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HENRY BRADSHAW
SOCIETY

Sounbeb in i^c ^edt of Our feorb 1890

for f^c ebtttng of (Rare feiturgtcaf ZcxiB.

Vol. XIV.

ISSUED TO MEMBERS FOR THE YEAR 1897,

PRINTED FOR THE SOCIETY

HARRISON AND SONS, ST. MARTIN'S LANE,

i'KINTERS IN ORDINARY TO HEK MAJESTY.

THE IRISH

LIBER HYMNORUM

EDITED FROM THE MSS. WITH TRANSLATIONS, NOTES,

AND GLOSSARY

J. H. BERNARD, D.D.,

Fellow of Trinity College, and Archbishop King's Lecturer in Divinity
in the University of Dublin

AND

R. ATKINSON, LL.D.,

Professor of Sanskrit in the University of Dublin.

Vol. II. Translations and Notes.

feonbon*
1898.

NOV 1 5 1934

1332.

LONDON :
HARRISON AND SONS, PRINTERS IN ORDINARY TO HFK MAJESTY,

ST. martin's lane.

CONTENTS OF VOL. II.

PAGE.

NTRODUCTION.

§ I, The Metrical Systems of the Latin Hymns ix

§ 2. The Metrical Systems of the Irish Hymns - ... xx\i

TRANSLATIONS OF THE IRISH PREFACES AND HYMNS.

Preface to the Hymn .-///^///^ ^w«(?j (No. i) ... ... ... ••• ••• 3

,, ,, ,, ChHstus in nostra insula i^o, 2) 8

,, ,, ,, Cekbra luda {^o. T,) 9

„ ,, ,, Farce Doffiine {'Ho. /\) ... H

„ Sen Dc {"tio. S) ^2

The Hymn.S-6V/Z)/(No. 5) U

Preface to the Hymn Cantemus in omni die (No, 6) I7

,, ,, ,, Hy7nnum dicat C^o. y)... ••• ^^

,, ,, ,, In trinitate spes 7nea {^o. % ... ... ••• ••• '9

,, ,, ,, Mariine ie deprecor C^o. ^) ... 20

,, ,, ,, Gloria in Excehis {^o. lo) ... ... ... ••• 21

Magnificat {^o. \\) 22

„ Te Deum {^o. \z) 22

„ ,, ,, Altus Prosator Ci^o. 14) ,. ••• 23

,, ,, „ In te Ch7-iste {'Ho. \$) 27

Noli Pater {'Ho. 16) 28

„ Prayerof St. John (No. 17) 29

„ ,, Epistleof Christto Abgar (No. 18) ?o

,, ,, Hymn Genair Patraic {Ho. 19) ... ... 3^

The Hymn Gejiair Pat7'aic {Ho. ig) 32

Ninine's Prayer (No. 20) 3^

Vtefsice to ihe Hymn Brigit Ife dit/imait/i {Ho. 2i) ... 37

The Hymn Brigit be bithviaith { No. 21) 39

„ tW rar j5;7^V (No. 22) and Preface 4^

St. Sanctan's Hymn (No. 23) and Preface 47

The Lorica of St. Patrick (No. 24) and Preface 49

The Hymn of Mael-fsu (No. 29) 52

The Names of the Apostles (No. 30) 52

Preface to the Amra of St. Columba (No. 33) 53

The Amra of St. Columba (No. 33) 55

St. Adamnan's Prayer (No. 34) ^'

Pedigree of St. Mobi (No. 35) 82

The Hymn of St. Philip (No. 36) ^3

Miscellanea (No. 37) ^4

The Release of Scandlan Mor (No. 38) 85

The Death of St. Cokimba (No. 39) ^7

CONTENTS.

TRANSLATIONS OF THE IRISH PREFACES AND HYMNS— fw//;///6v/.

PAGE.

The Five Divisions of Munster (No. 40) 88

In Praise of Hymnody (No. 41) ... ... 89

The Three Kings (No. 42) 90

Preface to .5^«^afiV;V<? (No. 43) 91

,, Christe qui lux cs (^o. ^) ... ... ... ... ... 92

,, Qiiicunque Vult (No. 47) ... ... ... ... ... ... 92

NOTES AND TRANSLATIONS OF THE IRISH GLOSSES.

The Irish Prefaces ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 95

'Wi&Yi'^xxin Atiditc ovincs {^o. i) ... ... ... ... ... 96

,, Christits in nostra \^o. 2)... ... ... ... ... ... 106

,, Celebra /uda {'^o. 2,) 108

,, Pane dopiine (No. 4) ... ... ... ... ... 112

SenDc'iNo.S) 113

,, Cantevnis in onnti die C^o. t) ... ... ... 123

,, Hymniim dicat {^o. 'j) ... ... ... ... ... ... 125

,, In trinitate spes viea ^o. Z) ... ... ... ... ... 132

,, Martine ie deprecor C^o. <)) ... ... ... ... ... 134

,, Gloria in Excelsis (No. 10) ... ... ... ... ... 135

,, Magnificat and Bejiedictiis \^Q?,. Hand 12) ... ... ... 137

„ 7> Z)t7f;w (No. 13) 138

„ Altus Frosator (No. 14) ,. ... 140

,, In te Christe (No. 15) 169

„ Noli Pater (No. 16) 171

The Prayer of St. John (No. 17) 172

The Epistle of Christ to Abgar (No. 18) 173

Tht Hymn Genair Patraic (No. i<^) 175

The Prayer of Ninine (No. 20) 187

T\it Hymn Brigit be hithviaith (No. 21) „ 187

,, Ni car Brigit (No. 22) 189

,, A teoch rig (No. 2;^) 206

The Lorica of St. Patrick (No. 24) 208

The Lamentation of St. Ambrose (No. 25) ... ... ... ... ... 212

An Abridgement of the Psalter (No. 26) ... ... ... 216

The Hymn Alto ct ine^abili (No. 27) ... ... ... ... ... ... 218

„ Abbas probatus omnino (No. 2^) ... ... ... ... ... 22c

,, Inspimt nocb (No. 2g) ... ... ... ... ... ... 221

The Nam.es of the Apostles (No. 30) ... ... ... 222

The Hymn Eccc fulget (No. T,i) ... 222

,, Phoebi diem (No. 32) 223

The Amra of St. Columba (No. 33) 223

The Prayer of St. Adamnan (No. 34) 235

The Pedigree of St. Mobi (No. 35) - 235

The Hymn Pilip apstail (No. -^6) 236

Miscellanea (No. 37) ... ... ... .. ... ... 236

The Release of Scandlan Mor (No. 38) 236

The Death of St. Columba (No. 39) 238

The Five Divisions of Munster (No. 40) ... 238

CONTENTS.

NOTES ANT) TRANSLATIONS OF THE IRISH i.'LO'iSV.i^—coniiniuJ.

In Prai.>e of Ilymnody (No. 4.1)

Hymn on the Three Kings (No. 42) •••

Bcncdicite (No. 43)

The Hymn Christe qui lux es (No. 44)

,, Christi patris in dcxtcra (No. 45)

Cautcmus domino gloriosc ^0. dtt)

Quiciinque Vult {^0. AH)

The Lorica of Gildas (No. 4S)

INDICES.

I. Of Personal Names

II. (}f Places and Tribes

PAGE.

239
239

240
241
241

242

246
256

]

The Metrical Systems of the Liber Hymnorual

§ I. The Latin Hymns.

Admitting that a certain importance may be naturally assigned
to the question of the origin of the metres in these hymns, I
have yet thought it better to set forth simply the facts-
ascertainable from the investigation of the texts themselves,
without entering upon the difficult problem of their possible
relations to continental writings of the early period. Whatever
theory be held as to the original forms of Irish Metric, it must
necessarily take into account the facts thus ascertained.

The hymns that are the subject of this section are numbered
in our collection i, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9 ; 14, 15, 16 ; 27, 28, 31, 32 ; 44,
45 ; 48. With one exception, they are the work of Irish poets,
according to the undisputed tradition of native writers, but the
internal evidence for this belief is not equally strong in the case
of the several poems. The one admittedly foreign element is
the hymn of St. Hilary of Poitiers, Yinmmi dicat, which, as we
shall see, bears the unmistakeable stamp of a totally different
system of metrical structure and consequently of treatment of
the language. This is a classic poem ; the others are vulgar
Latin.

The Prefaces do not add much to our knowledge. When,
e.g.^ on Martine te deprecor (No. 9), the scholiast says that it is
made in rhythm and that there are six capitula, each of two
lines, he states, no doubt, what is sufficiently obvious ; but when
he adds non cequalevi immertnn syllabarinn swgidce linecu semanty,

X THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE LATIN HYMNS.

it is equally obvious that he had not rightly conceived the
metrical system. That the poet did not construct the hymn in
any irregular manner may be taken as certain ; he knew well
what rules he intended to follow, and these rules were never so
elastic as the Preface would lead us to infer. That the metrical
laws were duly observed by the writers of our hymns cannot be
doubted ; but to an ear accustomed to the rhythm of classic
verses, the effect must be very unharmonious and disconcerting.
We can hardly think that the writers were familiar with Latin
classical poetry. But to anyone familiar with their laws of
versification, there is no lack of dexterity in the structure of these
verses. Interpolations demonstrate themselves as such, by
exhibiting the incapacity of the later versifiers to comprehend or
imitate the earlier style (as in 1. 25 of Hilary's Hymn), or by the
thoughtlessness that introduced an incongruous construction
into a complex clause (as in 1. 33 of the hymn Celebra luda), or
by the use of wrong metres, as will appear in the sequel.

It is not necessary to determine what the poets regarded as .1
* line,' in every case ; but as the long line always has a caesura,
it may be laid down that the unit is seven- or eight-syllabled.
How many times this unit is repeated before the stanza is
complete, is left to the poets' choice. Taking this seven- or eight-
syllabled structure as the tinity and assuming two of these units
as the line^ the following synopsis may be given of all the
varieties of metre found in the hymns : —

unrhymed.

2 (8 + 7)

Hymn

No. 7.

4 (8 + 7)

