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or is a dog in the
Mythological Cycle Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...
of Irish literature, belonging to Lugh Lámhfhada of the
Tuatha Dé Danann The Tuath(a) Dé Danann (, meaning "the folk of the goddess Danu (Irish goddess), Danu"), also known by the earlier name Tuath Dé ("tribe of the gods"), are a supernatural race in Irish mythology. Many of them are thought to represent deity, ...
; it was one of the
eric The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, or Eirik is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Norse ''* a ...
(reparation) items exacted from the sons of Tuireann. It was originally the a hound-whelp of the smith or the king of Iruaith (Ioruath, Hiruaidhe, etc.). Later on, Lugh's Failinis (var. Fer Mac) belonged to a foreign threesome from Iruaith that came to Ireland, and encountered by the Fíanna led by
Fionn mac Cumhaill Fionn mac Cumhaill ( ; Old and mga, Find or ''mac Cumail'' or ''mac Umaill''), often anglicized Finn McCool or MacCool, is a hero in Irish mythology, as well as in later Scottish and Manx folklore. He is leader of the '' Fianna'' bands o ...
in the
Fenian cycle The Fenian Cycle (), Fianna Cycle or Finn Cycle ( ga, an Fhiannaíocht) is a body of early Irish literature focusing on the exploits of the mythical hero Finn or Fionn mac Cumhaill and his warrior band the Fianna. Sometimes called the Ossi ...
.


Name variants

The puppy is referred to as the "whelp of the royal smith of Ioruath" but otherwise unnamed in the 12th century ''
Lebor Gabála Érenn ''Lebor Gabála Érenn'' (literally "The Book of the Taking of Ireland"), 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 fro ...
'' ("Book of Invasions") version of the story of the sorrows of the sons of Tuireann. It is named in the lengthier, romance version of this story, ''Fate of the Children of Tuireann'' or '' Oidheadh Chloinne Tuireann'', abbreviated OCT of much later date, with the earliest manuscript dating to the 17th century. Eugene O'Curry hypothesized the name Failinis to be a transposition of "Inis Fáil (Island of Fail)", an ancient name for Ireland; R. A. S. Macalister also stating that the name "sounds like an extra-ordinary mythlogical mix-up". However this "mix-up" was far from modern. As Rudolf Thurneysen noted, a virtually identical name for the pup, Failinis or , occurs in a medieval 11th or early 12th century ballad from the
Fenian cycle The Fenian Cycle (), Fianna Cycle or Finn Cycle ( ga, an Fhiannaíocht) is a body of early Irish literature focusing on the exploits of the mythical hero Finn or Fionn mac Cumhaill and his warrior band the Fianna. Sometimes called the Ossi ...
. The dog's name is Fer Mac (Fermac) in the prose version of the ballad's story in '' The Colloquy with the Ancients'' of the Fenian Cycle. Although names and circumstances differ, the link between the ballad and the ''Acallam'' have been made by
A. G. van Hamel Anton Gerard van Hamel (5 July 1886 – 23 November 1945) was a Dutch scholar, best known for his contributions to Celtic and Germanic studies, especially those relating to literature, linguistics, philology and mythology. He is not to be confused ...
and Richard M. Scowcroft.


General description

The hound was invincible in battle, caught every wild beast it encountered, and could magically change any running water it bathed in into wine. It held dominion over all beasts, or hunted all sorts of game including fish. The dog's ability to magically produce wine occurs in several sources. The ability to turn water into wine is mentioned in the "Book of Invasions" and the ballad, but not in the OCT. In the ballad, "mead or wine" emanated from the spring water that Failinis bathed in, whereas Fer Mac magically disgorged liquor from its mouth. Failinis of the ballad was a "hound of the loveliest color", mighty and wonderful, while Fer Mac was described as parti-colored, displaying shades of every color including white, black, and blue. The hound of ballad was huge by day (able to "overcome fifty men"), but was a "thunderbolt, ball of fire" ( sga, caer thened) by night. Similarly, Fer Mac was normally huge, of greater size than any hound, but when dispensing liquor from its mouth it dwindled to the size of a "
pine marten The European pine marten (''Martes martes''), also known as the pine marten, is a mustelid native to and widespread in most of Europe, Asia Minor, the Caucasus and parts of Iran, Iraq and Syria. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List ...
on a queen's lap". Fer Mac also vomited quantities of gold and silver as needed. Its gender is not consistently translated: ''cú'' of the ballad has been rendered as a "male dog" (german: ), but Fer Mac is given as either a "bitch" or a "hound".


