts play a significant role in Irish water symbolism. The people of Ireland and Celtic Britain generally believed that vast bodies of water — seas or inland lakes — harbored beings from the underworld (''Tír fó Thuinn''), whether as humans or monstrous creatures, in their depths. Bodies of water not only served as physical boundaries, but also as spiritual thresholds, separating ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nemeton
A nemeton (plural: nemeta) was a sacred space of ancient Celtic religion. Nemeta appear to have been primarily situated in natural areas, often sacred groves.Koch, p. 1350. However, other evidence suggests that the word implied a wider variety of ritual spaces, such as shrines and temples.Green, p. 448.Dowden, p. 134. Evidence for nemeta consists chiefly of inscriptions and toponymy or place-names, which occur all across the Celtic world. Toponyms related to the word ''nemeton'' occur as far west as Galicia in the Iberian peninsula, as far north as Scotland, and as far east as central Turkey. The word is related to the name of the Nemetes tribe living by the Rhine between the Palatinate and Lake Constance in what is now Germany, and their goddess Nemetona. Attestations in Latin The word nemeton is explained late in a gloss by Fortunatus : « loco nomine Vernemetis… quod quasi fanum ingens Gallica lingua refert. » ("in a place called Vernemetis...which means like a ''fanum' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Druid
A druid was a member of the high-ranking priestly class in ancient Celtic cultures. The druids were religious leaders as well as legal authorities, adjudicators, lorekeepers, medical professionals and political advisors. Druids left no written accounts. While they were reported to have been literate, they are believed to have been prevented by doctrine from recording their knowledge in written form. Their beliefs and practices are attested in some detail by their contemporaries from other cultures, such as the Romans and the Greeks. The earliest known references to the druids date to the 4th century BC. The oldest detailed description comes from Julius Caesar's ''Commentarii de Bello Gallico'' (50s BC). They were described by other Roman writers such as Cicero, Cicero (44) I.XVI.90. Tacitus, and Pliny the Elder. Following the Roman invasion of Gaul, the druid orders were suppressed by the Roman government under the 1st-century AD emperors Tiberius and Claudius, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Partholón
Partholón () is a character in medieval Irish Christian pseudohistory, said to have led one of the first groups to settle in Ireland. His name comes from the Biblical name ''Bartholomaeus'' (Bartholomew), and may be borrowed from a character in the Christian pseudohistories of Saints Jerome and Isidore of Seville. Description In most versions of the tale, Partholón is the leader of the second group of people to settle in Ireland, the ''Muintir Partholóin'' (People of Partholón). They arrive on the uninhabited island about 300 years after Noah's Flood and introduce farming, cooking, brewing and building. After some years, they all die of plague in one week. ''Historia Brittonum'' The earliest surviving reference to Partholón is in the ''Historia Brittonum'', a 9th-century British Latin compilation attributed to Nennius. It says that Ireland was settled three times by three different groups, with 'Partholomus' arriving first from Iberia with a thousand followers who multi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Magog (Bible)
Magog (; , Tiberian: ; ) is the second of the seven sons of Japheth mentioned in the Table of Nations in Genesis . The origin of the term is not clear, this name indicates either a person, or a tribe, or a geographical reality (country or city). In the book of Ezekiel, the pagan Magog people live "north of the World", and metaphorically represent the forces of Evil, which associates it with Apocalyptic traditions. Etymology The origin of the name ''Magog'' is unclear. It has been conjectured to come from the Akkadian ''mat Gugi'', "land of Gog", that is, the land of Gyges: Lydia. In the Bible Magog is often associated with apocalyptic traditions, mainly in connection with Ezekiel 38 and 39 which mentions " Gog of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal" (Ezek 38:2 NIV); on the basis of this mention, " Gog and Magog" over time became associated with each other as a pair. In the New Testament, this pairing is found in the Book of Revelation 20:8, i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Armagh
Armagh ( ; , , " Macha's height") is a city and the county town of County Armagh, in Northern Ireland, as well as a civil parish. It is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland – the seat of the Archbishops of Armagh, the Primates of All Ireland for both the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of Ireland. In ancient times, nearby Navan Fort () was a pagan ceremonial site and one of the great royal capitals of Gaelic Ireland. Today, Armagh is home to two cathedrals (both named after Saint Patrick) and the Armagh Observatory, and is known for its Georgian architecture. Statistically classed as a medium-sized town by NISRA, Armagh was given city status in 1994 and Lord Mayoralty status in 2012. It had a population of 16,310 people in the 2021 Census. History Foundation ''Eamhain Mhacha'' (or Navan Fort), at the western edge of Armagh, was an ancient pagan ritual or ceremonial site. According to Irish mythology it was one of the great royal sites of Gaelic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sons Of Noah
The Generations of Noah, also called the Table of Nations or ''Origines Gentium'', is a genealogy of the sons of Noah, according to the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, Genesis ), and their dispersion into many lands after Genesis flood narrative, the Flood, focusing on the major known societies. The term 'nations' to describe the descendants is a standard English translation of the Hebrew word "''goyim''", following the 400 CE Latin Vulgate's "''nationes''", and does not have the same political connotations that the word entails today. The list of 70 names introduces for the first time several well-known ethnonyms and toponyms important to biblical geography, such as Noah's three sons Shem, Ham (son of Noah), Ham, and Japheth, from which 18th-century German scholars at the Göttingen school of history derived the race terminology Semitic people, Semites, Hamitic, Hamites, and Japhetites. Certain of Noah's grandsons were also used for names of peoples: from Biblical Elam, Elam, A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