Une-rJiymcs.

~~~'

» I.

2 (8 + 7)

„ 6,Z.

2 (7 + 7)

n 9-

2 (5 + 7)

M 3.

2 (6 + 5)

, 48.

THE HYMN OF ST. HILARY. xi

C unit-rhynies.

a, 2 (8 + 8) = Hymn No. 15, 16, 31, 32, 45.

b, 4 (8 + 8) = „ „ 2, 27, 44.

c, 6(8 + 8) = „ „ 14.

d, n (8 + 8) = „ „ 28.
We must now go through these in order.

A. Unrhymed Hymns.

Aa. The unrhymed hymns may be considered first, as being
probably the least influenced by native tendencies. Hymn
No. 7 (that of St. Hilary) is distinguished from all the rest by
the circumstance that it observes both quantity and elision. It
is, in short, a regular trochaic tetrameter catalectic {quod a poetis
Gru^cis et Latinis frequentissime ponitur, according to the F
Preface), divided by a ceesura after the eighth syllable :

The rule set forth in the Prefaces that a spondee should not
occur in the third place is fairly adhered to ; but the Prefaces
note its infraction in 11. 9, 24 (see also 29, 34, 38, 60, 6y). In
other respects the quantity of the Latin vowels is observed (note
scandere crucem in 39). Also, elision is regularly carried out, as
in 9, 14, 20, 23, 29, 32, 49, and 72, Ji^" 74-

Now this strict observance of quantity and elision through-
out makes it highly probable that 11. 25, 26 are spurious:

uinum | quod dejerat | idris motari aquam iubet

nupti,is me|ro reltentis propin nando | pocu lo

Here (a) deerat is impossible ; (^) motari could not have
escaped elision ; (7) idris should have been ydriis (trisyll.), like
nuptiis in the following line ; (3) propinnando could not have
begun a trochaic measure ; (e) uinum has to be taken as
dependent on motari, 'to be changed into wine,' for quod is
never used as = ' because,' but only as the neuter relative ;

xii THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE LATIN HYMNS.

and (5") no definite meaning can be elicited from either inera
propinnando or miptiis retentis. Under these circumstances (to
which may be added that it was found necessary to signify in
one MS. the ordo iierborum), we cannot doubt that this stanza
is an interpolation, although it is found in all the MSS.

Some points are to be noticed in the concurrence of vowels.
The semi-vocalic nature of i and u often constituted a difficulty
to the transcribers, who have variously modified the text in
consequence. Thus 8 ante \ s^cii\ld tin fuzsti is impossible, for
-la in saecula could not be long, tui could not be monosyllabic»
^ndfuisti could not be dissyllabic, for u before a vowel does not
coalesce therewith. A gives us the true text, viz., dut(^ \ scBcld \
tfi fii\Isti. The usage is for non-initial 7i to be pronounced
separately; thus we have 6 ianfid, 1'}^ pucrperain^ i8 flmt, 24
viorti'ids, 32 instruuntur^ 45 affnlt, 55 mortuiSy 58 ianuis. An
exception is found in 30 duodecim^ which must be scanned
' without the ii] as the marginal gloss says ; i.c.^ it is pro-
nounced dwodecim (cf. Italian due, but dodici).

Similarly with non-initial i. We have 10, 40, omniuut,
II Gabriclis mintio, 16 mmtidtum, potejiti^, 19 nutriendus, (26
7niptils), 27 viilid, 34 Pofitw, 38 impiis, 39 noxiis, 56 tertid}
62 filium, 6\Jilios, 65 gloridm. But initial i has the consonantal
value; ci. a^ lesse^ 10 iiibet, 31 ludas, 36 ludaeorum, 45 losep/i.
In 1. 58 the metre demands clausis ianins, although all the
MSS. have ianuis clausis.

It seems probable that the hymn originally ended with 1. 66.
Not only does turba fratrum concinemus of 1. 65 furnish a fitting
ending to a piece beginning ymnuin dicat turba fratrum ; but
metrical changes appear in the stanzas which follow. Apart
from the repetition dj galli cantus, galli plausus, we have the
rhyme 68 nos rrt:;2tantes et prcuc3.ntes, which is out of keeping

' In 56 vjmtiai is wrong. The meaning is that the women are first wamed (53),
and then they announce to the Apostles ; so that nuntiant which preser\'es the metre
also keeps closer to the narrative (Lc.^xxiv. 9). CG read nuntiansy but that, while
restoring the metre, does not remove the awkwardness of construction.

THE HYMN OF ST. SEC HN ALL. xiii

with the unrhymed character of the poem.^ Stanza 69, 70 is
anomalous, because 69 qut is unehded and made long before
imincnsam. It is also difficult to explain niaiestatoii or to
connect it with the previous stanza. Lines 71, 72 are also
incorrect, for each has a spondee in the third foot ; qui is
unelided in 72 ; and we have 71 domino and 72 cum eo. The
last stanza is still worse ; it has 73 gloria, inghiito and unigcnito,
74 slmul and spiritu. These are possible in Irish cantica^ but
inconceivable in this Hilarian poem.

The result of this analysis goes to show that the hymn ended
with 1. 66 ; probably the rest was suggested by ante lucem of
1. 65. It will be remembered that the Preface knows nothing ot
ymniim dicat as a morning hymn ; its statement is " sic nobis
conuenit canere post prandiumr

Ab. The other unrhymed poem to be considered is tLc
Hymn of St. Sechnall (our No. i).

Here we are on totally different ground, for quantity and
elision (save in the penult) are completely ignored. Thus while
Hilary's line-endings all have the antepenult (correctly) long,
Sechnall's line-endings exhibit the following : i' inerita 6
Jiomines 8 dominum 16 cetheriam 17 euangelica 19 pretium
&c. And in like manner no account is taken of elision, e.g.,
I aiidi\te onineSy 2 uiri \ In Chri\stb^ 8 imde \ et in \ cosliSy 9
fide im\mbbiris.

The rhythm of the verses is given by the obviously intended
cretic ending of each line, where, it will be observed, the natural
accent of the voice in pronouncing the word is secured by the
short penult, e.g., merita, episcopiy angelis^ apbstolisr Hence the

' This stanza is, indeed, hardly capable of translation. " The song of the cock,
the wing-clapping of the cock feels the approaching day, we singing and beseeching
(the things) which we believe are about to be." The gl. explains ///://^ra q.s prae?nia
celestia ; but if praecantes is to be taken as governing ftitura, we have a double
awkwardness of structure to be added to the unsatisfactory disconnectedness of the
two lines.

" Todd remarked that 66 indtUtis is the only case where the second syllable of the
seventh foot is not short. This is quite correct, if we read in 70 -icidei instead of
•uidii.

xiv THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE LATIN HYMNS.

line rarely ends with a dissyllable ; this only happens indeed in
11. 22, 23, 24, 28, 32, 46, 72, 85, forms of bonus and deus being the
dissyllables chiefly found, and nearly all being preceded imme-
diately by a verb.^ On the other hand, Hilary has no objection
to the dissyllabic ending (cf 11. 5, 9, 10, 18) ; but save with iubet
in 11. 10, 25, and diem in 1. 6y (two of which are probably spurious
on other grounds), the dissyllable with him is preceded by a mono-
syllable.

In the case of i before vowels (save before another /), there is
always separate enunciation : thus we have 49 annuntlat^ 50
gratiam. But wherever ii occur together, they are read as one
vowel, e.g., 2 Patricia 19 naiiigi.

In the case of u there is also separate enunciation ; hence
sham tradit animam is the true text of 60 and spiritali pbcuio of
68, as Todd saw. After ^, u is not a vowel ; quern, quo, &c., are
monosyllables. Todd held that 36 cuius was to be read as a tri-
syllable ; but this is out of the question. It is always dissyllabic,
as is also huius in 19, 55.

In the two poems just examined, of Hilary and Sechnall, we
have typical examples of the classic and of the mediaeval style.
The latter is the natural outcome of the old rhythms in the
poetry of the people at large, as distinguished from the
elaborated structure of the scholars, who obeyed the sterner
stress of the classic method.

But this unrhymed poetry, even with the adornment of
acrostic arrangement, of definite ' numbers,' and recurring beat
of accent, did not satisfy the aesthetic longings of poets and
people. The poets in Ireland were not content to secure the
charms of rhyme at definite intervals, but have superadded a
luxury of harmonies of assonance and alliteration, which could
hardly fail in the long run to limit the available vocabulary, but
which at any rate mark these verses with the stamp of a special
class that is not found elsewhere, and should secure to the poets
a fitting niche in the world's anthology.

• In 1. 32 in cntce practically counts as a single word.

THE HYMN OF ST. COLMAN MAC MURCHON. xv

B. Line-rJiymes.

Ba. The first to be considered is St. Colman Mac Murchon's
hymn in praise of St. Michael (our No. 8). The metre is, as in
St. Sechnall's hymn, 2(8 + 7) J but the new feature is unmistake-
able. The rhyvie is thoroughly Irish rhyme, and all the stanzas
are perfect in this respect.

Rich trisyllabic rhymes occur throughout as follows : oinine^
iioviine ; doctore, corpore ; inej'giae^ superbiae ; archangeli^ angeli ;
species, requies ; probabilis, fragilis ; nh'ibuSy viilibus , aulia,
gaudia ; filio, cotisiiw. The full rhyming accent is, of course,,
on the antepenult ; but all the three vowels are in exact
correspondence, as are also the consonants which separate
them. Thus in doctore, corpore, the group of consonants ct
corresponds to rp, just as in 11. 11, 12, noctibus, sortibus^
ct corresponds to rt.

In the last stanza but one, the poet seems to have been
inspired to a final effort of technical skill, which it will not be
easy to parallel for the richness of its rhymes, assonances,
alliterations and harmonies : —

aeterna possint praestare regis regni aulia

ut possideam cum Christo paradisi gaudia.

Here note (i), the rich trisyllabic rhymes; (2), the two
/-alliterations in each line ; (3), the harmonies r^^is regm, and
(4), the correspondences possivX, possi&^2.Vi\, as also prestd^x^ and
CJiristo.

The poet was obviously quite conscious of his aim and of its
success : he immediately adds his Gloria Patri, which in this
case is quite in harmony with the metre, and may probably be
genuine. The subsequent lines adiuuet nos, Sic, have nothing to
do with the Hymn itself, but are merely a later addition for
liturgical purposes.

It is astonishing how little of the technical structure of this
poem seems to have been perceived by those who have handled

xvi THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE LATIN HYMNS.

it. It is hard to say what was in the mind of the writer of the
T preface in setting down his last sentence ; but he was writing
carelessly, for he has put .xi. before the dcec in line ii, and he
says that there are sixteen syllables in each line. The F preface
is correct in both items, but it does not contribute much to our
knowledge of the real nature of the rhythm. It is evident that
Todd had no clear conception of the metrical laws when he
suggested^ that '''■ adiutoriinn (1. 7) seems to have been pro-
nounced in four syllables." This would simply ruin the line,
for the suggestion ignores the syllabification of -iuin and the
necessity of an eight-syllabled unit before the caesura, thereby
producing an eight-syllabled unit after the caesura. The et of T
in the line should of course be omitted with FR, and MicJiaelis
should be written Michcelis, as F gives MichcBl in 11, 13, 15, where
T has simply Michel.

A second hymn of exactly the same metre and style is
Cuchuimne's hymn to the Virgin (our No. 6). Todd again
failed to understand the metrical law. He says (I.e. p. 138):
" the classical reader will not form a high idea of our author's
skill in Latin prosody." But Latin prosody has absolutely
nothing to do with the matter. These pieces are poems in
Latin written in popular metre by Irish poets ; the prosody
of the classical language is replaced by accent and by rh) Tie,
and the rhymes in this case are rich and perfect : —

cantc mus in I omni I die 1 concilnentes I varile

Here we note that (i) every line ends in a tri- [or poly-]
syllable, rhyming richly: varie, Maries; MariaiUy ui-cariam ;
doniini, homini ; pdterno, mdtcrno ; uetier-abilis^ stabilis ; similis,
or-iginis ; periity rediit ; edidit, credidit ; somnia, omnia ; feceraty
stHerat ; galiain, Mariam ; pu-erpercey decerpere [T is of course
wrong] ; iestibtis, cel-estibiis.

^ Liber Hymnoniniy p. 168.

THE HYMN OF ST, CUCHUIMNE. xvii

(2) In the * even ' lines, the assonances are equally perfect : —
Here we have 2 d.ignuvs\yyiniiu\r^ 2 ;

4 aurcvci, iaudcm ; 6 oport-tmain, curam ;

8 Qox\-ceptuin, ?>w^'Ceptiii)i ; 10 vQ-cesit, c^-stetit ;
12 pla?iey\\\xn\-ancB ; 14 uirt-«/^;//, sal-«/^w ;
16 \otus, tot us ; 18 safiiy C\\ns\.\-am ;
20 vciorte, sortc ; 22 ^tr-fectt, sxis-cepti ;
24 p/>^, d/V^ ; 26 {ru-a7nur, scriip-a?nur.

Nothing can be more certain than the intentio7i in these
cases : the poet regarded the assonance in the ' even ' line [as
an indispensable condition of the poem.

(3) One alliteration at least occurs in every stanza : —

2 ^eo, lignum ; 7 /rius, /'aterno ; 9 z^irgo, ^'enerabilis ;
10 ex-j-Zetit, j-Zabilis ; 12 /role,//ane ; 13 /rius, periit ;
15 J/aria, water, ;;/iranda ; 16 /ate, Mus ;
19 /onicam, /otum, /extam ; 20 j/atim, i"/eterat ;
21 /ucis, /oricam ; 24 ^irae, «aTecerpere.

Here, also, the deliberate purpose of the poet is undeniable

And probably we shall not be far wrong in holding that, as
the hymn was sung varie, i.e., inter duos choros (gl.), oi* ^s the
text again says, bis per chorum June et inde, the last verse was
sung in unison by both as a general * invocation ' to Christ, after
the antiphonal rendering of the hymn to the B.V.M.

Bb. These two masterly specimens of the Latin Hymns
under the hands of Irish poets are unfortunately the only ones
that are left us of the kind. In the poem now to be considered,
Martine te depreeor (our No. 9), we have a very different metre ;
the formula being 2(7 + 7) with line-rhymes dissyllable.

Nothing definite is known about the poet Oengus, but the
metre deserves close investigation. The principles of its struc-
ture are evidently quite different from these with which we are
now familiar, because not only is Christum to be elided before
ac in 1. 2, but we find 2 Mar/^m, 8 mort^^zs, 12 uoluntarz>, where
« the two vowels are monophthongal. But the important element

LIBER HYMN. II. ^""^.-xr- - ^

xviii THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE LATIN HYMNS.

is the dissyllabic rhyme, which proves that the rhythm must be
iambic.

I should not be hard to persuade that this poem of Oengus
was somewhat of an experiment. The preface says : ct ostendit
hymnuin suuin, et laudauit Adamnan hyinnum ; perhaps there
was an element that struck Adamnan as being unwonted.

Taking the fifth stanza of this hymn, viz. : —

uerbum dei locutus secutus in mandatis

uirtutibus impletis morfuis resuscitatis,

if we read the verses simply, making tii monophthongal (or
perhaps = vi), it is almost impossible to avoid the conclusion
that XociUus and scciitus were intended to rhyme, and that
rcidinddtis and resuscitatis are also dissyllabic rhymes.

If then, on the basis of this verse-ictus, we assume that
dissyllables are oxytone, and trisyllables paroxytone, we shall
accent the above stanza as follows : —

uerbiim del lociatus secutus in mandatis

uirtutibus impletis mortvis resuscitatis

Examining then each word on this assumption we find the
most definite usage of words as to their accent : —

(I) Every trisyllable is paroxytone. Thus, I viartine^
deprecor, rogaris ; 2 spirituni, Jiabcntem ; 3 inarthius,
laudauit; 4 cantauit^ ainauit ; 5 electus^ saliitis ;
6 donauity uirtiUis ; 7 lochtuSy secutus, mandatis ;
8 impletis ; 9 homines ^ duplice ; 1 1 dominum ; 12
Martlne.

(II) Words of four syllables have accents on ultimate
and antepenult. Thus 8 virtiitibiis 12 voliintariey
deprecare.

(III) Words of five syllables are accented paroxytone and
on the fourth last syllable. Thus 8 resuscitatis 1 1
viagnitudhie, egretudine.

(IV) Dissyllables arc dependent for their accent on the

THE HYMN OF ST. OENGUS. xix

ictus, (a) If they follow an atonic syllabic, they are
paroxytonc ; otherwise (b) they are oxytone : —
Thus, (a) 2 ChristhiiL 3 ore 4 piirb, corde, atqiie 5 signa,
sibl 6 DiagHcc^ atque 7 verbuin^ del 8 inortuls 9
Sandns, curd 10 md/a, dira ii Deuin^ passimi 12
propter And (b) i pdtrem 2 sdnctiun, Mdriaviy
mdtrcni 3 nicnis, more, dhnn 4 cum 5 dei, vivi
6 dens, pdcis 9 lepra, mira 1 1 nostnun, nobis, mire.

In these verses the beat being iambic, and every trisyllable
paroxytone, a trisyllabic word can only stand with its initial
syllable in the odd places. The formula is : —

Thus te Martine could not occur with te in either 1st, 3rd,
or 5th syllable ; the trisyllabic word must begin at one of these
points. Obviously also two trisyllables cannot stand together ;
hence any such combination as propter nos laudauit at the begin-
ning of a line is impossible, because propter nos would not leave
the right beat for laiidduit. For this reason Christum ac must
undergo elision in 1. 2, being followed by spiritum (cf. Fr. esprit^ ;
and similarly Mariam could not be a trisyllable ; in 8 mortuis
must be a dissyllable, and in 12 uoluntarie must have only four
syllables.

The verses are not all easy to construe ; and possibly the
limitations of the metric may have contributed to the awkward-
ness of construction in some of the lines. In the third stanza,
what can be the grammatical relation of electus and deusf
If electus be taken as agreeing with Martinus in the same
way as the words locutus in the fourth, and sanans in the
fifth stanza, then the line donauit deus 6, has no place in the
sequence at all. Stanzas one and six are addressed to Martin,
but the four inner stanzas are apparently 07ie narrative sentence.

Be. The hymn of St. Cummain the Tall (our No. 3) exhibits
a variation in the number of syllables preceding the caesura.

d 2

XX THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE LATIN HYMNS.

This has a thoroughly Irish structure, on the basis of the
system, 2(5+ 7), with end rhymes : —

Celebra luda festa Christi gaudia

apostulorum exultans memoria

Here we have genuine Irish rhymes in which not only the
rhyming syllable final but the preceding letters are harmonised.
Thus gaiidia^ memoria is a rich rhyme of three syllables, in
which the intervening consonants are of the same (Irish) class.
Note also the rich rhyme of pastoris, captoris, in the second
stanza. In the stanzas which follow, the triple rhyme occurs-
pretty frequently, showing that it was sought for, though it was
not absolutely indispensable. We have 5, 6, ^x^ceptoris^
seminis ; 7, 8 egreg-/^, aduocam-/;^^^: y 9, 10, dom/«/, s?e.c-uli ;
infant-/<a:, ub-^r^y 13, 14 V-ilipz, peru-2^//// 15, 16, nutibus^
mtbibus ; 17, 18, Par-//w>, scien-//^/ 19, 20, mu-w^r^, pro-/^r^/
21, 22, co-minus^ sdte-rzus ; 23, 24 teW-tira, epist-o/a ; 25, 26
Cannan-^/, sd.ngu-zne [here it is not impossible that dez should
be the last word of the line] ; 27, 28 m-erz'tzs, editzs ; 29, 30
justit-/^, Alaxandr-/^; 31, 32 euangelist-<^, honor-^/ 33, 34
merit-^, oper-<^ ; 35, 36 mart-m>, susp-Zr/V/ 37, 38 waliduy
sn^r-agza ; 39, 40 \-acula^ pxopwgx\-acula ; 41, 42 pect-<?;7^,
^r^C'Ula ; 43, 44 gen-2V(?, ag-z^.

There are no assonances nor alliterations sought for, nor are
other harmonies introduced save incidentally. No attention is
paid to quantity, for here, too, the short penult of the verse
ignores the classical quantity, as in prceceptoris, 8ic.^ and even
siispzris (36). Elision is not permitted, so that in 1 1 the reading
of F lecti is correct, against the electi of T, which would need
its final i to be elided before ab, for the metre. Again, in 27,
the reading of Y prelecti is correct.

The treatment of initial /before vowels is not quite uniform,,
for we have i ^7/rda, 1 1 z'^hannis, 24 ies,w, but in the two cases of
iVzcob/, 9 and 21, the two vowels are sounded separately, just
as in Madirt:ni (27), and i'^cula (39), invit/Vzta (41). The case of

THE LORICA OF GILD AS, xxi

i<?cula, noty(r^cula, is very noteworthy, as it is quite foreign to the
general usage, by which initial / before a vowel is consonantal ;
cf. jacula in Altiis Prosator^ 1. 96. As usual ii is a monoph-
thong ; e.g. cuatigelt (4).

The verse 45, 46 though ending with alleluia^ like the
preceding stanzas, has nothing to do with the poem, as the
measure is totally different.

The Lorica of Gildas.

Bd. We have now to consider the Lorica of Gildas (No. 48),
which is most instructive in respect of the treatment of Latin
words by this class of writers. As in the other Latin hymns of
this Irish family, no elision is observed, and quantity is often
ignored ; the whole attention is concentrated on the nilmber of
syllables, and on the rhyme correspondences. The metre is
trochaic trimeter catalectic, and the formula is 2(6 + 5). In
every pair of lines there is a cretic jingle of assonance (tri-
syllabic).

The last three syllables exhibit these following principles : —

(i) The last vowel always rhymes exactly, and a succeed-
ing consonant, if present, is always the same ; thus we
have as the rhyming finals, ^, e^ /, 0 ; as^ es, is^ us ; ani^
eifty um ; at.
(2) This final vowel may be preceded immediately, (a) by
another rhyming vowel, or (b) be separated from it by
a single consonant, b^ r, // /, m^ n^ r, or in four cases
by the combined consonants 83 //, 23 mn^ 45 rm, 85
nt.

In case of (a) we have the combinations, i-a^ i-am^
i-as, i-at ; i-e^ i-es ; but i-ant rhymes with e-am^ i-at
with e-at, i-a with e-la and u-a^ and i-as with u-mas.

In case of (b), we have the liquids 'rhyming' with
each other: w, r ; 71^ r ; n, I; but we have /rhyming
with c and with t ; r with c : in other words, the single
consonants that are used as * interveners,' were appa-

xxii THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE LATIN HYMNS.

rently allowed as equivalents, except b which is only
used with itself.

There are also the four cases of double consonants
rhyming with single, in these harmonies : mn = r,
nt = 7/, Tin = r, and // = n, where also the double
consonant does not lengthen the preceding vowel.

The vowel remains in general the same, but these
varieties are observable : iina^ era ; antes, ines ; era,
ula ; 071 as, enas ; one, ine ; ovnii, ori ; otem, teem ; ici,
uri ; ulum, icuin ; ere, ore ; ine, ere ; itu, tilo ; i-a, ela ;
i-as,umas ; u-a, ela; i.e., it is obvious that any short
vowel satisfied the conditions of the verse. Thus we
find: a, with /; e, with /, o, u ; i, with e, o, u ; o, with
c, i ; and u, with e, i, 8ic.
(3) The antepenult has a long vowel (not always correctly),
which is so frequently the same as to show that the
writer must have sought identity as far as obtainable ;
and the separating consonant was no doubt made to
harmonise to the utmost extent possible under the
conditions.

This ' lorica ' is of great importance, because it
shows the pronunciation with the strong stress of
voice producing the effect of a long vowel. For
it is plain that only thus could the effect of the
poem have been realised. It demands a little effort,
no doubt, to accept the possibility of such a rhyming
equation, lor instance, as tiitela = po-tentt'a in 1. 32,
but until this be accepted, there would be little use in
presenting virgin-es onines as a rhyme for conf-es-ores
in 24, which it assuredly was intended by the poet to
be. And the horror to a Latinist will not be diminished
by the presentation oi gutii7'i = cervici as a satisfactory-
specimen of the possibilities of the verse.
In the text of B, are several minor errors ; thus 8 should have
'militue ; 18 ualeain ; in IQ the last word is of course wrong, but

THE HYMN IN TE CHRISTE. xxiii

whether \vc read agofit/ittas or Rgonot/u'tas as the rhyme to
prdfitas will depend on the determination of the number of
syllables in dcindCy which I think is trisyllabic ; in 20 quatz^or
has probably to be read as a dissyllable; in 21 prort^tas is an
extraordinary transformation of 7rp(ppdTTj<;y to rhyme with athli^tas
{iidXr)^)^) ; in 42 atquc has probably to be deleted ; in 46 facit',
in 47 supercil/i- should be read ; in 49 there is a syllable too
many, which is probably to be secured by emending the first
word \x\X.o piiplis ; in 52 uvae is evidently to be omitted, because
it is the same as linguae 51, and even so gurgub^ni has to be
read with synizesis of io, or more probably as lyo ; in 57 dom'ne
has to be read, or delude of the other MSS. ; in 64 ungulbus is
necessary ; in 66 que must be added to nervos with A"^ : in
72 tlbis et calclbiis are the right readings ; in 80 there are two
syllables extra in the line, but emendation would be mere
guessing here, (perhaps renes for reniculos or should we omit
fitrem as a gloss ?) ; in 81 whatever toliarn may mean, it exem-
plifies the use oi lyo in 52, for it must he. tolyaitt^ dissyllabic ; in
88 read praeter-iV, in 91 uti ; in 95 either tarn is to be read, or
there is a syllable wanting ; in 97 delete factis with CNA,

C. Unit-rhymes,

We now enter upon the consideration of the poems in which
the vowel at the cssura rhymes with the final vowel of the line.
The stanzas may include two, four, or six lines ; but the
principle is the same. In all cases the second hemistich is
octosyllabic^ which at once distinguishes this section from those
which have gone before. This, indeed, is the normal measure for
hymns, being that in which most of the verses in our collection
are written.

Ca. The commonest form is the two-line stanza, 2 (8 + 8),
exemplified in our No. 15, the hymn ascribed to Columba,
beginning :

In te Christe credenti/^^w

miserearis omni?/;/^.

xxiv THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE LATIN HYMNS,

The rhyme bears only on the last syllable, though the
preceding syllable usually has the same or a kindred vowel.
But there is nothing Irish in this stanza, metrically, and most
probably the real Irish poets, such as Colman and Cuchuimne,
would not have regarded this hymn as deserving a high place
for its artistic structure. The rhymes are poor, and largely
made up of mere grammatical identities: credentium, viventium ;
ascenderat, salvaverat, &c. These do not merit much applause.
The alliterations are mere repetitions : tcita uiventium ; uirtus
uirtutum, index iudlcum ; princeps priiicipum, &:c. In fact the
hymn has every appearance of being a mere hasty after-thought,
as indeed the Preface leads us to infer.

It naturally falls into two divisions, the first (11. i-l6)
addressed to the Trinity, and the second (11. i6 — end) addressed
to Christ. In both sections there are irregularities of all sorts.
L. 10 is wrong, for

deus rex regni in gloria
deus ipse uiuentium
does not furnish rhyme at all, and re^ni suffers elision before ///,
which is not permissible. In 1. 14, " omnia noua cuncta et
uetera " is very poor. The stanza which begins with 1. 19 is
incomplete. 1. 23 is intolerable, for redemeret cannot rhyme
\^\\\\ passiis est. In 1. 2/\. penetrat is poor xhy mQ ^or ascenderai,
apart from the tense of the latter. In 1. 26 gloria has its final
vowel elided, although patri does not suffer elision before
ingenito.

There is nothing to be said in favour of this hymn ; it is
quite unworthy of being placed in juxtaposition with Columba's
great poem, the Alius Prosator.

The next poem, Noli pater (our No. 16), is written in the
same measure, 2 (8 + 8) ; but it produces a totally different
effect, because the rhymes are rich. Here too we are face to
face with a mere fragment of three stanzas. Thus we have :
mdiUlgere ^ fulgore ; ioxmidine, uridine ; \.^xxibilein, similem ;
carniina^ agmina ; culmina, fulmina ; amaintissime, rcctissifne ;

THE HYMN NOLI PATER. xxv

i.e., in the first three stanzas the c<xsura- and cnd-rhymcs are
trisyllabic rich rhymes in absolute correctness, where both
vowels and consonants have the requisite harmonies. But the
fourth stanza is not quite so good ; the fifth has no harmony
.md is incomplete ; and the remaining pair of stanzas have
nothing to do with this poem at all.

The first three stanzas have the real Irish rhyme (although
it may fairly be doubted whether even line 6 is genuine), which
at once brings the poet into line with Colman and Cuchuimne.
But scBCula and i-egitnina would not have been approved of by
these past masters in the art of ' harmony,' while gratia and
sicera would have been certainly rejected. They belong to the
style of which we have another example in ecce fulget darissima
{our No. 31) w^hich is now to be examined.

Here at the outset we meet a difficulty, for how can clarissim^-?
be held to rhyme with sollempnit^^.^ That it is not an error is
clear from 1. 13, where the same occurs, gentilit^j" with monit<^ ;
so 16 astutirt: with fuer<^/, and 17 dilectissim/ with presuh'i".
These bad rhymes at once disclose a totally different theory of
versification.

The two hymns (31 and 32) to Patrick and Brigid, probably
belong to the same period, though the latter does not furnish an
-example of the bad rhyme referred to, and with the exception
of 1. 2 (where gaudi^ would remove the objectionable want of
rhyme), has at least its final vowel correct.

The same measure, 2(8 + 8) is found in the hymn CJiristi
patris in dextera (our No. 45), which was evidently written by a
late imitator of the early hymns (see below, p. 241).

So in the alphabetical hymn Abbas probatiis omnino (our
Xo. 28), we have the similar system n(8 + 8). Here there is
no further requirement of harmony than the final vowel (and
consonant) ; the vowels ie may be monophthong, as in 15
probatus sapiens peritiis^ or be sounded separately as in 17
requi'cscit post obitum. Note also — lasriiis in 12, and the
monstrosity in 9, ieiunus as a word oi four syllables.

xxvi THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OP THE LATIN HYMNS,

The late hymn No. 44, does not even rhyme accurately, and
is of no importance here. It comes under the head Cb. This
is also the metre of the hymn in praise of St. Ciaran (our
No. 27), upon which something must be said. The MSS. YZ
preserve the metre better than T, e.g., i ineffabili, cetui 2
specule ; 1. 4 is given more accurately in the former MSS. The
lines (9-12) Rogainus deuvi have nothing to do with the poem
itself, for 1. 9 is not in rhyme and has a syllabic too many.
The same is true of 1. 10, in which also Ciarani has to be read
as four syllables, although in the poem itself we have Queranus
with three.

It is possible that the lines should be arranged differently,
and that we should print one stanza of the pattern Cc, 6(8 + 8),
followed by two supplementary lines. Certainly lines 4 and 5
run together, Quzaranus . . . inaltatus est ; and the phrase
noinssimis teniporibus recalls the words of the antiphon appended
to the A I tics Prosator (vol. i. p. 8 1 ), noitissimo in tempore. Rogamus
deuiH, &c., of our hymn in praise of St. Ciaran, would then
correspond to the invocation Deuni patreni . . . inuoco which
follows the antiphon at the end of the Altiis. See below, p. 218,
where Colgan is quoted as giving a line very like 1. 7 as the
beginning of a hymn of Columba in praise of Ciaran.

Cc. We now proceed to consider the Alius Prosator of St.
Columba (our No. 14). Its metre is 6(8 + 8), with caesura- and
end-rhymes. No attention is paid to quantity, for even in the
penult syllable of the line, which must always be shorty we find
such cases as 10 majestas ; 20 anttquus ; 74 itiflrnum ; 103
cupido ; 108 erumpcmiis ; 123 vexilhnn ; 135 ventsse. The
stress of the voice on the accented syllable for the beats was
quite sufficient for the measure.

But in order to read the verses properly, attention has to be
paid to the treatment of concurrent vowels. Here the modern
habit of printing m and v indiscriminately by u, and i andy by /,
has introduced a needless difficulty. These letters i and u are
always consonants when they are ifiitial or come between tWQ

THE HYMN ALIUS PROS A TO K.

xxvu

vowels, hence 96 Jacula ; 97 jiidiccm ; 103 hujiis ; 45. 88. 89. 90.
91 cuJHS ; 10 viajcstas ; 44 dejectus. This is carried out so
that in compounds the initial preserves its rights even after a
consonant; hence 18 per-z/icacis ; 18 in-z/idia ; 24 di-z/ersorum.
Hut then, even this does not explain all, because we have
7 sah'a ; 66 ferrentibus ; Z2 re-voh'ere.

Omitting then the cases of consonant vowel, there remain
to be considered the numerous cases of the concurrence of two
vowels. These are treated in the following table.

The following combinations are possible : —

Initials

Finals.

—

(o-e) .

(oy)

—

110

They occur as follows : —

^•\E : 45 aeris ; (97 \?>xahel ;)
Ai : 92 sinai.

\au is always a monophthong, 18. 33. 35. 54- ni- ^ll^
EA: 125 ficulnea.
Ei : 52 ceruleis; [53 vine'is F ;] 57 dei, 6Z, 70, 132; 114

eisdem ;
e6: 6 deos ; 17 eodem ; 135 deo.
EU : 6 deum ; 71 cundem ; 114 obeuntibus ; 115 redeun-

tibus.

^ Of course a is read as e, and y - i. It is to be obsei-ved that in the combination
qtt, u is always treated as a consonant ; hence we have the monosyllabic qua, 27, 64,
67, S4 ; que, 8 1 zxid, passim ; qui, 12, 21, 58 ; quo, 28, 40.

xxviii THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE LATIN HYMNS.

lA: 5 gloria; 12 celestia, previlegia ; 23 tertiam, &c., cf. L
26. 29. 302. 502. 51. 56. 57. 67. 68. 85. 88. 93. 95. 96.
109I iii^. 112. 136. 139. [It is plain therefore that
in 30 bestias is trisyllabic and that et should be
omitted as in all MSS. save T ; also that etralibus
should be read (with EI) in 114, as ethrialtbus has
five syllables.]
IE [i'ae] : i dierum ; 5 dietatis ; 16 superbiendo ; 18 cenodoxiae,
&€., cf. 21. 48. 67, 75. 91. 98. 99. 100. loil 107^ 118,
120^. 129. [Hence in 102 viiilierum is to be read
imdyerum, where li merely represents the liquid /.]

II : always = i, cf. 22 bestiis ; 63 obicibus ; J2 promontoriis
[Hence in 53, we have to read vineis^ with all MSS.
save T.]

iO : 7 gloriosus ; 10 otiosa ; 14 stationis, &c., cf. 21. 22. 35.
Z^. 372. 44. 51. 592. 64. 81. 86. 87. 89. 103. 105. 115.
116. 128. 131. 134. 138.

iU : 9^ sedium, virtutium ; 24 infernalii;m, &c,, cf. 34. 40.
45. 46. 49. 65. 74. J 6, yj. 1 00-. 102. 120. 1 2 61 127.

[OE: 5 co-aeternus.]
[OY: a monophthong : 97 Moysen.]

iJA : 5 perpetua ; 55 evacuant ; 93 tonitrua. [In 89 T has
et tua, which gives no meaning, though it preserves
the measure; but the reading of MEITI etiam which
was no doubt intended to mend the sense, unfor-
tunately ruins the measure, because ia7n is jamy so
that etiam is only a dissyllable ; and in any case
etiam never occurs in these hymns. I have little
doubt that the word should be eternal, etnae.]

iJE : 16 ruerat : 42 intueri ; 46 perduellium.

ijl: 4 cui ; 19 suis ; 21 fuit ; 39- ruit, suis ; 85 sui ; 138
perpetuis.

iJO : 38 duobus, 124; lOO tonitruorum ; ^2^. 130. 131.
quatuor.

UU : 40 vultuum ; 6y influunt. \

THE HYMN CIIKISTUS /N XOSl^KA. xxix

With respect to the rhymes, the chief rhyming syllable is //j'^
of the fioifi. sg-. or the dat.-ab. -zdus ; with 7is we have the rhyme
OS twice, io8 and 134, just as the rhyme is — es occurs 25 and
49 ; but as only rhymes with itself. With other consonants,
final, of / we have only -erat 16, 27, 84 ; -am occurs once 26 ;
'{i)um is pretty frequent. The remaining rhymes all bear on
the vowel final a-'\ c^\ r\ and 0^^.

But there is no rhyme ending in -n^ or in r, so that common
terminations are conspicuously absent : we have no ending like
prxvsilerif, defic[a?tt, vocab/V/^r, pdiU'tur found, e.g., in Sechnall's
hymn.

The rhymes occur therefore as follows, ranged in the order
of their frequency : —

us ; is, as, es, os ;

um ; am ;

erat^ ;

a, e, o, i.

No special attempt is made to secure alliteration or assonance,
which occur only incidentally and not in obedience to any rule.

Cb. The last hymn to be considered is Ultan's alphabetical
quatrains in honour of Brigid. The metre is similar to the last
allowing four lines instead of six to the stanza, 4 (8 4- 8).

But it is to be observed that the poem consists only of three
stanzas, beginning with X, Y and Z respectively, for the last
four lines beginning aiidite iiirginis laiides, do not form a
quatrain of either this or any other metre : certainly not this
metre, because the ' units ' do not rhyme ; certainly not any
other, because the first three lines are (8 + 7), while the fourth
is (7 -f 7) measure, with rhymed ' units.' In addition, the
second line has nine syllables, for perfecti<?nem has five syllables,
so that it is wholly impossible to regard any one of these four
lines as forming any portion of the original poem of Ultan.

^ In 27 rhyme is absent, io\ fecerat does not rhyme with condidit ; and the reading
condiderat of E involves the omission of et before aqtiaSy which breaks the symmetiy
of the line.

XXX THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE LATIN HYMNS.

The three lines at the end, Brigita sancta sedulo, are really
written in this metre, but they could not have formed portion
of the alphabetical hymn, because they do not form a quatrain,
and they end with iji scEcula scBculorinn, the whole being an
invocation which could hardly have stood second [B] in an
alphabetical poem.

The only difficulty in the three genuine verses of the hymn
is the syllabification of the word consueuit/m 1. lo; {or -sue- must
be dissyllabic, and then u between vowels must be consonantal,
so that we can only have con-su-e-vit of four syllables and this
does not satisfy the measure. The other MSS., unfortunately, do
not enable us to put the matter right, but the insertion of ct
before diurno is a reasonable conjecture. In other respects, the
rhymes and the numbers are all correct.

But I cannot think it probable that this hymn of Ultan
originally contained a whole alphabet of quatrains. In the first
place, it is quite certain that the Preface when speaking of ' the
first capitulum, and the last three capitula causa brevitatis,' is
thoroughly wrong in its statement about the first capitulum,
which is not present. F'urther, I doubt whether it be possible to
consider the lines, Christus in nostra insula quae vocatur
Hibernia, &c., in any other light than as an introductory stanza,
for a specification of this kind would be quite out of place in the
antepenultimate stanza of a lay poem. The poem referred to in
the Preface as beginning with Audite virginis laudes, is categori-
cally declared to contain the enumeration of Brigid's miracles,
and that could not have been efTected in the twenty stanzas
remaining of an alphabetical poem. And, in fact, the uncertain
manner in which the Preface (T) speaks of the author of this
Hymn, shows that little was known about it ; the words dicunt
alii, &c., make it probable that the final clause was itself merely
an inference from the presence of Audite virginis laudes in
sequence to our Hymn.

The Metrical Systems of the Liber Hymnorum.

% 2. The Irish Hymns.

In an attempt to investigate the metre of the Irish hymns
contained in this book, we are confronted with the problem of
the relations of Irish metric to Latin metric. It is possible
that Irish verses with a definite number of syllables were
unknown in Ireland before the introduction of Latin. In what
form the early pagan poets set forth their passions and their
dreams we have no knowledge ; but in a language of strong
word-accent, such as Irish is proved by its morphology to have
been from the earliest times, the native speech must have run
together the unaccented short syllables, much after the fashion
that still prevails,^ so that it is not improbable that the limita-
tion of a line of verse to a definite number of syllables became
a rule in Ireland only through foreign influence. It is not
without significance that the names used in reference to metrical
matters are borrowed ; thus we have rithim, line &c.

The word 'rhyme' is of unknown origin, the Romanic lan-
guages have transmitted it to the Germanic, but they did not get
it from. Celtic, where it does not exist. The Old Irish rim refers
to * number ' as does the OHG rim, but the notion of * rhyme * as
we understand it was not expressed thereby. There are abundant
examples in our poems of perfect rhymes, but the essentials of
Irish rhyme involved harmony rather than identity of the conso-
nants. The expression of the native metricists is ccmharday

^ Thus, e.g., the dissyllabic sound hyftlo is nearly all that the ear can hear of the
word which is spelt shiubhaileoghaidh.

xxxii THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE IRISH HYMNS.

X»

y»

r,
"I

r'
"rr

which denotes a definite ' correspondence ' of a particular kind
in the last words of lines ; e.g. oi + r is a good comJiarda with
oi + g, or all with <2;;/. To this end the later metricists,
following without doubt an immemorial tradition, divided the
consonants into classes that contained such as were held to be
capable of forming * harmonies ' with each other, viz. :

P.
b,

"m "ng

The last row embraces the / &c. of hard * timbre ', denoted by the
vague half-utterance of u [o] before the consonant.

This very excellent classification is amply justified by the
results so far as sound is concerned ; and it may be noted that
it must have been constructed by native writers, because some
of the sounds were not extant in the classic languages. But
whoever first elaborated it, the practice must have been
early ; and we can have no reason for doubting that the Irish
poets of two thousand years ago were experimentally acquainted
with its meaning and value as one of the implements of their
art. Other names are used, such as ainus, inner rhyme, or
* assonance,' and uaiin^ ' alliteration,* but it is unnecessary to
dwell upon these here. No difficulty can arise from the use of
familiar terms such as rhymCy assonance &.c. ; and it is convenient
to use the term ' assonance ' to denote the Irish rhyme in the
case of non-final words, leaving ' rhyme ' for fijial words. The
term ' alliteration ' can be held to denote in general the identity
of the consonantal initial, or the occurrence of two words with
any vowel initial.

Early Irish poetry then must undoubtedly have been charac-
terised by the presence of these two fundamental conditions : .
(i) strongly-accentuated utterance, and (2) harmonies of words.
The number of syllables employed was not an original feature ;
and it is not unlikely that the Rhetorics which we find in the

THE HYMN BRIGIT BE BITHMAITH. xxxiii

early stories were typical of the prose-poetry that preceded the
syllable-counting of post-Christian days.

The uncertainty which envelops thcs Irishe hymns^ (for the
Prefaces add little of a positive kind to our knowledge), makes
it unfortunately necessary to have recourse to inferences, and that
on ver)' limited data. All that we know is that about the year
I lOO, (when a perfectly definite system of metric was understood,
as is plain ex. gr. in the Saltair na Rami,) we find in two MSS.
these Irish Hymns, written in a manner that showed the
respect in which they were held, and accompanied by Prefaces
declaring their great antiquity. But the prefaces are quite
unhistorical, and the verses contain abundant proofs of middle
Irish forms, so that they are assuredly not to be taken as mere
copies of Old Irish poems. They no doubt contain fragments
or even sections, handed down by long tradition from older
times, but they present too many dubious elements to admit of
their being regarded as genuine poems by the authors named in
the Prefaces, handed down by transcribers liable to err but not
desirous of altering.

As there is no ground for inferring the priority in time of one
of these poems over the other, so far as the MSS. are concerned,
I begin w^ith the analysis of the one perfect poem in our collec-
tion, so as to show what the possibilities of the case were, to a
poet.

The Hymn Brigit be bitJimaith.

This poem, in praise of Brigid (our No. 21), is variously
ascribed in the Preface to Colum Cille and to Ultan. Who-
ever may have been the author, he was an excellent artist, and
the existence of this poem shows that (i) metrical laws had been
thoroughly elaborated when it was composed, and (2) that the
natural accent of the w^ords was preserved in the verse-ictus.

I have transcribed it, marking this natural accent, to show^

' The hymns considered in the following pages are numbered in our collection 5,
12-24, and 29.

LIBER HVMN. II. C

xxxiv THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE IRISH HYMNS.

that Irish poets did as a matter of fact write rhythmical verses
with a definite number of syllables : —

breo orda oiblech
ingrian tind tkidlech.

sech drLiniru dcmna

Brigit be bithmaith
donf^ don bith-laith

ronsoera Brigit
roroena reunn

dorodba innunn

in chroeb co mblh.thaib

ind f ir-og inmain
biam soer cech inbaid

leth-cholba flhtha
in tlkcht uas ligdaib

lobbet iar sinit
dia rath ronbroena

cktha each thcdma.

ar coUa cisu
in mathair Isu.

CO n-6rddain adbail
la'm noeb do Lkignib

la Pktraic primda
ind rigan rigda.

ar cuirp hie cilice,
ronsoera Briyit.

On examining these verses it is plain that the beat is abso-
lutely iambic, but that the natural accent of the words has its
full play ; yet every metrical requisite is also present : —

[a] The measure is 2 (5 -f 5).

[b] The rhymes are dissyllabic, and perfect.

[c] Alliteration is always observed in the latter half of each

first line, o=o;d = d;c = c; o=a;p = p; c=c;
(vowels alternating with each other).

[d] Assonances knitting up the half-lines in some form or

other, occur in every stanza : bith-maith, bithlaith ;
ronsoera, roroena ; blathaib, mathair ; inmain, inbaid ;
ligaib, rigan (or ligdaib, rigda); sinit, cilice; broena,!
soera.

This is what the true poets composed : these verses are
stamped with the hall-mark of artistic perfection, and they
teach us what opinion is to be held on the other verses in our
collection. The Latin Hymns of Mac Murchon and Cuchuimne,
and this Irish Hymn of Colum Cille or of Ultan prove that the
so-called Hymns of Colman and Fiacc and Broccan are merely
products of pious zeal, which \\\q poets would not have deigned
to acknowledge as poetry.

THE HYMN SEN DE. xxxv

The Hyuni Sen Dc.

We may take the other poems in the order of their occurrence,
for, as far as poetry or metric is concerned, they are much on a
level. Thc)' represent very distinctly the mood of the early
Irish church : a general invocation, referring to the Old Testa-
ment worthies, two hymns specially referring to Patrick and
Brigit, and a hymn of Sanctan which is a kind of ' lorica ', fol-
lowed by the well-known Lorica of Patrick.

Beginning then with the Sen Dc (our No. 5), we feel at
once the wide difference between these verses and the poem of
Ultan just examined : everywhere there are irregularities of
measure, of rhyme, of ictus, and neither assonance nor allitera-
tion is regarded as an essential element in the stanza. But the
word do'u'fc of Ultan is just as old as the same word in Colman;
nor is there any reason for maintaining that Ultan's poem is of
later date than Colman's, save just this irregularity. Obviously,
it would be merely begging the question to assert that Colman's
must be older because of the irregularities. Prima facie, the
probability is the other way, for we have seen the like careful
workmanship in the Latin poems, so that it is more probable
that the early Christian poets would, in their native poems, strive
after the perfection which they had attained in their Latin
poems, than that they would be content with such poor speci-
mens as the kind we have here, after their success in the foreign
language.

The truth is that these Irish poems have all the appearance
of being a sort of versus mernoriales badly put together.

The Sen De, for example, cannot be regarded as d. popular
poem, intended for the instruction of the people, on account of
the Latin phrases which are interspersed ; but one does not see
either how it could have been read with any effect even by
students of theology after the fashion of versus niemoriales,
owing to the marked difference of structure in the beats of
thc verse. In each of the following lines, e.g., we have only two

c 2

xxxvi THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE IRISH HYMNS.

clearly marked beats: 21, ift nostris scrmbnibus ; 22, dilj\ut
temphribus ; 23, incerto de semine ; 24, ab omni forniidinc ;
whereas in others we have three beats : 32, idli leonum on ; 21,
regem regum rogaums.

Be that as it may, however, an investigation discloses the
following facts : First, elisio7i is not practised. Thus : 2, for a
oessam, [brought about by the deletion of the initial /] ; 3,
710 utmaille ; 5, itge Abeil ; Hcli, Enoc ; 7, Noe ocus ; 8, tairle\^
adavina ; 9, ailme athair ; 12, lesu Aaron; 16, [«] apstalaib ;
17, Maire Joseph; 18, a7ima Ig7iati ; 19, robai hi ; 22, Noe a ;
24, a airnigthe ; 25, scsda habetur ; 29, 7'uri anacht ; 35, 7iost7'0
opei-e ; 36, occa i ; 43, la hai7igliti i.

It will be seen that in the Latin as in the Irish, hiatus is
permitted. Thus in 35 whether the pronunciation was 7iostro\
operc digno (for the verse-ictus), or followed the normal
pronunciation 7ibst7'o ope7'e dig7io, in neither case is therej
possibility of elision.

When we ask if the exact number of syllables in each linel
was always strictly maintained, we come upon our second
observation, viz. : Vowels co77ii7ig together are 77ionophthongl^
whether the vozvels be lo7ig or short}

Thus
at :

ei .
CO :

ia :

ic :
io :
ill :
[o'd
oe :

1 Maire ; 2 cain : 3 utmaille ; 5 Adaim, cobair ; 6 fogair ; 1 tedmaim,

•tairle ; 9 ailme, athair ; 10 ernaigthi, ainglech ; 1 1 snaidsiumJ
•snaid, maire [Lat. marc\ ; 14 fiadat ; 15 baptaist ; 16 apstalaibj
cobair, &c.

5 Abeil ; 25 tein ; 32 leic ; -j,^ slabreid ; 34 reid, amreid.

1 5 eoin [pron. yo-iti^ or perhaps Ow-cn, as now].

2 cia, tiasam ; 6 dian ; 11 tria ; 16 diar, 20, 31, 34, 45 ; 20 sciath

45 liar, ria.
12 lesu, 16.

9 loseph, 17 ; 37 lonas ; [but 13 lob].
II snaidsium : 15 ditiu ; 27 snaidsiunn, 38 ; 43 aingliu.
.• ?'^v?nacht, 30, but ro' is separated from the a^
2 foessam, 51 ; 6 soerat, 10, 24, 25, &c. ; 19 noeb, 46, 5^ 5 'hi foedcb

52 broena ; [but 7 Noi\ 22].

1 But in 32 the Latin suiim is dissyllabic, and kouum is trisyllabic.

THE HYMN SEN DE. xxxvii

01 : II Moisi ; 31 •roigse ; 34 doroitcr ; 2>7 nioir.
ua : 9 uas(er) ; 10 uasal ; 20 huan ; 29 ruadi.

ui : 3 suide ; 4 niirc ; li tuisech ; 15 adsluinnem ; 39 guidi ; 41 huili ;
50 huilc.

There is one example of the union of three vowels, in the
interpolated lines, 40, timch//^?/rt, but it is also monophthong.
Thus, whatever vowels come together they are pronounced
together. To this the only exceptions are in the proper names
lob, xVoi'\ and Eoi'f/, as dissyllables.

On examining the poem, it appears that all the half lines
contain seven syllables, with these exceptions : —

16 /esu con apstalaib (S.T., but F has QOX\d).
25 qui per scecula liabetur (but here scecla must be read).
It seems therefore that the writer intended that his poem
should follow these laws : —

1. Each stanza to consist of two lines rhyming dissylla-

bically.

2. Each line to have a caesura after the seventh syllable and

to end with the fourteenth.

3. All vowels coming together in the same word to be

pronounced in one syllable, but not so when coming
together in separate words.^

4. With the exception of the last ictus on the penultimate

syllable of the line, the place of the ictus was not
fixed, but the number of syllables in the line naturally
limited the number of beats, to two or three in each
half-line.

The law of the stanza may be exhibited, thus : —

First half-line Second half-line

two or three beats two or three beats

^\_.

I 234567:89 10 II
i234567!89ioii

Rhymnig.
' The compound diar ' to our ' is one word, as is 45 liar.

xxxviii THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE IRISH HYMNS.

The following will exemplify the nature of the accentuation
and the place of occurrence of the beats, in the body of the
hymn :

sen T>h donfe fordontc
for a oessam dun innocht

itir foss no iitmaille
ruire nime fri cech tress

itge Abeil mace Adaini
ronsoerat ar diangalar

Noii ocus Abraham
immuntisat ar tedmaim

mace Maire ronfeladar
cia tiasam caintemadar

itir suide no sessam
issed attach adessam

HeH, Enoc diar cobair
secipleth fon mbith fbgair

I sac in mace adamra
nachanthirle a damna

The irregularity in the number of the beats, cannot be
always stated with certainty, for though it may be possible to
assert a secondary accent in 15, ropditiu </;>;/, rop snadud, this
is hardly possible in 16, rop diar cobai}- fri gabud, for none of the
words will bear any stress beyond the two marked ; I have
not therefore enumerated all the individual cases.

The first stanza is remarkable for its ending, as the lines
must rhyme on the antepenult, fcladar-thnadar. But with
this exception, and the Latin half-lines 21, 22, 23, 24, the accent
is on the penult, until we come to the last line, 38, where we
have the stress on the ultimate. It might seem here indeed,
that, as it was apparently de rigiieur that the writer should
finish with the first half-line, which ended fo7''don'te, he had to
introduce the monosyllable. This repetition is just as dis-
connected from the rest of the stanza as is the similar repetition
in Broccan's Hymn, 1. 188.

The foregoing observations on metre only relate to 11. 1-38,
where the poem was shown to end by the very form, but even
this first division is itself composite, and 11. 1-20 may be clearly
distinguished from 11. 21-38. There is a double list of saints
and martyrs invoked, and some names occur in both lists. Thus
in 11. 1-20 we have the historical sequence: Abel, [Elijah],
Enoch, Noah, Abraha^n, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Joshua,

THE HYMN SEN DE. xxxix

Aaron, David. Job, the prophets, the Maccabees, John the
Baptist, Jesus, the Apostles, Mary, Joseph, Stephen, Ignatius,
martyrs, hermits and virgins.^ Then in 11. 21-38 we begin
again, with NoaJi, Melchisedech, Lot, Abraham, the Three
Children, David, Daniel, Peter, Jonah, the italicised names being
common to both series.

This repetition plainly denotes the use of an additional
document, from \\'hich the writer was making excerpts. In this
case the addition was characterised by the quite peculiar intro-
duction of Latin rhyming lines or half-lines, as shown here : —

2 1 regem regum rogamus in nostris sernionibus

22 diluui temporibus.

23 Melchisedech rex Salem incerto de scmine

24 .... .... .... .... ab omni formidine.

25 qui per secla habetur

26 ut nos omnes precamur iiberare dignetur.

28 limpa fontis in gaba.

30 Dauid de manu Golai.

32 suLim profetam .... ulli leonum ori.

35 nostro opere digno

36 .... .... .... .... in paradisi regno.

The last stanza of the second section (11. '^j, 38), has plainly
been added to round off the piece. Jonah does not come
naturalh' into the series after Pete}'. When the writer had got
as far as 1. 56, where the (assumed) Latin original probably
ended with in pai-adisi regno, he too sought to bring his work
to an end, and so the repetition of Sen de donfe fordonte
demanding a monosyllable to rhyme with te, the familiar stop-
gap vionar ngle was suggested, and Jonah and his whale suited
this well enough.

In the lines next following, the metre is different, for lines
39, 40 make a stanza with rhyming trisyllables at the end,
giiide-se, scule-se, while lines 41-43 have a wholly incongruous

' The whole Litany may be compared with the litany given in Saltair na Kami
(poem cxxxviii. p. 107, 1. 7297 ff. ), which follows a similar Biblical list, though
Stokes has obscured this by not perceiving that Oelh mentioned in it is not the
Odyssean Out»c, but Ehtid.

THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE IRISH HYMNS.

metre, of rhymes at middle and end ; the caesural fir in 41
rhymes with the final rig, and the caesural -issain in 42 with the
final 'rissani, while 43 has a trisyllabic rhyme hil-lelJm, bith-
bcthu. Then 11. 44, 45 return to the metre of the original
poem ; and this stanza may have been its conclusion as first
written. Lines 47-54 are also in the original metre, but they
can hardly be regarded in any other light than as a later
appendix.^

These considerations lead to the following analysis of the
poem. The Introduction (11. 1-4); The Litany (11. 5-20); The
Supplementary Litany (11. 21-56) ; The Jonah finale (11. 37, 38);
The Supplementary lines, 39, 40; 41, 42; 43; The original
conclusion after 1. 20 (11. 44, 45) ; later invocation to Irish Saints
(11- 47-54)-

The Hymn Genair Patraic.

We now come to the hymn of St. Fiacc in praise of St.
Patrick (our No. 19) ; the Preface is quite unhistorical, and it is
impossible to regard the 'hymn as of the age there assigned to
it. It will be convenient to begin the metrical investigation by
giving an analysis of the piece, accompanied by an indication
of the nature of the rhymes in several stanzas :

Stanza.

Subject.

Rhyme.

(11. 1-2)

Patrick's birthplace, and age in captivity ...

dissyllabic.

iiMll. 3-4)

His name and parentage

iii (11 5-6, &c.)...

Ilis captivity ....

iv...

Victor bids him escape...

t»

V...

and sends him to Germanus to Italy ...

»>

vi...

He studies with Germanus

?»

vii

' Angels were bringing him back '

trisyllabic.

viii...

The call from Fochlad's Wood,

dissyllabic.

^ The fact that neither the words 'around this school' in 1. 40 nor 'on (his
monastery' in 1. 47 have any glossarial note perhaps suggest that these later verses
were written in the monasteiy where the notes were added. See p. 117 below.

THE HYMN GEN AIR PATRAJC.

xli

Stanza.

Subject.

Rhyme.

ix ...

for the conversion of the tribes

dissyllabic.

X...

The tribes prophesy his coming

»»

xi...

Loegaire's druids do not hide it

»>

xii...

Patrick's crusade against idolatry

»»

xiii

His devotional and ministerial life ...

f»

xiv...

His asceticism

»>

XV . . .

His recitation of the Psalter

xvi..

His couch a stone

»>

xvii...

His miracles

J»

xviii ...

His preaching ...

>»

xix . .

The perdition of the Sons of Emer ...

! »

XX..

Patrick's pi caching for sixty year.s

xxi . . .

Darkness of Paganism over Ireland ...

»»

xxii...

Armagh a Kingdom ; Tara desolate ...

J J

xxiii ...

Patrick's wi^h to go to Armagh

xxiv

Victor and the Burning Bush ...

polysyllabic.

XXV ...

His dignity to Armagh ; himself to heaven ...

di-ssyllabic.

xxvi...

Privileges of his hymn, &c.

monosyllabic

xxvii...

Tassach gives him his last Communion

xxviii ...

Light for a year after Patrick's death...

dissyllabic.

xxix ...

The sun stood still for Joshua ;

monosyllal)ic

XXX ...

more fitly for the saints

xxxi...

Patrick's requiem

xxxii ...

Angels take part in it ... •

dissyllabic.

xxxiii...

He ascended with ' the other Patrick'

5»

xxxiv ...

The humility of his service

Of the two rules observed in the case of the Sen Dl\ viz. :
(i) Elision is not practised, (ii) Vowels coining together ewe
monopJithong, ivJiether the vowels be long or short, it is to be
noted : —

(i.) This rule is fairly well observed in the piece Genair
Patraic ; but there are six clear instances of elision, viz.:
14 atchitJii hi fisib [F itchithe^ ; 20 co de a iartaige [F co ti an] ;
2S consena a rige ; 33 morferta il-letJiu ; 52 il-laithiu in messa
(F om iti) ; 65 adella in Patraicc.

Now the early Latin poems do not tolerate elision ;- nor do

^ The proper name Odissi probably accounts for the trisyllable in 1. 4.
- See above p. xi.

xlii 7'HE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE IRISH HYMNS.

the hymns Brigit be bitJi-maitJi and SM Dc. On the other
hand the later poem Saltair na Rann supplies several examples
of elision.^ It thus appears that the progress is from non-elision
towards elision, and therefore that, other things agreeing, the
date of the Gaiair Patraic (or at all events of the lines con-
taining the elisions), is later than Sen Dd.

The combinations of monophthong concurrent vowels in the
same ■\\ord in Genair Pati'aiCy are as follows : —

ac : only one instance, 2 dcec, which must be regarded as a dissyllable,
or the line would be too short ; but the symbol is that constantly
given as (T, and not ca.
ai : nearly loo instances, but all monosyllabic.
\ca : 42 deacht, dissyll.]
ei : meicc, leicc, dels-, ceilltis, asbeirtis, leir, feiss, creitset, adfeit, eit-

secht, beith, gcillius.
CO : 4 deochain.

ia : bliadna &c., dia, Torrian, cian, iarum, cian, briathar grian, ciasu, iar.
[But there are four cases of exception, viz.. Via 79 ; ^i^niad 7, 30 ;
(fri-a, 62)].
/// .• 10 -ciurt ; 30 fiiuch ; 34 fiuscad ; (51 biu).

[oii : 4 hod; and "^l fo'aid^ dissyll.]
oc : noeb, cloen, Loegaire, dorroega.
oi : doinc, toimled, chois, canoin, coicat, coirthe, croich, Trinoite, soillse,

assoith.
II a : tuatha, tuargaib, suas, uacht, tuataib, uadib, conhualai, uabar ; [but

12 7iud^ 20 t2td\
III : forruib, huile, ymmuin, luim, cuilche, luid, muine, buide duit, Nuin
contuil ; [but 21 druid (?) dissyll.].
\tiai : tuaith, 29, 41, 57, but hudir 59, dissyll.]

The exceptions to the rule are the dissyllables: 2 dcBC ;
42 deacht ; 29 Ha, 7, 30 gniad ; 62 fria; 4 hoa, 31 foaid ;
19 nua, 20 tiia ; 21 druid ; 59 huair?

Now of these words none occurs in the Sat Dc, unless
perhaps we regard the compound fria as on a par with li-ar,
di-ar, in 1. 45. Perhaps biu in 1. 51 might be taken as a dissyl-

' E.g. 59 ill buidi in derg ; 77 grainne a ugiiir : 105 rigda in Ida : I2i tri chitt-
rutjima intsain ; 135 isse in met sain ; 156 da huarda it/i da.

- The dissyllable huair seems extraoidinaiy, for the i cannot be regarded as
forming a separate syllable, so that perhaps the writer intended liiiaire.

THE HYMN GENAIR PATRAIC. xliii

lablc, in which case there would be an additional example of
elision.

We have, therefore, no material in this respect on which to
base a judgement as to the respective dates of the two poems.

On examining- the rhymes, it will be perceived that the
verses do not all follow the same metrical system.

The abnormal stanzas arc vii, xxiv, xxvi, xxvii, xxix-xxxi ;
and these must now receive special examination as regards their
subject matter.

vii (11. 13, 14). This stanza plainly interrupts the course of
the story*. Stanza vi tells of Patrick's education, stanza viii
of the call from Fochlad ; how then could stanza vii say, " the
Jicrels were brinfjin"; him " ?^ And this becomes even more
unmeaning, when 1. 14 is considered ; for the visions are ap-
parently seen by Patrick.^

xxiv. (11. 47, 48). Stanza xxiii tells that when Patrick was
sick he desired to go to Armagh, but an angel came to meet
him and (stanza xxv) said to him, * Dignity to Armagh,' &c.
This is quite consecutive, but stanza xxiv drags in the name
of Victor and the allusion to the miraculous Bush, and omits
all mention of the angel's orders, '' Revertere ad locum unde
uenis," as given in the original source.^ It almost seems as if
this stanza had been substituted for an earlier one, which told
what the angel said in forbidding Patrick to go to Armagh.
Other difficulties which it presents, are the meaning of dofazth,
and of aridralastar, and the subject of adglastar (F adgalastar).
Faking these things in connexion with the unusualness ot the
rhymes. I am led to the conclusion that the stanza has been
interpolated.

• Apparently do'd'fetis is to be used in the same sense as do' iff c, * May He bring
us.'

- Cf. Muirchu's note in Book of Armagh {io\. 2 a i) • eum crebris uissionibus
uiss'tauit dicens ei adesse tempus ut ueniret ' &c.

■• Muirchu's narrative {Book of Armaohy fol. 8 a i). But if the writer of the
riginal poem had really had Muirchu's notes before him, he could not have inserted
this item so baldly.

xliv TJIE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE IRISH HYMNS.

xxvi (11. 51, 52). We now get into a fresh metric system
with monosyllabic rhymes, and these stanzas (xxvi, xxvii, xxix-
xxxi), seem to me to follow a tradition distinct from that of
Muirchu. In stanza xxvi the two priuilegia mentioned are
different from the corresponding petitiones which were granted
by the angel according to Muirchu. In the Book of Armagh
(fol. 8 a 2), the secunda petitio is " ut quicumque ymnum qui de te
compossitus est in die exitus de corpore cantauerit, tu iudicabis
poenitentiam eius de suis peccatis." This would seem to allude
to the hymn of St. Sechnall, but the stanza under consideration
speaks of " A hymn which thou hast chosen in thy lifetime,'
language quite inappropriate to that hymn. Is it not plain that
the Lorica of Patrick is intended by these words ? The Preface
to the Lorica shows exactly this promise, using indeed the
same words ; cf vol. i. 133, 7 bid ditiu dOy and 8 bid liirech di-a
anmain, with the expression in the hymn, 1. 5 1 bid lurech dlten
do cachy * a lorica of protection.' Again, according to Muirchu,
the quarta petitio was that " Hibernenses omnes in die iudicii
a te iudicentur " ; but how can this be represented by the Irish
words iminut... regat... do brathy ' Around thee . . they will go
to Doom ' ? Indeed this quarta petitio has already been alluded
to in the dissyllabic stanza xviii, which renders doubtful any
second allusion such as we have here.

xxvii. Here the introduction of the name of Tassach without
explanation, is curious and anomalous ; these monosyllabic
stanzas must have belonged to a different narrative in which
reference had already been made to Tassach.

xxix-xxxi. With stanza xxviii we again take up the
Muirchu tradition, for the words in 1. 55, "to set a boundary
against night," are exactly Muirchu's " contra noctem terminum
pones." But the monosyllabic stanzas xxix and xxx do not at
all follow out the comparison of Muirchu, which refers to Isaiah's
prayer for a sign to be sent to Hezekiah (2 Kings xx, 1 1^. Then,
again, in stanza xxxi we have " Ireland's clerics went to keep
watch over Patrick " ; this is the common tradition referred to

THE IIYMX GRNAIR PATRAIC. xlv

b}- the Four Masters {sub aim. 493), '' Durinf^ the twelve nights
that the reh'gious seniors were watching the body with psalms
and hymns, it was not night, &c." But the stanza is plainly
interpolated, and that wrongly, for " the sound of the singing "
which " prostrated " the clerics of Ireland is not mentioned in
the prroioiis stanzas, although it is referred to in that which
follows. In the dissyllabic stanza xxxii we have " God's angels
on the first night kept watch unceasingly," which is Muirchu's
order. His words are " In prima nocte exequiarum eius, angueli
uigilias . . fecerunt . . . omnibus quicumque ad uigilias in ilia
prima nocte ueniebant dormientibus." " The angels sang, and
everyone fell asleep thereat," would have been the natural way
of placing stanzas xxxi and xxxii.

There is, therefore, something abnormal in everyone of the
cases in which the regular dissyllabic rhyme is broken in upon.
The impression made on my mind is that of a late compilation,
in which the narrative of Muirchu plays, directly or indirectly, a
considerable part, though there may have been other accounts
current at the time. I think that the five monosyllabic stanzas
were borrowed from another poem having a different account
from that of Muirchu. To these considerations adduced above
may be added the facts that the monosyllabic rhymes give
us 58 adfeit contrasted with 12 adjiadat for 3 pi. pres. ; that
they give 62 fosrolaich (F fosrolaic), compared with fosrolaic
in 1, 38, where the F glossator evidently felt a difference
and probably a difficulty; and that they give 53 anais con-
trasted with 1 1 aifiis (if the latter be taken to mean '' he
stayed ") ; — facts, which of themselves might be unimportant,
yet when falling in with other differences, are not to be left out
of account.

Now if we accept the above argument so far as to admit the
possibility of this poem's being a patch-work from two or more
poems of different rhyming systems, the destructive criticism will
have to be carried farther. For there are not wanting other
considerations based on the course of the narrative, which seem

xlvi THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE IRISH HYMNS.

to show that even the dissyllabic rhymes are not wholly free
from interpolations.

I. Even in the first line we meet a difficulty, for is ed atfct hi
scelaib, which the F gl. ' periti ' evidently takes to mean, ' this is
what the well-informed tell in stories,' can hardly bear that
meaninc^. The word is common enough in this kind of cJieville^.
If therefore atfet were to be accepted as the plural on the strength
o{ per ill (and in fact even if we accept adfeit littri of 58), we
should have a strange use in a short poem of an extraordinary
form adfeit [atfet] along with adjiadat. But if atfet- be singular,
(which it certainly is in 5. 7ia Rann), then it would seem that
the only subject it can refer to is Patrick himself. Here how-
ever we meet with another difficulty, for hi scelaib would be an
astonishing expression for ' in his biography.' In FM 594 atfet
is found with scela as its subject, but it is difficult to believe that
this can be other than a misunderstanding ^ of the normal adfet
seel, ' the story tells.' But the assertion for which this guar-
antee is given is, that St. Patrick was born in Nemthur, and
this name is not found in the Saint's own writings. It certainly
seems more reasonable to take hi scelaib to mean ' in stories,'
and to regard this as proof of other early narratives, which may
very well have included poems from which our compiler may
have made excerpts, or of which he may have made use without
paying much heed to minor incongruities.

It seems natural in the second line to come to the conclusion
that dcBc was taken as a dissyllable.'* But it is to be noticed

^ Cf. Saltair na Rami, 2249 adfet in scriptuir, 2518 adfiad in scriptuir, 2526
adjfet scrihenn, 2$y2 adfet in scr.^ 4202 adfet scely &c., the plural being adjiadat S62,
as here 12.

- In the Index to tlie Fdire of Oengus, the Editor gives atfet = narrabat^ and
atfet = iiar7-atHs est, as occurring at Mar. 23 and April 18, but it is pretty certain that
neither one nor the other is correct, and that ar'roet, ' he received ', or something of
the kind is meant.

■' Cf. Todd's NenniiiSy p. 34, 6, where it should be noted that instead of oiift
(translated, ' it was told '), the other MSS. have innister, the normal passive present.

■* As for example in Saltair na Rann 6822, though perhaps mainly (or only) to get
a rhyme, for it is dec monosyllabic in 85, 3076 ; but no rhyme is wanted here, an.l
V has only dec.

THE HYMN GEN AIR PA TRAIC. xlvii

that the clause maccan sc mbliadan dcec is left without a verb, and
though that is not unusual where the subsequent clause may
be regarded as relative, as in the next line, " Succat his name
(was) what he was called," yet there is something abnormal in
such omission when the following clause is, as here, a temporal
clause introduced by a conjunction, "[he was] a youth of 16.
when he was captured."

ix. This stanza exhibits the children of Fochlad's wood
praying that Patrick would come to convert from impiety the
tribes of Ireland, while stanza x narrates that these very tribes
were prophes}'ing the advent of a new Prince of Peace, and the
desertion of Tara. But if the tribes of Ireland were prophesying
— and it was a curious prophecy for pagan folk to make — where
was the need of saying in stanza xi that Loegaire's druids did
not conceal Patrick's coming? Stanza ix is probably an inter-
polation. L. 17 is wrong measure ; the half line gadatar co
tissad in tioeb has eight syllables, not one of which can be
left out, because gadatar tissad would be a monstrosity, while
the omission of the article before noeb would be intolerable, and
gadtar is out of the region of possibility. Besides what is Idhii
in the second half line ? The same writer could scarcely have
used this rhyme letku with betJiu here, and then used it again
twice, in two consecutive stanzas xvii and xviii, in such utter
vagueness of meaning ; it seems to mean only ' broadly,' which
can hardly he tolerated here. But the use of it as = ' apud eos,'
would be a new feature in the poem, and certainly suggests a
different hand.

There is a manifest break between lines 22 and 23, and this
latter is particularly noticeable for its assonances, beba^ eiia^ treba,
on a different system of metric.

xiv, XV. Stanzas xiv and xv have also the caesural assonance
sine (F) = rige^ Bairclie = aidc/ie, which does not occur any-
where else. In 1. 30, if the correct analysis of the final rhyme

^ The word etia can hardly be anything else than/^<^a, but why so written ?

xlvili THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE IRISH HYMNS.

be fo gnia, as seems unavoidable, it is curious that the form
y^; [= ba\ occurs nowhere else in these hymns. Besides feiss
of 27 is practically the same as foaid at 31, inasmuch as
it is the cold that is spoken of, so that uacht sme 27 of the
caesural-assonance stanza, has very much the same reference as
ni leicc a chorp a timmi 32, where there is no assonance. In this
later stanza we have all the appearances of a glossatorial verse,
with its iarum^ and the expressions cuilche fliuch and ba coirthe
a-adart.^

xvii. In this stanza, we come upon several peculiarities,
which seem to argue that it was a late interpolation, for the sake
of inserting some notice of the miracles performed by the Saint:
namely, (i) the repetition of pridchad, which is mentioned in
the next stanza, pridcJiais ; (2) the use of sosce/ad, not found
anywhere else in these hymns ; (3) the elision of the final in
ferta; (4) the curious word luscii (a word glossed by both
T and F as bacucJm, but which seems not really known from
any other source with the meaning alleged) ; (5) the use of
inairb in this manner, as a nom, pendens ; (6) the identity of
rhyming words il-lethu and do betJiu, and (7) the somewhat
similar letters in the words dosfiuscad 33 and dosfuc 35. It
seems to me almost impossible to regard this stanza as an
original part of the poem.

xix. Here, after Patrick's miracles have been mentioned in
xvii, xviii, we suddenly are jerked back again to the pagan
Irish ! The reference in 1. 39 to his covmig is surely out of
place, as is the mention in 1. 41 of the pagan Irish worshipping
idols.

XX. The abruptness of the change between xxi and xxii
makes it almost certain that there is an interpolation in 1. 44,
with its personal reference in ni-;;/ dil ; this stanza again is
suddenly followed by an account of Patrick's illness.

xxxiii. I have only further to point out that stanza xxxiii,

Cf. LB notes to Fclire, Mar. 5 (towards end), and see L15 33)855.

Y/NLVE'S rk'AVE/^. xlix

with its vague conliualai in 1. 65, its elision in the case of aclcll<'?,
its reference to '' the other Patrick " (where did tlic visit take
place?), lead me to infer here also interpolation, in spite of
the rhyme in this case being the normal dissyllabic. This
last stanza is the more probably genuine that it does not
attempt to establish itself as such by the repetition of all the
half line.

Admitting, as I do without reserve, the uncertainty of sub-
jective criticism, I have not deemed it right to pass by in silence
the objections that are to be urged against the genuineness of
'.lie poem in the form in which we have it. Many of these
objections would be still valid, even though the metrical system
was uniform throughout ; but the presence of the metrical vari-
ations seems to me to suggest strongly the relatively late
• compilation ' of the poem ; the neglect which it exhibits of
poetical and metrical considerations can only be attributed to a
period of decline and decay.

Niniiie's Prayer.

The Oratio Ninini (our No. 20), shows no appearance of a
regularly constructed poem, though there seems to have been
an initial effort in that direction, for the first lines present the
formula 2 (7 + 5) ; but all throughout there is a rhythmic
tendency that is unmistakeable. It may be mere accident,
but it is at all events noteworthy that an alphabetic order is
observed in the lines : — d\xd\xQ, ^res, <:athaigestar, ^edaig,
/t7nenaig, ^idmit ; and that all throughout also the alliterative
clement is strongly marked, as in these words in order : — a p p ,
aaabb; cddcdd; ffff;gg; pp; bb; ddd;
p p. But it adds nothing definite to our knowledge of the
metric system.

It is styled in the preface an orthn, ' prayer,' a word used in

the 5. na Rann in connexion with other words that seem to

infer for it something of a musical element, viz. 1. 4321 co

cetlaib, cliaraib, airjitiud, orthonaib^ coraib, inolbthogaib ; but of

LIBER HYMN. II. d

THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE IRISH HYMNS.

course this is too vague to admit of anything but speculative
inference.

The Hymn Ni car Brigit.

In the hymn of St. Broccan (our No. 22) the difficulties are
far more numerous than in the hymns already discussed. The
language, in many of the stanzas, does not admit of grammatical
analysis, and in some of them, metre and logic are set at defiance.
It is impossible to handle the question of the metric without
taking into consideration other questions also.

I begin by giving a table in which are set out the subject
matter and the rhyming system of the several stanzas. The
order of incidents is nearly the same as in the Vita Brigidae by
Cogitosus, and in the fourth column the numbers of the corre-
sponding chapters in Cogitosus are given. ^

Stanza.

Parallel

Chapter in

Cogitosus'

Vita.

ii
iii
iv

vi
vii
viii

xii
xiii

xiv

Brigid a recluse
Her virtues

Her congregation at Plea

Her veiling by Mac Caillc

An invocation to God ...

St. Kevin and Glendalough ...

Her virtues (continued)

Her innumerable miracles

The multiplication of the butter

The multiplication of the bacon

monosyllabic, i — a,.
dissyllabic, 2 = 4.

>> >»

i=3,&2 = 4.

„ 2 == 4.

wrong dissyllabic, 3 = 4.
dissyllabic, 2 = 4
monosyllabic, 2 = 4.

,, 1=3,2 = 4.

2 = 4.

dissyllabic & trisyllabic,

l=3&2=4
dissyllabic, 2 = 4

' Cogitosus has some additional incidents in his Vita which are not reproduced
in our hymn ; he ends (c. 36) with a chapter on the impossibility of telling all the
miracles of Brigid.

THE HYMN m CAR BRICTT.

Parallel

Stanza.

Subject.

Rhyme.

Chapter in
Cogitosus'

Vtta.

Her fair harvest weather

dissyllabic, 1=3, 2 = 4(?)

XV i

The triple milking of her cows

monosyllabic, 2 = 4 (?)

xvii

She hangs her cloak on a sunbeam ...

dissyllabic, 2 = 4

xviii

The undiminished flock

monosyllabic, 2 = 4 ...

xix

The bath of ale

»> J» •• ■

The healing of the nun ; the sione
made salt.

dissyllabic, 2 = 4

10, II

xxi

The giving of eyes to the flat-faced man

monosyllabic, 2 — 4 ...

xxii

The dumb girl ...

dissyllabic, 2 = 4

xxiii

The bacon untouched by the dog

trisyllabic, 2 = 4

xxiv

The boiled meat did not stain her robe

monosyllabic, 2 = 4 ...

XXV

The leper and the calf...

j> >?

xxvi

»> j> »>

" "

xxvii

Her oxen return home

5? JJ

xwiii

The run -away horse ...

>> >>

xxix

The blessing of the wild boar

>> M

XXX

The wild dogs hunt a pig for her

dissyllabic, 2 = 4

xxxi

The escape of the wild fox

monosyllabic, 2 = 4 ...

xxxii

The tamed bird

5J 55

xxxiii

The nine outlaws and their harmless
weapons.

55 J'

xxxiv

The champion Lugaid ..

J5 »5

XXXV

The removal of the oak

55 55

XXX vi

The bangle found in the salmon

dissyllabic, 2 = 4

xxxvii

The loom and the cooking of the calf

monosyllabic, 2 = 4 ...

xxxviii

jj jj »> >> ■>■) j>

5J 55

xxxix

The breaking of the trinket

5» »5

into tliree equal parts

dissyllabic, 2=4

xli

The blessing of Condlaed's garment . . .

»5 S5

xlii

j> j> > > >» }>

xliii

The honey in the wall...

dissyllabic, 2 = 4

xliv

The miracle of the mead

monosyllabic, 2 = 4.

xlv

Invocation of Brigid

2 = 4.

xlvi

>j ,, ... ... ...

dissyllabic, 2=4.

xlvii

>» >>

monosyllabic, i = 3,

2 = 4.
dissyllabic, 2 = 4.

xlviii

>> >)

xlix

j> J»

55 )»

,, ,,

JJ JJ

Privilege of praise

»5 JJ

lii

)5 5> J>

3 = 4?

liii

Invocation of Mary and Brigid

55 2 = 4?

Hi THE METJUCAL SYSTEMS OF THE IRISH HYMNS.

The variations of metre arc very striking. We must either
suppose that all these licences were tolerated by the original
composer, or that the irregularities have been imported by
subsequent admixture. How the former theory can be upheld
with any show of argument, I am unable to imagine, but it will
be maintained, I daresay.

The repetition of the opening words Ni car Brigit after 1. i8S
denotes that the poem proper ended at that point, and suggests
therefore that the last six stanzas are a later addition. In the
body of the piece the general principle is that the quatrain has
four heptasyllabic lines, the 2nd and 4th of which rhyme.
The laws laid down above (p. xxxvi) are generally obeyed, viz. :
There is no eliszon, and In the same word concurrent vowels are
monophthongs so far as the measure is concerned. But even the
stanzas i-xlvii show many incongruities, which indicate that the
piece is made up of elements derived from different sources.

Stanza i forms the Introduction and is in monosyllabic
rhyme ; we then pass to stanzas ii-vi in dissyllabic rhyme re-
counting the virtues of the saint. Of these, stanzas iv and v
rhyme their first and third lines as well as their second and
fourth.^

Stanza vii at once arrests the attention. The rhyme damn,
gaha of the 3rd and 4th lines is quite anomalous; and further
the stanza has no imaginable connexion with the verses between
which it is placed. Nobody knows exactly what it means, for
the v^'ord plea in 1. 26 resists all analysis ; but in any case it has
nothing to do with the veiling of Brigid in the next stanza.

Stanza viii contains a story told by Cogitosus, but (as will be
seen from the table) the regular Cogitosus series does not begin
till Stanza xii, and then it proceeds in order, so that the incident
here recorded seems out of its place. The identity of 1. 31 with
1. 125 ba menn inn-a himthechtaib is also a suspicious circum-
stance.

^ The rhymes are perfect in v ; in iv santach is probably intended to rhyme with
the trisyllabic cessachiach^ as well as mathitn with cathinu

THE HYMN NI CAR BR I GIT. liii

Stanza ix in monosyllabic rhyme consists of a general
invocation to God which would be almost equally relevant any-
where else, although no doubt it is intended to describe the
prayer" of 1. 32.

Stanza x is an unintelligible verse, in which St. Kevin and
Glendalough are introduced without any justification. No doubt
the glossators have explanations to offer, but they are quite
inadequate. This and stanza xlvii furnish the only instances of
monosyllabic endings with alternate rhymes, 1=3 and 2 = 4.

At stanza xi we revert to the virtues of the saint, in sequence
ofii-vi; but stanza xii presents us with many problems. Its
metre has a strongly marked trochaic beat, as in the line,

cdirni i cuala cluas iiach bi^

which shows a system of zctjis quite different from (say) stanza
V. But the metre of it is undefinable, for it is uncertain which
of the lines were intended to rhyme. Brigti seems to have
been written thus, with ti instead of te, to get a rhyme, but
whether with ri or bi it is impossible to say ; and as dune is
(with just as much or as little reason) written duni in F, we have
the four lines ending ;'/, Brigti, duni (F), and bi in an unde-
terminable mixture. It is with this curious stanza that the
Cogitosus series begins.

In the next stanza (xiii) we have an absolutely different
order of rhyme, viz., dissyllabic in ist and 3rd lines, trisyllabic
in 2nd and 4th. And the excellence of these rhymes
foided, hoeged ; fenamain, lenainain, is noteworthy ; the poet who
made them could not have been guilty of stanza xii.

In stanza xv we have crabdig (F) = aninach, and (possibly)
mad-bocht = a gort, the alternate lines rhyming.

Stanza xix. Here (1. 74) as at 1. 45 we have the verbal form
dorigenai used as a quadrisyllable, whereas at 11 133, 161. we
find the trisyllable dorigne}

' This is the normal form in the Saltair na Rami where the older dorigenat_^oe?,
not appear.

. 0^ i'^^^^'^f '//J/

co^^

liv THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE IRISH HYMNS.

Stanza xxi. We have here (1. 82) the quadrisyllable dorigenai
which necessitates elision ; and yet elision is the later custom,
while the spelling dorigenai is the earlier form. (In 1. 45 it is
not elided). Further in 1. 81 there is a difficulty about the
scansion. The missing syllable cannot be got out of ruir7niu
any more than out of ainniu^ from the readings of F rurmo and
airmo ; and indeed we have the subjunctival dorurme in 1. 134.^
And again the last line of the stanza (1. 84) comdar forreil a
di suil^ is identical in construction with the last line (88) of the
following stanza (xxiv) comtar forreil a comlabra, where the
measure is wrong. It will hardly be maintained that two
stanzas of this kind could have been written by the same poet
in one poem. And even if we emend into labra in 1. S?>, what is
the meaning ? To translate ' till her speech was clear ' is impos-
sible with, the plural comtar ; and there would be no meaning in
'till her speeches were clear ' when we are talking of the recovery
of speech by a dumb girl. A further anomaly in stanza xxii is
the form ^6 Brigta (so also at 1. 71) ; cf. Brigte in 1. 139 and
the unintelligible Brigi of the additional stanzas at 11. 196,
197.

The metre of stanza xlii is hardly determinable.

Stanzas xlv, xlvi, xlvii may possibly have been taken from
some poem quite distinct from the main body of the piece, and
added here to wind up the Cogitosus narrative. In xlv we have
the extraordinary /(?r<:/(9;z . . . bet; the si {Y sith) m \. 178
is unaccountable, and the other two lines of the stanza are nearly

* This was evidently a recognised formula as e.i^. in the verse FM 919,

ni ruirmhi ni aircma

fo'bith is-am triamain-si

a tainic de ancessaib

Ereann isin mbliadain-se.
The spelling here is of course the later spelling of the Four Masters, who felt that
airema would have to be made a trisyllable.

'^ This also is a line which shows a common formula of the time. Cf. Saltair na
Rami 788 ni fail ro'nirnic a n-arim, with our line 134 ni fail do'7tirme co cert. Cf.
also the subjunctive in 1. 162 ni faiidune do'da'dccha^ where F reads do'decha, which
is ccrTrect so far as the number of syllables is concerned, but docs not help to explain
the word.

THE HYMN NI CAR BRIGIT. Iv

unintelligible. Then in 1. iSi the reference to the claidib teftcdxs
very curious, and quite inapplicable to Brigid.

Stanza xlvii (as pointed out above) is in a metre of v/hich
the anomalous stanza x furnishes the only other example in the
poem. It is impossible to trace any connexion between its first
three lines and the fourth.

The last six stanzas (xlix-liii) are apparently of the nature
of an appendix to the poem ; but it will be observed that while
five of them exhibit perfect dissyllabic metre (2 = 4), stanza Hi
is quite irregular. In this w^e have the third and fourth line
rhyming, De = intmalle^ against all analogy.

In the last stanza we have a line (212) :
for a foessam dun dib-li7iaib^
which recalls a similar line in the Sen Dc (1. 2), viz. :

for a oessam dun innocht.

But the number of syllables cannot be made to tally, and
Broccan's 1. 212 is obviously wrong. All the lines in the stanza
are made to end in words with long / penult ; but it is probable
that BrigitwdiS meant to rhyme with liiizb and riched ^\\h. dichill,
and in that case we have again a complete change of metre.

The syncretism and composite character of the piece seem to
be established by the foregoing analysis. There is no a priori
impossibility in the hypothesis that a school of writers^ are
responsible for the construction of the verses, whether as a set
task and as a translation of Cogitosus, or whether as a gradual
growth in imitation of other extant poems which followed the
lines of Cogitosus' narrative. It is of course impossible to assign
either date place or person ; and it is alike impossible to divide
the verses so as to group together the writers of each, though
the table given above will suggest tentative arrangements.

If indeed it were a matter of certainty that these verses had
been put together thus as one poem, at a very early date, a fact
of the kind would simply have to be accepted and the result

^ See the gloss en 1. 43 of the Sen DS.

Ivi THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE H^ISH HYMNS.

regarded as a proof of the undeveloped state of Irish poetry
and of Irish narrative excellence. The difficulty is to see when
these verses could have been put together save at a period of
absolute decay, — an epoch of metrical, poetical and intellectual
poverty.

It was assuredly not at anything near the period when a
Columba, an Adamnan, or a Secundinus flourished ; it bears
all the marks of the terrible era of the Danish viking scourge,
wherein the arts and learning of the Irish came nigh to utter
destruction. These relics of Irish poetry are probably the early
attempts of the clergy to put into metric form the memories of
the past that had escaped destruction, but they exhibit the utter
dislocation of studies that followed upon the invasions of the
Northmen. The Hymn of Ultan represents the early traditions
of excellent workmanship, the Hymn of Broccan has no
excellence of any kind either as verse or as poetry.

The Hymn of St. Sanctan.

This poem (No. 23) is ascribed by the Preface to a
Welshman styled Bishop Sanctan. The time of its com-
position is admitted to be uncertain, and the poet is credited
with a miraculously conferred knowledge of the Irish tongue
which he had not before possessed. There are some unusual
phrases common to this and to the Lorica of Patrick, e.g., 1. 5
togairm and 1. 7 issuvi are found at I. 2 and 1. 62 of the Lorica.

The metre of the original poem (11. 1-40) is heptasyllabic
iambic measure, rhyming in dissyllables at the even lines
(2 = 4). There is, however, evidence of another strain of
metric throughout, the last three lines of each quatrain
tending to rhyme ; thus in stanza i we have am, 21m, am ; in ii,
sim^ sum^ sum ; in in, le, me, re; in iv, locJit, locJit, locJit ; in v,
sta, saty sta ; in vi, lar, mor, lor ; in vii, dros, bas, has; in viii,
thaib, tha, tJiaib ; in x, tJiracJi, tJiacJi, thach.

There are difficulties, how'ever, in most of the stanzas,
In i we have as a dissyllable the word tints, with possibly

THE LORICA OF ST. FATRICk\ Mi

a Welsh predilection (of. tyivys). In ii, the rhyme is not
perfect, for guasi))i is not a good rhyme to uasuni, whatever
meaning is assigned to fio'd'giiasijn. In vi, ajnor of the third
line is a far better rhyme with galor than is celar. Stanza
ix seems anomalous ; in it alone the harmony of the last
syllables in the last three lines of the quatrain is not observed,
1. 35 is short by a syllable, and the rhyme finna^ thenga (F
thinga) in 1. 36 is not very satisfactory, and lastly, we do not
really know the meaning of the words. In stanza x (1. 40)
the rhyme 'ctliacJi^ is of itself sufficient for the corresponding
sctlirach (1. 38),* and the particle ro seems to form a syllable
too many ; probably 'roethacJi is to be read, which would
correspond with 'sa'thrach of F in 1. 38.

The first two supplemental stanzas (xi and xii) do not
belong to the metre of the original poem, but are in setna-
metre, the formula of which is 2(8 + 7). In xi we should
certainly read srntJiib in 1. 41 and glan gel in 1. 42, with F.
The last stanza of all reverts to the heptasyllabic lines with
rhyming dissyllables (2 = 4), and may possibly have belonged
to the original poem ; it also has the final harmonies im^ ib^ il.

The linguistic difficulties throughout make a reader wish
that the * donation ' mentioned in the penultimate clause of the
Preface had not been tain cito.

The Lorica of St. Patrick.

This piece is not in metre, but it is evidently constructed
with an eye to proportion, the phrase Atomriug indiu which
recurs five times being followed by invocations of much the
same structure in each case, concluding with nine rhythmically
turned lines in invocation of Christ. Perhaps the piece was
originally written in a particular shape, in imitation of some
form of material breastplate.

* Cf. Saltair na Rann 817 at'ethach.
^ Or sethach accordinc{ to the T jjloss.

Iviii THE METRICAL SYSTEMS OF THE IRISH HYMNS.

It is probably a genuine relic of St. Patrick. Its uncouth-
ness of grammatical forms is in favour of its antiquity. We
know that Patrick used very strange Irish, some of which has
been preserved ; and the historians who handed down mude-
broth (see p. 178 below) as an ejaculation of his would probably
take care to copy as faithfully as they could the other curious
Irish forms which the saint had consecrated by his use.

The Hymn of Mael Isu.

There is nothing to observe on this short poem (No. 29)
save that the quatrains consist of four lines of six syllables,
ending in dissyllables rhyming on the even lines (2 = 4).

ROBERT ATKINSON.

LIBER HYMNORUM

TRANSLATIONS

OF THE

IRISH PREFACES AND HYMNS.

LIBER HYM5f. II. B

Preface to the Hymn of St. Sfchnall.

F] Auditc oniucs, &c. Scchnall filius Restituti of the
Lombards of Letha, and of Darcrca sister of Patrick made
luDic Jiyiunuiii, and Secundinus was Roinaiiiini ?iojnen eius ;
but the Gaels made Sechnall of it. The place (of its com-
position was) Domnach Seclinaill ; the time, that of Aed mac
Xeill, or of Loegaire ; (as to its cause, it was) for the praise
of Patrick it was made ; nel causa pads fecit ^ quia nocuit quod
dixit Sccundiuiis : " a good man (were) Patrick, were it not
for one thing, viz., nisi quod viiuiinc praedicaret caritatein"
Et iratus est ei Patricius et dixit: ^^ propter caritatem non
praedico, quia alii saiicti post vie uenient i)i iftsulain et indige-
bunt obscquio Jiominuin {et ideo) relinquo caritatem praedi-

Audite onines. Locus huius hynini Domnach Sechnaill : it is that
Sechnall who made hiinc hy7nnum for Patrick.

As to Patrick, his origin was of the Britons of Her-cluaide ;
Calpurn was his father's name, Fotaid his grandfather's, who was a
deacon. Conchess further, was his mother ; Lupait and Tigris
were his two sisters.

Now Patrick had four nomi?ia, viz. Succat, his name with his
parents ; Cothraige, his name when he was in service to four per-
sons ; Magonius, his name from Germanus ; Patricius, from Pope
Celestine.

But as to the cause of Patrick's coming into Ireland, it happened
in this wise, viz., seven sons of Sechtmaide, a king of the Britons,
were in exile, and they plundered Armorica of Letha. There chanced
upon them at that time in Armorica a body of Britons of Her-
cluaide : here Calpurn mac Fotaid, Patrick's father, was slain, and
Patrick and his two sisters were there taken prisoners afterwards.
The sons of Sechtmaide then went over-sea to Ireland, where Lupait
was subsequently sold, viz. in Conalle Muirthemne ; Patrick was sold
in Dal Araide to Miliuc mac Ua Buain, and to his three brothers ;
and they sold his two sisters in Conalle Muirthemne, but they knew
not each other's lot.

Well, four persons, one of them being Miliuc, bought Patrick, and
hence he got the name " Cothraige," from the circumstance that he
was servant to a household of four. But when Miliuc saw that he
was a faithful slave, he bought him from the other three, so that he
served only Miliuc, for seven years after the fashion of the Hebrews ;
and he suffered great tribulation -in the wilds of Slemish in Dal
Araide, while herding Miliuc's swine. It chanced now that Mihuc

B 2

4 PREFACE 70 THE HYMN OF ST. SECHNALL.

F] care'' ; et ideo fecit Secundimis Jmnc hyjn?min causa pacts,
Fecerunt pacevi Pat7'icius et Secundimis. It is the first hymn
that was made in Ireland. Secundum ordinem alpJiabeti
/actus est ; twenty-three capitula in it, four Hnes to each
capitulum and fifteen syllables in each line. There are
further three places in it in which there is found * in ' sine
sensu causa 7'hythmi. Now when Sechnall had finished
making this eulogy, he went to show it to Patrick, to whom

B] saw a vision of the night, viz. he thought he saw Cothraige coming
to him into the house where he was, having a flame of fire over his
head and out of his nostrils and ears ; and it seemed to him that
the fire played threateningly over him to burn him, but he drove it
from him and it did him no harm ; but his son and his daughter
who were in the same bed with him, these the fire burnt to ashes,
and the wind scattered those ashes all over Ireland. There-
upon Cothraige was summoned before Miliuc, who told him his
vision ; and Cothraige gave judgement on it as follows : " The fire
thou sawest in me is the faith of the Trinity which glows in me ;
it is that faith I shall preach to thee in after time, and thou wilt
not believe ; but thy son and thy daughter will believe, and the
fire of grace will burn them." Now when St. Patrick was born,
he was brought to the blind flat-faced youth to baptize him : the
priest's name was Gorianas. As he had no water with which to
perform the baptism, he made the sign of the cross over the ground
with the babe's hand, and water came out, et iauauit Gorianas
faciem suain^ and after that his eyes were opened, and he, a person
who had not learnt letters before, read out the baptismal office.

Teinpiis auiem^ that of Loegaire mac Neill, king of Ireland ;
causa^ in order to prai:;e Patrick. For Sechnall had said to Patrick,
*' when shall I make a eulogy for thee ? " Patrick replied, *' I wish
to have no eulogy of me in my lifetime." Di:xit Sechnall, " 7ion
interrogaui utnivi faciani^ sed quando faciam.^'' Dixit Patricius, " si
facias^ uenit tempus^^ for Patrick knew that the time of his death
was near at hand. Sechnall, son of Restitutus, made hunc hyrnnum
for Patrick, for he was a pupil of Patrick's, and ahof/ius sororis of
Patrick ; he was descended from the Lombards of Letha, tit dixit
Eochaid Ua Flannucain :

Sechnall mac Ui Bard, of the victory,
victory of world's men,
of seed pure-fierce, whiteness of colour,
Lombards of Letha.

Longohardi dicti sunt eo quod habe?it loiigam barbain. Seaindinus
* secans delicia ' atiorum, uel ' secedens ipse a delictis ' interpretatur.

Now when Sechnall was making this hymn, there happened to be a
fair held near Domnach Sechnaill, and a message went from Sechnall
to forbid it, and went unheeded. Thereafter Sechnall went back,

PREFACE TO THE HYMN OF ST. SECHNALL. 5

F] he said, " I have made a eulogy for a certain son of life, and
I should like thee to hear it." " My welcome to a culo<:i^y (of
any) of the household of God," said Patrick. Ikit Sechnall
beean his h\-mn at Bcata Christi. that ]\atrick should not
hear for whom it was made till the whole should have been
recited. However, when Sechnall uttered JMaxinncs in regno
caeloniDi, di.xit Patricius^ " How could Jionio be Diaxinms
in caclo ? " Dixit Secundiuiis: '^ pro positiuo posit us est Jiic