Change of ownership

It was one of the prized treasures exacted by Lugh Lámhfhada from the children of Tuireann ( Brían, Iuchar and Iucharba) as reparation for the slaying of Lugh's father Cian. The hound was originally owned either by the royal smith of Iruaid.) or by the King of Iruaid). in the
Mythological Cycle Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...
. This Iruaid, variously spelled, is a mythical Scandinavian kingdom."hirotae"
Onomasticon Goedelicum
/ref> The hound was taken by the children of Tuireann ( Brian, Iuchar and Iucharba) and delivered over to Lugh Lámhfhada as part of reparations. The same hound Failinis (Shalinnis) that once belonged to
Lugh Lugh or Lug (; ga, label= Modern Irish, Lú ) is a figure in Irish mythology. A member of the Tuatha Dé Danann, a group of supernatural beings, Lugh is portrayed as a warrior, a king, a master craftsman and a savior.Olmsted, Garrett. ''The ...
of the Mantles ( ga, Lugh na lenn, italic=no) that the sons of Tuireann () took from the king of Iruaid, Hiruaithe,. figures in the
Fenian cycle The Fenian Cycle (), Fianna Cycle or Finn Cycle ( ga, an Fhiannaíocht) is a body of early Irish literature focusing on the exploits of the mythical hero Finn or Fionn mac Cumhaill and his warrior band the Fianna. Sometimes called the Ossi ...
, repackaged as a dog owned by a certain threesome from a foreign land. The owners are Sela, Dorait, Domnán in the ballad, and Dub ('Dark'), Ág ('Batlttle') and Ilar ('Eagle') from "Irúaith in the East", in fact, three princes of Irúaith according to the prose work ''The Colloquy of the Elders''.


Strife and demise

In both the ballad and prose versions of the Fenian cycle story, the threesome slew the warrior(s) of the Fíanna who spied on them when they were secretly making their wine or heavy drink using their dog. The condemned peepers are Dubán mac Bresail in the ballad, and Donn and Dubán the two sons of the King of Ulster in '' The Colloquy''. In the ballad, Finn mac Cumhal uses the "tooth of wisdom" ( sga, dét fiss) and discovers the threesome (Sela, Dorait, Domnán) to be responsible for Dubán's death, and the threesome forfeit the dog Failinis as compensation. The threesome take a solemn oath never to transport the dog alive out of Ireland, but then they kill the hound and flay its hide ( sga, croccend, german: Fell), and carry it off into foreign lands. In ''The Colloquy'', the Fíanna form search parties of nine warriors and nine
gillies Gillies is both a Scottish surname and a given name shared by several notable people: Surname uses Politicians * Duncan Gillies (1834–1903), Australian colonial and state politician * James McPhail Gillies (born 1924), Canadian national pol ...
each but fail to discover the whereabouts of the two Ulidian princes. And the threesome and the dog obtain Finn mac Cumhal's protection, even though some of the Fíanna had entertained designs on eliminating them. "The Story of the Oakgrove of Conspiracy". The dog Fer Mac's modes of attack are elaborated upon in ''The Colloquy''. It reacted to the spying Ultonian princes at its masters' bidding, summoning a wind of druidry by lifting its tail, causing the two spies to drop shield, spear and sword. The three warriors of Irúaith then killed the Ulstermen, and the bitch blew its breath on the bodies, turning them into dust and ashes, with neither blood nor flesh nor bone remaining. Later, the threesome and the dog provided
mercenary A mercenary, sometimes also known as a soldier of fortune or hired gun, is a private individual, particularly a soldier, that joins a military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any ...
work for the Fíanna, dispatching the three sons of Uár who were becoming a menace. After Dub of Irúaith pronounced a banishing Incantation, the dog raised a magic wind its tail that sent the enemies to sea, and the enemies were forced by the magic spell to fight one another, receiving fatal sword cuts to their heads. "The Story of the Little Rath of the Incantation".


