Texts
Conailla Medb míchuru
Incoming data
Obscure 'accentual poem' by or at least attributed to Luccreth moccu Chíara. The first section deals with the Ulster hero Fergus mac Róich, his situation as an exile in the service of Medb and Ailill, and his participation in their wars over the cattle (bó) of the Ulstermen. The account is thought to refer to an early version of the Táin bó Cúailnge.
Manuscript witnesses
Text
Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Laud Misc. 610/Leabhar na Rátha
among genealogies of the Cíarraige
p. 94a
Sources
Primary sources Text editions and/or modern translations – in whole or in part – along with publications containing additions and corrections, if known. Diplomatic editions, facsimiles and digital image reproductions of the manuscripts are not always listed here but may be found in entries for the relevant manuscripts. For historical purposes, early editions, transcriptions and translations are not excluded, even if their reliability does not meet modern standards.
Henry, P. L. [ed.], “Conailla Medb míchuru and the tradition of Fiacc son of Fergus”, in: Séamus Mac Mathúna, and Ailbhe Ó Corráin (eds), Miscellanea Celtica in memoriam Heinrich Wagner, 2, Uppsala: Uppsala Universitet, 1997. 53–70.
Olmsted, Garrett S., “The earliest narrative version of the Táin: seventh-century poetic references to Táin bó Cúailnge”, Emania 10 (1992): 5–17.
Olmsted, Garrett S., “Conailla Medb míchuru and the origins of the Táin”, Études Celtiques 29 (1992): 333–342.
abstract:
[FR] Conailla Medb Michuru et les origines de la Táin.
Analyse du poème irlandais archaïque Conailla Medb Michuru. L’auteur réfute la théorie de James Carney selon laquelle la Táin bó Cúailnge se fondait plutôt sur l’histoire que sur un mythe. C’est seulement dans les 27 premiers vers que le poème de Luccreth (qui en compte 71) parle de la Táin , et les deux-tiers restant contiennent des matériaux tirés d’une légende mineure de vol de bétail, combinée à un mythe de migration tiré de “L’Expulsion des Déssi”. Cette analyse montrerait que le vers-clef n° 32, condailset a maic marthire, devrait être traduit “Ses fils [à Fergus] se partagèrent un grand territoire”, plutôt que comme il a été précédemment proposé, “Ses grands loups se rassemblèrent”. Contrairement à l’opinion de Carney, le poème s’accorde ainsi avec d’autres poèmes du VIIe s. faisant allusion à la Táin, comme le Morrigan Rosc et les Verba Scathaige. Considérés ensemble, ces trois poèmes montrent que la Táin s’est peu modifiée entre le VIIe et le IXe s.
[EN] This paper analyzes the archaic Irish poem Conailla Medb Michuru. The paper refutes James Carney’s theory that the poem proves that Táin bó Cúailnge had a basis in history rather than in myth. Only in the first 27 of the 71 lines does Luccreth’s poem actually refer to the Táin, while the remaining two-thirds of its lines contain material adapted from a minor “cattle-raid” tale combined with a migration myth adapted from “The Expulsion of the Déssi”. This analysis would indicate that the key line 32, condailset a maic marthire, should be translated, “His [Fergus’s] sons shared great land”, rather than as previously suggested “His great wolves gathered”. Contra Carney, the poem thus agrees with other 7th century poems referencing the Táin, such as Morrigan Rosc and Verba Scathaige. Taken together, these three poems demonstrate that the Táin changed little between the 7th and 9th century.
Analyse du poème irlandais archaïque Conailla Medb Michuru. L’auteur réfute la théorie de James Carney selon laquelle la Táin bó Cúailnge se fondait plutôt sur l’histoire que sur un mythe. C’est seulement dans les 27 premiers vers que le poème de Luccreth (qui en compte 71) parle de la Táin , et les deux-tiers restant contiennent des matériaux tirés d’une légende mineure de vol de bétail, combinée à un mythe de migration tiré de “L’Expulsion des Déssi”. Cette analyse montrerait que le vers-clef n° 32, condailset a maic marthire, devrait être traduit “Ses fils [à Fergus] se partagèrent un grand territoire”, plutôt que comme il a été précédemment proposé, “Ses grands loups se rassemblèrent”. Contrairement à l’opinion de Carney, le poème s’accorde ainsi avec d’autres poèmes du VIIe s. faisant allusion à la Táin, comme le Morrigan Rosc et les Verba Scathaige. Considérés ensemble, ces trois poèmes montrent que la Táin s’est peu modifiée entre le VIIe et le IXe s.
[EN] This paper analyzes the archaic Irish poem Conailla Medb Michuru. The paper refutes James Carney’s theory that the poem proves that Táin bó Cúailnge had a basis in history rather than in myth. Only in the first 27 of the 71 lines does Luccreth’s poem actually refer to the Táin, while the remaining two-thirds of its lines contain material adapted from a minor “cattle-raid” tale combined with a migration myth adapted from “The Expulsion of the Déssi”. This analysis would indicate that the key line 32, condailset a maic marthire, should be translated, “His [Fergus’s] sons shared great land”, rather than as previously suggested “His great wolves gathered”. Contra Carney, the poem thus agrees with other 7th century poems referencing the Táin, such as Morrigan Rosc and Verba Scathaige. Taken together, these three poems demonstrate that the Táin changed little between the 7th and 9th century.
Persée – Études Celtiques, vol. 29, 1992: <link>
Olmsted, Garrett S., “Luccreth's poem Conailla Medb míchuru and the origins of the Táin”, Mankind Quarterly 29 (1988): 3–72.
Secondary sources (select)
Ó Cróinín, Dáibhí, “Prosopographical analysis of Táin bó Cuailnge in a historical setting”, in: Hildegard L. C. Tristram (ed.), New methods in the research of epic / Neue Methoden der Epenforschung, 107, Tübingen: Gunter Narr Verlag, 1998. 153–159.
Olmsted, Garrett S., “Gaulish, Celtiberian and Indo-European verse”, The Journal of Indo-European Studies 19:3–4 (1991): 259–307.
Sproule, David, “Complex alliteration, full and unstressed rhyme, and the origin of deibide”, Ériu 38 (1987): 185–200.
Carney, James P., “The history of early Irish literature: the state of research”, in: Gearóid Mac Eoin, Anders Ahlqvist, and Donncha Ó hAodha (eds), Proceedings of the Sixth International Congress of Celtic Studies, held in University College, Galway, 6–13 July, 1979, 6, Dublin, 1983. 113–130.