supcrlatiu2is!' On the conclusion of the recital, "(Give)
me the reward for it," said Sechnall. " Thou shalt have it,"

B] and raised his hands to God, and the earth swallowed thirteen
chariots of them cum suis equitil)us, ct ceteri in fugani exierii?it.

Uel haec est causa, viz. because of the annoyance Sechnall
gave Patrick, in saying, " a good man were Patrick were it not
for one thing, viz. the small extent to which he preaches charity."
When Patrick heard it, he went to Sechnall in great anger.
Sechnall had just finished mass except going to Christ's body, when
it was told him that Patrick was coming to the place in great anger
against Sechnall. The latter thereupon left the oblation on the
altar, and bowed down to Patrick, who drove the chariot over him ;
but God raised the ground around him hinc et inde so that it did
not harm him. ''What has happened to me?'"' asked Sechnall.
Patrick replied, '' What is that one thing dixisti^ that I did not
fulfil ? For if I do not fulfil charity, I am guilty in respect of
God's commandment. God knows that it is for charity that I do
not preach it ; for there shall come /^5/ me i?i hanc insulam ' sons of
life ' w^ho shall stand in need of being served ab hominibusr " I did
not know," said Sechnall, " that it was not through remissness thou
didst so." Then said the angel to Patrick, "All that shall be
thine." So they made peace then, Patrick and Sechnall. And
whilst they were going round the cemetery, they heard a choir of
angels singing around the oblation in the church ; and what they
sang was the hymn beginning, '''' Sancti uenite Christi corpus,^' etc.;
hence this hymn is sung in li eland when one goes to the body of
Christ, from that time onward.

And after that, Patrick sent Sechnall to Rome, for some of the
relics of Paul and Peter and other martyrs, (as amends) for the
blame he had laid upon him : those are the relics that are in
Armagh in the shrine of Paul and Peter.

Now when Sechnall had finished the composition of his eulogy,
he went to show it to Patrick, and when he had come to Patrick,
he said to him, " A eulogy that I have made for a certain ' son of
life ' : I want you to hear it." Patrick replied, " I welcome a
eulogy of any man of God's household." But Sechnall began his
hynm at " tjeata Christi custodit^'' that Patrick should not perceive
for whom the hymn was made till it had been all recited. But when
Sechnall recited " Maximus namque in regno caelorum" Patrick

6 PREFACE TO THE HYMN OF ST. SECHNALL.

F] said Patrick, " the number of hairs that are on thy cloak, i.e.
on thy hood, the like number of sinners (shall go) to heaven,
for the hymn." " I will not take that," said Sechnall. '* Thou
shalt have," said Patrick, " this boon : everyone who shall
recite it at lying down and rising up shall go to heaven."
" I accept that," said Sechnall, " but the hymn is long, and
not everyone v.ill be able to commit it to memory." " Its
grace," said Patrick, " shall be on the last three capitula."
" Deo gratzas,'' said Sechnall.

B] shifted about from place to place, ef dixit, " How can a human
being be ' maximus ' in regno caelorujn ? " Dixit Sechnall, " Pro
positiuo est Jiic ; cr, it is many of his own race that he excels."
" Good is the answer," said Patrick. Now when Sechnall had
finished reciting the hymn, there came up a man and a woman
having food with them for Patrick, viz. curds and butter : Bera
7iome?i uiri ei Brig nonien midieris. Said Patrick, " A house in
which this hymn shall be recited before dinner, shall never have
scarcity of food ; and further a new house in which it shall be
recited prius, shall have around it a watch (consisting) of Patrick
with Ireland's saints." As it was made manifest to Colman Ela
et aliis cu77i eo ; and as it was made manifest to Kevin cufn suis,
when he came out of the church one Sunday into the refectory.
At hymnuni hiinc cantauit, Patricius cum multis patribus apparuit ei ;
et ter cantauit, et tunc quida??i stultus dixit, ^^ cur caniinus hunc
hymnuin sicV et dixit Kevin, "that is not good," said he, ''''quia
apparuit nobis Patricius cum suis discipulis quamdiu cantabamus
hyinnumy

When the recitation of the hymn was complete, Sechnall said,
"(Grant) its reward to me." "Thou shalt have it," said Patrick,
the number of days that there are in atuio, the like number de ani-
inabus peccatorum (shall be permitted) to go to heaven for the making
of the hymn." " I shall not accept that," said Sechnall, " for I
deem it little, and the eulogy is good." "Thou shalt have," .said
Patrick, ''(granted to thee that) as many as are the threads in
the cloak of thy cowl, so many sinners shall go to heaven, for the
sake of the hymn." " I shall not accept (that either)," said Sechnall,
"for what believer is there that will not take with him as many a>
that to heaven, without his praising a man like thee at ail ? " " Thou
shalt have (this)," said Patrick, "of Ireland's sinners seven every
Thursday, and twelve every Saturday (admitted) into heaven." " It
is (too) little," said Sechnall. " Heaven for everyone who shall
recite it at lying down and at rising up, shall be thy boon," said
Patrick. " I shall not accept (even) that," said Sechnall, " for the
hymn is long, and not everybody will be able to remember it."
"All its grace," said Patrick, "on its last three capitula." "Z>^<?
gratias,^' said Sechnall.

PREFACE rO THE HYMN OF ST. SECHNALL. 7

F] Longobardiis gc}ic}'t\ ut dixit Eochaid ua Mannucain :

Sechnall, son of Ua Baird,

victory of the world,

of seed purc-ficrcc, whiteness of colour,

Lombards of Italy.

Longbardi dicti sioit co quod barbiiDi loiigiun Jiabent.

As to Succat, (it was) Patrick's name apiid parentes eiiis ;
Cothraige, nomen eiiis apud Miliuc; Magoiiius, apiid Ger-
manuni ; Patricius, a papa Celestino.

B] The angel promised the same thing to Patrick on the Cruach, viz.,
heaven to the person who shall recite at lying down and at rising up
its last three capitula, /// est :

" A hymn thou hast chosen in thy life
Will be a Lorica of protection for everyone."^

This is the first hymn that was made in Ireland. It is in alpha-
betical order more Hebraeorut7i sed no?i per omnia. There are in
it twenty-three capitula, four lines in each, and fifteen syllables in
each line ; et si qiiis i7iuetierit plus mi?iustie, in eo error est. There
are two or three places in which there is 'in' sitie sensu sed causa
rhythmi &c. (The opening words are) similitudine Moysis dicentis,
" Audite caeli quae loquar,''~ et Dauid dicentis^ " Audite haec omnes
gentes.^^^

1 Hymn o/St. Fiacc, 1. 51. 2 Deut. xxxii. i. ' Ps. xlvii. i.

PREFACE TO THE HYMN CHRISTUS IN NOSTRA.

Preface to the Hymn Christus in nostra.

T] Christus i?t nostra. Ninnid Pure-hand mac Echach, made
htmc hyninuni for Brigid.

Or, it is Fiacc of Slctty that made it.

Dicunt alii that it was Ultan of Ardbreccan that made it,
for it is he who collected Brigid's miracles into one book,
beginning Audita uirginis laudes. It is in alphabetical order,
and was made in rhythm. It contains three capitula, each
of four lines with sixteen syllables to each line.

Dicunt alii that this was a long hymn, but here there are
only four capitula of it, viz. the first and the last three
capitula causa breuitatis.

F] Christus in nostra. Ninnid Pure hand mac Echach, made htmc
hyfn?mm to praise Brigid.

Or Fiacc of Sletty ; its beginning is audite uirginis laudes.

Or it was Ultan of Ardbreccan that made it, to praise Brigid ; for
it was he who collected Brigid's miracles into one book. It is in
alphabetical order, and was made in a well-known rhythm. It has
four capitula, with four lines in each, and sixteen syllables in each
line.

PREFACE TO THE HYMN OF ST. CUMMAIN THE TALL.

Preface to the Hymn of St. Cummain the Tall.

TF] Cclchra hida. Cummain the Tall mac Fiachna, king
of West Munster, ille fecit /uific JiyDuiuni. And as to that
Cummain, it was by a daughter that Fiachna begot him, in in-
toxication. Et i)ttcrrogaHit Flann^ "of whom hast thou him ?"
et dixit, " ////""; ct dixit pater ^ " oportet inori'' ; " ita Jiat" said
the daughter. Sed quaudo natiis est, to Ita's Cell ductus est
et ibi relictus est on the top of a cross in a little basket
\cu})U)iai}p\^ ; inde dictus est Cummain. Et ibidem nutritus ac
doctiis esty and it was not known whence he w^as tanidiu donee
ueuit mater eius ad uisitajidum cum ad domum abbatis Itce,
for she often used to come to him. And she came one day
to the house, and Ita's coarb was not at home, et potum
postulauit, et mater sua dedit ei sinum abbatissae to drink a
drink out of it ; so he drank a drink out of it, but Ita's coarb
rebuked her for giving the vessel to him ; and then she said :

'' notice not
though I give a drink to my brother ;
he is Fiachna's son, he is Fiachna's grandson,
Fiachna's daughter is his mother."

After that he studied in Cork till he became a sage ; uenit
autcm postea ad patrem et ad patriam, viz. to the Eoganacht
of Loch Lein. Now everybody says that Cummain re-
sembled Fiachna, ijide dixit :

" No falsehood to me, though I say

'near is our relationship (in) us three,'
(for) it is my grandfather (that is) my father,
(and as to) my mother, she is my sister.

if (ever) good sprang out of evil,
it is I that have the great preeminence ;
(for as to) my sister, she is my mother,
(and as to) my father, he is my grandfather.

near is the appellation :

I am grandson of thy mother ;

even my mother is laid as an accusation

upon the brother of thy brother.

i.e. upon thee, O Fiachna, for thou thyself art thy brother's brother.

lo PREFACE TO THE HYMN OF ST. CUM MAIN THE TALL.

TF] there comes to me friendly tie doubly
with the seed of Fiachra Gairrine :
inasmuch as he is a grandson and a son to him,
the person Cummain to Fiachna."

Tu7ic Fiachna intellexit filitivi sunvi Ciiininaiiic esse, and it is
he who made this hymn. The reason of its composition is :
Cummain went in reliance on the apostles, that Domnall son
of Aed mac Ainmerech should be able to weep, in order to ask
forgiveness for his crimes, for he was quite unable to do so be-
fore through the hardness of his heart. Now his soul-friend
was Cummain, for a message had gone from Domnall to
Colum Cillc to ask him whom he should accept as soul-
friend, or whether he himself should go eastward to him.
Unde dixit Colum Cille :

" The sage whom he will choose from the south,
it is with him he shall get his need :
he will bring ' cummain ' to his house,
to the fair grandson of Ainmere."

and it is Cummain that was foretold therein. When, however
Cummain, after composing the hymn, went to ask about
Domnall's state, Domnall was in the house at the time,
weeping for his crimes. Tunc dixit Cummain, " Now" &c. ;
and then he flung from him the purple cloak that was on his
back, viz. a cloak his mother [F]lann had made for him.
Tunc dixit Cummain :

" O king, a sign (?)
that thou permittest me not according to my will,
Domnall refuses it, so that he takes not (?)
the little cloak of fair [FJlann upon him."

Therefore he went in reliance on the apostles, and Domnall
wept for his crimes thereafter, so that Cummain said :

" Now
Domnall recognises a King above him (viz. God over him);
his good is the good in the next world ;
this (earthly) good is not his good."

In tempore autem of Domnall son of Aed mac Ainmerech
was it made ; in rhythm uero fecit, two lines in each capitulum,
with twelve syllables in each line ; it was based on a prophet's
rule,^ Celcbra ludafestivitatcs ttias. This hymn was composed
in Daire Calcaig. .

1 Nahum i. 15.

PREFACE TO THE HYMN OF ST MUG INT ii

Preface to the Hvmn of St. Mugint.

TF] Parce dojiiiuc. Mugint fecit Jiunc liyiniuiui in Futerna.
Causa i.e. Finnian of Movillc exiit to learn with Mugint and
Rioc and Talmach et ccteri alii seciuii. Drust rex of Britain
tunc et Jiabuit filiam i.e. Dnisticc nonien eius, et dedit earn
legendo with IMugint. Et ainauit ilia Rioc^et dixit Finniajio :
tribuani tihi onuies libros quos Jiabct Mugint scribcnduvi si
Rioc dedisses niiJii in viatrinioniuvi. Et inisit Finnen Tal-
mach ad se ilia nocte in fornuntn Rioc ; et cognouit eani^ et inde
co?iccptus ac natus est Lonan of Treoit. Sed Dnisticc esti-
nuiuit quod Rioc cam cognouit^ et dixit quod- Rioc pater esset
filii ; sed f ahum est, quia Rioc uirgo fuit. Iratus est Mugint
tunc et misit quendani pueruni in teinplum, et dixit ei : si quis
prius in Jiac nocte ue?iiat ad te in teniplum, percute euni securi.
Ideo dixit quia prius Finnianus pergebat ad teinpluni. Sed
tanien ilia nocte domino instigante ipse Mugint prius ecclesice
peruenit ; et percussit eum picer, propheta dicente ^' conuertetur
dolor eius in caput eius, et in uerticem ipsius iniquitas eius
descendet."^ Et tunc dixit Mugint " Parce " quia putauit
i?iimicos populum populari.

Or, it might be on this account he made this hymn, that
his crime might not be visited on the people.

Uel Ambrosius fecit, when he was in disease.

Uel Dauid fecit, lit alii dicunt, sed non uerum ; but it is
from him are taken [the words], *' die angelo tuo percutienti "
usque ^^ populo tuo!'

F adds] And there came great trouble on him at last, for there
appeared to him foes attacking the people, so that he went in
reliance on the Lord to free the people from their foes, and there he
made " Parce do nunc.''''

Or perhaps it was for this reason that he made this hymn, ut
diximus^ that his crime should not be visited on the people.

* Ps. vii. 17.

12 PREFACE TO THE HYMN OF ST. COLMAN.

Preface to the Hymn of St. Colman.

T] ' God's blessing.' Colman mac Ui Cluasaig, a scholar
from Cork, made this hymn to save himself from the
Yellow Plague that occurred in the time of the sons of Aed
Slane. For there were many people in Ireland at that
time, and their multitude was such that they got only thrice
nine ridges for each man in Ireland, viz. nine of bog, and
nine of grass-land and nine of forest, so that the nobles of
Ireland's men fasted along with the sons of Aed Slane, and
with Fechin of Fore, and with Aileran, and with Manchan of
Liath and many others, to get the population reduced, for
there had come a scarcity of food owing to their numbers ;
and therefore the Yellow Plague was inflicted on them, so
that there died of it in that year the sons of Aed Slane and
the elders we have mentioned et alii viulti.

Dicuiit alii that it was Colman who composed it all, but
others say that he composed only two quatrains of it, and the
school the rest of it, viz. each man of them a half-quatrain. It
was composed in Cork, in the time of the two sons of Aed
Slane, viz. Blaithmac and Diarmait. Now the cause of its com-
position was this. A great pestilence was sent upon Ireland's
men, viz. the Buide Connaill ; it ransacked all Ireland, and
left alive only every third man in Ireland ; and so it was to
protect them and also his school that Colman composed this
hymn against that pestilence. And it befel him to be
composing it just at the time when he began a journey to a
certain island of Ireland's sea outside, in flight from this

F] ' God's blessing.' Colman mac Ui Cluasaig, a Cork scholar,
made this hymn, in collaboration with his school, and it was probably
a half quatrain each man composed ; or else, he made the hymn all
by himself As to the place, it was from the island at Cork up
to the island towards which they went in their flight from the
pestilence. It was made in tlie time of the two sons of Aed Slane,
viz. Blathmac and Diarmait. The cause of its composition was
that a great pestilence had been sent u{)on Ireland's men, viz. the
Buide Connaill, and it attacked all Ireland, so that it left alive in
Ireland only every third person ; of it died the sons of Aed Slane,
and Fechin of Fore, et alH multi clerici et re^i^es in codem anno
pcrierunt. And it was to save himself and his school that Colman

PREFACE TO THE HYMN OF ST. COLMAN. 13

T] pestilence, so that there mii;ht be nine waves between them
and land, for pestilence does not come across beyond (that
distance), ut fcniut pcriti. And a certain person of Colman's
school asked, " What was the blessing, in which going on a
journey befcl them ? " Then spake Colman, '' What blessing
is that?" said he, ''why, what but God's blessing?" For
this is what they sought after, to go forth on islands of the
sea, on flight before the disease.

F] composed this hymn against that pestilence, and he chanced to be
composing it just when he began a journey to a certain island in
the sea, that there might be nine waves between them and land, for
pestilence does not come over nine waves, ut fcrunt periii. And a
certain person of his school asked Colman, " What was the blessing,
in which going on a journey befel them?" Then spake Colman,
"What blessing is that?" said he, "why, what but God's blessing?"

14 THE HYMN OF ST. COLMAN MAC UI CLUASAIGH.

TiiK Hymn of St. Colman mac Ui Cluasaigh.

TF] God's blessing bear us, succour us ! may Mary's son pro-
tect us !
Under His protection may we be to-night ! whithersoever we
go, may He well protect !

In rest or in activity, seated or standing,
Heaven's King, against every battle ; this is the supplication
we shall make.

5 A supplication of Abel, Adam's son, of Eli, of Enoch, for our
help !
May they save us from swift disease, wherever throughout
the world it threatens !

Noah and Abraham, Isaac the wondrous son,
May they come around us against pestilence, neither let
famine visit us !

We beseech the father of the twelve, and Joseph their
younger [brother],
10 May their prayers save us to a King of many angels, noble !

May Moses, good leader, protect me, who protected through

Ruhr tun Mare ;
Joshua, Aaron son of Amra, David the daring youth !

Job with the tribulations, may he protect us past the poisons ;
May God's prophets guard us, with Machaba^us' seven sons !

15 John Baptist we invoke, may he be a shelter to us, be a
protection ;
Jesus with His apostles be for our help against danger !

May Mary, Joseph, watch over us, et spiritus Stephani,
From every strait release us remembrance of Ignatius'
name !

Every martyr, every hermit, every saint who lived in chastity,
20 Be a shield to us for our defence, be an arrow (sent) from us
against demons !

Regent rcguin j'ogamus in nostris sernwnibiis,

Who saved Noah [and] his crew diliiuii temporibus.

THE HYMN OF ST. COLMAN MAC UI CLUASAIGH. 15

TF] MelcJiiscdcc rex Salem ineerto dc semi fie,
May his pra}'crs free us ab ounii fonnidi)ie !

25 The Saviour, who freed Lot from fire qui per saeciila Jiahetur,
Ut nos o))nies precamur liberare digiietur.

Abraham of Ur of the Chaldees, may the King protect us,

may He protect us !
Ma\' He free me, He who freed the people lympJia fontis vi

Gab a !

The King, who saved three children from a furnace of fire
with redness,
30 I\Ia\' He save us, as He saved David de maun Goliath.

May the Ruler of lamp-lit heaven have mercy on us, for

our wretchedness !
He who left not suiim prophetani ulli leonufn ori.

As He sent the angel who loosened Peter from his fetter,
May he be sent to us for our assistance, may every rough
thing be smooth before us !

35 To our God may we render ourselves pleasing, nostro opere
digno,
May we be with Him in eternal life in paradisi regno.

As He freed Jonas Prophet from a whale's belly, bright deed.
May the good King, threatening, m.ighty, protect us ! God's
blessing bear us, come upon us !

Truly, O God, in very truth, be granted this prayer :
40 May there be infants of God's Kingdom all around this
school !

In very truth, O God, be it true ! let us all attain the peace

of the King !
If one might attain, may we attain, into heaven's Kingdom

may we win !

May we be without age, in (endless) space, with angels in
eternal life !

Great Kings, prophets without death, angels, apostles — a
noble sight !
45 May they arrive with our heavenly Father to bless us before
a devil host (can reach us) !

God's blessing.

1 6 THE HYMN OF ST. COLMAN MAC UI CLUASAIGH.

TF] Benediction on patron Patrick with Ireland's saints around
him,
Benediction on this monastery and on every one therein !

Benediction on patron Brigid, with Ireland's virgins around
her,
50 Give all ye fair testimony, benediction on Brigid's dignity!

Benediction on Colum Cille with Scotland's saints o'er

yonder !
On the soul of noble Adamnan who passed a Law upon the

clans !

(May we be ever) in the shelter of the King of the elements !

His protection may He take not from us !
May the Holy Spirit sprinkle us ! may Christ free us, bless us !
55 God's blessing.

Orent pi'o nobis sancti illi in caelis, qtiorum memoriam
facimus iji terris, ut deleantur delicta nostra per inuocatiofieni
saftcti noininis tui lesii ; et miserere qui regnas in scecnla
scBCulorti ;//. A men.

PREFACE TO THE HYMN OF ST. CUCHUIMNE. 17

Preface to the Hymn of St. Cuciiuimne.

TF] Cantenius in oDtiii die : Cuchuimne fecit Jninc
JiyrtinuDi to praise the V^irgin Mary ; and in the time of
Loingscch mac Oengusaand of K&^i\\\\'\7V[\. /actus est ; incerttim
est tiero in quo loco euni fecit. The cause of its composition
was to free him from the evil hfe in which he Hved, quia con-
iugevi Jiabuit et in mala uita cum ilia fu it.

Or ma\'be it was to get made smooth before him the part
of his reading he had not yet attained to, that he made this
eulogy for Mary. Ut Adaiiuianus dixit :

Cuchuimne

read science up to [the] ridge ;
the other half that is over
he left for his haers.

■^fc»'

Cuchuimne dixit

or,

Cuchuimne

read science up to [the] ridge ;

the other half that is over

he will read, he will leave [his] hags.

the other half of his allotted path (?)
he will read all, till he become a sage.

In rhythm now he made it ; and fourteen capitula therein,
with two lines in each capitulum. and twelve syllables in each
line.

LIBER HYMN. II. C

PREFACE TO THE HYMN OF ST. HILARY.

Preface to the Hymn of St. Hilary.

T] Hymnum dicat. Hilarius episcopiis et princeps ciuitatis
qjice dicitur Pictauis fecit Jiunc hyninuni CJiristo, m vionte
Gargani^ after eating the dinner illic in the house of tho
robber. And after giving thanks to God, the sons of life
faded post, till they were no bigger qiiain hifantes, as it
seemed to a priest who was with them. An angel came
and said to them, " nisi penitentiam egeritis, in infernuni
ihitisy Egerunt ergo penitentiam, et dedit dens indulgeti-
tiain eis per istam laudeni : sic nobis conue7iit canere post
prandiuni.

A liter : locus i.e. specus in pectore niontis loiiis inter Alpes in
qiiapJiilosopJii antefueriint. Tempus, Ualentiniani et Ualentis.
Persona, Hilarius. Causa, i.e. angelus postulauit quando
uenit ad Susannavi urbeni cum tricentis uiris, i.e. c. de
clericis et cc. de laicis. Unus uero de clericis mortuus est pro
frigore hiemis et Hilarius orauit pro suo mo7iacJio. Ilia
autem node angelus dixit ad eum, " debet te scrutari scripturas
et hymnum facere deo." Ille ergo fecit iuxta imperium angeli
ct mortutcm suscitauit per gratiam dei,

Metrum trochaicum tetrametrum est ; hie recipit spondeum
omnibus locis praeter tertium locum et trochaea omnibus locis ;
in quo aliquando tertio loco prior is uersiculi spondeum reperies
ut ''factor caeli et terrae factor',' et '' uerbis purgat leprae
morbum." Currit autem alternis uersibus, ita ut prior uersus
habeat pedes quatuor^ posterior uero tres et syllabam}

Hymnus Graece, ' laus' interpretatur Latine ; tiel hymn us
* memoria ' dicitur, sicut in psalterio Graeco ' ymnos testjnon,'
hoc est ' niemor fuit nostrV ; and it is for the praise of God
especially that hymnus is due ; and it is sung to a melody,
ut Augustinus dicit in the Decades. Hymnos primum Dauid
propheta in laudem dei composuisse manifestum est?

Cf. Baeda de arte mctrica c. 2^ * Cf. Isid. Dc Off. I. vi. i.

PREFACE TO THE HYMN OF ST. COL MAN MAC MURCHON. 19

Preface to the Hymn of St. Colman Mac Murciion.

T] 1)1 trinitate spes men. Three sons of Murchu of
Connauojht made this eulogy for Michael ; Colman, the
eldest of them, was a bishop, while the other two were priests.
Causa, viz. on their pilgrimage they went and a great storm
befel them on the Ictian sea ; so they went to a certain
island, and a great famine befel them ; so that it was to free
themselves from that famine they made this eulogy.

Or, it was to free Rodan's island from demons ; for there
was a certain transgressing bishop in (it) before that, and it is
in France. Et postea ad Hiberniavi ue7ierunt. Incertinn est
auteni in quo tempore /actus est. Now it was made in rhythm,
and it has eleven capitula with two lines in each, and sixteen
syllables in each (line). The rhythm is... according to the
presence there of oviine.

F] In trinitate sprs niea etreliqua. Sons of Murchu of Connaught
made this hymn for Michael, to free themselves from a tempest
of the Ictian Sea, or to free themselves de fame in insula maris
Tyrrh ni. Maybe also it was Colman alone that made it, for he was
the eldest of them, and further he was a bishop, while the other two
were priests ; uel inter se fecerufit. I7i quo tempore uero f actus est
incertum est. Now it was made in rhythm with eleven capitula in it,
with two lines and fifteen syllables to each. The rhythm is...
according to the presence there of online.

C 2

20 PREFACE 70 THE HYMN OF ST. OENGUS MAC TIPRAITE

Preface to the Hymn of St. Oengus mac Tipraite.

TF] Martine. Oengus mac Tipraite, priest of Cluain Fota
Baitan Aba, composed Jiunc hyimium. In Chiain Fota /actus
est. Causa autem : Adamnan was on circuit of the churches
of Colum Cille in Ireland, and he got as far as Uisnech
in Meath, where there was summoned to him every man in
orders against whom there was an accusation in the land ;
and the summons reached Oengus on the night of Martin's
feast, et timuit ualde ut fecit hunc hymnum in hojiorem Martini
to free himself. Uenit then Oengus to the tryst on the
morrow, with his hymn ready by him, and there was shown
to Adamnan, Martin on the right hand of Oengus ; so then
Adamnan rose up before him, et Jionorijicauit eum cum osculo,
et omnes mirabantur causain honoris ; et dixit Adamnan ut
uidit Martinum secum, so that it is on account of Martin's
being along with him that he paid him honour. Thus then
Oengus was freed ; et ostendit hymnum suum et laudauit
Adamnan hymnum, et dixit, " personal reverence (shall be)
for him who recites it on going to meeting or court," and that
it would be a protection against every disease ; and heaven
for reciting it on lying down and on rising up.

In ihythm also it was made ; six capitula in it with two
lines in each ; correspondences also there are in it, et nan
(rqiuxlern numerum syllabarum singulce linece seruant.

PREFACE TO GLORIA IN EXCELS IS. 21

Preface to Gloria in Excelsis.

TF] Gloria in excelsis. A^igeli dei cecinerunt priimim
uersiun Jiuius Jiyiimi in node doniinicce natiuitatis. They
composed it at the Tower of Gabder, i.e. a mile east of
Jerusalem ; and they composed it to show that the person
who was born there was the Son of God. In the time of
Octavianus Augustus it was composed. Amhrosius autcni
fecit /tunc hyninmn a secnndo tiersit nsque ad finein hyvini.

B] Gloria in excelsis deo. Angels composed the introductory verse of
this hymn, on the night of the Nativity ; and at the Tower of Ader
they composed it, a mile east of Jerusalem. To show that he who
was born there was the Son of God they composed it. Further in
the time of Octavianus it was composed. But Ambrose composed
the remainder, viz., a secu?ido uersit usque in finem laudis^ &c.
Amhrosius, sage and bishop, composed hunc hy??inum to praise
Jesus ; and at night it is due to be sung.

It was composed also in rhythm ; seven capitula in it, with seven
lines to each, and seven syllables in each line.

22 PREFACE TO MAGNIFICAT.

Preface to Magnificat.

TFB] Magnificat. Maria mater Domini fecit Jiimc
hymnum. In tempore tiero Octauiajii Aiigusti fecit in quad-
ragesinio enim secundo anno imperii eiiis Christus ftatus est.
It was made in a certain mountain-city in the tribe of Judah,
near Jerusalem, in Zacharias' own city ; ibi Ioha?ines Baptista
natns est. And it is to that city Mary came to enquire about
Elizabeth, when she heard of her being pregnant, viz. in the
sixth month. And it is in it that speech was given to
Zacharias, and in it Zacharias composed the Benedictus^ and
in it the Magnificat was made. Now the cause is this, viz.
Mary came to enquire about Elizabeth, wife of Zacharias, for
she had heard of her being pregnant /d?j^ longissimam sterili-
tatem. Omnes enim cognati eius eam nisitabant. Intrans ergo
Maria ostium domns suce^ Elizabeth dixit cum motatione
infa?itis in utero suo, " E7i mater domini uenit ad me " ; et ob
id dicunt lohannem propJietasse antequam natus esset ; et tunc
Maria dixit " Magnificatl' et in hoc tempore filium suum
Maria concepit.

Preface to Te Deum Laudamus.

T] Haec est laus sanctcu Trinitatis quam Augustinus
sanctus et Ambrosius composuerunt.

FJ Niceta, coarb of Peter, made this canticle. And in Rome it
was made. Incertuni aute7n quo tevipore et ob quam causafn factum^
nisi NicetiWi deum laudare uoluisse diceremus^ dicejis, ^^ Laudate
pueri dominuniy Laudate nomen dotnini^ Te deum laudamus etcV

PREFACE TO THE HYMN ALTUS PROS A TOR. 23

Preface to the Hymn Altus Prosator.

TF] Locus Jill ins Jiymmi Hi. Tciiipus of Acdan mac
Gabrain, King of Scotland, and of Acd mac Ainmerech,
King of Ireland; Mauritius autcin ucl PJwcas \\2lS King of
Romans tutic. The person was Colum Cille de uobili genere
ScotoruiUy ' Coluuiba ' dicitur ut " estotc prudentes sicut ser-
pentes et siiupliccs sicut coiunibae." Causa^ quia uoluit Deuni
laudare. Per septcui a7inos Jiuuc Jiyunnnn scrutans in nigra
cellula sine linnine, i.e. to beg forgiveness on account of
gaining the battle of Cuil Dremne over Diarmait mac
Cerbaill, and the other battles that were gained because of
him.

Ucl ut alii dicunt, it was suddenly made, viz. one day
Colum Cille was in Hi, and nobody was with him but
Baithin, and they had no food except a sieve of oats. Then
said Colum Cille to Baithin, " Nobler guests (than usual) are
coming to us to-day, O Baithin " ; viz. folk of Gregory, who
came with presents to him. And he said to Baithin, "Stay at
home in attendance on the guests, that I may go to the mill."
He takes upon him his burden from a certain stone that was
in the church, i.e. Blathnat its name, and it still exists, and

Altus prosator. Colum Cille fecit hunc hyjunum Trinitati per
septevi an/ios in Cellula Nigra, i.e. in Colum Cille's Black Church
in Derry ; or it was composed quite on the spur of the moment, ut
alii dicufit, viz. when Colum Cille was in Hi alone, save for the
presence of Baithin only. Now it was then revealed to Colum Cille
that guests were coming to him, viz. seven of Gregory's people came
to him from Rome having presents for him, namely, the Great Gem
of Colum Cille — and that is a cross extant to-day — and the Hymn
of the Week, a hymn for every night in the week, et alia dona. So
Colum Cille enquired of Baithin what there was of food in the
common stock. Said Baithin, "There is a sieve of oats." "Attend
thou on the guests, O Baithin," said Colum Cille, " that I may
go to the mill." Thereupon Colum Cille takes on his shoulders
the sack from the stone that is in the refectory in Hi ; and the
name of that stone is Moel-blatha, and luck was left on all food
that is put thereon. After that, as he was gomg to the mill, Colum
Cille composed this little hymn Adiutor laboraiitium ; and it is in
alphabetical order.

24 PREFACE TO THE HYMN ALTUS PROS A TOR.

TF] upon it there is made division in the refectory. But his
burden felt heavy to him, so he composed this hymn in
alphabetical order, from there up to the mill, viz. Adiutor
laborantium, &c. Now when he put the first handful into
the mill, it was then he began upon the first capitulum, and
the grinding of the bag (of oats) and the composition of the
hymn were completed together ; and extemporaneously it
was made sic.

In the five hundred and sixty-fifth year after Christ's
Nativity Colum Cille went to Hi, ttt Beda dicit^ '^ Anno
dominicce incarnationis dlxii. quo tempore gubernaciilmn
Roinaniimpe7'ii post Iiistinianmn lusti7ms minor accepit, zienit
de Hibernia presbyter et abbas Jiabitu et nita monachi insignis
nomine Columba Brittaniani praedicatiwns uerbmn dei pro-
iiinciis septentrionaliiim Pictorum!'^ Brudi aiitem filins
Melchon regebat Pictos tnnc, et ipse immolaiiit Columbae Hi,
ubi Columba cum esset an7iorum Ixxui. sepultus est, post ucro
xxxiiii. ex quo ipse Brittaniani praedicaturus adiit.

Well, this hymn was taken eastward to Gregory as a return
for the gifts that had been sent by him, viz. the cross,
whose name was the Great Gem, and the Hymns of the
Week. But the bearers changed three capitula in it to test
Gregory, viz. " Hie sublatus" and " Orbeml' and " Uagatur!'
When however they began upon the reading aloud of the
hymn to Gregory, God's angels came and remained standing,
until that capitulum was reached. Gregory (too) stood up in

B] So when Colum Cille put the first feed into the mouth of the
mill, he then began upon the Altus, and the composition of the
hymn and the grinding of the corn were completed together, nor
was it as the fruit of meditation hut per gratiam Dei.

In tempore of Aedan mac Gabrain, King of Scotland, and of Aed
mac Ainmerech, King of Ireland, and Falcus was King of Romans
at that time. Causa, quia iwluit Deuni laudare, i.e. to seek forgive-
ness for the three battles he had caused in Ireland, viz. the battle of
Coleraine in Dal-araide, between him and Comgall of Bangor, while
contending for a church, Ross Torathair ; and the battle of Belach
Feda, at the weir of Clonard ; and the battle of Cuil Dremne in
Connaught, and it was against Diarmait mac Cerbaill that both these
were fought.

Ductus est ad Gregoriiim et furati sunt ministri tria capitula
de se, i.e. ' Hie su hiatus ' et * Orl)em infra ' et ' Chris to de calis,^ et
tria capitida pro eis inseruerunt ; et viinistris cantajiiihus hymnum
Gregorio, Gregorius autem surrexit donee audiret aliefia capitula
tria^ et iterum sedit dofiec propria. Surrexit iterum et dixit

» Bede H. E. iii. 4.

PREFACE TO THE HYMN ALTUS PROSATOR. 25

TF] ihcir honour up to that. But when that was reached, the
angels sat down ; Gregory too sat down and the hymn was con-
cluded after that manner. Then Gregory demanded their
confessions of them, for he knew that it was they who had
made the changes. So they admit that it was they, and got
forgiveness for it. Then he says, that there was no fault (to
be found) with the h}'mn, except the scantiness in it of the
praise of the Trinity /rr .sv, though it was praised through its
creatures. And that reproof reached Colum Cille, and was
the cause of the composition of /;/ te Christe.

Alphabetic order there is Jdc, more Hebrcuo. Out of the
Catholic Faith was taken the foundation of this (first) capitu-
lum, viz. belief of Unity with confession of Trinity. Further
it was made in rhythm ; in which there are two kinds, viz,
artijicialis et uiilgaris. Artificialis 2ibi fijint feet co-timed,
co-divided, with equal weight as to arsis and thesis, and that
the subscquois comes in the place of the prcecedens in its
resolution ; but the uiilgaris is where there is a corres-
pondence of syllables (as well as) quarter-verses and half-
verses ; and it is this which is Jiic. Now there are six lines
in each capitulum, with sixteen syllables in each line ; except

B] ////jt, " Confiteniini qtiod egistisT Illi confessi erant et dixit illis,
" Cantate igitur hymiium secu7idu7ii ordinem a suo auctore dictum T
Et illi cantaueru7it et ille post latidauit laudevi, sed dixit ^ " mi^nis
(/7mm debuit dais metnorari in eo metnoratus est." PrcBsentes angeli
semper fiuut quando caiitatur^ sicut tiidit Gregorius angelos. Multce
sunt graticR hym7ii huius ; quisquis eiwi cantauerit frequenter., nu7i-
qua77i a persecutio7ie ini7nicoru77i et dei7i07iu7n eue7iiet ei quod timet
peruefiire, et 7iesciet diabidiis 7norte77i eius ; et liber erit ab 07n7ii 77iorte
absque pretiosa^ i.e. ' death on pillow,' et non erit in inferno post diem
iudicii etia7nsi 7nala 77iulta egerit, et habebit diuitias 77iultas et longi-
tudine7n sceculi.

There is alphabetic order in this hymn, fiiore HebrcBoru77i. So
then the number of letters in the alphabet is the number of capitula
in this hymn. The Hebrews, however, do not put their letters on
the sides of their capitula, but each letter over its capitulum to the
end of the hymn ; and this is the reason of it, because the names
of their letters have a meaning, and that meaning runs through the
capitula. Further, to Hebrews, this is the cause of the sequence in
the order alphabeti sui, viz. xxii litterce apud Hebmos, for there are
twenty-two books in the Old Testament. To Greeks, however, the
reason of their having twenty-four letters, is decern sc7isus ho77iinis
and dece7n 77ia7idaia legis and quatuor euangelia. Whereas to Romans
the reason for their having twenty-three letters is that there are decern
sensus hotJiinis also and dece7n 77iandata legis and trinitas.

a6 PREFACE TO THE HYMN ALTUS PROS A TOR.

TF] in the first capitulum, where there are seven Hnes, for it is
God's praise that is therein. Fitting indeed is that inequality
compared with the other capitula, in consideration of the
inequality of God compared with His creatures ; (fitting is
the) number six autoti in creaturis quia sex diebus fades
sunt. Oportet tituluni et argunicntuvi esse ante uninnquodque
capitulum.

Let this then be the ordinance for the recitation Jiuius
Jiynini, that Quis potest Deo be recited between every two
capitula ; and it is thence its grace would be upon it, for
thus they sang it prius. There are in sooth many graces
upon this hymn, viz. angels present during its recitation ; no
demon shall know the path of him who shall recite it every
day, and foes shall not put him to shame on the day he shall
recite it ; and there shall be no strife in the house where its
recitation shall be customary ; aye, and it protects against
every death " save death on pillow " ; neither shall there be
famine nor nakedness in the place where it shall be oft
recited ; et alics inultcc sunt.

1)] Now this hymn was composed in rhythm, of which there are two
species, viz. artificialis et inilgaris : artificialis est ubi fiiint pedes
cum temporibus cequis et cequa diidsione et cum cequo pondere^ viz.
arsis et thesis, et ubi sit subscqueus pro prcecedente in iure resolutionis;
whereas the uulgaris is that wherein there is correspondence of
syllables and of quarter-verses and of half-verses ; and it is this
latter that is in this hymn.

Sex linecE uero in unoquoque cnpitulo excepto pritjw capitulo, and
sixteen syllables in each line, but seven lines iti prima capitula.
Fitting it is to have six lines in the capitula in which mention is
made of the creatures that were brought to completion in six days ;
but fitting for seven lines to be in the first capitulum for this reason,
quia narrat de Deo^ quia Deus iinpar est creaturis suis, uel septem
gradus eccksicc significat, uel quia septenarius icniuersitatem sig?iificaty
uel septem dona Spiritus Sancti significat.

Be this now the ordinance for the recitation of this hymn, that
there be recited Quis potest between every two capitula of it ; and
it is from this that its grace would be on it, for thus it was sung
at first, &c.

PREFACE TO THE HYMN IN TE CIIRISTE. 27

Preface to the Hvmx\ In te Christ e.

T] In tc Christc. Coliim Cillc composed this hymn ; in
rhythm he composed it, with sixteen syllables in each line.
Another group of persons say that it was not Colum Cille
at all that composed it, save from CJiristus Redeniptor down
to CJiristus cntctvn ; and therefore viiilti say (only) illaiu
parieDi. Locus, Hi ; tcinpus, of Aed mac Ainmerech ; causa
because the poet had spoken insufficiently of the Trinity in
the -^ ////J", and this is what Gregory reproved Colum Cille for.

F] /// tc Christe. Colum Cille composed this hymn in a well-known
rhythm ; and why he made it was because he had too slightly com-
memorated trifiifatem in the ]jreceding eulogy, for Gregory said it
would have been the best of eulogies had it not been for that.

28 PREFACE TO THE HYMN NOLI PATER,

Preface to the Hymn Noli Pater.

T] Noli pater. Colum Cille fecit Jiunc hyniiium eodevi
modo ut ' In te CJiriste! Locus, the door of the hermitage of
Daire Calcaig ; tempiis idem, of Aed mac Ainmerech ; causa,
Colum Cille aliquando ucnit ad colloquiuiu regis to Derry, and
there was offered to him the place with its appurtenance. At
that time Colum Cille refused the place, quia prohibuit Mobi
in his case accipere inuiidinn till he should hear of his death.
But thereafter, when Colum Cille came to the door of the
place, there met him three persons of the folk of Mobi, having
with them Mobi's girdle, et dixerunt, Mortuus est Mobi ; et
dixit Colum Cille :

"Mobi's girdle
was never closed around ' lua ' (?)
Not only was it never opened to (allow) satiety,
it was never shut around a lie."
Colum Cille went back to the king, et dixit regi, "the
offering thou gavest me early this morning, give it me nunc!'
** It shall be given," said the king. Then the place is burnt
with all that was in it. " That is wasteful," said the king,
** for if it had not been burnt, there would be no want of
garment or food therein till Doom." " But (people) shall
be there from henceforth," said he, " (and to) the person who
shall be staying therein, there shall be no night of fasting."
Now the fire from its size threatened to burn the whole oak-
wood, and to protect it this hymn was composed.

Or it was the Day of Judgement that he had in mind, or
the fire of John's Feast, and it is sung against every fire and
every thunder from that time to this ; and whosoever recites
it at lying down and at rising up, it protects him against light-
ning flash, and it protects the nine persons of his household
whom he chooses.

F] Colum Cille made hunc hymniwi^ in a well-known rhythm ; at
Daire Calcaig it was made, ut quidain dicunt.

Or it is the Day of Judgement that he had in mind. Or the fire
of John's Feast. Or it is to preserve the oak wood when a thunder-
bolt set fire to the place, after it had been given by Aed mac
Ainmerech, and the fire sought to consume it, so it was on that
account this hymn was composed. And it is sung against every
thunder ; and whosoever recites it at lying down and at rising up,
is freed from all danger by fire or lightning flash, as (also) the nine
persons dearest to him of his folk.

PREFACE TO THE PRAYER OF ST. JOHN. 29

Preface to the Prayer of St. John.

T] Deus nicHs. loJuvities filiiis Zehcdei hanc epistolam
fecit. In Ephcsus it was made, and further, in the time ot
Domitian. Hivc est causa ; a great conflict arose between
John and Aristodemus, viz. a priest of Diana's temple, and
John said to Aristodemus, " Let us go, O Aristodemus, to
the temple of Christ which is in the city, and beseech (thou)
Diana there that the temple may fall ; and after that I shall
go with thee to Diana's temple, and I shall pray Christ that
it may fall ; and if Diana's temple fall at my instance, then
Christ is better than Diana, and it is right for thee to worship
Christ thereafter." " Let it be done then," said Aristodemus.
After that they went to Christ's temple. Orauit Aristo-
demus . . tribiis horis Dianain^ et 7iec tavien cecidit
tcmpluDi Clu'isti. Exierunt postea ad templum DiancE, et
orauit loJiannes ut caderet, et statim cecidit. Et Aristodemus
temptauit occiderc lohanuem, sed non ausus est pro multitudine
Christia7i07'um. "Is there anything that would remove doubt
from thee yet, Aristodemus?" said John. "There is," said
he, " if thou drink a full cup of ale cum ueneno, et si non eris
mortuus statim, credam deo tuoT Et dixit lohannes, ^^ due
hid' " Dabiturl' said he, " provided that it be given to the
captives, whom it is proposed by the king to put to death
7iunc, quia 7W7i melius est mori ferro quam uenenoT Ut
timer et IoJia7i7ies, dixit Aristodemus hoc. Et primus porrexit
cani ue7ienu77i, et statii7i 7nortuus est ; et post caiie77i porrexit
si77tice, et ilia si77iiliter i7tortua est ; et postea datus est illis
potus, et 77iortui su7it stati77i. Et sic dedit lohanni ; et dixit
lohamies tunc '^ Deus 77ieus pater etc.y' et bibit, et non 7iocuit ei ;
et haec est causa of making huius hy7nni. Et suscitati sunt
qui 77iortui fueriuit ueneno, et sic credidit Aristodemus et alii
77iulti CU771 eo. Et si quis cantauerit hunc hymnum in liquorem
aut in aliquid quod possit nocere, in sanitate7n redit. In fine
uniuscuiusque anni eligitur de populo iuuenis sanctus sine
77iactda peccati ut . . . et . . circum.

F] lohannes Apostolus fecit hanc epistohwi, when Aristodemus sacerdos
put poison for him in calicem, before the king, Domitian, that he
might be killed by it (as) is narrated in the Contest of John.

30 PREFACE TO THE EPISTLE OF CHRIST TO ABGAR.

Preface to the Epistle of Christ to Abgar.

T] Beattis es, 8ic. Christ Himself wrote with His own
hand this letter, as Eusebius in his history narrates ; further
it was written at Jerusalem, /// tempore Tiberii Caesaris.
Causa uero haec est :

Abgar the Toparch, King of the land of Armenia, of
the land north of the river Euphrates, lay in heavy disease
iji Edessa ciuitate. So there was sent from him an epistle to
Christ, that He should come to heal him, for he had heard
that He was the Son of God, and that He healed many ; and
so for the praise of the faith of Abgar Christ wrote this
letter. Now this letter is extant in Edessa ciuitate in qua
ciuitate mdlus haereticus potest uiuere^ nullus ludaeus, nuUus
idoloruin cidtor ; sed neque barbari aliquando eain inuadcre
potuerunt ex eo tempore quo Abgar us rex eiiisdein ciuitatis
accepit epistolam manu saluatoris scriptam. Hanc denique
epistolam legit infans baptizatus starts super portam et murum
ciuitatis. Si quando gens ucnerit contra ciuitatem illam, in
eodem die quo lecta fucrit cpistola manu saluatoris script a
placantur illi barbari aut fugarttur infirmati.

F] Beatus es. lesus Cliristtis fecit Jianc epistolam when there was
rex Edessae ciuitatis qui dolorem pedis habuit^ and a letter was sent
from him to Christ, that He should go and converse with him and
heal him ; and Thaddaeus gave him this letter after Christ's Passion,
and (there still remains extant) the letter ; and that it should be
• • . . . in God . . . orders . . . that no heretic should
(be allowed) to be for the space of an hour in that city.

FKEFACE TO THE IIViMN OF ST. FIACC. 31

Preface to the Hymn of St. Fiacc.

TF] ' Patrick was born.' Fiacc of Slctty composed this
hymn about Patrick. Now this Fiacc was son of Mac Erca,
son of Brccj^an, son of Daire Barrach, — from w^hom arc
the Hy-Barrchi, — son of Cathair Mor ; and the said Fiacc
was further a pupil of Dubthach mac Ui Lugair, who was
high poet of Ireland. In the time of Loegaire mac Neill it
was composed. It was this Dubthach who rose up before
Patrick at Tara, after Loegaire had decreed that none should
rise up before him in the house ; and he became a friend of
Patrick from thenceforth, and was afterwards baptized by
Patrick. Well, he went on one occasion to Dubthach's house
in Leinster, and Dubthach gave great welcome to Patrick.
Said Patrick to Dubthach, " Seek out for me a man of rank,
of good family and morals, who has tantuvi one wife and
one son." " Why dost thou seek that, i.e. a man of that
stamp? "said Dubthach. "For him to enter into orders."
" Fiacc is the man," said Dubthach, " but he has gone on
circuit in Connaught." While they were engaged over these
words, just then came Fiacc on visit with him. Said
Dubthach, " Here is the person we spoke of." " Though he
be so," said Patrick, " possibly quod dixinms would not be
agreeable to him." " Let there be made an attempt at
tonsuring me," said Dubthach, " so that Fiacc may see it."
So when P'iacc saw it,' he asked, " Why is an attempt being
made to tonsure Dubthach ? " said (he). " That is wasteful,"
said he, " for there is not in Ireland a poet the like of him."
"Thou wouldst be taken in place of him," said Patrick. ''The
loss of me from Ireland is less than (would be the loss of)
Dubthach,*' said Fiacc. So Patrick cut off Fiacc's beard
time, and there came great grace upon him thereafter, so that
he read all the ecclesiastical order in one night, uel quindeeiin
diebus lit alii feriint, and there was conferred upon him
bishop's grade, so that it is he who is the chief bishop of
Leinster from thenceforth, and his coarb after him. The
place of it is Duma Gobla, north-west of Sletty ; tempus, of
Lugaid mac Loegaire, for he was King of Ireland tune , but
the eausa was, to praise Patrick, and it was composed after his
death, ut ferunt quidain.

THE HYMN OF ST. FIACC.

The Hymn of St. Fiacc.

TF] Patrick was born in Nemthur, this is what is narrated in
stories ;
A youth of sixteen years, when he was brought under
tears.

Sucat his name (it) was said ; what his father was, were worth

knowing :
Son of Calpurn, son of Otide, grandson of deacon Odisse.

5 He was six years in bondage ; man's food he ate not.

Many were they whom he served, Cothraige (servant) of a
fourfold household.

Said Victor to Milchu's bondsman, that he should go over

the waves ;
He struck his foot on the stone, its trace remains, it fades

not.

(The angel) sent him across all Britain — great God, it was a
marvel of a course !
10 So that he left him with Germanus in the south, in the
southern part of Letha.

In the isles of the Tyrrhene sea, he fasted in them, one

estimates.
He read the Canon with Germanus, this is what writings

narrate.

Towards Ireland, God's angels were bringing him back ;
Often was it seen in visions, that he would come again !

15 A help to Ireland was Patrick's coming, which was
expected ;
Far away was heard the sound of the call of the children of
Fochlad's Wood.

They prayed that the saint would come, that he would walk

about among them,
That he would convert from iniquity the tribes of Ireland
life.

THE HYMN OF ST. FIACC. 33

TF] The tribes of Ireland prophesied that to them would come

a new Prince of peace ;
20 His succession will remain till the day of Judgement, empty

would be the land of Tara, silent !

His druids from Loegaire hid not Patrick's coming ;
The prophecy was fulfilled of the kingdom of which they
spoke.

Patrick was illustrious till he died, powerful was his expulsion

of idolatry ;
This was what raised his goodness upwards from him beyond

dwellings of mankind.

25 Hymns and Apocalypse, the Three Fifties, he used to sing
them ;
He preached, baptized, prayed ; from God's praise he ceased
not.

Cold of weather did not keep him from sleeping at night

in pools ;
In heaven he won his Kingdom, — by day he preached on

hills.

In (fountain) Slan, to the north of Benn-Boirche, — neither
drought nor flood took it, —
30 He sings one hundred psalms each night to an angels' King
whom he served.

He sleeps on a bare stone thereafter, with a damp mantle

around him ;
His pillow was a pillar-stone ; he left not his body in

warmth !

He preached the Gospel to everyone, he wrought mighty

miracles widely :
He heals lame and lepers ; dead-folk, he raised them to life.

35 Patrick preached to the Scots, he suffered great labour
widely
That around him they may come to Judgement, everyone
whom he brought to life.

Sons of Emer, sons of Herimon, went all with the devil ;
The Transgressor flung them into the deep vast pit.
LIBER HYMX. II. D

34 THE HYMN OF ST. FIACC.

TF] Till the Apostle came to them, he sent ... of a

swift wind,
40 He preached thrice twenty years Christ's Cross to Fenian

pagans.

Over Erin's land lay darkness, its tribes worshipped fairies ;
They believed not the true Godhead of the true Trinity.

In Armagh there is a kingship : it has long ago forsaken

Emania !
Dun Lethglasse is a great church : Tara even though waste

is not dear to me !

45 When Patrick was ailing, he longed to go to Armagh :
An angel went to meet him on the road at midday.

He sent him south to Victor : it was he (Victor) that
stopped him ;

Flamed the bush in which he was ; out of the fire he con-
versed.

He said, " (Leave thy) dignity to Armagh, to Christ give
thanks ;
50 To heaven thou shalt soon go: thy prayers have been
granted thee.

A hymn which thou hast chosen in thy lifetime shall be a

lorica of protection for all ;
Around thee in the Day of the Judgement men of Ireland will

go to Doom."

Tassach stayed after him when he had given communion to

him ;
He said that Patrick would soon go: Tassach's word was not

false.

55 (Patrick) set a boundary against night that no candle might |
be wasted with him :
Up to the end of a year there was light ; that was a long]
day of peace !

In a battle fought at Beth-horon against Canaan's people b]

the son of Nun,
The sun stood still towards Gibeon : this is what letters tell

us.

THE HYMN OF S7\ FIACC. 35

TF] Because the sun stood still with Joshua at the death of the

wicked,
60 Light, even were it thrice as bright, would be fitting at the

death of the saints.

Ireland's clerics went to keep watch over Patrick from every

road :
The sound of the singing prostrated them, each one of them

fell asleep on the road.

Patrick's soul from his body after labours was severed ;
God's angels on the first night (after his death) for him kept
watch unceasingly.

65 When Patrick departed, he visited the other Patrick :
Together they ascended to Jesus, Mary's son.

Patrick, without sign of pride, much good he thought it
To be in the service of Mary's son : it was a sign of dutilul-
ness to which he was born.

Patrick was born,

I) 2

36 NININE'S PR A YER.

Ninine's Prayer.

TF] Ninine the poet made this collect ; or, it was Fiacc of
Sletty.

We commemorate Saint Patrick,

chief apostle of Ireland ;
Famous is his wonderful name,

flame that baptized heathens.
5 He fought against druids

hard of heart ;
He cast down haughty men with the help of our Lord

of bright heaven ;
He cleansed Ireland's
lO territories, he the Great Birth.

We pray to Patrick, chief apostle,

who hath saved us to Doom's day

From judgement by the malevolence
of dark demons.

15 God be with me, with the prayer
of Patrick, chief apostle !

PREFACE TO THE HYMN BRIGIT BE BITHMAITH yj

Preface to the Hymn Brig it be bithmaith.

TFL] * Brigid, ever-good woman/ May be it was Colum
Cille that composed this hymn, and in the time of Aed mac
Ainmerech he composed it, it it was he that made it. This
is the cause of its composition : a great storm came upon
Colum Cille when he went over sea, and he got into
Breccan's Cauldron, so he besought Brigid that a calm might
come to him, and said ' Brigit be bith-maith.'

Or, it was Broccan the Squinting that composed it, so that
it and * Ni car Brigit ' were composed at the same time.

Or, three persons of Brigid's household made it : they set
out for Rome and reached Blasantia, and there met them
outside a man of the city, who asked them whether they
were in need of hospitality. They replied that they were, so
he took them with him to his house ; and there met them
a scholar who had come illic from Rome, who asked them
whence they came and what they came for. They replied
that it was ' for hospitality.' " That is an error," said he,
" for the custom of this man is to murder his guests " ; and
they made inquiries about that owing to the hint of the
scholar. Well, there was given them poison in ale, but
they made a eulogy of Brigid to be freed, and sang ' Brigid
ever-good woman ! ' Then they drank off the ale with the
poison, and it did them no harm. So the householder came
to look at them, to know whether the poison had killed
them, and he saw them alive, and saw a good-looking girl
among them. After that he came into the house and began
to seek the girl, but he found her not ; and he asked them,
* why the girl had gone ? ' and they replied that ' they had
not seen her at all.' So fetters were put on them, and they
were to be killed on the morrow if they did not tell about the
girl. But the same scholar came to them on the morrow to
visit them, et inuenit eos in uinculis^ et interrogauit eos quomodo
euaserunt etcur ligati sunt. Responderunt ei et narrauerunt ei
omnia quae eis contigerunt secundum ordinem, et dixit scholas-
ticus eis, " Cantate ei laude^n quam fecistis!' Postquam autem
illam cantauerunt ifiter eos sancta Brigita omnibus illis ap-
paruit. Tu7ic paenituit ille et demisit ilLos ex uinculis et dedit
suam sedem in Blasantia Brigitae, uel Blasantiam totain, ut
alii dicunt.

38 PREFACE TO THE HYMN BRIGIT BE BITHMAITH. .

TFL] Or, it was Brendan that composed this hymn ; nauigans
mare et quaerens terrain repromissionis audtuit bestiarn aliam
damanteni et adiurantein uoce huviana bestiarn aliam conuo-
canteni et rogantent Brendinum et ceteros omnes sanctos
Hiberniae ifisulae^ excepta Brigita, ne sibi alia bestia noceret ;
et niJiilominiis tavien lum ab alia patientem usque duin rogaret
Brigitam, euadentein uero postquani rogaret Brigitam et nihil
inali a persequente patientem interrogantem^ ut diceret alia
quae earn persequeretur^ ^^ postquani Brigitam adiurasti, nocere
tibi 7ion possum^ Postquani uero Brendinus haec omnia et
Jionorem queni dedit bestia Brigitae prae ceteris y adniiratus est
et Brigitam laudauit dicens *' Brigid, ever-good woman."

Locus ergo mare ; causa ad laudem Brigitae ; tempus uerOy
of Diarmait mac Cerbaill, King of Ireland.

Well, after that, Brendan came to Kildare to Brigid, to
learn why the beast in inari gave honour to Brigid more
than to all the other saints. So when Brendan reached
Brigid, he begged her to make her confession, in what way
the love of God was in her. Said Brigid to Brendan, " O
cleric, give thou thy confession /r/z/j", and I shall give mine
thereafter." Said Brendan, " From the day on which I took
religion, I went not over seven furrows without my mind
(fixed) in God." *' It is a good confession," said Brigid.
" And now, O nun, give thy confession," said Brendan. '* By
the Virgin's Son," said she, " from the hour that I set my mind
in Him, I never took it out." " By God, O nun," said
Brendan, " fitting it is for the beasts to gvvQ honour to thee
more than to us."

Or else, Ultan of Ardbreccan composed this hymn, and
for the praise of Brigid he composed it. For he belonged to
the Dal Conchobair, and so also did Brigid's mother, Broic-
sech, daughter of Dall-bronach. Further (the hymn) itself
was composed in the time of the two sons of Aed Slane, for
it was they that killed Suibne mac Colman Moir by the side
of Ultan. In Ardbreccan, also, it was composed.

THE HYMN BRIGIT BE BITHMAITH. 39

The Hymn Brigit be bithmaith.

TFLX] Brigid, ever-good woman,
flame golden, sparkling,
may she bear us to the eternal kingdom,
(she), the sun fiery, radiant !

5 May Brigid free us

past crowds of demons !
may she win for us
battles over every disease !

May she extirpate in us
10 the vices of our flesh,

she, the branch with blossoms,
the mother of Jesus !

The true-virgin, dear,
with vast pre-eminence,
15 may we be free, at all times,

along with my Saint of Leinster-folk !

One (of the two) pillars of the Kingdom,
along with Patrick the pre-eminent (as the other pillar)
the vestment beyond (even) splendid (vestments),
20 the royal Queen !

May they lie, after old age,
our bodies, in sackcloth ;
(but) with her grace may she bedew us,
may she free us, Brigid !

Brigid ever.

BrigitcB per laudem Christum precamur

ut nos celeste regnum habere mereamur. Amen.

40 PREFACE TO ST. BROCCAITS HYMN.

Preface to St. Broccan's Hymn.

TF] Locus huius hymni SHeve Bloom, or Cluain Mor
Moedoc ; person, Broccan the Squinting ; tempus, of Lugaid
mac Loegaire King of Ireland, and Ailell mac Dunlainge
King of Leinster ; caiisa^ Ultan of Ardbreccan, whose tutor
requested of him that he should tell of the miracles of
Brigid compendiously in poetic harmony, for it was Ultan
who had collected all the miracles of Brigid.

St. Broccan's Hymn.

TF] Victorious Brigid loved not the world ;
she sat the seat of John on a cliff,
she slept the sleep of a captive, —
the saint, for the sake of her Son.

5 Not much of evil-speaking was got !
with lofty faith (in) the Trinity
Brigid, mother of my high King,
of the kingdom of heaven best she was born.

She was not absent, she was not malicious,
10 she was not a mighty, quarrelsome, champion (?),
she was not an adder striking, speckled ;
she sold not the Son of God for gain !

She was not greedy of treasures,

she gave, without poison, without abatement ;
15 she was not hard, penurious,

she loved not the world's spending.

To guests she was not acrimonious,
to miserable weaklings she was gentle ;
on a plain she was built (as) a city ;
20 may she protect us (in) hosts to the Kingdom.

ST. BROCCAN'S HYMN. [ 41

TF] She was no plunderer (?) of a mountain-slope ;
she worked in the midst of a plain,
a wonderful ladder for pagan-folk
to climb to the Kingdom of Mary's Son !

25 Wonderful was St. Brigid's congregation,
wonderful. Plea to which it went ;
but alone with Christ was maintained
her frequent mission to the poor !

Good was the hour that Mac-Caille held
30 a veil over St. Brigid's head ;

she was clear in all her proceedings ;
in heaven was heard her prayer ;

" God, I pray to Him against every battle,
in whatever way my lips can reach,
35 deeper than seas, vaster than count.

Three Persons, One Person, a wonder of a story ! "

A challenge to the battle, renowned Kevin !
through a storm of snow that wind drives,
in Glendalough was suffered a cross,
40 till peace visited him after labour.

St. Brigid was not given to sleep,

nor was she intermittent about God's love ;

not merely that she did not buy, she did not strive for

the world's wealth here below, the Saint !

45 That which the King wrought
of miracles for St. Brigid,

if they have been wrought for (any other) person,
in what place hath ear of any living being heard of it ?

The first dairying on which she was sent
50 with first butter in a cart,

she took nought from the gift to her guests,
nor did she lessen her following.

Her portion of bacon, after that,

one evening — the victory was high, —
55 not merely was the dog satisfied with it,
the company was not grieved.

42 ST. BROCCAN'S HYMN.

TF] A day of reaping for her, — it was well reaped,
no fault was found there with my pious one ;
it was dry-weather ever in her field,
60 through the world it poured heavy rain.

Bishops visited her,

not slight was the danger to her,

if there had not been, — the King helped, —

milking of the cows thrice.

65 On a day of heavy rain she herded (?)
sheep in the midst of a plain ;
she spread her upper garment afterwards
in-doors across a sunbeam.

The cunning youth asked alms of her,
70 Brigid, for the love of her King :
she gave away seven wethers,
but it did not lessen her flock's number.

It is of my poetic gift if I were to recount
what she did of good :
75 wonderful for her was the bath

that was blest about her, — it became red ale !

She blessed the pregnant nun,

who thereon became whole, without poison, without disease;
greater than others was the marvel, how
80 of the stone she made salt.

I record not, I enumerate not
all that the holy creature did :
she blessed the flat-faced one,
and his two eyes became quite apparent.

85 Some one brought a dumb girl

to Brigid, — the miracle of it was unique, —
whose hand went not out of her hand
till her utterances were clear.

(Another) wonder was bacon that she blessed ;
90 and God's power kept it safely ;

(though) it was a full month with the dog,
the dog did not injure it.

ST. BROCCAN'S HYMN. 4j

TF] It was a miracle greater than others :

a morsel she requested of the (kitchen-)folk
95 did not spoil the colour of her scapular

(though) it was flung, boiling, into her bosom

The leper begged a boon of her ;
it was a good boon that befel him :
she blessed the choicest of the calves,
lOO and the choicest of the cows loved it.

He directed her chariot afterwards
northward to Bri Cobthaig Coil,
the calf being with the leper in the car,
and the cow (following) behind the calf.

105 The oxen, (when thieves) visited them,

would have been pleased that anyone should hear them :
against them rose up the river,
at morn they returned home.

Her horse parted head from head-stall
1 10 when they ran down the slope ;

the yoke was not flung out of balance,
God's Son directed the royal hand.

A wild boar frequented her herd,

to the north he hunted the wild pig ;
115 Brigid blessed him with her staff,

and he took up his stay with her swine.

Mug-art, a fat pig for her was given

beyond Mag Fea ; it was wonderful how
wild dogs hunted it for her,
120 till it was (close to her) in Uachtar Gabra.

She gave the wild fox

on behalf of her peasant, the wretched ;
to a wood it escaped
though the hosts hunted it.

125 She was open in her proceedings,

she was One-Mother of the Great King's Son :

she blessed the fluttering bird

so that she played with it in her hand.

44 ST. BROCCAN'S HYMN.

TF] Nine outlaws (whose weapons) she blessed
130 reddened those weapons in a pool of blood ;

the man whom they had ill-treated

was wounded, but hurt to him was not found there !

What she wrought of miracles

there is no one who could enumerate aright :
135 wonderful how she took away Lugaid's appetite ;
but the champion's strength she did not lessen.

An oak the multitude lifted not,

on another occasion, — excellent and famous (deed) !
her Son brought it to her (on the prayer) of Brigid,
140 to the place where she wished it to be (?).

The trinket of silver, which should not have been hidden
for mischief to the champion's hand-maid,
was flung into the sea the length of a mighty cast, —
but even it was found, in the inner part of a salmon.

145 Another wonder of hers was the widow
who refreshed her in Mag Coil,
for she made fire-wood of the new (weaving)-beam,
and that for cooking the calf;

A miracle greater than any other
150 which the saint effected, —

in the morning the beam was whole,
with its mother was the missing calf

The trinket of silver, which the smith

broke not, — this was one of her miracles, —
155 Brigid struck it against her hand

afterwards, so that it broke into three (parts)

It was flung into a scale at the smith's ;
thereupon was found a wonder :
it was not discovered that by one scruple
160 any third was greater than another.

What she wrought of miracles,

there is no man who can come at them ;
she blessed raiment for Condlaed,
when he was taken to Letha.

ST. BROCCAN'S HYMJV. 45

TF] When she, — it was a danger for her, —
her Son before her failed her not (?) :
he put raiment in the basket
of Ronccnd in a chariot of two wheels

The mead-vat that was brought to her ;
170 whoever brought it was not unrewarded (?) ;

for there was found (honey) in a wall of the house :
it had not been found there up to that !

She crave for behoof of her servant
when he stood in need ;
175 not merely was no surplus found there,
but not a drop was wanting.

Upon us may Brigid's prayers rest !
and she against danger be our aid !
may they be on the side of her weaklings
180 before going into the presence of the Holy Spirit !

May she aid us with a sword of fire
in the fight against black swarms !
may her holy prayers protect us
past pains, into the kingdom of Heaven 1

185 Before going with angels to the battle
let us reach the church with a run !
commemoration of the Lord is better than any poem
Victorious Brigid loved not the world.

Brigid loved not

I beseech the patronage of St. Brigid
190 with the saints of Kildare ;

may they be between me and pain !
may my soul not be lost !

The nun that drove over the Curragh,

may she be a shield against edges of sharpness !
195 I have not found her like, save Mary :
we honour my Brigid.

46 ST. BROCCAirs HYMN.

TF] We honour my Brigid ;

may she be a protection to our company !

may her patronage assist me !
200 may we all of us deserve escape !

Praise of Christ, famous (such) speaking !

adoration of the Son of God, guarantee of victory !
may it be without denial of God's Kingdom,
whoever recites' it, whoever has heard it !

205 Whoever has heard, whoever recites it,

may the benediction of Brigid rest on him !
the benediction of Brigid and of God
rest upon us, together !

There are two nuns in the Kingdom, —
210 I implore their aid (?) with all my effort, —
Mary and St. Brigid ;
may we be under the protection of these two

Sancta Brigita uirgo sacratissima

in Christo domino fuit fidelissima. Amen.

PREFACE TO ST. SANCTA.YS HYMN. 47

Preface to St. Sanctan's Hymn.

TF] ' I beseech a wonderful kini^.' Bishop Sanctan com-
posed this h)'mn, and it was on his c^oing^ to Clonard west-
ward to Inis Matoc that he composed it ; he was brother to
Matoc, both of them beinc^ of British race, but Matoc came
into Ireland earlier qiiajji Bishop Sanctan. Causa aiitcinJiaec
est, to free it ab hostibus, and that his brother should be
allowed (to come) to him /« insidani ; Scoticain tiero linguam
usque ad Jiorain Jianc nan habuit sed dcus ei tarn cito earn
donauit. Tciupus auteni dubitatur.

St. Sanctan's Hymn.

TF] I beseech a wonderful King of angels,
for it is a name that is mightiest ;
to me (be) God for my rear, God on my left,
God for my van, God on my right !

5 God for my help, — holy call —

against each danger, Him I invoke !
a bridge of life let there be below me,
benediction of God the Father above me !

Let the lofty Trinity arouse us,
10 (each one) to whom a good death (?) is not (yet) certain !
Holy Spirit noble, strength of heaven,
God the Father, Mary's mighty Son !

A great King who knows our offences
Lord over earth, without sin, —
15 to my soul for every black-sin

let never demons' godlessness (?) visit me !

God with me, may He take away each toil !
may Christ draw up my pleadings,
may apostles come all around me,
20 may the Trinity of witness come to me !

48 ST. SANCTAJSrS HYMN.

TF] May mercy come to me (on) earth,

from Christ let not (my) songs be hidden !
let not death in its death-wail reach me,
nor sudden death in disease befal me !

25 May no malignant thrust that stupefies and perplexes
reach me without permission of the Son of God !
May Christ save us from every bloody death,
from fire, from raging sea !

From every death-drink, that is unsafe
30 for my body, with many terrors !

may the Lord each hour come to mc
against wind, against swift waters !

I shall utter the praises of Mary's Son
who fights for good deeds,
35 (and) God of the elements will reply,
(for) my tongue (is) a lorica for battle.

In beseeching God from the heavens
may my body be incessantly laborious ;
that I may not come to horrible hell
40 I beseech the King whom I have besought.

I beseech a wonderful King.

Bishop Sanctan ... a sage
soldier, angel famous pure-white,
may he make free my body on earth,
45 may he make holy my soul towards heaven !

May there be a prayer with thee for me, O Mary !
May heaven's King be merciful to us
against wound, danger and peril !
O Christ, on Thy protection (rest) we !

50 I beseech the King free, everlasting

Only Son of God, to watch over us ;

may He protect me against sharp dangers,

He, the Child that was born in Bethlehem.

PREFACE TO ST. PATRICK'S LORICA. 49

Preface to St. Patrick's Lorica.

T] Patrick made this hymn ; in the time of Loegaire mac
Neill, it was made, and the cause of its composition was for
the protection of himself and his monks against the deadly
enemies that lay in ambush for the clerics. And it is a
lorica of faith for the protection of body and soul against
demons and men and vices : when any person shall recite
it daily with pious meditation on God, demons shall not
dare to face him, it shall be a protection to him against all
poison and envy, it shall be a guard to him against sudden
death, it shall be a lorica for his soul after his decease.

Patrick sang it when the ambuscades were laid for him by
Loegaire, in order that he should not go to Tara to sow the
Faith, so that on that occasion they were seen before those
who were lying in ambush as if they were wild deer having
behind them a fawn, viz. Benen ; and * Deer's Cry ' is its
name.

The Lorica of St. Patrick.

T] I arise to-day :

vast might, invocation of the Trinity, —
belief in a Threeness
confession of Oneness
5 meeting in the Creator (?).

I arise to-day :

the might of Christ's birth and His baptism
the might of His Crucifixion and Burial
the might of His Resurrection and Ascension
10 the might [of] His Descent to the judgement of Doom.

LIBER HYMN. II. E

so THE LORICA 01^ ST. rATRICK.

T] I arise to-day :

might of grades of Cherubim

in obedience of Angels

[in ministration of Archangels]

in hope of resurrection for the sake of reward
15 in prayers of Patriarchs

in prophecies of Prophets

in preachings of Apostles,

in faiths of Confessors

in innocence of holy Virgins
20 in deeds of righteous men.

I arise to-day :

might of Heaven
brightness of Sun
whiteness of Snow

.25 splendour of Fire

speed of Light
swiftness of Wind
depth of Sea
stability of Earth

30 firmness of Rock.

I arise to-day :

Might of God for my piloting

Wisdom of God for my guidance
Eye of God for my foresight

35 Ear of God for my hearing

Word of God for my utterance

Hand of God for my guardianship

Path of God for my precedence

Shield of God for my protection
40 Host of God for my salvation

against snares of demons
against allurements of vices
against solicitations of nature
against every person that wishes me ill
45 far and near

alone and in a crowd.

THE LORICA OF ST. PATRICK. 5t

T] I invoke therefore all these forces to intervene between me
and every fierce merciless force that may come upon
my body and my soul :

against incantations of false prophets
50 against black laws of paganism

against false laws of heresy
against deceit of idolatry

against spells of women and smiths and druids
against all knowledge that is forbidden the human soiiL

55 Christ for my guardianship to-day

against poison, against burning,
against drowning, against wounding,
that there may come to me a multitude of rewards ;
Christ with me, Christ before me,
60 Christ behind me, Christ in me,
Christ under me, Christ over me,
Christ to right of me, Christ to left of me,
Christ in lying down, Christ in sitting, Christ in rising up
Christ in the heart of every person, who may think of me !
65 Christ in the mouth of every one, who may speak to me !
Christ in every eye, which may look on me !
Christ in every ear, which may hear me !

I arise to-day :

vast might, invocation of the Trinity
70 belief in a Threeness

confession of Oneness
meeting in the Creator.

Domini est salus^ domini est sahcs, Christi est salus ;
Salus tuUy doinine, sit semper nobiscum.

li 2

52 THE HYMN OF MAEL ISU.

The Hymn of Mael-Isu.

T] The Holy Spirit around us,

in us and with us,
the Holy Spirit to us,
may it come, O Christ, suddenly !

5 The Holy Spirit to inhabit

our body and our soul,
to protect us speedily
against peril, against diseases !

Against demons, against sins,
lO against hell with many evils,

O Jesus, may it sanctify us,
may Thy Spirit free us !

The Spirit

[Names of the Apostles.]

Simon, Matthias, and Matthew,
Bartholomew, Thomas, Thaddaeus,
Peter, Andrew, Philip, Paul,
John and two Jameses.

PREFACE TO THE AMR A OF ST. COLUMBA.

Preface to the Amra of St. Columba.

T] The place for the Amra usqiie in fine?ji, i.e. the bit of land that is
between Fene in Ui Tigernan in Meath up to Dun na n-Airbed in
the district of JMasraige eastward of Irarus, or of Chechtraige Slecht
from Breifne of Connaught ; i.e. for Dalian.

[For] Colum Cille son of Feidlimid, son of Fergus, son of Conall,
5 son of Neill, Dalian wrote this. Now this is the third cause for
which Colum Cille came, viz. a refusal that Ireland's kings around
Aed mac Ainmerech put on Ireland's poets; for it was owing to the
multitude of the poets and to their burdensomeness that Ireland's
men were not able to find out what to do with them ; for the
person who was satirised there, if he did not immediately die,
there used to grow poisonous ulcers upon him, till he was con-
ic spicuous to everybody, and till there was deformity upon him
always ; but upon the poet himself grew the ulcers, and he used
to die immediately, if it was without fault that he satirised. Now
the poets were at Ibar of Cinntracht in the territory of Ulster, for
Ulster's king gave them ' coigny' three years, or (may be) one whole
year there. And it was then they set themselves to invent stories,
15 but they were wholly unable (to do it) as they used to tell them;
but to mipose them on the w^holly rude race among whom they were,
ready-tongued poets concocted the lying fables. Well, a message
came from Ireland's poets to Colum Cille, to the effect that it was
to them he should come before he went to Druim Cetta, the place
where the kings were who refused them. And so they invoked
20 God's name upon the head of Colum Cille and of the Christian
faith . . . was brought under his protection to Druim Cetta.
There came afterwards Colum Cille as he came from his boat,
seven twenties his number (of followers), ut poeta dixit :

Forty priests his number,
25 twenty bishops lofty power

at the psalm-singing without dispute,
fifty deacons, thirty students.

So he took the poets with him to Druim Cetta. Now Dalian
mac Forgaill was under ban of expulsion among the poets though
30 he was a doctor of wisdom and of poetry. But Colum Cille made
reconcihation of the poets with the men of Ireland and with Aed
mac Ainmerech, in precedence of every other case that was brought
before the assembly, so that this is what is said even now-a-days,
i.e. " Case of a privileged person before every case." Then Colum
Cille requested the kings who were there assembled to give the
headship of Ireland's poets to Dalian for his wisdom and for his

54 PREFACE TO THE AMR A OF ST. COLUMBA.

T] knowledge in poetry (as being) beyond all. And Colum Cille

35 made a black-poem (?) ongoing to the assembly along with Cormac's

poets

(and Dalian asked), "What reward shall be given me for the
eulogy ? " Said Colum Cille, " Heaven shall be given to thee and
to every one else who shall recite it . . . shall not be more

40 numerous than are hornless dun cows in a cow-shed." " What are
tokens that that shall be given ? " said the blind poet. " There
shall be given thee thy sight while composing the eulogy, so that
there shall be visible to thee sky and air and earth " ; and when it

would be the end of the eulogy

Colum Cille made the freeing of Scandlan son of Cinnfaela from

his hostageship, and he bowed down to the Gospel

and he gave eight score plough-oxen to him . . . and to the soul-

45 friend ; and it was the coarbs of Colam Cille that were soul-
friends .... Osraige, so that it is in Hi, and there are due
eight score plough-oxen still to the congregation of Hi from the
Osraige . . . between Aed mac Ainmerech and Aedan mac
Gabrain about Dal-riata, and the Dal-riata were allowed to serve

50 him ... of the sea between Ireland and Scotland and Gall-
Gaels to the King of Scotland on his behalf. He went . . .

A MR A OF S7. CGLUMBA. 55

Amra of St. Columba.

T] Locus huius art is is Druim Cetta, where was the Great Assembly.
In the time of Aed mac Ainmerech and Aedan mac Gabrain it was
composed. The person was Dalian mac Forgaill of the Masraige
of Mag Slecht in Breifne of Connaught. The cause, to attain
heaven for himself et aliis per se. Now there are three causes for

5 which Colum Cille came from Scotland into Ireland at that time, viz.
[i] to set free Scandlan Mor son of Cinnfaela, King of the men
of Ossory, for whom he had gone in suretyship ; [ii] to secure
residence in Ireland for the poets, for they had been expelled owing
to their burdensomeness, viz. thirty persons being the full retinue
and fifteen the half retinue of the ollam-'^OQX. : twelve hundred their

I o number, id quidam dixit,

[vv. 50-57] Once to Mael-choba of the companies

at Ibar of Cinn-tracht
twelve hundred poets resorted
to the north-west of the Yew.
* Coigny ' of three harmonious years
gave to them Mael-choba the Chief;
there shall remain to the day of white Doom,
(descendants) of the shapely race of Deman.
And [iii] to make peace between the men of Ireland and of
Scotland about Dal-riata ; so that Colum Cille came afterwards
into the court, and some in the court rose up to give welcome to
him, and the poets came to sing him their musical strains. So then
Colum Cille said to Aed : —
15 Cormac fairly broke battles, —

new his praises, withered his treasures,

it is this I have read (to be) the grace of poetry :

luck where one is praised, woe where one is satirised, Aed

Fair the juice that is sucked from their free faces ;
20 woe worth the land that absent is satirised !

ladder famous — fair the course — living men are pleased
praises live long after treasures (are gone).

Thereafter Colum Cille begged Scandlan('s release) from Aed, who
did not grant it to him ; so he said to Aed, that ' he [Scandlan
25 would take off his shoes about nocturns, wherever he [Colum Cille
might be ' ; and so it was fulfilled.

56 A MR A OF ST. COLUMBA.

T] It was Colman mac Comgellain of the Dal-riata that gave the
judgement, viz., 'their expedition and their hosting with the men of
Ireland,* for there is hosting always with possessions of land \ but
* their law of tribute and their tax with the men of Scotland.' And
it is that same Colman to whom Colum Cille did the kindness,
when he was a little child, et dixit ^

30 O fair conscience, O pure soul !

here is a kiss for thee, give a kiss to me !
And Colum Cille said that it would be he who should make peace
between the men of Ireland and of Scotland.

Dalian afterwards came to converse with Colum Cille, and recited
35 the prologue to him, but Colum Cille did not let him go past that,
(and said) that he should finish it at the time of his decease, that ' it
was for a dead person it was fitting.'

Then, Colum Cille promised riches and the fruits of the earth to
Dalian for this eulogy, but Dalian accepted nothing but heaven for
40 himself and for every one who should recite it, and should under-
stand it, both sense and sound.

" How shall I know of thy death seeing that thou art in pilgrimage
and I am in Ireland?"

So Colum Cille gave him three tokens, as to the time when he
should complete his eulogy, viz. that it would be a rider of a
45 speckled horse who should announce to him Colum Cille's decease ;
that the first word he would speak would be the beginning of the
eulogy ; and that (the use of) his eyes would be granted him while
he was composing it.

At Ath Feni in Meath was this eulogy sung, ut Mael-Suthain
dixit ; but Fer-domnach (his) coarb states that it was at Slige
Assail it was sung, from Dun na nAirbed to the Cross at Tig
Lommain.

Tres filiae Orci quae uocantur diuersis nominibus in caelo et in
terra et ifi inferno ; in caelo quidem Stetnia et Euriale et Medusa,
60 in terra Clotho, Lachesis, Atropos ; in i?ifirno Elect 0, Megaera, Tisi-
phone.

Hoc est principium laudationis.

'Anamain' between two 'n's is this, viz. : 'n' at the beginning of
the eulogy, and ' n ' at the end; i.e. 'ni disceoil' and ' nembuain.'
Or, it is ' fork ' of it, viz. : a doubly harmonised ' raicne ' metre ;
i.e. two or three word-utterances beginning with one letter, in
unbroken sequence, and a word beginning with a different letter
following them.

65 ' Ni disceoil,' i.e. not folly of a story, i.e. it was not a story about
a fool that will be made famous.

A MR A OF ST. COLUMBA, 57

T] hid not 'ceis' music from Craiptine's harp,

that brought a death-sleep on hosts ;

it joined harmony between Maen

and marriageable Moriath of Morca.
70 Labraid was more to her than every prize.

Sweeter than every song was the harp
that was played (to) Labraid Loingsech Lorcc ;
though the king was silent and plunged in secrecy,
Craiptine's (harp) hid not ' ceis.'

Three years was he without light,
Colum, in his Black Church ;
75 he went to angels out of his captivity

after seventy-six years.

* fo ' is a name for ' good ' and for ' honour ' ;

' fi ' is a name for ' evil ' and for ' disobedience ' ;

* an ' is * true,' — and it is no weak knowledge, —
3o * iath ' is ' diadem ' and ' iath ' is ' land.'

' mur ' means ' multitude ' yonder in the law,
'coph,' 'victory,' — it is a full-right word. —
' du,' ' place,' ' du ' means ' thy right,'
' cail,' ' protection ' and ' cul ' ' chariot.'

85 Ethne pre-eminent in her life-time

the queen of the Carburys
the mother of Colum, — bright perfection — ,
daughter of Dimma mac Noe.

Up to the distance of a mile and a half was clear the voice of
90 Colum Cille in saying his offices, ut dixit poeta :
The sound of Colum Cille's voice,
great its sweetness above every company ;
up to fifteen hundred paces,
with wonders of courses, is the distance that it was clear.

95 Hi with the multitude of its relics

of which Colum was dear fosterchild;

he went out of it at last,

so that Down is his old sanctuary.

S8 AMR A OF ST. COLUMBA.

T] * Aidbse,' i.e. a name for music or for a *cronan,' which a number
ICO of the men of Ireland used to make all together whatever it was
that called them together. And this is what the men of Ireland
did before him in the Great Assembly of Druim Cetta, so that
there came pride of mind to him. An example of 'aidbse/ uf
Colman dixit, i.e. the son of Lenine :
Blackbirds (compared) with swans, an ounce with masses,
105 forms of peasant-women with forms of queens,

kings with Domnall, a mere droning sound with an ' aidbse/
a rushlight with a candle, (is) a sword with my sword.

' Ferb ' is employed to express three things, viz. ' ferb ' means
' word,' ut dicitur, " if it be of the true-wondrous words of the white
no pure language"; and 'ferb' also means 'blotch,' iit dicitur, "blotches
will rise on his cheeks after partial judgements," i.e. perverse judge-
ments ; and ' ferb ' also means ' cow,' ut dicitur, " three white cows^
Assal drove them away from Mog Nuadat."

Angelus dixit uel 7nonachiis this following : —
A humble youth, says ' cet,'
115 deus ei indulget

he testifies no and uet
in eternal life surget.

Labraid Loingsech, sufficient his number,
by whom was slain Cobthach in Dinn-rig,
120 with a lance-armed host from over ocean's water;

from them Leinster was named.

Two hundred and twenty hundred Galls
with broad lances with them yonder ;
from the lances which were borne there,
125 hence is 'Lagin' (the name) for Leinster.

* Tuaim tenma ' was its name before there was made the Plunder
of Dinn-rig, in which was killed.

openly he used to lie in the sand ;
in his lair he was much-suffering ;
130 trace of his rib through his garment,

it was clear when the wind blew it.

It is for this reason that he doubles the first word, for the intensity
or the great eagerness of the eulogy, ict est, Deus, Deus meus.

Now this is its name with the Gael, viz., its * enunciatign '-mode ;
i.e. this is its ' mood of narration ' : —

135 I fear, I fear, after long, long

to be in pain, pain, not peace, peace

as each, each, till doom, doom

at each hour, hour, though fatigue, fatigue

AMR A OF ST. CCLUMBA. 59

T] Brigita dixit :

140 Good I deem my smallness ;

to earth descends each race,
though any one were placed somewhat lower,
the love of Jesus he would merit there.

The Amra of Colum — every day
145 whoever he be that recites it in its entirety,

there will be to him the bright kingdom

which God gave to Dalian.

An assembly I gathered, — it is great folly,
in the house over Druim-lias ;
150 O my Lord, O King of noble mysteries
in which there is

There is a woman in the country,
her name is not said :
ex ea erumpit peditum
155 hke stone out of sling.

It is a physician's medicine-chest without an ale-bag^
it is asking of marrow without bone,
it is a strain of music on a harp without a ' ceis ,' —
so is our state in the absence of our noble organ.

160 May thy bed be in swiftness !

after thy fight, sail of long height,

may there be brought in a chariot after a horse

thy wife, O hero, to her fair church !

Ferchertne the poet dixit:
165 Is name of demon shouted to you ?

he who announces pain for his household :

may God not leave me, East or West,

in the track of the demon on whom it is shouted.

* Cul ' is a name for a chariot without fault,
170 in which I used to go with Conor;

and ' neit ' was a name for the battle
which I used to fight along with Cathbath's son.

Woe with my looking to him !

increases on wall glance from below ;
T75 it was sweeter they sang a drone-murmur

his two bags towards a glance from below.

^ AMJ^A OF ST. COLUMBA,

T] Not for that do I wake out of my sleep .... after pleasant sweet

sleep word of Lent without any inquiry . . .

Rath of Rathmacc, victory of king's son . . .

1 80 Example of return to the usual sound is this : —
Were I the sweet-voiced smith,
smith of fire would I cleave to,
weapon that would slay calf of half-tonsured man :
I would grind (corn) for Mael-Sechnall.

185 /^^ Od, God — whom I beseech before I come into
VjT His presence.

i.e. I fear God. Or, I pray before I come into His
presence.

Chariot through battle.

i.e. as goes a scythed chariot through battle, may my soul
go through demons' batde to heaven !

^90 God of heaven, may He not leave me in the track
where it is shouted owing to its smoke from its
greatness.

i.e. for making truth clear he says "God of heaven." Or,
from his knowledge that He is not a god that is an idol ; " may
He not leave me crying in the track of demons from the
greatness of their smoke."

Great God (be) my protection from a fiery abun-
195 dance of incessant tears.

i.e. * Great God for my protection against the abundance of
the fire, in the place where tears are shed a long time at seeing
it'; i.e. quia fit ^ viwix' viz. 'abundance'; and as to 'diu-
tercc,' it is a co77ipositu7)i ?io7ne?i, of Latin and Irish, viz. ' diu '
is 'a long time,' and 'dercc ' means 'eye,' iit dixit Grainne,
Cormac's daughter :
.200 *' There is a person

from whom a long glance would have my thanks,

for whom I should give the whole world,

O Son of Mary, though a losing bargain."

A MR A OF ST. COLUMBA. 6i

T] God righteous, truly near, who hears my twin-wail
205 from (his) heaven-land of clouds.

i.e. God True- One. Or, God of the righteous; truly near,
quia est dcus ubique et propc iwuiibus tnuocantibus eum. My
twin-wail, i.e. my two wailings,viz. wail of my body and wail of
my soul, after clouds in heaven's land. Or, wail of Old
Testament and wail of New Testament. ... to serve him
210 by men with every object.

Ot unworthy of song for descendants of Neill.

i.e. not without tale. Or, not trifling is the tale of Colum
Cille's death, to grandchildren of Neill, or to great-grand-
children of Neill.

They sigh not (as) single plains (but all together) ;
215 great woe, great noise intolerable.

i.e. not from one plain is it ' alas ' or is it ' groaning ' sed
iotis campis : the decease of Colum Cilleis a great woe ; noise,
i.e. great is the trembling and the shaking that hath come into
Ireland at the decease of Colum Cille.

At the time when It tells of Colum being without life,
without church.

220 i.e. the story is to us intolerable at the time when it is told

us of Colum's decease, of his being no more in the world or in
life, of his no longer abiding in a church.

Ubi invenitur 'ris', i.e. 'story'? Not hard; in the

Dialogue of the Two Sages, ut dicitur^ "delight of a king,

smooth stories " ; or in the Bretha Nemed, ut dicitur^ " not

payment of a company (that tell) stories"; i.e. he possesses

225 not the means of delighting a company (for their) stories

How would a fool speak of him ?

i.e. * coi ' is 'way,' in what way, and * india ' is 'will he
narrate ' ; what then is the way in which a fool will tell of him ?
Or, compared with him every person up to India was unlearned.

62 A MR A OF ST. COLUMBA.

T] Even Nera, about God's prophet.

230 * sceo ' and ' ceo ' and ' neo ' are three Gaelic conjunctive

particles. And even Nera son of Morand, or son of FinchoU
of the fairy-folk, would not be able to tell of him. Or, even
he was unlearned in comparison with Colum Cille.

On land of Zion he hath taken his seat.

i.e. on land of the heavenly Zion he sate down ; or the
prophet of God used to tell of the sitting that shall be in the
235 land of Zion, i.e. on earth.

No (more) Is our sage the profit of (our) soul, for (he
hath gone) from us to a fair land.

i.e. we have now none to benefit or to enlighten our soul, for
our sage hath gone away from us to a fair land.

Or, from condio, ' I salt ', i.e. the person who used to salt our
stench of sins and trangressions with his teaching.

240 He who preserves alive has died.

i.e. the person who used to preserve us alive hath died.
Or, the person who knows our life well hath died.

For he hath died to us, who was destined to secure
our forgiveness.

i.e. he who was destined (to secure) our pardon, has died.
Or, he who was destined for pity on our wretchedness, hath
245 died.

For he hath died to us who was a messenger to our
Lord.

i.e. the messenger who used to go from us to our Lord,
hath died ; for his spirit used to go to heaven every Thursday.

For now we have no more a sage who should avert
terrors from us.

250 i.e. for no longer is alive the person who used to bring us

knowledge of peace, and who used to stand in opposition so
that there should be no fear in us. Or, the sage who used to
go from us into the land of ... .

A MR A OF ST. COLUMBA. 63

T] For we have no king, who shall explain word-truth.

i e. he who ran from us runs not back to us; he would state
to us truth of word or true-word. Or, he does not come to our
-55 reproof, i.e. to our ameHoration.

For (we have) no teacher who used to teach tribes of
Tol.

i.e. he who wrought the aid of the tribes in teaching them till
they were silent. Or, the teacher who sang (to) the tribes who
were about Tai, i.e. 7iomen propriutn of a stream in Scotland.

260 Whole world, — It w^as his.

i.e. woe to the whole world, which he had, for it is in misery.
Or else, he had the whole world.

It Is a ' crult '-harp without a ' eels '-harp, It Is a
church without an abbot.

i.e. ' ceis ' is a name for a small harp that accompanies a

265 great ' cruit '-harp in its playing. Or a name for a pulling

upon which is the cord. Or, it is a name for the small peg.

Or, a name for the tackling. Or, for the heavy cord, quod est

melius^ ut dixit the poet.

De ascensione eius in caelum.

E rose very high, God's time about Colum of
company.

270 i.e. he arose to a great height when God's companies came

to meet Colum Cille.

Bright shrine attendance.

i.e. bright is the shrine for which attendants came. Or
else, bright were the peace-folk who came to attend on Colum
Cille, viz. angels.

275 He kept vigil as long as he lived.

i.e. twelve hundred genuflexions by him every day except
tantu7?i on festival days, so that his ribs were visible through his
dress.

64 AMR A OF ST. COLUMBA.

T] He was of brief age.

i.e. straight, or insignificant or small (his age), viz. seventy-
six years, ut dixit the poet.

280 He was of slight food.

i.e. of trifling amount was his sufficiency.

He was head of science of every hill.

i.e. he was chief in science of every language up to its ridge-
pole. Or, a firm chief who used to turn every unlawfulness.

285 He was a hill, in book law-learned.

i.e. he used to teach the books of the law up to its ridge-
pole. Or, quiafuit doctor in libris legis.

Blazed land south ; with him district Occidens.

i.e. he blazed in the south land. Or, the south land was his.
290 Or, he benefited it, and he benefited the land of the setting

(sun). Or, it is his, just as was Inis Boffin on the sea.

Equally his was Oriens,

i.e. he blazed ... in the East.

From clerics heart-pained.

295 i.e. for the clergy at Corccan Ochaide ; and it is they whom

he sent to Gregory. Or, perhaps his heart was silent with
respect to clericship towards each.

Good his death.

i.e. good his death, quia fit * dibad ' and ' bath ' and ' ba *■
and ' teme ' are used to denote * death.'

300 God's angels when he ascended.

i.e. angels of the God of heaven came to meet him when
he ascended.

T,TT.

./J//v'./ OF ST. COLUMN. I. 65

Dc inarfxrio ciiisdcui in nunuUi.

\ came to Axalii, q^reat crowds, archano-els.

i.e. he came to a place where is the angel Axal. Or^ he
305 came to a ])lace where auxilium is given to each one, i.e. to a

multitude of archangels. Or 'axal' means 'conversation';
i.e. he came to the land in which conversation is made, quia
diaint hiruphin et zaraphin^ sanctus sanctus sanctiis dominus
deus sabaoth dicenfcs. Or, 'axalu' is ucca (choice) so/a (alone),
and the word is composihtm^ viz. of Latin and Irish, sic \ i.e.
he came to the one place that is an object of choice to all,
i.e. caelum.

310 He reached a land in which it is not ni^ht that one
has seen.

i.e he came to a land in which night is not seen.

He reached a land for Moses, we deem,
i.e. in which it is our opinion that Moses is.

He reached plains of customs, that songs are not
born (there).

315 i.e. it is not a custom for any tune to be born in them, for

there is never any want of that tune out of them.

That saofes heard not.

i.e. sages are not able to tell it. Or, no sage listens tO'
another.

King of priests cast out toils.

i.e. the King of the priests flung all diseases from Him in
320 the time of His death, ut dicitur, Tristis est aninia mea usque-

ad mortem.

E suffered ; in a short time he gained victory.

i.e. finely he subdued his passions in the short time that he-
iived. ..«-■'-• —

LIBER HYMN. II. /<'\"^'---^' ^"''' '^V^,

/ /pp. arS

66 A MR A OF ST. COLUMBA.

T] Terror of him was on the devil.

i.e. the devil was a horror to him. Or, he was deemed a
325 horror by the demon, viz. by the gods of perdition.

To whom celebration was a hanorlne.

i.e. to whom Colum Cilia's celebration was a * way of
stopping,' or was a 'spear of stopping.' Or, a 'hanging'
in its own meaning, i.e. so long as there was heard the
voice of Colum Cille at celebration, he was not let out till
the celebration was finished ; and they used to ask news of
330 him thereafter.

From his powerful art.

i.e. by the power of his clericship he used to effect that.

Robust right he keeps.

i.e. he knew the great strength of right quia idem esf^
335 'robust' et ' robustus.' Or, he preserved his uprightness

strongly.

Was known (his) grave, known (his) wisdom

i.e. the place of his burial was known, viz. Hi, or Down,
ut dicunt alii. Or, it was known up to Rome, and his wisdom
was known.

Sageshlp to him was granted of deity.

340 i.e. there was granted to him sageship of the Deity ; from

the Son of God he got that. Or, he lived in granted Deity of
the Son of God.

Sure good in death.

i.e. it is certain that the death he departed is good. Or,
good was the person who died there.