Attestations


Book of Invasions

In the '' Lebor Gabala Erenn'' ("Book of Invasions") version of the sorrows of the children of Tuireann, one of Lugh's demanded reparation is an unnamed pup or whelp that belonged to the royal smith of Ioruath ( ga, Cuilen rīg goband na Hiruaidhe), a legendary Scandinavian kingdom. The textual source(s) here has been dubbed "Imthechta Clainne Tuirill (ICT)" by T. F. O'Rahilly, a designation which includes the Poem LXVI "Etsid in senchas sluagach.." and the later prose summary of it which begins "Imthechta Clainne Tuirill.. " in §319 of Macalister's edition of the LGE. The poem also sings of the whelp of "Luachra Lia",. ''Lebor Gabhala'', Poem no. LXVI, stanzas 14. and 15. pp. 286–287 probably some Scandinavian region ( Lochlann), that was a hound by night and sheep by day. Thurneysen was of the opinion that this was a different whelp, but the attributes of these two dogs were melded into one by the prosifier, so that in the prose it was "a hound by night and a sheep by day" and whatever pool of water touched its hide or pelt ( ga, croccenn) turned to wine.. ''Lebor Gabhala'', § 319 éraic 5. pp. 136–137 and notes, pp. 302–303.) turned into wine: "Jede Flüssigkeit die in seine Haut gegossen wird, wird Wein".


''Oidheadh Chloinne Tuireann''

The hound's name Failinis appears in the full romance version of ''The Fate of the Children of Tuireann'' ('' Oidheadh Chloinne Tuireann''), which only survives in manuscripts from the 17th century and later. Failinis belonged to the King of Ioruaidhe ( ga, h-Ioruaide) or Hiruath, etc., in this romance version, and about this hound it was said that "all the wild beasts of the world .. would fall down out of their standing" (''i.e.'', prostrate themselves) and that it was "more splendid than the sun in his fiery wheels". ed., tr., ''Fate of the Children of Tuireann'', pp. 162, 163 The plot is more developed in the romance concerning the brothers' acquisition of the hound. After completing the quest for the pigs of Asal, accompany the sons of Tuireann so he can advise his son-in-law, the King of Ioruaidhe to relinquish the hound without a fight. The counsel is refused, and a battle ensues culminating in a
single combat Single combat is a duel between two single warriors which takes place in the context of a battle between two armies. Instances of single combat are known from Classical Antiquity and the Middle Ages. The champions were often combatants who repre ...
between Brian son of Tuireann and the King of Ioruaidhe, the king is defeated and bound, and forfeits the hound for his release.


12th-century ballad

The name of Lugh's dog Failinis is recorded in medieval manuscripts in a certain "ballad" ( ga, dúan), nominally titled ("They came here as a band of three") from its initial line. It has been characterized by as an Ossianic ballad of the 12th century, i.e., a
pseudepigraphic Pseudepigrapha (also :wikt:anglicized, anglicized as "pseudepigraph" or "pseudepigraphs") are false attribution, falsely attributed works, texts whose claimed author is not the true author, or a work whose real author attributed it to a figure ...
poem pretended to be written by
Oisín Oisín ( ), Osian, Ossian ( ), or anglicized as Osheen ( ) was regarded in legend as the greatest poet of Ireland, a warrior of the Fianna in the Ossianic or Fenian Cycle of Irish mythology. He is the demigod son of Fionn mac Cumhaill and o ...
reminiscing on the
Fianna ''Fianna'' ( , ; singular ''Fian''; gd, Fèinne ) were small warrior-hunter bands in Gaelic Ireland during the Iron Age and early Middle Ages. A ''fian'' was made up of freeborn young males, often aristocrats, "who had left fosterage but had ...
's past. The ballad relates how a threesome from Iruaid ("Hiruath", "Hiruaithe",) brings along a magical dog ( ga, Ṡalinnis /Shalinnis, italic=no or Failinis) which turns any fresh water (spring water) it touches into
mead Mead () is an alcoholic beverage made by fermenting honey mixed with water, and sometimes with added ingredients such as fruits, spices, grains, or hops. The alcoholic content ranges from about 3.5% ABV to more than 20%. The defining chara ...
or wine. The dog once belonged to Lugh of the mantles ( ga, Lugh na Lenn, a corruption of Lugh's
matronymic A matronymic is a personal name based on the given name of one's mother, grandmother, or any female ancestor. It is the female equivalent of a patronymic. Around the world, matronymic surnames are far less common than patronymic surnames. In s ...
"Lugh mac Ethlenn", as pointed out by Stern. The threesome is using the dog to turn spring water into wine and drinking it, when one of the Fianna (Dubán mac Bresail) intrudes, so the three kill Dubán. Finn mac Cumhal, by (placing his thumb under) his tooth of wisdom ( sga, dét fiss) discovers the threesome (Sela, Dorait, Domnán) to be responsible for Dubán's death, and the threesome forfeit the dog Failinis as compensation, swearing by the sun and the moon they would never take it alive out of Ireland, but then they kill the hound and flay it, carrying off the dog's hide its hide, german: Fell. across the sea, north-eastwards or eastwards. The Fianna's pursuit ensues, to no avail.


