Aid:Commentary on the Amra Choluim Chille/TOC/Ch 1
From CODECS: Online Database and e-Resources for Celtic Studies
Introduction
Summary:
The chapter is explained in Latin as referring to the announcement of Colum Cille’s death; the great sadness among the Irish afterwards; and the sorrow (mestitia) ‘of all things’ attending on his death.
[6] Ni disceoil dúe Neill
Summary:
The accompanying explanation focuses on the words disceoil and dúe:
- ni disceoil i.e. not without news (cen scél); or not trifling the news (dis + scél); in other words, the news that Columba died is not trivial to the Uí Néill.
- or dúe Néill i.e. to the house (domus) of Níall.
- or ni disceoil i.e. not the folly (duíthe) of a tale; in other words, the story known to the house (tegdais) of Níall is not the story of a fool (duí).
- or doé from domus as in ‘I will go (ibo) into evil into the palace (ríg-dai, from regalis and domus)’.
[7.1] Ni huctot oenmaige
[7.2] Mor mairg
[7.3] Mor deilm
[8.1] difhulaing riss re aisneid
Includes verse: Cen cholt for crib cernine
[8.2] Colum cen beith / cen chill
[9.1] Co india dui dó?
[9.2] sceo Nera
[10; 11] In faith Dé de deis Sion suidiath: is nu nad mair
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[11.2] Ni marthar lenn
[12] Ni less anma ar sui ardon-condiath
[13] Conroeter bin bath
[14] Ardon-bath ba ar n-airchenn adlicen
[15] Ardon-bath ba ar fiadait foidiam
[16] Ar nin-fissid frisbered omnu huain
[17] Ar nin-tathrith dosluinned foccul fir
[18] Ar nin-forcetlaid forcanad tuatha Toi
[19] Huile bith ba hae he
[20] Is crot cen cheis, is cell cen abbaid
Includes verse: Ní celt ceis • Ba binniu chech ceol in chrot
Summary:
The text offers a number of different readings for the nouns in this line, especially the céis of the harp:
- The ‘harp (crot/cruit) without a céis’ is explained as being without a coe for holding the strings; and ‘the church without an abbot (abbaid)’ as a church without a ‘keen father’ (abba + áit), namely every place after Columba;
- or céis is a name for the small harp that accompanies the larger harp when they are being played in unison (im chomsheinm);
- or céis is a name for the small pin (delg) used to fasten the bronze/copper (umaide) string of the harp.
- or céis is a name for the coblaig (‘bass strings’ as Stokes translates this?)
- or céis is a name for a heavy chord (trom-thét)
- or céis is that which retains the leithrind with its strings.
- ut dixit poeta in the poem beg. Ní celt ceis
- as in the carmen beg. ‘Ba binniu chech ceol in chrot’
» Comments: Cf. <DIL s.v. ‘leithriu’> (a): “Part of a harp or ‘timpán’ to which the strings were attached”, citing the above in support of this.
Story about Main/Labraid, Moriath and the harper (YBL) » entry
Summary:
Is crot cen cheis is given another explanation as referring to a harp without glés ‘tuning’.