He was skilled In Axal the angel.

345 i.e. he was skilful in the conversation of the angel whose

name was Axal.

AAJJ^A OF ST. COLUMBA. 67

T] He used' Basil-judgements.

i.e. the judgement of pride that he fell into in the Great
Assembly of Druim Cetta, so that it was on that account that
Baithin brought a testimony from Basil to subdue the pride.
Or, he made use of Basil's Judgements of Doom.

Z'S^ He forbade works of chorus, In crowds, In choruses.

i.e. he forbade, with a view to his mind being (fixed) on
God, the eulogy that the hosts made on him. Or, he pro-
hibited the deeds of God owing to the ai)parition of the black
hideous multitudes ; and what summoned him therefrom was
the testimony from Basil, or the words.

De sclent ia cius in ojiini parte.
E ran a race which he runs.

i.e. there overtook him the race which he ran.

For hatred, well-doing.

i.e. he used to do kindly deeds in return for hatred, quia fit
^ cais^ ' hatred.*

3^0 Teacher sewed word.

i.e. he used to sew the word of teaching, viz. the tutor.

He explained glosses clearly.

i.e. he was swift at interpreting the glosses clearly. Or, he
wounded the glosses, »S:c.

365 He secured correctness of psalms.

i.e. he corrected the psalms by obelus and asterisk.

He commented on law-books, books at Cassian
loved.

i.e. it is thus that he read books of law, as he used to read
books of John Cassian for their easiness. Or, he read, just as
John Cassian read, books Legis.

' There are marginal notes in T ; 'i.e. he used ' judgenients' or 'words 'from
Basil. Or, Baithin used dooms i.e. judgements or words from Basil, in instructing
Colum Cille that he should not assume pride or loftymindedness, owing to the
applause of the men of Ireland. . . . on high. Or, it might be Colum Cille
that applied Basil's words to himself to instruct himself.'

F 2

68 AMKA OF ST. COLUMBA.

T] He fought battles ^//^;^.

i.e. he fouglit the battle of gluttony. Or, 'culai' is what is
good in it, i.e. he fought the battles of the three Culs, viz. battle
of Cuil Dremne against Connaughtmen, and battle of Cuil Feda
against Colman Mor son of Diarmait, and battle of Cuil Rathen
against Ulstermen, in the contest for Ross Torathair between
Colum and Comgall.

375 Books of Solomon he followed.

i.e. he followed the books of Solomon. Or, he attained to
the books of Solomon. Or, ' sexus ' i.e. ' fexsus,' tit dicitiir
' fenchas ' pro ' senchas,' ut dixit the poet :

Poets that are in existence read
' fenchas '-law ejgerly with Fergus.

3S0 Storms and sea-voyages he perceived.

i e. *sina' viz. 'sonenna,' fair-weather i)eriods; and ' rima '
*doinenna,' foul-weather periods: and it is from the word
imber that 'imrim' is derived. 'Raid' i.e. ' ro'raidestar/ he
(fore)told them.

He divided a division with figure, among the books
of the Law.

i.e. he set the history of the Law on one side ; and its
aliesorical sense on the other side.

'&"

385 He read mysteries very-wise.

i.e. *ros-uali,' a beast that dwells in the ocean ; these are its
tokens : when it vomits with its face landwards, poverty and
want (shall be) in that land to the end of seven years ; if it is
upwards, i)Overty and storm in that air ; if downwards, loss
and mortality on the beasts of the sea. He used afterwards to
tell of the mysteries of that animal to people, that they might
390 be on their guard against him. Or, he read runes with great-

sages. Or, it was he himself that was a sage.

Amid schools of scripture ; and he joined mutual-
fitness of moon about course.

i.e. he understood Iidw the moon runs in front of the sun
nunc^ post nunc.

JMA\l OF S7: COLUMBA. 69

J J He perccix'cd a race witli bninchlng sun.

i.e. it is for tliis reason the sun is called ' branching,' because
trom it there is light to stars and to men's (.'yes ; nel tioitit
ciirsmn flu minis Rlieni^ a name that is thence a[)plied to every
stream.

Rhine course.
400 i.e. he was skilled in the course of the Rhine .i. maris}

He would number the stars of heaven, who could tell
of each verv noble thine-

i.e. I think he would tell of the stars of heaven, lie who
could recount every noble thing that Colum Cille did. Or,
Colum Cille would recount a very noble thing about liis
endeavour, or about stars.

405 Which we from Colum Cille have heard,
i.e. we have heard from Colum Cille.

De ad)niratioiie ci caritate eius.

WHo was, who will be alive, that would be more
wonderful on lands, very learned, northern ?

410 i.e. what is the place in which he was, and what is the place

in which he will be alive, who should be more wonderful and
more perfect in the northern land than Colum Cille was?

He used to tell till lately.

i.e. Colum Cille used to narrate up to lately.

Who knew not falsehood.

415 i.e. I shall not recognize falsehood now, for dead is the man

who used to tell us (what it was), viz. Colum Cille. Or, he
used to tell us from now to the ninth descendant of the
genealogy of each. Or, the (syllable) 'fet' which is there as

' The marginal note rtcns :

ut dixit Finn
A tale with mc ior you : ox murmurs,
summer haih gone, winter is snowing,
Wind is high, cold sun is low,
well-running sea forbids race.

very red fern, was hidden (its) form ;
the voice of geese has become common ;
cold has seized birds' wmg ;
icy lime, — (so) is my tale.

70 AMKA OF ST. COLUMBA.

T] ide77i et uet?/j" testamentum^ and the (syllable) ' no ' is woiiutn

testavientuin ; i.e. he used to tell us both of Old Law and
afterwards of New Testimony.

420 A course he made more lucky.

i.e. luckier than every course was the course that Colum
Cille ran.

Towards ladders on city, to world he Is borne.

i.e. towards ladders of the heavenly city he pressed ; * to
world' i.e. to him its treasure. Or 'co domun ' ad caelum,

425 On account of God humanity.

i.e. this is wliy he did that, for the humanity of the Son
of God ; i.e. that the suffering of the Son of God should take
effect for him.

On seats he Is crowned.

i.e. on stations for him in the kingdom.

430 He gave the desire of his eyes.

i.e. he sold ever}'thing that was an object of desire to his eye
here below.

A perfect sage, he believed Christ.

i.e. the perfect sage believed Christ. Or, ' creis ' is from the
verb creo^ he increased afterwards in Christ. Or, Christ put
increase upon him.

435 Also not ale, also not gluttony, satiety : he avoided
flesh.

i.e. he avoided ale, he avoided gluttony, he avoided satiety;
he avoided flesh ; or past his lips.

He lived ' cath.'
i.e. catholic us,

440 He lived 'cast.'
i.e. castus.

AM/CJ OF S7\ COl.UMBA. 71

T] Loving- full.

i.e. * doit * is * toit ' ; full of charity was he (towards) all. Or,
perfect was Colum Cille in charity.

445 Famous stone at victory.

i.e. stone of subduing, (/in'a Jit * ond,' a stone ; Colum Cille
was as a stone of subduing of every evil ; and also he lived so
that he was a stone of victory, itt ff a rock on a promontory
of land.

He lived a full benefit.
450 i.e. he lived so that he gave his full benefit to each.

He lived a great benefit of guests.

i.e. he had plenty of good even though he did it to guests.

He lived noble, he lived * obid,' he lived over death.

i.e. great was his nobleness, and though he was noble, he
was humble ; and this is why he practised humility, in that he
455 knew death (was) over him. Or, he was mighty over death.

He was gentle, he was a physician, with the heart of
every sage.

i.e. he was knts. Or he was compassionate,
i.e. he was full of blessings. Or, he was a binder. Or, he
was a physician, a healer of all.

Our diadem, Axal of conversation, it was abstemious-
ness of which he died.

460 i.e. the diadem that we had in conversation of the angel

whose name was Axal ; it was of the slightness of his drink
that he died, for he consumed neither ale nor food in the
year he died save on Saturday and on Sunday.

Was sweet, was unique his art of clericship.

i.e. everybody deemed his voice a sweet one ; and every-
465 body was satisfied with the unique art of clericship which he

had. Or, clericship was (only) one of his arts, for he was a
poet, a prophet and a sage.

72 AMKA OF S7\ COI.UMBA.

T] To (ordinary) persons he was Inscrutable.

i.e. he was incomprehensible to everybody (on the score) ol"
his talent.

He was a protection to naked persons, he was a
shelter to poor persons.

470 i.e. in clothing and feeding them.

It was afresh he suffered every weight of storm.

i.e. every heavy storm that he suffered Colum Cille took it
as a new one. Or, heavier than every blast to us was this new
blast, said the blind man.

From Colum discipline of territories.
475 i.e. by Colum they used to instruct the territories.

Great dignity we think ' manna.'

i.e. ' miad ' reverence. ' Mar ' abundance. ' Manna ' the

manna. This is what the children [of Israel] said of it :

' man-hu ' .i. quid hoc 7iisi cibus caelestis ; we expect afterwards,

480 i.e. great reverence will be given to him, of the heavenly food.

Christ will enrol him in His service anions: riorhteous.

i.e. then there shall be given him the reward of his service ;
amongst the righteous, viz. angels and archangels.

Through his long (period) during which he served.

485 I.e. he was long in reaching that service.

Wise a sage who reached four men's path.

i.e. wise is the sage who followed the track of the four, viz.
the four evangelists ; or he himself reached it i/uia apud
Finniamnn euaiigeliuni h'git.

490 Till he went with song.

i.e. it is thus he went, with song to heaven, i.e. the song of
the household of heaven and earth, or of the Old and of the
New Testament.

AMA\l OF SV: COLi'M/^.L 73

T] T() hcciven-lancl after liis cross.

i.e. to tlie land of heaven lie went after cross and passion.

495 Hundred churches' o-nardicUi of waves ; under com-
j)leteness of offering.

i.e. guardian of waves is he, over seas of a hundred
churches ; and this is a delinite (number put) for an indefinite,
/// esf, Hi and I )erry. Or, guardian of waves under perfection
of offering (up to) that number.

Great-deed, not idol-( worship) : he brought together
no perverse company.

500 i.e. great is the amount that he effected of good, and not

idol-worship ; he nourislied no place in which was a perverse
company.

i.e. he used to bring them to psalm-singing. Or, he used
to milk them, i.e. he used to pacify.

Not long not cold any heresy.

505 i.e. he sent not from him (as messenger) any one who would

inflict evils, and he did not himself practise any heresy ; viz.
he did not enforce heresy on anybody ; or, he did not himself
adopt heresy.

He did not anything that was not a king's

right.

i.e. he did not regard as distinguished anything, but as
according to (xod's law.

That he may not die world-death.

510 i.e. that there should not be a fixing to him of death for

ever. Or, death in the world.

Alive his name ; alive his ' un-stitched.'
i.e. his soul in the next world.

74 A MR A OF ST. COLUMBA.

TJ Owing to (a multitude) which he caused (to be) under
the law of saints.

i.e. for the multitude that he drove under saints' law,
therefore is his name alive in this world, and his soul in
5 I 5 the next.

Wasting attacked his side.

i.e. he betrayed the fatness of his side, for the form of his-
rib was visible through his clothes on the sea-shore.

Desires of his body, he checked them.
520 i.e. he destroyed the desire of his body.

He checks quarrelsomeness.

i.e. he destroyed stinginess, iit poefa dixit : —

Do you deem it good
when truth is spoken to you ?
525 he enjoins love ; treasures approach ;

he takes not quarrel with one whom he loves.

Is not the child the son of Ua Chinn }

i.e. whose is the child? Not hard, the son in truth of Ua
Chinn, viz. Colum Cille. Or, there was not of the son of Ua
Chinn either stinginess or quarrelsomeness.

530 Sin which takes away from jealousy ; sin w^hich takes
away from envy.

i.e. he practised no whit of jealousy, he did not commit sin.
Or, he did nothing of attack or of envy, nought which would
take away sin ; quia Jit ^ demo,^ viz. I take away.

Good in your judgement the grave (that was) his.
i.e. it is good for you ; you deem good his grave.

535 Against every toil (from) successions of weather.

i.e. against every disease of successions of weather, i.e. each
season used to exert its quarter(ly influence).

Through an idolatrous district, he meditated (on its)

guilt.

i.e. on going throughra district in which there is idolatry, he
meditated on its guilt.

AMKA OF ST. COI.UMBA. 75.

T ] For credulous chariots.

540 i.e. for tliis reason he i)assed this judgement u])on tliem, for

the credulous chariot of his body. Or, for the clericship he
sent away from him his chariots.

Lono- fioht ; he souQfht truth ; he fouo^ht as^alnst

body.

i.e. ])erpetual warflire ; ' soich fir ' i.e. he pursued the truth;
'fiched'i.e. he used to make aggression on his body while
here below.

545 That a king's son mav not come upon two things of
God.

i.e. the son of the king shall not go upon two things of God.

Into a dread voice, into a dread verse.

i.e. Into the dread voice, viz. // maledidi ; there shall be no
other verse to him but Ueuife he?iedicti patris.

550 He was buried before age, before infirmity.

i.e. he was buried before age came to him ; and he was
weak i.e. for he had completed seventy-six years.

Vox hell, in Scotland (was) fear.

i.e. for fear of hell he went into Scotland.

555 Aed celebrated all mighty-men, a lasting poem of
battle on a heavenly champion.

i.e. Aed mac Ainmerech gave seven 'cumals' to get his.

name inserted into this eulogy of Colum Cille ; and Aed

charged the blind (poet) that this poem to the champion

viz. Colum Cille, should be more lasting than any (other)

560 poem.

Not undear.

i.e. to me, but it is dear.

sett insignificant.

i.e. and not trifling ; or ' ni handil ' — he did not ' frame '
and he did not stitch together a thing that would be insigni-
565 ficant.

76 AMKA OF ST. COLUMBA.

T] Not a champion at all new towards a pacification of
Conall.

i.e. not a cliampion at all new is this man towards the
confirming of a peace with Conall. Or, towards pacification
of body, i.e. at peace-( making) between body and soul.

Blessing subdued rough tongues, that were at Tol, —
a king's will !

570 i.e. he subdued the mouths of the rude ])ersons who were

with the high king (of) Toi, though what they would have
liked was to utter evil things, but it was blessing that they
really uttered, ut fuit Balaajn.

From men by journeylngs, with God he stayed.

i.e. from men he was taken away and with God he abode.

For ' adbud ' for splendour, he distributed bright
575 hospitality from his city .

i.e. for his i)atience and for his fasting the descendant of
Conall gave i)ure hospitality in his city. Or, for his pomp
and for his patience he gave hospitality, &c. ; for he did not
do that ut faciiuit hypocrites.

In disease, fair sage and master of household.

580 i.e. ' udbud," iiomen doloris ./. propriu?n, viz. toil, or ' ingiu

sechi.' Afterwards the sage was kindly, so that that disease
should not consume nor seize him ; and also he was a
viagisttr to his household, on that same matter. Or, ' ingiu
sechi ' i.e. now and again his skin encompassed him owing to
the abundance of his capacities. Or, 'adbud' i.e. in stilling

585 ambition, in solving questions of the Canon. Or, it is ' dibdud.'

i.e. destroying falsehoods. Or, it is the name of a booth for
reading in ; or, proprium loci in Cenel Conaill.

With an angel he conversed ; he spoke In Greek
grammar.

i.e. he made conversation with an angel, and he learnt
grammar like Greeks. Or^ he conversed grammatically and in
Greek.

590 Free beyond territory ; that I tell.

i.e. a freeman whom seven districts followed ; here it is a
definite (nurubcr) for an indefinite. Or, otern territories

.-/.1/A'./ OF S7\ COLUMN A. -JJ

T] were [uirsued. 'Tliat I relate;' i.e. it is tlius that I make

its narration.

The son of r>icllimicl fought the north ; finifiu)

595 i e. the son of FeidHmid for wliom twenty districts used to

fight ; definite number liere also for indefinite ; for whom the
land to the North fought. Finem twuit : i.e. his own death,
ox fine m niundi.

There went not to the world ; lasting- was his recol-
lection of the cross.

i.e. not well he came into the world (owing to) the shortnes.s

of his life : he was however everlasting in the recollection of

600 the cross on his body. Or, there came none hither to the

world, who was more constant in his recollection of the cross

of the Son of (iod.

he said prayers, with deed he

veritied.

i.e. that which he wove with prayers of intention to do, he
carried out with deed.

He sprang therefrom an illustrious birth, descendant
of Art . . . Neill with might.

605 i.e. he was born, a noble birth too, of Art ; a descendant ot

Neill with might, i.e. he was mighty. Or, 'nis Neill conert'
is : not towards the powers of Neill he lent his aid, but
towards the powers of the Holy Spirit.

He did not commit an injury for which one dies.

i.e. he did not commit any injury, for which his death would
610 be fitting, if this were a cause for that in general.

Ond's profession broke grief; going * druib ' ;
greatness his goodness.

i.e. there was breaking and grief in the city of Conn from

the 'do druib' that was on Colum Cille when he went yonder.

'Greatness of his goodness,' i.e. great size is the goodness that

615 was on him from the ' dodruib ' that was upon him. Or,

there was sighing and sorrow in the profession of Conn.

78 AjMKA of S7\ COLUMBA.

T] Son, name of cross.

i.e. a son who pive bis name to a cross ; or a son with
\Yhom the name of Christ's cross was held in remembrance.

^20 Up to this his age ; ecce a'cr ; certo ' Indlas.'

i.e. up to this his age, i.e. I am sure of bis age. Ecce aer^
i.e. plain to me is the air, for there were allowed to him his
eyes whilst he was engaged in praising. CVr/^ 'indias ' i.e.
great were his deeds of skill, as I relate.

Al-liath ' ; a melodious lion in snow, a new meeting.

625 i.e. ' al-liath,' stands for ' al-lith,' stands for ' lith a aille,' i.e.

' festival of his praise.' As roars a melodious lion in snow at
a new meeting, for when the lion utters his roar, there come
under him all animals, so that he puts a cast of his tail around
them, so that they die in that place, except rat and fox. The
hunter comes to him thereafter, and he puts a .cast around
him so that he dies. Sic Colum Cille : the person round

630 whom he puts a cast of his teaching, could not get across it

away from him, save unjust persons ; the cast of the teaching
of God's Son about him. Or, it is 'all-iath ' i.e. ' into the land
of the rock ' ; for the lion goes into the land of the cave whilst
the frost lasts, so that he utters his roar after coming out into
the new rock-cave.

<335 Till death how shall I tell.

i.e. till my death I shall not narrate tales of Colum Cille.

A journey in the body to the upper air ; his choice he
made joy summer-peace.

i.e. the journey that he went in the body to the upper air,
640 as went PauP ; and that was his own choice ; he carried out

his choice to the good in which there is peace and joy. Or,
he caused that there should be given him his choice with
summer-peace, with the peace of summer, for in that season
he died. Or, he brought about ])eace for his congregation by
the journey that he made to the upper air.

The famous one, wisdom ; it is certain for him.

645 i.e. a sage with good fame oi)ened to them : certain to him.

i.e. it is certain that he did that.

^ 2 Cor. xii. 2.

.-/J/AV/ OF S7\ COLUMBA. 79

T] To hlin not the oroan of one house ; to him not the
groan of one strins^.

i.e. ' 011^ ' means ' visitation ' ; or string (of) timi)an harp ;

or string (is) road. Not visitation of one house thereafter ;

or not visitation of one string or of one road, to us is tlie

/S50 bewailing of Colum Cille. Where is * ong ' found ? Not

hard : in tlie Fotha Hreth, /// dicitur.

' ongaib, coscaib carat '

i.e. with groans, chastisements of friends.

i.e. for fear of their chastisements, of their visitation witli a
view to the chastisement of him by his friends. Or, ' ong ' is

* ongan,' it was not an ' ongan ' of one house to him, but an
' ongan ' of many houses. Or, it was not an ' ongan ' of one
road.

Heavy people, word under wave.

655 i.e. heavy is his bcwaihng with the tribes ; and this story is

a word ' under wave.'

For it was due from him : the lamp of the king- which
was extinguished, was relit.

i.e. the lamp of the king, of God ; it was due to us (to
make) this eulogy on him. ' do'r'adbad ' i.e. 'ro'dibad' is

* was extinguished, in this world,' was relit, yonder, iji regno
caelorum.

^60 Eulogy is this, of the king who made me king, who
will redeem us to Zion.

i.e. eulogy ; ' wonderful is the saying,' or ' is the grace ' ; or

* not-smooth ' ; or ' wonderful is the course that is under it
above.' The 'am' that is in it is the same as 'death' quia
post mortem pretium laudis datiun est caeco. Or, the ' am ' is
the same as ' nem,' 'heaven,' so that 'am-rath' means ' nem-
rath ' really, for heaven was given him as the payment for his

665 eulogy. ' Of the king who made me king,' i.e. it was Colum

Cille that gave the hardship to me. ' Zion ' i.e. perhaps,
'save us unto Mount Zion' or 'to the heavenly city.'

May he carry me past torments.

i.e. may he take me past the demons of the air ad requiem
670 sanctorum. Or, past 'riaga' i.e. past the daughters of Orcus.

8o A MR A OF S7\ COLUMBA.

T] May it be smooth abode-darkness from me

i.e. may it he easy for me to go past the bluck abodes, iil)i
sinit dcjiiones. Or, ' mendum ' i.e. lie, and ' menna ' means
lies : may he expel from me the black lies.

675 May the descendant of the body of Cathair with
nobiHty see me without stain.

i.e. may he look on me without stain, a descendant of
Cairpre Nia-fer of Leinster ; for Ethne daughter of Dimma
mac Noe was his (Colum Cille's) mother, of the Carburys
of Leinster ; and he (Cairpre) was a descendant of Cathair
Mor, son of Feidlimid the All-wise.

680 Great re-declension ; great of the poem, of heaven,
heaven-sun.

i.e. great is the re-forming I have put on the above words ;
great is the ' nath ' the poets used to make in the beginning
for sun and mocn ; and not greater is the darkening they used
to put on them, as I have put. Or, though great they deemed
the excellency of sun and moon, not greater do we deem it
685 than the excellency of the death of Colum Cille . nid am huan

. . . i.e. quia caecatus sum iteriun.

PRAYER OF ST. A DAMN AN.

Prayer of St. Adamnan.

Adaninan made this prayer.

TJ /^^^ Oluni Cille, to God he enjoined me (the time)
\^^ at which I should go, that I should not go
earlier.

i.e. Colum Cille wrought my ordering to God, when I should
go ; ' that I should not go earlier ' ; i.e. that it should not be
early I should go.

Luck greatly mine, my destiny.
5 i.e. after great luck I shall go ; that is my destiny.

Crowds to angel-place.

i.e. the direction which I say is to the place where there are
crowds of angels.

Name of the illustrious descendant of Neill ; not
small the protection of Z ion to archangels of God.

lo i.e. the name of the illustrious descendant of Neill; not

small protection i.e. not small is the protection to God of the
archangels, qiua idem est '' HcV ei ^ deusJ

In strongholds of God the Father amid the groups
of the twenty-four bright elders righteous, who
celebrate in song the kingdom of the mystic king
resplendent.

15 i.e. 'in strongholds,' viz. in the abodes of God the Father

amid the assemblies, the gatherings of the twenty-four bright
elders, viz. the twelve patriarchs and the twelve apostles ; who
sing, dicentes ter., Sanctus sanctus sancius doniinus dttis sabaoth;
of the mystic king i.e. of the resplendent King with whom are
mysteries.
LIBER HYMN. II. G

«2 PEDIGREE OF ST. MOBI.

T] A cry never came nor shall come.

20 i.e. not only there never came but there never will come a

cry of dissension into that quarter.

Right, my powerful Christ ; impurity of Colum Cille.

i.e. there never came impurity into uprightness wheresoever
is my powerful Christ. Or, it is colo i.e. 'I worship' in
uprightness where God is and Colum Cille.

Pedigree of St. Mobi.

T] Mobi the Flatfaced, son of Beoan, son of Bresal, son of Ailgel,
son of Idnae, son of Athrae, son of Lugnae Trin-og, son of Bregdolb,
son of Artchorp, son of Cairpre, son of Cormac, son of

THE HYMN OF ST. PHILIP. 83

The Hv.mn of St. Philip.

T] Philip apostle, apostle holy ;

at a fair, Philip told
(of) the immortal birds, slender,
that dwelt in Inis Eidheand.

5 In the East of Africa they abide ;

it is a pleasant labour they perform ;

there never came into the world

any colour that was not on their wings.

Their plumage remains on them
10 from the lawful beginning of the world,

without deficiency of one bird of them,
without increase to them in their numbers.

Seven fair rivers in all their length
are in the plains where they dwell ;
15 it is this that feeds them for ever,

and they sing songs with fair-custom.

They allotted as share the middle of the night,
being on horses for ever,
to the drone of the angels as they speed
20 in the air overhead.

The first birds sing pleasantly,
— it is not unfitting their being very melodious-
all the wondrous courses
that God wTought before the world.

25 A crowd of them sing after rising

at the time of nocturns,
what God will do, excellent matter,
from earth's beginning till Doom.

The birds whose wishes are good sing
30 in the twilight with its swift-moving locks,

what God will do of wonders beyond
in the Day of the Judgement of the Racings.

84 MISCELLANEA.

T] Of one and forty on a hundred

and one thousand, 'tis no He !

35 was the number to them, — was the grace ;

that is its truth in each flock of birds.

If men should hear (these) faultless birds,
this fair equally-balanced concert,
they would all die — great the deed !
40 on listening to the harmony.

Intercession of Great Mary
after the cutting-off of the Canon
that we may get to dwell yonder quickly
in the land where Philip was.

Miscellanea.

{a) Find the Poet ; his son was Conchobar Abrat-ruad king of Ireland ;
his son was Mog-Corb qui cecidit at the destruction of Bruiden Da
Choca ; his son was Cu-Corb qui cecidit by the hand of Feradach
Find Fechtnach.

{b) ... not well we went to him, said Cuchulaind . . . we . . .
the Ulstermen ; let some one say to Conchobar, why he should
come ... it was not that

persons went to him under the . . . . ; he girt himself with a

smooth it was sewed

of deer-skin, they put a narrow garment over it on

the outside.

{d) * mortlaid ' i.e. qua?ido pluriitii pereunt dc uno viorbo : mortali i.e.
' mort-luad ' i.e. swift inots^ and no wonder ; and it is a compound
expression of Latin and Gaelic, sic est in Welsh, /// dicitur 'croe-
bechain ' i.e. ' a crai,' is from the word 'cara,' and ' bechain ' denotes
' small.'

{e) Aed wrote it, and on a little leaf found between

two quires besides.

THE RELEASE OF SCANDLAN MOR. 85

The Release of Scandlan Mor.

T] On one occasion Colum Cille went with Aedan mac Gabrain to
the Great Assembly of Druim Cetta, to Aed mac Ainmerech, where
were the men of Ireland, both lay and cleric, for the space of one
year and three months ; to ask respite for the men of Scotland they
5 came, and it was not granted them. " There shall be respite till
doom," said Cclum Cille, "without attacks eastward from Ireland;"
for there were many causes of quarrel between them and Aed mac
Ainmerech, viz. thechasmg of the Dal-riata over-sea, and the chasing
of the sages and the Dal-Osraide after the fall of their hostage, Scan-
dlan. Now when Colum Cille chanced to come to the door of the
fort outside to interview Aed, he heard the outcry of Scandlan owing

10 to the greatness of the suffering in which he lay ; viz. twelve fetters on
him, and flesh burning-hot was given to him w^ith only a drop of
water on the finger tip to drink thereafter. Well, Colum Cille
came to talk with Scandlan, and Scandlan said to him, **For
Christ's sake, go back and beg me of Aed, for I am falling to ruin in

1 5 my indebtedness." Thereupon the cleric went to Aed, but he did not
grant it him. So Colum Cille said, " He shall be free before morning."
*' Cumine, you crane-cleric there ! " said the queen, with her pretty
face, as she was washing. " 'Tis yourself that will be a crane," said
Colum Cille, ^' (standing) over this ford outside till Doom, and one
of thy wings broken, as is half the tail," and it is so, sicut uidimus ;

20 '' and Scandlan shall come to me before morning," said Colum Cille.
And after that, Colum Cille went across Ciannachta and over Ui
mac Carthamd and over Loch Foyle, and in Corthe Snama and to
Ard mac n-Odrain in Inishowen. And there came a great earthquake
into the camp thereafter with lightning and thunder (in) the evening,

25 and Scandlan was carried off by the power of God past the pickets, and
was whirled away then with a bright cloud before him to Corthe

Snama to When he saw the boat coming towards him to

the land, "Who is in the boat } " said Scandlan. " It is Cumine that
is here, son of Feradach, son of Muiredach, son of Eogan. A
debtor is he then to Colum Cille ... of thy body-side." " A

30 ferrying across to me and a guide," said Scandlan, "and I shall make
thy peace with Colum Cille." He returns thence to Ard mac n-
Odrain, for there dwelt the cleric. Scandlan arises and took one of
his shoes from him. "Who is that?" said Colum Cille. "Scanlan,"
said he. " Thy news ?" said Colum Cille. " A drink ! " said Scan-
dlan. The cup comes into Colum Cille's hand, and it is given (to

35 Scandlan, who) drinks of it. "Thy news?" said Colum Cille.
" Another drink," said Scandlan. " Go out, Baithin," said Colum

86 7 HE RELEASE OF SCANDLAN MOR.

T] Cille, "and bring him another full drink." This also is given him
and he drinks. " Thy news ? " said Colum Cille. " A drink ! " says
Scandlan. There is brought him the third full cup, and he drinks.
"Thy news?" says Colum Cille. Well, after that, Scandlan narrated to

40 him his adventures till he reached the ferry, and that he did not get his
ferrying across from Cumine, till (he promised he) would make his
peace with Colum Cille. So peace was then made, and Colum Cille
said, " Though great evil is to both Conall and Eogan, the over-plus
shall not be with Eogan, except a head and a half, and one cow of
Conall's against him in the Day of Judgement."

Three boons accrued to Colum Cille from this expedition viz., (i)
the peace of Dal-riata, i.e. their fighting and their hosting to the

45 men of Ireland, and their tax and their tribute to the men of Scot-
land ; (ii) the allowing the poets to remain in Ireland ; and (iii) the
deliverance of Scandlan.

And after he had made Cumine's peace with Colum Cille the
latter said, " Bow down to my will, O Scandlan ! " nt dixit at giving
his gospel to Colum Cille about Scandlan. Then Colum Cille made

50 prosperous the ways that lay before him, and said to him after that
to take with him his staff to protect him, and lucky would be the
treasure, and bade him bring it thereafter to Laisren mac Feradaich
to Ross Grencha. And neither gold nor silver wrought it, for the
greatness of the miracle, ut dixit. "Take my staff with thee in thy
hand," &c.
Dundelga, good the gold place.

THE DEATH OF ST. COLU.^f/iA. 87

The Death of St. Columba.

T] A rider chanced upon the bHnd man, and the blind man said to
him, '' Whence (comest thou ?) " " (from the) side on which is my
rear," said the rider. " Tiiy news?" said the blind man. "The
person to whom there is . . . ," said the rider (the descendant) of
Ua Neill, '' viz. Colum Cille is dead." This then is what the rider did,

on the south of at that time the poets were at Ibar

of Cinntracht in the territory of Ulster ; for the king of Ulster
gave all of them guest-rights there for a year, so that it was there
they made the concoction of their own tales of themselves, and these
did not happen as they were narrated, but it was to impose them on
the stupid race, viz. the Ulstermen, amongst whom they were, that

the eloquent poets concocted these lying fables

I am Aed.

88 THE FIVE DIVISIONS OF MUNSTER.

The Five Divisions of Munster.

TJ Five Munsters in Great Munster,

they are not unknown to the learned ;

I know (the names) of them

. . . . the stony fertile land.

5 (The first is Thomond)

from Cuchulaind's Leap
to Slige Dala of the Horses
that was on its side.

The portion of Thomond northward
lo I will name .... to you,

from Slieve Aughty to pleasant Slieve Phelim
. . . . to virgin Ireland.

From two other islands a place,
Ormond to the island of O'Bric
15 ... to fair Cnawhill

there is the usual division, pure wise.

From Cnawhill to full Luachair,
Mid-Munster will last permanently \
from Slieve Phelim with beauty
20 to Slieve Cain of the steps.

Desmond from Slieve Cain

to the ocean beside the waves.

West Munster from Luachair a bit west ;

up to Glenn Dian there is a throng.

25 .... of whom they are,

O Tasaig, art . . simple
betook himself over the vast sea,
he left it after dividing them into five.

IN PRAISE OF HYMNODY

In Praise of Hvmnodv.

F] A holy pope, exalted and excellent, there was in Rome, whose
name was Pope Clement. From him Jerome asked a description of
the Psalms and Hymnody ; and he took to beseeching the Creator
aright, that night up till morning, when an angel of God came to
him from heaven, with the description of Hymnody. And this is
what he told him, "Whoever should recite the hymnody, would be
making a song of praise dear to God, for it wipes out all sins, and
cleanses the powers of the body and subdues involuntarily the lusts
of the flesh ; it lessens melancholy, and (banishes) all madness ; it
breaks down anger, it expels hell's angels, and gets rid of the devils;
it dispels the darkness of the understanding, and increases holiness ;
it preserves the health, and completes good works, and it lights up a
spiritual fire in the heart, i.e. the love of God (in place of) the love
of man, and it (promotes) peace between the body and the soul

As Jerome said in the seventh chapter of the Medicine of the
Soul, " 6> /w;/^6> . . . there is not anything that is useful to thee
in thy mortal state more than praising God, for, if thou praise God,
He heals thy soul and thy body together. In truth, O man, inasmuch
as this is thy healing, give honour to the Psalms and to the Hymn
book ", as saith Jerome, that none can . . . more fitly . . .

virtues and the description of the psalms

in showing often . . prayers, haec Hicronymics at . . ,

90 THE THREE KINGS.

The Three Kings.

F] Three Kings came to the house of God,

three faces Hke the bright moon,
from the Eastern learned world,
heavy . . . smooth, of slow streams.

5 Three came for the lovely child

to white flowered Bethel ;
three, to whom was granted all knowledge ;
three prophets of the vision.

Judgement of the great and glorious Lord
lo appeared to the . . . three ;

in the vision to every crowd,
the Form of the King in the star.

A lofty star ; it was beautiful
. . the wealthy world
15 he sees; it was a definite help

during the night of the firmament,

The three lucky Kings
followed it full readily ;
the star went before them
20 as an arch of blessing and might.

It stopped not till it came to the house
before the three right eagerly,
The star, brilliant, round, soft,
over every star swift walking.

25 It is he . . . there

unsmooth

was on gallows

the king of the fourfold world.

>*kEFACE^7\y 7iEN'EDrc/TR: ' ^i

F] They bent their white knees,

30 they gave their three gifts ;

He with whom all knowledge remains

is a soul to every single triad. Three,

They i'ecognlsed His dear face ;
Mary the Mother of the Creator,
^^ the holy Virgin, she is our sister

and is akin to every single triad.

On the smooth guidance (?) of the star
reaching the king of the world's coming
the three, sweet-sounding, soft, found
40 wonderful knowledge of the .

Preface to Benedicite.

F J Tres pueri in jornace ignis ardentis hoc canticum feceru7it, hi campo
uero Sennaar /actus est et in Campo Diram specialiter.

It was made in the time of Nebuchadnezzar, and they made it to
save themselves against fire. For they did not worship the golden
image that Nebuchadnezzar had made, and so they were cast in
, fornacent. Deus tamen illos ca?itando hoc canticu7n de fornace liher-
auit, Ananias, Azarias, Misael are their names in Hebrew ; Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego, are their names in Chaldee.

92 PREFACE TO QUICUNQUE UULT.

Preface to Christe qui lux es.

F] Ambrose, sage and bishop, made hunc hymnun} to praise the
Saviour, and in the night it is due to be sung, tt was made in
rhythm ; seven capitula in it, with two lines in each, and sixteen
syllables in each line.

Preface to Quicunque Uult.

F] The synod of Nicaea made this Catholic Faith; three bishops of
them alone made it, viz. Eusebius and Dionysius et nomen tertii
nescimus. But it is said that it was the whole synod that made it
because they gave it celebrity. Now it was made in Niccea urbe^
and that town is in Bithynia, which is a country in Asia Minor.
F'urther, it was made in order to expel the heresy of Arius who held
that the Father is greater than the Son, and that the Son is greater
than the Holy Spirit. So the synod was assembled, viz. three
hundred and eighteen bishops with Constantine to Nicaea; but
they could not vanquish him owing to his eloquence, till God
vanquished him. Exiens enim de coitu ut purgaret uentrem suum ei
contigit ut omnia uiscera cum siercore foras exireni, ut ludac atque
A git of el contigit.

NOTES.

The Irish Prefaces.

The Prefaces >vhich are found to nearly all the pieces in the Liber
Hymnorum^ in its original form, are a noteworthy feature of the book.
They are evidently of a later date than the pieces to which they are
prefixed, and were probably composed by scribes who were desirous to
place on record the legendary beliefs current in their day as to the com-
position of the hymns. In the earliest of our manuscript authorities,
the Antiphonary of Bangor (A), there are no prefaces; and we might there-
fore suppose that the practice of compiling them did not arise until after
the close of the seventh century at earliest. On the other hand the
same recension of several of our Prefaces is found in more than one of
our MSS. There are only minute variations between the Prefaces in T
and F to the pieces numbered 3, 6, 9, 12, 14, 19, 20, 22, and 23; and
the same is true of the Prefaces in FB to No. 10, in TFB to No. 1 1, and
in TFL to No. 2 1 . This shows that these prefaces assumed their present
form prior to the transcription of any of these manuscripts, that is, before
the eleventh century. On the whole we shall not be far wrong if we
conclude that the prefaces in T represent the stories current in the tenth
century as to the authors of the various hymns.

They are all composed on the same plan, in a rude mixture of Irish
and Latin, — and set forth the time, place, author, and occasion of the
composition of the pieces which they precede. More than one legend
is often recorded, from which it would appear that the scribes did
not consider themselves possessed of any certain knowledge on these
historical points ; and in some instances the subject matter is trivial
enough, although in others the information they offer cannot be lightly
set aside.

Dr. Todd has remarked^ that the care taken to record the name of
the author of each piece is in accordance with the 23rd Canon of the
Second Council of Tours (a.d. 567), which runs thus • "Licet hymnos
Ambrosianos habeamus in canone, tamen quoniam reliquorum sunt
aliqui, qui digni sunt forma cantari, uolumus libenter amplecti eos prae-
terea, quorum auctorum nomina fuerint in limine prsenotata : quoniam
quae fide constiterint dicendi ratione non obstant."^

In our translations of these Prefaces we have taken care to reprint
(in italics) the Latin words and phrases, only turning the Irish passages
into English. The scribes possibly had some Latin original to work on,
from which they borrowed here and there verbatim ; it seems desirable,
in any case, to reproduce as closely as possible the curious blending of
two languages which appears in these Frcefaf tones. In our notes the
translations of the Irish glosses are in all cases printed in italics.

1 Liber Hymnyrum, p- 56. Concil. Labb. et Cossart. v. 863.

9^> NOTES.

Preface to the Hymn of St. Sechnall.

It has been said in our Intrflduction (vol. i. p. xi) that the Preface to
the hymn Audite omnes is wanting in the Trinity College manuscript (T),
owing to the loss of a page ; but it probably did not differ substantially
from that in F. We do not propose to enter into all the obscure details
of the legends about St. Patrick and St. Sechnall reported in the two
extant Prefaces (F and B). Many of them are also found in the
Tripai'tite Life of St. Patrick^ an eleventh century compilation, as
well as in other places. It seems to us that the F preface is older,
as it is shorter, than the story as given in the Tripartite Life, and that
this again is older than the B preface, which is very diffuse.

A few points in the Prefaces call for special comment.

F. 1. I. The statement that Secundinus was called Sechnall by the
Gaels, coupled with the fact that no Gaelic name is given for his father
Restitutus, suggests that Restitutus was the first of his family who
migrated to Ireland. Who 'the Lombards of Letha' were is not
certain, but Letha is here probably equivalent to Armorica in Brittany
(see p. 179 infra).

F. 1. 2. Darerca?^ According to the Four Masters, Sechnall, Bishop
of Armagh, son of St. Patrick's sister Darerca, died Nov. 27 a.d. 447
in the seventy-first year of his age. In the Felire of Oengus (Nov. 27 ;
pp. Ixxxiii, clxxiii) and elsewhere his mother's name is given as Liamain,
who was another of Patrick's sisters. It is possible that these pedigrees
are not to be relied on^ ; but nevertheless there does not seem to be any
compelling reason for rejecting the tradition that Sechnall, the reputed
kinsman of Patrick, and his successor in the See of Armagh, composed
this hymn, and that therefore it may be counted as of the fifth century.
The miracles that are so abundantly ascribed to Patrick in the later
documents, e.g. in the vernacular Hymn of St. Fiacc, are conspicuously
absent from this ; and it is throughout marked by that simplicity and
sobriety of tone which characterise the work of a contemporary. It is
noticeable that the saint is spoken of throughout in the present tense,
except in one or two stanzas when it is said that he shall hereafter
receive the reward of his labour, thus suggesting that he was alive when
the hymn was written. (See lines 20, 25, 91.) It may therefore take
rank with the Confession and the Letter to the subjects of Coroticus as a
document of the first importance for the life of St. Patrick. It will be
observed that it makes no mention of his Roman mission.

F. 1. 4. Doninacli Sechnai/I.^ — That is Dominica Secundini^ or the
Church of St. Sechnall, now Dunshaughlin in the co. Meath.

F. 1. 8. nisi quod miniine praedicaret caritatejn.^ — The reason
assigned by Patrick, according to the Tripartite Life^^ for not
dwelling on the duty of almsgiving, explains this more clearly :

1 Ed. Whitley Stokes, pp. 243-249. Thisi i<; the edition of the Tn'/'ariite Life to wliich our
references are made throughout.
'^ See Olden, rroceedmoi K.l.A. (1894) p. 415. ^ p. 24s.

THE HYMN OF ST. SFXIINALL. 97

" If I preached it, I should not leave a yoke of two chariot horses for
any one of the saints in this island, present or future ; but unto me
would be given all that is mine and theirs."

i 'B. 11. 16, 17. Conallc MuirtJiemtie was so called from Conall Cernach
of the Red Branch ; it corresponded to the modern Co. Louth. Dal
Araidc was in the East of Ulster, extending from Newry in Co. Down
to Slemish in Co. Antrim.

F. 1. 13. sicunduni ordiiietn alphabeti?\ — That is, inore Ht:braeorum^ as
the B preface explains. The instances of the alphabetical Psalms and of
the Lamentations will at once occur to the reader. .The Celtic hymn
writers were much inclined to this device : no less than five pieces in
the Liber Hymnontni, viz. Nos. i, 2, 14, 25, and 28 are alphabetical,
and there are other instances in the Aiitiphonary of Ban^^or. Two
tragmentary alphabetical hymns attributed to St. Hilary of Poitiers are
found in an eleventh century MS. of Hilary De Mysteriis^ A hymn of
this sort (in nearly the same metre, see p. xiii above), on the Day of
Tudgement, '■ Apparebit repentina dies magna domini," is given by
Trench in his Sacred Latin Poetry (p. 290) ; another is printed by
Diimmler (in Mon. Germ. Hist. i. 79) beginning "Ad perennis uitae
fontem et amoena pascua." And Bede has one in his Eccl. Lfist.
(iv. 18). See also the examples cited by Mr. Warren {Aniip/ionary of
Bangor, ii. 51, 52.)

F. 1. 16. three places i?i which there is found ^ in^ sine sensu, causa
rhythmi.^ — These instances of redundant Mn ' are probably at 11. 12,
32, 36, the last of which is noted as superfluous by the glossator in B.

F. 1. 29. Everyone who shall recite it at lying dow?i and risi?ig up
shall go to heaven ?\ — Dr. Lawlor thinks {Book of Mulling, p. 157) thai
this points to a daily use of the hymn in the monastic offices ; it does
not seem to us that there is sufficient evidence for this. That special
indulgences were attached to its recitation was, however, an old belief.
In the seventh century part of the Book of Ar??tugh (a composite book
written in the year 807 by one Ferdomnach^), the second of the four
petitions granted to Patrick by the angel Victor was '* ut quicumque
ymnum qui de te compossitus est, in die exitus de corpore cantauerit,
lu iudicabis poenitentiam eius de suis peccatis."^ Again in the same
l^ook (fol. 16) there is another passage referring to the use of the hymn
which is sufficiently important to be cited in full. " Patricius sanctus
episcopus honorem quaternum omnibus monasteriis et aeclessiis per
totam Hiberniam debet habere, id est,

i. Solempnitate dormitationis eius honorari in medio ueris per tres
dies et tres noctes omni bono cibo praeter carnem, quasi
Patricius uenisset in uita in hostium.
ii. Offertorium eius proprium in eodem die immolari,
iii. Ynmum eius per totum tempus cantare.
iv. Canticum eius scotticum semper canere."^

' See .V. f/ilarii Treutatus de mysteriis et I/yrnni, &c. ed. Gamurrini (Romae, 18S7).
' Sec Graves in Proc R. I. A. iii. p. 316.

See Tripartite Life, p. 296. This is alluded to also in the Book o/ Lis more, p. 166. ed. Stokes,

See Tripartite Li/e, p. 333.

LIBER HVMX. IT. II

98 NOTES.

Opposite iii. is written in the margin "yinnus Colnian alo," with evident
reference to the story given in the B preface and also in the Tripartite
Life (p. 247) that St. Colman Ela recited the hymn Andite onmes in his
refectory thrice. The CiUiticum sci>tticiim is probably the Lorica of
St. Patrick (our No. 24).

For another reminiscence of the hymn Audite omnes in the Book of
Armagh, see X). loi infra. It is probable that the words placed in
Patrick's mouth in the Book of Ft?iagh (p. 273, ed. Kelly) also allude
to it, viz : " Heaven to him who my lay shall have."

F. 1. 32. Its grace shall be 0)2 the last three capitida.'] — This indulgence
is mentioned not only in the F and B prefaces, but twice in the Tripartite
Life (pp. 117 and 247), the words in the former of these two passages
being : " Every one who shall sing it from CJiristus ilium to the end
[co dead] ... his soul shall not go to hell." In the life of St.
Canice, as quoted by Colgan {Trias, p. 210) there is a story of a man
who was saved from demons by reciting the last three stanzas in this
way : " nam uir ille tria capitula do hymno S. Patricii ante mortem
cantauit . . . et per hoc liberatus est de manibus nostris."' Dr.
Lawlor, in the valuable essay already mentioned (vol. i. p. xxii) on the
office sketched at the end of the Book of Mulling, has pointed out that
instead of the whole hymn of St. Sechnall, the last three stanzas
alone are there directed to be sung, " Christus ilium conrici dead "
being the very phrase employed. And he has further observed that
this usage is also adopted in the same office in the case of the hymn
Celebra Luda (our No. 3). Another obvious instance of the same
l^ractice is supplied by the hymn Christus in nostra (our No. 2), which
in the Liber Hynviorum is represented only by the last three stanzas.
Indeed in this case these are the only verses of the hymn that are
extant ; and it is described simply as Xfs in nostra in the office noted
in the Basel Psalter (P) of which some account has been given in our
Introduction (vol. i. p. xxvii).-

F. I. 34. Eochaid Ua Flannucain was a famous Irish poet who died
about the year 1003.

For St. Patrick's four names see below p. 177.

B. I. 7r. sons of life'] i.e. holy men; the same phrase is used in the
Preface to the hymn of St. Hilary {see vol. i. p. 35, and vol. ii. p. 18).
A few lines further down in this Preface Sechnall si)eaks of Patrick as
a ' son of life,' i e. 'a righteous man.' Mac bdis 'a son of death ' in
like manner means ' a wicked man.' See Kelly's Book of Femii^h.

p. 309.

B. 1. 78. The hymn Sancti uenite.] This is the well-known hymn
preserved in the Antiphonary of Jyangor (fol. iov°), and familiar in its
English version by Dr. Neale, " Draw^ nigh and take the body of the
Lord " (Hymns A. and M. 313). Its author is unknown,^' and it does

1 Compare Tripartite Life, p. 247. ..... ,

'^ See the Preface to the hymn In te Christe (Vol. i. p. 84), where it is said that some persons only
recited part of that hymn. I'hc reason in this case, however, is peculiar to the In ieChrtste.

a The statement in the Dicthnarv of Christian Antiquities {yo\. i. p. 8o4<^), that the hymn Saiu
uenite is attributed l)y Daniel to Eu.c;eni* of Toledo is wrong. Daniel knew nothing about il
hymn save that he found it in Muratori's edition of the Hangar Antiplionary.

THE HYMN 01- ST. SECIINALI.. 99

not seem to be extant elsewliere ; but it is a distinctively Celtic hymn.
It is possible that the gloss in B on v. 52 of the hymn Auditc omnes
{yi. 10), " ut dicitur Christus, hostia et sacerdos " may refer to a i)hrase
\\\ it ; but this is quite uncertain.^ Another English version is that of
1). F. MacCarthy printed in Oafthey's Ancient Irish CJiurch.

B. 1. 120. TJic Cniacli, i.e. the mountain now called Croagh Patrick,
in Co. Mayo.

Hymn of St. Sechnall.

This famous and ancient hymn in praise of St. Patrick has been
])rinted many times.

{a) Colgan printed it in his Trias Thaumaturga ([647), p. 211 from
F, with tolerable accuracy. He contented himself with giving only the
substance of the preface in a Latin translation.

(/') Ware printed it at p. 146 of his Opuscula S. Fatricii (1656) from
ovo MSS. one of which seems to have been a copy of F, if not F itself
(see his words, vol. i. p. xiv) ; the readings of the other do not agree with
any MS. known to us. He says of it : " Est et aliud huius hymni
exemplar e quo licet manu recentiori exarato uariantes aliquas lection i\\
ad marginem apponere uisum fuit" {Lc. \). 150). According to hi:;
j)rinted text, a collation of his principal MS. with T would give : 10
Petruni ; 12 porta ; 18 usura ; 23 om. ct and dominion for dei ; 31 sua
for iusta : 34 ridentur for uide?itur (the reading of his second MS.);
54 ^/// and quisquilia ; ^^ fiiunifie iox fulmine (the reading of his second
MS.) ; 66 nuptiali ; 67 haiirit : 70 deitatein ; ']^ putreant and escaqiie ;
76 celesti sallientur ; 81 elci^it ; 84 stabiili obsoluil ; 89 ac ; 92 Sanctis ;
om. 1-6 at end. And his secondary MS. had in addition to the above:
\ 2 et injerni portae aduersus euin fion preualel>imt : 76 satiatur ; %\zabuli
alysoluit. This MS. seems to be quoted by Ussher in his Religion of the
Ancient Irish ; at any rate the readings of verses 12 and 81 agree with
his citations.-

(c) Muratori printed the hymn from A in his Anecdota Anibrosinna
( 1713) vol. iv. p. 136 ; this edition has now been superseded by Warren's
\ntiphonary of Bafigor.

{d) Todd printed it from T and B in his edition of the Liber Hymn-
rum (1855), with notes and dissertations.

Secondary editions are numerous and need not be here mentioned ;
but it may be noted that the Irish Preface to the hymn in F was first
printed in full in Whitley Stokes' Tripartite Life of St. Patrick (1887;,
pp. 242-6.

We have not been able to discover any independent MS. authority
for the piece other than that of the four manuscripts TFAB. There is

." ^•i'-. in P"»- Aug. Sernt. civ. we have: "Hoc enim hostia et sacerdos. The phrase occurs in
Irish (is sacart ocub is edpairt) in a Homily on the Sacraments in the Leabhar Breac, translated Ijy
■ Hogan in Todd lectures, R.I. A., vol. vi. p. 22.

•See Ussher's ii^orks {td. Llrington), vol. iv. p. 317«.

11 2

loo xXOTES.

an eighteenth century paper MS. in the Royal Iriifh Academy collection
(^r^), but it is a mere transcript from Colgan, and of no value. Dr.
Reeves stated, indeed, in his article on the Antiphonary of Bangor^ that
there was a coi)y of the hymn in the " Consuetudinary of St. Patrick's
Cathedral,'' a manuscript then in the ])ossession of Dr. Todd and now
in the Cambridge University Library (Add. 710). But this was a mistake,
as the hymn is absent from that manuscrii)t, as it is from all the .service
books of the Anglo-Irish, as distinct from the Celtic, Church which have
come under our notice.

An English translation by Bishoj) Graves with references to the scrip-
tural allusions in the hymn, was published in the Catholic Layman ii.
No. 54 (Deer. 1853) ; this has been reproduced by Mr. Olden in his
Epistles and Hymn of St. Patrick. Another English version is given
in O'Laverty's jC*/V;r^j-<? of Do7vn and Connor, vol. i. p. 120.

2 Patricii^ i.e. patris ciiiiiun T i.e. (]ui sedet ad latus regis, uel pater
ciuiuni ; Patricius the name of a ^rade a??io?igst RotJians, qui Patriciuni
regit B.

The exi)lanation pater ciuiinn, as Dr. Wh. Stokes points out,- is pro-
bably suggested by the passage from Isidore (Etym. ix. 3): "Patricii inde
uocati sunt, pro eo quod sicut patres filiis, ita prouideant reipublicae."
Botli this and the alternative (/ui sedet ad latus reois are found in
Cormac's Glossary (p. 35).

3 siniulatur^ similio i.e. I co77ipare B.
6 clarci\ i.e. ivonderful B.

inter^ i.e. before tnen B.

8 ?nagnificaftt^ There is an obvious reference to Mt. v. 16 ; and it
is noteworthy that the text familiar to the writer must have had ''magni-
ficent patrem uestrum qui in caelis est," the Hieronymian text being
glorificent. Magnificent is read by two Vulgate manuscripts, E and R
(in Bp. Wordsworth's notation), which retain traces of Old Latin
influence ; it is also the reading of the Old Latin texts cited in critical
editions as abff\j. It is natural enough, if we adopt the view that our
hymn is a fifth century composition, that its Scriptural allusions .should
indicate the use of a prae-Hieronymian version of the Bible. In any
case, however, the Latin version of the New Testament current in Ireland
all through the Middle Ages, though in the main Vulgate, retains traces
of Old Latin "mixture"; and we shall find many instances of this
phenomenon in the texts cited in the Liber LLyninorum.

10] Petrus. The manuscript evidence compels us to read Petrus,
not Petruin, which seems more natural. The Latinity of this stanza is
peculiar, and the meaning is not quite clear. Dr. Todd takes cuius in
1. II to refer to ecclesia, and aduersus as equivalent to aduersitates ; but
this does not commend itself to us. The writers of the Prelace i)robably
had in their minds 1. 12 as one of the three passages where there is a
redundant ' in ' (see p. 4) ; but in is required by the metre. Taking
aduersus adverbially, we may translate : " Like Peter on whom the
church is built ; and his apostleship he received from God, and again-t

' Uhicr JoHvunl o/ . I rch(Polosy, 1853. '^ TrlJ». I.i/e,^. '=,70.

THE HYMX OF ST. SECIINALL. loi

liis [Church] the gates of hell do not prevail."' The B glossator seems
to take lit Pet nts \\'\\.\\ fide immobilis., in this way.

The gloss in B, " Petrus agnoscens ", agrees as do many like glosses
in the text, with the explanation furnished in Jerome's Dc nominilws
Hebraicis. St. Jerome was widely read in Ireland ; his works were con-
sulted, for instance, by Oengus the Culdee, and he is quoted frequently
and with respect in Irish hooks and by Irish writers. Columbanus in
his letter to Ciregory the (ireat goes so far as to say that the man who
contradicts the authority of Jerome will be looked on as a heretic, and
rejected with scorn by the Churches of the West. His Irish name was
Cirinc.

The interpretation of Mt. xvi. i8 suggested in the gloss is the
usual interpretation with Irisli writers.' A remarkable parajihrase of
the verse occurs in a vernacular Tract on the Liturgy in the Leabhar
Breac^ : '' that is, upon the firmness of the faith of the first martyrs who
were laid in the foundation of the building and of the last martyrs up
tc Elijah and Enoch."

13 barb'inu nationcs lit piscant, c>-v.] This verse was evidently
familiar to Muirchu Maccu INIactheni, the seventh century author of the
notes in the Book of A?-mag/i (fol. 2) : " dicens ei adesse tempus ut
ueniret et aeuangelico rete nationes feras et barbaras ad quas docendas
misserat ilium deus ut piscaret." The metaphor ultimately rests, of
course, on Mt, iv. 19. In St. Patrick's Co?ifessio this last verse is quoted,
with the comment : '" Unde autem ualde oportebat retia nostra tendere,
ita ut multitudo copiosa et turba Deo caperetur," &c.

19 /niu/j^i] I.e. of this voyage of the Church B. The sea is the present
life., the ship is the Cliiirch., the pilot is a teacher who brings it to a
harbour of life, the harbour of life is uita perpetua B'^^o,

22 praebet^ i.e. preachi?ig a?id teacht7tg B.

24 (lictis^ i.e. by preaching B.

28 ducatiwi] i.e. a uerbo duco duxi — dux, duels, — and thence it makes
duco, ducas, — ducatus its passive participle : ducatus further is a noun
substantive in form of a participle, of the fourth declensio?i, and it is that
which is here B.

The word is used in the sense of ' guidance,' ' safe conduct.'

31 stigmata^ i.e. the relics, o^v. B.

32 sustentans^ i.e. he supports T.

in cruce] i.e. on the Cross of the Passion B.
Z?) iJJJpig€r\ i.e. active B.
34 uidentur^ i.e. in fellowship with Christ B.

36 The gloss in B notes that the Mn ' is superfluous here ; but the
metre requires it, for cuius is a disyllabic.

36 niannci\ i.e. on increase T.

37 ob^^ i.e. for B.

38 The B gloss notes that que is redundant here. It is worth observing

' See Olden, Church q/ Ireland, p. 8.^.

* .See Irish Eccl. Record, vol. ii. p. 170, or McCarthy, The Stowe Missal {TvAn?.. R.I. A. xxvii.
vii. 259).

102 NOT ESI

that the enchtic que is very commonly used in tliis hymn and in tlie
Alius Pt'osator, but rarely in the other pieces.

41, 42 TYvQEtymologion of S. Isidore of Seville, from which the glosses
here are taken, was one of the ordinary text books of the middle ages.
Isidore, the " doctor egregius Hispaniae " was perhaps the most learned
ecclesiastic of the seventh century, and enjoyed a wide reputation in
the schools of Europe. He is counted by Dante as one of the first set
of twelve ' blessed saints: ' in the Tenth Canto of the Paradiso.

/umeri] The gloss seems to suggest that Patrick shone with a light
not his own {lumen), but derived from Christ, who is the true lux
iiumdi.

42 Observe that the gloss recognises the reading toto, now only
found in A, as the form adopted sccunduiti ueteres.

46 adi?nplef\ i.e. that person ; ut de Gregorio dictum est. '■'' Implehat actu
(}uic(]uid sermoiie docebat,"" sic Patricio co?itigit B.

The verse quoted is from the epitaph on the tomb of St. Gregory.
See Bede's Eccl. Hist. \\. i.

48 mundoque^ i.e. in the pure heart B. The reading of A, praecedit,
' excels ' is probably the right one.

49 audenter\ i.e. boldly B.

52 hostia et sacerdos. See note p. 99 above.

54 mensam^ i.e. by measure T. That is, the glossator understands
mensam as if it were moisuram. But mensain is probably used for the
r.ord's Table. Reading qui at the beginning of the line, we may
translate : " He despises all the glory of the world for the sake ot
the divine law', and in comparison with His Table he counts all things
as chaff."

ciscilici\ . . . ciscilia sunt purgamenta fru?ne?iti, i.e. chaff T in
the left margin. In the right margin of T we have the obscure gloss :
" ciscilium i.e. broth or brothscoa i.e. the . . . which the sea \drives\
to the land. Or cis cannan, i.e. . . . of Cormac Ua Cuinn.
Catinan nomen eius, and it is of this that it 2vas formed, viz. of the
cil-cais which was on the belly of the animal that was killed there. Or
ciscilium, i.e. eyelid, i.e. cilium is the fringe of the eyelid ; cis-cilium
the hair that sticks on it [and brings it] down, et quod uerius est. But
whichei'er of these it be, it is all the same to Patrick in comparatione
diuinae legis."

Ambrosius dicit supercilium ./. super abundantia ; cilon uerbum
Graecuin quod interpretatur abundantia is the gloss in B. We cannot
find the passage in Ambrose to which the glossator refers. Cilon is
apparently meant for -y^iXiCcv, a thousand.

55 ingruenti^ i.e. from the resounding or very heavy thunderbolt B.

59 pascen^-^ i.e. he used to satisfy B.

60 The reading tradit of A is certainly right, as agreeing better with
the metre, and also with the usage of the author, who consistently uses
the present tense of the deeds of Patrick.

63 annonam~\ i.e. provision, i.e. ab hora nona dicta T.
65 The glossator in B has misunderstood the allusion in this stanza,
which is evidently to the parable of the Marriage Feast in Mt. xxii.

THE HYMN OF ST. SECHNAI.L, 103

67 uinit)){\ The glossator in B again seems to mistake the meaning.
The * uinum ' is plainly the wine of the eucharist, as the spirituale

poiulum of the next line is the Chalice.

The phraseology is interesting as pointing to Communion in both
kinds as the practice of the early Celtic Church. Ussher in his
Rt'/i\i^ion of the Ancient Irish (p. 279) is at pains to defend this from
objectors by an appeal to the Fathers, and he has collected a host ot
references bearing on the point. The general question, however, need
not now be argued. Bellarmine {dc Eiich. iv, 4) admits that the
i,nving of the cup to the laity was tlie ])rimitive custom, and the Council
.)f Trent {Sess. 21, ch. 2), laid down practically the same doctrine. It
was not indeed until the Council of Constance in 141 5 that communion
\\\ one kind was declared to be the law of the Latin Church. However
,1 few references illustrating the usage of Celtic Christendom may be
.idduced. There is a postcommon in the Corpus Missal (fol. 57v*^)
and in the Rosslyn Missal (fol. 4V") with the opening words : " Refecti
cibo potuque celesti, &:c., Deus, ut ab hostium defendas formidine quos
redemisti pretioso sanguine tui Filii Domini nostri." Again in the
vernacular Homilies in the Leabhar Breac we have frequent reference
to the giving of the cup to the laity, e.g. " those who are most faithful
niong the people, after receiving the Body and Blood of Christ, &c." -}
and also ''that the partaking thereof might not be deemed terror-causing
by the faithful, and lest infidels should charge them with partaking of the
blood and flesh of a man.''- Dr. Wh. Stokes has collected a number
of instances from the Book of Lis more, ^ and Mr. Warren has given
many others.* It may be observed, however, that the hymn Sancti
nenite, the language of which is often cited in this connexion, is not
altogether relevant ; for according to its title it was to be sung " quando
communicarent sacerdotes^' and so it gives no evidence as to the com-
munion of the laity, although it shows that the practice of the celebrant
alone communicating in both kinds was not customary.

68 propinnans(]ne\ i.e. that which he used to distribute T.

The reference in the B gloss is to the grammatical works of Euty-
chius (saec. vi); there is a fragment of his work in Irish handwriting
with Irish glosses in the Paris MS. Bibl. Nat. Lat. 11411.

72 Israel^ Israel at one time is disyllabic et Hiir pugnans cum deo^ inter-
pret at ur ; at another ti7ne it is trisyllabic and means ''Ucir uidens deum " B.

The latter interpretation comes from Jerome' and, as Dr. Todd points

out, rests on the erroneous derivation of Israel from ^^ Hh^"^ tl^^h^- It
is found also among the Irish notes on the Pauline Epistles known as
the Wiirzburg Glosses, which have been edited by Dr. Wh. Stokes for the
Philological Society. Thus on the words et super Israhel dei in Gal. vi.
16 the gloss is /. sanctos uidentes deujn, c^=<^.

' Atkinson, Passions and Homilies, p. 456, c/. also p. 498.

' Hogaii, Todd Lectures, vi. p. 19. See on the same subject McCarthy, Stoive Missal, p. 258.
' p. cvii.

♦ Liturgy and Ritual of the Celtic Church, p. 134. Compare also Dowden's Celtic Church of
iotland, p. 239.

' From the De inter^r. nc>uinum\: and the same explanation is found in Jerome's translation of
Didymus de Spiritu Sancto, p. 151.

104 NOTES.

73 fidelis\ i.e. faithful B.

74 condita\ i.e. salted., a uerbo co?idio, condis, of the fourth conJugatio?t
TB.

75 putre7it^ i.e. a uerbo putro, of the first conjugation B.

ess(Bque\ i.e. chewed T i.e. essus a uerbo ^edo^ et ^ edor^ its passive ;
essum et essus its passive participle^ and distinctio?i of ge?ider i?t it, i.e.
essus essa essum B.

76 The allusion seems to be to Mc. ix. 49 and Col. iv. 6.

80 arat^ i.e. he ploughs T.

81 uicarius^ i.e. steward or tax-collector or ^ coarb,' for this is what
Jero77ie says i?i Epistola de gradibus Roma7iorum ; that the ' uica7'ius^ is a
77ian who is 7iext to a ' co77ies ' over the city, though he does 7wt co77ie in
C077iitatu CU771 rege ; ' uicarius ' of God is he T.

i.e. ' coarb^ guia HieronyTuus diciti7i Epistola de gradibus Ro77ia7ioru7n,
that the ''uicarius^ is the 7nan 7vho is 7iext to the ''C07nes^ over the city while
the ' comes ' goes (?) to the ki7ig. The ' rex ' is God, the ' comes ' is Christ,
the ' uicarius ' is Patrick. ' Ulcus ' is fich i.e. place, so that ' ulcus ' makes
' uicarius ' B.

We have not been able to identify the passage from Jerome here
cited by the scholiasts. It is possible that the letter referred to is the
spurious Epistola de septe77i ordinibus ecclesiae (Migne P.L., xxx. 148);
but it does not seem to mention the titles uicarius and co77ies.

84 The spelling zabulus for diabolus is not uncommon, and many
instances might be given from Irish manuscripts. The interchange of
z and st, of which we have an instance here in F which reads stabuli, is
worth observing. We have it again in the hymn Celebra luda at 1. 31,
where our MSS. read euangelizce for euangelistce and at 1. 35 Zefani for
Stephani, and in the Preface to the Be7iedictus (vol. i. p. 57) where we
have Stacharias for Zacharias and Elistabeth for Elizabeth.

obsoluit^ The gloss in B co77ide7i7nach is perhai)S for cai7i-dc7i77iach,
' beneficent.'

86 tractat] i.e. he sets in 7notion psahns a/id hy7nns and apocalypse, to
build up God's people B.

Todd read the last words of this gloss as popuil tri7ie or ' the people of
the Trinity ' ; but we think that the true reading is simply//?/?/// ^r.

The line is almost identical with 1. 25 of Fiacc's hymn; and although,
the glossator at that place explains the " hymns " differently, it is toler-
ably certain that the canticles must be meant. So the notes in the Book
of Ar77iagh by Muirchu Maccu Mactheni have' : " omnes psalmos et
apocalipsin lohannis et onmia ka7itica spiritalia scripturar^um cotidie
decantans."*

Mr. Macgregor {Early Scottish Worship, p. 25) suggests that by " the
Apocalypse " is here meant the Ter Sanctus, and the suggestion seems
reasonable. See 1. 133 of the Altus of St. Columba and 1. 25 of Fiacc's
hymn in praise of St. Patrick.

' At fol. 7.

- See also the Leabhar Bnac Hottfily on St. Patrick, in Trip. Life, p. 485

THE HYMN OF ST. SECHNALL. 105

S7 quaui\ viz. a i:[rcaf t/iing, who believes legem sacri iionunis quod csl
Trinitas TB.

88, 89 There is :s. precision of doctrinal statement here, which
indicates at least that the Christological controversies of the fourth and
fifth centuries left their mark on the language of Celtic Cliristendom.

89 praecinLtus\ i.e. girt roii?ui B.

90 sine ififermissione] Augi/sfifiKS dicif. Si (jids in unaquaqtie hora certa
smpora orandi ohen/af, sine intermissionc oral : i.e. celebration of each

canonical hour T.

A similar interpretation of St. Paul's precept is found in the Irish
writer Sedulius {in Ep. ad Ro?nanos ed. Migne col. 16). " Aut ergo
dicendum est eum semper orare et non deficere, qui canonicis orationi-
hus quotidie iuxta ritum ecclesiasticae traditionis, psalmodiis precibusque
onsuetis, Dominum laudare et rogare non desistit. Et hoc est quod
i'salmista dicebat, Benedicam Dominium in omni tempore., semper laus
eius in ore meo (Ps. xxxiii. 2)."

This is rejected, however, by the writer of the Wiirzburg Glosses,
already referred to. He notes (ed. Stokes, p. 315) "What may be the
j)rayer without ceasing? Not hard. Dicunt alii that it is celebration
of the canonical hour quod non est uerum &:c." It is also rejected in
the Benedictine Rule,^ which observes : " nobis uero non expedit caeteris
horis ab oratione uacare."

92 cum apostolis regnabit sanctus super Israel. The gloss in B gives
the legend which grew out of this verse in later years, viz. reg?tabit
Patricius super Scotos in die iudicii. We also find it in Fiacc's hymn v.
52. "Around thee in the day of the Judgement, the men of Ireland
will go to Doom.'' In JMuirchu Maccu Mactheni's notes in the Book
of Armagh, the quart a petitio which the Angel granted to Patrick is
'"■ ut Hibernenses omnes in die iudicii ate iudicentur.'""- The legend
indeed became very widespread, and reappears in many places ; e.g. in
the Second Vision of Adamnan" at § 6 we have : " It is Patrick who
will be their judge and their advocate on Doomsday." So in the Secreta
in the Corpus and Rosslyn Missals^ we find an allusion to the same
belief: '' Hostias tibi quas in honore sancti Patricii offerimus deuotus
accipias, ut nos a timore iudicii liberemur."

93 Audite omnes, the opening words of the hymn, are added at the
lose according to the regular Irish practice of which many examples

will meet us as we proceed. Mone {Hymni Latini medii aeui iii. 242)
remarks that this custom is sometimes adopted by German hymn
writers. Ir was probably invented for the purpose of clearly marking
the point at which one piece ended and another began, not always
obvious of itself in manuscripts written closely and continuously with a
view to the economising of parchment. Mone adds that there seems
to have been a special tendency among Irish hymn writers to begin
their hymns with the word ' Audite.'

The apparatus criticus shows that the three antiphons appended to

Migne, P.L. ciii. 621. 2 <^^^ Trip. Life, pp. 296, 477.

^ Reime Celtique, vol. xii. 420. * See Warren, Celtie Liturgy

io6 NOTES.

the hymn vary in our manuscri])ts. The first antiphon in TB is Ps. cxi,
7. The second calls for no comment. The third, which is not found
in AB, has reference to the story told by St. Patrick himself in his Co?i-
fessio,^ of a vision he had in the night when in Britain and of voices
which seemed to say to hnn " Rogamus te, sancte puer, ut uenias et
adhuc ambules inter nos." The story is told, with embellishments, by
all his biogra])hers ; a strange and extravagant form of it is given in the
notes to Fiacc's hymn at 1. 16. See infra p. 180.'-

It will be observed that the regular practice of the Li/>er Hyvuwrum
is that antiphons, written by the scribes in pointed handwriting of a
different character from that employed for the text, are appended to each
of the Latin hymns, and also to some of the vernacular pieces.

vol. i. p. 1 3.] We have not been able to identify with any known docu-
ment the half illegible notes written in the margins of fol. 2 of the Trinity
College MS. It will be seen that the majority of these notes, which
occur on every page up to fol. 22, do not seem to have any bearing on
the text ; they are memoranda entered in the margins either by the
original scribes, or — as seems more probable— by some early owner of
the book. For the most part they are extracted from well-known
authors, such as Augustine, Gregory the Great, Isidore of Seville, or
Hraban Maur. When no reference is given in the text, it may be
assumed that we have not been able to identify the piece.

The Hymn Christ us in nostra .

This is possibly a fragment of an alphabetical hymn, of which all
save the last three stanzas has been lost, these last three being preserved
owing to the belief (see }). 98 supra) that the recitation of these was
equal in efficacy to the recitation of the whole. It is evident that the
lines beginning Aiidite uir^inis /atides, despite the statement of the
compiler of the preface, are from a different composition, inasmuch as
the metre is quite dissimilar ; indeed Ware' distinguishes expressly
the hymn Christ us in nostra from the hymn Aiidite nirginis hiitdes.

W^e have noted already (vol. i, p. xxvii) the mention of the hymn
Christus in nostra in the early office sketched on one of the leaves of
the Basel Psalter (P). See above ]). xxx.

This hymn was printed from F by Colgan {Trias^ p. 542), who
])ointed out that it was found at the end of St. Ultan's Life of St. Brigid.
He mentions several manuscripts of this Life to which he had access,
among them (1) at the monastery of St. Magnus at Ratisbon, in Irish
handwriting ; this, he notes, though it gave the hymn, had no antiphon
at the end ; (2) a manuscript belonging to the monastery of St. Autbert
at Cambray ; (3) one belonging to a monastery in the co. Longford. We
have failed to trace any of these ; and in addition to T and F can
only produce one other manuscript (V) as authority for our text, a

' Sec 7Vv/. Li/e, p. 3164.

* Compare the legeiid^in the Book- 0/ I.isinore, p. 155, 6.

2 ll'rtteyi, &c., I. p. 13.

THE HYMN CIIRISTUS IN NOSTRA. 107

nianuscrint whirh tliouirl"' ncnv at the Wuican was originally at Heidel-
I )erg.

Of the three i)ersons named in the Preface as possible authors of the
piece, a word or two only can l7e said here.

Ninnid, when a young scholar, so say the later lives of IJrigid,' can^e
under the favourable notice of the saint, who })redic ted that she herself,
on the day of her death, should receive the viaticum at his hands. On
hearing this the youth enclosed his right hand in a locked case, lest it
should ever be defiled by the touch of any unclean thing ; and so he
was known as Ninnid ' Purehand.'

Fiacc of Sletty we shall meet with again as the reputed author of a
famous hymn (our No, 19). He died before Brigid.

Ultan of Ardbreccan \\\ the co. Meath, the author wliose c^laims
Colgan favours, is also named as the composer of the Irisii hymn
No. 21 in praise of St. Brigid. All that it seems ])ossible to say with
confidence is that the statement in the Preface, that he was one of
St. Brigid's biographers, rebts on early tradition. He is reputed to have
died A.D. 656, and his name lingers in Irish topography, in the form
'• Cahir Ultan." There is a Latin poem in praise of him, beginning
f-^ama citaf, Szc, printed in Diimmler, Poet. hit. medii aeui, i. }). 589.

The words tria rithim noscaj'da in 1, 5 of the F Preface are rendered
by Oolgan ad imitationo)! ?-ithmi Noscarii\ but osaii'da means ' renowned '
or ' well-known.' See ,S7/7V7 Gad. 12 ji^, 2\ -, M.R. 216, \'^ \ Oss. Soc.
iv. 152.

8 5imil€))i\ i.e. for Brigid is the Mary of the Gaels T. This curious
>Latement is frequently met with in jxmegyrics of St. Brigid. The
medieval Irish were fond of tracing parallels between their own saints
and those of the N.T. and the early Christian centuries ; but in no case
is this parallelism pushed to such extravagant lengths as in the case
of St. Brigid. Thus (see p. 39 above) in hymn No. 21, 1. 12, she is
addressed as " Mother of Jesus " ; and again at the beginning of
hymn No 22 (p. 40), she is invoked as " Brigid, mother of my high
King."

Dr. Todd- quotes a remarkable office of St. Brigid, printed as late as
1622, in which a modified form of the legend, that she had a strong
personal resemblance to the P>VM, is reproduced. This legend is
given by .several of the mediaeval authorities.''

It will be observed that the two strongest expressions in the text
of the piece, viz., in 1. 8 Mar ice sanctce similem and in 1. 15 Christi
matrem se spopoudit are erased in the Vatican manuscript.

1 3 laudes^ uel iirra, that is the right reading, ifi order that it should
correspond to ' f/ierita ' t;elo7V T.

sancta^ i.e. Brigid T.

14 perfectionetri\ this should he the proper [^order] in the line, viz. per-
fectione?n profnisit quaju uiriliter i7nplebit T.

15 diet is'] this also should he ^ diet is atcjue fact is fecit' T.

^ Col^n, Trias, p. 559,

' Liter HymnoruiHt p. 68. ^ '^t<t Book o/ Lisvtore, pp. 186, 320.

ic8 NOTES.

This is the reading of F.

1 6 This hne is no true part of the verse ; it is probably an explanatory
gloss on sancta of the following line which has crept into the text. Lines
13-16 do not, in short, constitute a stanza at all. The T glossator was
evidently conscious that there are metrical impossibilities in the lines
as they stand.

Preface to the Hymn of St. CuiMmain the Tall.

We do not know of any manuscripts which contain this hymn, save
T and F. It is alluded to (see vol. i. p. xxv) in the office sketched in
the Second Vision of Adamnan and the Book of Mulling; which
proves that it was well-known before the ninth century at least. It has
been printed with its preface by Todd {Liber Hymnormn^ p. 72), and
also by Malone in his Church History of Ircla?id (vol. ii. p. 273), and in
Moran's Irish Church (p. 87).

St. Cummain the TalV to whom the authorship is ascribed in the
Preface, was born, according to the chronologies, in 500 and died in 661
or 662. He is commemorated on Nov. 12, in the Martyrologies of
Gorman and of Donegal ; in the latter book being described as " the
blessed preacher of the word of God," and being compared for his way
of life to Gregory the Great. He was bishop of Clonfert, and the
name survives in local tradition, Kilcummin or the Church of Cummain
being the name of a townland in the parish of Tirawley, co. Mayo. The
author of a letter to Seghine, fifth Abbot of lona, on the Paschal
question (see Migne P.L. Ixxxvii. 969) is a different person.

The shocking story recorded in the Preface as to the manner of his
birth is not without parallel in the Vitae Sivictoi'um ; and it is far from
improbable, as Todd remarks, that a child so born should be dedicated
from his infancy to a religious life.^ For the genealogies of the various
persons mentioned in the Preface we must refer the curious reader to
Dr. Todd's learned notes.

1. 5. Ita's Cell'\ now Killeedy in the co. Limerick. The reputed date
of St. Ita's death is 569 ; there is nothing in the narrative which implies
that she was alive in Cummain's lifetime.

1. 1 1. Itd!scoarb'\ The * coarb ' {co77iarbd) of a monastery was its here-
ditary head ; each religious house was like a spiritual clan, the abbot
being the heir of the original founder. He might be either a bishop or
a presbyter, according to circumstances ; in the Columban houses he was
always a presbyter, in memory of the fact that St. Columba himself
never became a bishop. But a monastery often had attached to it
a resident bishop, for the purpose of conferring orders and consecrating
churches, &c.

1. 1 2. sinum abbatissae] sinuvi is a churn, or wooden drinking-vessel.

1. 15. Notice not] nn rathaix. According to Todd the repetition

' So called to distingruish him from St. Olmmain the Fair, seventh Abbot of lona.
See Olden, Chutch o/ Ireland, p. 125.

THE HYMN OF iT. CUM MAIN THE lAl.L. 109

of these ^vord'^ is necessary for the metre. But this is not ace urate,
and there is no good reason for such rei)etition here.

1. 20. Eoganacht of Loch Lci/i] So tlie Marfyro/oiiv of Gorman at
Nov. 12. Loch Lein is the principal Lake of Killarney. Eoi^atiacJit w^^,
the tribe name of the descendants of Eogan Mor, king of Munster in
the second century.

1. 35. upon tlu\\ O Fiachna, »J>t.] Tliese words are a gloss, although
the copyist of the Preface does not seem to have understood them so.
The omission in T of the initial F in Kiachna, as, a little lower down,
of the initial letter of Flann, is very conmion with Irish scribes.

!. 47. soul friend] anmc/iara, the ordinary Irish word for a confessor,
or spiritual director.

1. 48. Columcille\ St. Columba died in 597, so that the chronology
seems confused. It is possible, however, that when Columcille is
mentioned, it is his coarb or successor that is meant, who inherited his
privileges and was regarded as speaking in his name.

I. 47. eastward^ i.e. to lona, the seat of St. Columba's famous monas-
tery. In the quatrain ascribed to Columba, there is a play on the word
lummain, which means 'communion.'

I. 61. Domnall refuses it, c^c] These verses, Todd says, "seem
to allude to the ancient custom of putting on the raiment of the saint
who acted as your penitentiary, in token of submission and humiliation.
This, it seems, Domnall refused to do." {i.e. p. 83.) But, in truth,
the lines are not grammatically explicable ; ?ia gab ought to mean ' do
not take.' Perhaps 11. 57-64 are an interpolation ; at any rate the story
'^ more intelligible in their absence.

1. 72. Daire Calcaig\ i.e. 'the oak wood of Calgagh ' = roboretum
Calgachi (Adamnan Vita Columbaex. 2, where see Fowler's note.) This
was the old name of Derry, and was superseded by the name Daire
Coluimcille in the tenth or eleventh century.

The Hv.mn of St. Cummain the Tall.

1 The opening words of this hymn are, as the Preface observes,
borrowed from Nahum i. 15. The glossator in T who says 7iecessitas
metri put here luda instead of ludea was, seemingly, ignorant of this
reference. F has no glosses on this hymn.

2 The repetition of alleluia after each stanza (it is ap])arently only
through inadvertence that it is omitted after the hrst stanza in T) is a
device which is found in two hymns in the Bangor Antiphonary \ the
first, " Precamur patrem," being, like that now under consideration, a
hymn in praise of the Apostles, the other a hymn for Feasts of Martyrs
beginning " Sacratissimi martyres."

5 clauicularf\ unde deriuatur hoc tiomen ?. Not hard : fro??i the ivord

aaiiis ' .• frot7i it {is made) clauicula : ' ris ' {is added) to it, so that it

makes clauicularis : from this ' s ' {is dropped) and ' us ' {appended) to it,

so that it makes of it ' clauicularius,' and its prese?ice here is fitting, quod

dixit Christus, <h-'c.

no NOTES.

3 Fefri^ The order in wliich the Apostles are mentioned follows
that of St. Matth. x, the place of Judas Iscariot being supplied by St.
Paul, whose name is ])ut immediately after that of St. Peter. This is the
regular Gregorian order ; it is also found on the Ardagh Chalice. The
names which follow Simon Zelotes, viz. Matthias, Mark, Luke, Patrick,
Ste])hen, also (with the exception of Patrick) follow in this order the
names of the Apostles in the invocation in the Royal MS, 2. A. xx in
the British Museum, printed by Mr. Warren in the Appendix to his
Antiphonary of Baui^^or} The list given in Harl. MS. 7653 should also
be comi)ared with that in this hymn. Yox the number of names com-
memorated see note on 1. 37.

6 alleh{ia\ at the end of each {7jerse is Alleluia^ whicli) interp7-etatin\
o>v. We have not been able to trace the Latin words of this marginal
note to any author.

8 aduocamma\ i.e. the invocations or the assistances.

10 scammate'\ i.e. i?t the battlefield^ or in the combat. The word is used
by Tertullian ad Mart. 3.

I iff. The glossator's interpretations of the Apostles' names, derived for
the most part from Jerome, are also given, though with much confusion,
in the invocation in the MS. Reg. 2. A. xx already mentioned.

12 acciunbebat^ in Camian Galilece. The glossator seems to allude to
the tradition that St. John was the bridegroom at the marriage of Cana
of Galilee. It is not certain that this is implied in the words of the hymn
itself

13 oris^ i.e. os lampadis interpretatur i.e. for his know/edge and for
the excellence of his iittera?ice.

Pilippi\ i.e. of deacon Philip that., and C inn main enumerates him inter
apostolos ; qui in Hierapolis ciuitate sepultus est ; e>r.

The glossator here confounds Philip the Apostle with Philip the!
Evangelist, as does also Eusebius in \\\^EccL Hist. iii. 31. By Eusebius
as in the gloss on prole, only three daughters of Philip are mentioned,
although four are spoken of in Acts xxi. 9. There is an Irish "Passion
of the Apostle Philip " in the Leabhar Bread,- which tells of his stoning-
and crucifixion at Hierapolis.

15 i??ipenda??ius^ i.e. let tis give preces.

16 7iati^ i.e. it is the Son of God in truth who stays the waters in the
clouds : according to the (mystical) se?ise the waters are the teachings., and
the clouds are the teachers. Niul cannot be right, for // e absolutely
demands the nom. pi. ; and we have translated accordingly.

19 fiscali] i.e. the treasure chest {?), quia f sens inuenitur; i.e

fiscalis uel fiscalis cista, .... a chest, viz. he collected taxes for

the King of the world.

We have printed in vol. i. the read ng {no) feda{d) cista^ 'he used to
bear a chest.' given by Stokes in emendation of Todd's nofeda cista 'a
wooden chest ' : but we are not satisfied with it. Further the word
main is not fully legible.

1 Vol. ii. p. qt. - r>ee Atkinson, Passions a/tii I/oinilii's, p. 356.

TIJE IIVMX OF ST. CI'MMAIX /HJi TALL. iii

By "the kinjij of the world" the Roman Emperor is, of course,
meant.

2 1 Jacobi cominiis\ i.e. a mark of definition on /lini [as compared) willi
the first fames. Another exi)lanation of cominus is suggested in the
next gloss, viz., Christo. The construction is obscure; probably we
should understanil prece before alterius and translate : *' let us ask the
l)rayer of James to be near to us aided by the prayer of the other
lames."

2 2 sul>nixi\ i.e. later he came to Christ (juam pncdictus, and they were
clubbed in Jerusalem.

It is not clear whether we should read sitnd (Todd) or suind (Stokes).
Possibly o sund should be read for the pi. tuarcain o sund is common
enough ; and ra'^^al^sat i n-a chend di means ' they struck him on the
head with it ' {Hom-Fass. 3299).

23 The gloss on Tathei confuses {cf. Jerome /// Matth. x. 4) the
Thaddaeus of the Abgar legend, whom Eusebius (H. E. i, 13) describes
as ' one of the Seventy ' with Thaddaeus the ai)Ostle ; a blunder whic li
we shall meet with again in a gloss on the letter of Christ to Abgar.
See, on the whole subject, p. 173 infra, and the references there given.

fell It ra^ i.e. over the corners of the earth., for that indeed is the way in
7vhich he ^crites, et sic scribitnr recte per telliira i.e. rura. Talmannaib'x^
from the adj. talmanda ' terrestrial ' {Horn-Pass. 5857, 5878, 5895) ; and
uillib means 'angles, corners,' as in Horn-Pass. 3728. Cf. Apoc. vii. 1.
* super quatuor ans!^iilos terrae.'

24 epistola] The words ' Beatus es ' in the gloss are the opening
words of the reputed letter of our Saviour to Abgar, King of Edessa.
which is found in our collection (No. 18) ; see the notes upon it below.
The legend that its bearer was one ' Ananias cursor ' is as old as
Eusebius (HE. i. 13), to the Latin translation of whose history by
Rufinus there is no doubt a reference at the end of the gloss : " ut
historia ecclesiastica narrat.''

25 snapte] in sua regiotie iiel sua ciuitate, and a syllable is extj-a he?r,
viz. -pte. This gloss, like that on Abgoi-o in the preceding line, has
been curiously misread by former editors.

27 Madiafius that is ■Matthias; his name often appears thus in the
Irish texts

28 loce7?iur^ i.e. let us be assembled.

31 eua)igelizcE i.e. euangelist?e. For this interchange of z and sf, see
above p. 104.

37 bina septini] i.e. fourteen., viz. the tivelve apostles with Paul and
Stephen^ quafnuis non est apostolus. It 7nay not hare been Cummain
7vho put Mark and Luke here. Or., if it be he that put the?n, it is ' oct(^
ualida ' that is right in the line.

The end of the gloss shows that the F variant, octo for septem, was
current in the time of the glossator, and that there was some doubt as
to which was the true reading. It is plain that the difference between
.uii. and .uiii. is very slight, and that a confusion might easily arise.
There is difficulty whichever we adopt, for seventeen names are
mentioned in all. Todd suggests that septem is the true reading, and

112 NOTES.

that the ' twice seven ' are the fourteen Apost/cs, viz. the Twelve,
St. Paul and St. J'atrick.

It seems to us, however, that octo is certainly the reading of the
oric^inal text. Without Patrick there are i6 names invoked, and an
inspection of the hymn will disclose the fact that there is nothing
specifically Celtic about the subject matter, save the invoration of
St. Patrick. Further 11. 2>?t^ 34 break the sequence of construction ;
Alarci anjiimtiantis, Liicae seqi/e/itis, Sfep/ia?i/ roi^a/ifis, are all de]>endent
on siiffdi^in of 1. 37. It is therefore certain that the stanza which
brings Patrick in is an after-thought, or a supplement introduced when
the hymn became jjopular in Ireland.

The glossator, as usual, is only guessing.

40 pfopui^nacii/a] i.e. as if it W€}-e t/i?'Of/i^h ramparts or hattlernents.

It will be remembered that the antiphon " exaudi nos " which
follows this hymn in the manuscripts, is prescribed for recitation
after it in the directory for a monastic service in the Book of
Mulling, of which we hr.ve given an account in our Introduction
(vol. i, ]). xxii).

The note in the upper margin of fol. 4 i.s, for the most part, as will be
seen from the references given at foot of page 21 (vol. i), a catena of
l)assages from Latin authors dealing with the primacy of Peter. Hraban
Maur (786-856), who is cited here and in other marginal notes in the
Liber Hymnorum., seems to have been well known in Ireland, as indeed
he was all over Europe. In the library at St. (iall there are several
MSS. of his works. The " four points of observance at celebrating
Easter," given in tlie Passion of Christ in the Lea/)har Breae.^ seem to
be derived from Hraban. See Migne P. L. cviii. col. 641.

The Hymn of St. Mugixt.

The Preface need not detain us long, although the full discussion of
all the genealogical problems which it suggests would extend over many
])ages. We nmst refer our readers to the investigation of the.se obscure
l)oints printed by Dr. Todd.-

It is plain at the outset that whatever may be the historical worth
of the legend given in the Preface, it has little to say to the hymn.
The writer of the Preface, as would appear from the alternative explana-
tions which he gives of the authorship, had not even a consistent
tradition to guide him. It is likely that the authorship of St. Mugint
was neither better nor worse authenticated than the authorship of
Ambrose or of David.

St. Mugint himself is a .saint of whom little is known. There is a
Welsh St. Meugan who may be the .same person ; or again Todd may
be right in identifying him with one Nennio or Moinenn or Mancend,
whose name a])pears under various forms. At any rate he is described
as a tutor of St. Finnian of Moville in the co. Down, which would fix

' Atkinson, Pussion* niui llontilies, p. 337. * LiUr Hymnorunt, p. 97 ft'.

THE HYMN OF ST. MUGJN7\ 113

the date of the story in the Preflice at the beginning of the sixth
century. Futerna, the scene of the transaction, is almost certainly
Whitherne in Galloway, where there was a large monastic establishment,
the celebrated Candida Casa, founded by St. Ninian.' Rioc, whom
legend counts a daughter of Darerca, Patrick's sister (see p. 96 above)
is celebrated in the Martyrology of Gorman on August i.

In the life of St. Frigidianus of Lucca,- who is often identified with
St. Finnian of Moville, there is a somewhat similar story told of Mugint.
No mention is made of Drusticc or Rioc or Talmach ; but it is said
that Mugint becoming jealous of Finnian's popularity as a teacher, laid
a snare for him, wliich ended in his receiving himself the wound
intended for his pupil. And so he said Farce domitie^ parce populo tuo,
et ne des hicreditatcm tuam in opprobriiun. This story is evidently to be
traced back to the same source as our Preface.

This hymn, or more properly prayer, seems from internal evidence to
have been put together on the occasion of some i)lague or other visi-
tation of evil by which some monastery or city was afflicted. There is
nothing in it which in any way bears out the legend connecting its
composition with St. Mugint given in the Preface : nor is there any
trace of distinctively Celtic belief. The piece, however, does not seem
to exist in this form in any other MSS. save the two copies of the Irish
Liber Hytnnoruvi from which we have printed it. But the various
clauses down to 1. 20 are found scattered up and down in a Rogation
Litany " ex MS. ordinario insignis ecclesiae Lugdunensis " printed
by Martene.'^ The first clause Farce dofnine, &c., occurs frequently in
liturgical books, e.g. in the Sarum Breviary (preceded by the Antiphon
jVe reminiscaris), in the Breviary of Aberdeen (after the seven Peni-
tential Psalms), and in the Corpus Missal (p. 211). The second clause
Deprecainur te, &:c. is mentioned by Bede (H.E. i. 26) as having been
sung by Augustine and his companions as they entered Canterbury.

Line 20. The true reading is, of course, uniuersa terra with F, not
iiniiiersa tiia with the principal manuscript (T).

Lines 1-3 of the antiphon at the end Farce domine peccafitibits., &c.
occur in almost the same words in a Deprecatio Sancti Martini pro
populo found on fol. 18 of the Stowe Missal.

Preface to the Hymn Sen De.

Before discussing the structure of the hymn, a few notes explanatory
of the Irish Preface must be given.

The pestilence which is said to have been the occasion of the com-
position of this lorica was the terrible " Yellow^ Plague," which ravaged
Europe in the sixth and seventh centuries. The Four Masters put it
down to the year 664,^ and name among the victims, Fechin abbot of

' Colgan, AA. SS. Mar. 18. 2 See Olden, Proc. R.I. A. (1895), p. 566.

^ De ant. eccl. rii. iii. 527-531 (ed. 1737). Mr. H. A. Wilson has suggested to us that the relation
of the piece to these Gallican Rogation Litanies may be a key to the ascription of it to St. Ambrose
as author.

* See also for an account of it, Bede, H.E. iii. 27, and Adamnan, Vita Coluinbae, II. xlvi. (with
Reeves' note). Compare Plummer's Bede, vol. ii. p. 196, O'Curry's MS. Materials, p. 631, and
C'Idens Church of Ireland, p. 68.

LIBER HYMN. II. I

114 NOTES.

Fore, Aileran ' of the wisdom,' Manchan of Liath, and Dermot and
Blaithmac, the two sons of Aed Slane, all of whom are mentioned
in our Preface. There were, however, several outbreaks of it in
Ireland, the most deadly being in the years 543, 550, 664 and 1094;
and the country was hardly free from it at any time during the seventh
century.

Of St. Cohnan mac Ui Cluasaig, to whom the authorship of the
lorica is ascribed, we know nothing save that the P'our Masters speak
of liim as the tutor of St. Cummain the Tall, and record his death
along with that of his pupil in 661. There is here an obvious difficulty
as to the date ; but it might well be that the lorica was composed at
the beginning of the Plague, before 661, but that its use did not
become common until the Plague, which reached its severest point
in 664, became very deadly. Indeed the writer of the Preface observes
that some held that only two quatrains were written by St. Colman,
and that his disciples added the rest. It may be observed that Colman
is by far the commonest name in the Irish hagiologies, being chosen
by no less than 226 saints according to the tables in the Book of
Leinster.

The sin for which the Plague was sent upon the Irish people is
described as in our Preface, but more fully, in the Life of St. Gerald of
Mayo ' With the growth of population, the arable land began to be
insufficient for the needs of the country, and so an assembly of clergy
and laity was summoned in 657 by Dermot and Blaithmac, kings of
Ireland, to take counsel. It was decided, as the Preface tells, that the
amount of land held by any one person should be restricted ; and,
further, the " seniors " directed tliat prayers should be offered for a
pestilence, " to reduce the number of the lower class, that the rest
might live in comfort " ! St. Fechin of Fore, on being consulted,
approved of this extraordinary petition. And so the prayer was
answered from heaven, but the vengeance of the Almighty caused
the force of the plague to be felt by the nobles and clergy, of
whom multitudes, including the kings and Fechin of Fore, were carried
off.

It appears from the end of the Preface that an island was a favourite
place of refuge during these visitations, as the pestilence did not travel
across the sea. As St. Colman is said to have taught in the school of
Cork, it is possible that the island spoken of may be that of Inis-
Cleire, where a well-known monastery was situated.

The idea that the distance of " nine waves " from the mainland had
a special virtue is found elsewhere in Irish literature. For instance,
according to the Brehon Laws, a borrowed article carried over " nine
waves " by the borrower was forfeit to him. (See Senchus Mor iii.
423.) And in the tale of the invasion of Ireland by the sons of Milesius
we read that the compact between them and the natives was that the
strangers were to go " nine waves " from the shore, and then try to
land. If they succeeded in baffling the magical arts of the Druids for

1 See Life of St. Gerald in the Diet, o/ Natiotuil Biography.

THE HYMN SEN DE. 115

that distance, the country was to be tlieirs. (Keating, Hist, of Ireland^
p. 199, ed. O'Mahony.)

The Hymn Sen De

A critical examination of this poem will show that, whatever truth
there may be in the account of its composition given in the Preface, it
is not the whole truth. An important article by M. Gaidoz on this
hymn appeared in vol. v of the Revue Celtique (p. 94), in which it was
pointed out that it falls into three natural divisions.

I. The first division (verses 1-38) is plainly the original poem, and
it ends, as is the practice of Irish hymnologists, with the words Sen
De do'n'fe for don'te with which it began. This part of the piece consists
of a number of invocations of saints, chiefly Old Testament personages;
and from the fragments of Latin phrases which occur here and there at