''The Colloquy of the Elders''

The stories relating to the three princes of Iorúaithe and their wonder-dog in the ''
Acallam na Senórach ''Acallam na Senórach'' ( Modern Irish: ''Agallamh na Seanórach'', whose title in English has been given variously as ''Colloquy of the Ancients'', ''Tales of the Elders of Ireland'', ''The Dialogue of the Ancients of Ireland'', etc.), is an i ...
'' (''The Colloquy of the Ancients'') are closely summarized by
A. G. van Hamel Anton Gerard van Hamel (5 July 1886 – 23 November 1945) was a Dutch scholar, best known for his contributions to Celtic and Germanic studies, especially those relating to literature, linguistics, philology and mythology. He is not to be confused ...
. And van Hamel has noted that gaps in the story of the hound in ''The Colloquy'' can be filled with the use of the Fenian ballad, as well as noting connections to the hound the LGE tract and romance about the sons of Tuireann. Richard M. Scowcroft also connects the ballad to ''The Colloquy''. The story of is written in the form of a
frame story A frame is often a structural system that supports other components of a physical construction and/or steel frame that limits the construction's extent. Frame and FRAME may also refer to: Physical objects In building construction * Framing ( ...
where Caílte who is a survivor of the
Fíanna The Fenian Cycle (), Fianna Cycle or Finn Cycle ( ga, an Fhiannaíocht) is a body of early Irish literature focusing on the exploits of the mythical hero Finn or Fionn mac Cumhaill and his warrior band the Fianna. Sometimes called the Ossi ...
into the age of Saint Patrick the "Adze-Head" recount various adventures of the Fíanna relating to various place names (onomastics). Thus the arrival of the three men who are sons of the King of Iorúaith, accompanied by the dog occurs in the story of the Little Fort of the Wonders ( sga, Raithin na n-ingnad). The spying by the two princes of Ulster and their killing by the men and hound occurs in the explanation regarding the two landmark graves, and it is within this episode that the hound's name is revealed to be Fer Mac or Fermac.; "two great graves" in Munster. The Fianna deliberate on the fate of the three in the story of the Oakwood of the Conspiracy ( sga, Daire in choccair), within which Caílte plays advocate and defend the three men, extolled the virtues of their skill as well as the hound's hunting prowess. And the three and the hound defeating three red-haired sons of Uár (on behalf of the Fíanna) occurs in the story of the Little Fort of the Incantations ( sga, Raithin na Sénaigechta).


Explanatory notes


References

;Citations ;Bibliography * Acallamh na Senórach ** ** ** *** (Lines 6083–6141) *** (Lines 6146–6269) **
previewable
google. * Ballad "They came here as a band of three" ("Dám thrír táncatair ille") ** (4 strophes only) (The hound's name is wanting in the excerpt. The manuscript folio number "Lismore fol. 194" is incorrect.) ** (LL 207b) ** (Book of Lismore, fo. 153 b) * * ¶319 pp. 134-137; Poem no. LXVI pp. 282–291 ; notes pp. 301–303. * * * * {{Celtic mythology (Fenian) Lugh Fenian Cycle Irish legendary creatures Mythological cycle Mythological dogs