Kuno Meyer: The German Who Gave Ireland Back Its Voice
Kuno Meyer was born in Hamburg, taught German in Liverpool and died in Leipzig, yet few people did more to put early Irish literature back into Irish hands. Here is…
Bark, Bite, and Brehon Law: Learn About The History of Dogs in Early Irish Society, Legend, and Law
Kill the wrong dog in early medieval Ireland and it could cost you ten cows and a replacement hound. Let your own dog foul a neighbour's land and you might…
INSIDE THE BREHON COURTS: JUSTICE, JUDGES AND SURETIES IN EARLY IRELAND
For over a thousand years, Ireland ran a legal system with no police force, no prisons, and no state courthouse, and it worked. Disputes were heard, judgements were handed down,…
Brehons, Brahmins, and an Irish Scholar who made an Incredible Connection
Myles Dillon spent fifty years arguing that early Ireland and ancient India shared more than a distant ancestor — this is his story, and his case
“King and Hermit”—A 10th-century poem translated by Kuno Meyer
What follows is a 10th-century poem describing events set in the seventh century. It records an imagined conversation between King Guaire (Guare) of Connacht and his brother Marvan (Marban), a…
What Does Brehon Law Say About the Sea? Muirbretha—Sea Judgements
Muirbretha, the "sea-judgements," is the main surviving Brehon law text on maritime affairs, and it survives only because a handful of scribes thought it worth copying fragments of it into…
The Plea of the Irish Chieftains to the Pope: The Remonstrance of 1317
In 1317, Irish chieftains led by Domhnall Ó Néill sent a remarkable plea to Pope John XXII, arguing centuries before the Enlightenment that Ireland had every right to rule itself.
How Old Is The World? | The Age of the World (According to the Irish Annals)
OR, A Hypothetical Timeline of Irish History Note – Anno mundi, (Latin: “in the year of the world”), abbreviation A.M, the year dating from the year of creation in Jewish chronology, based on rabbinic calculations.…
How the Irish Got Their Language | Origins of Gaeilge and Ogham
Auraicept na n-Éces, or The Scholars' Primer, is one of the most important and fascinating surviving texts from medieval Ireland. It stands as the earliest known native Irish treatise on grammar, poetics, and the philosophy of language.
The Last Fili? Osborn Bergin: The Scholar Who Carried the Name of Legend
Osborn Joseph Bergin (1873–1950) was a towering figure in Celtic studies. Read on to learn more about this veritable master of the Irish language, in all its historical forms, a brilliant philologist, an exacting editor of manuscripts, and a dedicated teacher who helped shape the next generation of scholars, including Myles Dillon.