the end of lines, it is natural to suspect that it may be based on a Latin
original. This suspicion becomes almost a certainty when we find many
of the same saints described in the same way, invoked in the familiar
Comwendatio a/iimae quando infrmus est t?i extremis, of the Breviary. A
few lines of this may be transcribed.

''Libera, domine, animam eius, sicut liberasti Enoch et Eliam de
communi morte mundi . . . Noe de diluuio . . . Abraham de Ur
Chaldaeorum lob de passionibus eius .... Isaac de hostia et de
manu i)atris sui Abrahae . . . Lot de Sodomis et de flamma ignis
. . . Moysen de manu Pharaonis regis ^gyptiorum . . . .
Danielem de lacu leonum . . . tres pueros de camino ignis ardentis
et de manu regis iniqui . . Susannam de falso crimine . . . David
de manu regis Saul et de manu Goliae . . . Petrum et Paulum de
carceribus . . . Theclam uirginem et martyrem tuam de atrocissi-
mis tormentis . , .

sic liberare digneris animam huius serui tui et tecum facias in bonis
congaudere caelestibus."

An Irish Litany presenting striking resemblances to this first division
of our hymn is also found at the end of the Felireof Oengus, from which
we quote some stanzas •}

" Deliver me, O Jesu, O Lord of fair assemblies, as Thou deliveredst
Elijah, with Enoch, from the world.

Deliver me, O Jesu, from every ill on earth, as Thou deliveredst Noah,
son of Lamech, from the flood.

Deliver me, O Jesu, O King of pure brightness, as Thou deliveredst
Abraham from the hand of the Chaldeans.

Deliver me, O Jesu, O King mysterious, gracious, as Thou deliveredst
Lot from the sin of the cities.

Deliver me, O Jesu, O King high, wonderful, as Thou deliveredst
Jonah from the belly cett mag?ii.

Deliver me, O Jesu, in Thy many-graced kingdom, as Thou deliveredst
Isaac from his father's hands.

' Wh. Stokes, Calendar o/ Oengus, p. cciii.

I 2

ii6 NOTES.

Deliver me, O Jesu, when Thou shalt come with Thy saints, as Thou
dehveredst Thecla from the beast's maw.

Dehver me, O Jesu, for Thy Mother's intercession, as Thou deliveredst
Jacob from his brother's hands.

Dehver me, O Jesu, from every evil that is not . . . as Thou
deliveredst [ohn from the serpent's venom.

Deliver me, O Jesu, from hell with its misery, as Thou deliveredst
David from the valour of Goliath's sword.

Deliver me, O Jesu, who hast freed all— as Thou deliveredst Susanna
with sovranty after the lie concerning her.

Deliver me, O Jesu, because of Thy conflict's intercession, as Thou
deliveredst Nineveh in the time of the plague.

Deliver me, O Jesu, I desire that Thou wilt acknowledge me, as Thou
deliveredst the people of Israel de monte Gilboae.

Deliver me, O Jesu, O Lord who art divinest, as Thou deliveredst
Daniel out of the hons' den.

Deliver me, O Jesu, O King famous, gentle, as Thou deliveredst
Moses de ina?iu Pharaonis.

Deliver me, O Jesu, who hast wrought great marvels, as Thou
deliveredst the Three Children de camino ignis.

Deliver me, O Jesu, O King of every clan, as Thou deliveredst Tobit
from the misery of blindness.

Deliver me, O Jesu, for sake of Thy martyrdom's mtercession, as
Thou deliveredst Paul and Peter before kings from the vengeance of

the prison.

Dehver me, O Jesu, from the anguish of every disease, as Ihou
dehveredst Job from the devil's tribulations.

Deliver me, O Jesu, O Christ let there not be neglect, as Thou
deliveredst David from Saul, from his spoiling.

Dehver me, O Jesu, for Thy Mother's intercession, as Thou dehveredst
Joseph from the hands of his brethren.

Deliver me, O Jesu, O King benedicte, as Thou deliveredst Israel with
holiness from the slavery of Egypt.

Dehver me, O Jesu, for with Thee is my covenant, as Thou dehveredst
Peter from the waves of the sea, &c."

There can be little doubt that this Litany and the first section of the
hymn Sen De, both of which are " farced " in the same way with Latin
phrases, are based on the Latin text of some prayer like the Commendatio
Animae. The Commendatio is itself ancient ; and as M. le Blant has
pointed out,' its phraseology is remarkably illustrated by the figures
carved on early Christian sepulchral monuments,- favourite subjects
being The passage of the Red Sea, Noah, The Sacrifice of Isaac, The
Ascension of Elijah, Job, David and (ioliath, The Deliverance of
St. Peter, Daniel in the lions' den, The Three Hebrew Children, Jonah
and the whale, and Susannah and the elders.

M. Gaidoz cites a prayer of St. Martin'^ which brings together some

' ^CT'«^/lrcA<*<7/<?f/VMf, Oct. and Nov. iSyq.

a Cf. Anderson, Scotland in Early Christian J inns. 11. 150 tt.

^ Migne, P.L. ci. 604.

THE HYMN SEN D^. 117

of the same topics: " Deus gloriae, Dcus qui uiius et uerus Deus, qui
solus et iustus es, Deus in quo omnia, sub quo omnia, per quern o'.nnia
facta sunt, exaudi meorantem sicut exaudisti trespueros decamino ignis
ardentis ; exaudi nie orantem sicut exaudisti lonam dc uentre ceti ;
exaudi me i)rantem sicut exaudisti Susannam et liberasti earn de manu
initiuorum testium ; exaudi me orantem sicut exaudisti Petrum in mari
et Faulum in uinculis, Parce animae meae, &c."^

We entirely acquiesce in the conckision reached by M. Gaidoz viz.
*' On voit par ces exemples que Thymne de Cohnan n'est qu'une para-
phrase irlandaise d'une ancienne priere commune a toute TEghse, et
que les mots latins dont il est y<7/r/ appartiennent sans doute a I'original
latin qui a servi de modele au poete irlandais." See also p. xxxix above.

It is only necessary to add that in the subject matter of this 5rst
division of our hymn there is nothing distinctively Celtic.

II. The next division of the poem (lines 39-47) is an appendix to
the first division of the nature of an antiphon, whether by the original
hand or not is hardly now to be determined. Its close is also marked by
the words Sen Dc. It will be observed that 11. 41-43 are in a different
metre from the others, and it may be that, as Gaidoz suggests, the whole
of the second section of the poem is itself made up of three groups of
verses (viz. 39, 40 ; 41-43 ; 44, 45), added at different times. See note
on i. 43 and above p. xxxv ff.

III. Yet another set of verses is added (11. 47-54) which invoke the
benediction of St. Patrick, St. Brigid, St. C'olumba, the three patron
Saints of Ireland, along with that of St. Adamnan. The last named
saint was not born until 624 (d. 704), and did not rise to eminence until
after the reputed date of St. Colman mac Ui Cluasaig's death. The
glossator in T shows himself conscious that this last section of the
hymn is a later addition, for he observes on 1. 46 Hue usque cecinit
Co/man. And the F glossator adds a note which ascribes the author-
ship of 11. 47-50 to one Dermot, and 11. 51-end to Mugron, the coarb
of Columba, who died in 980. See note on 1. 47.

Of this hymn we know of no manuscripts save T and F. It was first
printed by Todd" from T, and afterwards with notes in the Irish Eccl.
Record^ vol. iv. p. 402. A French translation of the hymn and its preface
were printed by M. Gaidoz in the article from which we have already
quoted. The glosses and marginal notes from F have not been ])rinted
before.

1 do-7i\fe\ i.e. may He brijig us ivitJi Him T :

may He take us ivit/i Him., i?t ivhichever direction we go F
for'don'te\ i.e. upon us from Hini, i.e. may it come upon us TF.
ro'n'fe/adar] i.e. may He guard us F ; -\- may He put His veil over us
for our shelter TF.

2 oessam^ i.e. u?ider His protection TF.

innochi\ 'Fhe end of the F gloss is illegible ; the words and . . . used
to . . . upon it are all that can be read.

f/a] i.e. in whatever directioji we go T : i.e. whatever directioft F.

^ Compare the language of the second Oratio printed in the Appendix 10 Hartel's Cyprian III.,
14'- ^ Liber Hy}n7i07-7ijii, p. 121.

ii8 NOTES.

caifi] i.e. beautiful T.

temadar] i.e. ?nay He receive us for our shelter, i.e. may He make our
shelter T.

I.e. may He protect us agai?tst .... i.e. who protects F.

3 foss\ i.e. ivhether stationariness TF.
utmaille^ or on journey TF.

4 ruireyi.e. great kiftg TF.
adessani] i.e. we beseech TF.

5 itge^^ i.e. we pray TF'"-'.

6 dian-galar'] i.e. against the S7vift disease TF ; i.e. against the Yelhm'
Plague T The end of the F gloss is illegible.

fogair\ ie. which threatens, i.e. may make threate?iing T. The F gloss
IS illegible.

8 immuntisat^ i.e. may they come about us T.

adamfia'] i.e. famine, quia per Adam lumit dolor TF""J ; an astonishing
pieceof philology, connecting the Irish word ^or famine with the Hebrew
Adam. But in reality, nothing is known of the alleged word adamna
^hunger, and we cannot follow the glossator with any confidence.
Perhaps we should analyse adamna into a danma, and translate
*'. . . against pestilence, lest any cause [of pestilence] visit us.''
Cf. damna dogra do't chairdib, " it is a cause of anguish to thy friends "
(MR. 294, 8)'. Cf. also SM. III. 94, 5.

9 " The father of the twelve " is, of course, Jacob ; although Dr.
Wh. Stokes and M. Gaidoz both interpret it of Isaac.

anuas • . • ] TJery noble, i.e. man TF. The end of the word is
illegible in T, but F has plainly anbser, which does not seem to fit the
glossators' explanation ; it means ' their younger [brother],' a n-bscr.

T I snaidsiuni] i.e. may he protect us {here F) TF.

J 2 Jes2i\ i.e. son of A/un 'J'F^^.

13 "Job with the tribulations," goes back to lob de passionibus eius
of the Commendatio Aninuie.

14 fiadat] i.e. ' fiada' ie. 'fodia' i.e. good God TF, an etymological
gloss attempting the analysis of the ancient word fiada.

1 5 adsluinneri] i.e. we appeal to our friendship with him in hac laude T.

16 rop^ i.e. may He come to our help TF.

17 Mai7e''\ .i. stilla uel stella maris i?iterpretatur TF. Of these two
interpretations stilla fnaris, from "^^2 a ' drop,' and □*' ' the sea,' is
probablv the original from which stella maris was derived, in the first
instance no doubt by false orthography on the part of some transcriber.
The mistake has however prevailed; the hymn Aue maris stella is
a sufficiently familiar instance.

1 7 Joseph^ i.e. fosterfather of Jesus TF.

The name of Joseph does not appear in Western Martyrologies uniii
the ninth century ; and the insertion of it in the Litany for the Commen-
dation of the departing soul was not actually authorised until 1726, by
Benedict XIII. Its occurrence here at least indicates for the piece in
its present form a date not earlier than 850.

do-n'ri?igrat\ i.e. may they su^nmon us for our salvation T: i.e. may
they summon us ; or, may they name us F.

THE HYMN SEN DE. ii

18 do' n'forslaice\ i.t\ may he release us TF.

The notes on the name of Ignatius in T and F are much defaced ;
enough remains to sliow that they recorded the story of his martyrdom.
The note in T seems to have been substantially the same as a note at
Dec. 20 in a copy of the Felire of Oengus now in the Franciscan
Library, Dublin, written by one Ruaidhri O'l.iunin, viz. " Episcopus
sed post Petrum episcopatum tenuit, sed sub Traiano im})eratore passus
est Ignatius et leonibus datus est et aliis bestiis."^ No doubt it comes
from some martyrology.

1 9 dithntlHu}i\ i.e. pro deo also F.

2 2 anachf] i.e. the kin^a^ who protected TF.

luchtlcu)i\ i.e. his people of lake ; or., his black people ; i.e. Noe cum siiis
tribus Jiliis et i/uatuor uxores eorum T. The gloss is hardly intelligible ;
it seems to employ an alternative meaning of loch., viz. lake or black, as
an etym. explanation of luchtlach, ' crew ' (?). Perhaps luchtlach is not
the right word, for as the line stands it cannot be construed. Some-
thing like ' the King who saved Noah from destruction ' is what we
should expect. The gloss in F is illegible for the most part ; but it was
probably the same as in T.

23 re.x Salem\ The note in the margin of F is almost illegible; what
is left yields // is the opitiio?i of the Hebrews that he was {sine) genealogia
(sicut) angelus.

Salem^ . . . it is however the opinion of the Hebrezvs that this is
the same as Jerusalem ; a ud further it is the opijiion {of others that it 2vas
on the banks) of the river Jordan^ and in it dwelt Melchizedek F"'».

References for the Jewish tradition, alluded to in the passage from
Jerome cited in the T gloss, that Melchizedek was identical with Shem,
are given in Baring Gould's Lege?tds of O.T. Characters (vol. i. p. 139,
and vol. ii. p. i.)

incerto de semi)ie\ Compare Hebr. vii. 3.

25 Soter^^ i.e. aw-r^f). The occasional introduction of some famihar
Greek word is a well-known practice of Irish writers. The glossator in T
apparently thought that it was a Hebrew word !

soeras^ i.e. He freed TF.

Loth\ i.e. declinajis interpretatur, i.e. Lot, son of Haran, son of Terah,
frater Sarra TF.

27 Ur^ The legend given in the passage from Jerome cited in the
margin of T was very popular in the East.'- It is incorporated into the
Koran (xxi. 52-75) ; and Abraham's escape from the furnace of Nimrod
was celebrated in the Syrian Church on Jan. 25. There is a trace of it
even in the Vulgate ; in Neh. [2 Esdr.] ix. 7 we read Tic ipse domine
deus qui e legist i Abram et eduxisti einn de igne Chaldaeorum. The legend
is probably based on the fact that ^*)^ = ' light ' or ' fire.'

Galdai^ the Chaldees i.e. Caldei dicti quasi Casdi, i.e. from Cased son
of Mahor son of Terah c^c. F"^'J . See Gen. xxii. 22. The etymology is,
perhaps, possible.

snaidsi'um^ may He protect us F.

' See Wh. Stokes, Felire of Oengus^ p. clxxxiii.

' Several forms of it are given in Baring Gould's Legends o/ O. T. Characters, vol i. p. iSi ff.

I20 NOTES.

28 soe?-s'uf?i\ may He free us TF.

Itmpa] that is, ablatiuus TF. Possibly othoin is equivalent to o thoind^
' from the wave.'

Gaba\ i.e. in the peril i?i which they 7vere sine aqua, quando uenit ex
Egypto T. This gloss takes the word gaba as equivalent to gabud =
' peril \ and refers to the episode recorded in Num. xx. 2 ff.

The note in F gives various explanations : i.e. in the peril in which
they were in the wilderness super aqua, ivhen the people came out of Egypt .
Or, perhaps Gaba was the name of the place in ivhich they were then si?ie
aqua. Or, ivhen Samuel son of Elkanah ivas in the leadership of the
people, this is said: Philistines came to them on a hosti?ig.^ so that the
children of Israel came into the places Gibeah and Mizpah, et unde hie i
nGabai ; and the children of Israel fasted there, and Samuel put ivafer
illustrationis over thern, et unde dicitur lympha, and Samuel with the
children of Israel gained the victory over the Philistines.

The first and second of these explanations refer to Num. xx. 2. The
third refers to i Sam. vii. i-ii, ' Gabaa ' being the reading of the
Vulgate in the first verse. The actual phrase aqua lustrationis, occurs
Num. viii. 7 ; but the pouring out of water for purification is recorded
I Sam. vii. 6,

29 ruri\ i.e. great king T.
anacAt] i.e. He protected T.

31 flaitheni] i.e. a ruler in truth TF.

locharnaig\ i.e. resplende7it TF.

ar'don'roigse^ i.e. may He be merciful TF.

^;^foedes] i.e. prceteriti temporis. He?'od Tetrarch, so?i of Herod, son oj
Antipater, son of Herod of Ascalon ; by him ivas killed John Baptist afid
Christ was crucified, and Peter was flung i7ito priso?i, and it is that is
called to mind here F"'^.

tarslaic\ i.e. He let out F.

35 fiadat^ i.e. to our good God T ; ^ fia ' = God, a?id ' dia ^ from the
word ' deus ' F.

ro'7i'tolomar\ i.e. may we please TF

38 s?iaidsiuin\ may He protect us F.
tomtach\ i.e. threatening TF.

39 « Fiada\ i.e. O good God! TF.
ro'erthar^ i.e. may there be givefi TF.

40 macca7i\ i.e. angeli F"^', Or^ little childre7i who die immediately in
sanctitate post baptis7nu7n TF"^.

With the first interpretation may be compared the promise given to
Sechnall by Patrick (see p. 6 above), that a house whose building was
begun with the recitation of the hymn Audite 07n7ies should have * about
it a watch, consisting of Patrick with Ireland's saints.' The idea of
guardian saints and angels is, indeed, common enough. The alternative
interpretation possibly contains an allusion to St. Matth. xviii. 10.

43 The marginal note here is unfortunately not completely legible
either in T or in F ; but the meaning is substantially as follows : This
is a half quatrai7i, a7id its other half quatrai7i is fiat exta?it ; and as to
the other half quatrain^ the mafi to who7n it befel to make it, died of the

THE HYMX SEX DE. 121

plagiic : i.e. if it was by a half quatrain to cac/i man t/iat t/iey made it, in
the previous lines. But if it was Col man by himself that made this hy?n?t,
it was for this reaso/i that he left this half quatrain without the other half
quatrain, viz. ' because my household left the hymn incomplete, I will leave
it incomplete,' It would seem that the annotator did not observe that
the metre of 11. 41-3 is different from that of the verses which precede
and follow, and that, in fact, these lines form no part of the hymn.
See p. 1 1 4 above.

htl-letluf\ i.e. in breadth T;

i.e. with them, ut quid am dixit :

My father and my jnother

while they zvere in life,

benediction on the space that took them (?) :

7i'as small my . . . with thef?t J*^^"-".
This quatrain in tlie margin of F is much defaced.

43 The aspiration contained in this verse is much like those with which
several of the vernacular homilies end' ; Svithout age ' is equivalent to
perpetual youth. E.g., in the Leabhar na hUid7-e it is said of the saints
that they "will abide continually in the life eternal, without age, without
decay."'

44 reraig\ i.e. great-ki7i^s, or time-kings TF : + i.e. long life their life
F : 4- qui fuerunt ante diluuium F. In fact the antediluvian saints are
meant.

fegad^ i.e. lofty is the sight angeloru77i et apostolorum TF.

47 bendacht~\ Diar77iait so7i of Ger77tan, coarb of Patrick^ it is he that
added these four verses ; the 7ia77ies of Patrick and Brigid ta7itu77i fuerimt ;
and Mugron, coarb of Colu77i Cille 77iade this hy77i7i below, viz. the last
two verses F™^. This shows that the glossator of F, equally with the
glossator of T, was conscious that 11. 47-54 were a later addition to
the hymn. He asserts that 11. 46-50 were added by Diarmait, 11. 51,
52, by Mugron ; but the use of both ran7i and i77imu7i is perplexing.

Mugron, the thirtieth successor of St. Columba, was abbot of Hy
from 964 to 980. The Four Masters describe him as " scribe and
bishop, skilled in the three verses." Some verses ascribed to him are
found at fol. 42 of the MS. we call ^?

erlat7i\ i.e. a 7-eady champio7i, quite 7'eady to pe7fo7-77i wonders and
miracles TF.

Patraic\ i.e. on the patron who is Patrick TF.

48 i?idi\ i.e. in it T.

5 1 Colutn\ i.e. ' dove ' dictus est froi7i his si7nplicity T.

Cille^ The notes here in T and F are too much defaced to be read
in their entirety, but they were evidently the same in substance as a
note found in the Leabhar Breac copy of the Felire of Oengus at
June 9, viz. : " Colum pro simplicitate eius dictus est. Cille i.e. ar
thiachtain co-menicc on cill in ro'leg a salmu hi comdail na lenab
comocus. ba head adbertis sen etarru, in tanic ar Colum bec-ni on chill
.i. o Thelaig Dub-glaissi hi Tir Lugdach i Cinel Conaill. Crimthan tra

' See Atkinson, Passions and Hoviilies, passim. 2 j>p q{ Armagh, 848.

' Cf. Stokes, Trip. Life, p. xx. * Ed. Stokes, p. xcix.

122 NOTES,

ainm bunaid Coluim Cille : " or (adopting our glossator's version for
one clause) : " Colum ' dove ' he was called for his simplicity. Cille
' of the church,' because of his coming often from the church wherein
he read his psalms to a priest of the church. And this is what they
used to say amongst them, ' Has our little Colum come from the
church?' i.e. from Tulach Dubglaisse in Tir Lugdach in Cenel Conaill.
Now Crimthan was Colum Cille's original name." Tulach Dubglaisse,
or Temple Douglas near Kilmacrenan, was, as Todd observes, the
name of the church in which St. Columba was baptized Crimthan
means ' fox.'

Al/)ari\ i.e. east of the sea T.

52 Ada?n?iai?i i.e. Adam nan son of Lora?i son of Linne ; Ron7iai his
mother's name F""". This is the famous Adamnan, the ninth abbot
of lona (624-704), who was the author of the Vita S. Columbae. His
father, Ronan, the son of Tinne (there is some confusion about the
initial letters in F), belonged to the same royal race as Columba. For
further account of Ronan and Ronnat, see Reeves' Ada??inan, p. xli.
Adam nan's day is Sept. 23.

cai?i^ the four chief Laws of Ireland^ viz. Law of Patrick, and of
Dari, and of Ada??if?an, and of Simday. As to the La2v of Patrick,
{it forbad) to slay clerics ; the Law of Dari, to steal cattle ; the Law
of Adamnan to slay (women) ; the Laiv of Sunday, to go on a journey
¥™^. Substantially the same note is found in the P^lire of Gengus
(Leabhar Breac copy) at March 17th.'

The Law of Adamnan was the renewal of a measure passed at the As-
sembly of Druim Cetta by Columba's influence which prohibited women
from taking part in the fierce conflicts which the various clans waged
with each other. This important social reform was brought about by
Adamnan in the course of a visitation by him of Ireland in the year
697, and was solemnly sanctioned by a convention which met at Tara.
See Reeves' Adamnan, pp. i, 179. It is not to be confounded with the
so-called Ca?w?ies Adamfiani, which were in reference to ecclesiastical
matters. They have been printed by Martene and others.

52 clanna~\ i.e. on the ivomen ; or, super gentes F.

53 This line is impossible to construe, though the meaning is clear.
The X.txvL\'s> foessam and cojnairche are of frequent occurrence in the Irish
Tales and in the Laws, and have a technical sense ; co?nairche was the
protection afforded by a chief to a man when in his cou\^2iny, foes s am,
the protection extended to one at a distance.

In the margin of F there are some scribblings in a hand of the i6th
century, e.g. "Amen dico nobis, omnis homo mendax"; "Pater noster
qui es in celis," &;c.

The quotation in the margin of fol. ^b from St. Cregory the Great
is also found in one of the Irish-Latin Homilies in the L^eabhar Breac'^
Gregory, as a writer, was so popular in Ireland, that he was called
Bel-oir, " the golden-mouthed."

The marginal note on the up])er margin of fol. 6 of T has been cut
away by the binder of the MS. •

' Ed. Stokes, p. Ixiv. - Atkinson, Passions and Homilies, p. 444.

THE HYMN OF ST. CUCHUIMNE. 123

Preface to the Hymn of St. Cuchuimne.

Of Cuchuimne, to wliom tlie authorship of the hymn is ascribed in
the Prefaces in T and F, we know but httle. According to the Annals
of Ulster he died in the year 746 ; and he is commemorated on Oct. 7
in the Marty ro/(\i:^v of Gorman. The name means " hound of memory " ;
it is perhaps not unnecessary to observe that hotind was a title of respect
among the Irish/

An ingenious identification of Cuchuimne with Cummean, to whom
the Irish penitential literature of the middle ages is so much indebted,
was suggested jointly by Dr. Wli. Stokes and Mr. Henry Bradshaw in
the year 1885. At the end of one of the Paris MSS. of the Irish
collection of canons known as the Hibernensis, Mr. Bradshaw read
the rubric : Hiiciisijue nuboi c>" cucuiminicc g>-- dii rinis. It seems
not impossible tliat Cuchuimne abbas ex Darinis may be concealed
under the last words of this ; and it is curious that the entry in the
Annals of the Four Masters preceding that which relates to Cuchuimne
records the obit of an abbot of Darinis, an island near Youghal upon
which there was a monastic establishment. This identification, however,
though not improbable in itself, must not be considered as established.
It has been usual, though in like manner without sufficient proof, to
equate Cummean the author of the Penitentiale to St. Cummain the
Fair, the seventh abbot of lona, large portions of whose life of St.
Columba were incorporated by Adamnan into his more elaborate
work.

King Loingsech, in whose time the hymn is said to have been
written, reigned (according to O'Flaherty's Chronology) from 695 to
704.

The legend in the Preface would seem to indicate that the first half
of Cuchuimne's life having been devoted to the study of literature, the
second half was spent in profligacy. The obscure verses which tell of
this are also found in the margin of the Dublin copy of the Annals of
Ulster at the year 746, where they are attributed, not to Adamnan, but
to the Nurse of Cuchuimne. They are quoted, probably from the
Annals of Ulster, by the Four Masters, and are also found in the margin
of the Book of Fenagh (fol. 8).

Several points call for comment in these verses. Todd observes
that in such a record of the weakness of Cuchuimne there is great
internal evidence of truth. Co druimne, ' to the ridge ' plainly means
'half-way'; [compare the Antra 11. 283, 286], but the phrase is a
curious one. The play upon words, ro'leg 'he read' in 1. 10 and
ro'leic ' he left ' in 1. 12 will be observed.

Again, it is impossible to determine the exact meaning in 1. 12 of the
word chail/echa, which means either ' nuns ' or ' old women.' Neither
term is in keeping with the plain drift of the lines, as referred to in 1. 5 ;
so that probably O'Donovan's translation 'hags' is the least offensive.

In 1. 18 it is not at all easy to say what araid ciii means : cui rhymes

' See Reeves' Adamnan, p. 82.

124 NOTES.

with sui ; and so possibly siii mod. saoi demands here ciii mod. caot =
' way, road.' Raid might = 'path,' as given doubtfully in the transla-
tion. But raid might also be for raith 'grace,' which would suggest a
different interpretation.

The last two lines of the Preface in T plainly do not belong to the
Preface at all ; they are a gloss on Marice in 1. 2 which has been
displaced. This fact is, however, of some significance ; for it shows
that the glosses (or at least .some of them) were copied from an older
exemplar by the scribe of T, who here mi.stook the bearing of one of
them. F has here no glosses, and the words in question are absent from
the F Preface. See p. 118 above, and vol. i. p. ^i^.

The Hymn oi- St. Cuchuimne.

For this hymn we have the textual evidence of five manuscripts TFP
KR (see Introd, to vol. i. p. xix). It has been printed by Daniel in his
Thesaur s (iv. 86) from P, and by Mone (ii. 383) from PKR, as well
as by Todd from T and P with the aid of Mone's edition. It was also
l)ublished from P by Bp. Forbes in his Preface to the Arbuthnot Missal,
and by Moran in his Essays on the Irish Chuixh (p. 225) ; a translation
into English is given in the Irish Eccl. Record (i, 204). Our collation
of P was made for this edition by Dr. Wickham Legg, and of K and R
by Dr. A Holder. It is possible (see vol. i. p. xxvii) that it forms in P
an item of a monastic ofifice, there sketched ; but this cannot be
regarded as certain.

The metre is characteristically Irish, as explained above (p. xvi).

3 This hne points to the practice of antiphonal singing.

4 uicariam seems to be used here in the sense of alternate ; but
uicarius is found in its usual meaning at 1. 81 of the hymn of St.
Sechnall.

7 Todd has incorrectly given the various readings of this verse in
the several MSS. which he used.

19 tonicai7i\ arrangenietit of a vc?'y long tunic ; and textam^ i.e. zvithout
a seam in it at all are the glosses in T.

The legend that the seamless robe was " a purple tunic that Mary
made ' is also found in the vernacular account of the Passion in the
leabhar Breac^ based on some form of the apocryphal Gospel of
Nicodemus.

21 Compare Rom. xiii. 14.

23 puerperae\ i.e. pueruni paricns in actate pueri^ id est in decinw uel ifi
nndecimo. This apparently contains an allusion to the accounts of the
age of the Blessed Virgin contained in the a])Ocryphal Gospels of the
Infancy.

24 pirae\ i.e. of the horrible .... If we are to read innahriad^ then
probably the Latin /jj'n? was expressed in early Irish by some (now un-
known) fem. word like bri\ gen. briad.

1 Atkinson, Passions and I/o/niiies, p. 367.

THE HYMN OF ST. HILARY. 125

The jingling lines at the end of the hymn are not found, as the
apparatus criticus shows, in either of the Karlsruhe manuscri|)ts. For
the collect which follows them in P see vol. i. j). xxvii.

Preface to the Hymn of St. Hilary.

These legends about Hilary are not found elsewhere. We know
nothing from other sources which would teach us that he was ever at
Monte Gargano in Apulia, nor is the i)oint of the story in the first
paragra])h in the Preface by any means clear.

The alternative account of the origin of the hymn given in the second
paragraph names Mons louis, now Mount St. Bernard, as the place of
its composition. Todd notes that the famous Hospice was founded
there at the close of the tenth century, its site having been previously
occupied by a miracle-working image of Jupiter. By the philosophers
may be meant the attendant priests. The destruction of this relic of
paganism must have made a great stir, and the knowledge of it may
have caused so well-known a spot to be fixed on for the scene of the
story. However that may be, the T scholiast gives the date of Hilary
of Poitiers with tolerable accuracy when he says that he wrote in the
reign of Valentinian and Valens ; as Hilary died in the year 368, the
F scholiast goes hopelessly astray about the date.

The city Susa?uia or Safina (for the texts vary) may perhaps be
Soissons (as Todd suggests) or Sens. But there is no record of any
such journey as that here described in the Hves of St. Hilary of Poitiers ;
and it seems not improbable that the legend of the Prefaces is due to a
confusion of him with St. Hilary of Aries (401-449), who made a
famous journey on foot across the Alps in midwinter to seek an audience
of Pope Leo the Great.

1. 15. Hilar ius orauit pro monacho suc)\ In Irish writers the /;2^;2«<:>^2/;i'
of a bishop often means his attendant or chaplain, as we would say now.

The third i)aragraph in the T Preface, i.e. the last paragraph in F, is
taken substantially, as our reference shows, from the De arte tnetrica of
Bede, a very popular text book in the middle ages.

1. 26. in psalte?'io graeco ymfios testmon, hoc est memor fuit 7iostri\
The reference is to Ps. cxiii. 20 /mnj/rOel^- y/nivi^ = memor fuit nostri in
the Latin P.salters ; the scribe had evidently but an imperfect knowledge
of Greek.

1. 29. The Decades^ The commentary of Augustine on the Psalter (the
Enarrationes) was anciently di\icled into fifteen Decades, which gave
the title Decades to the work. It is so called in the Wiirzburg Glosses}
as well as in other non-Celtic books.

The Hymn of St. Hilary.

y> We have given in our text and apparatus criticus the readings of six
manuscripts which contain this hymn, of which four are now used for
the first time, viz. FCGH.

^ Ed. .Stokes, p. 347.

126 NOTES.

Printed editions of it are numerous. George Cassander published in
1616 the editio princeps in his Hyvnii Ecclesiastici (p. 186) from a manu-
script which he says contained the Rule of St. Benedict and some other
hymns. We have failed to trace this manuscript.

It was published by Muratori in the fourth volume of his Anecdoia
Amhrosiana in 17 13 from A, the text of which has lately been made
accessible in a more accurate form by Mr. Warren. Todd, in 1869,
printed it from T, and registered the variants of Cassander's text and of
A in his notes. Secondary editions, such as those of Daniel and
Thomasius, need not be described here.

Cassander notes that the hymn is iticerto auctore : but there is a good
deal of evidence for ascribing it to St, Hilary of Poitiers. H and the
Prefaces of T and F explicitly name him as the author, and A entitles it
Ymnum sa?icti Hilari de Christo. In this last reference Hilary of
Poitiers rather than Hilary of Aries is probably meant, although in the
Irish Prefaces, as has been said, there seems to be some confusion
between these two saints. Hilary of Poitiers was early known as a
hymn writer. Jerome speaks of a Liber Hymtiorum by him,* and the
Fourth Council of Toledo (a.d. 633) mentions hymns in Church use
" quos beati doctores Hilarius et Ambrosias ediderunt." Isidore of
Seville (d. 636) in a passage of which a sentence is quoted at the end
of the T Preface, says that Hilary was the first Christian author of
hymns. Several hymns ascribed to him are extant. One for morning
and one for evening use are appended to a letter to his daughter Abra,
which is however of doubtful authenticity ; and in a manuscript recently
discovered at Arezzo, are found three hymns which bear his name.'-

There is then no difficulty in the way of accepting any good evidence
which ascribes a given hymn to St. Hilary. And, as we have seen, four
of our manuscripts, one as old as the seventh century, concur in
assigning the Hyvmuin dicat to his pen. Another MS. of the eighth
century at St, Gall (No. 567 in the Library Catalogue) has at p. 133 at
the end of a Vita S. Hilarii the words : " Incipit ymnus eiusdem omni
tempore, Ymnum dicat turba fratrum, ymnum cantum person net. ""^
Again Hincmar of Rheims in the middle of the ninth century explicitly
names Hilary as the author, and quotes two lines (28 and 60). '* Et
Hilarius in hymno ' et refert fragmenta coenae ter quaternis corbibus,'"
are his words. And again : " Et in hymno euangelico pulcherrime a
se composito dicit [sc. Hilarius] ' Spiritum dei perfectum Trinitatiis
uinculum.'"* Against all this is to be set the fact that Bede does not
name Hilary as the author, when he is describing the metre of the hymn ;
but the argument from silence is always a precarious one. The
testimony of the Antip/w?mry of Ba?igor shows at least that the Hilarian
authorshi}^ was held before Bede wrote, whether he knew of it or not.
On the whole, therefore, we are inclined to accept the Hilarian author-
ship ; although Dr, Julian did not consider the evidence before him

1 De Script, eccl. in Hilar.

2 See Gamurrini. 6\ Hilarii Tractatus de Mysteriis et I/ytnni {Roma, 1887).

3 Dr. Ad. F'ah has kindly supplied this information in answer to a letter of inquiry.
♦ De una et non trina dictate (Migne, P. L. cxxv. 566, 486).

THE HYMN OF ST. HILARY. 127

sufficient to decide in its favour.' See the words cjuoted from Hilary in
our note on 1. 2.

The last words of the title in C seem to refer to the piece which
follows the Hymniim dicat in that manuscript, and to have no bearing
on the question of its authorship.

Hilary was well-known and respected in the British Islands in the
middle ages. In the year 358 he dedicated his book de Synodis " Pro-
vinciarum Britannicarum episcopis." He is the patron saint of Drum-
blade in Aberdeenshire ; and there is a " St. Hillary's kirk " in the
parish of Tettar and North Yell in Shetland. In Ireland, too, he was
known,- No work of his is, however, quoted in the margins of our
principal manuscript, which contain so many extracts from otiier famous
Latin writers.

Some further references in Celtic ecclesiastical literature to the hymn
now under discussion may be given here. We have already (vol. i. p.
xxii) quoted the scheme of a monastic or occasional office found in the
Book of Mulling and in the Seco?id Visio?i of Adam?ta?i, in which
Hymuum dicnf is prescribed for recitation. It seems, indeed, to have
been counted of peculiar efficacy. In the tract De Arrets printed from
Rawl. B. 512 by Prof. Kuno Meyer,' the arreum or commutation for "a
week of hard penance on water and bread is, seven Biait, in honest
cross vigil, and a Credo and Paternoster and Hymnum dicat with every
Biaity Again in the Story of the Three Clerics as found in the Book
of Leinster (p. 283), and also in the Book of Lismore,* the opus dei
undertaken by the third cleric is to sing " a hundred and fifty Hymnum
diaiis every day, with celebrating my hours and my mass." And this
was declared by the angel to be the best choice of all, and to him who
chose it was promised " long life and the kingdom of heaven."

In the Book of Cerne this hymn is one of two pieces which follow a
collection of fourteen prayers and hymns expressly stated to be for
morning use. With this would agree stanza xxiv of the metrical Rule
of St. Ailbe of Emly, viz. :

The Hymnum dicat should be sung

At .striking the bell for canonical hours ;

All wash their hands carefully,

The brethren assume their habit. ^
And to this use in the early morning there may perhaps be a
reference in 1. 70 "Ante lucem nuntiemus Christum regem saeculo."
See also 11. 65-68. It seems probable however (see p. xii. above) that
the last four stanzas of the piece are a later addition ; and therefore
their witness must be received with caution. The custom spoken of
in the T Preface, though based on an obscure legend, seems different :
sic n^bis conuenit canere post prandium says the Scholiast. Whether he
refers to a regular monastic custom or only to a special usage that might
be supposed to have a peculiar indulgence attached to it, can hardly

' Diet, of Hymnology, p. 642.

- See Felire o/Oengus, p. xxxiv. and Martyrology o/GoT-tttan at Jan. 13.

* Rrvu€ Celtique, xv. 4851!. Prof. Meyer believes it to be of the eighth century. See vol. i. p. xx.

* Ed. Stokes, pp. viii. ix.

* /risk Eccl. Record, vol. viii. p. 183.

128 NOTES.

now be determined with certainty.^ The note in the St. Oall MS.
No. 567, to which reference has been made above, seems to direct the
recitation of the hymn 07nni tempore^ that is (apparently) in a daily,
and not only an occasional, office.

Internal evidence, at all events, supports the tradition that the
hymn was intended for monastic, rather than for private, recitation.
The " turba fratrum " of the first verse (see also 1. 65) can only
mean the members of a monastic society, and the words of praise are
in the plural number all through. It is interesting to find that
among the reliquiae of the great monastery at St. Gall (No. 381, p.
155), there is a hymn which seems to be modelled on this which is
before us, thus testifying to the wide popularity of the Hymnus S.
Hilarii in laudem Christi. It begins :

lam fidelis turba fratrum uoce dulci [conjsonet
Hymnum dicat et serena partiatur dragmata, &c."

2 concinentes\ i.e. a iterbo concino, i.e. while we sing together.

laiides . . debitas is Cassander's reading, and is given as an alternative
in the gloss. With this line may be compared Hilary's words in his
Prologue to the Psalms^ : "... in quo debitas Deo laudes universitas
spirituum praedicabit." Compare the words of the antiphon after the
Te Deufn (vol. i. p. 61). In the passage of Bede's de Arte Metrica incor-
porated in the Preface, the second line as quoted reads laudes .
debitas.

5 a?igularis tu lapis^ Compare i Pet. ii. 6.

6 Cassander reads uel with ACGH ; but the gloss rightly explains

the el of TF as Sb^ i-^- deus. Compare the Prayer of St. Adam nan
1. II (p. 81).

7 Cassander ^xxnis prophetis, and in 1. 9 omits et with ACH.

8 ante scecla tu fuisti is the text demanded by the metre. See
above.

1 1 Cassander prints Gabriele.

12 aluus is, of course, the true reading. Cassander has it with all
the MSS. except T. The interchange of b and u is common.

1 4 primt\ i.e. the chiefs ; uel primi ex gentibus hi fucrunt, quia prius
ante eos adorauerunt eum pastores ante xiii . . . iuxta turrim
Gadder. Mole ho eoriwi senior qui aurum deo regi obtulit ; secundus,
Caspar iuuenis qui thus deo obtulit ; tertius, Patifarsat qui myrrham
ho77iini obtulit ; unde quidam dixit : —

Melchar, the giver of the gold,
Caspar gave the abu?idant frankincense,
Patifarsat gave the good myrrh,
so that he gave thern to the royal Lord, o^r.
For tlie Tower Gadder as the scene of the vision of the angels by the
shepherds see below% p. 135.

The magi appear under different names, but those by which they are
best known are Melchior, Jaspar and Balthasar, of which the forms
given in the marginal note are those usually found in Irish books. See

' See for a discussion of this, Lawlor, Boom o/ MuUim;, p. 159.

=* Migne, P. L. Ixxxvii. col. 46. ^ Migne, P. L. ix. 239.

THE HYMN OF ST. HILARY. 129

€.^. a homily on p. 199 of the Leabhar Breac.^ In a legendary account
of the Adoration of the Magi found on p. 137 of the same voluminous
manuscrii)t,'- they are called Melchisar, Hies])ar and Balcisar. In the
MS. Harl. 1S02 of the British Museum collection written in 11 39 by
one Mael Brigte ua Mael Uanaig, usually called " The (iosi)els of
Mael Brigid,"' from its chief contents, there is an Irish i)oem on the
Magi and a note at one place which may be here transcribed : *' Haec
sunt nomina eorum in Ebreo, Arelius, Arenus, Damascus, i. humilis,
fidelis, misericors. In Graeco autem, Malgalath, Galgalad, Sanicis uel
Sincerna ; nuntius, devotus, gotia interpretantur. Secundum Ug. [sc.
Hugh of St. Victor] nomina eorum apud Caldeos, Melcho, Caspar,
Patifarsat.''^*

For the mystical significance of their offerings see a Homily in the
Leabhar Brcac printed by Atkinson.* The lines from Juvencus quoted
by the glossator give the usual mediceval interpretation; they are quoted
f.(:;. by St. Jerome {Comm. in Matth. II) in a passage read in the
Breviary as a lection at nocturns for the Octave of the Epiphany.

1 5 offerenies] i.e. to shorte?i if, he did not put ' mirram ' ; or, it does
not fit therein, in uersu : 7iel, quia postea dicetur. These are all
attempted explanations of the omission of any explicit mention of
myrrh in 1. 15.

Cassander has thus in 1. 15, and Herodi in 1. 16.

16 Apparently the construction of the lines requires inuidens to be
taken as 'a thing envious (or distasteful),' to the power of Herod.

17 paruos^ query, what is the ?ium/)er of the children that suffered
here by Herod? A^ot hard ; MMCXL, ut Gregorius manifestat in
Sacra tnentario.

What seems to be the same belief as to the number of the Innocents
is alluded to in a legend in the Leabhar Breac (p. 140). " Two
thousand two hundred were slain by them between the city and the
plains . . . One hundred and forty children, that is what were
slain of them in Bethlehem."^ Some verses quoted in the Felire of
Oengus (ed. Stokes, p. clxxxiv) give the number as 2140, with variants
2240 and 2120. An Armeno-Gregorian Calendar (quoted by Neale,
Eastern Church, Introd. p. 179), gives the number as 14,000; this and
the Irish legend probably come from the same source.

18 The allusions in the next two or three lines and in the gloss are
all based on the legends in the Apocryphal Gospels, in particular the
iiospel of the Pseudo-Matthew, which was known in Ireland and is
expressly quoted in the account of the Adoration of the Magi in the
Leabhar Breac, to which reference has already been made.*^ That the
sojourn of the Holy Family in Egypt lasted for four years, that the idols
fell down in the presence of the Christ (a story ultimately derived from
Isa. xix. i), that the name of the governor of the city was Affrodosius,
all these were early and widely spread legends known e.g. to Athanasius
and to Cyril of Jerusalem. The Miracles of the Infancy, alluded to in
1. 21, are also narrated in the Evangelium Pseudo-Maithaei.

' Atkinson, Passions, p. 237. 2 Hogan, Todd Lectures, R.I.A vi. 60.

•■' Stokes, Rev. Celtique, viii. p. 346 ff. ■« I.e. p. 476.

^ Hogan, Todd Lectures, vi. p. 81. * Hogan, Todd Lectures, vi. 73.

LIBER IIYMX. J I. K

133 NOTES.

1 8 Cassander prints occidendus.

19 7-efertitr'\ i.e. is h'ougkt. Cassander prints He7ode})u

20 adultus\ i.e. 7vhe?i He g?-e7v up,

21 quae late?it\ i.e. the things that 7ve7'e not known. Cf. Jn. xxi. 25.
quae ieguntu?'] i.e. the things that ivere knoivn.

23 Cassander reads y^r//.

24 This is one of the Hnes quoted by Bede in the passage from the
De arte j?iefrica embodied in the Prefaces, the other being 1. 9.

The mystical interpretation of the miracles of raising the dead given
in the gloss was common in the middle ages.

25 /</m] i.e. on the water-pots. Cf. Jn. iii. i.

25 Attention should be paid to the small letters placed over and
under the words in this and the next line. They are evidently intended
to mark the order for purposes of translation by those who were not
good Latinists. Several instances of marks of this kind are found
throughout the Liber Hym7iorum. The stanza is, however, probably
spurious. See above, p. xi.

26 Cassander reads 77icBro7'e teniis prop i 71a to»

p7-opi7inando^ i.e. , . . 7vas distributed at that hour. The MS. is
so much blurred, that the text is quite uncertain.

poculo^ i.e. Jit poculum . . . vessel. The variant popuio is
curiously well attested, but it can hardly be right.

2 7 pa7ie^ It used to be bi7ius et q2ii7ius secu7idu77i ueteres ; tiunc
aute77i bi7ii et quini ut Priscia7ius dicit. This is a grammatical note
in the margin of T. Priscian was well known in Ireland : there is
a glossed copy of his works at Leyden written by one Dubthach in
838, and others at St. Gall and Karlsruhe also written by Irish monks.

28 coruibus^ curuus, ' bent^ ; uel coruus ' raven ' / uel cor bi bus quod est
hie.

In the third explanation the glossator has hit on the truth.

Cassander gives this line thus : et 7'efectis f7'ag7ne7tta caejue ter
quaternis co7'bibus. Fefert^ which T has, is of course a blunder of
the scribe for refe7-t.

29 discu77ibente^ i.e. service by ivhich the ivhole co77ipa7iy ivas served at
table ; undc ' discus ' derii4atur i.e. ' dish.'

We read a7nus, which occurs in the phrase a77ius 77iesi, 'servant of table',
i.e. 'butler', in Se7ichus Afor, ii. 24, 18; Stokes reads a7iius = splendour.
Todd's ani o is certainly wrong.

30 The marginal note in T calls attention to the fact that duodeci/n
must be read as a trisyllable.

31 Cassander reads quels. The form quis for qulbus does not occur
again in these hymns.

32 The marginal note is quaint : — 77iisi ab Anna I.e. by Calphas in
t7'uth He 7vas se7it, quia ille sacerdos full illius anni ; sed causa 77iet7t
die It ' ab A7i7ia ' / et In llbrls historlaru77i refertur quod quatuor fulssent
p7'lnclpes niter An7uwi et Calpha7n, sed Jl I la A7ina' conlunx fult Calphae.
See gloss on 1. 47. The succession of high priests was probably as
follows : Annas, Ishmael son of Phabi, P.leazar son of Annas, Simeon
son of Kanith, and Joseph Caiaphas. It is possible, as Todd suggests.

THE HYMN OF ST. HILARY. 131

that the Li/u-i Historianim quoted is the abridgement of Josephus
ascribed to Hegesippus and translated by Rufinus ; but the manuscript
seems to us to read .iiii. not .uii. as Todd states.

33 /tv/t'////-] i.€. He is seized.

34 Cassander has grassafur, but puts p-auafur in his margin. The
active form i^rassare * to attack ' is used here and in 1. 38 of the A/fits
Prosator, these being the only places where the word occurs in these
hymns.

35 obiecta\ i.e. the charges that were laid against Christ. Cassander
prints crime?i.

36 Cesaris\ For an insult to him was nomen regis upon anyone else
than upon him alone . . . regem esse dicebat.

37 Cassander has negandum and in t,^ grauatur.
2,^ sputa] i.e. the spittle.

J/agra] i.e. the scourges.

39 Todd notes that an interpretation of the four points of the cross
similar to that written in the left margin of T is given by Augustine.^
Among the Irish glosses at Turin on a fragmentary Commentary on
St. Mark's Gospel, we have in like manner : " Ipsa species crucis quid
est nisi forma quadrati mondi."^ The note in the right margin of T is :
Quatuor ligna fuerunt in cruce Christi ; cedar its foot, and cypress its
tongue, and pine the wedge that was driven through it, and birch the board
on which was written the title. Stokes quotes'' a similar observation in
Irish verse from the MS. H. 3.18 in Trinity College, Dublin.

42 We should apparently read uinculo.

Cassander has the following variants : 43 scissa pendent ; 45 adfuit .
. . myrra ; 47 prcBcipit ; 48 quce spoponderat.

50 uellus] uellus sericum i.e. the ivoollen fleece ; that was a good kind Oj
raiment. Sunt apud Ethiopiam et Indos quidani in arboribus uermes
qui bombyces appella7itur, qui aranec?. more tenuissima fila ?ient, et u?ide
sericum uestimentu??i efficitur. The latter part of the note is, in substance,
found in Isidore {I.e.)

Cassander has : 5 1 demouet . . surgit . . ititeger /52 Judaea 7?ie?idax
. . uideret ; 54 moestas . . tristeis ; ^% intrat.

56 nuntiant is probably the true reading. See p. xii above.

58 intrat is undoubtedly the true reading, but the construction seems
confused. The sense is " He enters, the doors being shut, [to them]
doubting that He had returned," ambigentes being a nom. abs.

59 dat] i.e. He sent the grace of the Holy Spirit o?i them on the day of
Little Easter, quamuis plenius dedit in Pentecostem. ' Little Easter', i.e.
Low Sunday ; cf. Jn. xx. 22.

60 uinculum\ i.e. that it should not be supposed that it was {a group) of
two things or of four things, but of three semper, eo quod patrem et filium
coniungit ; uel uincuhim, quod homines ad deum coniungit.

Cassander has 61 /r^r////' . . . baptizare ; 6t, mystica ; d^ concinimus.
66 docemur'\ it is a construction of active for passive that is hie, ut Pris-
cianus dicit.

' Semto de Syvtbolo (Migne, P. L. xl. 698). 2 Stokes' Goidelica, p. 13.

' Goidelica^ p. 66. See also in Bede (Migne, P.L. xciv. 555).

K 2

132

NOTES.

67 The note in margin of T has . . gallus i.e. cock . . .

68 precantes. The active preco is an unusual form ; precor occurs
twice in our hymns (vol. i. p. 19, 1. 7, and p. 197, 1. 5).

Cassander has: 68 iantc77iiis ; 69 concinwiiis iiniter ; 71 ante lucem
niuiciemus Christum regem do7Jiim ; and gives the Gloria &:c., without
any antiphons.

The first antiphon at the end of the hymn, Te decet hymmts &c. (Ps.
Ixiv. 2) is found, as Mr. Warren has pointed out,* in a fragment of an
Irish officium defunctorum bound up in the St. Gall MS. 1395. It is
perhaps worth adding that in a curious legend about a visit of St.
Columba to heaven found in the Book of Lecan, the 'service of heaven'
in which the heavenly choir were engaged began with " Te decet hyvinus
and Benedic anima mea and Laudate piieri dominumy'

The gloss on Sion in this antiphon is probably a mistake for et non in
cthrialibiis. See line 114 of the hymn Altus prosator {\o\. i. p. 79),
where this latter word occurs.

The second antiphon, though not following the hymn in the Anti-
phonary of Batigor, is found on another page (fol. 26r°) in that manu-
script, where it is headed " post euangelium."

The third antiphon does not occur in any of our manuscripts save T.
Dr. Lawlor thought that he had found it prescribed for recitation after
the HyjfinuTn dicat in the directory for a monastic office in the Book of
Mulling, of which a full account has been given in our Introduction
(vol. i. p. xxii) ; but we have given reason for believing that he has mis-
interpreted the few letters that are legible.

Preface to the Hymn of St. Colman
Mac Murchon.

A Colman Mac Murchon's obit is recorded by the Four Masters at the
year 731, and it is possible that this may be the person to whom the
scholiast ascribes the authorship of this hymn. He was Abbot of
Moville, but is not said to have been a bishop. It would seem from
the Preface that he and his brothers went on missionary pilgrimages
abroad, but afterwards returned to Ireland.

The Ictian Sea of the Preface is the British Channel ; it is said
to have taken its name from the Partus Iccius of Caesar, near Boulogne.
'' Rodan's Island " we cannot identify. Todd suggests that the isle of
St. Rovi, off the coast of Brittany, may be intended ; St. Rodincus or
Rovin was an Irishman, the founder of the Abbey of Beaulieu, who
died Sept. 17, 680. The ' Tyrrhene Sea ' of the F Preface is mentioned
in the Tripartite Life as having been the scene of some of St. Patrick's
wanderings.' See also Fiacc's hymn 1. 1 1. The scholiast of T is wrong
in the statement that there are 16 syllables in each line, as there are only

1 Liturgy and Ritual, Si.c.,'p- ^^- , ,,r , . ^ , l

2 See Reeves' Adainnan, p. 205. Mr. Macp-egor {Early Scottish llyrs/tip, p. 13) observes that
these are also the vesper psalms in the office ilescribed in the Voyage of St. Brendan.

3 Stokes, Tripartite Life, p. 26.

THE IIVMN OF ST. COLMAX MAC MURCHON. 133

the usual 15. In lino 7, which would seem to be an exception, ct is
an interpolation in T and is not found in the other manuscripts.

The T scholiast seems to say at the end of the Preface that " the
rhythm is on /": but this is so incorrect a statement of the metrical
laws which are observed in the hymn, that we hesitate to translate the
Preface thus. The rhythm all through consists in the vowel-harmony
of the last three syllables.

Till-: HvMx OF St. Colman Mac Murchon.

This hymn in jjraise of St. Michael was first printed by Mono in his
Hymni Latifii mcdii aeui {\o\. i. p. 450) from the Karlsruhe MS. which
we have called R, collated afresh for us through the kindness of Dr. A.
Holder. This manuscript prefixes the word unifas, and thus begins
the hymn Unitas in trinitati\ which neither gives good sense nor suits
the metre. It was ])robably this disguise of the hymn in Mone's
collection which led Todd to overlook it and to claim for his edition
(from T) that it was an editio princeps. An English metrical version of
merit by D. F. MacCarthy is printed in O'Laverty's Diocese of Dow7i
and Con?io/\ vol. ii. p. 18. See on the metre, p. xv above.

The hymn, as has been observed in our Introduction (vol. i. p. xxv),
is prescribed for recitation in the ofifice sketched out in the Second
Vision of Adamnan, where it is called (as in K) " Michael's hymn,"
and (probably) in the Book of Mulling. It is, we think, undoubtedly
an Irish composition, as iMone, who knew of no manuscripts of it by
Irish scribes, adjudged it to be from its linguistic peculiarities.

St. ]\[ichael was very popular in Ireland. In the Second Vision of
Adamnan we read in section 19: " the three hostages that were taken on
behalf of the Lord for warding off every disease from the Irish — are
Peter the Apostle, and Mary the Virgin, and Michael the Archangel.''^
There are a large number of fragmentary Irish poems in praise of
St. Michael in the manuscript collection of the Royal Irish Academy.
There were churches dedicated to him in many localities : the place-
name Temple-Michael still exists in 6 or 7 counties. Mr. Willis Bund
{Celtic Church in Jl'ales, p. 330) accounts for the popularity of St.
^lichael in Wales by the prevalence among the Celts of belief in evil
spirits, against which Michael protected the faithful.

I The I^tin gloss on /;/ omine plainly has reference to some legend in
connexion with the story in the Preface.

oviine^ omen i.e. au^i^ntrv : abominor i.e. I separate from the augury for
its abomination.

3 doctore] i.e. God. Cf. deus doctor docibilis in 1. 1 3 of the hymn In
ie Christe.

5 inergiae is for e?iergiae, used of demoniac possession.

6 For pes superbiae, cf. Ps. xxxv. 1 2 .

7 Compare Dan. x. 13 : " Ecce Michael unus de principibus primis
uenit in adiutorium meum."

9 truces^ i.e. horrid.

1 Stokes, in Revue Celt. xil. 429.

134 NOTES.

17 For the gloss on Raphael cf. Tobit vi. 6, 7, & xii. 15.

Over mittat in the fourth line of the antiphon or supplementary
prayer at the end, there is in T a small /, indicating a variant mittit.

In connexion with 1. 7 and with this supplementary verse, it will
be remembered that it was the task of Michael to weigh the souls
in a balance at the Last Judgement/ and therefore in the hour of
death there were recommended prayers asking his aid e.g. "O Michael,
militiae caelestis signifer, in adiutorium nostrum ueni, princeps et pro-
pugnator."

It may be observed that the extract from the Ser?nons which go
under the name of St. Augustine, in the margin of fol. 8b. of T, is a
passage which is read in the Roman Breviary.

Preface to the Hymn of St. Oengus Mac Tipraite.

A visitation of the Columban monasteries in Ireland by Adamnan
(see above p. 122) was made in 692, and again in 697 ; it is probably
the latter of these that the scholiast has in his mind. Of Oengus mac
Tipraite, we know nothing but this story, save that the Annals of Ulster
record his death in 745. Cluain Fota is now called Clonfad, and is in
the county of Westmeath. Uisnech " is in the parish of Conry in the
diocese of Meath, a little south of which in the parish of Ardmurcher,
is Suidhe Ada7?inain (now Syonan), ' sessio Adamnani,' which was
probably the spot where the visitation or synod alluded to in the text
was held."^'

The Hymn of St. Oengus Mac Tipraite.

Of this hymn we have no other manuscripts save T and F. St.
Martin of Tours was held in great esteem in Ireland, and the legend
that St. Patrick was his nephew doubtless grew out of the desire to
associate the great Apostle of Ireland with the great saint of Gaul.
His life by Sulpicius Severus forms part of the Book of Armagh, and
there is an Irish homily on his career in the Leabhar Breac? He is
one of the three non-biblical saints who have an octave in the Martyr-
ology of Gorma7i} In Ireland, churches were not as a rule called
after departed saints, but after living founders, so that the number of
churches dedicated to St. Martin is small in comparison with the large
number that bear his name in England.""^ His name, however, lingers
in many localities, in Ballymartin near Belfast ; Templemartin, (a) near
Bandon, (l?) near Kilkenny ; and in Desertmartiti in the Diocese of
Derry. There are five townlands of the name of Kilmartin ; and there
was an old church of St. Martin in the barony of Forth in the co.

1 See Atkinson, Passions and Homilies, p. 453, for an account from the Leabhar Brtac of the
privileges of St. Michael.

* Todd, Liber Hyfnnorutfi, p. 174.

3 Printed by Stokes, Rei'. Celt. ii. 381.

♦ Ed. Stokes, p. xlvi.

' For the connexion of St. Martin with the British Isles sec Plummer's Bcde, ii. 43.

IIYMy OF ST. OENGUS MAC TIPRAITE. 13S

Wexford, in tlie 13th century.' There was also a church in l)ul)hn with
this dedication in the 12th century ; and before the Reformation one of
the 14 altars in St. Nicholas' Church, (ialway, bore his name.- It is
possible that in some instances these place-names may i)reserve the
memory of another Martin, who was a disciple of St, Patrick, but in the
majority of i^ases it is probable that St. Martin of Tours is alluded to.

Mention is made in Adamnan's Life of Columba (iii. 1 2) of a dcprecatio^
in t/ua sancti Martini comnh'moratur nonicn^ which was used in the Liturgy
at lona.-'

In 1. 15 of the Pretace, the compound word ^^niiis-airmitiu (cf. Horn-
Pass, 4293) should be observed. It is based on gnuis-airifiu, an
imitation of the word Trpotrtc-oXij^'yai =: accept io personam m.

The antii)hon at the close of the hymn or prayer of St. Oengus Mac
Tipraite is taken from the life of Martin by Sulpicius Severus, and is
gi^■en in the Breviary as the anti})hon in primo ?ioctirrno for the vigils of
St. Martin's Day. The allusions in the hymn itself are all to well
known incidents in the life of the saint.

The marginal note on di?'a in I. 10 is much defaced. All that can be
read is : dialiton there is here i.e. Sechmall . . . niiirchon . .

The indulgence mentioned at tlie end of the Preface : " that it would
be a protection against every disease, and heaven for reciting it on lying
down and rising up," would seem to point to the use of the hymn as a
sort of /orica or charm. If used in monastic offices, it would be at the
night or early morning hours.

Gloria in Excelsis.

The * tower Eder ' "^l^ 71^^ is mentioned twice in the Hebrew
Bible; in Gen. xxxv. 16 where the LXX has o 7r6vfi^io<s Taccp, and in
Micah iv. 8, where it has 7n'<p-/o^ -omviov ; the Vulgate in both cases
htm)i^ turn's i^regis. The place meant in the former passage was near
Bethlehem, and St. Jerome* identifies it with the scene of the angelic
vision to the shepherds ; but the turris gregis nelndosa filiae Sion
of Micah was near Jerusalem. Bede {in Lc. ii. 8) is able to explain
the latter passage as prophetic of the scenes at the Nativity by a slight
change of reading {tienient for ueniet) ; and it is to some such explan-
ation as this that we owe the statement of the Irish scholiasts that the
tower was " a mile east of Jerusalem." It is worth adding that the
writer of the Irish Homily on the Nativity in the Leabhar Breac follows
the more correct geography and si)eaks of the tower being a thousand
paces ea.st of Bethlehem.^

The reading Gabdei of the T Preface is a corruption of gadder
(which, it will be remembered, is the name given to the tower by
the glossator on 1. 14 of the Hyinnus S. Hi/arii); and this is a trans-
literation of the LXX Taccf), the representative of the Hebrew "^ly.

' T/te Watchman, Oct. 15, 1881. * Y{2irdim3Ln'& History o/ Ciaiway. p. 246.

^ See Warren's Celtic Liturgy, p. 107.

* Epitaph. Paulce, Epist. cviii ad Eustochium.

' HogacB, Todd Lectures^ vi. p. 53. So too Jerome in his Monasticon.

136 NOTES.

The authorship of Ambrose suggested in the Preface has nothing to
recommend it, and is a mere guess. The Latin version of the Gloria hi
excehis is ascribed to Hilary with similar improbability in the treatise De
dini?iis offi di s \wh\ch. goes under the name of Alcuin, and Hilary is given
as the author in the Vatican MS. 5729.

The statement in the B Preface about the number of capitula Szc.
is incorrect. In the B or ordinary version of the hymn it is true
that there are seven clauses, but they are not in rhythm, nor are
there "seven lines in each capitulum and seven syllables in each line."
It is possible that the last sentence of the B Preface is a piece of
irrelevant information added by the glossator, who had in his mind an
Ambrosian hymn of the type of l^oii Redemptor i^entii/m.

Mr. AN^arren has printed in his edition of the Afifipkonary of Ba?igor^
the various Irish texts of the Gloria in exec/sis, and also the Greek text
from the Codex Alexandrinus, thus bringing out the remarkable affinity
between them. We have also given in our apparatus criticus the
variants from FABS. Of the B text it is right to say that it has little
to justify its reproduction save that it is found in an Irish manuscript.
It must be borne in mind that the Leabhar Brcac is a composite book,
made up of an enormous collection of pieces of different dates ; and
whereas the B Preface, which is found at fol. 49 as a marginal note on
the Felire of Oengus, is distinctively Celtic, the text of the hyrpn (at
fol. 136) occurs in a late Irish homily, which was probably not put
together in its present form until a time when the Anglo-Norman
domination had sensibly modified the characteristic features of Celtic
worship. The Gloria in excehis is also found in the MS. we have
called J, but the text (like that of B) is not characteristic, and has none
of the additional clauses which are so interesting in our other MSS.

Not only does the Latin version of the Gloria in excelsis in Irish
MSS. agree in many particulars with the Greek text ; but, as has been
pointed out by Dr. Gibson*- and by Mr. Warren, its use in the Celtic
Church seems to have been similar to that of the East. In the Codex
Alexandrinus the hymn is entitled r/n'ov iicOivo^^ and to the present day it
is sung at night and in the early morning in the Greek Church. So in the
AntipJionary of Bangor^ the title is ad ucsperinn et ad viatutinam^ and
the B Preface notes " at night it is due to be sung." One of the supple-
mentary clauses in F is 7it hanc nocteni sine peccato ?ios transire possimus.
In I. 22 of the piece in T and F (though not in A), we have "nocte ista
sine peccato nos custodire," which points in the same direction. Never-
theless it ought to be observed that the T glossator did not understand
these words as indicating the hour at which the hymn was sung : he
glosses them huius s(Bculi. And again at 1. 27 he is careful to explain
/;/ die et node as equivalent to /// prospcris and in tenebris sicculi huius.
It would thus appear probable that the old use of singing the hymn at
the night offices had fallen into desuetude at the time when the glosses
were added ; for the glossator goes out of his way to give a mysti(\il
interpretation to words which are sufficiently plain in themselves.

ii^. 76 AT. - Church Quarterly Review, Oct. 1885.

_ 1 IaJl,b^l%TSk>^alba A. xviii. it is headed : liyinnus in die donrinicn ad ntatutinas.

GLORIA IN EXCELS IS. 137

In 1. 9 tlic words <7 omiu's iiicimu^i a men ma)' ha\'e come fioni a
marginal rubric which fount! its way into the text at an early date.
Another illustration is afforded by the last words of Ps. (vi. "T-etall
the i)eople say. Amen,'' which is probably in like manner a rubrical
direction that has got into the text of the Hebrew Psalter. But
Mr. Warren makes the interesting observation that a similar clause
is also inserted in the Armenian office for \'espers in the text of the-
hymn (fyCa i\api>i> t'rft'as^ f o'f'/^-. And Mr. Macgregor has suggested that
t/ omnes dicimus^ Amen is an importation of the phrase " And say we,
Amen/' which is found in parts of the Jewish Morning Service.'

It will be observed that neither in the text of B, which (as we have
said) is not distinctively Celtic, nor in that of S, where the Gloria in
vxcelsis is found in its place in the Eucharistic service, are there any
supplementary anthems like those found in T, F, and A. The vari-
ation in these is a phenomenon which presents itself again in con-
nexion with the texts of the Tc Deuni ; and it will be seen that some
of those with which we are familiar in the Te Dei/m are found in
these Irish manuscripts as addenda to the Gloria in excehis. For
instance Di^^nare doniinc node is fa [die isfo~\ sine peccato nos custodire
(11. 21, 22) is in the ordinary texts of the Te Deuni ; it was among the
Preces used at Prime and was there followed by Pss. cxxii. 3, and cxxxii.
2. Dr. Gibson, in the article to which we have already referred,,
suggests that these anti])hons, which were originally attached to the
Gloria in excelsis, became linked with the Te T)euni when this began
to take the place of the older hymn in the daily offices of the Church. 2

Magnificat and Benedictus.

Neither the Irish Prefaces to the Magnificat and Benedictus nor
the glosses seem to call for any special remark. The majority of the
glosses in T to both of these canticles are taken, as the references we
have added show, from Bede's Commentary on St. Luke. They
constituted the stock in trade of most commentators of the period,
and are found e.g. also in Hraban Maur's Co?n?ne?itaria iti Cantica
quae ad laiides diciififitr. Whether or not they were original with Bede
is another question into which we do not here inquire. Bede is often
^xnlicitly quoted by Irish writers ; the index to our first volume shows
how ♦.-"" he was known to our scholiasts.

The text of these Canticles, especially of the Benedictus, is interesting
in connexion with the question as to the version of the Latin New
Testament current in the Celtic Church, which was — speaking generally
— A'ulgate with considerable traces of the ' European ' Old Latin out of
which it grew. ' Ab aeuo 'in 1. 6 is, for instance, quite characteristic.
See \Vordsworth and White's A'ulgate N. T. in lac.

The marginal note on fol. 10 of T is made up, for the most part,.
of extracts from the Pastoral Rule of Gregory the Great. This was.

^ Warren, Liturgy of the Ante Xicenc Church, p. 245.

' See AV«r Kirchl. Zeitschr. 1896, pp. 119 foil, for a discussion by Zahn of these supplementary
verses.

13^^ NOTES.

one of the most popular books in the middle ages.^ In the time of
Charlemagne there were laws obliging the clergy to read it. It is one
of the books which Bede urged Archbishop Egbert to study ; and
there was a Saxon parai)hrase of it attributed to Alfred the Great.
In Ireland it was as well known as it was on the Continent. Colum-
banus in his letter to Gregory {Ep. i.) tells him that he had read it
with delight. The first extract from it in this note is also embodied
in the Irish collection of Canons known as the Hibernensis (xxi. 7).

Te Deum.

This is not the place in which to write a treatise on the authorship
xind structure of the Te Deum ; and we therefore confine ourselves to a
few exjilanatory notes. The tradition of the T Preface that it was com-
posed by Augustine and Ambrose is the best known of all the traditions
as to its origin, as it has found its way into the Breviary.- The title
'' hymnus quem S. Ambrosius et S. Augustinus inuicem condiderunt "
is found in two St. Gall MSS. (23 and 27); and the story is at least
older than the middle of the ninth century, for it is alluded to by
Hincmar -^ " ut a maioribus nostris audiuimus tempore baptismatis
sancti Augustini hunc hymnum beatus Ambrosius fecit, et idem Augus-
tinus cum eo confecit." This, however, is unhistorical, and the author-
ship of Ambrose may be ruled out of court.

The tradition of the F Preface is peculiarly interesting,* and it is
probable that it is based on the real fact. Ten or eleven MSS. of the Te
DeujH give the name of the author as Nicetas or Nicetius. It used to be
supposed that Nicetius, bishop of Treves (527-566), was meant ; but this |
is impossible, for a letter of St. Cyprian, bishop of Toulon, which was
written before 542, quotes from the hymn and describes it as one " quem
omnis ecclesia toto orbe receptum canit."' But Dom Morin,'" and, quite
recently, Zahn' have identified this 'Nicetius' with Niceta who was
bishop of Remesiana in Dacia (392-414), a friend and correspondent of
Paulinus of Nola. This person is described by Gennadius {Cafa/. uir.
illustr. c. 22) as Remesianae ci nit at is episcopus. The MSS. of Gen-
nadius have variants Romatianae, Romauiciae^ Romanae^ &:c. ; and it
is in this last corruption that we find the origin of our scholiast's story
that the hymn was made in Rome, and that Niceta, its author, was a.
coarb or successor of St. Peter. Niceta, the bishop of Remesiana, did
indeed visit Rome, when he was on his way to visit Paulinus ; but it is
most likely that the legend with whi(^h we are concerned arose from the
confusion in the MSS. between Remesianae and the more familiar
Romanae. And it is but a step from ' Romanae ciuitatis episcopus ' to

' See for many references Plummer's Bede, ii. 70.

'^ See }5atiffol, Hist, du Brcviairc roiiiain, p. 98.

•'' IMigne, P.L. rxxv. 290.

* See Introduction to vol. i. p. xiv, for a quotation of this F Preface by I'ssher. Usshcr also states
that Nicetius was named as the author of the 7V Deum in a Psalter in the Cotton Library (H'orkss
vii. 300). This has not been identified, but Rev. A. K. Hum suggests that it may be 15. M. Harl.
;863 (saec. x-xi). which entitles the Tc Deuiii Ymnus sti Nicetii Aepiscopi.'

' MoHum. Germ. Epiat. iii. 436. ' Kevue Benedictine, Fevr. 1894.

" Neuc Kirchl. Zeitschr. 1896, pp. 106-123.

TE DEUM. 139

coarb of St. Peter.' It appears, then, that tlie legend of the V Preface
urnishes additional strength to the arguments of Morin and Zahn : for
lere we have distinct witness to the early identification of Nicetius, tlie
.luthor of the Te Dcum, with Niceta, the bishop of Remesiana.

Bishop John Wordsworth, of Salisbury, in his article on the Tc Deum
n the Vict, of Christian Hymnolo^^' (p. 11 20) has given a collation of
he MSS. TFA, and Mr. Warren has added the collation of 1) in the
ipl)endi.\ to his Antiphonary of Ba/ii^^or (vol. ii. p. 93). It has been
lecessar)' in accordance with the i)lan of our edition to give these
ariants in our apparatus criticiis, but they ha\e been taken direct from
he MSS. The Tc Deum is found in C, but we have not registered its
eadings inasmuch as the text is of the ordinary type, and does not show
my of the characteristics of the Irish texts.

We do not enter here into the usage as to the recitation of the Te
Deum. The title in the ninth century St. Gall MS. No. 20 is compar-
ible with that in A : "' Ymnus dominicalis pro nocturnis, hoc est ante
ectionem euangelii."

I The verse (Ps. cxii. i) with which the Tc Deum opens in the Irish
exts is worthy of note. It is prescribed as the antiphon to the Greek
.'vening hymn in the Apostolical Constitutions (Rook vii. c. 47). In the
iccount already cited (p. 132) of the " service of heaven " from the Book
)f Lecan, Laudate pueri domimim^ which doubtless represents the Te
Deum, is fabled to have been sung. Morin (I.e.) deems it not improbable
hat Niceta began the Te Deum with these words.

9, 10 Compare the citation of this in the Amra(\o\. i. p. 171, 1. 306) :
'quia dicunt hiruphin et zaraphin, sanctus sanctus sanctus dominus
leus Sabaoth dicentes," which perhaps witnesses to the insertion of
/iee/ites (as in TF) in 1. 10 in the Te Deum as known to the commen-
ator. The line is also quoted in Adamnan's ])raver (vol. i. p. 184,

12 The insertion of uniuersa is characteristic of the Irish texts. At
bl. 22b of S it is inserted in the Ter Sanctus in like manner : pleni sunt
aeli et uniuersa terra i^/oria tua.

23 This is the reading which had most currency in the British Isles,
ind very possibly is the original form. But Dom Morin (I.e.) has
>roduced evidence to show the prevalence in Southern Gaul of the now
ommon reading Tu ad libera ndu7n suscepturus hominem in the sixth
entury.

31 The Te Deum in its earliest form very probably ended here at the
■ ord munerari (which, it should be observed, and not numerari is the
eading of all manuscripts). D stops short at this point ; and this is an
ndication of the extreme antiquity of the text found in that MS. The
greements of D with TFA are remarkable, but it is rather to be con-
idered as giving an ancient form of the Te Deutn, than as supplying the
pecially Irish recension.

37, 38 This versicle (Ps. xxxii. 22) is prescribed twice for recitation
n S (fol. 2,1) during the Fraction.

This antiphon, which follows the hymn in T and F, is placed at the
nd of the volume in A. In that MS. the Te Deu?n is on fol. 10 : but

I40 MOTES.

the antiplion is given at fol. 35 r^ where it is headed Post Laudate pueri
dominum in doniijiiconini die. It is given again in a slightly different
form on fol. 35 v". and another fragment of it is on fol. 36. It is not
unlike the antiphon prescribed " super Quicunque^'' at Prime on Sundays
in the Sarum Office, or at Lauds on Trinity Sunday after Magnificat in
the modern Roman I^reviary : " Te Deum patrem ingenitum, filium
unigenitum, te spiritum sanctum paraclitum, sanctum et indiuiduam
Trinitatem toto corde et ore confitemur, laudamus atque benedicimus ;
tibi gloria in siecula."

We have not been able to identify the note found in the margin of
fol. lob of T. Passages very like it occur in St. Augustine's sermons (see
Migne, P. L. v, 783, vi. 783, xi. 798) ; but we have not found the exact
words.

The passage on fol. 11 beginning " Orationibus mundarhur, lectioni-
bus instruimur" oc^curs, as our reference indicates, not only in Isidore
but in the Collection of Canons known as the Hibernensis, These
openin<jj words are quoted in the Benedictine rule (Migne, P. L. ciii,
631).

Preface to the Hymn Altus Prosator.

The B Preface tells us that one tradition as to the place of composition
of this famous hymn was that it was composed at Duibh Regies, St.
Columba's ' Black Church ' at Derry. But the TF Preface, although
speaking of the saint's meditation for seven years ' in nigra cellula,'
says distinctly that " the place of the hymn " was the Island of Hi
(now called lona through a misreading of the loiia insula of manu-|
scripts).

The indications of date given in the Prefaces are fairly consistent.!
According to the chronologies Aedan mac Gabrain was king of Scotland
from 574 to 606, and Aed mac Ainmerech was king of Ireland from 572
to 599 ; while the Emperor Maurice reigned from 582 to 602 and was
succeeded by Phocas. Columba was born in 521 and died on June 91
597, and Gregory the Great, with whom one of the legends here]
recorded connects him, died in 590.

Columba might well be described as " de nobile genere Scotorum,"|
inasmuch as he belonged to the clan O'Donnell and was great-great-
grandson of Neill of the Nine Hostages.

The most plausible of the traditions given in the Prefaces as to the
origin of the hymn describes it as a penitential exercise composed by'
the saint, who was troubled by the memory of three battles in which
he had played an active part. The first of these, the battle of Cuil
Dremne (now Cooladrummon near Sligo), is recorded to have been
fought in 561, the Neill clan under Columba himself gaining a decisive
victory over Diarmait, king of Ireland. It was after this battle that he
went to lona, exiling himself from his country, according to one legend.
by the advice of St. Molaise of Inismurray, as a penance for the blood
which he had caused to be shed. The other battles were that of Cole
raine in 579, which arose out of some dispute as to a church betweer

H
H

THE HYMN ALTUS PROSATOR. 141

St. Cohimba and St. Comgall of Bangor ; and that of Ciiil Feda near
Clonard in 587.^

The other story describes the hymn as an extemporaneous utterance,
miraculously composed during the grinding of a sack of oats.- The
hymn Adiutor laborantiiwi which he is said to have composed on the . •
way to the mill does not seem to be extant ; it is just i)Ossible that there '^^ ^^^^,
may be here an allusion to the hymn /// te Chrisfe (vol. i. p. 84), the
third line of which is Deiis in adiutoriion intende laborantium.

The mention of the stone, variously called Blathnat or Moel-blatha,
on which " there is made division in the refectory," and of which it is
further said that " luck was left on all food that is put thereon," is
interesting. It is probable that the allusion is to the practice of cutting
up the eulo^iae ox pain be nit at a table in the refectory, which we know-
to have obtained at lona and also at St. Kenneth's monastery at Aghaboe
in the diocese of Ossory.' Dr. Skene considered that he had identified
this very stone among the ruins at lona.*

It will be observed that the statement of the TF scholiast as to the
donation of lona to Columba confirms that of Bede, in the assertion that
Bruide mac Maelcon, king of the Picts, im7tioIauit Coluinbo Hi ; i.e.
obtulit in perpetuum Colmnbae lonam.^ Tighernach, and also the Annals
of Ulster, represent the island as given by Conall, the king of British
Dalriata. Reeves sums up the history thus: "Columba probably found
Hy unoccupied and unclaimed, Conall kindly promised not to disturb
him, and when the Picts were converted, Brudeus, the supreme lord, of
course gave to the infant institution all the right and title which the
weight of his sanction could confer."

The legend goes on to the effect that the hymn was sent to Gregory
as a return for gifts sent by him viz. a Cross and a Hymnary. The
Cross was reputed to be preserved at Tory Island in 1532, as O'Donnell
tells in his Life of Columba. Of the Hymnary we know nothing ; Todd
suggests that it may have been a copy of the Liber Antiphonarius of
Gregory. The messengers sent to Gregory tested him by substituting
spurious stanzas for the H, O, and U'' stanzas of the hymn" ; but
Gregory miraculously discovered their deceit. Gregory's criticism that
there was more praise of the creature than of the Creator in the hymn
set Columba on the composition of the piece L?i te Christe. See below
p. 169.

The TF scholiast observes that the opening stanza is based on the
Quicunque Viilt ; see p. 155 infra.

The remarks on the rhythm made in the Preface do not call for
much comment. A ' verse ' includes two lines, according to our way of

* See Reeves' Adajiinan, p. 253.

' That Columba "often used to carry his portion of corn on his back to the mill, and grind it," is
mentioned in the old Irish Life {Lismon-, p. 180) as a proof of his humility. Cf. also Lisinore,
p. 269, where the same thing is told of St. Ciaran.

^ See Warren's Celtic Liturgy, p. 140, and F'owler's Adajiinan, p. 82. Compare Dowden's Celtic
Church in Scotland, p. 16S.

* Celtic Scotland, ii. 100.

^ See for this use of itmnolarc in Celtic Latin, and for a general discussion of the whole matter
Reeves' Adamnan, p. 435. There is also a note in Plummer's Bede, ii. 131.

* or X, according to tDe B Preface.

' In 11. 38, 42, of the TF Preface, confusion has been introduced into previous editions by a
mbreading of the text.

142 NOTES.

printing the hymn ; and the rules laid down are (i) that each quarter
verse shall have 8 syllables and (2) that the quarter verse and the half
verse shall rhyme, e.g. uetustus^ inge?i2fus, &c. See above p. xxvi.

The direction given for the recitation of the hymn is interesting, viz.
that ' Quis potest Deo,' which perhaps includes only the first two lines
of the supplementary antiphons (vol. i. p. 81), was to be sung at the
close of each stanza. These lines are found in all our MSS. of the
Alius. The second antiphon (11. 4-9) seems to be quite distinct.

The ' graces ' of the hymn which are enumerated seem to show that
it was recited as a kind oi lorica, in time of danger or of sickness. It
was said to ward off all death save * death on the pillow' />. from natural
causes, or, as the B scholiast puts, 77iors pretiosa, which Todd explains
by a reference to Ps. cxv. 15 " pretiosa in conspectu domini mors sanct-
orum eius." The verse found at foot of fol. 237 of B (voL i. p. 83 and
below p. 169), prescribes its sevenfold recitation ; and a curious legend
printed by O'Curry^ tells of a boy seized with mortal sickness around
whom " the A/fus was sung seven times," though without effect.

The HviMN Altus Pros a tor.

The manuscripts of the A/fus known to us are seven in number, and
they fall into two groups.

T, our principal manuscript, is deficient from 1. 80 to 1. 127, as a leaf
has been lost; for the intervening stanzas, we have taken as our standard
the Franciscan copy (F). T is glossed throughout.

F is complete for this hymn ; the glosses are few in number and are
unimportant ; they are written in a hand of the sixteenth century.

B only contains stanzas A-H inclusive ; it is copiously glossed, and
in many cases the glosses resemble those of T.

TFB all have titles, several lines in length, at the head of each stanza,
giving the substance of the argument in the verses which follow ; and,
as we have seen, they have vernacular Prefaces introducing the hymn,
all embodying the same traditions, those in T and F being almost
verbally identical. This group of three jMSS. we call the " Irish "
group.

Our four remaining manuscripts, MEIII (for a description of which
see vol. i. pp. xvii ff), have neither Preface, titles to the stanzas, nor (with
a few exceptions) glosses ; and the types of text which they present are
markedly similar. There is nothing specifically Irish about these MSS.
They all contain the Altus among works ascribed to St. Prosper of
Aquitaine (403-465), and in three cases at least the hymn follows
directly on the jDe uita contemplatiua. This work is well known not
to be a genuine work of Prosper's, and is usually attributed to Julianus
Pomerius, a Mauretanian priest, who lived ci7-ca 500.^ To go a little
more into detail as to these manuscripts, which we call the " Prosper
group " : —

' AIS. materials, p. 78. See also Todd, Liber Hyvint^rum, p. 250.

' See Migne, P. I., lix. col. 415 ff. for the De uita contmiplatiua: no mention is made of ibe
hj'mn in any printed edition of Prosper cr of Julianu» Pomerius, so far as we know.

THE HYMN ALT US PROSATOR. 143

On f. 83 of M we have the end of the third book of the Dc iiita
contemplatiua, thus : " Ouando non res pro uerbis sed pro rebus ciiun-
tiandis uerba sunt instituta. Explicit Hber tertius. Altus prosator, «Jv:c."
the hymn then following without any verse divisions, and written as if it
were prose. At tlic end, after ordinihus, the next line begins " hie
insunt sub hoc cori)ore epigrammata beati Prosperi, &c."

In E the hymn is found in the same place as in M between the De
uita contempl. and the cpip-ammata, and is written by the same hand
that has written the other pieces. In the margin there was an eleventh
century note, which has been cut away by the binder so that only a few
letters remain. There were four lines of which the ends were : /i us per
al — ; 7 dige — ; pul — ; edit.

There is nothing to say about I, save that it is reported to be a
splendidly executed MS. and that the hymn is found in it among works
ascribed to St. Prosper. It is followed by a collect of considerable
interest, on which we comment below (p. 168).

n is a MS. of the eleventh century, the hymn following immediately
the De uita contetnpl. The verses from 1. 79 onward are written in a
hand of the fourteenth or tifteenth century, the old leaf having probably
become illegible through constant use.

Des])ite the witness of these manuscripts, however, we believe that the
hymn is a distinctively Celtic composition, and is not the work either of
St. Prosper of Aquitaine or of Julianus Pomerius. The genuine works
of Prosper are quite different in character, both as regards form and
matter. The style of that writer has no resemblance to the rude and
barbarous, though vigorous, Latin of this hymn ; and the speculations as
to the creation and the fall of the ' giants ' are foreign to his ways of
thinking. And, although in the De uita contemplatiua (iii. i) there is
a discussion of the fall of the angels, we cannot find any good reason for
I connecting the hymn with the name of Julianus Pomerius.

The Irish were fond of cosmogonic speculations ; the first poem, e.g.

I in the Saltair ?ia Rann^ is devoted to them. And it is worth observing

how akin are the topics treated in the hymn Altus Prosator to those

discussed in the Book of Enoch, which widely affected mediaeval ways

of thinking.^ Chapters Ixxii-lxxxii of E7ioch which deal with Celestial

jPhysics are not unlike the early stanzas of our hymn; the conceptions

)f 'the devil's satellites,' of the lightning and the winds issuing from

|their secret chambers, of the beneficent influence of the rain, of the

itately and regular orbits of the sun and moon, have close parallels in

the Altus ; while the Vision of Judgement at the end of Eiioch reminds

|us of our stanzas RSTZ.

The Latinity of the hymn, as we have said, is barbarous. It presents
some resemblances to two other pieces which have Celtic connexions,
Az. the Lorica of Gildas (our No. 48), and the curious tract entitled
Usperica fami7ia^ which is written in a kind of assonant rhythm.
dimmer has given an elaborate discussion"' of the date of these, and has

• See Charles, Book of Enoch, pp. 38fF.

' See Migne, P.L. xc. 1187.

' Ncnnius uindicatus, p. 291 ff. See also H. Bradshaw, Collected Pa-f>t:rs, p. 463 foil.

144 NOTES. ,

•come to the conclusion that they belong to the first half of the sixth
century, and were most probably ])roduced in monasteries in the south-
west of Britain, being certainly Celtic though not Irish. Mai, however,
who first printed Hisperica famina, considered it to be the work of an
Irish monk. But, at any rate, Zimmer's arguments as to the date seem
convincing, and they corroborate, so far, the tradition that Columba
wrote the Alius. Among strange words common to these pieces, we
have iduma for 'hand' which occurs in all three (see below, p. 163).
In the Hisp. fain, and the Alius we have dodraus (see below, p. 160),
in the sense of ' the flood of the ocean,' and iiihis for ' the sea ' ; ' bara-
thrum,' ' ergastulum,' ' crepido,' are other unusual words in both works ;
and there is common to both a tendency to form substantives ending
in -men, such as 'praesagmen,' ' fatimen,' &c.

But for a full discussion of this curious I^tinity the reader must be
referred to Zimmer's Nennius uindicaius, and the special works there
quoted' ; as the author of the Hisperica famina says, ' caetera non
explico famine stemata, ne doctoreis suscitauero fastidium castris.' It
is enough to say that the Latin of the Alius is quite what we might
•expect from a writer of Columba's date and antecedents, and has no
resemblance to the style of Prosper, or the author of the De uiia con-
templaiiua.

In the next place, when we examine the text of Scripture underlying
the phraseology of our hymn, we find that the author did not use the
vulgar Latin, but the older text which was current before Jerome's re-
vision came into use. The following instances will, we think, establish
this interesting point.

{a) 1. I. ' ueiusius dierum.' This is the O.L. of Dan. vii. 9, witnessed
to by Augustine and the author of the treatise ad Nouaiianum^ printed
with Cyprian's works. The Vulgate has ' aniiijuus dierum.'

{b) 1. 21. 'serpens . . . sapioiiior omnibus bestiis &c.' Gen.
iii. I, is quoted thus by Augustine, Lucifer of Cagliari and Ambrose;
the Vulgate has callidior.

(c) 1. 25. ' refugas . . . parasito pnecipiics.^ In the Fleury
Palimpsest of the Ajiocalypse, and in the Liber de promiss ei pnedici. dei,
c. iii, which contains Old Latin readings, Apoc. xii. 9, is quoted thus :
^ et prcecipiiaius est in terram <S:c.,' the Vulgate having proiecius. Again
refuga was the O.L. rendering of a7roa-T('ntj^, as Ronsch (liala und
Vulgaia, p. 83) has shown by many examples ; e.g. Lucifer of Cagliari
applies it both to the devil and to his angels {Ailiafi. i. p. 2, and de non
pare. 228). In 2 Thess. ii. 3, Codex Clar. has refuga for diseessio of the
Vulgate as the equivalent of airomaala.

{d) \. 33. ' collaudauerunt angeli factura pro mirabili.' The Vulgate
of lob xxxviii. 7, which is the passage here in view, is ' cum me lauda-
rent simul astra matutina et iubilarent omnes filii dei.' But the O.L.
manuscript from Marmoutier (Tours 18) has a text much more like the
words of our hymn, viz. : ' quando facta sunt simul sidera, laudauerunt
me uoce magna omnes angeli mei.'

•

' Sec also p. 243, infra.

THE HYMN ALTCS PROSATOR. 145

(e) I. 113. * undique conglobantibus ad cojnpagiiies ossibus.' The
Vulgate of Ezek. xxxvii. 7, is 'acccsserunt ossa ad ossa, unumquodque ad
iuncturam suam ' ; but Ambrose and the O.L. translator of Irenaeus have
* unumquodque ad suam cotnpaginetn.''

{/) 1. 117. The description of the Pleiades as Uirgiliae in this
stanza reproduces the O.L. of Job ix. 9: 'qui facit iiirgilias et
uesperum, &c.' which is witnessed to by Ambrose, and is found in the
margin of the Codex Gothicus Icgionensis} The Vulgate has 'qui facit
Arcturum et Oriona et Hyadas' See, however, p. 166.

{g) 1. 125. 'cadent in terra sidera, ut fnictus de ficulnea.^ The
Vulgate of Apoc. vi. 13, has 'sicut ficus itm\\X\\. grossos suos.' Now the
Gigas text of the O.L. Apocalypse has ^ sicut ficu/nea deicit grossos
suos ' ; and Primasius and the Li/wr de promiss. et prcedict. dei. c. xvii.
read ^ ficus' and ''fnictus.' Thus \:)0\\\ fructus [x.\\dficu/nea of the hymn
rest on good O.L. authority. Li the adaptation of the A/tus by Hraban
Maur, to be presently spoken of, it will be observed that Hraban has
replaced yr//^///i- by the more ^dcmWmr grossos.

The writer of the hymn, then, used a prae-Hieronymian text of both
Old and New Testaments. This fact, of itself, would indicate that he
was not Prosper of Aquitaine or Julianus Pomerius ; and it falls in well
with the tradition which names Columba as the author, for the scanty
evidence on the subject which is forthcoming teaches us that it was
the Old Latin rather than the Vulgate which was current in the Irish
Church in the fifth and sixth centuries. This is certainly true of
the Scripture quotations in the genuine remains of St. Patrick, which
are Old Latin of the so-called " European " type. It is possible that
legend has preserved for us the truth as to the introduction of the
Vulgate into Ireland. It is said in the Life of St. Finnian of
Moville (who died, according to the Annals of Innisfallen, in 576)
that he was " the first to bring the Gospel to Ireland," a statement
which is repeated in a gloss in the Leabhar Breac copy of the Felire of
Oengus.- This has reference to a highly valued manuscript brought
over by Finnian, which is said to have been copied clandestinely by
Columba ; and the most plausible explanation is that it was a
manuscript of Jerome's version, which hitherto had been unknown in
Ireland. But, however that may be, it is probable that the Irish
Church in the days of Columba used the Old Latin version of Scrip-
ture ; and it is certain that traces of it lingered for centuries even
when the Vulgate text had come into use.

In this connexion attention may be drawn to the ' titles ' prefixed
to the stanzas of the Altus in the ' Irish ' group of MSS. These are
evidently the additions of some scholiast, though at what date they
were composed it is impossible to say. The title of the first stanza
which alludes to Columba as ' the latest and noblest of Ireland's pro-
phets ' perhaps points to a date not very far removed from the times
of Columba himself. And the fact, which will be noticed further on,
that in some instances alternative titles are suggested, shows that they

* Berger, Notice sur quelques textes latins inedits de tancien Testatnent (1893), p. 21.

* See Olden, Chiirch of Ireland, p. 61, and Stokes, Felire of Oengus, p. cxliv.

LIBER IIYMX. II. L

146 NOTES.

must have been in existence for a considerable period before the
date of the earliest of our Irish MSS. of the Alius. But whatever their
date (and they were most probably put together about the eighth
century), they retain conspicuous traces of an Old Latin Version of Holy
Scripture.

Against the tradition that Columba wrote the Alius, there is only
one argument of any importance, and that rests on the fact that
allusions to the hymn are extremely scanty in Irish literature. One of
these we have mentioned above (p. 142) ; another is found in an ancient
poem entitled Mesca Coluimcille found in the Bodleian MS. Laud 615,
which professes to record a prophecy delivered by Columba shortly
before his death. One stanza runs thus :
' My Alius angelic and holy :
' My Easparia for Thursday ;
My Antra with the King of the pure bright moon ;
' Here I leave after me.'^

But the absence of many references to the hymn, save in the formal
Lives of the saint, may perhaps be accounted for by the prevalence
of the legend given in the Prefaces, which suggested it was not quite
orthodox. In any case the argument from silence is a very unsafe one
to use, and not sufficient in this case to set aside the evidence of tradi-
tion, corroborated as it is by the internal characteristics of the poem, that
Columba was the author.

The Prosper MSS. may then be taken as witnessing merely to the
knowledge of the Alius in the Gallican Church. And in this connexion
it is interesting to find that a large part of the hymn is embodied
in a long poem by Hraban Maur (786-856), beginning Aeierne rerum
condiior. This furnishes not only a valuable piece of evidence as to the
popularity of the piece, but gives us what amounts to an additional early
authority for its text. We have thought it worth while to print here so
much of the poem as bears upon the textual criticism of the Alius. The
omitted lines 24-60 deal with the Trinity, 11. 69-100 with the Fall, 11.
106-220 with the Incarnation and Life of Christ, and 11. 274-295 contain
prayers. It will be observed that the following portions of the Alius are
reproduced, though not always in regular order, and sometimes with
slight modifications of reading : 11. 1-31, 38, 60, 75-79, 95, 99, 101-114,
122-135. The stanzas which Hraban has not taken up into his poem
have little religious reference, and are concerned with the operations of
nature rather than specially Christian themes. We have printed the text
given by A. Diimmler in his Poeiae Laiini aeui mediiy vol. ii. p. 197
(1884)^ ; the poem will also be found among Hraban's works in Mignr,
P.L. cxii. 1 6 10.

^ See Reeves' Adatttnan, p. Ixxx.

* Diimmler observes that some writers, e.g. W. Grimm {Gesch. des Reims, p. 684), have argued
that Hraban is the original author of -the Alius; this is, however, quite impossible. It was
Hraban's constant practice to borrow the verses of other writers. See Diimmler, I.e. p. 157 n.

THE HYMN ALT US PROS A TOR. I47

De Fide CatJwUca rythnio cannc/i composition.

Aeterne reriim conditor et clarus miindi tormator,
deus in adiutorium inteiide tu humilium ;
cordecuie tibi deiiotum festina in auxilium.
Da mentis Ikla regniina ac uerbi clara numcra
5 da uotis cordis optima et facti dona plurima ;

sensum corde purissimum famen ore i)acificum

Ut tiiam laudem famine in primis possim dicere,
magnam, miram ac pra^claram, digna uoce iustissimi.m
meaeque sim miseriae compunctus memor ultimae.
lo Deus saliis credentium deus uita uiuentium

deus deorum omnium deus et princeps i)rincipum
deus summus amabilis deus inaestimabilis.

Altus prosator uetustus dierum et ingenitus
eras absque origine primordii et crepidine
15 ejui es eris in saecula saeculorum infinita

Cui est unigenitus Christus proles carissimus
dicentis de corde uerbum satum ante Luciferum
coaeternus in gloria deitatis perpetua

Cum quo simul et filio in sempiterno saeculo
20 spiritus sanctus aequalis regnat et honorabilis

in eadem substantia deus manens per saecula.
non tres deos nee profero sed un'um deum praedico
salua fide in personis tribus gloriosissimum
summum iustum rectissimum sui)er omnes mitissimum.

40 Bonos creauit angelos ordines et archangelos

principatus et uirtutes thronos dominationes
l)otestates et cherubin gloriosa et sera]:)hin
uti non esset bonitas otiosa ac maiestas
trinitatis in omnibus largitatis muneribus

45 sed haberet caelestia quibus det priuilegia.

Sed caeli regni apice stationis angelicae
claritate pro fulgoris uenustate speciminis
superbiendo ruerat Lucifer quem plasmauerat
Apostateque angeli eodem lapsu lugubri
50 auctores cenodoxiae peruicacis inuidiae

caeteris remanentibus in suis principatibus.

Draco magnus teterrimus terribilis et antiquus
qui fuit seq^ens lubricus sapientior omnibus
bestiis et animantibus terrae ferocioribus,
55 tertiam partem siderum traxit secum in baratrum

locorum infernalium diuersorumque carcerum
refugus ueri luminis parasitus praecipitans.

L 2

148 NOTES.

Dum pius mundi machinam praeuidens et armoniam
polum et siccum fecerat atque aquas diuiserat
60 herbarum format germina uirgultum ac arbiiscula

solem lunam ac sidera ignem ac necessaria
aues pisces et pecora bestias animalia
turn demum honorabilem ipse condidit hominem

Huic praecepit firmiter manere immortaliter
65 suam sacram imaginem seruare uenerabilem

sequique iussa domini uicarius cum sit dei
'esto' dixit humillimus rector mundi et dominus
nam cuncta tibi tradidi ac dominatu subdidi
quae sunt modo uiuentia ac terra germinantia

100 Grassatis sicque duobus i)rotoplastis parentibus

post tota ruit propago et absque adminiculo
auctor peccatum auxerat ad inferna detraxerat
creuerunt homicidia dum creuit philargyria
habundabat luxuria, dum anxit gastrimarchia

105 tota nefanda crimina iam possidebat glarea

220 Ipso de caelis domino descendente altissimo

praefulgebit clarissimum signum crucis et uexillum
plangor super se nimius erit turn cunctis gentibus.
tectisque luminaribus duobus principalibus
cadent in terram sidera ut grossus de ficulnea

225 eritque mundi terminum ut fornacis incendium

