Der-Ilei (born late 7th century) is believed to have been a daughter, or less probably a sister, of

Bridei map Beli Bridei son of Beli ; died 692) was king of Fortriu and of the Picts from 671 until 692. His reign marks the start of the period known to historians as the Verturian hegemony, a turning point in the history of Scotland, when the uniting of Pictis ...

, king of the Picts (died 693). There are no explicit mentions of Der-Ilei in the

Irish annals A number of Irish annals, of which the earliest was the Chronicle of Ireland, were compiled up to and shortly after the end of the 17th century. Annals were originally a means by which monks determined the yearly chronology of feast days. Over t ...

or other sources, and her existence and parentage are thus based on the implication of the surviving records. Der-Ilei is presumed to have been married to

Dargart mac Finguine Dargart mac Finguine (died 685) was a member of the Cenél Comgaill kindred, after which Cowal in Scotland is named. The only event directly connected with him in the Irish annals, based on a chronicle then being kept on Iona, is his death. Dargar ...

(died 686), a prince of the

Cenél Comgaill Comgall mac Domangairt was king of Dál Riata in the early 6th century. He was the son of Domangart Réti and grandson of Fergus Mór. The ''Annals of Ulster'' report his death in 538, 542 and 545, the ''Annals of Tigernach'' in 537. Comgall No ...

. Their children are thought to have included

Bruide mac Der-Ilei Bruide mac Der-Ilei (died 706) was king of the Picts from 697 until 706. He became king when Taran was deposed in 697. He was the brother of his successor Nechtan. It has been suggested that Bruide's father was Dargart mac Finguine (d. 686) of t ...

(died 706) and

Nechtan mac Der-Ilei Nechtan mac Der-Ilei or Nechtan mac Dargarto (Old Irish ''Nechtan mac Der-Ilei'' or ''Nechtan mac Dargarto'') (before 686–732) was king of the Picts 706–724 and 728–729. He succeeded his brother Bridei in 706. He is associated with significa ...

(died 732), kings of the Picts and perhaps the Comgal mac Dargarto whose death in 712 is noticed by the ''

Annals of Ulster The ''Annals of Ulster'' ( ga, Annála Uladh) are annals of medieval Ireland. The entries span the years from 431 AD to 1540 AD. The entries up to 1489 AD were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luinín, ...

''. She also married a man named Drostam, the hypocoristic form of the common name Drest or Drust, with whom she had a son named Talorc or Talorcan; Talorcan, again, is a hypocoristic form. Drostan and Der-Ilei may have been the parents of Finguine, killed in 729 with his son Feroth at the battle of Monith Carno, or he may have been a son of Drostan by another marriage. It is not clear which of these marriages produced Der-Ilei's son Ciniod (died 713). Since Bruide, son of Dargart, was evidently an adult in 696; and Talorc, son of Drostan, does not appear in the record until 713, it is thought that Der-Ilei married Drostan following the death of Dargart.

References

* * {{refend 7th-century women Pictish people