The Soghain were a people of ancient Ireland. The 17th-century scholar Dubhaltach Mac Fhirbhisigh identified them as part of a larger group called the Cruithin. Mac Fhirbhisigh stated that the Cruithin included "the Dál Araidhi ál nAraidi the seven Lóigisi oígisof Leinster, the seven Soghain of Ireland, and every Conaille that is in Ireland."

Locations

The locations of four of the seven Soghain are as follows: * A branch in the territory of Fernmag (barony of Farney,

County Monaghan County Monaghan ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of Border Region, Border strategic planning area of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town ...

). * In Delvin (

County Westmeath County Westmeath (; or simply ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It formed part of the historic Kingdom of ...

) where a Soghain tribe lived with a branch of the Delbhna in an area called ''

Trícha cét The , also known as , meaning "thirty hundreds", was a unit of land-holding in eleventh and twelfth century Ireland.Benntraige under the Eoghanacht. An

Ogham Ogham (also ogam and ogom, , Modern Irish: ; , later ) is an Early Medieval alphabet used primarily to write the early Irish language (in the "orthodox" inscriptions, 4th to 6th centuries AD), and later the Old Irish language ( scholastic ...

inscription discovered near Aglish in the barony of East Muskerry, some twelve miles west of the city of Cork, displays the words ''MUCOI SOGINI'', which probably means "of the Corcu Sogain". * The Soghain of Connacht were located in central east

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

, in a kingdom called Soghan.

Soghan

The Soghain of Connacht were located in the ancient kingdom of Soghan, an area in central east

bounded by the

river Suck The River Suck ( ) is a river within the Shannon River Basin in Ireland, 133 km (82.5 mi) in length. It is the main tributary of the River Shannon. It meets the Shannon a kilometre south of the village of Shannonbridge. Name The riv ...

on the east, the river Clare on the west, the Grange and Shiven rivers to the north, and the Raford and Ballinure rivers to the south. A poem recorded in ''The Book of Uí Maine'', ''Cruas Connacht clanna Sogain'', lists the kingdom's boundaries, which can be found to tie in with the above locations:

From Áth an Ibar west To Glais Uair Arnaigh Was the extent of Soghan That sword-guarded land. From Béal na Róbe in Máenmagh To the clear, soft-reeded Simin Was the breath of the plain Which bore no ignominy.

The previous, pre- Gaelic people of the area were called the Senchineoil. Very little information survives on them. The Soghain of

Connacht Connacht or Connaught ( ; or ), is the smallest of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, C ...

were described by

Seán Mór Ó Dubhagáin Seán Mór Ó Dubhagáin (died 1372) was an Irish Gaelic poet. Background Ó Dubhagáinn was among the first notable members of the bardic family Baile Uí Dhubhagáin (Ballyduggan), near Loughrea, County Galway. He was accorded the rank o ...

in his poem ''Triallam timcheall na Fodla'' as follows: "The six Sogain let us not shun / Their kings are without oblivion / Good the host of plundering excursions / To whom the spear-armed Sogain is hereditary." The

Book of Lecan The ''Great Book of Lecan'' or simply ''Book of Lecan'' () ( RIA, 23 P 2) is a late-medieval Irish manuscript written between 1397 and 1418 in Castle Forbes, Lecan (Lackan, Leckan; Irish ), in the territory of Tír Fhíacrach, near moder ...

lists their six branches as ''Cenél Rechta'', ''Cenél Trena'', ''Cenél Luchta'', ''Cenél Fergna'', ''Cenél Domaingen'' and ''Cenél Déigill''. The genealogy of Saint Kerrill of Clonkeenkerrill is given as ''Caireall mac Curnáin mac Treana mac Fionnchada mac Náir mac Earca mac Tiobraide mac Soghain Salbhuidhe mac Fiacha Araidhe''. His grandfather, Treana mac Fionnchada, was the eponym of the Cinel Trena, who were apparently located close to Knockma, as evinced by the placename Tír Mhic Trena (the land of the sons of Trena). This area was the western limit of the kingdom of the Connacht Soghain. Early

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

evangelists among the Soghain included Conainne, St Connell and Kerrill. Their successors include Naomhéid, Cuana of Kilcoonagh, Dubhán, Felig, Íbar,

Íomar of the Sogain Íomar of the Sogain is an obscure fifth- or sixth-century saint associated with Killimorsogan (''Cill Íomar Soghain'', or ''the church of Íomar of the Sogain''), now the townlands of Killaghaun and Lisheen, north-east of Killamude, County Gal ...

, Laisren of Clonkeenkerrill, Maol Chosna, Modiúit, Menott, Molua of Kilmoluagh. Parishes known to be included in Soghan were: * Abbeyknockmoy * Abbert / Monivea * Ahascragh * Athenry * Ballymacward * Clonkeenkerrill * Fohenagh * Kilcloony * Kilconnell * Kilgerrill * Killascobe * Killosolan * Kilmoylan (part) * Lackagh (part) * Moylough Soghan became subject to the Uí Maine sometime during the first millennium.

Descendants

Descendants of the Soghain are still found in great numbers in County Galway, bearing names such as Ó Mainnín, Mannion, Manning, Ward / Mac an Bhaird, Gill / Gillane, Scarry, Dugan / Duggan, Megan / McGann, Martin, and Cassain.

Annalistic references

* ''811. Irghalach, son of Maelumha, lord of Corca Soghain''

References

* ''The Book of Uí Maine, otherwise called 'The book of the O'Kellys, R.A.S. Mac Alister (ed.),

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, 1942. * ''Punann arsa'' part i, Martin Finnerty, Galway, 1951. * ''The parish of Ballinasloe'', Rev. Patrick K. Egan, Dublin and London, 1960. Facsimile reproduction, Galway, 1994. * ''Ballymacward: The story of an east Galway parish'', John S. Flynn, 1991. * ''The Life, Legends and Legacy of Saint Kerrill: A Fifth-Century East Galway Evangelist'', Joseph Mannion, 2004. 0 954798 1 3 * ''The true identity of Saint Kerrill of Clonkeenkerrill'', Joseph Mannion, in ''Making shapes with slates and marla:A Gurteen anthology'', John and Margaret Corbett (compilers), Galway, 2004. * ''The Senchineoil and the Sogain: Differentiating between the pre-Celtic and early Celtic Tribes of Central East Galway,'' Joseph Mannion, ''Journal of the Galway Archaeological and Historical Society'', Volume 58, pp. 165–170, 2006. {{DEFAULTSORT:Soghain Connacht Historical Celtic peoples Geography of County Galway History of County Galway Tribes of ancient Ireland Ulaid

Locations

Soghan

Descendants

Annalistic references

See also

References