Clangor buccinae quaternas sonabit terrae per plagas
discurrunt coruscantia fulgura et tonitrua
tunc in montium specubus abscondent se exercitus.
ergo erit dies ille dies planctus et lacrimae
230 dies irae et uindictae tenebrarum et nebulae

dies magnae angustiae laboris ac tristitiae

In quo cessat mulierum amor ac desiderium
hominumque contentio mundi huius et cui)ido
cum caelo terra ardore conflagrant atque lumine,
235 Tuba primi archangeli strepente admirabili

erumpent munitissima claustra ac poliandria
surget homo a tellure restauratus a puluere.

Undique conglobantibus membrorum conpaginibus
animabus aetralibus eisdcm obuiantibus
240 certant sancti cum munere Christo regi occurrere.

Altithroniis <j;loTioso rex scdebit in solio
angelorum tremebunda circumstabunt et agmma
cunctis iudex cum propria secundum reddet merita.

THE HYMN ALTUS PR OS A TOR. 149

Stahimus et nos paiiidi ante tribunal domini
245 leddcmusque de omnibus rationem affcctibus

nostra uidentes ])osita ante obtutus cTimina,
librosquc cotiscicntiac ])atefiictos in facie :
in singultus erumpemus et fletu diro gememus
subtracta necessaria operandi materia.

250 Tunc fideles nam caelestem urbis summac Hierusalem

sustoUentur ad patriam introibunt ad gloriam
ubi fulget uera pacis lux Christus sol mirabilis.
Ymnorum cantionibus sedulo tinnientibus
Sanctis trii)udiantibLis angelorum et millibus

255 in paterna claritate se gaudent Christum cernere.

Sic uiginti felicibus quatuor senioribus
coronas iam mittentibus agni dei sub pedibus
laudatur tribus uicibus trinitas, aeternalibus
bis binis coram stantibus unitis animalibus
260 terra laude sonantibus 'Sanctus sabaoth dominus '

hac sancti manent gloria a saeculis in saecula.

Zelus ignis furibundus consumet aduerarios
nolentes Christum credere deo a patre uenisse
retro ruunt perpetui in ignis flammas impii.
265 ubi habentur tenebrae uermes et dirae bestiae

ubi ignis sulphureus ardet flammis edacibus
ubi rugitus hominum fletus et stridor dentium.

Ubi gehennae gemitus tonitruus et horridus
ubi ardor flammaticus sitis famisque maximus
270 ubi tortor durissimus auget poenam cum laribus.

Sathan atro cum agmine quo tenetur in carere
religatus in Tartara in aeterna incendia
Cocytique Charybdibus submergetur in gentibus.
•j(- * * * *

295 Nuncque rogo ut iubeas et in me hoc perficias

quamdiu in ergastulo sum clausus carnis sedulo
ore corde et opere te canam laudem, kyrie,
Doxa tibi altithrone rex caelorum sanctissime
qui me tuo iuuamine consolaturus optime

300 laus et honor cum gloria in saeculorum saecula.

The printed editions of the Alius are as follows : —

Colgan printed it from F in his Trias (1647) p. 473 ; this wac the editio
princeps.

The next edition was that of Todd in 1869, who gave it from T and
B, using Colgan's text where these manuscripts are deficient.

In 187 1 Reifferscheid printed the hymn from M in his Catalogue of
the MSS. of the Ambrosian Library.^ He was unaware thac it had ever
been published before, and he knew nothing of its author.

* Sitzungshcrtchtc dcr Wioicr Aknd. {Philcsoph. Hist. K/assc), vol. Ixvii. j). S44-

I50 NOTES.

In 1875 ^' Boucherie publislied the text from E in the Revue des
lan^ies rommies (vol. vii. p. 12). He, too, was in ignorance that it had
])reviously been made accessible.

In 1881 Ch. Cuissard printed the hymn from I in the Revue Celtique
(vol. V. p. 205). He was aware of the editions of Colgan and Todd, but
not of those of Reifferscheid and Boucherie. Boucherie then printed in
the Revue des lain^ues romanes for 1882 (p. i^t^ a letter comparing the
text of E with I and T.

The next printed edition was that of the Marquess of Bute (1882) ;
but this is popular rather than critical. It is based on Todd's text, and
is chiefly valuable for its apposite citations from the Vulgate.

In 1884 Sir J. Gilbert published from F a transcript of the text, which
is much more accurate than Colgan's, in the Facsi??tiks of National
Mam(scripts of Ireland, Part iv. App. xxi. ; reproducing in facsimile the
first stanza and all the initial letters of the hymn.

In 1885 Diimmler called attention in the Revue Celtique (vol. vii. p.
237) to the existence of the Munich MS. which we have called 17. The
collation of this has been kindly made for us by Dr. L. Traube. For E
and I we have used the texts printed (apparently with minute accuracy)
by Boucherie and Cuissard.

Several translations of this difficult hymn are in i)rint. The first, a
metrical version, was made by Dr. J. Smith in his Life of St. Coliwiba
(1798), but it is of little value. Todd gives a literal rendering in his
Lihei- Hymnoriim ; Boucherie {I c.) gives a French version; the
Marquess of Bute added a prose paraphrase to his edition ; and a free
metrical rendering by Rev. Anthony Mitchell is printed at the end of
Dowden's Celtic Church of Scotland. A good version is given by
Mr. Macgregor in his St. Columba (1897), and a metrical paraphrase
by Mr. Stone in his Lays of lona. We have thought it necessary to
include a literal translation in this edition, as many passages of the hymn
are obscure.

The High Creator, Ancient of Days, and Unbegotten

was without origin of beginning and without end ;

He is and shall be to infinite ages of ages

with Whom is Christ the only begotten and the Holy Spirit,

coeternal in the everlasting glory of the Godhead.

We set forth not three gods, but we say there is One God,

saving our faith in three most glorious Persons.

He created good Angels, and Archangels, the orders
of Principalities and Thrones, of Authorities and Powers,
10 that the Goodness and Majesty of the Trinity might not be
inactive
in all offices of bounty,
but might have creatures in which
it might richly display heavenly privileges by a word of power.

THE HYMN ALTi'S PKOSATOK. 151

From the summit of heaven's kingdom, from the brightness of
angehc station,
15 from the beauty of the splendour of his form,

through pride Lucifer, whom He had made, had fallen ;
and the apostate angels too by the same sad fall
of the author of vainglory and stubborn envy,
the rest remaining in their ])rinripalities.

20 The Dragon, great, most foul, terrible, and old,

which was the slimy serpent, more subtle than all the beasts

and fiercer living things of earth,

drew with him the third ])art of the stars into the abyss

of the infernal regions and of divers prisons,
25 apostate from the True Light, headlong cast by the parasite.

The Most High, foreseeing the frame and order of the world

had made the heaven and earth. The sea and waters He

established ;
likewise the blades of glass, the twigs of shrubs ;
sun, moon, and stars ; fire and necessary things ;
30 birds, fish, and cattle ; beasts and living things :
and lastly man first-formed to rule with prophecy.

So soon as the stars, the lights of the firmament, were made,
the angels praised for His wondrous handywork
the Lord of the vast mass, the Builder of the heavens,
35 with praise giving proclamation, meet and unceasing ;
and in noble concert gave thanks to the Lord,
of love and choice, not from endowment of nature.

Our first two parents having been assailed and seduced,
the Devil falls a second time, with his satellites ;
40 by the horror of whose faces and the sound of whose flight
frail men, stricken with fear, should be affrighted,
being unable with carnal eyes to look upon them ;
who now are bound in bundles with the bonds of their prison-
houses.

He, removed from the midst, was cast down by the Lord
•15 The space of the air is closely crowded

with a disordered crew of his rebel satellites ; invisible,
lest men infected by their evil examples and their crimes,
no screens or walls ever hiding them,
should openly defile themselves before the eyes of all.

50 The clouds carry the wintry floods from the fountains of the sea —

the three deeper floods of Ocean —

to the regions of heaven in azure whirlwinds,

to bless the crops, the vineyards and the buds ;

driven by the winds issuing from their treasure houses,
55 which drain the corresponding shallows of the sea.

152 NOTES.

The tottering and despotic and momentary glory
of the kings of this present world is set aside by the will of God I
Lo ! the giants are recorded to groan beneath the waters
with great torment, to be burned with fire and punishment ;
60 and, choked with the swelling whirlpools of Cocytus,

overwhelmed with Scillas, they are dashed to pieces with waves and
rocks.

The waters that are bound u}) in the clouds the Lord ofttime

droppeth,
lest they should burst forth all at once, their barriers being broken
from whose fertilising streams as from breasts,
65 gradually flowing through the regions of this earth,
cold and warm at divers seasons,
the never failing rivers ever run.

By the divine powers of the great God is suspended
the globe of earth, and thereto is set the circle of the great deep,
70 supported by the strong hand of God Almighty ;
promontories and rocks sustaining the same,
with columns like to bars on solid foundations,
immoveable like so many strengthened bases.

To no man seemeth it doubtful that hell is in the lowest regions,
75 where are darkness, worms, and dread beasts,

where is fire of brimstone blazing with devouring flames,
where is the crying of men, the weeping and gnashing of teeth,
where is the groaning of Gehenna, terrible and from of old,
where is the horrid, fiery, burning of thirst and hunger.

3o Under the earth, as we read, there are dwellers, we know,
whose knee ofttimes bendeth in prayer to the Lord ;
for whom it is impossible to unroll the written book —
sealed with seven seals, according to the warnings of Christ —
which He Himself had opened, after He had risen victorious,

85 fulfilling the prophetic presages of His Advent.

That Paradise was planted by the Lord from the beginning
we read in the noble opening of Cienesis ;
from its fountain four rivers are flowing,
and in its flowery midst is the Tree of Life,
90 whose leaves for the healing of the nations fall not ;
its delights are unspeakable and abounding.

Who hath ascended to Sinai, the appointed mountain of the Lord,
Who hath heard the thunders beyond measure pealing.
Who the clang of the mighty trumi)et resound,
95 Who hath seen the lightnings gleaming round about.

Who the flashes and the thunderbolts and the crashing rocks,
Save Moses the judge of Israel's ])eoi)le ?

THE HYMN ALIUS PROSATOR. 153

The day of the Lord, the King of Kings most righteous, is at

hand :
a day of wrath and vengeance, of darkness and cloud ;
100 a day of wondrous mighty thunderings,
a day of trouble also, of grief and sadness,
in which shall cease the love and desire of women
and the strife of men and the lust of this world.

Trembling we shall be standing before the judgement seat of the
Lord,
105 and shall give account of all our deeds;
seeing also our crimes set before our eyes,
and the books of conscience open before us,
we shall break forth into most bitter cries and sobs,
the necessary opportunities of action being withdrawn.

no As the wondrous trumpet of the First Archangel soundeth,
the strongest vaults and sei)ulchres shall burst open,
thawing the (death) chill of the men of the present world ;
the bones from every quarter gathering together to their joints,
the ethereal souls meeting them

1 15 and again returning to their proper dwellings.

Orion wanders from his culmination the meridian of heaven,
the Pleiades, brightest of constellations, being left behind,
through the bounds of Ocean, of its unknown eastern circuit ;
Vesper circling in fixed orbits returns by her ancient paths,
120 rising after two years at eventide ;

(these), with figurative meanings, (are) regarded as types.

When Christ, the most High Lord, descendeth from heaven,
before Him shall shine the most brilliant sign and standard of the

Cross ;
and the two chief luminaries being darkened,
125 the stars shall fall to the earth, as the fruit from a figtree,
and the surface of the world shall be like a fiery furnace.
Then shall the hosts hide themselves in the caves of the mountains.

By chanting of hymns continually ringing out,
by thousands of angels rejoicing in holy dances,
130 and by the four living creatures full of eyes,
with the four and twenty happy elders,

casting down their crowns beneath the feet of the Lamb of God,
the Trinity is praised with eternal threefold repetition.

The raging fury of fire shall consume the adversaries,
135 unwilling to believe that Christ came from God the Father ;
but we shall forthwith fly up to meet Him,
and so shall we be with Him in divers orders of dignities
according to the everlasting merits of our rewards,
to abide in glory, for ever and ever.

\Vho can please God in the last time,

when the glorious ordinances of truth are

Who but the despisers of this present wojiW/x'^'L ^^ M^DMr

''M

8T, MICHAEL'S ^ ^

154 NOTES.

[The Holy Trinity.]

The title is De uiiitate et trifiitate triiim personarum ; the arginne/it is
the text upo?t ivhich the capituliim is founded, ut in Danieie iiel in Esaia
Icf^itur, ^ uetustus dieriwi sedebat super sedem suam.' Uetustus dierinn
aeternus temporum erat. Uetustus dierum deus dicitur, pro multitudine
dierum ante quos deus erat, uel quia fuit ante omnia tempora. It is
indeed a prophefs text that he gives, quia ipse propheta fuit, and he
took it fro77i Daniel in particular, because it is he who was later and
nobler [than the other prophets^ ; so too Colum Cille 7vas latest and
noblest of Ireland's prophets. T :

" £>e unit ate et trinitate deitatis trium personarum is the title ; but the
argument is tit dicitur in Da?iiele, ' ecce uideba??i sedes positas, et uetustus
dierum sedebat super sedem suam.^ Now, altus and almus are 2ised to
denote ^ nobility,^ et ideo po?iitur hie, because it denotes ''height^ and ''depth,'
ut Cicero dicit ' altum mare ' et ' altum caelum,' whereas almus denotes
' nobility ' tantumi" B.

As to the reference to Cicero, we may note De off. i. 151, and De
nat. deorum, ii. 104.

prositor^ i.e. gefiitor i.e. the great sower T.

Seminator uitis ; sertor agri ; sator horti ; sero, seui, satum ; seminor,
idem ; sator ; prosero, ui, situm ; with the ending -or, so that it makes
prositor B""".

The word is only known in the feminine to the lexicons ; the Isi-
dorian Glossaries have ' prosatrix, genetrix.'

uetustus^ i.e. (Eternus i.e. senior of the tif?ies i.e. elder and chief of our
te??tpora T. For the reading here adopted of Dan. vii. 9, see above

2 absque origine\ i.e. without matter, or ivithout origin T,
prifnordii^ must be pronounced as a trisyllable. See p. xxviii above.
crepidine\ i.e. without end, for crepido is foiuid in the signification of
' boundary ' or ^" foundatiofi \ ut in lege dicitur, sacerdos decurrere faciet
sanguinem ad crepidifiem altaris, id est, ad fundamentum B. Other
instances of ' crepido ' being used in the sense of ' end ' or ' boundary '
will be found at Exod. ii. 5, Judges vii. 23.

4 We have had the gloss on Christus before (vol. i. p. 12) ; it comes
from Isid. Etym. xvii. 2.

5 perpetua is necessary for the rhyme, and so we have translated ;
perpetuae is either a mere blunder of the scribe of T, or else an ortho-
graphical peculiarity. The substitution of ae for a in Irish MSS. is not
uncommon.

6 We have not been able to identify the reference to Jerome in the
T gloss ; but the comparison given there is common enough. See
e.g. [Aug.] Serm. ad fratres in eremo (Migne, P.L. xl. 1321), and
Ambrose (Migne, P. L. xvi. 737).

7 saluci\ i.e. the Catholic Faith .... and under its prO'
tection T.

THE HYMX ALTUS PROSATOR. 155

This gloss is in part illegible, hut it is sufficiently plain tiiat it refers
to the parallelism between this first stanza and the QuiiinK/ue lenity
which has been already pointed out in the Preface, and is indeed
obvious.

This first stanza, unlike all the others, has seven lines. It is just
possible that 1, 7 may not have been in the hymn as originally written,
but added in the interests of orthodoxy. It was, however, known to
Hraban Maur, and is reproduced by him as 1. 23 of his hymn Aeterne
rerum conditor.

B.
[The Creation of the Angels.]

The title is : De formatione nouem ^raduum ; ti-ibus p)'(ctermissis nan
per ignorantiam, sed pro angustia capituli pnetermisit. The argument is
' Fiat /ux et facta est /ux ' TFB.

8 ange/os^ For this rcaso?i he omitted to place Cherubin and Seraphiir
along ivith the others, because they are further from human beings in
respect of kncrwledge aiui abode. The nine grades a?'e these, viz. angeliy
archangeli, uirtutes^ potestates^ principatus, dominatio?ies, throni, chei'iibini
et seraphim T'""-'.

This is the usual list of the nine orders of heavenly beings, derived
ultimately from the Celestial Hierarchy of Dionysius the Areopagite, and
based on such passages as Eph. i. 21 and Col. i. 16. It was familiar
to Irish writers,^ as it was to all Western Christendom in the middle
ages.

The Latin gloss on angelos comes from the treatise Z)e ecclesiasticis
dogniatibus of Gennadius of Marseilles, which was often ascribed (as
here by the glossator) to Isidore.

TO otiosci\ i.e. sine operatione i.e. inactive or idle in not bestowing
treasures T.

So also B. The ])hrase ut non esset bonitas dei otiosa occurs in the
treatise De eccles. dogniatibus (c. \) just mentioned. Compare also Hrab.
Maur. de Uniuerso iv. 10.

1 1 largitatis] i.e. for God was bountiful towards Mis creatures B.

12 pHuilegia] i.e. the privileges and the honours viz. every grade above
another ; i.e. quasi priuata lex T :

i.e. great hojiour or preeminence of angel over the 7'est of the ci-eatures B..

The XQdidmg preuigili a of T is a mere blunder of the scribe.
' 13 7nagnopere\ i.e. ivith the great deed ; or., mightily, i.e. greatly T:

i.e. mightily B.

possibili'\ i.e. by the poiverfu I utterance, i.e. by the powe7ful praise that
angels put upoji Hiin dicentes, Sanctus, sanctus, sanctus, do?ninus T.

Thsii possibilis shall be taken, as the glossator takes it, in the sense of
' powerful ' seems demanded by the context. But the glossator has not
understood that fatimine refers to the Divine Voice of Power, not to the
praises of the angelic host.

fatimine] i.e. from the woi'd ^fateor ' B. The F glossator evidently did
not understand the word.

^ See Atkinson, Passions, p. 452, and Stokf;s' Book 0/ Lismore, p. cv.

156 NOTES.

[The Fall of the Angels.]

The title is, De trausmigratione nouem graduiim principis. The
argument is taken frofn the Apocalypse^ Vidi stellatn de caelo cecidissc
in terrain ; et in Esaia^ Quomodo cecidisti Lucifer (jui maiie oriebaris
TFB.

Y or pri?icipis the B scholiast has angelorum, uel de peccato Adae. With
the reading principis^ the allusion is, no doubt, to those passages of
Scripture where Satan is called princeps e.g. Jn. xii. 31, Eph. ii. 2, &:r.
The alternative title de peccato Adae found in B, though certainly wroni.,
is interesting as indicating that at the time of the production of
that manuscrii)t the titles to the several stanzas of the Alius were not
stereotyped. Two alternative titles to the Q stanza are found, in like
manner, in the Franciscan manuscript (F).

speciniitiis^ i.e. of the form T:

i.e. of the shape or of the form B.

16 Compare i Tim. iii. 6.

17 apostatae(]ue\ i.e. rue rant i.e. the off-starting angels T, (Sec.
eoden{\ i.e. l^y the s ante fall T.

lugubri] i.e. lameiitable^ viz. by themselves et a His, quia def?iones suum
■lap sum lugent T ;

i.e. lugubri i.e. flebili viz. alwut great grief to themselves and to all
other of created bei figs., for the transgression angeloruf?i deceived them B.

The additional glosses on this word in T"'° and in B are due to a
■confusion of lu^^ubri with lubricus of 1. 21. That in T'"^' is: uel
lugubrium lignitm est super guod etiam aues stare ?io?i possunt for its
slipperiness ; {a name') which froj?i this ivas applied to eve?y thing slippery.
This is given over again in B'"^' on lubricus in 1. 21, which see. This
confusion, like the alternative titles to which we have called attention
above, shows that the original source of the glosses in T and B must
be sought at a date considerably prior to the production of these
manuscripts.

18 cenodoxiae^ i.e. inanis gloriae uel superbiae ; uel., of the common
^lory, nam ' cenon ' Graece commune Latine dicitur, i.e. cofnmon ; ' doxia^ \
uero gloria T :

i.e. ^ ceno^^ uanae, ^ doxia ' Graece gloria interpretatur, viz. '' of the long]
envy ' a diabolo contra hominem B.

In the B gloss in derjuait sir of the MS. should probably be ind for-
mail sir = peruicacis inuidiae.

19 Compare Jude 6, ' angelos uero qui non seruauerunt suum prin-
-cipatum,' &c.

1).

[The Fall of the Angels.]

The end of the title seems to witness to a various reading siderum
for stcllarum in Apoc. xii. 4, but we do not know of any authority for
this.

THE HYMN ALIUS PROSATOR. 157-

There are, it will be observed, in this stanza, and occasionally after-
wards, a few Latin glosses in M which Dr. Ratti holds to be of the
twelfth century. They have been omitted by Rcifferscheid.

20 Compare Apoc. xii. 9, 'draco illc magnus, serpens antiquus.'

2 1 serpens\ i.e. in the tempting::; of Adam H.
lubricus\ i.e. slippery T :
iubricus a luhro (jiiod est nomen leuissimi ciii oldenita scinipes adhaerei'e

non possunt snmmitatem : omnis leuis de ijuo quislabitur lubricus : dicitur
of that tree on the top of which birds live : and of their d/zn^^ is made
si/k T'^'\

i.e. lubricus., eo quod ibi labitur, lubrum, viz. a tree in Oriente, o?i which
flies do not stick because of its slipperiness sed cadent., and from it the name
is <^iven to everything:; slippery : and birds are in its top, and it is from
their duni:; thai silk is made B"'^.

sapient ior\ i.e. he is cleverer T:

The end of the B gloss is: uel sapientia ^ ?nore foolish,' ut dicit,
sapientia huius 7nundi : cf. Gen. iii. i, 'serpens erat callidior cunctis
animantibus terrae,' and p. 144, above.

22 feracioribus^ The reading of T is to be discarded for ferocioribus
of the other MSS. and of Hraban.

23 tertiani\ there are three modes of explaining it, one third in aere and
one third maris . . . et terrae and one third in barathro, viz. in inferito

in barathrum^ i.e. in infernum TF:

i.e. into a place of gore T :

i.e. in puteum i.e. quasi uoratrum i.e. uorago ut Circirius dicit, Bara-
thrum i.e. hiatus terrae viz. putereus in profundo maris et terrae. Bai'a-
ihrum i.e. a place in which old people a7'e put, and they are not drawn, out
of it till death ; and from it the name is applied to every other horrible
thing B.

We have not been able to identify ' Circirius,' if indeed that be the name
in the manuscript. And the gloss 'dico' in M we do not understand.

25 refugas^ i.e. deserters B.

This seems to be the best reading ; but refugax may be right.
Hraban has refugus . . . praecipitans. See above p. 144. Refuga
always means apostate in the Old Latin versions of Scripture. Cf.
ut refuga legu?fi et exsecrabilis 2 Mace. v. 8, the only place where it is
])reserved in the Vulgate.

pai-asito\ i.e. by the juggler, i.e. by himself, who is a Juggler T :

i.e. parasita, juggler, or liar, or stinking pit B. Parasitus is used by
Martial (ix. 29) in the sense of ' actor,' ' player,' &c.

It is tempting to mdid paradiso and to translate 'headlong thrust from
paradise,' but the testimony of the MSS. {ox parasito which is confirmed
by Hraban, is too strong.

praecipites'\ i.e. headlong flung : i.e. {into) hell T : i.e. flung dow?i a
diabolo B.

The gloss has ? ind-{f)raigthechu, where rind, 'point,' corresponds to
\jaX. prae, and traigthechu is an adj. (from traig, 'foot ') corresponding
to -piles o{ praecipiteSj whose true analysis the glossator did not under-
stand.

■ 5« NOTES.

The Old T^tin text {h) of Apoc. xii. 9, has " et praecipitatus est
in terrain," which gives us the chie to the use of the word praecipitcs
here.

[The Creation of the Earth and of Man.]

26 machi)iam'\ i.e. the mass ; or, the trap B. The word chuithech is
frequently used in Senchus Mor for 'trap,' 'pitfall'; cf. I. 2 72,z:
III. 260,2 ; 456, 17.

arf?ioma??i] i.e. the mutual fitness that there is Itetiveen created things
TB : ut dicit Boethius i.e. man and man (.?), 6^^. B.

28 uirguitorum'] i.e. of the ivood, or of the . . . . B. Todd
translates inna rul)a, * of the forest.'

ar/)i(scu/a^ i.e. the shriil)s B.

(Compare S. Gall. 65, a. 7, iox fualascach.

3 1 de7nuni\ i.e. at last B.
protoplastun{\ i.e. first formed B.
praesagmine'] i.e by host-leadership T :

Praesagmine i.e. by prophecy, i.e. Christi T""^ ; or, by host-leadership
T"^" B :

i.e. leadership agminis hominum. Praesagmen enim a presule et agmen
cotnponitur. Agmeti dei ' host-leadership,^ so that it was for Adam^
tit Cic. dicit, Deus cmicta creauit, Adam uero ea cu?n ?iomin.ibus twminauit

The gloss in B"^^ is only verbally different.

The first explanation of praesagmen as ' prophecy ' is undoubtedly
right (see praesagmina in 1. 85), and the allusion is to the idea that
Adam named all the beasts in the spirit of prophecy.

F.
[The Praises of the Heavenly Host.]

The title refers to the ancient opinion that the stars created on the
fourth day were angels ; see e.g. Greg. Moral, xxviii. 14.

The quotation from the Book of Job is introduced as from the
' Wisdom of Solomon' in the Irish group of MSS., and is taken from a
praeHieronymian version of the Latin Bible. See above, p. 144.

32 etheris^ i.e. of the cether TB.

33 pro mirabili\ i.e. on account of the very great work?/ianship B.

Cf. Bar. iii. 35 " [stellae] uocatae sunt et dixerunt Adsumus ; et
luxerunt ei cum iucunditate, qui fecit illas."

34 opificeni\ i.e. deed-doer i.e. opus et faciens TB.

35 praeconio^ i.e. from the praiseful resounding word{T) viz. Sanctus
snnctus sa?ictus domifius deus Sabaoth B. The word bndurdonail is
unknown to us ; it is possible that dordan may be involved in it.

concentu^ i.e. from the excellent united {om. B) song TB.

37 naturae] />. not in their {om. T) nature 7vas planted God's praise ;

THE HYMN ALTL'S PROSATOR. 159

sed in uoluntate et potestate sun, sicuf ostcndit a?ite ubi dicit ' nffiorc if
arbitrio' TB \

T adds : /// dicunt, for tJwy would be able face re malum if they /lad /10/
the loi'e of God. The glossator apparently takes * amore et arbitrio ' to
refer to God^s love and will.

The quotation trom Augustine added in B we have not succeeded in
identifying.

[The Fall of Man.]

39 The gloss on secundo explains that Satan's first fall was from
heaven to earth, the second from earth to hell. This is worked out
more fully in the curious marginal gloss in T (which has been overlooked
by previous editors), viz. : —

ruif] i.e. diabolus fell first de caelo t/iroui^k his first crime ; secundo de
aere through his second crime. Or, ' ruit ' fro ' irruit ' hie causa rhythvii
ponitur quasi diceret, he threatened an attack on God tantum, secundo on
Adam. Aliter : ruit, i.e. he fell at first through tempti?ig God ; he fell
secundo through te?npting Adani. Causa secundae perditionis diaboli is
told : the name ''fall ' is given hie to the pain that was iftfiicted on the
devil for the temptation primorum duoru77i parentum, after the pain that
was inflicted on him prius for tempting God T"'^\

zabulus^ i.e. a Greek -word, ^ de-consiliarius'' interpretatur ; 2iel infirm us

4jft€r Or, perhaps, from the word ' diabulus ' 7vas

made ' zabulus ' through z out of d by cutting B.

That is, the glossator first equates diabolus to ^a + (3oi>\o<,' = de-
consiliarius. The second explanation is that it is = ' infirmus iar
_gennaith,' where the last word (plainly written in the MS.) is unintelli-
gible : perhaps it is meant for a proper name, secundum Gennadium (?).

41 consternaretitur^ i.e. they would be terrified T:

that they might not terrify, quia imcisibiles sunt demones B.

42 non ualentes\ i.e. that they might not show B.

fascibus\ i.e. in their bundles and i?i their bandages like bundles, as
if every bandage of them were bound in its special place like bundles
T-^'B'.

Thus the allusion in 1. 43 is to the words of St. Matth. xiii. 30.
' Alligate ea fasciculos ad comburendum,' \\\\qxq fasciculis is the reading
of at least one MS. of the Irish family (see Wordsworth in loc).

€rgastolorun{\ i.e. of the tortureprisons ; or, of the work-prisons ;
ergastulum enim opus ex . . , longum interpretatur T.

In the Book of Efioch we have a similar idea ; " the fallen angels,
whose spirits continue to tempt man, are bound fast under the hills of
the earth " ; and the stars are " bound until the time when their guilt
should be consummated " (x. 12, xv. 11, xviii. 16).

i6o NOTES.

H.
[The Second Fall of the Angels.]

44 e medio is sufficiently explained by the glosses in TB. The similar
gloss in M shows that the reading 7-emedio of that MS. is a mere blunder
of the scribe.

delectus] i.e. he 7vas cast down T.

45 It is possible that cuius should be taken with acris, rather than, as
we have done, with satilitum. If so the allusion would be to Eph. ii. 2
" princeps potestatis aeris huius."

cojistipatur\ i.e. is condensed ; or., is filled B.
satilitu?fi\ i.e. of the officers TB.

46 globo] I.e. by a circle ; or., by a company B.

perduellliwi\ co7iduelllu77i i.e. of the two-battled 07ies viz. biter se lnulce77i
se77iper ; or., battle contra deu77i et ho7nl7tes, i.e. quasi duobus bellls bella-
toru77i. Allter perduelllu77i i.e. e7i7nlty quia fit perduellis inimicus T.

The B gloss is not substantially different, but it gives a reference to
Cicero which we have not been able to verify.

The gloss in the margin of E, which is only partially legible, we take
from Boucherie's article on the hymn.

exe77iplarlbus] i.e. fro77i the examples de7no7iu7n B.

l77ibuti'\ i.e. instructed B.

We idiVa fortchl as {or for ct hi, ' learned ' or ' instructed ' ; or perhaps it
is {f)oircthi r= 'damaged.'

49 oculis] We can make nothing of the illegible gloss on this word.

[The Clouds and the Sea.]

50 uiuehunt] i.e. they raise or car7y T.
p07itias\ I.e. the seas T : see ]).

bru77iallas] i.e bnnna a breul 7notu soils In eo ; It Is for this reason . . .
rather tha7i . . . . 07t account of the quantity of
ivater : bru77ta edax uel edacltas lnterp7'etatur T. j

With this last etymology cf. Isid. Ety7n. v. 35. *

5 1 trlbus\ I.e. . . . the three dodra7its 77ientlo7ied hie are the three
dodrants of retardation, i.e. the three full . . . of the equinox : . . ^
and the sun also ; It Is a dodrant of an hour with respect to retardation
and half an U7icla, 7it Baeda dlclt ; but he left out the halfuncla causa
7-hythinl ; or It Is followhig Philip that caused hwi to leave it out. Pro- f |

fundlores autetn a7'e they, because they fill 7nore the river 77iouths and the
la7ids, a7id the clouds brmg water to the7n the 77i07-e . . . on each depth
7narls. And ' 77iare ' I.e. 07i every an7i of the sea they come over upon the

land. Qulque paludes I.e sea, so that they fling the77i at

the tl77ie of their ebb (?) Qulque I.e. thesauri, that Is, the winds that brhv^
. . . the pools T'^K

This obscure and half obliterated gloss seems based on a misundci
standing. Dodrans in 1. 51 means, as often, 'the flood of the ocean.

THE HYMN ALTUS PR OS A TOR. i6i

But the glossator has gone back to the original meaning ' three-quarters
of an hour.' It is thus used by Pliny {Nat. Hist. ii. 14 Df limae
motn), and thence by Bede, of the moon's retardation, the ])eriod
of which is described as a ' dodrans ' ////j- a 'semi-uncia,' i.e. 45 minutes
plus 2\ minutes. And the glossator remarks that the odd 2^ minutes
or 'semi-uncia ' was omitted by the ])oet causa rhythmi. The ' Philip '
whom Bede followed was a discipline of Jerome who died in 455.
He wrote a Commentary on Job which Bede largely used ; and, as the
glossator notes, Philip omits mention of the semi-uncia when speaking
of the moon's retardation.

The idea of three dodrants is probably due to a further confusion,
arising from a reminiscence of the fact that a dodraus was equivalent to
M/'t'c-quarters of an hour.

It is hardly worth while to expend more space on an analysis of this
curious theory of the tides. It is, however, interesting in connexion
with the statements of the Amra (11. 390-400) that Cnlumba was
skilled in astronomical science, and in ' the course of the sea.'

5 2 climatibus^ i.e. fro?fi heights T.

The construction of this stanza is very obscure ; w^e have taken 1. 5 1
as parenthetical, and maris in 1. 52 with, fofitil) us in 1. 50. This is
av.kward ; but we cannot make sense of the words in any other way.

ceru/eis^ i.e. fro?ft the dark blue waves., or the dark blue blasts T.
Previous editors have equated athchaib to achthaib, ' fields ' from achad ;
but turbines could not be 'fields.' For athach ' blast,' cf. FM. 1121,
1 146, ^athach gaoithe moire.'

c^Ty profuturas^ i.e. the things that 2V ill benefit T.

55 The explanation of ^/^'/^//d^ by uenti ox flamina in the T gloss seems
to be the only possible way of making sense. E by reading quaeque
supports this view. .

The writer of the hymn seems to have thought, with some mentioned
by Isidore, that the tides are caused by the winds.
reciproca£\ The gloss on this is quite illegible.

[The Punishment of Sinners.]

56 The reference to the 'giants' is explained by the scholiast in
the Titulus by Job xxvi. 5 ; but the marginal note in M brings out
that it is the giants who perished at the flood that are in the mind of
the poet. So in Wisd. xiv. 6 we have: " ab initio cum perirent,
superbi gigantes." The 'giants' were held in the early cosQiogonies
to be the descendants of the fallen angels ; so that we have here
another reminiscence of speculations like those found in the Book of
Enoch.

58 The gloss in the margin of T (by a later hand) is only partly
legible ; it evidently alludes to the giants under Mount Etna.

59 The gloss in scriptura in T shows that comprobantur is to be taken
in the meaning of ' recorded,' ' attested,' which it might very well have.

aduri^ i.e. that they be burnt T.
LIBER HYMN. II. M

i62 NOTES.

60] i.e. 7norasses of hell T. The four rivers of Tartarus are also
mentioned, though not named, in the Second Vision of Adamnan and
in' other Irish compositions. Mone observes in reference to another
poem (Hypuii 7?iedii aeui i. 409) that the mention of these ' heathen
names ' in a hymn may be taken as pointing to an early date ; for in the
later middle ages they would not have been understood by the people.

Carubdibus\ i.e. from the whirlpools for the great?iess

of the tempest of the whirlpool it is likened to whirlpools of Cocytus and .
leading to hell T.

Carubdibus tiirgentibus i.e. from the rocks that are heaped or rough or
glowing with heat ; or., from the whirlpools that are ragitig T'^".

strangulati^ i.e. rete?tti i.e. held de scillis i.e. this is a story that is
recorded here. . . . Scilla filia Porci 6^t. T"^9.

6 r fluctibus'\ i.e. fro?n the Scilla?i waves., i.e. front the waves of the
whirlpool whose name is Scilla., et in Si cilia est, a7id for the greatness of its
storm besides T.

scrupibus seems to point to a form scrupis., meaning ' rock ' ; but
scrupus is the only known form. There may be a confusion with rupis,
* rock,' or scrobis, ' dyke.'

[The Rain and the Rivers.]

62 crebrat] i.e. filters T.
cribrare is to drop as through a sieve. Compare 2 Reg. xxii. 12

*' cribrans aquas de nubibus caelorum."

63 simul\ i.e. when the barriers are burst ; or., ivhen the barriers are
maiiifested : i.e. ruptis ligationibus quibus quodam modo nubibus aqua T,
Fritecoirse no doubt means ' barriers,' but its analysis is obscure. It
seems :=frith-tecor, as the equivalent of ob-iex. Tecur, with the idea
of 'keeping back' is well known (MR 216, 12 and 162, 15); but if|
this be the word, then the tinal se must be the demonstrative particle
which seems here uncalled for. Again the analysis of a?iata ?i- is
uncertain : for even on the basis of the dictum " forma simplex an
temporali magis significatione...poscit sequentem notam relatmam"Bi
(Zeuss- 709), we should hardly get anatambristi Sind anatafaillsigthe.

65 pedetemtim^ i.e. paulatim ; i.e. foot-goifigs T. This is an etymo-
logical gloss orv pede-tei7iptini.

telli'\ The gloss corroborates the reading, and notes that tellus i
sometimes counted a noun of the second declension.

per tr actus \ i.e. through circuits T.

istius^ good here,fro7n the ivord .... in rod or cast .
est quicquid . . T'^". It is a pity that the note is illegible, for a;
explanation of istius, which has little meaning here, would have bee:
welcome, sithbe means ' chief,' ' leader ' as well as ' rod.' See O'Dav
116.

67 infiuu7it'\ i.e. they flow forth T.

THE HYMN ALT US PR OS A TOR. 163

[The Foundations of the Earth.]

The version of Job xxvi. 7, 8, quoted in this and the preceding title is
nearer to the O. L. text already cited (p. 144), than to the Vulgate. The
words ' molis mundi uirtute dei continetur ' are probably a reminiscence
of Isa. xl. 12. * Quis appendit tribus digitis molem terrae.'

68 appcnditur\ suspended T.
dialihus\ i.e. diuinis, . . . diuinus secundum ueteres ; or may be

. would be right here T.
The word diaiis is frequent in Adamnan's Vifa Columbae.

69 circulus\ i.e. the great abyss in which was itnplafited the law of a
circle T

70 The true reading must be suffultus, but there is no MS. authority
for it.

iduma\ ^rhe gloss explains that this is a Hebrew word for ' hand ' i.e.

connected with 1"^. In the curious piece known as the Hisperica Famina

see p. 143) the word occurs and is again accompanied by the gloss ; i.e.

manu.^ So also the B copy of the Lorica of Gildas (vol. i. p. 208)

glosses idumas in 1. 36 by manus.

The dots underneath idu?na and ualida in T show that these words are
to be taken together.

72 promo ?itoriis^ i.e. from promontories T. The gl. however, seems
to be o arusaib^ whereas ' promontories ' would require o rosaib.

soils is, of course, a mere blunder of the scribe of T for solidis.

N.
[Hell.]

The punctuation of Lc. xvi. 22 adopted in the title ' Et sepultus est in
nferno ' follows the true Vulgate text. Wordsworth in loc. should be
;:onsulted for a discussion of the point.

75 Compare Ecclus. x. 13, "cum enim morietur homo, hereditabit
^erpentes et bestias et uermes."

After line 79 a page is lost in T. Consequently we have adopted F
IS our standard from 1. 80 to 1. 127.

[The Worship of the Under World.] *

In the title the words of Phil. ii. 9, 10, on which 11. 80, 81 are
)ased, are quoted as ' in Apocalipsi,' through a confusion between
ipocalypsis and Apostolus, w^hich is not infrequent ; e.g. it is found again
n the titles to the T and Z stanzas.

81 precario seems to be used adverbially, 'in prayer.'

82 reuoluere is probably a remini.scence of an Old Latin text of Apoc,
". 3, where the Vulgate has aperire.

1 Migne, P.L., xc. 1187.

M 2

i64 NOTES.

83 Colgan could not read the latter part of this line in F ; and it was
emended by Todd into " septem licet praemonitis." This, however, was
only a guess.

85 Yox praesagmi7ia see note on 1. 31 above.

[The Garden of Eden.]

The quotation of Apoc. ii. 7 and xxii. 2 in the title preserves Old
Latin readings, manducare for edere (Vulg.), and curaiionem (Primasius
has curatione) for sanitatem (Vulg.). Quinto in the former quotation is
a mere blunder of the scribe for iiitae.

86 a prohemio. The Vulgate of Gen. ii. 8 is "plantauerat autem
dominus deus paradisum uoluptatis a principio " ; it is possible that
here an Old Latin rendering is preserved.

89 et tica of F is probably a mere blunder for etiam of the other MSS.

91 With inenarrabiles compare i Cor. ii. 9, and with deliciae, Ezech.
xxviii. 13.

[The Thunders of Sinai.]

We have already (p. 156) called attention to the alternative title
registered for this stanza. The verse Apoc. xvi. 18, is introduced by
the words in chanoin i.e. ' the text.' See title to cap. A.

92 condictuni] This is a not uncommon word in ecclesiastical Latin,
e.g. in Adamnan and in Bede. Cf. Gen. xviii. 14 " iuxta condictum
reuertar ad te."

94-96. Compare Exod. xix. 16 " ecce coeperunt audiri tonitrua, ac
micare fulgura, et nubes densissima operire montem, clangorque
buccinae uehementius perstrepebat." The lampades are mentioned in|
Exod. XX. 18.

For iacula as applied to the lightning flashes, compare the account ol
the theophany in Ps. xvii. 15: " Et misit sagittas suaS; et dissipauit eos
fulgura multiplicauit et conturbauit eos."

[The Day of Judgement.]

The splendid treatment of this theme by Thomas of Celano {flor
1225) in the hymn Dies Irae is too familiar to need further mention.
99 dies . . imidictae: Compare Isa. xxxiv. 8 "dies ultionis domini."
104 Compare i Jn. ii. 17.

S.
[The Day of Judgement.]

107 Compare Dan. vii. 10; Apoc. xx. 12. The interpretation of th
* books ' of the latter passage as ' libri conscientiae ' is also found in th

THE HYMN ALTUS PR OS A TOR. 165

Li^er de promiss. et praedict. dei \\\ to which reference has already been
made : ' Libri aperti, conscientiae singulorum ' are the words.

109 The sense is : *' for the night cometh when no man can work."

[The General Resurrection.]

For the quotation in the title of i Thess. iv. 6 as in " Apocalipsi " see
above on the title to the O stanza. Cf. Apoc. viii. yff.

no With this stanza the stately verses of \\\^ Dies Irae may be
compared :

Tuba mirum spargens sonum
per sepulchra regionum
coget omnes ante thronum

Mors stupebit et natura
quum resurget creatura
iudicanti responsura.

Ill In our translation we have taken claustra ac poliandtia as the
nominative to erumpent.

Houcherie emends frigola of his MS. into friuola and translates
" voleront en eclats les clotures les plus solides et les enceintes des
cimetieres, objets d'un vain luxe pour les hommes de la generation
pr^sente." Although we are not certain that we have translated the
lines correctly, this must be wrong. Hraban seems to have felt the
difficulty for he replaces 1. 1 1 t by one of his own : " surget homo a tellure
restauratus a puluere."

The whole stanza recalls the Vision of Ezekiel (xxxviii. 7-12); see
p. 145 above.

1 1 4 The metre demands ethralibus with EI ; oduiantibus, the reading
of the Prosper MSS. and of Hraban, is better than obeuntibus.

[Types of Christ.]

The title of this stanza is given incorrectly by Colgan, thus : " De
tribus syderibus thronos septem significantibus &c. " ; and his mistake
has been reproduced by Todd and the Marquess of Bute. But there is
no doubt about the true reading of the MS. which we have printed.
The three stars meant are, probably, the three conspicuous stars in
Orion. In the tract De signis caeli printed among Bede's works,^ we
have : " Orion obliquus quidem Tauro habet in capite Stellas splen-
didas tres." And a little further down in the same work we read :
"Hae autem stellae Pleiades et uirgiliae necnon et subuculae dicun-
tur " ; the designation iiergiliae for the Pleiades, of which Uirgilio in
1. 117 is a corruption, was quite usual. Isidore (De nat. rerum 26 de

' Migne, P.L xc. 947.

i66 NOTES.

nom. astr.) gives them the same name, and it is also found in the Old
Latin version of Job ix. 9 as we have noted above (p. 145). The
words " astrorum splendidissimo " in 1. 117 are possibly in like manner
a reminiscence of the Old Latin, the Vulgate having " micantes
Stellas."

The 'tria sidera' of the title may, however, be Orion, Lucifer, and
Vesper ; this would fall in well with Philip's Commentary on Job xxxiii.
32, as given by Bede, which makes both Lucifer and Vesper types of
Christ, the former of His Divine, the latter of His human nature.

In any case, the meaning seems to be somewhat as follows. In the
preceding stanzas the Day of Judgement and the general Resurrection
have been treated ; we now go on to consider the second Advent of
Christ, which is described in detail in the X stanza. And the idea here
is that His coming is certain and will be at the appointed time, although
He be now removed from the sight of men. Even so is Orion invisible
through half of his diurnal course; and Venus in the course of her
motion through the heavens returns surely to the same place after a
period of nearly two years.^ That is to say, we understand the first
half of the stanza to refer to the diurnal movement of Orion, which,
as a matter of fact, sets a Httle before the Pleiades (and did so in
Columba's day and country) ; and in the second half there is reference
to the less obvious annual movement of the heavenly bodies, Venus
being selected as a well-known and conspicuous example.

Line 121 points out that the preceding lines are meant to illustrate
a spiritual truth, viz. the certainty of the Second Advent, though it be
long delayed.

118 The word tithis for the Ocean is frequent in Latin of this
period. Compare Reeves' Adamnan p. 184 n.

120 In illustration of the old word uesperugo (and indeed of the whole
stanza) we may quote Plautus Amphitruo ii. ti8 : ''Nam neque se
septentriones quoquam in caelo commouent, neque se luna quoquam
mutat atque uti exortast semel, nee lugulae neque Uesperugo
neque Uergiliae occidunt. ita statim stant signa." The word also
occurs in a text-book much read in Ireland in the middle ages, the
tract De nupt. Phil, et Merc. (cap. de stella Veneris) of Marcianus
Capella : " Nunc faciens ortum, ut in Luciferum, nunc post occasum
solis effulgens, uesper, uel uesperugo nominatur." This book was
generally condemned by the Westerns on account of the ' pagan ' ideas
which it set forth ; but it was popular among the Celts. See Diet.
Christian Antiquities^ pp. 1851, 1858.

[The Second Coming of Christ.]

123 It was a common opinion that the 'sign of the Son of Man'
would be a luminous cross in the heavens. See e.g. Chrysostom and

1 The synodic time of Venus is 584 days, which is roughly described by our author as " bieiinium,"
This seems to be borrowed from Philip on Job xxxviii. 32, as copied by Bede: " hunc igitur
Luciferum appariturum terris post biennium autumant in oriente nasci." For this .-jnd some other
observations on this stanza we are indebted to Rev. M. H. Close.

THE HYMN ALTUS PROSATOR. 167

Jerome on Mt. xxiv. 30, :ind Cyril Hieros. Cat, xv. 22. The idea,
indeed, is as old as the Didache (xvi. 6) : Ka\ tot( (painjatTon ra nrj/mua
rfjf (iXtjOet'a's' TrptcTov (Ttj^ietoi' tvTreTflVeu;? tj/ oviinvu', chu fni/nc7oi' 0aii'//v
/T«\7r<77o«:, vfi/ 70 -TfHTov oi'daraaif vckjjwv. The third line of the Dies
Irae, according to the later Gallican version, is "crucis expandens
uexilla." And the hymn Vexilla regis is followed in the Roman
Breviary, on Sept. 14, by the versicle and response: "Hoc signum
crucis erit in caelo : cum dominus ad iudicandum uenerit."

125 A paraphrase of Apoc. vi. 13. See above p. 145.

126 Cf. 2 Pet. iii. 10.

[The Worship of Heaven.]

Here we resume again the text of T.

128 tinnientibus^ i.e. when they sitig the songs T.

129 The word tn'pudimn 'a dance,' occurs once in the Vulgate, viz.
at Esther viii. 16.

uernantihus^ i.e. they were frequent T.

The word properly means ' to be spring-like,' but is used in Ovid
(7>. 3, 12, 8) of the singing of birds.

131 The interpretations of the glossator are all common ; the la.st
one is found in Jerome's Prologiis galeatus.

133 tribus uicii)us, i.e. of course, the Ter Sanctus of Apoc. iv. 8.

[The Destruction of the Ungodly and the Rewards of

THE Righteous.]

134 Zelus ignis furibundiis. This phrase may possibly point to a
version of Hebr. x. 27 different from that of Jerome, which is quoted in
the title.

135 This line would seem to point to a period and locality where
the Divinity of our Lord had been questioned ; this would hardly be
Gaul in the seventh or eighth century, but it might very well be
Scotland or Ireland in the sixth, where Christian preachers had fre
quently to address themselves to their pagan fellow-countrymen. And
this falls in with the authorship of Columba.

137 Cf. 1 Cor. XV. 41, 42.

139 The reading of T., gloria for secula at the end of the line is a
mere blunder of the scribe.

The second antiphon may have been added, as Todd suggests, in
consequence of the tradition about Gregory's censure of the hymn for
containing too scanty praise of the Trinity. See above p. 25.

The last line may contain an allusion to Mc. xii. 35.

The words of the antiphon Quis placet deo seem intended to point the
same moral as that suggested by the seer in the Book of Enoch. In
the last days, the order in their courses of the heavenly bodies will be

1 68 NOTES,

disturbed : the world will be convulsed ; the ' ordinances of truth,' the
undevialing laws of nature, will be ' changed.' In such a time of
physical upheaval and confusion, only those who have set their heart on
heavenly things will be safe.

The collect Deiim patreni mgenitum is only found in the " Irish " group
of manuscripts.

After the words ueritatis ordinibus, i.e. at the end of the second
line of the antiphon Qiiis placet deo, the following collect is found in I :

" Adesto domine officio seruitutis nostrae, ut quia tu dignatus es
lauare pedes discipulorum tuorum opera manuum tuarum ne despicias,
quae nobis retinenda mandasti, sed sicut his abluuntur exteriora
inquinamenta corporum, ita per te omnium nostrorum interiora
lauentur peccata. Per dominum nostrum, &c."

I'his collect is well known as prescribed for the ceremony of pedi-
lauiuvi on Maundy Thursday. It is found e.g. in the Leofric Missal
(ed. Warren, p. 226), where it is called oratio post viandatimi^' d^wA
in the Missal of Robert of Jumieges (p. 275), and in the Book of
Evesham (p. 84). Again in the Book of Lismore^ it is told of St. Brigid
that on a certain Maundy Thursday the saint washed the feet of four
sick persons " who were biding in the church." Older documentary
evidence for the same practice in the Celtic Church is afforded by the
prose Rule of the Culdees in the Leabhar Breac (B). The passage will
be found at p. 206 of Dr. Reeves' memoir on the Culdees'^ (it should be
observed that Dr. O' Donovan's rendering there given is not free from
inaccuracies) : " The selanns are not made on Maundy Thursday, but
skimmed milk, or a goblet of beer, and if there happen to be any honey-
combs, for this is usual on solemnities and high festivals without vigils or
debt for it. Whey and bread, and dinner is taken after nones. Now at
ih.Q pedi/auium thermit is to be sung, while the pedi'/ma'um is going on.
The preaching of the pedilauium afterwards." Biait here obviously
stands for the Beatitudes, beginning Beati pauperes spii'itti &:c. (see
vol. i. p. xxv).^

These instances sufficiently illustrate the prevalence of the practice of
pedilauium in the Celtic Church ; but we know of no evidence which
directly connects with it the recitation of the Altus. It is possible that
the antiphon Qiiis placet deo may have been used at that service, which
would account for the juxtaposition in I of the collect Adesto domine.

T fol. 12 marg.] This note, copied at vol. i. p. 82, occurs in a
homily in the Leabhar Breac^ transcribed in Atkinson's Passions and
Homilies., p. 445.

F fol. 3 marg.] This note, copied at vol. i. p. 83, is in a late Irish
hand. Its translation is : " Benediction from O'Domnal mac Dabog
son of Mael-tuile with this book ; and it is Colum Cille who sent them
themselves for cure, from the battle of Cuil Dremne. And from Mael-
tuile son of Mael-fith . . are the race of Mac Mael-tuile, i.e. of the
descendants of Neill of the Nine Hostages, Finit" See above p. 140.

' p. 191, ed. Stokes. Cf. also p. ^26.
* Trans. R.I. A., \'o\. \wv (1^6^). •

3 For the baptismal pedilauium, see Warren, Celtic Liturgy, &c. p. 217. See also Irish Eccl.
Record, vol. vi. p. 645.

THE HYMN IN TE CHRISTE, 169

B fol. 237a marg.] This note gives a direction for the recitation of
the hymn :

'* Recite to seven times the Alius
whicli gives no ' law ' to hard demon ;
there is no disease in the world,
nor shower that it will not drive back.''

B fol. 238b marg.] The connexion of this note with the hymn is not
ver}' plain ; possibly it has reference to the fall of Satan through pride,
sung of in stanzas C H c^c. :

" There is a triad
that is not allowed to the poor of the living God :
thanklessness with his life, whatever it be,
grumbling, and pride."

* The poor of the living God ' suggests St. Matth. v. i ; Dr. Lawlor
observes that this may perhaps indicate a connexion of this metrical
note with the Alius through \\\^ pcdilauium (see p. 168 supra).

With the form of the verse we may compare another marginal note in
B (fol. 71): "Three things there are through which God's pleasure is
attained, viz. : chastity in youth, austerity in middle life, sadness in old
age."

On fol. 6 of F there are written in the margins in a sixteenth century
hand a few lines of a metrical martyrology for February and March,
together with one or two other Latin scraps. They are hard to read,
and do not seem worth reproducing here.

The Hymn In te Christe.

The Irish Prefaces need no comment ; they refer to the tradition
found in the Prefaces to the Alius (see above, p. 25), that Columba
composed the hymn In te Chrisie in consequence of the criticism made
by Gregory upon the scanty praise of the Creator in the former hymn.
As was observed above (p. 141) the hymn entitled Aaiutor laborantium
in the T Preface to the Alius may possibly be the one now before us.

We know of no copies of the In ie Chrisie save those contained in the
two manuscripts (T and F; of the Liber Hymnorum. It was first printed
by Colgan {Trias, p. 475) from F. A metrical translation by Rev. A.
Mitchell appeared in the Scoiiish Siandard Bearer for June, 1897.
Mr. Macgregor has printed another in his St. Columba.

The hymn naturally falls mto two parts, the verse ' Christus Redemp-
tor ' (1. 17) beginning the second division. And the statement of the T
scholiast that some held that Columba only composed the five lines 17-
21 is very interesting. The fact is that the hymn is made up of a large
number of liturgical phrases, many of which appear elsewhere; and there
is nothing in either matter or Latinity in the least like the poem Alius
prosaior in the case of which we have found good reason for accepting
the Columban authorship.

l^o NOTES.

Thus Mone has printed^ a hymn on the Day of Judgement from a
thirteenth century Reichenau MS. in which we have the stanza :

*' Deus uita uiuentium, spes morientium
salusque omnium in te sperantium,
miserere omnium ex hac luce migrantium."

Again Hnes 10-12 of the poem of Hraban Maur, printed above (p.
147), in which so much of the Altus is embodied, reproduce several
phrases in the In te Christe :

" Deus salus credentium, deus uita uiuentium
deus deorum omnium deus et princeps principum
deus summus amabilis deus inaestimabilis."

This is plainly a case of borrowing on the part of Hraban Maur.
A hymn of St. Anselm'^ begins in like manner with the words :

" Deus pater credentium, salus in te sperantium."

And in a long prayer in the Basel Psalter (see vol. i. p. xxvii) we have :

" Tu es liberator credentium. Tu es spes laborantium . . . Tu

es creator omnium . . . Tu es princeps omnium uirtutum. Tu es

amator uirginum. Tu es fons sapientium. Tu es fides credentium

&C."3

How far back phrases of this sort go it would be hard to tell. In the
Sarum Ordo ad faciendum catechiimenum there isa collect which opens with
the similar words : " Deus immortale praesidium omnium postulantium,
liberatio supplicum, pax rogantium, uita credentium, resurrectio mortu-
orum."* It is, therefore, difficult to speak wuth confidence as to the
origin of a piece which is made up for the most part of familiar and
obvious expressions of devotion. Tradition, no doubt, must be reckoned
with ; but there is little, if anything, that can be described as Celtic in
the language of the hymn. The iiirtutes spoken of in 1. 6 are perhaps
\}[\Q pozvers believed by the pagan Celts to be resident in the forces of
nature. The Deus in adiutorium of which 1. 3 is a paraphrase was a
favourite ejaculatory prayer with the Irish. And Todd has pointed out^
that the use of the pluperfect for the perfect, which occurs in lines 22-25
is a peculiarity that is also found in the writings of Adamnan ; perhaps,
too, the expression Morica militum ' in 1. 19 betrays Celtic ways of
thinking. Again, the structure of the piece is comparable with that of
the Lorica Patricii (No. 24) : see especially 11. 32-40 and 59-67 of that
remarkable invocation. But such indications afford an insecure basis
for theory.

The antiphon at the end shows that it was the custom to sing this
hymn at the services of the Canonical Hours, the gloss upon which is
interesting :

decim\ Tefi ca?io?iicai hours Colum Cille used to celebrate^ ut feru?it :
and it is from the history of Joh?i Cassian that he got that.

' Hymni tnedii neui, i. 407. ^ Ibid. iii. \ .

■'* Warren, Celtic Littirgy, p. 185 ; printed also by Forbes in his Preface to the Arbuthnott Missal.

♦ Cf. also Muratori, Lit. Rom. net. ii. 155.

* Liber Ilymnoruiit, p. 255 ; see Reeves' AdatHnan, p. Ixi.

THE HYMN NOLI PATER. 171

In the commentary on \k\QAnira (1. 367) it is said of Columba that he
was a student of the writings of Cassian. But although this may well
be believed, there is no notice of the observance of ten Canonical
Hours in Cassian's Institutes ; our reference is to a passage in which
he speaks of the use of services at seven fixed hours and refers to
Ps. cxviii. 164. Mr. Macgregor {Early Scottish Worships p. 12)
thinks that *' the discrepancy may be reconciled by adding Compline
and counting the two parts of Matins and Vespers as respectively two
distinct offices."

Preface to the Hymn Noli Pater.

We have here the story of the founding of the Church of Derry by
Columbo. It may be read elsewhere e.g. in O'Donnell's Life of Columba
(see vol. i. p. xix), or in the Leabhar Breac (fol. 32a), or in the Book of
Lismore (ed. Stokes, cf. J 74; cf. also p. 305), but our Prefaces furnish
the oldest extant authorities for the legend Aed mac Ainmerech,
according to the Irish Annals, died in 598 or 599 ; but it appears that
the grant of territory to Columba must have been made in his name
when he was quite a lad, as the foundation of Derry is set dow^n at the
year 545. Of Mobi the Flat-faced, who was the instructor of Columba
at the monastery of Glasnevin, we shall hear again, as his genealogy is
registered in the T copy of the Liber Hymnorum. The obscure quatrain
about Mobi's girdle is found in the Book of Lismore (ed. Stokes, p. 26),
and it is quoted in the Martyrology of Donegal at Octr. 12.

The Hymn Noli Pater.

The tradition that connects the hymn with St. Columba is pretty
constant, and the style of the piece is not altogether dissimilar to that
of his more famous Alius. The abrupt way in which one subject after
another is introduced will be observed, and the harshness of the Latin
is also remarkable. We have found it in two MSS. (O and Q) of
O'Donnell's Life of Coiumba, from the latter of which a portion of it
was printed by Colgan, who also printed the F text (Trias, pp. 397,
476). An English translation is given by Mr. Macgregor in his
St. Columba.

There are two Irish glosses in T of which we give the translation at
this point :

2 uridine^] i.e. by Fire ; or by Yellow Plague.

5 exulte?ii} i.e. they rejoice ; the right reading is probably exaltent.

uagi also seems to be wrong ; uaga would give good sense, and we
have uaga fulmina in Ovid, Met. i. 596.

The story that the hymn was miraculously composed by Columba to
check the progress of a fire may be dismissed without comment; and there
is nothing to commend the scholiast's second theory that it was written
in view of the Day of Judgement. But his third explanation that it was
* the Fire of St. John's Feast ' that the writer had in his mind is very

172 NOTES.

interesting, and has some evidence in its favour. A glance at the hymn
shows that it is Hkely to have been composed with reference to some
feast of St. John the Baptist, as he is introduced in a seemingly
unnecessary way in a prayer for deliverance from disaster.^ What feast
was this ?

Todd found here an allusion to the widespread custom of kindling
fires on Midsummer Eve, a custom which has prevailed in many
countries from distant ages, and is probably derived from prae-Christian
folk-lore. In the first place it will be observed that there is no mention
of the Eve of St. John (though Stokes so translates),' but of his Feast .
and there is no tradition of fire on St. John's Day (June 24). In the
next place, although in modern Ireland these Midsummer fires are not
unknown, it is curious that there is an Irish tradition that they are of
Da7iish origin^ ; there is no evidence that this custom prevailed during
the period of Celtic Christianity. We must look out then for some
other explanation of the scholiast's phrase. We find our explanation in
the legendary belief (described at p. xxiv. vol. i.) in a dreadful visitation
of fire and plague which was to come upon Ireland on the Feast of the
Decollation of St. John the Ba])tist (Aug. 29) in a certain year. It was
this w^hich the writer of the Noli pater had in view. And so we find
the glossator on uridine (1. 2) explaining this word : ' by Fire ; or, by
Yellow Plague.' Thus we have a remarkable confirmation of Dr.
Lawlor's most ingenious identification* of the rubric in the Book of
Mulling: ' Benedictus usque ad loh . . ' with lines 6-1 1 of the hymn
before us. The Noli pater is one of the pieces prescribed for recitation
in the penitential office that was used with special reference to the
dreaded pestilence ; though no doubt it was used on other occasions
too, and the note at the end of the Preface shows that it served as a
lorica to be said night and morning.

The Prayer of St. John.

The legend of St. John and the poisoned cup has had wide circula-
tion, and is familiar from the artistic representations of the Apostle, in
which he appears holding in his hand a chalice from which a serpent
is emerging. It probably grew out of such passages as St. Matth. xx. 2^
and [St. Mark] xvi. 18 ; and is quoted by many writers, e.g. by Isidore
(^De or til et obitu patrum c. 72).

The fully developed form of the legend which we have in the T
Preface is found in the Passio S. Johannis which goes under the name
of Mellitus, and in the Historia Apostolorum of one Abdias, the date of
which is about 540. These books have a common source, so thai the

1 It has, however, been pointed out above (p. xxv) that 11. i- 6 (which form an invocation and a
prayer) are metrically distinct from the lines which follow, in which St. John the Baptist is lauded.
The rubric in the Mulling office to which attention is drawn in the te.\t has explicit reference only to
the latter portion of the piece ; but the glossator's note on 1. e seems to connect the early portion as
well with ihe prediction of the Yellow Plague on the ' Feast of St. John.'

'^ Goidclica, p. 104. ,

^ O'Curry makes this statement in his index to the R I. A. MSS. (B. Cat. 44q).

* See vol. i. p. xxiii.

THE PRAYER OF ST. JOHN. 173

Story g )es back earlier, but we need not pursue its intricate liistory
here.^ It is printed in Fabricius' Cod. Apocr. I\'.T. iii. 604.

It would appear that the prayer Deus incus was used as a lorica or
charm. In the Book of Cerne (C), where it follows another more
familiar prayer attributed to St. John, beginning Aperi mihi pulsanii
ianiiam uitae «I^c., a few words from the Passio S. lohatmis of Pseudo-
Mellitus introduce it ; but in the Book of Nunnaminster (N) it is simply
headed ' Contra uenenum,' and is followed by the Lorica of Ciildas
(our Ni). 48). l)Ut the source from which it is taken in N is evidently
the same as that of C, as the words which follow ' Ya cum hoc dixisset
&c.' (see vol. i. p. 91) are from the Passio. Its use as a charm in
Ireland is indicated by what seems to be an invocation of the four
evangelists at ihe end in the manuscripts TF ; an ancient custom which
has lingered down to our own day in the form : " Matthew, Mark, I.uke
and John ; Bless the bed that I lie on." See p. 244, below.

In the Senchus Mor {A?icie?if Laws of Ireland., i. 2), there is a
couplet of magical words said to have been used by Patrick as a
charm against poison. " And whoever pronounces these words over
poison or liquor shall receive no injury from it. Or, it was the In
nomine dei patris he then com]wsed and pronounced over the liquor."

The piece is not distinctively Celtic ; but it has been shown above
(vol. i. p. xxvii) that it seems to have been well known in the Celtic
Church, inasmuch as it forms part of an ancient monastic office found
in the Basel Psalter. In the Epilogue to the Felire of Oengus (1. 477)
we have an allusion to St. John's deliverance from the poisoned cup,
which has been incidentally quoted above (p. 116). The end of the
T Preface is unhappily illegible, and we have not ventured upon any
conjecture as to it.

1 The gloss on Deus indicates that it is to be taken with the extinge
in 1. 9.

2 cui^ i.e. it is to thee.

4 The etymological gloss on uipera, as well as the subsequent gloss on
regulus, is taken from Isidore {I.e.)

5 quiet ci\ i.e. inactive., i.e. sea-monster.

The gloss seems to confuse /c/yTo? with quietus ! We had the word
aniach before in a gloss on otiosa at 1. 10 of the Aitus. The rubeta here
mentioned is a kind of toad which lives in bushes.

6 regulus = fiaai\i(>Ko^\ a common word in the Vulgate for a
serpent.

spalagius = (JinXa-i^nov^ a kind of venomous fly.

The Letter of Christ to Abgar.

The famous "Letter of Christ to Abgar, the King of Edessa," has
been the subject of much learned discussion, which we do not here
reproduce. Many references will be found in Lipsius' articles in the
Dictionary of Christian Biography on Abgar and Thaddaeiis. Lipsius

1 See Zahn, Acta lohannis, cxiv, 237.

174 NOTES.

traces the original form of the legend to a date as early as 200 a.d., but
the earliest text of this curious apocryphal correspondence is found in
Eusebius (H.E. i. 13), who says that he saw the 'original' Syriac
documents at Edessa. Our version follows very closely the Latin trans-
lation of Eusebius by Rufinus ; but the T preface introduces the legend
of the privileges which the city of Edessa enjoyed in consequence of the
favour shown it by Christ, which seems to be a later addition to the
story. ^

We are here concerned not with the literary but with the liturgical
history of the piece, and especially with the acquaintance with it which
appears in the remains of the early Irish and British Churches.

In our Introduction (vol. i. p. xxvii) we pointed out that this Epistola
is prescribed as a lection in the monastic office found in the Basel
Psalter (P) ; and it would seem that its presence in the Liber Hymnorum
is to be accounted for in like manner. The prayer Domine deus &c., by
which it is followed in both T and F suggests that here too it is a lection
for use in a monastic service. That it was well known in Ireland
appears from the fact that there is an Irish translation of it, preceded
by a legend as to its origin similar to that of our scholiasts, in the
Leabhar Breac (fol. 146). In this last mentioned passage there is no
mention of the privileges of the city of Edessa. And it will be remem-
bered that the hymn Celebra luda alludes to it in the lines (23, 24) :

" Tathei tota famosa per tellura
Abgoro misi lesu cum epistola,"

upon which the glossator has remarked that the real bearer of the letter
was not Thaddeus but ' Ananias cursor,' as Eusebius records.

The piece is also preserved, as our apparatiis criticus shows, in the
interesting manuscript which we call J (see vol. i. p. xviii). Here the
words which follow the letter, and the prayer which is added at the end,
show that it was used as a kind of charm. ' Si quis banc epistolam
secum habuerit securus ambulet in pace ' are words which do not point
to the reading of the letter in the public worship of the Church, but to
a superstition connected with the possession of its text. This super-
stition was by no means confined to the Middle Ages.

An author of the year 1726- makes the following curious statement in
the course of a critical discussion of the letter to Abgar : " The common
people in England have it in their houses in many places fixed in a frame
with our Saviour's picture before it ; and they generally with much
honesty and devotion regard it as the Word of God, and the genuine
Epistle of Christ." And in the year 1895 the present writer was shown
a roughly printed sheet, containing the letter to Abgar in English and
one or two other apocryphal pieces, which he was informed has a wide
circulation at the present day among certain classes of the Eurasians in
our Indian Empire as a sovereign preservative against fever, when worn
about the person.

^ It is, however, found in the Pere^rinntio S'th'iae, a piece written at the end of the fourth century,
and is also (probably) alluded to by Ephraem Syrus ; although Eusebius says nothing about it.
'^ J. Jones, Ne-w method of settling the authority of the N. T., ii. 3.

THE HYMN GENAIK PATRAIC. 175

The gloss on discipulis in 1. 8, i.e. apostolis, seems to confuse the
Thaddeus of the legend, who is said in Eusebius' account to have been
' one of the Seventy,' with Thaddaeus the Ajiostle (see above, p. ii 1).

It may be observed tiiat the extract from St. Augustine at the top of
fol. 15 (see vol. i. p. 95) is read in the Roman Breviary among the
lections for the Octave of All Saints. The connexion with the text is,
as usual, difficult to trace ; it is possible that the word ' custodis ' with
which it opens may have some reference to the prayer, " Custodi nos
in bonis ..." with which the epistle is closed, but we cannot say that
we have any evidence by which to sui)port this conjecture.

The Hymn of St. Fiacc.

This important piece was first printed (from F) by Colgan in his
Trias (p. i), with Latin translation and notes. Passing by many
reprints of Colgan's text, the next edition of critical value was that
of Dr. Whitley Stokes in Goidelica (1866), which was based on T.
The second edition of Goidelica., to which our references are made
throughout, appeared in 1872. In 1874 a complete photographic
reproduction of the piece from T was given in Gilbert's National
manuscripts of Ireland, Part i (Plates xxxii-xxxv). And finally Dr.
Stokes printed the text of F afresh in 1887, adding for the first
time the marginalia which are so numerous in that manuscript, and
giving an English translation of the whole. ^

Other editions of value are those of \Vandisch,- and Zimmer f and
articles in the Revue Celtiqne (vol. vi) by Stokes and Thurneysen are
important. Dr. Todd's edition of the Liber Hynmorum was inter-
rupted by his death before the text of Fiacc's hymn was ready for
press.*

We know of no manuscripts of the hymn worth collating save T
and F. There is a paper copy (saec. xix) in Egerton 154, and there
are at least two others in the Library of the Royal Irish Academy

I — ^ and — — I : but they are of no independent value. Trans-
\E. 16 L. 16/ ^ ^

lations are numerous, but the only one, besides those of Stokes and
Colgan, to which reference need here be made is the metrical rendering
of Sir Samuel Ferguson.^

A few words must he said as to the date and reputed author of the
hymn. The Irish Preface states that it was written by Fiacc, Bishop of
Sletty, who was a contemporary of St. Patrick. This Fiacc is men-
tioned in the Martvrologies of Oengus and Donegal at Oct. 12, and
his pedigree is traced in the Preface from Cathair Mor, who was King

1 Trip. Life, pp. 402-426.

* Iriscfu Textc, p. lo. In this edition illustrative passages from the Vita by Jocelin and from
other sources, as well as copious linguistic notes, are given.

' Keltische Studien, ii. 160 ff.

* The hymn is also printed in O'Conor's Rer. Hibern. Script, i. Ixxxviii., in the Irish Ecclesiasti-
cal Recordior 1868 (vol. iv. p. 269), and in Haddan and Stubbs' Councils, vol. ii. pt. li. as well as in
many other books.

^ Trans. R.I. A. (iSSs) vol. xxvii. p. 105.

176 NOTES.

of Ireland, according to the recognised authorities, in 174. But it is
certain that the number of descents recorded in the Preface is quite too
small to bring Fiacc down to the time of Patrick ; and we may dismiss
the pedigree as untrustworthy. It is tolerably plain, when we proceed
to examine the hymn, that it is not the work of a contemporary of
Patrick. The references in its first line to existing ' histories ' of the
saint, and in 1. 12 to ' writings' about him suggest a date subsequent to
his time. Again in 11. 20, 44 the desolation of Tara is mentioned ; but
this brings the date down to a period later than 561.^ At the time of
its composition St. Sechnall's hymn was known as a lorica (11. 51, 52),
and the words ''Around thee in the Day of Judgement the men of
Ireland will go to judgement" are apparently a development of some
such statement as that in 1. 92 of the hymn of St. Sechnall. See above
p. 105. And, further, the seat of the Primacy seems already to have
been a matter of dispute when the piece Genair Fatraic was composed.
For all these reasons, coupled with the fabulous and extravagant
character of the Acta Patricii which it records, in marked contrast
with the sobriety of St. Sechnall's hymn, it is necessary to bring down
its date to a period long subsequent to the days of St. Patrick.

It is possible that the date can be more exactly determined. There
is a considerable resemblance between the latter half of the hymn and
some of the notes written by Muirchu Maccu Mactheni in the seventh
century and preserved in the Book of Armagh. Muirchu states that he
wrote these notes " dictante Aiduo Slebtiensis ciuitatis episcopo," and
so it seems that the source of this information was the see of Sletty,
where Fiacc had been bishop. Dr. Loofs- has argued from these facts
that the hymn is based in part on Muirchu's notes. In any case it is
probable that it is not earlier than the eighth century, a date which is
corroborated by linguistic considerations. But see above p. xl.ff.

I Nemthui^ i.e. that is a city 2vhich is amo?ig Britons of the Norths
viz. Ail Ch'iade TF"''.

Ail Cliiade is another name for Dumbarton on the Firth of Clyde,
which has been generally held to be Patrick's birth])lace. The matter
is fully discussed in Todd's St. Patrick, p. 354 (L An ingenious
account of the hitherto unexplained Nemthiir has been offered lately by
Mr. E. B. Nicholson.^ In St, Patrick's confession, as given in the Book
of Armagh, Patrick's home is said to have been "uico Bannauem
Taberniae." Here Mr. Nicholson finds a corruption of Bafinauenta
Britanniae ; and he points out that Batuiauenta was the lofty Borough
Hill near Daventry, thirteen miles from Northampton. In other words
Patrick lived in his youth at Daventry. Again in Muirchu's Life of
St. Patrick^ we read that Patrick was Brito ?iatio?ie, in Brittanis natus,
and that his father or grandfather was [de] "uico Bannauem thabur
indecha ut procul a mari nostro quem uicum constanter indubitanterque
comperimus esse tietitre.''' The Brussels MS. is here corrupt, but it;

' See Petrie, H i%tory and Antiquities of Tara Hili {Trans. R.I. A., xviii.), p, 125.
- Antiquae Britonum Scotorumque ccciesiac, p. 42 ff, and Stokes, 7'rj/. Li/e, p. cxii.
^ Academy, May 11, 1895. See Jing. Hist. Ke~iieii\ Oct. 1895.
"lokes, Trip. Life, p. 494.

8T. MICHAEL'S N/!!A I

COLLEQS / g

THE HYMN GENAIR PATRAIC. 177

certainly seems to identify the mysterious Batitiauem with some place
called Ventre. And this place-name, curiously enough, has got into the
life by Probus under the form Neutriae or Nenfriac, which is something
like the Nemthur of our hymn.' If this interpretation of Ncttithur
be accurate, Fiacc's hymn is a witness to Daventry as St. Patrick's
birthplace. We are not, however, inclined to accept Mr. Nicholson's
conjecture.

2 dobret}{\ i. e. was given TF.

deraib] i.e. under captivity, viz. lender the sorrow of captivity T.

3 succat^ i.e. it is British, and ^ deus belli^ in Latin T.

i.e. it is British, ' deiis belli ' ; uel '' fort is belli ' in Lati?i ; for ' su ' in
the British is 'fortis ' a?id ' cat ' is bellum F""".

Succat son of Calpurn. This is the ge?iealogy of Patrick : son of
Calpurn, son of Potid, son of Odisse, son of Gorniad, son of Mercud,
son of Ota, son of Muric, son of Oric, son of Leo, son of Maxim, so?i of
Hencret, son of Ferin, son of Brittus, a quo su?it Brittatii nof?iifiati.
Multa Patricius habuit nomina ad sijnilitiidinem Romanorum nobilium,
i.e. Succat first, suu?n fio?nen of baptism, a parentibus suis ; Cothraige, his
name in his captivity in Irela?id ; Magonius, i.e. ' magis agens ' quam ceteri
monachi, his name when studying with Germanus ; Patricius, his name
when in orders, a?id it 2vas Celestinus, coarb of Peter, that conferred it on
him F"".

This pedigree of St. Patrick is found, with slight variations, in the
Leabhar Breac Homily,^ in another passage in the Leabhar Breac, and
in the Book of Leinster.^

The earliest mention of the four names of Patrick is found in Tire-
chan's collections in the Book of Armagh^ : " sanctus Magonus qui
est clarus, Succetus qui est ... , Patricius . . . , Cothirthiacus quia
seruiuit quatuor domibus magorum." They are also given in the
Leabhar Breac Homily,^ in another passage in the Leabhar Breac, *^ and
in the lives of Patrick generally.

itubrad^ i.e. this is what was said a peritis T.

fsst] i.e. it were right to know it TF.

5 se bliadna\ i.e. he was in his captivity {six years) after the fashion of
the Little Jubilee Hebraeorum? The cause of his captivity ivas this.
Patrick and his father Calpurn, his mother Conchess, daughter of Ocmus,
et quitique sorores eius, viz. Lupait and Tigris and Liamain and Darerca
et nomen quintae Cinnenum, [et^ frater eius, viz. deacon Sannan, all went
from the Britons of Ail-Cluade over the Lctian Sea southwards on a
journey to the Britons of Armorica, that is to the Britons of Letha ; for
relatives of theirs were there at that time ; and besides, the children's
mother Co?ichess was of the Franks and a near relative of Martin. Lt
was the time when seven sons of Sechtmaide, king of Britain, were in
exile from Britain. Now they made a great foray among the Britons
of Armorica, ubi Patricius cum familia fuit, and they killed Calpurn

' Irish Eccl. Record, viii. (3rd series), p. 229. 2 Trip. Life, p. 433.
' The lists are transcribed in Stokes' Lisviore, p. 293.

* Trip. Life, p. 302. ^ Ibid. p. 441.

• Stokes, Lismore, p. 294. See p. 7 above. ' Deut. xv. 12.

LIBER HYMN. II. N

178 NOTES.

there and carried off Patrick and Lupait to Irela7id ivith them : Lupait
they sold in Conalle Muirthemne^ and Patrick in the northern part of
Dal-Araide F'"".

maissi] i.e. good food and clothing T.

ni' s' toimled^ i.e. he did ?iot consume it TF.

6 Cothraige^ i.e. the name Cothraige clave to him ; i.e. ' cethair aige^
because he served four tribes T :

cethair aige was probably intended to mean * four chiefs ' ; for aige is
constantly used in the Brehon Laws, aige fine^ * head of the tribe,'

* chieftain.' The F gloss has ^ cethair aige ^ i.e quatuor domibus

seruitiufn ; this seems to correspond to the explanation of Cothirthiacus
{cethar-thige) in the Book of Armagh (p. 177 supra). Quite possibly
Cothraige is an older name, connected with catu^ ' battle ' ; but this is
only conjecture.

7 asbert^ i.e. he said T :

said Victor to the slave, i.e. said Victor — the angel communis Scotticae
gentis — quia Michael angelus Hebraeorum gentis, ita Victor Scottorum ;
ideo curauit eos per Patricium F"^^.

gniad'\ i.e. to the serf to a servant, or to a slave TF.
Mil] i.e. a soldier T:

Milco7i\ genetiuus est hie ; Michul son of Ua Buain^ king of the north
district of Dal-Araide F""". See p. 3.
tessed] i.e. that he should go TF.
tonna\ i.e. over sea ; eastivard to study T.

forruib a chois\ ' he set his foot, ^ i.e. in the shape of a bird, angel Victor

used to come to Patrick when he was herding the sivine of Milchu son of

Ua Buain in Arcal, that is the nomen uallis magnae in the north of

Dal-Araide by Sleniish ;^ and in Scirit especially he was wont to co?n€ to

him. That is an ecclesia hodie in ualle ilia, and there remains the t?'ace

.of his feet still on the stone. And Victor said to him, ^^ It is time for thee

to go over sea to learn, for it is to tJiee that God has assigned the duty of

.being teacher to the inhabitants of this island in after time." " / will not

j^o," said Patrick, ac si diceret . . et stetit . . . nee perueniret ad

Germanum . . . domino meo. '-'' Go," said the angel, ^^ and ask him."

So Patrick went and asked him, but lie got not consent, unless he should

give him a mass of gold the zveight of his own head. Said Patrick to him,

" By my debroth, God is able for that, if it be His will ; " {that zvas a

genus iuramenti with Patrick, ac si diceret " by my God of Judgement.")

Patrick we7it back again to his swine in the wilds and narrated to

Victor omnia uerba domifii sui. The angel said to him, ^^ Follozv yonder

hoar and he will root up a mass of gold out of the ground, and take it tvith

thee to thy master." Et sic factum est. A fid the angel carried Patrick in

x)ne day sixty miles {or a hundred, ut alii dicunt), viz. from Slemish in

Dal-Araide to Cell Ciannairi . . . on the banks of the Boyne to the

north, eastward of Monasterboice. And Cianftan sold him to the shippers

who were at Inber Bointie" for tivo copper cauldrons ; these he carried

1 Reeves identified this with the valley of the Braid in Co. Antrim ; Scirit is now the parish of
Skerry. . _^.-^^ «

ii i.e. the mouth of the Boyne, also called Inber Colptha (1. 37 below).

THE HYMN GEN AIR PATRAIC. 179

away with him {to ha/ig them) aj^ai/ist the wall of his house ^ but his hands
chive to them and the hands of his household. Et ilk penituit et absolutus
est Patricio^ duxit et a nautis eum in libertatem ; et baptizatus est Cia?inafi
a Patricio postea P'"".

This story is also found in the Life of Patrick in the Book of Lismore
(p. \$^); it is inconsistent with the account of Patrick's escape found
in the Co?tfessio, according to which it was suggested to him by a voice
in his sleep.

The oath tlar mo De broth is mere jargon ; De broth ought to mean
something like ' God's doom-day ' ; but even then there would be a
difficulty, because the genitive De could not precede its governing
noun.

8 es^ i.e. his footstep TF.
bronna^ i.e. it does not fail therein P.

9 dofaid\ ''he se?iP i.e. Victor sent Patrick over moiuit Elpa T :
i.e. God or the angel sent or brought. How does he co?ne to say ' over

Alpa ' 1 Not hard. Prom Britain the a?igel brought hi?n, so that ' over
Alpain ' would be rightly used, viz. over the mount of Elpa, for this Alba
was olim a name for the whole island of Britaifi, ut Beda dicit in principio
suae historiae, ' Britan?iia insula est, cui quondam nomen erat Alba?i,^ eo
quod pars quam illi tenuerunt suo uocabulo no?ninauerunt et uetus nomen
Alban quod inuenerunt mansit P""^.

The * mount of Elpa ' or Drumalban is the mountain chain dividing
Argyleshire from Perthshire ; Alba was the ancient name of Scotland.

retha^ i.e. this course TP.

10 German^ German us, abbot of the city cui nomen est Altissiodoriwt ;^
it is ivith hi?n that Patrick studied, and Burgundy is the name of the
province in which is ilia \ciuitas\ Perhaps ilia prouincia was in the south
of Italy, sed uerius that it is in Gaul.

So7V Germanus came into Britain to drive out of it the heresy of
Pelagius, quia creuit multum in se, et sic uenit cum Patricio et aliis multis
with him. Now ivhile he was mightily expelling it on this side, he heard
that the same heresy was growing up in his own city after his departure.
So they ivent eastward, he and Patrick with him, but they were unable to
expel it from their midst. Then Germanus said to Patrick, " What shall
we do about them ? " Said Patrick, " let us fast upon them," said he, " in
the gate of the city for three days and three nights, and if they do not turn^
iudicet deus super se." Well then, about nocturns of the third night the
earth swallowed up ciuitatem cum suis habitatoribus ; and the city
stands nunc ubi clerici ieiunauerunt, i.e. Germanus et Patricius cum suis
P"".

Letha\ The Latin glosses give the usual explanations. Letha is used by
Irish writers as the equivalent of both Latium or Italy, and Letavia or
Armorica, i.e. Brittany. There can be little doubt that the latter is its
meaning here. The supposition that we have at this point of the hymn
an account of St. Patrick's journeying to Italy arose out of under-
standing Elpa in 1. 9 of the Alps.

1 1 ainis\ i.e. he remained behind P.

' Auxerre.

N 2

i8o NOTES.

12 legais\ i.e. Patrick read F.

lini\ i.e. writings . . . F.

13] do'd'fetis\ i.e. they brought him T.

i^fo'ro'chlad] i.e. ivas heard or was expected F.

t6 ro'clos^ i.e. throughout Ireland TF.

macraide] i.e. Crebriu and Lesru, the two daughters of Glera?id mac
Ui Fnna, dicefites '''' Hibernenses ad te clamant ' ueni sancte Patrici saluos
nos facere^" T:

i.e. son of . . . i.e. ^ riad^ his son F. The word maccrad is a
collective noun ; but this gl. seems to analyse it as if it contained a
word riad^ whose meaning cannot be assigned with any certainty.

Now Patrick had studied with Germanus the canon and the ecclesiastical
ordo ; and he said to Germanus that oftentimes it befel him in heavenly
visions to be invited^ and that he heard the voice of the childre?i ij^rom the
wood of Fochlad. Therefore Germanus bade him, ''''Rise and go) ad
Celestinum that he may confer orders upon thee, for it is he who should
confer them.^^ Uenit ergo Patricius ad eum et nee ei {Ceiestinus) ho?iorem
dedit, because he had sent Palladium ante ad Hiberniam ut doceret
earn. Uenit ergo Palladius in Hiberniam, and landed in Ui Garchon in
the Fortuatha of Leinster, and therein he fou?ided churches, viz. Tech na
Pomanach^ and Cell Fine' and . . . But no good welcome was given to
him illic, so he departed thence to go round Ireland . . . to the north, and
a great storm overtook him so that he got to the south-east head of . .
and he founded a church there called Forduti, and Pledi^ . . ?tomen
eius ibi. Now Patrick went ad insulas Tyrrheni maris, after he had been
refused ordination a papa Celestino, et tunc inuenit the Staff of /esus in
insula quae dicitur Alanensis . . . mount Arnon. So Patrick came
iterum ad Germanum, et narrauit ei omnia quae in ?ioctibus uidebat.
Misit ergo Germanus Patricium ad Celestinum, et Segetium cum eo, ut
perhiberet testimonium propter se : sixty years was fully completed by
Patrick tunc. Now after that Celestinus heard Palladium decessisse, et
tunc dixit " non potest homo quidqua77i accipere in terra nisi datum ei fuerit
desuper.^^ Then Patrick ivas ordained in cotispectu Celestini et Theodosii
iunioris, regis mundi. Amatorex, Autissiodorensis episcopus, conferred
orders on him — on Patrick — and Celestine lived only one week after
Patrick^s ordination . . . Sixtus uero ei successit, in cuius primo
anno uenit Patricius in Hibernia7n. He {^showed) great iwelco77ie) to
Patrick, and gave hi7n a quantity of relics and many books.

Noiv when orders were co7iferred 07i Patrick, Celestinus heard the voice of
the children calling him. The children that are spoke7i of hie were 7iamed
Crebriu and Lesru, viz. two daughters of Glerand son of . . . son of
Nene, and to-day they a7'e saints. Patrick baptized them, a7id they rest in
Cell Foreland to the west of the May. This is what they said, out of their ,
mothcT^s womb, ^^ Hiberne7ises 07n7ies clamant ad te " ; a7id they were often
heard si7igi7ig this throughout all Ireland, uel usque ad Pomanos F"".

A full discussion of the account given here by the scholiast of the
mission of Palladius will be found in Todd's St. Patrick, pp. 286, 290.

^ Now Tigroney in the Co. Wicklow.

2 This has been identified with Killeen Cormaic near Dunlavin ^ i.e. Palladius (?)

THE HYMN GEN AIR PATRAIC. i8l

The country of the " Fortuatha " or " stranger tribes " of Leinster, where
he is said to have landed, was the district round Glendalough in the co.
Wicklow. Here, according to the story, he found two or three churches,
but produced no lasting impression ; and, leaving, he was driven by
storm round the north coast of Scotland until he found himself at For-
dun in Kincardineshire.

We then have an account of the mission of Patrick by Pope
Celestine, about which controversy has run so high. This is not the
place to discuss it fully. A good account of the materials will be found
in Todd's St. Patrick^ p. 321 ff.

The '' Staff of Jesus " was long counted one of the most precious
possessions of the See of Armagh ; it was removed in Anglo-Norman
times to Christ Church Cathedral at Dublin, where it was destroyed by
Archbishop Browne with other relics of antiquity at the Reformation.^

Caille FochIad\ i.e. }iame of a district which is in Amalgada, in the
north-east of Connaught, afid it is a church to-day F'"(f.^

17 imthised^ i.e. that he might go about F.
lethu\ i.e. of ' Italy ' ; or^ ' /atitudine ' terrarum F.

18 tititarrad^ i.e. that he might convert TF.
chI6en'\ i.e. from iniquity, i.e. from worshipping idols F.

20 code^ i.e. to Jiidge^nent {Day) T.
Temrach~\ i.e. Tea-7nur, viz. an old rampart in which was buried Tea

wife of Erimo?i son of Miled F'"^.
tua^ i.e. ivithout glory T.

2 1 druid\ these are the druids^ viz. Lucru and Lucat-Mael, and what
they said was this :

* Adze-head will cofne
over mad-head sea,
his cloak hole-head,
his staff crook-head,
his table iti the west of his house ;
all his household will anszver, Ameti, Amen ' TF'^^3.

These celebrated verses were held to have been the composition of
the pagan Druids, and to have been a prophecy of the introduction of
Christianity into Ireland. We first meet with a mention of them in the
seventh century notes by Muirchu Maccu Mactheni preserved in the
Book of Armagh. " Haec autem sunt uersiculi uerba, pro linguae
idiomo non iam manifesta :

' Adueniet asciciput'^
cum suo ligno curuicipite
et sua domu capite perforato.
Incantabit nefas a sua mensa
ex anteriore parte domus suae :
respondebit ei sua familia tota, fiat, fiat.' "

' See Todd's Book of Obits and Martyrology of Christ Churchy Dublin, vi-xx.
' Caille Fochlad has been identified with a place near Killala in the Co. Mayo.
* ' Asciciput' is a compound of ascia, ' adze,' and caput ; it is the Latin equivalent of tailcend,
which is thus a nickname for a tonsured missionary.

l82 NOTES.

This is a Latin translation of an Irish original now only preserved in a
corrupted form in our F gloss, in the Egerton copy of the Tripa7-tite
Life (p. 34) and in the Leabhar Breac Homily on St. Patrick.^ '' It
is clear," writes Todd, " that no pagan Druids ever wrote these verses,
and it is evident also that they were written when the orientation of
Churches was the rule and the altar always in the eastern end of the
building. The allusion to the shaven tonsure, the clerical habit, and
the episcopal staff proves beyond question that this stanza cannot be
older than the beginning of the seventh century."^

These inferences, however, cannot be sustained. If we compare the
Latin with our F gloss, we see that lines i, 4, 6, of F agree with
Muirchu (although 1. 4 is Muirchu's 1. 2); but lines 2, 3, and 5 are
different, {a) L. 2 is absent, and in its place is found Incantabit ?iefas
a sua mensa. This line must have been the work of a pagan ; no
Christian could thus have described the Christian Eucharist. (/?) In
1. No. 3, Muirchu has sua domu for " his cloak " or " cowl " of the Irish
text. It is impossible that Muirchu should have thought donius to be
the Latin for the Irish name of a ''cloak," and therefore it is plain that
he was working on a different text, {c) The words " his table" go with
1. 2 in Muirchu, and hnes 5 and 6 go together. The sense, in his
version, is that while the priest performs his part of the service a sua
viensa, the choir answer ex afttertore parte domus suae. This is hardly
definite enough to justify Todd's inference that the altar was at the east
end. Indeed the F gloss expressly places it in the west, although the
later texts (mentioned above) have altered ' west ' to ' east.' The age
of the verses is impossible to determine ; all we know is that they were
prior to Muirchu's time.

ni cheilitis^ i.e. they did not hide F.

22 ro'firad\ i.e. ivas fulfilled F.

23 leir\ i.e. in piety T :

i.e. was excellent for piety F,
CO mbeba\ i.e. up to his death TF:

i e. till he {departed) from the world F.
sab^ i.e. was strong TF
clbeni^ i.e. falsity F

24 afeua'\ i.e. his goodness TF.

25 The glossator seems to have misunderstood this line. There is no
reference to any special hymn, whether the Te Deum or the Hymn of
St. Sechnall, both of which he mentions ; but to Patrick's general habit
of singing canticles. See above, p. 104.

26 pridchad^ i.e. he perfor??ied preachifig F.
baitsed'\ i.t. he perfor7?ied baptizing F. |l
arniged\ i.e. he practised prayer a?id repentance T : I

i.e. he practised prayer or clea?isi?ig F.

27 gebed^ i.e. it did not take from him {the practice of) going in F.
linnilJ] i.e. to the waters F.

28 co7isena\ i.e. he strove after TF. Co?isena is here treated as a

' Ibid. p. 448. See Lis wore, p. 157. ^ St. Patrick, p. 411.

THE HYMN GEN AIR PATRAIC. 1S3

preterite, but cf. MR 262, 5, " ni tuit rig . . nach coisenad Cellach a
coscar, &c.," where it is possibly sec. fut. See also LU 19/^4.

fri de\ i.e. in the day time TF.

i ndinnil>\ i.e. on hills TF.

29 slafi\ i.e. nomen fontis of Slan (7vas given) because every sick person
was cured., over whom the water passed, and if is at Saul ; replcuemrii
Ulstermen illam propter jnolestiam turbarum exeuntium ad illa77i T :

i.e. proprium . . . of a well in se, et ob id Sla?i dicta est eo quod
ornnes sani reuertebantur ab ea propter gratia7ti Patricii. Alii dicunt
that it was in Saul or in Dal-Araide ; but Ulstermen repleuerunt illam,
propter molesiiam turbarum exeutitium ad illam sicubifuit F""J.

For a full note upon Saul and the fountain there, see Reeves' Anti-
quities of Doivn ami Connor, p. 220.

bennaA i.e. to the north of Benn Boirche^ ; i.e. Bairche was a coivherd
[bo-airej of Rossa Rig-bude king of Ulster, from 7vhom are fiamed the
peaks [bennaj, quia ibi habitabat frequenter cum pecoribus suis F"*^.

ni's'gaibed] i.e. Patrick ; or, the well F.

30 cet^ i.e. tivo fifties TF. That is, two-thirds of the Psalter.

This record of Patrick's devotion and asceticism is borne out by his
Confessio : " fides augebatur et spiritus agebatur ut in die una usque ad
centum orationes, et in nocte prope similiter ; ut etiam in siluis et in
monte manebam et ante lucem excitabar ad orationem per niuem, per
gelu, per pluuiam ; et nihil mali sentiebam, neque ulla pigritia erat in
me.

-i^\ foaid\ i.e. he used to sleep TF.

iaruni\ i.e. after that TF.

32 timfiai^ i.e. in warmth, i.e. in heat F.

33 pridchad^ i.e. he practised preaching F.
lethii\ i.e. in ' Italy,' or in ' latitudine' saeculi F.

34 luscu^ i.e. lame TF.
truscu] i.e. with lepers TF.

35 Scotaib^ Fro7n Scotta daughter of Pharaoh king of Egypt nomin-
antur. And this is what it arose from, viz. Etarnel son of Gbedel Glas
son of Feniiis Farsa, a man of service, uoluit scire linguas. Uenit a
Scythis ad campum Sennaar, ubi sunt diuisae linguae ; et ita uenit,
i.e. cum septuaginta duobus uiris, et misit eos sub regiones mundi ut
discerent linguas, unum ad unam misit et postea uenerunt ad eum cum
peritia omnium linguaru7n. Et habitauit in campo Sennaar et docuit ibi
littguas. Et audiuit Pharaoh rex Egypti ilium studiosu7n esse, et uocauit
eum ad se ut doceret Egyptios circa linguas et dedit ei filiam suam et
ho7iorem maximum, et ab ilia Scoti nominati sunt. The Gaels 2vere
so called from Gbedel Glas, son of Fenius Farsa, father of Nel F""".

seth^ i.e. toil or disease F.

36 tissat^ i.e. they will go TF.
each] i.e. everyone TF.

37 Meicc Emir] Six sons of Mi led and six sons of Bile, son of Br ego 7t
simul ue7ierunt ad Hiberniam, sed clariores sunt filii Miled quam filii of
Bregon. Haec sunt nomina filiorum Miled : Eber, Erimon, Ir, Donn,

1 The Benna Boirche are the Mourne mountains in Co. Down.

3 84 NOTES.

Amargen, Colptha. Frorn Eber are the men of Munsfer, et ab eo
Momo?iia dicitiir ; but fro?n Erimon is the whole of Conn's Half ; and
Leinster with Ulster are from Ir. Fewer ?iow are the descendants
of the other (sons), et nescio ubi sunt. But from Don7i 7iofnifiatur
Tech-Dui?i?i to the west of Irela?id ; from Colptha^ further, is Inber
Colptha ubi the Boyne in mare exit F'"^,

lotar\ i.e. they we7it F.

cisal\ i.e. tvith a rock of trouble, i.e. with the devil who is a rock for
his hardness T.

i.e., a7id for its per77ianence, with which tribute is exacted frofn every 07ie
for sin F'"^.

38 fo's'rolaic\ i.e. the devil flu7ig them down{?), i.e. carried the77i off with
him F'"^.

i7t tarmchosai] i.e. the place . ... in which are places for
wounding with charge agai7ist each. Or, the low after-road, for the devil
is low on the road. Or the tra7isgressor, i.e. he to whom there is a very
loiv place. Or, the cause of seizing each 07ie to hi7nself, i.e. sins F""J.

isel] i.e. to hell TF.

39 co'7ida'tanic^ i.e. that is the time he was busy seizing them F.

40 Fe7ie'\ i.e. they zvere so called from Fenius Farsa, unde apud nos
^ Oic Fene ' pleni dicu7itur ab illo. Gaels aute7n, ut dixi, fro77i Goedel
Glas, son of Nel son of Fenius Farsa, ut alii dicunt F"^'.

41 te7nel\ i.e. there was darkness, viz. of idol worshipping F,
side] i.e. folk of the Sid they worshipped F'"^.

That is to say, they worshipped the mysterious inhabitants of the
fairy mounds. See Skene, Celtic Scotland, ii. 108.

44 ni'7n'dil] i.e. not dear to me is Tar a, though desert TF'"^.

Or, he does not forgive 7ne, ac si dicer et he ivould not make my sleepi7ig
with thee, though it is desert. Or, not from it is there a fault, i.e. 7iot
sorrow though Tar a is desert. Or, it is 710 1 pleasing to 7ne, to Patrick
-or to God F""J.

Dunlethglasse is the modern Downpatrick.

45 lobra] i7i disease, i.e. at Saul, in order that his resurrection should
be at that spot T :

i.e. at Saul ivas Patrick ivhen disease came to him, so that he came on
the road to Armagh, in order that his resurrection should be at that spot

The F glossator seems to hold the belief that Patrick was buried at
Armagh ; the T glossator that he was buried at Saul. For a discussion
of St. Patrick's burial place, see Olden, Proc. P. I. A. (1893), p. 655,
and Reeves' Antiquities of Dozv7i a7id Connor, p. 224.

46 ar a che7id] i.e. to meet hi77i, to sum77ion him to go to Victor. He
was his soul-friend, and he is the co77imo7i angel of the Gaels ; sicut est
Michael ludaeorum, ita Victor Scotorum F"". Compare the gloss on 1. 7.

47 dofaitK\ i.e. he took him on the road southward ivhen he ivas goi7ig
fro7n the east F.

ar'id'ralastar] i.e. he addressed (?) hi7n ; quia 77iisit Victor afigelum ad
Patriciui7i i?iuita7idum ad se, that he should not go to Armagh F'".
Compare Trip. Life, p. 253.

THE HYMX G EX AIR PATRAIC. 185

Iassais\ i.e. it flamed F.
iet{\ i.e. out of the fire TF.
ad^lada$tar\ i.e. he com^ersed TF,

49 orddtifi] i.e. thy voice and thy preeminence to Armagh, as if thou
thyself wert present there T :

i.e. thy dignity and thy preeminence to Armagh ; thy faith and thy
charity to Do7vn F.

Crist\ i.e. for His divinity F.

50 mo's'rega^ i.e. soon thou wilt go to heaven T.

ro'ratha^ i.e. there has been given to thee, O Patrick^ thy prayer F'"'!'.
du gude^ i.e. all thou hast asked of God has been given to thee TF""^.

51 doroega^ i.e. thou hast chosen F The hymn in question is probably
the Audite omnes or hymn of St. Sechnall in praise of St. Patrick. But
see above p. xHv.

/7 biu ] i.e. in thy lifetime F.

53 Tassach] i.e. Fa trick's artificer; he it is who first put a cover
on the Staff of Jesus ; and Raholp to the east of Down is his church F""".

This Tassach or Assicus was one of Patrick's three artificers or
silversmiths/ the others being named Bite and Essu. Tassach is often
mentioned in the Tripartite Life. The words of 1. 54, " Tassach's word
was not false," were possibly introduced in allusion to a story that he
once, to his lasting shame, had told a lie ; but the phrase is common.-
His name is thus commemorated in the Felire of Oengus at April 14 :
" The royal bishop Tassach
gave, when he came, the Body of Christ,
the truly strong King,
at the communion to Patrick."
This story of his having given Patrick his last communion is also in
Muirchu's Memoir.^

Raholp is near Ballyculter to the north-east of Downpatrick.

54 mos'fi'icfed^ i.e. to Saul iterum T :

i.e. to Saul, ivhen it was said to Tassach, ' cur non

pergis cum Patricio' ? F.
ille ait, ue?iiat Patricius iterum hue F"'3.

55 les~\ i.e. candles TF.
occai'\ i.e. ivith Patrick F.

56 sith-laithe~\ i.e. the day of peace ; i?i Mag Soile this was F.

The 'long day' spoken of in this line comes from Jos. x. 14 : 'non
fuit antea nee postea tarn longa dies.' The verses which follow refer
directly to the battle of Beth-horon, where the sun stood still ' contra
Gabaonem.' The legend alluded to here is given more intelligibly
in the Tripartite Life (p. 255 ; see also p. 487), where it is said that
* an angelic radiance abode in Mag Inis till the end of a year after
Patrick's death,' even as the sun went back ten degrees on the sun-dial
of Ahaz, and as the sun stood still in the days of Joshua. An earlier
account ' de uigilis primae noctis iuxta corpus Patricii quas angeli
fecerunt ' is found in Muirchu's notes in the Book of Armagh.^

' Brigid also had a bishop, one Condlaed, as her ' principal artist.' Cf. Todd's St. Patrick, p. 26.
* Trip. Life, p. 97. 3 Jbid., p. 297. ♦ Ibid. p. 297.

1 86 NOTES.

58 assoit}i\ i.e. he stayed^ namely deus F. ^

adfeit] i.e. which tells T. '^

littri^ i.e. story of the book of Joshua TF.

60 ciasti\ i.e. though it 7vas ' trebairech^ i.e. though there were therein
three times the light, it ivould ?iot be unjust. Or., though it was ' trebairech,'
i.e. though the tribe was chief i.e. princeps. Or., though his tribes were
great F"'^. Evidently the word was unknown.

ba huisse\ tvere fitter TF.
eitsecht^^ i.e. at death TF.

61 Herenn\ Haec insula quinque uocabula tenet., viz. Eriu atid Banba
a?td Fotla and Fail and Flea ; and this is whv each of these names 7vas
applied to it. Whe?i the so?is of Miled came hither from Spain to
Ireland, and when they reached Slemish in Ciarraige Luachra^ they
saw the mou?itain full of birds under shields . ... so that
great fear seized thein . . . . a wo7?ian coming towards them,
and that she ivas .... F"^^.

dollotar^ i.e. they 7vefit F.

62 cetail\ i.e. of the 7tiusic angelortcfn F.

fo's'rolaic}{\ i.e. terrified them i.e. put them into a prostrate position F.
sei\ i.e. on the road outside F.

63 sethail)] i.e. after much suffering F.
ro'scarad] i.e. his body F.

64 cet-aidche\ i.e. after his death F.

ar'idfetis^ i.e. they played music ; or, they sang (?) cum eo F.

65 co?ihualai^ i.e. he departed ; or, slept F.
adella i.e. he visits TF.

7t-aile i.e. Se?t Patrick TF.

66 malle'\ i.e. this is ivhat Patrick son of Calpurn promised to Sen
Patrick, that they should go together to heaven. And what they tell is
that Patrick was there from March 19 /^ August 24, to the e?id of the

first month of autumn, i?i Path . . outside . . , and angels with
him awaiting Sen Patrick TF""^ :

Dicunt alii that it was in Ross Dela in Mag Locha there used to be
relics of Sen Patrick ; sed uerius est i?i Glasto?ibury of the Gaels, viz. a
city in the south of England F'"^.

These lines (65, 66) are thus interpreted by Todd {St. Patrick,
p. 306) : " In other words, Patrick after his death went in the Calendar
to the day next after the festival of the other Patrick ; the other Patrick
met him on the day after his own festival, and both ascended together
to heaven." The relations between the Patrician and Palladian legends
have been reconsidered of late years by Mr. Olden {Church of Ireland,
p. 405 ff.) ; he holds that the Apostle of Ireland was the Sen Patrick
or Patrick senior of the native records, who never left the country, and
that in the ninth century by the blending of the acts of Palladius with
his, " the St. Patrick of popular belief, the missionary of Celestine,"
came into existence. These -conclusions have, however, by no means
met with general acceptance.

^ This Slemish is not the mountain of that name in Antrim, Init is near Tralce in Kerry.

THE PRAYER OF NININE. 187

For the legend connecting the name of Patrick with Glastonbury,
see Ussher, Works ^ vi. p. 454. Rossdala is in the co. Westmeath.

67 airde\ i.e. without a sign F.
ro'mcnair\ i.e. he meditated to do F.

68 ^eillius\ i.e. sennce., in friendship F.
shi\ i.e. it was a good blessing F.

The Prayer of Ninine.

Of Ninine, the reputed author of the following piece, little is known.
In a note in the B copy of the Felire of Oengus at July 6, he is
mentioned in connexion with the nun Moninna : " Moninne of Slieve
Gullion and Sarbile was her name previously. Or Darerca was her
name at first. But a certain dumb poet fasted with her, and the first
thing he said was ninnin. Hence the nun was called Mo-ninde, and
the poet himself Nine Ecis." He is mentioned again at Dec. 11.

We know of no MSS. of this hymn save T and F. It seems to us to
have merit, and, short as it is, to be equal in poetic feeling to most
of the other Irish pieces in the Liber Hymnorum. See p. xlix above.

I admuinenwiair^ i.e. we go i?t reliance on him TF.

7 dedaig\ i.e. beautifully hath repressed T.

9 fone?iaig\ i.e. hath purified, hath made its purification^ its clea?ising T.

10 iath-77iaige\ i.e. la?id T.

mor-gein^ i.e. great is the birth ; Patrick or great birth (i.e. many of
births F) ; we are praying him, i.e. births of the me?i of Ireland all TF.

12 do'nn'esmart^ i.e. who ivill save us, i.e. who will effect our delivei'-
ance TF.

13 iz brithefnnacht^ i.e. fro jn the judgement of Doom TF.

The Hymn Brig it be bithmaith.

This hymn has been printed from T by Stokes in Goidelica, and also
by Windisch in his Irische Texte. We have used four MSS. in our
apparatus, TFLX. It is also found in the Royal Irish Academy MSS.,

23 , 23

XT — ^"^ XT and elsewhere ; but these later authorities are not worth
N. 3 N. 4 ^

collating. On its metre, see above p. xxxiii.

The preface in L(see Stokes, Lismore, pp. 52, 198) is substantially the
same as that in TF, and was possibly, as Stokes observes, derived from
some copy of the Liber ILyjjmorum. We have departed in the case of
this MS. from our usual practice in giving a full collation ; for there is
nothing to be gained by registering minute differences of orthography
in a late manuscript like L.

A partial (Latin) translation of the F preface is found in the Trinity
College MS. classed E. 3. 28.

There are five different legends as to the author given in the
Preface :

1 88 NOTES.

(a) Columba is said lo have written the hymn as he was sailing in a
storm through the wild channel of Corryvreckan between Rathlin and
the mainland.^ The hymn is ascribed to Columba in the title in X ;
and Colgan {Trias, pp. 472, 609) adopts this view.

(b) It is attributed to Broccan the Squinting, who is the reputed
author of the next hymn Ni car Brigit. See p. 40.

(d) The claims of St. Brendan the Navigator are mentioned. This
was the famous St. Brendan of Clonfert (d. May 16, 577), whose
voyage in search of the Fortunate Islands is the subject of a well-known
legend. The story given here is found again in one of the F notes on
the hymn Ni car Brigit. See p. 196 below.

(e) St. Ultan of Ardbreccan, the uncle of St. Brigid, is also given as a
possible author ; it will be remembered that the hymn Christus in
nostra^ No. 2 in our collection, is also put down to him. We have called
it in accordance with usage ''Hymnus S. Ultani"; but it can hardly
be as early as this title would indicate.

I Brigit] i.e. poiver .... atque her powers . . . T'"^.

i.e. flame-arrow T"'° F^^ :

i.e. flame that the men of Ireland fear F:

i.e. men they terrify F:

i.e. Brigid^ or power exhibited in wonders and

miracles I""'. Similar glosses are found in the margin of
the B copy of the Felire at Feb. i.
be] i.e. * woman,^ ut dicitur ''fair woman ' TF.

bithmaith] ever-good womari is Brigid, i.e. woman good through the ages,
viz. for ever >'"*'.

3 do'nfe] i.e. may she take us TF"'o.

4 tind] i.e. fiery, or resplendent T.
taidlech] i.e. shi?ting F.

6 drungu] i.e. past co?npafiies T.

7 ro'roena] i.e. may she overthrow ; i.e. may she break F,

8 tedma\ i.e. of every vice F.

9 do'ro dbci\ i.e. may she destroy TF.

10 colla] i.e. vices of our flesh TF. This gloss indicates merely the
order of the words in 1. i o. For the extravagance of the language used
cf. pp. 107, 190.

I I blathaib\ i.e. with virtues TF.

13 inmairi\ i.e. dear to us, or to everybody T.

14 orddain] i.e. with splettdid digiiity TF.

adbail] i.e. ^ ada^ = right, '■ biV = safe ; i.e. it is right that the
dignity and the supret?iacy of St. Brigid should be safe for ever T:

7vith vast dignity is Brigid, viz. with dignity which it is fitti?ig should
be safe, i.e. enduring F.

1 See Reeves' Adamnan, p. 29. The channel was called " Breccan's Cauldron," from the
tradition that Breccan, grandson of Neill of the Nine Hostages, was swallowed up in it. The name
is now appropriated lo the strait between Scarba and Jura.

THE HYMN BRIG IT BE BITHMAITH 189

17 leth-cholba\ i.e. as there are hvo pillars in the worlds sic Brigid and
Patrick in Irelafid T.

famous . . i.e. just as would be a pillar in dividing a house .^ sic

Brigid and Patrick divided out the kingship of Irehmd inter se, so that
it is she ivho is head of the wofnen of Irela?id, a?id Patrick who is head of
the men F.

flatha^ i.e. kingship of Ireland TF.

18 Patraic\ i.e. head of the men of Irela7id is Patrick ; head of the
women of Ireland is B rigid T.

19 ligai/)] i.e. over beautiful ones T:

i.e. B rigid i.e. she is a garment that surpasses every beautiful garment F.

21 sinit^ i.e. that is a treasure (?) TF:

i.e. after old age F.

22 cilice^ i.e. in pe?iitence ; quia cilicium fiomen uestis which is made
out of goaf s or cameVs hair TF.

26 The versicle at the end which is found in X, is found in T and F
at the close of the next hymn Ni car Brigit.

The Hymn of St. Broccan.

St. Broccan, who, according to the Preface, composed this panegyric
upon St. Brigid in the monastery of Slieve Bloom or of Clonmore, is
said to have died on Sept. 17, 650. The date of Lugaid's death,
however, is put down to 507 ; so that there is nothing of historical value
to be got out of this Preface. St. Broccan was a disciple of St, Ultan,
and the statements in the Preface are reproduced in the Martyrology of
Donegal at Feb. i and Sept. 4. See above, p. 107.

The hymn was first published by Colgan {Trias, p. 515) ; and it has

since been printed with greater accuracy from T by Stokes in Goidelica,

and by Windisch in his Irische Texte. The collation of F and the

glosses therein contained are here given for the first time ; some of the

legendary margi?ialia in F, but not all, have been printed in Stokes'

2 "^
Lismore. The hymn is also contained in the R.I. A. MSS. -^

N. 4

and -—^- : but these are late copies and of no independent value.
N.15

This hymn is very difficult ; many of its grammatical puzzles have

been already discussed in the glossary. The writer alludes in brief and

obscure phrases to legends which may have been well known to his

contemporaries; but which are far from well known to us. And hence,

too, it has come about that the marginal notes that have been added in

F are of such portentous length. Windisch has remarked that the

order of the incidents in the Life of Brigid by Cogitosus is almost

exactly their order in the hymn ; and it is hardly possible to doubt

that this points to some literary connexion between the prose Vita and

the rhythmical panegyric. Windisch has printed extracts from Cogitosus

as an Appendix to his edition of the Ni car Brigit ; and they are worth

consulting. See, on the whole piece, p. l.ff. above.

I90 NOTES.

1 car\ i.e. she did ?iot love TF.
Brigit] i.e.flame-arroiv TF,

2 siasair\ i.e. she sat TF.

3 ailt\ a 7?iaide?i ; or^ in altitudine F.

5 mor\ i.e. it was not easy TF.
ecnaig i.e. to speak evil of her TF.

The meaning of this line is plainly that Brigid afforded little occasion
for speaking ill of her.

6 hiris'\ i.e. it is she tvho had the holy faith of the Trinity in her
TF.

7 riirecK\ i.e. of my high Ki?ig T.

The extravagance of this language will be observed ; nevertheless it
is plain that Brigid is not idetitified in the mind of the writer with the
B.V.M., for * Mary and Brigid ' are both mentioned in the last line of
the hymn. See above, p. 107. Cf. Matth. xii. 50.

8 cinis^ i.e. she is the best who was born T.

9 ecnairc\ i.e. she 7vas 7iot a detractor ; i.e. she made 710 detraction of
a7iy 07ie TF.

elc] i.e. she was not wicked TF:

or, she was 7iot troublesome F. The meaning of elc (elc7iide) is
quite uncertain.

10 chair\ i.e. she loved not the battle of the sorrotvful {wo7nen) T.

The line is full of difficulties ; all that is certain is that the glossator's
explanation is wrong, (a) cair, after pu or bu, must be a predicative
substantive; it cannot mean 'she loved.' F has ^czr ' brittle,' but an
attributive adjective is just as impossible here, as a verb. The only
alternative seems caiir, cur ' champion.' (b) bafi-chath might mean
' white battle,' if the texts read ban. But, even if it is intended as a
compound of ban ' female,' it ought not to mean * battle of women ' as
the glossator says ; unless it can be proved that prefixed ban is used to
express the subjective genitive. The nenrest analogy is ba7i-rdd given
in the Wiirzburg Glosses as explanatory of uerbosae (i Tim. v. 13), where
rdd is not the collective affix, but the infinitival subst. Thus, as ban-rdd
is uerbosus, ban-chath may be bellicosiis. (c) brigach must mean ' mighty,'
' forceful ' ; it cannot be ' sorrowful ' as the gl. has it. But it is to be
observed that the words na mban are not legible in the gl., and it is
just possible that bronach there may have a totally different reference,
viz., to Brigid's grandfather Dall-bronach, and that we have here an
allusion to some incident now unknown.

12 r/>] i.e. she sold 7iot TF.

dibad^ i.e. for perishable (?) treasure TF ; but the gl. is not fully
legible. Cf. gl. 43.

13 seotu^ i.e. she was not greedy for treasures TF.
er7iais^ i.e. she gave TF.

7iei7n^ i.e. ivithoict rebuke TF. f

15 calad^ i.e. she was not stingy TF.

16 cair\ i.e. she loved not the world T.

The position of the governed genitive in this line is noteworthy.
cathi7ti\ i.e. co7isumption of the world by herself TF.

THE HYMN NI CAR BRIG IT. 191

17 acher\ i.e. angry or fierce TF:

or., ' acer ' = ac hir., i.e. in ira F.

18 bai\i.e. kind she 7vas T.

truiigii] i.e. mercy for the wretched sick T,

19 maigXi.e, Leinster T.
artdtacht] i.e. she built TF.
cathir\ i.e. Kildare T.

20 doUaid^ i.e. of God TF.
ro'n'snade] i.e. Frigid ; or, civ it as TF.

22 genais^ i.e. she did bonum T. An impossible translation.

23 ajnra\ i.e. the city ; or Frigid TF.

24 ascnat7i\ i.e. to visit TF.

26 Plea^ i.e. Flacentia {?), viz. a city which be/ofigs to Frigid in Italia.
Or. Plea is a city ivhich belongs to Frigid o?i the Ictian Sea ; and it is its
Rule that the folk of Frigid observe. Ft sic factum est id^ i.e. Frigid
sent seven persons from her to Fo?ne to lear?i the Rule of Feter and Paul,
for it ivas not permitted to herself by God to go. Whe7i they got back to
Frigid, there did not remai?i with them one word of the Rule. " The
Virgin^ s son knoweth,^^ said Frigid, " small is your profit, though great
your labour.^' Misit iterum alios septem uiros ; similiter cotitigit eis quam
primis et tunc misit alios septem uiros and her blind youth with them, for
whatei'er he heard, he stored up ifi ??iemory on the spot. Well, whe?t they
got as far as the Ictia?i Sea, a great storm came upon the7n, so that they let
doivn anchoram ; it caught on the dome of the oratory, so that they cast lots
inter se about going down, a?id it ivas on the blind youth that it fell to go
down. Et exiit et absoluit ille attchoram et stetit there, to the end of a
year, learning the Rule, until the rest of the party got back to him from the
East. And there overtook them a great storm again i?i the same place, so
that they let down anchoram adhuc, till the blitid youth came to them
from below ivith the Rule of celebration illius ecclesiae secum ad se ; and
he brought up along with himself a bell for them ; and the bell belonging
to the folk of Frigid to-day is that same bell of the blind youth ; and the
Rule they have is the Rule the blind youth brought with him from Plea
F^.

This story, as Stokes observes,^ is also found in the notes to the
Leabhar Breac copy (p. 82) of the i^^///'(? of Oengus. This copy has for
Muir Icht = * the Ictian Sea.,^ /nber Mara, i.e. the Straits of Gibraltar (?).
The legend is interesting in its assertion that the Rule of Kildare was
not the Roman Rule, but the Rule of the submarine city Plea.

There are two curious Irish stanzas on p. 23 of the Codex Boer-
nerianus (G) of the Pauline Epistles,' the first of which seems to have
reference to a phrase in this story. It begins * Teicht do Roim • mor
saido • beic torbai • in ri chondaigi hifoss &c.' ; i.e. ' To go to Rome is
much trouble, httle profit. The king whom thou seekest here, unless
thou bring him with thee, thou findest not &c.' Scrivener's account^
of these verses is that they were probably written at Rome by some
disappointed pilgrim. But from the similarity of phrases in our

' Book of Lismore, p. :^34. 2 Published by Matthaei in 1791.

Introd. to Crituisnt of N. T. (4th ed.), i. 180

192 NOTES.

legend, it is not out of the reach of possibiHty that the verses have
grown out of it.

conhualai\ i.e. it went away ; i.e. from her Rule ; she was gentle with
power T :

i.e. with her cry F.

The latter part of this gloss seems to refer to cain-bai of 1. 18. The
F gl. analyses conhualai as = co-niial I

27 gaba\ i.e. it was alone with Christ she was when i?i peril TF :

or., till she took [7uent?] T : till she died F.

28 dana\ i.e. which is usual toivards guests TF:

or., frequent was her visit to sufferers T.

29 fo\ i.e. good was that TF.

fo-huair\ i.e. when B rigid ivished to have the Order of penitence conferred
on her, she went to Cruachatt Bri Fie in Offaly,^ whe7i she heard of
Bishop Mel being there, and there ivere seven nuns along with her ; but
when they arrived, the bishop was not there to meet her, but had gone
northward to the territory of the Ui Neill. So she went on the morrow
tvith Mac Caille as guide, northward over the Bog of Faichnech,- and
God caused the bog to become a smooth flowering plain. But ivhen they
got near to the place where Bishop Mel ivas staying, Brigid said to Mac
Caille, that he should place a veil over her head, that she might not go
without a veil over her head to the clerics, and that is probably the veil
that is alluded to. Well, after she had entered into the house where
Bishop Mel was staying, there blazed up a fiery column out of her head
up to the ridge-pole of the church. So Bishop Mel saiv that, and asked,
" Whose are the nuns ?" Mac Caille said to him, " That is the reno2vned
nun from Leinster, even Brigid.''^ " My welcome to her,'" said Bishop
Mel ; ' ' it was I that foretold her when she was yet in her mother's
womb,'"' said he.

Once on a time Bishop Mel had gone to DubthacKs house ; he saw
(his) wife in trouble, and asked, " What is the matter ivith the good
woman 1 " said he. " I have cause enough," said she, ^^for the bondmaid
IV ho is 7vashing your feet is more liked by Dubthach than I am." " That
is a natural feeling on thy part," said Bishop Mel, ^^ for thy seed shall
serve the seed of the bondmaid."

" What have the nuns come here for ? " said the bishop. '* To have
orders of penitence co?iferred," said Mac Caitle. " I shall grant it," said
the bishop. So that after that, orders were read over her, and it was the
order of a bishop that it befel Bishop Mel to cofifer on Brigid, though if
zvas only the order of penitence that she herself wa?ited : and it was
then that Mac Caille held up a veil over B rigid" s head, ut ferunt periti ;
and from this the coarb of Brigid has ahvays a right to have bishop'' s
orders and a bishop's honour upon her. While the ordination was being
read over her, she held the foot of the altar in her hand, and over that
foot seven churches were bur?it {in after times), but it was not burnt there,
Dicunt alii, that the church in ivhich ordination was coif erred upon Brigid
2vas in Fir Telech? Or, it is i7i Ardagh of Bishop Mel, ut alii dicunt. Welly

1 This mountain is now Croghan in King's Co. The ruins of the church of Bishop Mac Caille are
said to be still visible (Todd, Obits and Martyrology of Christ Church, Dublin, p. xcix.)

2 Now Boughna Bog. ^ Now FartuUagh in Co. Westmeath.

THE HYMN NI CAR BRIGIT. i93

after that. Bishop Mel preached eight Beatitudes Euangelii to them, eight
nuns as they were, after all had gone under orders, and each of them chose
her Beatitude. B rigid indeed chose the Beatitude of mercy. On that
occasion she said that she ivould nether eat food without (a preaching) to
her beforehand ; and Natfraich was lector to her always from that time
fonvard, and he was of the men of Turin F""-'.

The story of Brigid's ' ordination ' is also found in the Book of Lismore
(p. 1 88), and in the notes to the B copy of the Felire at Feb. i. See
also Quinta Vita, c. xxxi.

congad] i.e. he raised T.

Mac Catlle] i.e. he 7ras brother to Bishop Mel, and it was he that
blessed the veil over Brigid's head ; Mac Caille held the veil over her heady
while Mel 7vas blessing the veil T.

Both were sons of Darerca, Patrick's sister; hence we read
brathair.

31 menn^ i.e. 7vas ?nanifest TF.

33 no'd'guidiu^ i.e. I beseech him TF.

34 mod^ i.e. in every ivay T: in whatever 7vay F.
ro'sasad] i.e. they would reach TF.

35 domnu~\ i.e. deeper gua7n mare TF.

36 amru sceoif] i.e. more ivo?iderful tha7i stories . . . from him
seven years Kevi?i remai?ied sta?tdi?ig in Glendaloughy with a

board under him merely, and he without sleeping durifig that time, ut
ferunt, in * cross-vigil,^ so that the birds made their nests in his haftds,
utferunt F*"".

Stokes (Lismore, p. 344) compares a story told by Giraldus Cam-
brensis of a blackbird that laid and hatched her eggs in the hand of the
same St. Kevin,

37 cath^ i.e. to the sage T:
i.e. to the sage . . . dictus est ^ cadus,^ and ^ cad^ is from

that F"9.
i.e. Kevin, a virgin. Or, his mouth, i.e. his face ; or, good
ivas his speech F.

The glossator is attempting to justify cath in the sense of 'sage/ by
equating it with Latin ' catus.'

Coemgen or Kevin is styled ' caith-fer ' = ' man of battle ' in the
Felire of Oengus at June 3 ; ^^.618.

Coemge7i\ Brigid used to prophesy to Kevin, sage, illustrious, that
there would rush upon him a wind through snoiv and storm, under his
lair in Glendalough ; for this is what is told, that Kevin remaitied in

standing position to the end of seven years without sleep, and the joint
of his elboivs arotind him on high. Or, it might be ^ athrec^ (?) tantum.
Or, as Kevin re7?iained under his lair without sleep, sic Saint Brigid was
not sleepy T""^.

clotl{\ ie. re?iowned, viz. illustrious TF""^.

Line 37 is impossible to explain; there is nothing to show that

rigid has any relation whatever to the details of this stanza.

38 luades~\ i.e. the wind drove snow through storm ; towards the
effectuation of a trisyllable is that, for it is in the midst of the tivo halves

LIBER HYMN. IL O

194 NOTES.

there should be put ante quod Jiojt additur in fine F""". This obscure gl.
seems to refer to the position of snechta in the line.
da loc}i\ i.e. of the two lakes F.

40 con'idn'arlaid\ i.e. till it advised (?) T :
i.e. till it . . , F.

saith] i.e. after disease, or after labour T.

41 suanach sic sancta Brigida fuit sicut Kevin., i.e. sleepy F,

42 huarach\ i.e. it was not for hours there used to be {and at another
time there used not to be F'^") the love of God with her, sed semper
habebat TF""^.

A later hand has added in F : i.e. not duri?ig {certain) hours {merely)
7vas the love of God ivith her, but always.

43 chiuir'\ i.e. she sold not TF.
cossena\ i.e. she strove not for T.
dibad^ i.e. wealth T.

44 che\ i.e. of this world here below T :

i.e. on this side F.
46 fertaib^ i.e. head-pilloiv under the miracles is the following TF.
In other words, this is the beginning of her miracles ; cennadart is
used of the place of the bed where the sword was hung up in SG 120,

39-

48 cairtri?^ i.e. what place, i.e. ubi F.

50 fenamain'\ i.e. ivain, which her fnistress sent to her to the summer
herding-place to get butter T:

Once on a time the angel came to Frigid, and se?it her to release her
mother who ivas with the druid, 7iamed Mac Midrui. Her mother was
a Connaught woman, and her father a Mu7isier man, and she was at that
time iti Mag Fenamain in {Arad) Cliach.^ Now when Frigid got as far
as that, there was her mother with an eye-disorder in the milkingyard ;
so she ivent along with the druid's charioteer to her mother, a?id took the
cooking in her absence, and used to practise great charity ivith the pro-
visions ; and the druid heard of it. The charioteer 2ve7it home. Said
the druid, ''''How are things going o?t at the milking-yardV^ "/ am
thankful indeed,^"* said the charioteer, ''''and the calves are fat, and the
guests are thaftkful.''^ But the practice of charity by B rigid was ev'l
in the eyes of the druid and his wife ; so they came with a big basket.,
to take advantage^ of Brigid, and to reduce her to slavery hereafter, ij
plenty of butter 2vere not found with her. And indeed she had nothing
but a churning and a half, so she recited this verse :

My kitchen

a kitchen of a fair Lord,

a kitchen that my King hath blest,

a kitchen with something in it I

1 Now Kilteely in Co. Limerick.

* The word citivi is used to express "to take unawares, at a disadvantage"; cf. FM HI. i~-i
tarraid eitijtt ngabala ar [place] ; fuair baoghal gacilri ; 1600 fuaratar citim ar [men]; 2224 fuair . /
7 elang ; 2226 fuair uain 7 edarbaogal ar ; 1896 ar nach ffagthar /a/Y.'.

THE HYMN N2 CAR BRIGIT. 195

Et dixit iterum :

May Mary's So//, my friend, come

to /dess my kitchen ;

Ruler of the world to its extremity^

may there be plenty with Him I
Et dixit tcrtio :

O my great King,

who art aide for all tJiese things,

bless, O God — a cry without prohibition —

with Thy right ha/id this kitchoi I

She divided the churning {into three) sub nu??iero trinitatis ; but a
halfcJiurning she brought out of the kitchen. " // is good,^^ said the
druiifs wife, ^^for the filling of a big basket is that.'^ ^^ Fill ye your
hasket,"" said Brigid, '"''and God will put something into it ... . the
druid and his zvife" F""J.

This story is also found in B, L, and 0. See the references in Stokes'
Lismore, p. 320, and Cogitosus, Vita, c. 4.

The verses are given in Egerton 161 as a charm, the recitation of
which will replenish an empty larder.

51 rat}{\ i.e. for feeding poor people T.

52 lenamain\ i.e. the folloiving which guests put upon her T.
In other words, the crowd of beggars who were always about her.
54 hard\ i.e. ivas great T.
coscur'\ i.e. the marvel T.
56 toscur'\ i.e. the guest, i.e. the good company. Or, the country-fellow :

or, the or, the deed that Brigid wrought in giving food

to the dog TF'"^.

Compare Cogitosus c. 6.

5 7 lathe^ one day in the ' Land of the Benediction ' in Airiud Boinne
beside Clonard, this miracle was performed ; or at Domnach Mor beside
Kildare, i.e. ivetness in every place but dryness in Brigid"* s field F""J.

This story is in Cogitosus c. 7.

mad-bochi\ i.e, well was it reaped, ut quidam poeta dixit :

* Thy cake ....
if thou give it to guests
well reaped ivas it for her pipers (?) '
And another :

* He used not to give to a human being
anything that was well . . . (?)
of his reapijig, the good . . of his cooking.^ F""J.

58 chraibdig\ i.e. with Brigid TF""J.

59 tair\ i.e. it was dry iveather T:
i.e. it was dry the whole time F"^'J.

60 anmicJi\ i.e, sple?idid raining T:
i.e. great wetti?ig i^"'^.

61 epscoip^ i.e. seve?i bishops came to Brigid out of Ui Briuin
Chualand^ froffi Bishops^ Hill particularly to Kildare. And Brigid

' This district was partly in Co. Dublin and partly in Co. Wicklow.

O 2

196 NOTES.

asked of her cook i.e. of Blathnait^ if sJie liad food. Ilia dixit^ Non .
And tJiere was great tribulation in Brigid on that accounts viz. that
she had no food illis. And the angel told Blathnait to take tJie cows
to Loch Le77inachta nortJi of Kildai-e, and milk tiiem, t/witgh they had been
twice milked before. Well, the coivs were taJzeji^ and 7vere milked ; and
the milk rajt over the vessels, and ivould have overflowed even the vessels
of all Leinster if they had been brought to them, et inde sta^num nomen
accepit F"'0.

See Book of Lismore, p. 197. A short form of the story is in Cogi-
tosus c. 8. It is also found in the margin of the B copy of the Felire
at Feb. i.

do'da'ascansai\ i.e. they visited TF,

62 diuir\ i.e. was ?tot little, or, was not insignificant F.

63 fororaid\ i.e. utilcss he had helped T:

i.e. ufiless he had succoured F.

65 argairt] i.e. she herded TF:

Brendan tv as four years at sea, seeking the La?id of Promise. Dui'ing
that tinie there zvas a mo7ister followifig him in tha wake of the boat. At
one time a?tother mo7ister came tip to it to kill it, a7id the 77io7ister sup-
plicated B7'e7ida7i and all the other saints of Irela7id against the other^
77ionster, but that did 7iot protect it till it supplicated Brigid. So after
that Bre7tda7i said that he tvould 7iot re77iain a7iy lo7iger at sea, imtil
he knew why this 7niracle was wrought for Brigid beyo7id everybody.
Bre7tda7i ca77ie thereafter 07i a journey towards Brigid, a7id that was
revealed to Brigid. At that ti77ie Brigid was herding sheep i7i tJie
Curragh of the Liffey, so she we7it to meet Bre7idan to Do77i7iach Mor
to the west of Kildare ; so they saluted each other.

At Lice Bre7idan one day after that, Brigid during the heat flung her
ivet cloak over the sunbeams and it stetit thereon. Brendan told his
gillie to put his cloak on them, but it fell off the77i twice ; the third ti77ic
Bre7ida7i hi77iself flu7ig it a7igrily, and it re77iained 07i them tu7ic. Brigid
e7iquired of her cook, what quantity of food she had. She replied that
she had 7iothi7ig but one-eighth of barley grai7i. That was taken to the
77iill of Rath Cathair ivest of Kildare, twice, a7id they refused to grind
it there, for Ailell 77iac Dunlai7ige king of Lei7ister cha7iced to be there
at that time, viz. at Rath Cathair. Well, Brigid's servant went tlie
third ti77ie, whe7i it was flu7ig into the 77iill-race alo7ig with its sack.
So after that Brigid passed the ivord 07i Rath Cathair, that there should
neither be s7noke nor fires nor hu7na7i beings in it till Doomsday, a7id so tlw
ivhole 7nill disappeared under ground. But Brigid's attendant took his sack
out of the 77iill-race, and its other half of 77ieal of 77ialt, a7id 7nade a feast
out of that for Brendan and Brigid a7id her folk, so that they were
thirty days si7nul consuming that feast ; a7id each of the7n i7mde his
co7ifession to his fellow. Said Brendan first, that f-om the ti7ne he
took piety he had never gone over seve7i furrows without his 7ni7id on
God. ^^ It is good," said Brigid, '■''Deo gratias ago." Said Brigid
further, that {fro7n the ti77ie she had fixed) her 77iind in God, she Iiaa
never IV it hdr aw 71 it at all. Bre7ida7i ad7nires that, ^^ It would be triii,"'

1 Reading ele for ole ; perhaps we should read oic, 'evil.'

THE HYMN NI CAR BRIG IT. 197

said Brendan^ '■^though [^ce said that] tJiou surpasses t us in every point. ^^
Sic narrauit ci omnia quae in mari a bestiis audiuit^ and they did so
thereafter F"':'.

With the earlier i)art of this note the story in the Preface to Ultan's
hymn (p. 38 above) may be compared. It seems also to be found in
substance in the Irish MS. at Rennes.'

lathe] i.e. on a day T.

anbige\ i.e. of great wet TF.

66 ri'de] i.e. on the plain of the Liffcy TF.

67 scarais\ i.e. she spread open IF.
iarum] i.e. after that F.

forlyrat\ i.e. her co^wl, or any upper garment of any kind whatsoever F.

68 deslenf\ i.e. on a ray, i.e. on the su?ibeams that rested on her right
hand T.

This story is in Cogitosus c. 9.

69 mace] i.e. the robber who came to Frigid TF.

in mac amnas] i.e. at Rath Derthaige in Offaly was wrought this
miracle^ viz, there came a robber to Frigid four times, a?id carried off from
her on each occasion a wether of the sheep of DubthacK s wife^ so that she
reproached Frigid. But Frigid replied, " Look over your sheep to see if
th^y are all present.^'' Then they looked, viz. Dubthach and his wife, and
found them all complete without any missing F""J.

This story is in L and in a slightly different form in O as well as in
Cogitosus c. 10. See Book of Lismore, p. 331.

ro'das'gaid] i.e. he begged TF.

70 rig] i.e. ' For the sake of the King in whose absence \away from
whom] tlwu art, give sofne of the sheep to me,' said he TF.

7 1 dobert] i.e. she gave TF.

73 sous] i.e. it is of my art, i.e. of my poetry F.
atchous] i.e. if I should relate TF.

75 amra] i.e. good. In Kildare was wrought this miracle, viz. there
was a poor man on who7n the king of Leinster had a claim for ale., a7id
he had nothing to make it with, so he ca?Tie to Frigid. Frigid was Just
then in a bath when the poor fellow entreated her that she would assist
him. So after that Frigid blessed the bath-water in which she lay, and
made of it new ale, which was given to the man, and by him to the king F"^K

Compare Cogitosus c. 11.

fothrugud] i.e. i?i which she herself was T.

76 senta] i.e. she blest TF.
laid] i.e. it ivas red ale TF'^^ff.

77 senais] i.e. she blest F"^'J.
comaif] i.e. pregnant TF'^'J.

78 galar] a nun who was with child cafne to Frigid, and she healed
her T:

A nun there was in Cluain Moiscna,^ a?id she wa^ with child, and
Frigid chanced upon her \yvhen going] to the church ; so she cai7te after
that to Frigid, atid was pure thereafter F.

This is in Cogitosus c. 12.

» Rci'. Celt. XV. 8S, 3o. * Near Fartullagh, in Co. Westmer.th.

I9S NOTES.

79 7?io] i.e. the greater 7vas the wonder for ajwther miracle^ s being
wrought F.

80 salafid] In the Curragh of Liffey tvas wrought this miracle^ viz. a
7na7i cai7ie past Brigid with salt 071 his back^ a7id Brigid said to hiTn^
" What is there on thee ? " " Stones" said he. " Be it so" said Brigid^
and it was fulfilled Just so. Once 77iore^ he co77ies in this direction, and
so came iteru77t past Brigid, et ilia dixit ei, " JVhat is there on thy back ? "
*' Salt" said he. " Be it so" said Brigid ; and so it was verified F"'!7.

This story is in L, See Stokes' Book of Lis77iore, pp. 195, 329.
Compare also Cogitosus, Vita, c. 13.

8 1 ruir77iiii\ i.e. I have 7wt counted T :

i.e. I a77i 7iot able to number it F.
airmiii\ i.e. I a77i 7iot able to number it TF:

Or, I do 7iot e7iu77ierate every thi/ig she did i7i 7niracles F.

82 7ioeb-duit\ i.e. Brigid T:

i.e. the holy creature F.

2>T, be7t7iachais^ i.e. she blessed ; i.e. the flat faced ; in Cluai7i Corcaige
in Offaly was wrought this 77iiracle, viz. a leper was brought to Brigid y
who bade him take out the clump of rushes that was i7i his 7ieighbourhood
fro77i the place ivhere it was ; so he took it out, a7id there spra7ig a well
of ivater fro77i that place ; so he sprinkled the wafer over his face ajtd
beca77ie whole F"'i^.

This is told briefly in L and in Cogitosus c. 14. See Stokes' Book of
Lis77wre, pp. 197, 330.

85 i7ige7i a7nlabar\ i.e. i7i Cluain . . . 7i'as ivrought this 77ii7-acle .
a dumb girl tvas brought to Brigid, a7id Brigid took the girPs ha7id into
her ha7id, and did not let go the girVs ha7id out of her ha7id till her speech
was plain F^"^.

This is fully told by Cogitosus c. 15.

86 hoen^ i.e. of Brigid^ s 7niracles T.

89 ti7i7ie\ i.e. baco7i T.

a77ira\ i.e. a flitch of baco7i was give7i to her as an offeri7ig i7i Cell
Finne7id . ■ . . . this was wrought : and it was forgotten by her
household . . . i7i Kildare, a7id it was there up to the e7id of a 77ionth^
ivith a dog guardi7ig it, which 7iot 77ierely did 7iot let other a7ii77ials defile

it, but also did not (itself eat it) ; {a7id it remained good)

as if people had eaten it the same {7iight T) F.

This is told by Cogitosus c. 16.

90 ro'dgli7i7iestar\ i.e. guarded it, a7id preserved the joi7it T :

i.e. kept it safely F.

93 77io\ i.e. greater was the other 77iiracle in co77iparison with it F.

94 do tlucestar^ i.e. she requested TF.
77iir] i.e. it was in the kettle T:

i.e. a poor fellow begged fro 771 Brigid a bit that 7vas in the kettle.
And the food therein was not at all cooked yet, so she requested of the
{kitche7i)-folk {to give a piece) of food (and they) threw the bit toivards the
ma7i ; it fell 07i Brigid's breast, but it did 7iot spoil her dress F'"C.

' The text seems to he tic ille qitidcvt^ but there is a difficulty in the transcription of the last
word which makes the passage obscure.

THE HYMN NI CAR BRIG IT. 199

This is in Cogitosus c. 1 7.

95 mafortii\ i.e. in the si//x^u/ar ; viz. Jier vestmejit that^from the word
*• mafortis' i.e. ' coif -veil' TF""J.

i.e. kerchief that is over . . . ; in Kil{dare) 2vas wrought this
little tniracle sic F"'<f.

96 brothach\ i.e. hot TF.

focres] i.e. 7i>asjlung, viz. into Brigid's breast A

97 in clam] may-be it 7vas a leper of Patrick's who came to ask for a
co%t\ and he did not take any but the best cow in B rigid' s 7?iilki?ig yard ;
(and then he asked for) the calf {that was best), so B rigid blessed the calf that
7vas best in the booley, and the cow loved {that calf as if it had been her
07vn) after that F""J.

This is in Cogitosus c. iS.

ro'gaid] i.e. he begged F.

ailgais\ i.e. his prayer F,

con' id' rua laid] i.e. so that she gave TF.

99 senais] i.e. she blest F.
forglu] i.e. the choice T,

100 carais] i.e. it loved the chosen calf of the coivs TF.

1 01 reraig\ .\. she drove, viz. permitted him to drive it to Bri T :

i.e. Natfraich B rigid* s lector .... she used to give, that ?tot . . . at
any time that the land was ?iot . . . . at present, till there shoi^ld be given
Iter toivn as far as . . . from the time that he begged . . . Brigid
about letting . . . out, and he was let into it after that ; he begged of
Brigid . . . it was given to hifn ; but . . . with the calf ; he

begged {of) Brigid a calf would not take

. , . . even though over Irelatid he should go F''"0,
This note is very difficult to read, as the surface of the MS. is much
rubbed.

102 B. C. Coil] proprium nome?t loci in Bregia T:

7vas king of Breg Cobthach Coil ; and as to Natfraich, he was the
driver of the car tuftc F"^o.

105 in daim] i.e. a friend came to Brigid .... Mor in the
Curragh of the Liffey, and a request with him to her, that Brigid would
abide with him that night ; a?id then was stolen {her herd of oxen) in her
absence. It was brought to the river Liffey, and the river rose up against
them, so that the robbers put their clothes 07i the horiis of the oxen as they
were going across it. The oxen go away back from them to their home^
and they wend their ivay to Kildare to Brigid, with the robbers' clothes
on them F"y.

The story is given in Cogitosus c. 19 thus: **Et quodam interuallo
temporis aHi nequissimi fures . . . boues ipsius furati sunt. Sed eos
eadem reuertentes uia impetus ingentis fluminis inundatione aquaruni
subito facto conturbauit. Non enim flumen instar muri erectum
scelestissimam bouum fraudem B. Brigidae per se transire permisit, sed
eos fures demergens et secum trahens boues de eorum manibus liberati
loris in cornibus pendentibus ad proprium armentum ad bubulum
reuersi sunt."

do'da'ascansat] i.e. they re-visited TF.

200 NOTES,

106 fo\ i.e. good TF.
ro'das'cload] i.e he ivould Jiear them F.

107 co7iuccaib\ i.e, it rose TF.
doiib\ i.e. the river TF.

108 n; tecJi\ i.e. Kildare T

109 breit\ i.e. imder-cloth (?) that is put u?ider the horse's neck TF.
scarais] i.e. at Ri Cuind this ivas wrought ; betiveeji Forraig Rath and

Cell Culind^ ; was Brigid . . . Natfraich i?i one chariot . . , to
them there .... Kildare . . . ; Natfraich at that tijne
preached to them the word of God, and he lets slip from him {the reins . . .
one of) the two big horses got his head out of the yoke so that it was eating
grass . ... so that Ailell mac Dunlainge, the king of Leinster, saw
that, and he was going to Maisten and he gave . . from his neck that
he might help . . ; a?id Brigid said for this act of humility, There
shall be to thee the kingdom of Leinster till Doom and to thy progeny
after thee F"0.

The sense will be gathered from the corresponding passage in
Cogitosus (c. 20) " cum quadam die ipsa sanctissima Brigida cogente
ahqua necessitate utilitatis conuentionem plebis uisitaret in curru sedens
binis uehebatur equis. Et cum in suo uehiculo meditatione theorica
caelestem agens in terris uitam suum ut solebat dominatorem oraret,
de alto procidens loco alter bruto animo equus saliens sub curru et
irrefrenatus habenis fortiter se extorquens et de iugo semetipsum
absoluens, equo altero solo sub suo remanente iugo, exterritus per
campestria cucurrit ; et sic manus diuina iugum pendens sine praecipitio
sustentans, et uidente turba ob testimonium uirtutis diuinae secura in
suo orans uehiculo, cum uno equo sub curru posito ad plebis conuen-
tionem discursu placabili illaesa peruenit."

Observe that ' He' in 1. loi is Natfraich, Brigid's charioteer.

no do'rertatar^ i.e. they raft TF,

112 ro'reraig^ i.e. he helped T :

i.e. they helped, or assisted F.
- laini\ i.e. hand of the king of Leifister, T.

113 tathig\ i.e. a wild boar that was ift a certain wood to the north of
Kildare, and he did not allow other pigs near him ; and Brigid blessed with
her staff the ivood at Ross na Ferta in Kildare to the north of Clocthech,
so that after that the boar ivas at peace with them ; it was he that became
leader to them akvays F^'^o.

This is in Cogitosus c. 21.

114 do'sef/iaifi] i.e. he chased TF'"9,

os] i,e, the ivild pig TF"K t

117 mug-art'] i.e. ''pig high,' or ^ pig fat' TF""J, }

di] i.e, )o Brigid TF"if.

A fat pig the king of Fotharta Tire gave — that lafid is in the South of
O'Kifisela — every year to Brigid ; as a?i offering . . . the king of
the Kinsela to Brigid ; a?id the king of Fotharta further said that he
7vould not give it to hifn, nor could he give it to Brigid ift violation of his
■Protection, but he would let it a7vay outside, and wherever God would send

' i.e. Old Kilcullen in Co. Kildare. '

I
>

THE HYMN NI CAR BRIG IT. 201

Ji , , . And if went to Mag Fca^ to Uachtiir Gabra i.e. to the place
where Brigid ivas P'^^.

This is in Cogitosus c. 22. The O'Kinsela country was in co. Wexford.

dobr€t}i\ i.e. icas take?i TP^^K

118 amra\ i.e. it 7cas good TP"^.

120 Uachtur-Gabra^^ i.e. a big hill in the plain oj Leinster TF,

121 asrir\ i.e. she gave TF.
sinnach^ i.e. [</ man had killed a tame] fox of the queen at Maistcn

in Ui Afuredaig, and a movejnent was made to kill hitn for it. At that
time Frigid chanced to be at Maisten, and she said . . the son of the
« . . [///«' king said\ Thou shall get him under thy protectio/i^ pro-
vided that if would perform the trick that the other fox used to perfortn.
Frigid aftenvards blessed the wood and struck a hand-tree^ so that a fox
^f the same tricks came fo her. And Frigid gave it for the sake of the
wretch. So the man ivas let off. The fox went into the 7Vood, and
nothing could be done to him, though all the dogs of Leinster were after
Jiim P"9,

^here is a shorter form of this story in the Book of Lismore (p. 196).
It is also given by Cogitosus c. 23.
/ 123 conselai] i.e. he ran away ; or, it stretched T.

124 do'sefnatar] i.e. though they chased TF.

125 menn] i.e. was plain TF"o :
in Cell Brigte i.e. in Kildare itself that was do?ie F""-i,

1 26 fnathair] .i. Frigid 7vas unique de ?natribus Christ i T.

127 senais] i.e. she blessed T.
en'\ i.e. a bird, i.e. a silver chain that a certain man brought as an offering

to Frigid^ and slie gives it to the little girls that ivere alo?tg with her ; for
tliey were 7iot pleased at nothing being giveti to the7n ; and there cafne a
certain leper to her, to beg something of her, so she gave him the chain
without the knowledge of the girls ; and they wept whe?i they learnt
it^ so she asked the7n^ " What equivalent would you ask to be given you
for it 1 " In lieu thereof it pleased them, " that we should have yon little bird,
for it is pretty,''' Frigid blessed the bird, so that it was tame fr 0771 07ie
hand to a7iother. JVhat zvas the land of the bird fro7n that time forth ?
Not hard . . . regio7iis, in which iv as found the true gold F^"'i^.

This explains line 128 ; the bird was so tame that it could be passed
from one hand to another, without its trying to fly away. Cf. p. 43.
above, and Cogitosus c. 24.

129 nonbur] ./. of the Vi Loscai7i were they, ict ferunt F.

senais'\ i.e. Frigid blessed F :

Nine brothers of Leinster, who ivanted to go to . . in Con/fs
Half, for it is they who killed hi7n . . they ca7ne to Frigid to bless
their arms . . . tu7ic . . . miracles i7i Kildare. So Frigid
blessed their ar7ns for them. After the blessing of their ar7ns, the 77ie7i
went southward, a7id the ma7i chanced up07i the7n, a7id they killed hi7n.

On the morrow after they had killed him as they thought

. they did not get a drop of blood out of him, so that they were thankful
for that ; and the man escaped per gratia7n Brigitae F"'ff.

' Mag Fea is a level plain in the barony of Forth, Co. Carlow^**"*^ r^v M£t)/4r) "

i O
CCUUEGE y>s>

202 NOTES.

This is in Cogitosus c. 25.

130 vti7i7ia\ i.e. their anus T. The reading of F, avicsat, and its gl.
aggau [their spears ?] are alike unknown.

131 for'da'corsatar\ i.e. whom they set up07i T,

132 greta\ i.e. 7V02i?ids ; or, was 7vou?tded T,
colla7i7i\ i.e. for it 7vas not upo7i a real perso7i they i7iflicted their wounds

but it 2vas upo7i a pillar-sto7ie T.

1 34 do'riir77ie\ i.e. 7vou/d 771a ke its e7iu77ieratio7i TF.

135 a77ira\ i.e. good F :
ro'gal)] i.e. he took F.

1 36 tre7i-fer^ i.e. three stro7ig i7ieii there 7vere buildi7ig the ditch of a
ma7i of Alette, 7vhe7'e there is a s 771a II fort of the ki7ig of Leitistcr. These
are their 7ia77ies, Mureth a7id Fiad and Lugaid. A dinner of a hundy-ed
vien, each man of the77i ate. Now Lugaid was entrusted to the Churches
^or his feeding, but the other ti.vo me7i to the laity. Well, Lugaid begged
of B rigid that she 7Vould di77iinish his appetite and 7Vould ?iot take a7vay his
strength, and Frigid 7vrought that for hi7n, a7id she blessed his mouth, so
that his appetite 7vas not greater than that of an ordinary man ; a7id
after that he 7ve7it, a7id lifted up the sto7ie, 7vhich the others, a hundred
men of the 771, could not do before, fro7n the ditch 07i to the top . . . F'"!^,
Compare Cogitosus c. 26.

digaib] i.e. she di7ninished his allowa7ice, but no7ie the less 7vas the
strength of Lugaid ; i.e. Lugaid 7vas a mighty mati that lived in Leifister,
and he 7vas . . , i.e.foodofahu7idredheconsu77iedashisfood , .

, (she took a7vay his voracity) but did not difninish his strength T.

137 07n7ia^ i.e. it fell on the road, so that it took .... but the
(77ie7i of) Offaly were U7iable to raise it. Atid 07ie ti7ne Frigid chanced
to be on that road, a7id the i77ien of) Offaly i77iplored of her to lift up the
oak fro77i the place 7vhere it lay ; and she lifted it up after that through
the might of the Son of God, so that it is still in the same place fro7n that
time to this F'"!^.

This is in Cogitosus c. 27.

138 digrais^ i.e. 7vise F.
dotK\ /.<?. fatuous the deed F.

139 dobert^ i.e. he gave, viz. Christ F\

1 40 air77t\ i.e. to a place F,

ro'chloth] i.e. 171 7vhich it 7vas . . . in 7vhich it ivas good F.
both'] i.e. her (it ?) to be (there) L.

141 set] i.e. a pin T,

chleth] i.e. 710 1 to be hidden T :

i.e. that it 7vas not right to hide or to conceai 1\

142 fraicc] i.e. to7vards a bo7id7naid TF\

Niad] i.e. Nia, propriu77i no7nen alicuius poetae T :

i.e. the cha77ipion F\
14^ focress] i.e. 7vas flinig TF.
ro'it] i.e. the letigth of a cast TI\
1 44 iacli] i.e the sal77i07i TF:

i.e. a silver pin the ki7ig of Lei 71s fer gave her as a re7vard for her com-
plaisance; he tookher7vithhi)n ho7nc to . . . he took it from the ha ■

THE HYMN NI CAR BRIG IT. 203

of the bondmaid .... a fid he fliin^^ if from him into the sea to her

detriment the poet asked asked the pin with

the bondmaid . . . of a saimon the pin was found.

At that time J^'ri^id chanced to be in the house of , . , * {prayer)
of B rigid towards God that there might be shown her the pin for which , .
and an angel canu\ . . . and ordered her to cast ?iets into the water
i.e. into the sea, and a salmon would be caught in them^ ami the pin ivould
be found in the middle : ef sic factum est et liberafa est ancilla de necessitate
ilia F""J,

The story is in Cogitosiis c. 28 ; and is to the effect that a man
deposited a silver pin with a woman 'quam dolose retraxit ilia ignorante
et iecit in mare.* Brigid saved the girl from evil consequences by
predicting that the pin would be found in a salmon, which accordingly
came to pass. There is a somewhat similar story told in the romance
of Froech and Find-abair, i)rinted by O'Beirne Crowe from the Book of
Leinster}

145 afnra\ i.e. good TF,
///] i.e. for Brigid TF.

amra di^ i.e. Once Brigid chanced to be at the fort of the king of Breg
in Mag Coil in Fingal hodie, and the queen refused her {hospitality). A
certain widow 7vo?nan that dwelt beside the fort outside gave her a ivelcome,
and {killed her calf) for her and set fire to her 7iew iveaving-beam under it.
On the morrow through the favour of Brigid both calf and beafn ivere
quite whole. But now when the king heai'd of that, viz. that Brigid had
come, {he zvent) to intervieiv her, and that widow woman met him ; as
soon as the king sa7V her, he fell i?i love ivith her through the favour of
Brigid, and took her to wife, and from her is the origin of the .
Carrol Is ut ferutit F"'^,

The first part of this story is in Cogitosus c. 29.

146 ar'do'utacht^ i.e. feasted {?) her TF.

149 arailiu^ i.e. this miracle was the greater for being wj'ought there
also TF.

150 ar'id'ralastar'\ i.e. she effected TF.

152 ditli\ i.e. it sucked IF.

153 set] i.e. the valuable ; or, the trinket gift F.

i.e. the trinket of silver, viz. three brothers to whom their father left a
bar of silver, and the smiths of Ireland were unable to divide it exactly i?ito
three parts for them ; so Brigid broke it, divided it TF"'3 .- with her fist in
Kildare T : . . . . was the miracle wrought F^-"J.

This is in Cogitosus c. 30.

combaig\ i.e. he did fwt break TF.

154 di] i.e. it 7vas a great miracle by Brigid.

155 ro'snvbi\ i.e. she broke it ; or she smote T.
157 focress] i.e. it was put TB\

ceird] i.e. with the smith {in the smithy ?) TB\
i^^fuirecht] i.e. ivas not found T.
162 fail] i.e. was ?iot found T.
dune] i.e. persons coming {?) F.

1 R.I. A. /risk AfSS. Series, I., i, 147.

204 NOTES.

do'da'decJia\ i.e. who narrates T.

163 se?tats^ i.e. she blessed F.

. B rigid blessed Condlaed the Pious {and he) tried twice to go
to Ro?ne. Brigid again blessed him, so he tried the third tifne ....

B rigid gave her cowl to another 7?ian, a leper, once

7vhen she was guarding to Brigid upon him, quia non fuit

intus cere .... garfnent to Brigid, a?id it was brought, and she
had only one garment that she could give hi?n, so he enquired of Ron-cend^
i.e. the sub-deacon, oft account of tlte size of her garmoit . . . to see
if he had ?iot a garment. " There will be," replied he, '■^provided thou put
prayer up to God." Thereafter there ivas fou?id a garment in a basket
that was with Ron-cend in a chariot of two 7vheels ; they ivere under the
chariot. Or, not the name of a person at all was Roncend, but a garment
that had a reseniblatice to the skin of a seaFs head; it was fou?id there, and it
was aftenvards given to Condlaed. Thereafter he, Condlaed, set out on a
-'ourney to go to Rome, Brigid said to him, " Though thou set out thou
shall not arrive." So it was fulfilled , for wolves ate him at Scecha F"'9.

In a note at May 3 in the Felire of Oengus, the story is briefly told
that Roncend, otherwise Condlaed, Bishop of Kildare and Brigid's
chief artificer, tried to go to Rome in disobedience to Brigid's orders,
but was devoured by wolves on the way. See p. 191 above, and Todd's
St. Patrick, p. 23 ; compare Cogitosus c. 31.

dillait^ i.e. garment TF.

1 64 dobreth\ i.e. he used to go ; i.e. a semetipso it was brought F"^d,
Letha'] i.e. to Rome TF"'^.

166 7nac^ i.e. Christ; preceding her T.

7ii' s' derbrad\ i.e. he defrauded her fiot TF""J.

167 dobert\ i.e. he gave TF'"9.

crioi] i.e. i?t a basket of seaTs skin was the garment T.

169 oi\ i.e. the vat F: i.e. ale which the king of Leinster claimed from
the king of Ui Culduib, and it was owed to the latter by a 7na?i of his
people ; and he came to Brigid to ask her to help him, for he had nothing
to give as he had given the ale to Brigid ; but the king of Ui Culduib did
not accept that [excicse^from him, et proinde uenit ad Brigitam, et necessi-
tatem habuit, so that after that there was put water into the vats that
were at hand in the ?ieighbourhood of Brigid's house, and Brigid
blessed that water, so that it became mead. And the poor man took
it home with him then, and there was no mead that was better than
it, and there was ?ieither plus uel minus of it than was due de misero
F""J.

This story is in 6 and in a shorter form in L. See Stokes' Lismorc,

dt] i.e. to Brigid F.
dobretH\ i.e. was given TF.

170 ances^ i.e. it 7vas 7iot deep 2F.

thucai^ to the person who gave the vat to Brigid T.

171 frith'] i.e after drinking what there was in it, by

Brigid and her household T.

173 asrir] i.e. she gave T.

THE HYMN NI CAR BRIGII'. 205

a haf/iaig] i.e. to a man of her folk TF.

175 fiireclit\ i.e. was not found TF.

I -J J i'/^e] I.e. may they be upoti us, her prayers T :

i.e. may her prayer /v of assistance to ns F.

178 con'donfair^ i.e. may she succour us T:

i.e. may she effect our help P\

179 /tvV//] i.e. may the 7veak/ings and the wretched he on our side
t>rayingfor us T.

181 do'nfair\ i.e. may she effect our assistance T.

182 iaUci\ i.e. against demons T.

ciara^ i.e. black ; i.e. black flocks demoniorum F.

183 ro'n'snadat] i.e. may they effect our deliverance TF.

186 ec/ais] On a vellum fragment bound up with T we have an
etymological gloss, whose reference is probably to this verse : " eclais
i.e. uaid and clais, ' trench of the cave ' ; or, dais ' stripe,' 'that is sewed
(uaig-) upon each one ' ; or, eclais from ecclesia, ' collectio iustorum,'
the congregation of the righteous being therein." See vol. i. p. 190.

187 faith met] i.e. recollection, i.e. correspondence TF:
i.e. meeting T.

^adat] i.e. of the good God F.
natK\ i.e. better than a ?iy poetry T :

is t/ie poetry that is made for God T"0 :

than a?iy poei?i F.
189 ateoc}{\ i.e. I beseech T.

erlam] i.e. ' high her hand ' ; vast her ha?td [readiness], towards
working miracles and marvels TF.

193 reided] i.e. she drove ; i.e. she proceeded TF.

Currech]i.e, ' racing of horses ' ; a cursu equoru7n diet us est TF"'i^.

194 figi] i.e. against {sha?pjiess) of the edges T,

195 fuar] i.e. Ifou?id not T.
set] i.e. her like T.

1 96 admimemar] i.e. we bless, or we beseech T.
Brigi] i.e. my Brigid T.

conacna] i.e. may she help TF.

200 ternam] i.e. ??iay we escape TF.

201 clot hack] i.e. illustrious TF.

209 riched] i.e. ' rig-iath ' or ' king-laiid,^ in the lajid of the heave7ily
King TF.

210 dichill] i.e. violation of her protection {?).... F.

The note in the lower margin of fol. 17 of T is, as Mr. Warren has
observed {Antiphonary of Bangor, ii. 35), a favourite one with Irish
scnbes. To the instances of its occurrence which he has collected
might be added the following. It occurs in the Preface to the Yellow^
Book of Lecan ; and in the Stowe MS. C. 3. 2 (R.I. A. Collection).
At fol. I of Egerton 89 the scribe has written : " In nomine patris et
filii et spiritus sancti Amen." In 7wmine dei was a common dedicatory
form on inscriptions in Rome and Gaul. See Petrie, Christiafi Inscrip-
tions in the Irish language, ii. 150.

2o6 NOTES.

The Hymn of St. Sanctan.

This hymn exists only in the manuscripts T and F, so far as we
know. The text of T has been printed by Stokes in Goidelica^ as well
as by Windisch ; and the Preface from F has been reproduced by Nigra
{li manoscrifto irlatidese di S. GaHo, p. 21). An EngHsh translation of
this F Preface is found in the Trinity College MS. classed E. 3. 28.

The date of Sanctan, who according to the Martyrology of Gorman,
presided over the church of Killdaleas in Leinster, is quite unknown ;
and it was unknown in the days of the scholiast who wrote the Preface.
*' Famous Bishop Sanctan" is named in the Felire of Oengus at
May 9, as well as by Gorman.

Inis Matoc mentioned in the preface has been identified with an
island in the lake of Temple Port, Co. Leitrim, but there is no certain
knowledge of the place.

1 ateoc}i\ i.e. I beseech T.
amra\ i.e. good, or, mirabilis T :

i.e. good, or, wonderful, viz. at saving afid protecting anyone
against dangers F.

2 tressa7?i\ i.e. for there is 7wt a ?tomen fortius quam nomen illius quoi
liberet ho)ninein T. Cf. Phil. ii. 9.

3 lorg\ i.e. after me TF.
tuathmn\ i.e. 7iorthivard of me TF,

The invocations in the Lorica of Patrick may be compared with
these.

5 togair?7i\ i.e. dei T:

i.e. it is a holy i7ivocatio7i of God F.

6 guasacht^ i.e. in which I am, in danger T:

that I may not be i7i danger F.

7 drochet^ i.e. may each 07ie co77ie to it ; or, ' droch-set ' = ' bad road^
for the badness of the road across which it is made ; or, ' set diriuch =
* direct road ^ for ' droch ' is ' diriuch,' T :

i.e. '■set diriuch' = ''straight road,' for ^ droch' is ^ stretclied out'
171 Gaelic F,

8 tssuTn] i.e. U7tder me {my) face viz. cou7ite7ia7ice F.

9 do'7ifoscai^ i.e. 77iay he awake us from the death of sin, or at
Doo77isday T :

i.e. 77iay he effect our awaki7ig at Doo77isday ; or 7nay he overshadow us,
viz. he 7nade that so that it is figurative, so that it is . . . to hi7n,
quia ad si77iilitudi7iem dei facti sumus F"^3,

I o baile\ i.e. it is to him alone to whom there is not certain the death
of piety, for if it were zve , , . and death T:

the Holy Spirit, ac si diceret, the spirit of Heaven, the household of

heaven , . . God fro7n His Countena7ice . . . certain death of

piety . . . the Father, i.e. in this fashion, i.e. may the lofty lazv of^

God overshadow us ; aliter, lofty Trinity 7nay it awake us F'"!i.

The phrase * death of piety ' seems to mean ' death in a state o
grace.' *

THE HYMN OF ST. SANCTAN. 207

1 1 rt';/] i.e. in miracles and marvels T.

13 Jine\ i.e. our deeds ; viz. our sins F.

14 ^adu'\ ./. \i:^ood God^ TF.

dillocht\ i.e. unvitiated^ i.e. without fault God exists T :

i.e. its faultiness is increased abundantly faulty F,

15 ptallocht^ i.e. against every fault of lyin^ T,

16 ni'm'thairle^^ i.e. may they not visit me T.
dibocht ] i.e. ivithout God with him T.

poor in respect of God : i.e. without God witli me ; or, not poor,
without poverty in respect of the world's wealth F.

1 7 Jf ///] i.e. every sorrow or disease T.

18 frisinnle'\ i.e. may he minister T :

i.e, may Christ effect the settlement oj my questions ; i.e. may Christ
^ome toivards the suffering F

20 testa^ i.e. may the testifying Trinity (?) come to my assistance ; or
* triple ' i.e. three t:

till the testifying Trinity come to overtake me, to protect me before
trime or error befal F.

Perhaps we may compare i Jn. v. 3 *' tres sunt qui testimonium dant
in caelo."

21 tolam\ i.e. ^ toi-elhwi'' ^=. silence-prepared ; i.e. may it come in
silence and in readi?tess T.

22 celar^ i.e. that is not hidden in songs TF:

or, the battle-songs . . . or spear-shaft F:
i.e. his songs are not hidden TF.
On the word celar see the Glossary (which must be referred to for
most of the difficulties of this poem).

23 ni'm'thairle\ i.e. of death the pang {l?e it not) to me in slaughter ;
i.e. may he 7iot put colour of corpse on me ; or, may he not put stu?fibling
on me F. There were two readings : F"^ has 'thasle, and apparently
taisi li is intended as a sort of ety. gl.

amor^ i.e. the cry of death is ' iich ach ' / T :

of death the cry ; i.e. song of death ; or ' ach ' and * uch,^ for this is the
cry of death F\

24 morilaid^ i.e. co7nmu?iis morbus F.

i.e. qua?tdo plurimi pereunt unonwrbo i.e. swift death T:
i.e. death swift, sudden death F"'if :
i.e. ujtnatural TF.
See note on this word printed at p. 84.

25 ni'm'thairle^ or, ^ ?ii'ffi'thuisle^ i.e. let him not put stumbling
on me T.

erchorX i.e. temptatio diabolica F.

a?nnas\ i.e. ' am-inas ' i.e. bad condition 7 .

26 m/drasl^ i.e. of?ien- know ledge TF:
i.e. ivhich prognosticates the knoivledge T.

bodras\ i.e. troublesome knowledge i.e. which troubles the knoivledge ;
disponiiur i.e. a cast . . . which perturbs beyond the Son \of
God] T.

27 ainsi'unni i.e. mav he protect us F.

2o8 NOTES.

ern-bds\ i.e. against evefy iron death TF. This is a common word in
the Irish Tales. Cf. LL 132^340; I33ai3 ; 150^35 ; 194^31, (S:c.

28 ihei}i\ i.e. against death TF.
threthan\ i.e. against three-ivave TF'"3 .-

quia feru7it periti nautae that it is the third wave that
most frequently sinks naues T"'ffj F"^o.

torbas\ i.e. ivhich humbles death (?) . . . ; dry death (?) ; or^
zveariness (?) death TF"^'J.

29 eic-li7id\ .i. against every water of death ; which produces death ; or
agaifist every . . , F:

or^ against every thi/ig which water drowns (?) T :
against everything that , , , F.
eslinti\ i.e. that is unsafe T.

30 ainbthib'\ i.e. which is with storms and with horrors T.
3 f do'77im'air\ i.e. may it co77ie to 77iy assista/ice T.
thratha\ i.e. either day or Jiight T.

32 gcBth^ i.e. against hurt, of wi7id TF. Yet the text seems to refer
to ' perils of ivaters ' ; perhaps gaeth in both text and gll. is used in the
sense of " a shallow stream into which the tide flows and which is
fordable at low water" (MR 288, 5). Cf. the end of the gl. on 1. 51
of the Altus Prosator.

33 luathfe\ i.e. I shall set goi7ig T:

I shall utter F,
molthu\ i.e. praises TF.

34 bages\ i.e. it contended T :

which e7igages [to do] F.
Both words are, however, used to gloss glorior, ' I boast.'
baga\ .i. for deeds F.
fi7i7ia] i.e. good TF.

35 f viscera] i.e. He will reply TF.

36 lurecK\ i.e. God TF.
arbaig] i.e. which boasts TF.

mo the7iga\ i.e. out of ivhich it 77iay make battle TF,

37 digde\i.e. at prayi7ig God TF.

38 sigith\ i.e. 77iay it be lasti7ig F.
sethrach] or, sethach, ' laborious ' T.

39 f-is] i.e. that 1 7nay 7iot go to TP\

40 ateocK\ i.e. I beseech TF,
ad'ro'etacli] i.e, I besought TF,

The Lorica of St. Patrick.

The legendary story of the composition of this famous hymn is given
in the Tripartite Life (p. 45 ff.). The tale runs that Patrick and King
Loegaire met at Tara Hill, when the latter was presiding at a heathen
festival, which was to begin with the extinction of all fires throughout
the country. But Patrick disregarded this regulation and defiantly
lighted his paschal fire on the Hill of Slane in full view of the king and

»1

THE LORICA OF ST. PATRICK'. 209

his druids. Then followed a contest between the saint and the druids,
in which Patrick triumphed, as Moses of old triumphed over the magi-
cians of Egypt. The king thereupon purposed to kill Patrick by a
treacherous assault ; but he and his companions escaped, being miracu-
lously transformed into deer. And the hymn or charm which he recited
in his flight was the Lorica S. Patricii^ commonly called, as the Preface
informs us, Facth J^Yaduy or ^' The Deer's Cry." The end of the story
tells of the conversion of the king to the Christian Faith. Save for
the mention of the hymn, this legend is, in substance, contained in
Muirchu Maccu Mactheni's memoir in the Book of Armagh. That
Muirchu does not say anything of the hymn is undoubtedly unfavour-
able to the truth of the legend that it was composed by Patrick.

The title /uwf/i Fiada is perplexing. Faed certainly means ' scream '
or * cry,' cf. MR 72, 23, 230, 19. But the MSS. have not faed, but
Jdt't/iy which Colgan prints fefh : and fefh means ' peace,' ' calm.' On
this hypothesis, the title should mean, '' The Deer's Repose." It is
possible, however, that a quite different explanation may be the true
one. Feth fill is found in the Book of Bally mote, 345/5 in a gloss on the
word druid ; it there is equated with aisdi?techt and seems to mean
* the divination.' O'Donovan, similarly, in his Supple77ient to O'Reilly's
Dictionary, translates ^^//^ 7^'^z 'magical darkness.' O'Curry observes
\}[\dXfeth fiadha was a spell, peculiar to druids and poets, who by pro-
nouncing certain verses made themselves invisible.^ And thus our
Lorica may have gained its title not from any tradition about St. Patrick
and the deer at Tara, but from its use as a charm or incantation to
ensure invisibility.

The piece was first printed by Petrie in his essay on the Antiquities
of Tara Hill (1839), with a translation by O'Donovan. A much better
translation was given by Dr. Whitley Stokes in the Saturday Review
for Sept. 5, 1857 ; and the same editor has printed the hymn in
Goidelica from the manuscripts T and 0, as well as in the Rolls'
Tripartite. Another valuable edition is that by Windisch in his Irische
Texte.

The only MSS., save T and 0, which we know to contain the piece
-are Egerton 93 and Egerton 190. The latter is quite modern, and of
no value ; the collation of the former which we have made does not
seem worth printing, but we have had it before us while preparing the
translation given above. Our register of the variants of 0 has been
derived from Dr. Stokes' transcript of that MS. in Goidelica}

Metrical translations by J. C. Mangan, J. J. Murphy, and Mrs. C. F.
Alexander will be found in Dr. Wright's little volume on The Writings
of Patrick the Apostle of Ireland {^). 109). Dr. Sigerson has printed in
his Bards of the Gael a?id Gall (i). 137), a translation in which the
irregular rhythm of the original is imitated.

That the hymn is of early date there can be little doubt. As we have
said, it is not mentioned in Muirchu's memoir, but in a passage already
cited (p. 97) from Tirechan's collections in the Book of Armagh there
[occurs the injunction " Canticum eius scotticum semper canere," as one

1 Atlantis III., 386. 2 See Vol. i p xx.

T.IBER HYMN. II. P

2IO NOTES.

of the four special honours to be paid to Patrick in all Irish monasteries.
And there seems no good reason for hesitating to identify this " Canti-
cum Scotticum " with the piece before us. The language of the hymn
is so uncouth in its grammatical forms that it affords no sure basis for
argument. But, at least, it is more likely that these grammatical
anomalies should be survivals of perversions of some older form of
speech than that they should have been deliberately constructed in
times subsequent to St. Patrick to give the piece an archaic flavour.
Again, internal evidence would suggest that the hymn was written at a
time when paganism had still considerable influence. True, the druids
lived on in Ireland long after it became a Christian country ; and some
of the old superstitions have survived to our own time. But never-
theless lines 47-54 appear p7'i ma facie to have reference to existing and
recognised pagan belief.

In his Essay on Tara Hi//, published in 1839, Petrie stated that
some portions of this hymn were then in use among the peasantry, and
repeated at bedtime as a protection against evil. We do not know
whether this is still true ; but it is worth while to observe that the
structure of the piece seems to have been followed more or less closely
in the composition of later charms of a similar character. For example,

in the manuscript belonging to the Royal Irish Academy classed -7-,- -7

£. 16

there is at p. 237 a lorica, a portion of which is worth printing here for

comparison in the translation kindly made for us by Mr. E. J.

Gwynn : —

" God be with me against every sorrow, even the One noble Three,

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit !

The Trinity be my protection against swarms of plagues.

Against sudden death, against terror, against treacheries of

marauders !
May high Jesus keep me against the Red Plague !
Against demons at all times, the Son of God is my shield,

I o Against disease, against hurts, against thunder, against fire.
• • • • •

Against weapons, against terror, agamst venom of darts,
Against danger, against treachery, against hidden poisons,
Against every form of sickness he pours on the world.
Every (blessing) without pain, every pure prayer.
Every ladder that reaches heaven shall be an aid to me,
Every good saint who suffered on the surface of the earth,

20 Every chaste disciple who was tortured for Christ,

Every meek, every gentle, every candid, every pure person.
Every confessor, every soldier, who happens to live under the sun,
Every venerable patron saint who should reach me for luck,
Every one, gentle or simple, every saint who has suffered the Cross.

• •••••

Every righteous modest son under ihe roof of the glassy heaven,
30 From the sunset in the west to Mount Zion eastward,

THE LORICA OF ST. PATRICK. 211

May they protect me henceforth aii^ainst the demons of the mist,
They, the comrades of the King's Son in the lands of tlie Hving.
• •••••

36 May I be under the hand of (lod against every danger ! '*

This last lorica naturally falls into three divisions. In lines 1-6 the
might of the Trinity is invoked; then from line 7-16 the dangers are
enumerated against which protection is desired ; and finally the aid of
saints and angels is asked in the warfare against evil. The Lorica of
(iildas (vol. i. p. 206), in like manner, begins with an invocation of the
Trinity, goes on to invoke saints and angels, and then proceeds to a
detailed enumeration of the parts of the human body which might be
subject to injury. 1 The structure of Patrick's Hymn is more complex
than either of these, and it presents features, such as the special
invocations of Christ in His Incarnate Life, which they do not contain ;
but the likeness is obvious. It will be observed that the fine idea of
lines 11-20 in Patrick's Hymn has been developed in the later pieces
into a formal invocation of saints and heavenly powers. The opening
invocation of the Trinity, which is found in all three loricas, is un-
doubtedly a very ancient Celtic form. It will be remembered that the
hymn of St. Colman Mac Murchon (vol. i. p. 44) begins in like
fashion : "In Trinitate spes mea fixa, non in omine."

The grammatical peculiarities of the poem, first of which is fiiurf
(which is dat in 1. 2, ace in 1. 9, and 7iom in 1. 32), have been pointed
out for the most part in the Glossary.

The opening word atomriug has been variously translated ; but ^ I
arise ' is the rendering we have finally adopted. It is thus not in any
special grammatical connexion with the following lines, all of w^hich
have reference to tociiiriiir (1. 48) ' I invoke,' the one principal verb in
the piece. The general meaning of the clauses is " each day, when I
arise, I invoke, &c."

1. 8. There is an etymological gloss on adnocul ' burial ' on the last
of the vellum fragments bound up with T. See vol. i. p. 190. It is as
follows ; " adtiacul i.e. ead + nae + 'cul^ ed meaning ' law,' and nae
' man,' and ciil ' observance ' ; i.e. ' observance of the law of man.' "

1. 9. Stokes compares the words of the Milan Gloss (24 a. 18),
cluasa d(e diar fi-eitsecht intivi mbimmi is?iaib fochaidib^ " God's ears
to hear us when we are in the sufferings." The likeness is undoubted,
but we should hesitate to conclude therefrom that the glossator
borrowed from the lorica, although w^e are disposed, as we have said, to
acquiesce in the traditional authorship of St. Patrick.

i. 13. With lines 13-20 may be compared the very similar language
of a Latin prayer found in the manuscript Reg. 2. A. xx (J). It is
headed Oratio matutina, and is as follows : —

Ambulemus in prosperis huius diei luminis
In uirtute altissimi dei deorum maximae
In beneplacito Christi in luce spiritus sancti
In fide patriarcharum.

* See below, p. 244.

V 2

212 NOTES.

5 In gaudio angelorum in uia archangelorum

In sanctitate sanctorum in operibus manachorum

In martyrio martyrum in castitate uirginum

In Dei sapientia

In multa patientia in doctorum prudentia
lo In carnis abstinentia in linguae continentia

In trinitatis laudibus

In acutis sensibus in bonis actibus
Semper Constituti.

In formis spiritalibus

In diuinis sermonibus in benedictionibus
15 In his est iter omnium pro Christo laborantium

Quod ducit nos post obitum in gaudium sempiternum.'

1. 60. In the Lorica of Mugron, preserved in two manuscripts of the
/23 23 \

Royal Irish Academy ( ^— and t^~] we have some invocations which

seem to be modelled on 11. 61-65 of the Lorica of Patrick, viz. :

" The Cross of Christ with me in my good luck, in my bad luck ;
The Cross of Christ against every strife, abroad or at home ;
The Cross of Christ in the East with courage (?), the Cross of Christ

in the West at sunset ;
South, North without any stay, the Cross of Christ without any delay ;
The Cross of Christ above towards the clear sky, the Cross of Christ

below towards earth.
There shall come no evil nor suffering to my body or to my soul.
The Cross of Christ at my sitting, the Cross of Christ at my lying ;
The Cross of Christ all my strength, till we reach the King of

Heaven ! "

This Lorica of Mugron,^ according to a colophon at the end, was
copied by Michael O'Clery from the " Book of Armagh," i.e. not the
famous manuscript which now goes by that name, but another volume
used by the Four Masters in their work.

The Lamentation of St. Ambrose.

This curious piece has not been printed before, and we have not
found it elsewhere. It is alphabetical, and not only so, but the lines in
each stanza begin for the most part with the same letter, as will be
observed on inspection. A somewhat similar piece is ascribed to
Isidore (Migne P.L. Ixxxiii. 1251); and Mr. Warren has printed
\Antiph. of Bangor 11. loi) an alphabetical set of prayers from the
manuscript we have called J, which will bear comparison with it.

The notes written at this point in the margins of T (see vol. i. pp.
142, 3) are interesting. That at the top of fol. 20b we have not

' The phraseology of the collect in the Stowe Missal (fol. 27), printed in Warren's Celtic Liturgy^
p. 244, may also be compared with these lines.

2 The translation given above is due to Mr. E. J Gwynn.

THE LAMENTATION OF ST. AMBROSE. 213

succeeded in identifying. It seems to be a fragment of bad hexameter
verse.

The extract at the top of fol. 21 from Augustine is from a passage
now prescribed in the Roman Breviary as a lection at the third nocturn
in the Communt' Doc font m.

Then comes the verse Apoc. vii. 12, which is also found in the Breviary
more than once ; e.g.^ it is the Capitulum at Nones on All Saints' Day.
We do not quite know what to make of the rubric (?) which follows :
" Uespere psalmus cotidie cantatur post prandium uel ballenium." The
word we read psahniis is almost illegible, and we are not sure about it.
In any case it is not probable that the so-called Lame7itaiio Afiibrosii is
the piece referred to ; so gloomy a penitential would hardly have been
counted suitable " post prandium," as a kind of grace after meat. But
as we have remarked before, (vol. i. p. xxix) the presence of this rubric
suggests the use of the Book of Hymns at daily choir services, and so is
interesting as being one of the very few direct pieces of evidence we
have got for the fact.^

The ethnological and etymological notes at the top of fol. 21b seem
to be merely memoranda. The Irish words in the fragment may be
translated : scenopodi i.e. the 07ie-legged men ; i.e. the broadfooted men .

. . labrosi ; their lotver lip they thrust out beyond their {chin),

M. Berger has printed^ a remarkable penitential piece ascribed to
St. Patrick in a tenth-century MS. now at Angers, but which he
supposes to have been written at Tours. It presents some points of
interest in connexion with the Laine?itatio Ambrosii, and we reproduce
it here.

Incipit Confessio Sancti Patricii Episcopi.

Deus, Deus meus, rex omnipotens, ego humiliter te adoro. Tu es
rex regum, dominus dominantium. Tu es arbiter omnis saeculi. Tu
es redemptor animarum. Tu es liberator credentium. Tu es spes
laborantium. Tu es paraclytus dolentium. Tu es uia errantibus. Tu
es magister gentibus. Tu es creator omnium creaturarum. Tu es
amator boni omnis. Tu es princeps omnium uirtutum. Tu es gaudium
omnium sanctorum tuorum. Tu es uita perpetua. Tu es laetitia in
ueritate. Tu es exultatio in aeterna patria. Tu es lux lucis. Tu es
fons sanctitatis. Tu es gloria Dei patris in excelso. Tu es saluator
mundi. Tu es plenitudo spiritus sancti. Tu sedes ad dexteram Dei
patris in throno regnans in saecula.

Ego peto remissionem peccatorum meorum, Deus meus lesu Christe.
Tu es qui neminem uis perire sed omnes uis saluos fieri et ad agnitionem
ueritatis uenire. Tu, Deus, ore tuo sancto et casto dixisti : In
quacunque die conuersus fuerit peccator, uita uiuet et non morietur.
Ego reuertar ad te, Deus, et in omni corde clamabo ad te, Deus meus,
et tibi nunc uolo confiteri peccata mea. Multiplicata sunt delicta mea

• The note on fol. 22 is an extract from a Canon of the Hibemensis collection dealing with the
duties of principes, which apparently means kings. It may possibly, however, refer to the duties of
an abbot. The general tenor is not unlike that of Sedulius' treatise De rectoribus Christianis.

- Revue CeUique, xv. 155.

214

NOTES.

super me, quia peccata mea numerum non habent ante oculos tuos,
Domine, reus conscientia testis adsisto. Rogare non audeo quod
inpetrare non mereor. Tu enim scis, Domine, omnia quae aguntur
in nobis, et erubescimus confiteri quod per nos non timemus admittere.
Uerbis tibi tantum obsequimur, corde mentimur. Et quod uelle nos
[? non] discimus, nostris actibus adprobamus. Farce, Domine, confi-
tentibus, ignosce peccantibus. Miserere tu rogantibus, quia in sacra-
mentis tuis meus sensus infirmus est. Praesta, Domine, ut, qui e.\
nobis duro corde uerba non suscipis, per te nobis ueniam largiaris,
lesus Christus Dominus noster.

Confitebor tibi, Deus meus, quia ego peccaui in caelo et in terra i.t
coram te et coram angelis tuis et coram facie omnium sancrorum
tuorum.

Peccau

Peccau
lorum.

Peccau
Lerrenarum rerum

Peccau

Peccau
iniqua.

Peccau

Peccau
*eccau

MfDA4

per neglegentiam mandatorum tuorum et factorum meorum.
per superbiam et per inuidiam.
per detractionem et per auaritiam.
per luxoriam et per malitiam.
per fornicationem et per gulam.
per falsum testimonium et per odium hominum.
per furtum et per rapinam.
per blasphemiam et per desiderium carnis.
per ebrietatem et per odiosas fabulas.
per contentiones et per rixam.
per iuramentum et iracundiam.
per laetitiam terrenam et transitoriam.
per terrorem et per suauitatem mentis meae.
per dolum et per murmurationem.

per instabilitatem mentis fidei et per dubietalis impietatem.
per inmisericordiam et per spernationem hominum.
per praua et per iniqua opera [et] iudicia.
per neglegentiam et per obliuionem operum Dei.
per uagationem et per discretionem mentis meae.
per inpacientiam et per spei inperfectionem.
per duritiam et per cecitatem cordis uel mentis,
per [injobseruationem amoris Dei et proximi.
per inoboedientiam et per amissionern bonorum constitu

per amissionem caelestium desideriorum et per amoivni

per studia iniquitatis et per dolosa argumenta.

per exempla iniqua et per humanitatis obsordes.

per accidiam uanam et per stuporem mentis.

per fictam humilitatem et amissionem amoris Dei.

per maledictionem et per diuinationes.

per inperfectionem uotorum meorum et per machinamenta

per scrutationem maiestatis Dei et caelestis uitae.

per pom])as cor])oris et per ambitiones fauorum hominum.

per intemperantiam hilaritatis et furoris.

'^A:

ST. MIOHAEL'8

COLLEGE

.-/ PENITENTIAL PIECE. 215

Feccaui per tedia et per desidiam mentis.

Peccaui per consilia iniqiiitatis et per redditionem mali.

Peccaui i)er concujMscentiam et ])erpetrationem libidinis,

Peccaui i)er consentioneni et per conscientiam actiium iniciuoriini
atque uerborum.

Peccaui per dominici diei operationes et per inlecebr[os]as cogita-
tiones.

Peccaui per tristitiam seculi et per amorem pecuniae et per aml)i-
tiones honorum.

Peccaui per inquietudinem et per amaritudinem mentis.

Peccaui per inutilem laetitiam et per scurilitatem, per dolorosa
uerba et per intemi)erentia[m] clamoris.

Peccaui i)er disperationem et per inpuritatem confessionis.

I'eccaui per inperfectionem et neglegentiam emendationis.

Peccaui per audatiam et disperationem.

Peccaui per acceptionem munerum iniquorum et per punitiones
impietatum.

Peccaui per simulationem et per memetipsi placationem.

Peccaui per silentium rectitudinis et iniquitatis et adulationis.

Peccaui j^er comessationem et per polluti cibi acceptionem et })er
suggestiones diaboli et per dilectationem spiritus et per conscientiam
cam is.

Peccaui in oculis meis et in auribus meis.

Peccaui in manibus meis et in ore meo et in labiis meis et in omnibus
factis meis.

Peccaui in lingua et in gutture.

Peccaui in collo et in pectore.

Peccaui in corde et in cogitationibus.

Peccaui in mente et in operationibus.

Peccaui in manibus et in pedibus.

Peccaui in ossibus et in carne.

Peccaui in medullis et in renibus.

Peccaui in anima mea et in omni corpore meo.

Si nunc erit uindicta tua super me tanta quanta m me ipso fuerunt
l)eccata mea multiplicata, iudicium tuum quomodo sustineo ? Sed
habes te sacerdotem summum ad quem conliteor omnia peccata mea.
Id tibi soli, Deus mens, quia tibi soli peccaui et malum coram te feci.
Et quia tu es, Deus, solus sine peccato, obsecro te, Domine Deus
meus, per passionem atque per signum salutiferae crucis tu3e atque per
effusionem sanguinis tui, quo tu concedas mihi remissionem omnium
peccatorum meorum. Peto te, Domine meus lesu Christe, quod mihi
non reddas secundum meritum meum, sed secundum magnam miseri-
cordiam tuam. ludica me, Domine, secundum iudicium indulgentiae
tuae. Ego te peto et adiuro, Deus meus omnipotens, ut tu in me
colloces amorem et timorem tuum. Suscita in me paenitentiam
peccatorum meorum et fletum pro nomine tuo. Da mihi memoriam
mandatorum tuorum et adiuua me, Deus meus, dele iniquitatem meam
a conspectu tuo et ne auertas faciem tuam ab oratione mea. Ne
proicias me a facie tua. Ne derelinquas me, Deus meus, ne disces-

2i6 NOTES.

seris a me, sed confirma me in tua uoluntate. Doce me quid debeam
non agere, quid facere aut loqui, quid tacere. Defende me, Domine
Deus meus, contra iacula diaboli et contra angelum tartari suggerentem
et docentem multa mala. Ne deseras me, Domine Deus meus, neque
derelinquas unum et miserum famulum tuum, sed adiuua me, Deus
meus, et perfice in me doctrinam tuam. Doce me facere uoluntatem
tuam, quia tu es doctor meus, et Deus meus qui regnas in secula secu-
lorum. Amen.

An Abridgement of the Psalter.

The preparatory note to this collection of 365 verses gathered from
the Book of Psalms in regular order, states («) that it was made by
Pope Gregory, and ib) that the recitation of these 365 verses is not only
equivalent to a recitation of the whole Psalter, but that it has the
virtue as well, "sacrificii et fidelis animarum commendationis." This
highly convenient arrangement for getting rapidly over one's devotions
recalls the Celtic doctrine explained (p. 98), that the recitation of the
last three verses of a hymn was as efficacious as if the whole hymn were
said.

We have other instances of these collections of versicles from the
Psalter. There is one printed among Bede's works, entitled Libellus
Precum (Migne P.L. xciv. 515). A Psalterium abbreuiatu7n attributed
to St. Jerome is frequently met with in service books. And the idea
that the recitation of certain verses had peculiar efficacy occurs in a
curious form in a legend of St. Bernard of Clairvaux. A demon once
mocked him by the assurance that he knew of eight verses, the recitation
of which was equivalent to the recitation of the whole Psalter. The
saint begged to be told what these verses were ; and, the demon refusing
the information, he declared that he would henceforth daily recite the
entire Psalter, so that the precious verses might always be included.
The demon then disclosed the situation of the verses ; they were
Ps. xii. 4, XXX. 6, xxxviii. 5, Ixxxv. 17, cxv. 16, cxli. 5, cxli. 6.^

In the Book of Cerne (C), eleven folios (from fol. 87b to fol. 98b),
are taken up with an exactly similar collection to that before us. The
versicles selected in C are not always the same as those in T, and the
collection is not quite as long, but the general plan is the same. At
the beginning there is an almost defaced title, of which the last letters
seem to be : *' . . . entia forsorum eal • said eps decerpsit." The
name of Ethelwald appears on fol. 21a, so it is possible that this may
be the name of the bishop who made the C collection. In C the
number of separate orafiones is not easy to determine ; but we counted
over 260 coloured initial letters.

If the number of versicles in T be counted, it will be found that
there are only about 240 instead of 365 as promised in the title ; but
on examination it will be seen that there is an obvious gap between
fol. 24b. and fol. 25, for we make a sudden advance from Ps. xlii. 3

^ Wordsworth's Ecclesiastical Biography^ II, 66, note.

AN ABRIDGEMENT OF THE PSALTER. 217

to Ps. Ixix. 6, whereas both before and after the text has been fairly
continuous. This indicates that a page, or more probably two pages,
has been lost from T at this point. If the MS. were not thus
mutilated, we should no doubt find our full number of 365 verses.

The number 365 seems, for whatever reason, to have been a favourite
one with Irish writers. Nennius^ says, e.g. that St. Patrick founded in
Ireland 365 churches, and consecrated 365 bishops. We may be quite
as sceptical as Todd was- as to the accuracy of these figures ; but the
choice of the number 365 is here significant. Again the Irish tract
(ie Arre/s, on the penitential commutations,^ begins with the words :
" The arreum for saving a soul out of hell, viz. : 365 paternosters and
365 genuflexions and 365 blows with a scourge on every day to the end
of a year, and fasting every month saves a soul out of hell." And it is
by no means unlikely that the old tradition that there were 360 crosses
on the island of lona may have a great deal more truth in it than
Reeves was willing to allow.^

Both the plan of this collection of verses from the Psalms and their
number, are, then, distinctly Celtic. The triple division of the Psalter,
usual in Irish books, next claims attention. It will have been observed
that several times in the Book of Hymns, the Psalter has been described
as " the Three Fifties." This is indeed the regular Celtic designation
for the Psalter ; and it is worth observing that the phrase first occurs,
so far as we know, in the Prologus in librum Psahnorum of Hilary of
Poictiers, whose relations to Celtic Christianity have been touched on
above (p. 127). His words are : "Tribus uero quinquagesimis psal-
morum liber continetur : et hoc ex ratione ac numero beatae illius
nostrae expectationis exsistit." (Migne P. L. ix. 239). In Irish
l*salters these divisions are nearly always clearly marked by large
initial letters, sometimes elaborately illuminated; i.e. the initials of the
Psalms Beatus uir (i). Quid gloriaris (li) and Domine exaudi (ci),
are treated with special care. A good instance is the Southampton
Psalter (2) ; another is the Psalter of Ricemarch at Trinity College,
Dublin. In the collection of versicles in the Book of Cerne (C),
of which we have spoken, the triple division is thus indicated by large
letters at the points Psalm i. 1-3, and ci. 2. In the collection
before us it seems to have been made even more conspicuous. The
first point of division occurred on one of the lost foHos ; but the first
and third divisions are preceded by the introductory versicle Deus in
adjutoriiwi^ the initial D being specially large, and the second and third
are concluded by the Pater nosier.

The short office at the end will be observed. The Credo and the
Pater noster are followed by the prayer : " Ascendat oratio nostra
usque ad thronum claritatis tuae domine, et ne uacua reuertatur ad
nos postulatio nostra. Amen. Amen. Amen. Alleluia." This prayer
is found in the Stowe Missal (S) with the rubric Haec oratio in omni

^ See Ussher, IVorks, iv., 322

- St. Patrick, p. 28.

•' It has been printed from the manuscript 0 by Kuno Meyer in the Revue Celtique xv. 485ff.

* See his Adamnan, p. 419, for the tradition, which Reeves scouts without serious examination.

2i8 NOTES.

missa cantatur. And the long prayer which concludes this portion
of \}c\t. Liber Hym no rum seems also to have had Eucharistic associations.

It will be observed that the text of this Abridgement passes con-
tinuously on from fol. 25 to fol. 29 ; this is due to misplacement of the
folios by the binder.

At the top of fol. 23b a late hand has written the letters of the
alphabet in the margin ; but there are no more marginalia like those
with which the earlier pages are covered. And the handwriting now
entirely changes its character, and is of a later date than that of the
pieces which we have hitherto considered. The remaining hymns are
written in ink of a different colour, and the scribe is less skilful than
his predecessors. We shall also see that the vocabulary has changed,
and that many words, hitherto unused, occur.

The Hymn Alto et ineffabili.

In the Life of St. Ciaran of Clonmacnoise (c. 26), as quoted by
Colgan, we read : " Unus ex praecipuis Hiberniae est et merito numer-
atur Apostolis iuxta quod de ipso cecinit eius condiscipulus et
coapostolus sanctissimus Columba in hymno quodam quem in eius
composuit laudem dicens :

Quantum Christe O apostolum mundo misisti hominem
Lucerna huius insulae lucens lucerna mirabilis, etc."^

The first line of this couplet is almost identical with line 8 of the
piece Alto et ineffabili^ which suggests that this may be the hymn in
question. It is mentioned again in the manuscript (wrongly) called
the Book of Kilkenny in Marsh's Library at Dublin, where at fol. i48aa
we read : " Et fecit sanctus Columba ympnum sancto Kiarano,"
a hymn which Ciaran's successor at Clonmacnoise called clarus et
laudabilis. Columba, the story goes, asked in return for some earth
from St. Ciaran's grave, with which he calmed the stormy water on his
way back to lona.^

This St. Ciaran, who is to be carefully distinguished from St. Ciaran ol
Saighir, was the founder of the great monastery of Clonmacnoise, and
in its Annals the year of his death is given as 547. He is counted one
of "the twelve Apostles of Ireland," and in the Martyrology of Donegal
(at Septr. 9) he is compared to the Apostle St. John. He was known in
his life time as Ciaran mac an t-saor, or "Son of the Carpenter "; and was
a friend of St. Kevin, as of St. Columba. His memory still survives
in the place called " Temple Kieran," about four miles from Navan.
In Cornwall the name of Ciaran (of Saighir) has become corrupted to
Firan, to whom there were many churches dedicated.

At the end of the Vita S. Kiarani contained in the two manuscripts
which we call Y and Z, a composite Latin hymn is found which we
reproduce here*^ :

' Compare the same story in the life of S^. Ciaran in the Book o/ Lismort^ ed. Stokes, p. 263 ft'.

^ See Reeves* Adaninan, p. 263.

^ The piece will be found at fol. 130 of Y, and at fol. 94 of Z. Their texts are almost identical.

THE H\MN ALTO ET INEFFABILI. 219

Matro Quiarani sedente in curru uolubili
sonitum magus audiuit perdixitque seruulis
uidete quis sit in curru nam sub rege resonat
coniunx in(.[uiunt Beodi sedet hie artificis

5 Magus inquit gratum cunctis ipsa regem pariet

cuius opera fulgebunt ut Thebus in ethere
miles Christi Keranus sancti sedes spiritus
spiritali pietatis uiitute floruerat

Uituluni uacce lactentem iam cani concenserat
10 Keranum inde grauiter mater reprehenderat

uitulum cane uoratum ab ipso exegerat
cuius ossa mox apportans ipsum restarauerat

Mulieris regie caput decaluatum

seue zelo peliris fuerat nudatum
15 In Querani nomine cum esset signatum

aurea cessarie fulserat ornatum

Cum Queranus studiis sacris teneretur

atque tempus posceret ut operaretur

pro ipso ab angelis tunc mola mouetur
20 textus euangelicus in stagnum ceciderat

Sic uoluto tempore per Querani merita

integrum de gurgite uacca reportauerat

cum puer oraret dominum precibusque uacaret
ignis ab excelsis uenerat arce poli
25 Defunctusque puer conspexit brauia uite

et sancti magnum glorificant dominum
de celis lapsus rutilans accenditur ignis
et peragit proprium protinus officium

Alto et ineffabili apostolorum cetui
30 celestis lerosolime sublimioris specule

sedenti tribunalibus solis modo micantibus
Queranus sacerdos sanctus insignis Christi nuntius

Inaltatus est manibus angelorum celestibus
consumatis felicibus sanctitatum generibus
35 quem tu Christe apostolum mundo misisti hominem

gloriosum in omnibus nouissimis temporibus.

This hymn is plainly made up from different sources. LI. 1-12,
II. 13-19, and 11. 20-22, are all distinct from each other and from
11. 23-28, which are in elegiac metre, as well as from 11. 2^-36 (the
first two stanzas in T) which form, perhaps, the only specifically Celtic
fragment in the whole. Mr. H. A. Wilson has suggested that 11. 13-19
may possibly be responds, like some of those in the Aberdeen Breviary.
But without entering upon any investigation of the sources of its various
parts, this composite piece is sufficiently interesting to justify printing

220 NOTES.

it in its integrity. YZ preserve the true readings meffabili^ cetiii (1. i)^
speculae from specula^ a watchtower (1. 2), and sedenti (1. 3).

The vocabulary is remarkable. The words ineffabilis, coetus, subiimisy
specula, mkare, sacerdos, inaltare, sanctitas, genus do not occur elsewhere
in the Liber Hymnorum.

Dreves {A?iakcta hym7itci medii aeui x\x. 172) has printed the stanzas
found in T ; but without reference to the manuscripts YZ.

The legends about St. Ciaran which are obscurely alluded to in this
hymn will be found in Irish in the life of the saint in the Book of
Lismore (p. 265ff ), and in Latin in Acta Sanctorum ex codice Salmanti-
censi {^. 155!? ).

With 1. 3. cf. the observation of Stokes {Lismore ^ p. 356) that ' currus
sub rege resonat ' was a common proverbial expression, and occurs
again in the Vita Sancti Aidui {Cambro-British Saifits, p. 233). Cf.
also Colgan's Vita tertia of St. Brigid c. i.

1. 9. The story in this stanza is in Lismore, p. 267.

1. 15. The spelling Quiaranus, of which Queranus is a further corrup-
tion, illustrates the not uncommon interchange in Irish MSS. of C
and Q.

1. 17. The story of the manuscript, which was uninjured by water, is
in Lismore, p. 275.

1. 23. The allusions in this and the following lines are explained by
the story in Lismore, p. 277.

1. 32. Dreves prints uirgo for insignis ; but the latter is the reading
of T.

The Hymn of St. Molaise.

This alphabetical hymn was first published in the Irish Eccl. Record,
V. 224 (1869), and has been also printed in Dreves' Analecta, xix. 222,
l)ut with some inaccuracies. It was known to Ussher, who doubtless
had read it in T. In his Antiquitates^ he says : " Ad Laisreanum
pergo, Hibernice Molaisse dictum . . . quem antiquissimus
hymnus iuxta alphabet! ordinem in laudem ipsius compositus Mac-
culasrium nominat :

Lucerna erat in tota
Macculasrius Hibernia
Nadfraich et sanctus filius."

St. Molaise of Devenish, who is to be distinguished from St.
Molaise of Leighlin^ (Apr. 18, 638), and also from St. Molaise of
Inismurray (Aug. 12), was the son of one Natfraich ; he is celebrated
in the Martyrologies on Sept. 12, and the A?ina/s of Ulster give 563 as
the year of his death. His Acta may be conveniently read in Acta
Sanctorum ex codice Salmanticensi, p. 791; and there is an interesting

' Works, vi., 531.

* It is from Sr. Molaise of Leighlin that the village of Lamlash, in the island of Arran and St.
Molio's Cave in Holy Island, derive their name^.

THE HYMN OF MAEL-ISU. 221

23
Life of him in the R.I. A. manuscript collection -pr~~ An English

translation of his Life from the MS. Add. 18205 in the British Museum
is printed by Mr. S. H. O'Grady in Silua Gade/ica.

He was the founder of the monastery at Devenish, an island in
Lough Erne, and for many centuries his memory lingered there. A
stone coffin, called the Bed of St. Molaise, used to be shown to
pilgrims, and was supposed to have healing virtues. For a description
of his so-called ' Shrine ' see Todd, Proc. R.I. A. vii. 331.

It has been suggested with some plausibility that this hymn is
derived from an office for the Feast of St. Molaise, of which a fragment
is extant as a marginal note in the Martyrology of Donegal at Sept. 12,
viz. : " Antiphona communis : Uir dei dum uerbum uitae populo
predicaret, uisus est a terra paululum sublimari et in aere pendere et
mirati sunt uniuersi. Adesto nobis, quaesumus domine, ut beati
Lasreani confessoris tui atque abbatis interuentu ab omni inquinatione
mundemur corporis et mentis per Christum dominum nostrum."

The vocabulary of this piece is unlike anything else in the Liber
Hymnorum^ and indicates a later date than the majority of the hymns.
The words ab/)as, oiunino, eaiesiasticus, anthleta, macula^ subagriniis
(a curious word, apparently meaning rustic)^ supplex^ submissus^ ieiunus,
/ucerna, peritus^ obitus, securus, particepSy and prae (in the last line in
the sense of beyond^ as compared with) do not occur elsewhere in the
collection.

The Hymn of Mael-Isu.

This hymn is printed in Goidelica by Stokes. A metrical transla-
tion is given in Dr. Sigerson's Bards of the Gael and Gall (p. 192).
Possibly the Mael Isu, named as the author, is Mael Isu, the grandson
of Brolchan, who died in 1086, according to the Annals of Tighernach.
Other poems by him are found in the Book of Lismore (at fol. 52), in
the Yellow Book of Lecan, and in the margin of the B copy of the
Felire of Oengus at Dec. 31. This last is a curious devotional piece
in Latin and Irish, and has been translated in Olden's Church of Lreland,
p. 426.

It will be observed that the date of Mael Isu of necessity brings
down the date of this part of our principal MS. (T) to the end of the
eleventh century at^the earliest. But we have already remarked (p. 218)
that the handwriting of the MS. changes in character at fol. 23b, and
that the later pieces have certainly been added at a time long subse-
quent to the transcription of the more important part of the book. On
the metre see p. Iviii above.

A writer in the Lrish Ecclesiastical Record (v. 224) has identified
Mael-Isu with Molaise, a hymn in praise of whom immediately pre
cedes the one before us ; but there is no ground for this identifi-
cation. Mael-Isu means " the tonsured servant of Jesus."

222 NOTES.

The Names of the Apostles.

This quatrain calls for no comment. As usual Madian is the
form assumed by the name Matthias ; and Partholo7i is the equivalent
of Bartholomew. It occurs in the Felire of Oengus as a note at July
31, where there is special mention of "the twelve apostles who excel
every number." See p. no above.

The Hymn Ecce fulget clarissima^

This hymn in praise of St. Patrick is found in T, and also in the
manuscript we designate W. at fol. 122. In the latter it forms part of
an office for St. Patrick's Day, and is divided into two parts, collects,
&c., being inserted between 11. 12 and 13. From these two manu-
scripts it has been printed, though not very correctly, by Dreves' Atialecta^
xix. 233.

Colgan printed the hymn in his Trias (p. 189). He says that he
took it from a book entitled " Officium sancti Patricii impressum
Parisiis anno MDCXXII." This book we have not seen, but Colgan's
text is almost the same as that contained in a volume edited by Thos.
Messingham : " Ofhcia SS. Patricii, Columbae, Brigidae, et aliorum
quorundam Hiberniae sanctorum ex ueteribus membranis et manu-
scriptis breuiariis desumpta. Parisiis MDCXX." In this the hymn
appears in the office for the translation of the relics of the patron
saints of Ireland to Downpatrick, which took place in the year 1186.'
As the old distich says :

*' Hi tres in Duno, tumulo cumulantur in uno,
Brigida, Patricius, atque Columba pius."

The text of the hymn in this book and in Colgan differs considerably
from both T and W, and must have been derived from some MS. now
lost, or at least unknown to us. For instance Colgan's text exhibits the
following variants amongst others : 2 om qua ; 4 puritatis pro digni-
tatis ; 5 felici hie ortus ; 7 rectus; 8 duxerat ; 13 sacra; 14 dominum
pro omnium ; om 15 and 16 ; 22 dono suae.

It may be remarked of this, as of the last two hymns, that its
vocabulary shows it to be of a different period from the hymns in the
Liber Hy7nnor2im proper. The following words found in it do not
occur in the rest of the book : solemnitas^ transcendo, puerifia, prosapia^
baptisma^ studeo, prcescius^ cleme?is^ dirigo, fructiferus, idolatra (appar-
ently for idololatra in the sense of idolatrous)^ inergo^ adue7iio, gentilis,
gentilitas, cotifluo^ respuo^ coio, liber, remeo, pafria, asttitia, expelloy
qiiapropter, dilectissimus^ prcESu/, psa//o, a/tenio, nifiinn, perfruor, in'sio,
paraclitus.

The hymn has been recently printed from T, with an English
translation, by Dr. C. H. H. Wright.^

1 See Reeves, Eccl. Ant. of Dmvn mid Connor, p, 227.

2 The // 'riiings o/St. Patrick, p. 39.

THE HYMN PHOEB/ DIEM. 223

The Hymn Phoebi djem.

This hymn has been recently printed by Dreves (A/ia/t'cfn, xix. p. 98)
from T ; we do not know any other text of it, nor have we been able
to trace its history. It was probably an office hymn of a late period ;
the vocabulary is strangely different from any other piece in our col-
lection. No less than 40 words (exclusive of proper names) do not
occur elsewhere in the Liber Hymtioruiii, viz. : orbita (the orbit), decus^
/tiureiu ministro^ spina ^ tanquam^ li/iuni, stirps, profcro^ mor talis ^ celebs,
fu^^o^ bhifiditia, eger, leuamen, ege/is, cibarium^ /lostilis, ino?istro^ aruus,
I'ulicus (bis, a rare word), relinquo, oliiia, rej^alis, su7no,ferculum,fiilgidus,
kalendaej sa/ri/ia, solu/i/s, palalium, compius^flos, lacfeus, adhaereo, pudor,
speculum (a iwm'or), p^rca men, substantialiter^personaliter. Further, the
use oi Jfamen for the Holy Spirit in 1. 17 ; and the position of ///after
its verb in 1. 16, are noteworthy features. The metre is Celtic, with
internal rhythms.

1. 2. gaudium must be a scribe's blunder, as gaudia is required by
the metre.

1. 5. The construction seems to be : ' She avoided yielding to the
allurement of the flesh.' Dreves reads ceteras for cedere, but this would
destroy the metre.

I. 7. Dreves conjectures that the two last words should be iiicif
pra-lium : and we are inclined to adopt the conjecture ; the MS. read-
ing is untranslateable.

II. 9, 10. It must be remembered that Brigid is called in the Hymn
of St. Ultan ueri dei regi?ia. This stanza takes up the language of the
Canticles (see esp. iii. 9, ferculuin fecit sibi rex Salomon), and applies
it to Brigid as the Spouse of Christ, with a side reference to the Queen
of Sheba and her visit to Solomon. The words ornant oliuae uascultim
we do not clearly understand.

I. II. February was Numae mensis, and St. Brigid's Day is Feb. i.
1. 14. The text prefixed to the Irish Lives of St. Brigid was : Hi sunt
qui sequuntur Agnum quocujnque ierit ( Apoc. xiv. 4).

The Preface to the Amra.

The ' Amra ' or * Eulogy ' composed by the poet Dalian mac Forgaill
in honour of St. Columba, is not extant in its integrity ; and con-
sequently it is impossible that a satisfactory edition of it should be
produced. The piece was early remarked as obscure, and commen-
tators in the middle ages spent much ingenuity in the endeavour to
explain its strange phrases. The unfortunate fact is that of the Amra
itself, but little has been preserved, while we have many texts con-
taining prefaces to the poem, and glosses on the more difficult
portions. Very few complete lines are now extant ; and for the most
part the glossators seem to have had little basis, in grammar, in tra-

224 NOTES.

dition, or in common sense, for the superstructure of so called
explanation which they produced. Thus it has come about that the
Amra as we have it, is only a strange medley of isolated phrases and
unintelligent comment, which presents little attractiveness to an editor.'
But as the plan of these volumes is to present to the reader every piece
contained in the two manuscripts of the Irish Liber Hymnorian, we
have found it necessary to print the Amra as it stands in T. Such
translation as we could furnish has been supplied, and a few explana-
toiy notes are added ; but we have not attempted to collate all the
manuscripts. There is no ground for hoping for any reconstruction
of the original work from the fragments that remain.

The main texts are the following: (i) Our principal manuscript, ']",
which we have reproduced verbatim. Dr. Whitley Stokes has already
printed this in Goidelica^ but he has altered the order of the verses or
sections, so as to bring them into conformity with the more rational
order of the L. na hUidhre text, and thus his reprint does not readilv
convey to the reader an exact picture of his exemplar. (2) The
manuscript Rawl. B. 502. We have had a photograph of this in our
hands, while writing our translation. (3) The Leabhar ?ia hUidhn
(LU) in the Library of the Royal Irish Academy. This has been
reproduced, with a translation, by Mr. O'Beirne Crowe.^ (4) The
Yellow Book of Lecan (YBL), classed H. 2. 16 in the Library of
Trinity College, Dublin. This has been published in photographic
facsimile by the Royal Irish Academy. (5) The Leabhar Breac (B),
of which a facsimile from a hand transcript has also been published.
This is a fragmentary copy. (6) The Saltair na Ratin at the Bodleian
Library. (7) The vellum manuscript classed Stowe C. 3. 2 (Saec. xv ?)
in the Royal Irish Academy's Collection, a fine copy with a very full
gloss, the longest that we have seen. (8) The manuscript we call X
also contains fragments of the poem. There are fragments of the
Amra in most manuscripts which deal with the works of Columba,
e.g, in the copy of the Old Irish Life at the Advocates' Library in
Edinburgh^ ; but we do not attempt a complete classification.

The legend of the composition of the Amra is briefly as follows.
In the year 575, Aed, son of Ainmere, King of Ireland, summoned
the petty princes, heads of tribes, and principal clergy to a great con-
vention at Druim Cetta, mainly with the purpose of banishing the
bardic poets, whose exactions on behalf of themselves and their
retinue were becoming intolerable. Aedan mac Gabrain, King of
Argyle, was also present with the view of determining the question as
to the independence of his kingdom of Dalriata, which had heretofore
paid tribute to Aed. And St. Columba revisited Ireland on this
occasion with the threefold motive of defending the cause of the
bards, of keeping the peace between his native and his adopted
country, and of bringing about the release of Scandlan, Prince of

J Mr. Strachan has given linguistic rcisons in the Rev. Celt. xvii. (1896J p. 41 ff., for holding the
date of the Amra in its present form to be much later than that of Dalian mac Forgaill. He assign»
the text preserved in T to the early part of the ninth century.

2 The Amra Choiuim Chilli of Dalian Forgaill {iZ-ji).

3 Stokes has printed translations of these portions in Lismore, pp. 316, 17.

THE PREFACE TO THE A MR A,

~-y

Ossory, wlio was kept in ward by Aed. His intervention was success-
ful, and in gratitude for his efforts on behalf of the bards, Dalian mac
Forgaill, otherwise called Eochaid Righ Eigheas, the principal ollamli
of Ireland at that time, composed the Eulogy in his honour, which
goes by the name of the Amra Coluim Cille.

The introductory piece [pp. 53, 54 above] which we call the Preface y
is followed by the Prologue proper on pp. 55-60, the poem itself not
appearing until p. 60. We have numbered the lines so as to facilitate
reference between the original and the translation ; and it will be
observed that (following the practice of the scribes) we have printed
what is left of the Amra proper in large letters, the explanations of the
glossators being in smaller type. The lines of the introductory piece
on pp. 53, 54 we have numbered separately. It is evident that many
of the explanatory notes of the scribes have, in our copy, been dis-
turbed from their appropriate places.

p. 53. 1. 2. Fene is glossed in T : i.e. a hill.

1. 3. The Masraige were a Firbolg tribe, inhabiting the district of
Mag Slecht^ a plain lying round Ballymagauran in Co. Cavan. Dalian
mac Forgaill was of their race.

Irarus is now Oris in Westmeath.

Breifne of Connaught practically included the modern counties of
Leitrim and Cavan.

1. 5. Dalian 7nac Forgaill is reputed to have also composed the Amra
Sionain, or eulogy in praise of St. Senan. He is commemorated in the
Irish Martyrologies on Jan. 29. His name still survives in Kildallan in
the diocese of Kilmore, and Desert Dalian in Raphoe.

1. 7. For the deadly effect which the satires of the bards were sup-
posed to have, see O'Curry, Manners and Customs of the Ancient Irishy
ii. p. 217.

1. 13. Ibar of Cinntracht, i.e. 'the Yew Tree at the Head of the
strand,' is now Newry in the Co. Down.

We have retained the old word coigny, which signifies the right of
entertainment, billeting, food, &c., claimed by the bards for their
retinue. It was reduced, as a result of this convention, to provision
for 24 attendants in the case of each ollam or principal bard, and 12
in the case of each anrad or minor poet.

I. 18. Drui?n Cetta, the scene of the Great Assembly, is identified with
the mound called the Mullagh, in Roe Park near Newtownlimavady
in the Co. Derry : Adamnan (i. 10) Latinises it Dorsum Cete.

II. 24-27. A similar retinue is mentioned in the old Irish Life
{Lismore^ p. 178) as having accompanied Columba to lona. Here
they are particularly interesting, as they "not only illustrate the
ancient frequency of bishops, but confirm what Bede said of the
subjection of the bishops of the neighbouring provinces to the Abbot
of Hy."^

1. 38. The virtue which was attached to the recitation of the eulogy
is referred to again in the prologue to the Amra 11. 34, 145. We

1 Reeves, Antiquities of Drnvn and Connor, p. 132 ff. Compare the verses about the members of
the Community of St. Mochta in the Feliie (ed. Stokes), p. cxxxii.

LIBER HYMN. IL O

226 NOTES.

have already (p. 146) quoted a quatrain which speaks of the Antra as
well known in connexion with the name of Columba.

The release of Scandlan Mor, son of Cinnfaela (or son of Colman,
according to Adamnan)^ is described more fully in the piece of which
a translation is given at p. 85 above. Here it is sufficient to note the
record of the tribute paid in return from the men of Ossory ifisraige)
to the monastery of lona.

The Amra of St. Columba.

II. 50-57. We have already observed that many notes and illustrations
of the scribes and commentators upon the Amra are found in T out
of their context. No doubt in most cases they were marked by the
scribes in such a manner that their true bearing would be readily per-
ceived. The proper place of these verses, for instance, is marked
■with an asterisk which is still plainly visible. They are introduced
from some now lost poem to illustrate the number of the retainers of
the bards. Their burdensomeness had been often a subject of com-
plaint, and the matter had been brought before several kings in
^succession, the third of whom was Mael Choba, son of Deman, son
of Carell, king of Ulster. He granted them a respite from exile for
three years, and these verses were, accordingly, composed in his
honour.

11. 15-22. The relevance of these verses is explained in the Edin-
burgh Vita. The king had refused to retain the poets. " ' Say not
so,' saith the cleric ; ' for the praise which they will make shall be
enduring for thee, even as the praise which the poets made for Cormac,
descendant of Conn, is enduring for him, and the treasures which were
given for it were perishable, but the praise abides after them.' And the
cleric composed this little ' rhetoric,' i.e. Cormac cain^ 6^^."^

1. 17. The words grace of poetry are glossed in T grace of knowledge,

I. 23. The story of Scandlan's release is more fully told in the frag-
ment De liberatione Scandlani, of which a translation is given at p. 85
above. See the notes in loc.

II. 25-34. Colman mac Comgellai?!. The tale runs that Columba
had observed the beautiful spirit of Colman, when a child ; that he
had thereupon addressed him in the verses 11. 30, 31 ; and had pro-
phesied that he should be a peacemaker between Ireland and
Scotland. And so it happened, for at the Assembly of Druim Cetta,
Columba asked him to settle the dispute between the Irish and the
Scotch Dalriads. His sentence amounted to this, that the Scotch
were to be free from tribute to Aed, King of Ireland, but that they
were to join in hostings and in expeditions (save those by sea) when
required by the Irish. This practically made Aedan mac Gabrain
an independent sovereign, and secured the freedom of the Scotch
Dalriata.

•

1 Vita Columbae, i, ii. See RecYCs' note on the passage.
* Trsmslated in Stokes' Lismore, p. 312.

THE AMR A OF ST. COLUMBA. 227

11. 35-45. This account of the composition of the Avira by the
blind poet Dalian mac Forgaill explains itself. In the LU text, which
preserves the order of the sections much better than T, 1. 41 is followed
by the verses which appear in our edition as 11. 144-148, an evident
displacement.

1. 4S. Mael Suthain. This is probably Maelsuthain O'Carroll, the
author of the Annals of Innisfallen^ who was attmchara or confessor
to Brian Borumha, and whose handwriting is to this day preserved on
a page in the Book of Armagh. He died in 1009. Ferdomnach,
whose name is mentioned in support of a different tradition concerning
the place where the Amra was first sung in its entirety, was elected
coarb or successor of St. Columba in the year 1007, and died the
following year. These names fix a limit in one direction as to the
date of this Prologue ; in its present form it cannot be earlier than the
eleventh century.

1. 49. Slige Assail was one of the five great roads of Ireland ; it
divided Meath into two parts.

Tig Lommain was on the shore of Loch Owel in the county of
Westmeath. It was here (according to the most popular tradition)
that the eulogy was finished, after the tidings of Columba's death had
been brought to Dalian by the rider on the "speckled horse." See
p. 87 above.

1. 60. This note in explanation of who are meant by the " daughters
of Orcus" should be placed after 1. 670, where it is found in LU.

1. 62. Hoc est principiu77i laudationis. What follows is a commen-
tator's note on the structure of the poem, which began and ended with
//, viz. ' iVi disceoil ' (1. 211) and 'amhuai;^' (1. 681).

1. 65. This note on the meaning of ni-disceoil should come, as in
LU, after 1. 213.

1. 66. Ni chelt ceis, 6^r. These nine lines of verse^ are quoted by
the commentator from some old poem on the Plunder of Dinn-rig,
to illustrate the usage of the obscure word ceis which occurs at 1.
262. They should follow after the words " ut dixit the poet " (1. 267)
as they do in LU, in YBL, and in the Stowe MS. A gloss on
ni chelt in T has Ross mac Finn or Ferchertne poet cecinit. The verses
themselves occur three times in the Book of Leinster (pp. 269/5, 3iiy3,
and 377/3). They are concerned with the tale of the charm of Craip-
tine's harping, which at a feast so bewitched the revellers that the lovers
Maen, otherwise called Labraid the Mariner, and Moriath of Morca
were able to slip away unobserved. Labraid the Mariner lived,
according to the annals, in the sixth century b.c. The famous poet
Ferchertne, and Craiptine, the first harper who is named in Irish legend,
had charge of him in his boyhood when he was dumb, and it was under
their care that the youth Maen recovered his powers of speech. Hence-
brward he was known as labraid (i.e. he speaks).

' Lines 66-68 are printed as prose in vol. i. p. 164 ; for the passage is only partly legible, and it is
possible that only a paraphrase was there given. But we have printed it as poetry in the translation
p. 57 supra).

Q 2

228 NOTES,

11. 73-76. This quatrain should follow 1. 279, as it does in LU and
YBL. The * Dub-^^r/(?^ ' or Black Church was the ancient Church of
Derry. In the fourteenth century it was called the Celia Nigra de
Deria} The quatrain is quoted in the Annals of Tighernach, and of
the Four Masters, in the latter case under the year 592. But it may
be taken as established that St. Columba died June 9, 597, at the age of
76 years. See 1. 550 infra.

II. 77-80. This quatrain should follow 1. 210, as in LU. It is quoted
to illustrate the use of the word iath.

11. 81-84. This quatrain in like manner should follow 1. 197, as in
LU. It is quoted to illustrate the use of mur. These verses are like
the jingling rhymes of Latin grammar, which boys are set to learn.

I. 82. coph is glossed in T : or^ cu, i.e. ' dog^ Possibly the idea of the
glossator is that ^z/ = q = p = copk.

II. 85-88. This quatrain giving the maternal descent of St. Columba,
should follow 1. 679, as in LU and the Stowe MS. See p. 235 i?ifra.

11. 89-94. This note and the quatrain belong to 1. 330, where they
are found appended in LU. They are quoted in a note in the Felireof
Oengus (ed. Stokes, p. ci) ; and occur in a poem headed " Mongan
cecinit do Colum Cille " in the MS. we call X. The sweetness and
power of Columba's voice are reckoned by Adamnan' among his
miraculous gifts. See 1. 465. St. Brendan of Clonfert was said to
have a voice of like power {Lismore, p. 250).

11. 95-99. This quatrain should follow 1. 338 (as in LU, YBL, and
the Stowe MS.) It alludes, of course, to the translation of Columba's
relics to Downpa trick. See p. 222 supra.

11. 100-107. This note should come after 1. 354, as in LU. It is
explanatory of the word aidbse or ' chorus.' The quatrain is ascribed
to Colman mac Lenine, the founder of the Church of Cloyne, who
died in the year 600. They are also quoted in the Book of Leinster^
fol. 8, and in Cormac's Glossary, s.v. adan?i.

The old word coilgg-se in 1. 107 is glossed in T : i.e. a sivord.

The word aidbse signifies a kind of low, murmuring chorus at the
end of each verse ; from its name of cronan it seems to have been
produced in the throat, like the purring of a cat. JDord was used for
a humming or droning noise, without melody.'^

11. 108-1 12 supply a linguistic note (displaced as usual) on ferb^ which
occurs in 1. 360. Substantially the same explanations of the word are
given in Cormac's Glossary.

In 1. 109, T has a gloss on bai7i, viz. true, and in 1. iii has a gloss
on o'sn'acht, viz., he drove them.

I. 112. Mog Nuadat is now Maynooth in the Co. Dublin.

II. 1 1 3-1 1 7. This note should follow 1. 419 as it does in LU.

11. 1 1 8- 1 2 7. These lines consist of two quatrains, and a paraphrase
of a third, from the Dinnsenchus on ' Laigin ' or Leinster, in the Book
of Leinster (159a and 377«). They are not found in LU. But as in

1 Reeves, Adantnan^ p. 277. See also p. 140, supra.

* Vita Coluntbae, i. 37. See Reeves' note in loc.

3 See O'Curry, Manners and Customs qf the Ancient Irish, iii. 246, 371 f.

THE A MR A OF ST. COLUMBA. 229

the Stowe MS. they form part of the gloss on 1. 263, they seem to be
added to explain who was Labraid Loingsech, already mentioned in
11. 70, 72. He defeated and slew Cobthach at the battle of Dinnrig,
formerly called ' Tuain tenma/ in the year a.m. 4658, according to the
Four Masters. Dinn-rig is on the Barrow near Leighlin Bridge. The
story is that Labraid introduced into Ireland the broad lances called
laii^hni, from their use of which the people of the principality of
Gaillian received the name of La^enians or Leinstermen.

11. 1 28-131 should follow 1. 277, as in LU and in the Stowe MS.
They are added by the commentator to illustrate Columba's ascetic
habits of self-discipline. See Lismore^ p. 180, and also p. 228, where
a similar thing is told of St. Finnian of Clonard.

I. 128 isin i:;aniu)n. The gloss in T is : Or i?i the 2vi?ifer.

II. 132-8. This is a note explanatory of the repetition ''God,
God. . ." at the beginning of the A77ira in 1. 186. It follows the note
11. 61-64 ii^ LU. The LU text explains that there are three standard
devices in Irish poetry ; the return to the usual sound (of which we
have an example in 11. 181-183), the enu?iciatio?t mode of which it gives
an illustration not in T, and reduplicatiori^ as an example of which it
cites 11. 135-8. Such devices are common in modern poetry; cf. e.g.
*' Pibroch of Donuil Dhu, Pibroch of Donail, &:c."^

11. 139-143. This stanza is not found in LU ; but occurs twice in
the Stowe MS., first as part of the gloss on 1. 297, and again on 1. 565".
It is introduced, as usual, to illustrate linguistic usage.

11. 144-147. This quatrain in LU follows the statement at 1. 41,
about the indulgence attached to the recitation of the Amra.

11. 148-151. This obscure quatrain is apparently added to illustrate
the formation of certain words by ' beheading ' or cutting off the last
letter, ru ra instead of ru?t ra?i being the example here. So at least
the stanza is introduced in LU after a note on cu/u (1. 187).

11. 152-155. These verses furnish an unedifying illustration of the
use of the word deii??i, and should follow 1. 217, as in LU.

11. 156-160. This quatrain does not occur in LU, but, in the Stowe
MS. and in YBL, it is part of the gloss on 11. 262, 3 ; it is cited in like
manner by the Four Masters sub ann. 592 to express the bereavement
caused by Columba's death.

11. 160-163. This quatrain should follow 1. 189, as in LU. It is
quoted to illustrate the use of the word nett, i.e. ' battle.'

11. 164-168. This is the quatrain from which the quotation is made
in 1. 193. It is not given in LU, but is found in the Stowe MS.

There were three famous poets of the name of Ferchertne, the
earliest of whom was contemporary with Labraid Loingsech (see on
1. 66).

11. 169-173. This quatrain, which is not found in LU, is in illustra-
tion of the words cul and ?teit in 1. 187. It is also given in Cormacs
Glossary, s.v. cid^ where it is ascribed to Cuchulaind.

11. 173-176. This difficult quatrain, which is not in LU, is in illus-
tration of the word dercc in 1. 199.

* See Sigerson's Bards 0/ the Gael and Gall, p. 47 fF.

230 NOTES.

11. 177-179. These words are not intelligible to us. ■

11. 180-184. The stanza is not found in LU, but is an illustration
of one of the standard methods of expression in Irish verse. See note
on 11. 132-8 above.

1. 185. We now come to the disieda membra of Dalian mac
Forgaill's eulogy ; hitherto we have only been dealing with the work
of the commentators. It seems to have been anciently divided
into sections, which are marked in the MSS. by large capitals, and
in most cases by Latin titles. The explanatory matter printed in ■
small type contains the various (and often absurd) explanations of the
scholiasts.

Lines 185-210 contain fragments of the exordium of Dalian's poem,
which apparently began with an invocation of God.

I. 199. This Grainne was the daughter of Cormac Mac Art; her
story is told in the " Pursuit of Diarmait and Grainne," edited by
Mr. S. H. O'Grady for the Ossianic Society in 1857.

II. 2 1 1-268 are headed in LU " demoestitia omnium rerum in mjOite
Columbae, uel de exitu Columbae," and in YEL, " De tristitia omnium
rerum in morte Columbae." There is no Latin title to this section
in the Stowe MS., but it is marked by the usual large initial letter.
1. 211 was always counted the pri?icipium laudationis (see 1. 62) ; the
preceding section being only an exordium.

1. 211. For Columba's descent from Neill of the Nine Hostages,
who was King of Ireland from 379 to 405, see on 1. 526.

1. 223. The Dialogue of the Two Sages is found in the Book of
Leinster ; an account of it is given in O'Curry's Manuscript jnateria/s,
p. 383. The Two Sages were Ferchertne the royal poet of Emania, and
Neidhe, son of Adhna.

The Bretha Nemed is one of the many tracts dealing with some of
the questions discussed in the Brehon Laws.

1. 230. The words in faith De, * about God's prophet,' go with the
next section (In faith De de Sion suidioth) in LU and the Stowe MS. ;
they seem to be misplaced in T.

In the list of historians and poets given in the Book of Ballymote,
quoted by O'Curry,^ two persons of the name of Nera are mentioned :
I. Nera, druid and lawgiver, son of Morand, a celebrated judge {fl. cir.
14 A.D.) ; and 2. Nera, son of Fincholl, of Sidh Femin, in the Co.
Tipperary, of unknown date.

1., 247. This legend is mentioned twice again in the LU copy (under
11- 339) 637) ; it is given in the Edinburgh copy of the Old Irish Life,'^
and is also preserved in a quatrain in the Book of Fenagh.^

1. 251. The missing word is perhaps Hi ; or heaven (see 1. 310).

1. 256. This is of some importance historically. King Bruide, who
died in 584, was succeeded by Gartnaid son of Domlech, who belonged
to the Southern Picts and had his royal seat at Aberneihy to the south
of the Tay. His people had been converted to Christianity in the
previous century by Ninian, but they had fallen away. Gartnaid is said

^ O'Curry, Manners and Customs of the Ancient Irish, ii. p. ^i.

' See Stokes' Lismore, p. 315, ^ Kd. Kelly, p. 200.

THE A MR A OF ST. COLUMBA. 231

to have dedicated a new church to St. Brigid at Abernethy, and this
revival of Christianity among the Picts is here ascribed to the teaching
of Columba. Seel. 570, and the legend from the Edinburgh copy of
the Old Irish Life quoted in Stokes' Lismore, p. 315.

1. 267. See the verses at 1. 67, and also at 1. 156, in continuation of
this theme.

The two kinds of harps in use in Ireland were called the crtfit and
the timpan harp respectively ; on the distinction see O'Curry, Manners
and Customs^ &:c., iii. 236, 252f.

I. 275. Figill has not the special meaning in Celtic phraseology,
which vi^l has with us. Cros-fii^i//, for instance, is the recognised term
for an exercise of devotion (which may be by day or night) in which
the hands are extended so as to form a cross.

1 279. See 11. 73-76 for the verses referred to by the commentator.

II. 282, 285. The subject of Columba's learning is treated of again
in the section entitled De scie?itia etus hi omiii parte (11. 356 ff).

1. 291. Inis Boffin on the sca^ i.e. the island of that name off the coast
of Donegal.

I. 295. There is no mention in the LU copy of any visit of Columba to
Gregory ; but there is a miraculous tale about it in the Book of Lecan^
quoced in Reeves' Adajnnan, p. 205. The story apparently grew out of
some legend like that in the preface to the Altus (p. 24 supra).

II. 303-320. This section is headed in LU and in the Stowe MS.
" De regione ad quam peruenit Colum Cille et de pluribus gradibus
eius." It is not marked by any title or large initial letter in YBL.

1. 303. The word ^jca/ remains a puzzle, despite the desperate efforts
of the glossators to explain it. The usual explanation is that Axal was
the name of Columba's guardian angel, Demal being the demon that
tempted him ; and this agrees with 11. 345, 460, where the angel Axal
is again mentioned. It is probable that Axal is a corruption of
atixiliarius} The third book of Adamnan's Vita is filled with accounts
of the angelic visitations and counsels which Columba was privileged
to enjoy.

1. 310. Cf. Apoc. xxi. 25. What followed in the original poem was
evidently a description of the heavenly city.

I. 320. Apparently this refers not to Columba but to his Master.

II. 321-354. This section is headed in LU and in the Stowe MS. "De
martyrio eius."

1. 326. Celebrad mesins here, as always in Irish ecclesiastical litera-
ture, the service of the choir or recitation of the daily offices, as distinct
from oifrefin, which is the word of the celebration of the Eucharist.
The meaning of the passage is that the recitation of the offices by
Columba rendered powerless the assaults of the devil. See 11. 89-94,
which come in at this point.

1. 337. See 11. 95-98 and the note there.

^- 347« Oi^^ explanation of these words is that when he was received
at the Assembly of Druim Cetta with the performance of an elaborate
piece of music {aidbse) and the applause of the multitude, Columba

^ So the Vita Coluwbae in the Leabhar Breac, p. 236.

232 NOTES.

became much elated ; whereupon Baithin found it necessary to quote
from Basil to abate his pride. The other explanation is that Columba
was a student of the works of Basil.

1. 350. Baithin having rebuked Columba, the saint came to himself,
and, stopping the music, forbad Dalian to proceed with the eulogy.
See 1. 35 supra,

1. 360. The rest of the gloss on this is found at 1. 108.

1. 365. This is an interesting observation, establishing an acquain-
tance, if not on the part of Columba (which is the tradition), at least
on the part of the scholiast, with Jerome's apparatus criticus, which is
ultimately based on Origen's work. In the Commentary on the Psalter
(8th century?) edited by K.uno Meyer^ from Rawl. B. 512 (our G),
there are references to the various Greek versions as well as to Jerome's
critical labours.

1. 367. It will be noticed that the scholiasts are doubtful whether this
implies that Columba read the works of Cassian, or whether it only
means that he was a student of Scripture, as Cassian was. But see p. 171
supra. The ' Libri legis ' probably refer to the N.T. rather than to the
O T., the Gospel being counted the ' new law.'^ Mr. Macgregor^
interprets this gloss as suggesting that Columba and his community
followed the arrangement of scripture lections drawn out by Cassian.

1. 372. The three battles with which the name of Columba was
associated have already been mentioned (p. 140 supra).

1. 380. Columba's skill in the interpretation of weather signs is
ascribed by Adamnan to his prophetic power {Vita^ ii, 15).

1. 383. His four ways of interpreting scripture, according to the gloss
in LU, were the historical, spiritual, moral, and anagogical. This well-
known division is explained in a homily in the Leabhar Breac on the
Epiphany.^

1. 385. The rosualt\s perhaps the z£;^/rz/i-, but more probably a a'/^rt!/<?.
If the sea cast one up on the shore, it was counted an omen. A similar
explanation of its significance is given in the Dinnsenchas on Mag
Murisce {Book of Leinsfer, p. 167/3 and elsewhere), and ascribed, as
here, to Columba.^ In Adamnan's Vita (i. xix) there is a story of how
the saint foretold the appearance of Tiree of a " cetus mirae et
immensae magnitudinis."

1. 392. It is tolerably plain that the words ' among schools of scrip-
ture' belong to the preceding fragment, to which they are attached in
LU. This record of Columba's skill in astronomical calculations
harmonises curiously with the semi-scientific language of part of the
Altus Prosator.

1. 397. It is evident that the last two lines of the gloss belong to the
next fragment, and should come after 1. 400.

1. 400. The LU copy explains the relevance of the verses in the
marginal note : " it may be rian [not Rhi7ie\ that it ought to be, ut

' Hibernica minora (Anecd. Oxon, 1894).

2 Cf. Felire o/Oengus (ed. Stokes), p. cxliv.

3 Early Scottish VVorship, p. 22.

* See Atkinson, Passions and Homilies, p. 468.
5 See Kev. Cdt., i. 258.

THE AMR A OF ST. COLUMBA. 233

dixit Find U Baiscne &c." The verses on " Winter's Approach " are
introduced to illustrate the use of riati^ but are difficult to translate.
Dr. Sigerson^ has given a free rendering which is worth citing, as he
has tried to keep the metre of the original :

" List my lay : oxen roar ;
Winter chides, Summer's o'er,
Sinks the sun, cold winds rise,
Moans assail, ocean cries.

Ferns flush red, change hides all,
Changing now, grey geese call.
Wild wings cringe, cold with rime,
Drear, most drear, ice-frost time."

Find, the descendant of Baiscne, is no less a personage than the giant
Finn Mac Cumhaill, who seems to have added the art of poetry to his
other accomplishments. According to the Four Masters he was slain
in 283 A.D. But see below p. 236.

1. 419. Here verses 114-117 come in, as in LU and in YBL.

1. 451. The hospitality of the monastery of lona is frequently men-
tioned by Adamnan. See Reeves' Ada?nnan, p. 345 and 11. 468, 574,
infra.

1. 463. We have here a tradition, that Saturday, as well as Sunday,
was observed at lona as a festival. This is not hinted at by Adamnan
(see Vita Columbae iii. 12); but, as Mr. Warren has observed,- the
ranking of Saturday with Feasts of Martyrs in a rubric in the Bangor
Anfipho/iary, would suggest a similar practice. This w^ould be inconsis-
tent with the practice of the Roman Church, but not with that of the
East and the majority of Western Churches in the time of Columba.''

1. 463. The first words of this line seem to relate to St. Columba's
voice ; and they constitute a distinct fragment of the Amra in LU. See
11. 89-94.

1.473. "The blind man" is, of course, Dalian mac Forgaill, the
author of the Amra.

1. 474. The piece of the Amra contained in the Leabhar Breac (B)
begins at this point.

1. 476. This fragment is not intelligible to us.

1. 486. In B and LU a new section begins here. " De prudentia
eius et lectione et sapientia " ; or, more correctly in YBL : " De
sapientia et prudentia illius," for there is no mention of the saints
reading in what follows.

1. 489. Quia apud Fi?inianuin euangeliiun legit. It is probable that
this Finnian was St. Finnian of Moville (d. 576) ; the statement of the
text is confirmed by the opening words of Adamnan's second book,
viz. : " Alio in tempore, cum uir uenerandus in Scotia apud sanctum
Findbarrum episcopum, adhuc iuuenis sapientiam Sacrae Scripturae
addiscens commaneret, &c." See p. 145 supra.

1. 495. Reeves has drawn up in his Adai?inan (pp. 276-298) a long

^ Bards of the Gael and Gall^ p. ii6.

' Antiphonary of Bangor^ ii. p. xxiv See Diet. o/Chr. Ant. ii. 1825.

234 NOTES.

list of churches in Ireland and Scotland associated with the name of
Columba.

1. 496. The word cotiietaidox 'guardian ' apparently glossed in T : or,
to whojii he counts.

1. 526. The pedigree is this (as given in the Book of Leinster, 347/3) :
Columba was the son of Feidlimid, son of Fergus, son of Conall Gulban,
son of Neill of the Nine Hostages, son of Eochaid Muighmedan, son of
Muiredach Tirech, son of Fiacaid Srabtini, son of Cairpre Lifechair, son
of Cormac, son of Art the Solitary, son of Conn of the Hundred
Battles, son of Feidlimid Rechtmair. He is here called " the son of
the descendant of Conn." See 11. 604, 675.

!• 539* ' Credulous chariot ' does not convey any meaning ; but we
must leave it so. The gloss on fri conuail in T, viz. fri coiuatn we
cannot translate.

1. 545. This is again unintelligible to us ; the ' king's son ' is, of
course, Columba.

1. 554. The allusion is to the saint's penitence for his share in the
battle of Cuil Dremne. See above p. 1 40.

1. 555. A new section begins here in LU, YBL, and the Stowe MS.
with the heading •' De commendatione laudis eius a regi nepotum
Neill." There is no Latin title in B, but a capital letter marks the
beginning of the section.

The glossator's explanation of the appearance of Aed's name in the
eulogy is instructive. A ' cumal ' was a standard of value frequently
mentioned in the Brehon Laws as the equivalent of three cows.

1. 566. Conall was the king of British Dalriata. See p. 141 above.

1. 568. See the note on 1. 256. The 'High King of Toi ' is
Gartnaid.

1. 579. It is not an unfair inference from this gloss, that the glossator
knew nothing precise about the meaning of udbud.

Cenel Conaill is Tirconnell, or Donegal, of which territory the
O'Donnells afterwards were over-lords. This great clan were the
descendants of Conall Gulban (d. 464), who was Columba's great-grand-
father.

1. 588. The tradition amounts to this, that Columba had some
knowledge of Greek. See G. T. Stokes' essay on " the knowledge of
Greek in Ireland between a.d. 500 and 900." {Froc. R.I.A. 3rd ser. ii.
2 p. 187), for the evidence as to the extent to which that language was
known to the Celtic monks..

The LU copy of the Amra is deficient after this point.

1. 603. See on 1. 526.

1. 608. That is, according to the glossator, he did not commit any
injury which would render him liable to the penalty cf death ; not very
high praise, according to modern ways of thinking. But it is quite
possible that the glossator did not understand his text.

1. 611. In the Stowe MS., as well as in T, what follows is marked off
by a large initial letter ; but there is no indication that it forms a
separate section in the other MSS.

1. 611. Cond, i.e., Conn of the Hundred Battles. See 1. 603. From,

THE PRAYER OF ST. ADAMNAN. 235

his prowess the northern half of Ireland was sometimes called ' Conn's
Half; whence it would seem that the glossator understands 1. 611 to
refer to the grief that was felt in the North of Ireland when Columba
went away to lona.

1. 620. All that the glossator is sure of is that the words eccc aer have
reference to the restoration of sight to Dalian mac Forgaill (see 1. 45),
which is probably accurate.

1. 625. The piece Pilip apstail printed in vol. i. p. 185, of which a
translation is given above at p. 83, is found in the Stowe MS. as part of
the glossator's note on this fragment ; the first stanza of it is also cited
in YBL. It is introduced in connexion with the word alliath ; the
melodiousness of Columba's voice is compared to the sweet singing of
the birds in the Enchanted Island.

1. 633. The word tncoisni'is glossed in T: i.e. thing {?)

1. 660. In the Stowe MS., a new section begins here, entitled " De
consummatione laudis eius poeta."

The words ''quia post mortem pretium laudis datum est caeco"
have reference to the restoration of sight to Dalian mac Forgaill after
Columba's death. See 1. 45.

1. 670. Here the note 11. 58-60 comes in.

I. 675. The descent of Columba on his mother's side was as follows.
Her name was Ethne, and she was the daughter of Dimma, son of Noe,
son of Echin, son of Cairpre, who was descended from Cathair Mor,
king of Ireland, who wos son of Feidlimid the All Wise. See on 1. 526.

II. 85-88 come in here in the other MSS.

The Prayer of St. Adamnan.

This piece, in the form in which it has come down to us, is very
similar to the Antra as regards its fragmentary character and its conse-
quent obscurity. It follows the Antra in T, in the Stowe MS. C 3, 2,
in the Yellow Book of Lecan (YBL), and in Rawl. B. 502. It is
plainly a very ancient devotional piece, but there is not large scope for
intelligent comment ; the glossators do not seem to have made much of
it.

At the top of fol. 28b, col. 2 (the last page of T in its original form),
a late hand has written the letters of the alphabet. Then follows a >J<,
and then a piece seemingly of prose, but so much rubbed that it is
impossible to decipher. It is difficult even to determine the language
in which it was wTitten : we have only succeeded in reading two or
three words, viz. retia . . . in poUicent . . . sed. It was probably
written at a later date than the preceding matter ; and the ink is of a
different colour.

The Pedigree of St. Mobe

This pedigree is written at the foot of fol. 28b. col. 2. Mobi, of
whom a legend is told above (p. 28) in the Preface to the Noli Fafer,

236 NOTES.

was abbot of Glasnevin and died of the prima mortalitas in the year
544, according to the Annals of Ulster. His pedigree is also given in
the Book of Lemster (fol. 352, col. 7), in the Leabhar Breac (fol. 21,
col. 2, and p. 97), and in the Book of Lecan (fol. 45 a U).

Cairpre, who appears in it, is Cairpre Lifechair, son of Cormac mac
Art.

We have met with the epithet clarinech or ' flat-faced ' above in
Broccan's hymn, 1. 84. It is applied in the Book of Bally mote to a
poet called Gilla Modubhda' ; and in the Book of Fena^^Jr to Congall,
one of the legendary kings. It is used in the Irish Tales to express
the dead level of uniformity produced by snow covering the face of a
country.

The Hymn oy St. Philip.

This hymn is written in T on one of three fragments of vellum
inserted at the end of the book. It is evidently intended as an
additional note on 1. 624 of the Amra, for in the Stowe MS. (C. 3. 2)
it forms part of the gloss on that passage. The first verse is also cited
at the same point in YBL.

Lines 49 to end are not found in the Stowe copy, and have been
added by a later hand in T.

Miscellanea.

p. 84. (a) This note is apparently set down in connexion with the
verses quoted at 1. 400 of the Amra^ and ascribed to one Finn. The
LU text explains that this was Finn mac Cumhaill ; but our commen-
tator gives him another pedigree. He is Finn, the father of Conchobar
of the Red Eyebrows (who was king of Ireland about the beginning
of our era), father of MogCorb (who was slain at Breenmore, in
Westmeath), father of Cu-Corb.

(b) and (c) are too fragmentary to identify ; but they may both be from
some account of the battle of Rosnaree. The details of the arming of
Conchobhar fit in with the legible words in (c).^

(d) This is an additional note on the word mortlaid, which occurs at
1. 24 of St. Sanctan's hymn.

(e) Of this scrap we can m.ake nothing.

The Release of Scandlan Mor.

This account of the Release of Scandlan Mor has been added by a
scribe to explain the somewhat obscure references to that episode found
in the T copy of the Amra (see pp. 54, 55, above). The story is also
told in the Edinburgh copy of the old Irish Life,^ as also in the

1 See McCarthy, Todd Led. iii. p. 409. * Ed. Kelly, p. 33.

3 See Hogan, Todd Lcct. iv. 81. '

* It is printed in Stokes' Book o/Lismore, p. 309 f.

THE RELEASE OF SCANDLAN MOR. 237

Leabhar Breac{\). 238), and (in a brief form) in LU. According to the
tale, Aed refused Columba's petition, whereupon the saint declared
that Scandlan would be free before morning, and would assist him to
remove his shoes on entering the chancel for the night offices of prayer.
Columba was treated with insolence by Aed's elder son Conall, who
was urged on by the queen-mother, but with courtesy by the younger
son Domnall, who was blessed accordingly.^ The queen then mocked
the saint, addressing him as a ' crane-cleric' This has been explained
as said in allusion to Columba's tall stature {alta proceritas in Adamnan's
phrase) ; but it would appear that coir-cleric was a term of contempt
applied to degraded ecclesiastics, and so it seems more probable that
the use of it by the queen conveyed a taunting reference to the
circumstances under which Columba left Ireland in his penitence for
the battle of Cuil Dremne. Coir, however, also means a crane or
heron ; and so the saint retorts it, declaring that the queen and her
handmaid who accompanied her should for ever hover in the form of
cranes by the banks of the river Roe, a threat which was firmly believed
to have been fulfilled. Columba then withdrew across Ciannachta,- and
Ui mac Carthaind,^ over Loch Foyle to his Black Church in Derry
(according to the usual account). That night a storm came upon the
place of Scandlan's imprisonment, and he was miraculously carried in
the air to the Ferry over Loch Foyle. He was conveyed across by
Cumine, a relative of Columba, who appears to have been present
when the saint was reviled by the queen, but who was on bad terms
with him for some reason. Scandlan arrived, as Columba had foretold,
just in time to remove Columba's shoes for nocturns*; but was so
distracted with thirst after the tortures of his imprisonment that he
could say nothing at first but ' Drink, drink.' Baithin having satisfied
his needs, Scandlan interceded for Cumine and made his peace with
Columba.

Scandlan was then dismissed by Columba to his kingdom of Ossory ;
and inasmuch as he feared the journey, he was given the saint's pastoral
staff for protection. This he brought to the monastery of Durrow (one
of Columba's foundations in the King's County), where he handed
it to the abbot Laisren mac Feradach, afterwards the third abbot of
lona.

The words with which Columba entrusted the staff to Scandlan,
'* Take my staff with thee in thy hand, &c.," are the opening words of
a poem on the subject in Laud. 615.-^

The words at the end of the piece " Dundelga, good the gold place,"
are also a fragment of some poem.

1 Compare the rtference to Domnall's connection with Columba in the Preface to the hymn of St.

Cummain the Tall (p. 10, supra).
' The region between Coleraine and Derry. \A^\\

^ The barony of Tirkeeran in co. Derry. ^

* This is an interesting allusion to the practice of removing the shoes before entering the chancel

of a church. Cf. Warren, Liturgy of Ante Nicene Church, p. 224.

^ The gloss ow/o dunraidh in 1. 9 means under the shelter of the door it\ought to be.

238

NOTES.

The Death of St. Columba.

This memorandum records the announcement of Columba's death to
Dalian, the blind bard. In the Prologue to the Antra (p. 56 above),
it is told that the eulogy was not to be finished until the tidings of the
saint's death had been brought by a rider on a piebald horse.

The end of the note is taken up with the circumstances of the
Assembly of Druim Cetta, which have already been explained. Like
the preceding fragment, this was intended as a note on the Amra^
probably on 1. 211.

The Five Divisions of Munster.
There is a late paper copy of this poem in the O'Longan manuscript

of the Royal Irish Academy ( ;

\-p f. P'3i9); but the text differs con-
siderably from that of T, and we have not ventured to fill up the
lacunae by its means. The piece is headed in that MS. " It is not
known who wrote this lay " ; but the last quatrain ascribes the com-
position to Breasal O'Tracy. However, in 1. 26 of T we have plainly
Thasaig not Trasaig.

The Five Divisions of Munster in early times were the following, as
given by Keating and other authorities : —

(t) Thomond^ or North Munster, extending from Cuchulaind's
Leap to Slige Dala of the Horses. Cuchulaind's Leap is
now Loop Head, at the mouth of the Shannon ; Cuchulaind
was fabled to have leaped across at this point. Slige Dala of
the Horses is the great road of Ossory leading to Tara. The
northern boundary of Thomond was Slieve Aughty, a range
of hills on the confines of Galway and Clare ; and the southern
was Slieve Phelim (properly, Elirn) in the co. Limerick.

(2) Ormond, or East Munster, extending as far as O'Bric's Island,
near Bonmahon on the Waterford coast ; Cnawhill (now
Cleghile), near the town of Tipperary, being another boun-
dary.

(3) Mid Munster, from Cleghile to Luachair (now Slieve Lougher

in Kerry) in one direction ; and from Slieve Phelim to Slieve
Cain or Slieve Reagh in the co. Limerick in another.

(4) Desmond, or South Munster, from Slieve Cain to the sea ; and

(5) West Munster, from Slieve Lougher in Kerry to the sea, and
from Glenn-na-Ruachta (Glenarought) to the Shannon.

The etymological glosses written on the fragment which contains this
poem (see vol. i, p. 190), on adnacul ^ind eclais, respectively refer to the
use of these words in 1. 8 of the Lorica S. Patricii, and in 1. 186 of
Broccan's hymn. See notes (71 loc.

BENEDICITE. 239

In Praise of Hymnody.

This and the following hymn on the Magi are written on the blank
initial page (fol. i r°.) of F in a late hand, quite distinct from the writing
of the body of the book.

Neither piece has been printed before as the writing is hard to read ;
but they do not seem to be of much importance.

We have not succeeded in identifying the work ascribed to S. Jerome,
on the "Medicine of the Soul"; but, indeed, the w^hole piece seems
to be imaginative. There was no Pope of the name of Clement in
Jerome's lifetime. The tone of the fragment is very like that of the
piece by Niceta, Bishop of Remesiana, entitled De bono Fsalmodiae}

Hymn on The Three Kings.

There is a late paper copy of this hymn on the Magi and the Star in

2 "?
the Royal Irish Academy paper MS. classed "^ p. 307 ; we have

(jr. 23

not thought it worth while to append a collation.

The hymn does not seem to have been printed before ; it is, in
some places, difficult to read, and we have been obliged to leave blank
spaces, as the text of the R.I. A. MS. does not always agree with that
of F.

Lines 33-40 do not appear in the paper MS. ; they are evidently of
the nature of an appendix and did not belong to the original hymn
which ended at 1. 32.

Benedicite.

For this piece we have collated the manuscripts, A and 2 with F, as
they exhibit the same peculiar type of text. The Latin texts of
Benedicite fall into two groups, viz. : (i) that of Western Breviaries
generally, the text of the Vulgate (which corresponds w^ith the true
LXX version). The refrain is laudate et superexaltate, &c. This is the
text followed by our Enghsh Book of Common Prayer, (ii) The
text of the O.L. version of Theodotion's Greek. If the verses in (i) be
numbered consecutively i to 32, the text of (ii) may be thus repre-
sented: I, 3, 2, 4-10, 15, 16, II, the verse Benedicite pruina et nines ^
&c., 17-20, 22, 21, 23-32. The refrain after each verse here is
hymnum dicite et superexaltate, &c. This is the text found in the
Westminister Missal^ and, with an interchange of place between verses
27 and 26, in our Irish MSS. FAS. The repetition of the refrain
ymnum dicite et superexaltate eum in secula suggests affinity (as Mr.
Warren has pointed out^) with Eastern usage; and the addition of
domini in 11. 7, 9-29, in F and 2 (not in A) is also a curious feature.

1 Printed by Dom Morin in the Rn'ue Benedictine for September, 1897.
' Ed. Dr. Wickham Legg, (i, 127).
' Antiphotiary of Bangor, II. xxiii.

240 NOTES.

It will be observed that in the case of this canticle the place of the
Gloria is taken by the words (11. 36, 37) : Benedicamus patrem et filium
et spiritiim sa?ictufn dominum ; ymnum dicamus et superexaltemus eum in
secula. The usual additional clause or antiphon in Western Breviaries,
viz. : Benedictus es do??ii?ie in firma7nento caeii, et laudabilis et gloriosus et
superexaltatiis in secula is wanting in our Irish MSS. F seems to be
singular in adding 1. 38. The appended prayer Te eniin omnipote?is,
&:c., is given in A as one of a number of collects which may be used
after Benedicite. There is nothing similar in 2.

In both East and West this canticle was used at Lauds ; but it is not
easy to determine its special position in the monastic offices of the
Celtic Church. Mr. Warren concludes (/.<r.) that it was said at Mattins
on Saturdays and Sundays. The F Preface' gives no direct information,
but the context in which it is found in B is noteworthy. At p. 97 of
that MS., i.e., on the lower margin of the page of the Felire of Oengus
which deals with the Saints of October, we find in order (a) the Preface
to Be?iedicite ; (b) the words Christe lux eis ^ ; (c) the Preface to Magni-
ficat (see vol. i. p. 53) ; (d) the Preface to Gloria in Excelsis (vol. i,
p. 49). Now (b) plainly represents the Compline hymn Christe qui
lux es et dies which is our No. 44, and follows Be?iedicite in F, being
itself in that MS. followed by the Gloria i?i Excelsis. The juxta-
position of Benedicite^ Christe qui lux es, and Gloria in Excelsis, in
both B and F is remarkable, and perhaps indicates that they were
used at the same office. Now of both the latter pieces the Irish
Prefaces note "at night it is due to be sung"; and this would lead
us to conclude that Benedicite was also in use at one of the offices
corresponding in the Celtic Church to Compline. There is a rhyming
oratio prefixed to Be?iedicite in 2- which affords some confirmation of
this view : —

Deus altissime rex angelorum

deus laus omnium elimentorum

deus gloria et exultatio sanctorum

custodi animas seruorum tuorum

qui regnas in saecula sseculorum. amen.

The fourth line of this would be especially suitable for a prayer on
retiring to rest.

1 This has been printed by Stokes in Rev. Celtiquc, vi. 264.

' It is worth while to note here the contents of 2. Foil. 5r"-35v" are taken up with Pss. i-1 ; then
follow the lines quoted above ; then come Benedicite, Canticuin Issaiae^ and Canticutn Etechiat.
We next have Pss. li-c (foil. 39r"-69v"), followed by the lines :

. . . deo gratias ago . . .

deus quern exercitus canet angelorum

quemque aeclessijc laudat sanctorum

quern spiritus ymminizat uniuersorum

misserere obsecro omnium seruorum tuorum

qui regnas in saecula saiculorum. amen.
Canticum AnncB, Canticutn Marice sororis Moysi, and Canticutn Atnbacuc follow, and then
Pss. ci-cl (foil. 72r<'-99r"), with the words added yf«/V. amen.Jinit. 1 hen we hare :

'i'e dominum de coslis laudamus

Teque omnium regem regum rogamus

Tibi uni et trino in quern speramus ||

cum excelsis angelis imnum cantamus.

per dominum nostrum et reliqua.
After these lines comes, without title, th« Canticuttt Moysi (Deut. xxxii). Foil. 4V*', 38v° and
71V", are occupied with full page illustrations : and foil. 4r", 38r<' and loiv" are blank.

THE HYMN CHRIST! PATRIS IN DEXTERA. 241

It needs not to be added that Magnificat^ associated in the notes
cited from B with Bcnedicitt\ Christc qui lux es, and Gloria in Excelsis,
was used at Vespers in the West, and was appointed for I.auds in the
Oreek. Church.

The Hymn Chrtste qui lux es.

The tradition of the Irish Preface that this well-known hymn was
composed by Ambrose is a venerable one, as Hincmar in the year 857
distinctly names him as the author.' But his Benedictine editors refuse
to allow the hymn to be by Ambrose, and Mone l^Hymni medii aeui^ i.
p. 92) holds that it cannot be older than the seventh century. It exists
in countless manuscripts, and was in use in many parts of Europe as
a Compline hymn so early as the ninth century.- There is nothing
specifically Celtic about it, and it is not worth while to collate the
texts.

Mone prints 11. 3, 4, thus : —

Lucifer lucem proferens
uitam beatam tribue.
He points out that the application of the title Lucifer to Christ is a
mark of antiquity ; He is 7r>/7?} (jyiva(l)6j)o<i.

The hymn has been translated into English a dozen times (see Julian's
Diet, of Hyinnolog}\ p. 227), and is one of the most familiar hymns in
use at Evensong in our churches.

The Hymn Christ/ patris in dexter a.

We have found this hymn nowhere save in F, where it follows the
Gloria in excelsis. It has been recently printed by Dreves in his
Analecta Hymni viedii aeui^ xix, 236 ; following him, we have entitled
it "De SS. Petro et Paulo." The rhyming system on which it is con-
structed is Celtic (see p. xxiii), and it is very probably a native hymn of
the Irish Church. The monastery in which the manuscript F was
written may have been dedicated to St. Peter and St. Paul, such a
dedication being common in Ireland as in England. Thus the great
abbey church of Glendalough was " SS. Petri et Pauli " ; there was
a monastery with the same dedication at Armagh-^ ; and on Saint's
Island in Lough Derg the Augustinian priory of St. Peter and St. Paul
was on the site of an old foundation. Another abbey of Ihe same
name was founded by St. Tighernach, afterwards Bishop of Clones, in
the sixth century.

11. 21, 22. *'talenta euangelica sancta non sine ussura" recall the
words used of St. Patrick in the hymn of St. Sechnall (11. 17, t8) :
" Electa Christi talenta uendit euaitgelica quae Hibernas inter gentes
cum usuris exigit."

In 1. 30 bradiuvi is evidently a blunder for brabiiini = ftpaftclov. See
Phil. iii. 14 "ad braiiiiini supernae uocationis Dei."

^ Mi^e, P.L. cxxv. 591. 2 ggg Baeumer, Gesch. des Breviers, p. 329. ^ See p. 5 above.

LIBER HYMN. H. R

242 NOTES.

1. 43) " per sanctorum suffragia apostolorum fortia " seems to be an
imitation of 1. 37 of the hymn of St. Cummain the Tall, ''^ saiictoriim
. . . ualida . . . suffragia.

Cantemus Domino Gloriose.

As in the case of Benedicite we have collated A and S with F for
this canticle. Its position in 2 is described on p. 240 n. above. The
text exhibited is noteworthy ; Mr. Warren has compared it with the
Vulgate and with certain O. L. authorities in Antiph. of Bangor^ II.
xxxi.

It seems probable that in the Celtic Church it was used in the
Mattin offices ; for the evidence as to usage see Warren, I.e., p. 42.

The collectio at the end in F appears in A as one of a number of
prayers which are prescribed super Canticum.

In the last line of the Preface, mulieribus is, doubtless, a scribe's
blunder for 7nuliebris.

QUICUNQUE VULT.

The Irish Preface to the Quicunque has been printed with a transla-
tion by Stokes in Rev. Celtujue., vi. 265 ; it is evident that the author
of it confused the Athanasian with the Nicene Creed. As we have
pointed out in our Introduction (vol. i. p. xiv), it had been read by
Ussher, who quotes part of it.^

The Quicunque was well-known in Ireland, and several early manu-
scripts of it, written by Irish scribes, are extant ; in particular there is
one of the eighth century in the Ambrosian Library at Milan (O. 212 sup^.,
and there are ninth century copies at St. Gall. We have remarked above
(p. 155) that the first stanza of the Alius Prosator seems to be based
upon it, as the writer of the B Preface to that hymn observed. There
is an Irish version of the Quicunque preserved in a paper manuscript

belonging to the Royal Irish Academy classed y. ; and one of the

Homilies in the Leabhar Breac (fol. 257a) plainly implies a knowledge
of its teaching.'^

The antiphon Te iure after the Gloria in F (11. 73, 74) is interesting ;
we may compare the rubrical direction found in the Crede Micki'^ : *' Ad
primam et ad alias horas omnia fiant sicut in ceteris diebus preter
antiphonam super psalmum {Quicunque uult saluus esse) que erit {Te
iure)r

The Lorica of Gildas.

This curious piece has been often printed ; but we have thought it
desirable to add it to the hymns contained in these volumes, although

' Works, vii. loo. "^ See Hogan, Todd Lectures, vi. p. 30.

3 See Wordsworth, Tracts 0/ Clement lifaydestone, p. 63.

THE LOKICA OF GILD AS. 243

it is not found in either of our two princii)al manuscripts, as it illus-
trates many i)oints which have been discussed in the preceding pages.

In 1853, Mone printed the hymn from the MS. which we have
tailed A ; our record of its readings is derived from a transcript by
/immer.'

In 1855, Daniel printed it- from a Vienna MS. (No. 11,857) of the
sixteenth century, the text of which so closely resembles that of A,
that we have not thought it necessary to record its readings.

In i860, Stokes printed it' from B, with the Irish glosses which that
MS. contains.

In 1864, Cockayne printed it* from C, adding the Anglo-Saxon
glosses there found, and also recording some variants of the MS. which
we call Y^.

The next step was the publication in 1889 of the hymn by Birch
from N, in which manuscript it immediately follows the Oratio S.
lohannis Euangelistae {omx^q. 17). The variants of \^ are given in
this edition.^

We have presented above (vol. i. p. 206) the text of B, with the
variants of CNA^^, having collated afresh BCN. We do not give
either the Irish glosses of B or the Anglo-Saxon glosses of C>^ ; they
can be read in the pages of Stokes and Cockayne.

The Latinity of the Lorica Gildae has been much studied of late
years in connection with the Hisperica Famina, which it strikingly
resembles. This has already been incidentally mentioned in our dis-
cussion of the Aifus Prosator (p. 143 above) ; and we need only repeat
that the date of both the Lorica and the Hisperica Famina is generally
assigned to the latter half of the sixth century. With this well agrees the
tradition of the B Preface which states that the author of the Lorica
was one Gillas, and that the hymn was introduced into Ireland by
I^aidcenn, son of Baeth the Victorious. Now Laidcenn died, accord-
ing to the Irish Annals, in the year 661 ; and thus Gillas may well be
the famous Gildas who died cir. 570. It is not improbable, indeed,
that mortalitas hiiiiis afini oi 11. 5, 6, may enable us to fix the year of
the composition of the piece ; for this seems to have been the Yellow
Plague (see p. 114 above), which first ravaged Britain in 547. It will
be observed that the titles in CN and the colophon in A speak of
Laidcenn as the author ; but if he first made the hymn popular, it is
easy to understand why his name became associated with it. The
strange vocabulary of the piece requires larger treatment than we have
space for here ; many references to treatises on the subject, in addition
to the works we have already mentioned, will be found in an article by
Zimmer published in 1895.*^ On the metre see p. xxi above.

It will be seen that the Lorica is naturally divided into three parts,
the introductory invocation of the Trinity' being followed by an

' See vol. i. p. xx. 2 Thesaurus, iv. 364. ' Irish Glosses, p. 133.

* Leechdovts, Wortcunning, and Starcraft of Early England^ \. Ixviii.
•'• Book of Nuntiamitister, p. 91.

* Nachrichten des K. Gesellscha/t der Wissenschaften zu G'dttingen (1895), Heft 2. Mr. F.
Jenkinson has kindly supplied us with this reference.

" See above, p. 211.

R 2

244 NOTES.

invocation of heavenly powers, and the rest of the piece being taken
up with an enumeration, in the most minute detail, of the various
members of the human body.^ A similar, though less elaborate,
enumeration is found in a collect in the Basle Psalter (P), and another
in the Ordo Baptisvii in the Stowe Missal (S).^ And the unpublished
Lorica of Mugron cited above (p. 212) begins thus :

" The Cross of Christ upon this cheek, upon this ear, . . .

The Cross of Christ upon this eye, upon this nose,

The Cross of Christ upon this mouth, upon this tongue, uj^on this

throat,

The Cross of Christ upon this back, the Cross of Christ upon this

side,
■X- * * * -it

The Cross of Christ upon my hands, from my shoulders to my

palms.
The Cross of Christ upon my hips, the cross of Christ upon my

hair."

A still closer parallel to the text before us is afforded by the Lorica
of Leyden, lately published (with a facsimile of the MS.) by V. H.
Friedel.^ This begins with the invocation Doiiiine exaudi, &c., and
then proceeds to enumerate the various parts of the body, exactly in
the style of the Lorica Gildae^ the Latinity being of the same curiou!>
kind. Angels and archangels and the powers of heaven and earth
are then invoked, each clause ending with the words ut euacuatis cor.
N. pro amore meo. The final invocation is adiiiro iios matheus. viarcus.
lucas. et iohannes}

Mr. Birch in his Book of Nimnamiiister has given other illustrations
of this practice of praying for protection for the several parts of the
body.^ At p. 29 he cites a collect from the MS. we call D ; and at
p. 128 he gives an interesting parallel from the Canones editi sub
Edgaro rege (printed in Wilkins' Concilia^ i. 230), viz., "Confiteor
omnia corporis mei peccata cutis et carnis et ossis et neruorum et
renum et cartilaginum et linguae et labiorum et faucium et dentium et
comae et medullae et rei cuiusque mollis uel durae, humidae uel
siccae," &c. Yet another example is found in the Loi'ica Columbae^
beginning " Sciath De," which is contained in the Leabhar ?ia hUidhre
and in other manuscripts. And, finally, in the Book of the Dean of
Lismore (ed. W. F. Skene), at p. 159, is printed an ancient Gaelic
poem, which, beginning with an invocation of the Trinity, proceeds to
ask protection for the several parts of the human frame.^

1 Compare the glosses printed among the works of Hraban Maur in Migne, P.L. cxii. 1575.

* See Warren, Liturgy and Ritual of the Celtic Church, pp. 186, 207.
3 Zeitschrift /ur Celtische Philologie, II. i. p. 64 (1898).

* See above, p. T73.

'^ Mone finds this Celtic love of detail illustrated in the delicacy and minuteness of the illuminated
scrolls and borders in the more elaborately executed Irish manuscripts, such as the Book of Kells ;
"dieses specialisiren ist demnach ein nationaler Zug," he says in his notes on the Lorica Cildae
{Ifyntni Latini, i. 369).

*' There is a word in 1. 5 of the R Preface which we cannot read ; it looks like ocs. The similarity
of the phraseology here, in which the benefits of recitation of the Lorica are described, to the words
^f the B Preface to the Alius (vol. i. p. 64, 1. 39) should be observed.

INDICES.

OF PERSONAL NAMES.

II.

OF PLACES AND TRIBES.

I. Index of Personal Names.

Ahs>-ar, k. of Edcssa, 30, in, 173, 174,

Adamnan, St., 9th abbot of lona (//. Sept, 23, 704). His birth, 117 ; parent-
age, 122 ; holds Synod of Uisnech, 20, 134 ; praises hymn of Oengus
mac Tipraite, xviii, 20 ; his law, 16, 122 ; Canons of, 122 ; verse ascribed
to him, 17, 123 ; his Prayer^ 81, 139, 235 ; his Vita Columbae^ 109, 113,
122, 123, 135, 163, 164, 170, 226, 228, 231, 233 etc. ; Second Vision of,
105, 108, 127, 133.

Adhna, 230.

Acd (?), 84, 87.

Acd mac Ainmerech, k. of Ireland (572-599), 10,. 23, 24, 27, 28, 37, 140, 171 ;
his name inserted in Anwa^ 75, 234; at Assembly of Druim Cetta, 53,
55, 224. 225 ; treaty with Aedan mac Gabrain, 54, 226 ; refuses to
release Scandlan, 85, 237.

Aed mac Neill, sec Loeghaire.

Aed, bishop of Sletty {d. Feb. 7, 699), 176.

Aed Slane, son of Diarmait mac Cerbaill, succeeded Aed mac Ainmerech
{d. 604), 12, 38, 114.

Aedan mac Gabrain, k. of Scotland (574-606), 23, 24, 54, 55, 85, 140, 224,
226.

Aiduus, see Aed, of Sletty.

Ailbe, St., of Emly {d. Sept. 12, 541), 127.

Ailell mac Dunlainge, k. of Leinster {d. 526), 40, 196, 200.

Aileran, St., lector of Clonard (^d. Dec. 29, 664), 12, 114.

Ailgel, 82.

Amargen, one of the sons of Milesius, 184.

Amatorex, bp. of Auxerre, (?) 180.

Aphrodisius, 129.

Arelius, i.e. Melchior, 129.

Arenus, i.e. Jaspar, 129.

Aristodemus, 29.

Art, the Solitary, son of Conn of the Hundred Pjattles, 'j'j., 234.

Artchorp, 82.

Assal, 58.

Assicus, see Tassach.

Athrae, 82.

Axal, Columba's guardian angel, 65, 66, 71, 231.

Baeth the Victorious, 243.

Bairche, 183.

Baithin, 2nd abbot of lona {d. June 9, 600), 23, 67, 85, 232, 237.

Balthasar, 128, 129.

l^artholomew, St., 52, 222.

liasil, St., the Great {d. Jan. i, 379), 67, 232.

lienen, or Benignus, bp. of Armagh {ci. Nov. 9, 468), 49.

Bernard of Clairvaux, St., 216.

Bera, 6.

Bevan, 82.

248 INDEX OF PERSONAL NAMES.

Bile, son of Bregon, 183.

l^ite, one of Patrick's artificers, 185.

Blaithmac, son of Aed Slane, 12, 114.

Blathnait, Brigid's cook, 196.

Breasal O'Tracy, 238.

Breccan, 188.

Bregan, grandfather of Fiacc of Sletty. See Todd, Book of Hymns, p. 291.

13regdolb, 82.

Bregon, 183.

Brendan, St., of Clonfert {d. May 16, 577). The hymn Brigit be bithmaith
ascribed to him, 38, 188 ; his voyage, and subsequent visit to Brigid,
38, 196 ; his powerful voice, 228.

Bresal, 82.

Brian Borumha, k. of Ireland {li. 1014), 227.

Brig, 6.

Brigid, St., of Kildare {d. Feb. i, 523). Her parentage, 38 ; hymns in her
honour, Christus m jwsfra, xxix, 8 ; Brigit be bitJunaiih^ xxxiii, yj^^
i87ff; Ni car Brigit^ 1, 37, 4off, iSgff ; PJicebi diem, 223 ; her pation-
age invoked, 16, 45, 117, 205 ; equally honoured with Patrick, 39,
189 ; compared to B.V.M., 39, 40, 46, 107, 190, 223 ; her character,
40, 168, 188, 190; her miracles, 8, ^})^, 41-45, 194-204 ; her "ordina-
tion," 41, 192, 193 ; her Rule, 191 ; her artist Condlaed, 44, 185, 204 ;
Brendan visits her, 38, 196 ; verses ascribed to her, 59(?), 194, 195.

Brittus, 177.

Broicsech, Brigid's mother, 38.

Broccan, St., the Squinting {d. Sept. 17, 650), the panegyrist of Brigid y],
40, 188, 189.

Brolchan, 221.

Bruide mac Maelcon, k. of the Picts {d. 584), 230 ; his gift of lona to
Columba, 24, 141.

Buan, of Dal Araide, 3, 178.

Cairpre Lifechair, k. of Ireland, {d. 284) son of Cormac mac Art, 82, 234,

236.
Cairpre Niafer, killed at battle of Rossnaree, a descendant of Cathair Mor,

80, 235.
Calpurn, Patrick's father, 3, 32, 177, 186.
Canice, St., or Kenneth {d. Oct. 11, 600), 98, I4I.
Carell, 226.

Cassian, 67, 170, 171, 232.

Cathair Mor, k. of Ireland {circa 174), 31, 80, 175, 235.
Cathbath, 59.

Celestine, Pope (422-432), 3, 7, 177, 180.
Ciannan, 178, 179.

Ciaran, St., of Clonmacnoise {d. Sept. 9, 547), xxvi. 141, 218, 220.
Ciaran, St., of Saighir {d. March 5, circa 551), 218.
Cinnenum, a sister of Patrick, 177.
Cinnfaela, father of Scandlan Mor, 54, 55, 226.
Cirine, i.e. Jerome.
Clement, Pope ( ? ), 89, 239.
Cobthach, k. of Ireland, 58, 229.
Coemgen, see Kevin.

Cogitosus, the biographer of Brigid {d. circa 670), l.flf. 189, 195-204.
Colman, Ela, St. (^. Sept. 26, 610), 6, 98.
Colman mac Comgellain, one of the Irish Ualriads {d. 625) ; his decision

accepted by the Scotch and Irish at Druim Cetta, 56, 226.

INDEX OF PERSONAL NAMES. 249

Colman mac Lenine, St., of Cloyne {d. Nov. 24, 600 ?), 58, 22S.

Colman mac Murchon, St. {d. 731 ?), xv, xxiv, x.xv, 19, 132, 133, 211.

Colman mac Ui Cluasaig^, St., lector in Cork {d. 661 ?), 12, 13, 114, 117, 121.

Colman Mor, defeated at battle of Cuil Feda, 38, 68.

Colptha, one of the sons of Milesius, 184.

Columba, sec Colum Cille.

Columbanus, St., Abbot of Luxeuil and Hobbio {^d. Nov. 21, 615), loi, 138.

Colum Cille, St., tirst Abbot of lona {b. 521, d. June 9, 597) ; one of the
three patrons of Ireland, 16, 117 ; of royal descent, 140 ; his father's
pedigree, 53, 234 ; his mother^s, 80, 235 ; his original name, 122 ;
where baptized, 122 ; his teachers, 28, 72, 145 ; Berry granted
him, 28, 171 ; his "Black Church" there, 23, 57, 140, 228; other
churches, 20, 'j'})., 108 ; not a bishop, 108 ; the three battles which he
caused, 23, 24, 68, 140 ; lona granted him, 24, 141 ; mission to the
Picts, 63, 76, 230 ; recommends Cummain to Domnall (.'*), 10, 109 ;
attends Assembly of Druim Cetta, 53, 55 ; three reasons for doing so,
55, 85, 224 ; releases Scandlan Mor, 57, 85, 226, 237 ; gives him his
staff to carry to Durrow, 86, 237 ; receives presents from Gregory, 23,
141 ; his miraculous visits to Rome, 231 ; and to heaven, 62, 132 ;
guardian angel, 65, 66, 71, 76, 231 ; his hymns, the Altus^ 23!?, i42fif;
criticised by Gregory, 25, 141 ; its metre, xxvi, 26 ; indulgence for its
recitation, 26, 142, 169 ; In te C/iriste, xxiii, 27, 169 ; Adiiitor
hiborivitium^ 23, 141 ; Noli Paier, indulgenced, 28 ; when recited,
171 ; Alto et hieffabili^ 218 ; Brigit be bithmaith ascribed to him, 37,
188 ; also other Irish verses, 10, 28, 55, 56 ; Avira composed in his
honour, 536", 223fTf ; indulgenced, 56, 59 ; Columba's stature, 237 ; his
voice, 57, 66, 71, -]-], 235; character, 71, 72; pride, 67, 232;
hospitality, 76, 233 ; asceticism, 63, 64, 65, 70, 74 ; learning, 64, 232 ;
knowledge of Greek, 76, 234 ; of natural science, 67, 68, 161 ; death,
57, 62, 65, 87, 238 ; grief caused thereby, 61, 'j^^ 79, 229 ; his relics
translated to Down, 57, 66, 222.

Comgall, St., of Bangor {d. May 10, 602), 24, 68, 141.

Conall, son of Aed mac Ainmerech, 237.

Conall Cemach of the Red Branch, 97,

Conall Gulban, brother of Loegaire, son of Neill, {d. 464), 53, 234.

Conall, k. of British Dalriata (^. 574), 76, 86, 141, 234.

Conchess, Patrick's mother, 3, 177.

Conchobar, or Conor, mac Nessa, k. of Ulster, the conqueror at Rossnaree,
59, 84, 236.

Conchobar Abratruad, k. of Ireland, 84, 236.

Condlaed, bp. of Kildare, Brigid's " artist," 44, 45, 185, 204.

Congall Clarinech, a legendary k. of Ireland, 236.

Conn of the Hundred Battles, k. of Ireland (177-212), 74, ']']^ 226, 234.

Conor, see Conchobar.

Constantine, 92.

Cormac mac Art, k. of Ireland (254-277), 54, 55, 60, 82, 102, 226, 230, 234,
236.

Cothraige, one of Patrick's names, 3, 4, 7, 32, 177, 178.

Craiptine, the first legendary harper, 57, 227.

Crebriu, daughter of Glerand, 180.

Crimthan, the original name of Columba, 121, 122.

Cuchuimne, St. {d. Oct. 7, 746?), xvi, xxiv, xxv, 17, 123.

Cuchulaind, the hero of Rossnaree, 84, 229, 238.

Cu Corb, 84, 236,

Cumine, son of Feradach, 85, 86, 237.

Cummain, the Fair, St., 7th abbot of lona {d. Feb. 24, ._,, _^ ^ _^

6T. WICHAEL'8
COLLEGE

250 INDEX OF PERSONAL NAMES.

Cummain, the Tall, St., bp. of Clonfert {d. Nov. 12, 661), xix, 9, 10, 108, 109,

III, 114, 237, 242.
Cummean, author of a Penitentiale and of a letter on Paschal question {cir.

634), 108, 123.

Dabog, 168.

Daire Barrach, 31.

Dalian mac Forgaill, high poet of Ireland {d. Jan. 29, 594?), author of the

Amra, 53-56, 59, 223-238.
Dallbronach, Brigid's maternal grandfather, 38, 190.
Darerca, Patrick's sister, 3, 96, 113, 177, 193.
Darerca, sec Moninna.
Demal, Columba's demon, 231.
Deman, 55, 226.
Dermot, see Diarmait.

Diarmait mac Cerbaill, k. of Ireland (544-565), 23, 24, 38, 68, 140.
Diarmait, son of Aed Slane and grandson of preceding, 12, 114.
Diarmait, the lover of Grainne, 230.

Diarmait, coarb of Patrick, son of German {circa 848), 117, 121.
Dimma, maternal grandfather of Columba, 57, 80, 235.
Dionysius, 92.
Domitian, 29.
Domlech, 230.

Domnall, son of Aed mac Ainmerech, 10, 58, 109, 237.
Donn, one of the sons of Milesius, 183, 184.
Drust, a Pictish king, 11.
Drusticc, daughter of preceding, 11, 113.
Dubthach mac Ui Lugair, high poet of Ireland, 31.
Dubthach, Brigid's master, 192, 197.
Dubthach, a scribe, 130.

Eber, one of the sons of Milesius, 183, 184.

Echach, 8.

Echin, 235.

Emer, i'}^^ 183.

Eochaid Muighmedan, k. of Ireland, father of Neill of the Nine Hostages,

234-
Eochaid Righ Eigheas, i.e. Dalian mac Forgaill, q.v.
Eochaid Ua Flannucain, a poet {d. 1003), 4, 7, 98. See vol. i. p. xiv.
Eogan, son of Neill, 85, 86.
Eogan, son of Olioll olom, k. of Munster, 109.
Ephraem Syrus, 174.
Erca, 31.

Erimon, one of the sons of Milesius, 1% 181, 183, 184.
Essu, one of Patrick's artificers, 185.
Etarnel, see Nel.

Ethne, Columba's mother, 57, 80, 235.
Eugenius of Toledo, 98.

Falcus, i.e. Phocas, q.v.

P>chin, St., of Fore {d. Jan. 20, 664), 12, 113.

Feidlimid, Columba's father, 53, ']']., 234.

Feidlimid Rechtmair, k. of Ireland, father of Conn of the Hundred Battles,

234-
Feidlimid, the All-Wise, father of Jathair Mor, 80, 235.
Fenius Farsa, 183, 184.

INDEX OF PERSONAL NAMES. 251

Feradach, son of Muiredach, 85.

Feradach, father of Laisren, q.v., 86.

Feradach Find Fechtnach, k. of Ireland, 84.

Ferchertne, poet, 59, 227, 229, 230.

Ferdomnach, scribe of Jiook of ArmaoJi [fl. 807), 97.

Fcrdomnach, Abbot of Kells {d. 1008), 56, 227.

Fergus, Columba's paternal grandfather, 53, 234.

Fergus, 68.

Ferin, 177.

Fiacaid Srabtini, k. of Ireland {area 297), 234.

Fiacc, St., of Sletty {cf. Oct. 12, sub. Jin. sair. V.). His pedigree, 175 ; receives
tonsure froni Patrick, 31 ; reputed author of Chrisins m nostra., 8,
107 ; oi Ninincs Prayer., 36 ; and of the hymn Gcnair Patraii\ 31-35,
96, 104, 175 ; date of this hymn, 176 ; c[Uotation from it, 7.

Fiachna, k. of West Munster, father of St. Cummain the Tall, 9, 10, 109.

Fiachra Gairrine, father of preceding, 10.

Fiad, 202.

Fincholl, 62, 230.

Find, sec Finn.

Findabair, 203.

Finn mac Cumhaill, or Find U Baiscne, hero and poet {d. 283), 69, 233,
236.

Finn, father of Conchobar Abratruad, poet, 84, 236.

Finnian, St., of Clonard {d. Dec. 12, 548), 229.

Finnian, St., of Moville {d. Sept. 10, 579), 11, 72, 112, 113, 145, 233.

Flann, mother of St. Cummain the Tall, 9, 10, J09.

Forgall, father (?) of Dalian, 53, 55.

Fotaid, sec Potitus.

Frigidianus, St., of Lucca {cominevi. Mar. \Z.,fi. 570), 113.

Froech, 203.

Galgalad, i.e. Jaspar, 129.

Gartnaid, k. of the Picts, 230, 234.

Gerald, St., of Mayo {d. Mar. 13, 732?), 114.

German, father of Diarmait, bp. of Armagh, 121.

German, St., of Auxerre {d. July 31, 448). Patrick studied with him, 32,

178, 180 ; received the name Magonius from him, 3, 7, 177.
Gildas, St. {d. cir. 570) ; his Loriea., xxi, 143, 211, 243.
Gilla Modubhda, a poet, 236.
Gillas, see Gildas.
Glerand, 180.
Goedel Glas, 183, 184.
Gorianas, 4.
(iomiad, 177.
Grainne, daughter of Cormac mac Art, 60, 230.

Ilencret, 177.

Herimon, see Erimon.

Hilar)', St., of Aries {d. May 5, 449), 125, 126.

Hilary, St., of Poitiers {d. Jan. 13, 368), author of the piece Hymmim dicat.,

18, 125, 126, 128 ; its metre, xi, xii, xiv ; when recited, 127 ; other

hymns of his 97, 126, 136.
Hraban, St., of St. Maur {d. Feb. 4, 856), known in Ireland, 106, 112, 137 ;

reproduces the A/h/s of Columba, 145-149, 155; and /;z te Christe.,

170.

252 INDEX OF PERSONAL NAMES.

laspar, 128, 129.

Idnae, 82.

Ignatius, St., of Antioch (<;^w. Feb. i, d. no?), 14, 119.

Joseph, foster-father of Christ, 14, 118.

Ir, one of the sons of Milesius, 183.

Ita, St., of Killeedy {d. Jan. 15, 569), 9, 108.

luHanus Pomerius (y?. cir. 500), 142, 143, 145.

lustin II, Emperor (565-578), 24.

lustinian I, Emperor (527-565), 24.

Kenneth, see Canice.

Kevin, St., of Glendalough {d. June 3, 618), 6, 41, 193, 194, 218.

Labraid Loingsech Lorcc, victor at Dinn-rig {Jl. cir. 550 B.C.), 57, 58, 227,

229.
Laidcenn, son of Baeth the Victorious {^d. Jan. 12, 661), 243.
Laisren mac Feradach, 3rd Abbot of lona (600-605), formerly of Durrow,

86, 237.
Lasrian, j<?<? Molaise.
Lenine, 58.
Leo, 177.

Lesru, daughter of Glerand, 180.
Liamain, sister of Patrick, 96, 177.
Linne, see Tinne.

Loegaire mac Neill, k. of Ireland ('428-463), 3, 4, 31, 33, 40, 49, 208.
Loingsech mac Oengusa, k. of Ireland (695-704), 17, 123.
Lonan, St., of Trevet, son of Talmach, 11.
Loran, see Ronan.
Lucat-Mael, a druid, 181.
Lucru, a druid, 181.

Lugaid mac Loegaire, k. of Ireland (483-507), 31, 40, 189.
Lugaid, a champion of Leinster, 44, 202.
Lugnae Trinog, 82.
Lupait, sister of Patrick, 3, 177, 178.

Mac Caille, St., bp. of Croghan, brother to Bp. Mel '\Com. Apr. 25), 41, 192,

1 93-.
Macculasrius, see Molaise.
Mac Midrui, a druid, 194.
Madian, i.e. Matthias, 52, no, ni, 222.
Mael Brigte ua Mael Uanaig, scribe (/?. n39), 129.
Mael Choba, k. of Ulster (612-615), 55, 226.
Maelcon, father of Bruide, 24, 141.
Mael-fith, 168.

Mael Isu ua Brolchain {d. Jan. 16, 1086?), 52, 221.
Mael Sechnall, 60.

Mael Suthain, scribe and confessor to Brian Borumha id. 1009), 56, 227.
Mael-tuile, 168.
Maen, see Labraid.

Magonius, one of Patrick's names, 3, 7, 177.
Malgalath, i.e. Mclchior, 129.
Mancend, sec Moinenn.

Manchan, St., of Liath {d. Jan. 24, 664), 12, n4.
Marcianus Capella {sacc. v.), 166.
Martin, a disciple of Patrick, 135.
Martin, St., of Tours {d. Nov. n," 397), hymn in his honour, xvii, 20, 134 ;

INDEX OF PERSONAL NAMES. 253

well known in Ireland, 113, 134, I35 • churches dedicated to him, 134,

135 ; appears in vision to Adamnan, 20 ; accounted uncle of Patrick,

134, 177 ; a prayer of his, 116.
Matoc, brother to Bp. Sanctan (tvw/. Apr. 2 5\ 47.
Maurice, Emperor (582-602), 23, 140.
Maxim, 177.

Mel, bp. of Ardagh, son of Darerca [tf. Feb. 6, 488), 192, 193.
Melchisar, /.i'. Melchior, 128, 129.
Melchon, sec Maelcon.
Mercud, 177.

Meu^^an, St. {cir. 500), 112.
Michael, St., the Archangel (Sept. 29), 178, 184; hymn m his honour, xv,

19, 133 ; popular in Ireland, 133 ; invocation of him, 134.
Miled, or Milesius, of Spain, 114, 181, 183, 186.
Miliuc (or Milchu) mac Ua Bain, Patrick's master in Antrim, chief of Dal

Aiaide (J. 390), 3^ 4, 7, 3^» i/^- , , , .. x , •

Mobi, St., of Glasnevin, the Flatfaced, alias Berchan {d. Oct. 12, 544) ; his

pedigree, 82, 235, 236 ; his death, 28, 236 ; teacher of Columba, 171.
Mochta, St., of Louth {d. Mar. 24, 535), 225.
Mog Corb, k. of Ireland, 84, 236.
Moinenn, St., of Clonfert {d. Mar. i, 570), 112.
Molaise, St., of Devenish {d. Sept. 12, 563), 220, 221.
Molaise, St., of Inismurray {cojfwi. Aug. I2,y?. 561) 140, 220.
Molaise, St., of Leighlin {d. Apr. 18, 638\ 220.
Mongan, 228.

Moninna, St., of Slieve Gullion {d. July 6, 518), 187.
Morand, 62, 230.
Moriath, of Morca, 57, 227.
Mugint, St. {sacc. v.?), 11, 112, T13.
Mugron, 30th Abbot of lona (964-980), 1 17, 121.
Mugron, author of a Lo7ica^ 212, 244.

Muirchu Maccu Mactheni {saec. vii), loi, 104, 105, 176, 181, 182, 185, 209.
Muiredach, son of Eogan mac Neill, 85.
Muiredach Tirech, 234.
Murchu of Connaught, 19.
Mureth, 202.
Muric, 177.

Natfraich, Brigid's lector, 193, 199, 200.

Natfraich, father of St. Molaise of Devenish, 220.

Neidhe, one of the Two Sages, 230.

Neill of the Nine Hostages, k. of Ireland (379-405)» 53, 61, 11, 81, 87, 140,

168, 188, 230, 234.
Nel, 183, 184.
Nene, 180.

Nennio, see Moinenn.
Nera, son of Fincholl, 62, 230.
Nera, son of Morand {fi. 14), 62, 230.
Nia, a poet (?), 202.

Niceta, bp. of Remesiana (392-414), author of Te Deum, 22, 138, 139, 239.
Nicetius, bp. of Treves (527-566), 138.
Ninian, St. {d. Sept. 16, 432?) 113.
Ninine, or Nine Ecis, a poet {saec. vi ?), 36, 187.
Ninnid Purehand, son of Eochaid {saec. vi ?), 8, 107.
Noe, son of Echin, 57, 80, 235.

254 INDEX OF PERSONAL NAMES.

Ocmus, Patrick's maternal grandfather, 177.

Odisse, a deacon, Patrick's paternal great grandfather, 32, 177.

O'Domnal mac Dabog, 168.

Oengus mac Tipraite, St. {d. 745), xvii, xviii, 20, 134, 135.

Oric, 177.

Ota, 177.

Otide, see Potitus.

Palladius, mission to Ireland, 180, 187.

Partholon, see Hartholomew.

Patifarsat, see Balthasar.

Patrick, St., of Armagh {d. Mar. 17, 493?), Patron of Ireland, 16, 39, 117,
121, 189 ; his birthplace, 3, 32, 176, 177 ; his ancestry, 3, 32, 177 ; his
kindred, 3, 96, 113, 134, 135, 177 ; baptism, 4 ; captured in boyhood,
3, 177 ; sold to Milchu, 3, 32, 178 ; his four names, 3, 7, 32, 98, 100,
177, 178 ; prediction to Milchu, 4 ; encouraged by Angel Victor, 32,
178; his deliverance, 179; baptizes Ciannan, 179; studies with
Germanus, 32, 179, 180; call of children of Fochlad, 32, 106, 180;
refused ordination by Celestine, 180; finds the Baculus Jesu, 180,
181 ; ordained, when sixty, by Amatorex, 180 ; druids foretold his
coming, 181 ; concealed it from Loegaire, 33 ; his preaching, 36 ; for
sixty years, 34 ; at Saul, ^yZ-» 183 ; miracles, 33, 96 ; asceticism, ^"^^ ;
devotions, 33, 104, 182 ; vSechnall's hymn in his honour, 3ff, 96ff;
its use, 97; its indulgence, 6, 34, 120; quarrel with Sechnall and
reconciliation, 5 ; sends Sechnall to Rome for relics ; Fiacc's metrical
life of him, 31, 176 ; tonsures Fiacc, 31 ; baptizes Dubthach ; his feats
at Tara Hill, 31, 49, 208, 209 ; his Lorica, 49ff 2o8ff. ; its structure,
Ivii, 211 ; its indulgence, 49 ; its use, 97, 210 ; his leper, 199 ; desires
to go to Armagh, 34, 184 ; Primacy to Armagh, 34, 185 ; his "four
petitions," ^)!)-, 34» 97? i^S? i?^ ; receives his last communion, 34, 185 ;
death, 34; light for a year thereafter, 34, 185 ; the angels' requiem,
35 ; his burial place, 184 ; his relics, 186, 222 ; the "other" Patrick,
35, 186 ; confusion with Palladius, 186 ; invocation of him, 112, 187 ;
hymn Ecce fidget in his praise, 222 ; special honours paid his memory,
97, 210; his "law," his Coiifessio and Letter to Co?'oticus^ 96; used
O.L. version of Scripture, 145.

Pelagius, heretic {d. dr. 440), 179.

Pharaoh, 115, 116, 183.

Philip, St., the Apostle, 52, 83, 84, no, 235, 236.

Philip, the Commentator (^. 455), 160, 161, 166.

Phocas, Emperor (602-610), 23, 140.

Piran, see Ciaran, St., of Saighir.

Pledi, i.e. Palladius (?), 180.

Potitus, Patrick's paternal grandfather, 3,32, 177.

Probus, author of the Quinta Vita of Patrick {saec. x ?), 177.

Prosper, St., of Aquitaine {saec. v), 142, 143, 144, 145.

Restitutus, Sech nail's father, 3, 4, 96.

Rioc, St., of Inisbofin in Loch Ree {saec. vi ?), also called Darerca's son (?)

II, 113.
Rodincus, St., of Beaulieu {d. Sept. 17, 680), 132.
Ronan, Adamnan's father, 122.
Roncend, see Condlaed.
Ronnat, Adamnan's mother, 122.
Ross mac Finn, poet, 227.
Rossa Rig-bude, k. of Ulster {fl. c(r. 250), 183.
Rovin, St., see Rodincus.

INDEX OF PERSONAL NAMES. 255

Sanctan, St., of Killdaleas {com. May 9), 47, 48, 206, 236.

Sanicis, see Balthasar.

Sannan, deacon, Patrick's brother, 177.

Sdrbile, see Moninna.

Scandlan Mor, prince of Ossory, son of Cinnfacla (y/. 575), 54, 55, 85, 86, 224,

226, 236, 237.
Scotta, dauj^htcr of Pharaoh, 183.
Sechmall, 135.
Sechnall, St., or Secundinus, of Diinshauyhlin {d. Nov. 27, 448), His

parentage, 3, 4, 7, 96 ; quarrel with Patrick and reconcihation, 5 ;

goes to Rome, 5 ; his hymn in praise of Patrick, 4, 96fr, 176, 182, 185,

241 ; its metre, xiii, xiv, 97 ; its indulgence, 6, 7, 97, 98, 120.
Sechtmaide, a pirate chieftain, "king of the Britons,"' 3, 177. Keating

identifies him with Neill of the Nine Hostages.
Secundinus, JdV Sechnall.
Sedulius, junior {sacc. ix ?), 105.

Segetius, priest, appointed Patrick's companion by Germanus, 180.
Seghine, 5th abbot of lona {d. Aug. 12, 652), 108.
Senan, St., of Scattery Island {coin. Mar. 8,y?. 544), 225.
Sen Patrick, of Glastonbury, 186.
Sincema, see Balthasar.
Sixtus HI, Pope (432-441), 180.
Succat, one of Patrick's names, 3, 7, 32, 177.
Suibne mac Colman Moir {d. 600), 38.
Sulpicius Severus {d. cir. 415), 134, 135.

Talmach, vSt., perhaps a disciple of St. Brendan {li. Feb. 26, saec. vi ?}, ir,

Tasaig, 88, 238.

Tassach, Patrick's artificer, bp. of Raholp {com. Apr. 14), 34, 185.

Tea, wife of Erimon, 181.

Thaddaeus, 30, 52, in, 174, 175.

Theodosius H, Emperor of the East (408-450), 180.

Tighernach, St., bp. of Clones {d. Apr. 4, 548), 241.

Tighemach, annalist {saec. xi), 141.

Tigris, Patrick's sister, 177.

Tinne, Adamnan's grandfather, 122.

Tirechan, bp. {com. July 3, saec. vii), 177.

Ultan, St , of Ardbreccan {d. Sept. 4, 656), tutor of Broccan, 189 ; collected
Brigid's miracles, 8, 40 ; hymn Christus in nostra., 8, 107, 223 ; its
metre, xxix, xxx ; hymn Brigit be bithmaith., 38, 188, 197; its metre,
xxxiii ; poem in praise of him, 107.

Valens, Emperor (364-378), 18, 125.
Valentinian I, Emperor (364-375), 18, 125.
Victor, Patrick's angel, 32, 34, 97, 178, 179, 184.

II. Index of Places and Tribes.

Abernethy, 230, 231.

Ader, see Gadder.

Africa, 83.

Aghaboe, 141.

Ail Cliiade, i.e. Dumbarton, 3, 176, 177.

Airiud Boinne, near Clonard, 195.

Alanensis insula, 180. Stokes {Trip. Life., 302, 420) suggests Arelatetisis, i.e.

Aries.
Alban, see Scotland.
Alene, 202.
Alps, 18.

Altissiodorum, i.e. Auxerre, 179, 180.

Amalgada, the district of Tirawley (Tir Amalgaid), co. Mayo, 181.
Arad Cliach, i.e. Kilteely in co. Limerick, 194.
Ardagh, in co. Longford, 192.
Ardbreccan, in co. Meath, 8, 38, 40, 107.
Arcal, the valley of the Braid in co. Antrim, 178.
Ard mac n-Odrain, in Inishowen, 85.
Ardmurcher, in co. Meath, 134.
Argyle, 224.

Armagh, 5, 34, 96, 184, 185.
Armorica, 3, 96, 177, 179.
Arnon, Mount, 180. The locality intended is doubtful ; see Todd's Si,

Patrick, 323, 337.
Ath Feni, in West Meath, 53, 56.

Ballymartin, near Belfast, 134.

Banba, an ancient name of Ireland, 186.

Bannauenta, near Daventry, 176.

Belach Feda, see Cuil Feda.

Benna Boirche, the Mourne mountains, in co. Down, 33, 183.

Bishops' Hill, on the borders of co. Kildare and co. Wicklow, 195.

Blasantia, i.e. Placentia (?), 37, 188, 191.

Blathnat, or Moel-blatha, a flat stone at the monastery at lona, 23, 141.

Bonmahon, co. Waterford, 238.

Breg, Bregia, a district including Meath, Westmeath, part of Dublin and

part of Louth, 199, 203.
Breifne of Connaught, equivalent to co. Leitrim and co. Cavan, 53, 55, 225.
Bri, or Bri Cobthaig Coil, a place in Bregia, 43, 199.
Bruiden Da Choca, i.e. Breenmore in Westmeath, 84, 236.
Burgundy, 179.

Cahir Ultan, 107.

Caille Fochlad, see Fochlad.

Cambray, 106.

Candida Casa, in Galloway, 113.

Carburys, The, 57, 80.

INDEX OF PLACES AND TRIBES. 257

Cell Ciannain, near Monasterboice, 178.

Cell Culind, i.e. Old Kilcullen in co. Kildare, 200.

Cell Fine, perhaps Killeen Cormaic near Dunlavin, 180.

Cell Finnend, 198.

Cell Foreland, west of the R. Moy in co. Mayo, 180.

Cenell Conaill, i.e. Tirconnell or Donegal, 76, 121, 122, 234.

Chechtraige Slecht, 53.

Ciannachta, now Keenaght, between Coleralne and Derry, 85, 237.

Ciarraige Luachra, in co. Kerry, 186.

Clocthech, in co. Kildare, 200.

Clonard, 24, 47, 141, 195.

Clonfert, 108, 188.

Cloyne, 228.

Cluaide, i.e. Clyde, see Ail Cluade.

Cluain Corcaige, in Offaly, 198.

Cluain Fota Baitan Aba, i.e. Clonfad in co. Westmeath, 20, 134.

Cluain Moiscna, near Fartullagh in co. Westmeath, 197.

Cluain Mor Moedoc, i.e. Clonmore in co. Carlow, 40, 189.

Cnawhill, now Cleghile near Tipperary, 88, 238.

Coleraine, see Cuil Rathin.

Conalle Muirthemne, or co. Louth, 3, 97, 178.

Conn's Half, the northern portion of Ireland, 184, 201, 235.

Conry, in Meath, 134.

Cooladrummon, see Cuil Dremne.

Corccan Ochaide (?), 64.

Cork, 9, 12, 114.

Corryvreckan, the channel between Rathlin Island and the mainland, 37, 188.

Corthe Snama, " pillar of swimming," near Loch Foyle, 85. See Felire oj

Oengiis., p. clx.
Cruach, i.e. Croagh Patrick in co. Mayo, 7, 99.
Cruachan Bri Ele, i.e. Croghan in King's co., 192.
Cuchulaind's Leap, now Loop Head, 88, 238.
Cuil Dremne, near Sligo, 23, 24, 68, 140, 168, 234, 237.
Cuil Feda, near Clonard, 24, 68, 141.
Cuil Rathin, now Coleraine, 24, 68, 140.
Curragh of Kildare, 45, 196, 198, 199.

Daire Calcaig, now Derry, 10, 23, 28, 73, 109, 140, 171, 228, 237.

Dal Araide, including co. Down, and S. of co. Antrim, 3, 4, 24, 97, 178, 183.

Dal Conchobair, in S. of Bregia, 38.

Dal Osraide, 85.

Dal-riata, now the Route, co. Antrim, 54, 55, 56, 85, 86, 141, 224, 226, 234.

Darinis, nearYoughal, 123.

Daventry, 176, 177.

Derry, see Daire Calcaig.

Desert Dalian, in Raphoe, 225.

Desert Martin, in Derry, 134.

Desmond, or South Munster, 238.

Devenish, in Lough Erne, 220, 221.

D inn-rig, now Ballyknockan Fort on the Barrow, near Leighlin Bridge, 58,

227, 229.
Domnach Mor, in Kildare, 195, 196.

Domnach Sechnaill, now Dunshaughlin in co. Meath, 3, 4 96
DowTipatrick, see Dun Lethglasse.
Druim Cetta, near Newtownlimavady, in co. Derry, 53, 55, 58, 67, 85, 122,

224, 225, 226, 231, 238.

LIBER HYMN. II. S

25S INDEX OF PLACES AND TRIBES.

Druim-Lias, now Drumlease, co. Leitrim, 59.

Drumalban, between Argyleshire and Perthshire, 179.

Drumblade, in Aberdeenshire, 127.

Duma Gobla, near Sletty, Queen's co., 31.

Dumbarton, 176.

Dundelga, i.e. Dundalk, 86, 237.

Dun Lethglasse, now Downpatrick, 34, 57, 66, 184, 185, 222, 228.

Dun na n-Airbed, in Meath, 53, 56.

Durrow, see Ross Grencha

Eder, sec Gadder.

Edessa, 30, in, 173, 174.

Egypt, 116, 129, 183.

Elca, an ancient name of Ireland, 186

Elpa, Mount, 179, see vol. i, p. 13.

Emania, the royal fort of Ulster, near Armagh, 34, 230.

Emly, 127.

Eoganacht, of Loch Lein, the tribe of Eogan Mor of Munster, 9, 109.

Ephesus, 29.

Eriu, an ancient name of Ireland, 34, 186.

Ethiopia, 131.

Etna, Mount, 161.

Euphrates, 30.

Faichnech, Bog of, now Boughna Bog, 192.

Fail, an ancient name of Ireland, 186.

Fene, see Ath Feni.

Fettar, in Shetland, 127.

Fingal, N. of Dublin, 203.

Fir Telech, now FartuUagh, in co. Westmeath, 192, 197.

Fochlad, near Killala, in co. Mayo, 32, 180, 181.

Fordun, in Kincardineshire, 180, 181.

Fore, in Westmeath, 12, 114.

Forraig Rath, in co. Kildare (?), 200.

Fortuatha, of Leinster, co. Wicklow, 180, 181.

Fotharta Tire, in co. Wexford (?), 200.

Fotla, an ancient name of Ireland, 186.

France, 19.

Franks, 177.

Futerna, probably Whitherne, in Galloway, 11, 113.

Gaba, i.e. Gibeah, 15, 120.

Gabder, see Gadder.

Gadder, Tower of, 21, 128, 135.

Gaels, 3, 58, 184, 186.

Gall-gaels, i.e. " Dano-Irish," 54. They lived along the west coast of

Scotland. See Martyrology of Gormafi., p. 312.
Galls, 58.
Gibeon, 34.

Glasnevin, near Dublin, 171, 236.
Glastonbury, 186, 187.
Glendalough, co. Wicklow, 41, 193.

Glenn Dian, in West Munster, 88. t\

Glenn-na-Ruachta, now Glenarought, in West Munster, 238. I

Greeks, 25, 76. "" ^'

INDEX OF PLACES AND TRIBES. 259

Her-cluaide, see Ail Cluade.

Hi or Hy, i.e. lona, 23, 24, 27, 54, 57, 66, -Ji, 108, 109, 121, 122, 135, 140, 141,
225, 230, 233, 235, 237.

Ibar of Cinntracht, i.e. Ncwry, in co. Down, 53, 55, '^'j^ 97, 225.

Ictian Sea, i.e. the British Channel, 19, 132, 177, 191.

Inber Boinne, also called Inber Colptha, the mouth of the Boync, 178.

Inber Colptha, sec Inber Boinne.

Inber Mara, perhaps the Straits of Gibraltar, 191.

India, 61, 131.

Inis Boffin, oft" the coast of Mayo, 64, 231.

Inis Cleire, off the coast of Cork, 114.

Inis Eidheand (?) Zi.

Inishowen, at the western side of Loch Foyle, 85.

Inis Matoc, perhaps in the Lake of Temple Port, co. Leitrim, 47, 206.

Inis Murray, off" the coast of Sligo, 140, 220.

lona, see Hi.

Irarus, now Oris in co. Westmeath, 53, 225.

Ita's Cell, now Killeedy, in co. Limerick, 9, 108.

Kilcummin, in co. Mayo, 108.

Kildallan, 225.

Kildare, 38, 45, 191, i95--o^ -Oj-

Killdaleas, 206. ^

Kilmacrenan, 122.

Kilmartin, 134.

Lamlash, 220.

Letha, i.e. Letavia or Armorica, i.e. Brittany, 3, 4, 32, 96, 177, 179.

Letha, i.e. Latium or Italy, 44, 179, 204.

Leth Cuinn, see Conn's Half.

Liath, now Lemanaghan in King's co., 114.

Lice Brendan, apparently in Kildare, 196.

Liffey, R., 196, 197, 199.

Loch Foyle, 85.

Loch Lein, the largest lake at Killarney, 9, 109.

Loch Lemnachta, in Kildare, 196.

Loch Owel, in Westmeath, 227.

Lombards, 3, 4, 7, 96.

Luachair, now Slieve Lougher in Kerry, 88, 238.

Mag Coil, in Fingal, 44, 203.

Mag Fea, in the barony of Forth, co. Carlo vv, 43, 201.

Mag Fenamain, in co. Limerick, 194.

Mag Inis, now Lecale, co. Down, 185.

Mag Locha, in Bregia. Stokes {Gor7?ian^ pp. 319, 320) suggests that it is

Moylagh in co. Meath.
Mag Murisce, in co. Mayo, 232.

Mag Slecht, near Ballymagauran in co. Cavan, 55, 225.
Mag Soile, apparently in co. Down, 185.
Maisten, now Mullaghmast, in co. Kildare, 200, 201.
Masraige, a district in Westmeath, 53, 55, 225.
Mog-Nuadat, now Maynooth in co. Dublin, 58, 228.
Monasterboice, in co. Louth, 178.
Mons Gargani, 18, 125.
Mons louis, 19, 125.
Morca, 57, 227.

26o INDEX OF PLACES AND TRIBES.

Moville, near Strangford Lough, ii, 112, 132, 145, 233.
Moy R., in co. Mayo, 180.
Munster, 9, 88, 184, 238.

Nemthur, 32. See pp. 176, 177, for a discussion of its situation.
Nicaea, 92.

O'Bric's Island, on the coast of co. Waterford, 88, 238.

Offaly, in co. Kildare, 192, 197, 198, 202.

Ormond, 88, 238.

Osraige, i.e. Ossory, 54, 55, 141, 237, 238.

Placentia, see Blasantia.

Plea (.?), 41, 191.

Portus Iccius, near Boulogne, 132.

Raholp, in co. Down, 185.

Rath Cathair, near Kildare, 196.

Rath Derthaige, in Offaly, 197.

Rathlin Island, off the coast of co. Antrim, 188.

Rathmacc, 60.

Remesiana, 138, 139.

Rhine, R., 69, 232.

Ri Cuind, in co. Kildare (.?), 200.

Rodan's Island, 19, 132.

Rome, 5, 22, 23, 37, 89, 204.

Ross Dela, now Rossdala, in co. Westmeath, 186, 187.

Ross Grencha, now Durrow, in King's co., 86, 237.

Ross na Ferta, in Kildare, 200.

Ross na Ree, on the R. Boyne, 236.

Ross Torathair, near Coleraine, 24, 68.

Sanna, see Susanna.

Saul, in co. Down, 183, 184.

Scecha, in co. Kildare, near Killeen Cormaic, 204.

Scirit, now Skerry, in co. Antrim, 178.

Scotland, or Alban, 16, 23, 24, 54, 55, 57, 63, 75, 85, 86, 122, 179.

Scythia, 183.

Shinar, 91, 183.

Sidh Femin, in co. Tipperary, 230.

Slan, a fountain at Saul, 33, 183.

Slane, Hill of, near Tara, 208.

Slemish, in co. Antrim, 3, 97, 178.

Slemish, in co. Kerry, 186.

Sletty, in Queen's co., 8, 31, 36, 175, 176.

eve Aughty, between co. Galway and co. Clare, 88, 238.

eve Bloom, on the borders of King's co. and Queen's co., 40, 189.

eve Cain, in co. Limerick, 88, 238.

eve Elim, see Slieve Phelim.

eve Gullion, in co. Armagh, 187.

eve Lougher, see Luachair.

eve Phelim, properly Slieve Elim, in co. Limerick, 88, 238.

eve Reagh, in co. Limerick, 238.

ge Assail, the great road dividing Meath, 56, 227.

ge Dala, the great road of Ossory, 88, 238.

SI
SI
SI
SI
SI
SI
SI
SI
SI
SI
Spain, 186.

INDEX OF PLACES AND TRIBES. 261

Suidhe Adamnain, now Syonan, in Westmeath, 134.
Susanna, or Sanna, perhaps Soissons or Sens, 18, 125.

Tai, the river Tay, 63, 76, 230, 234.

Tara, in Meath, 31, y^,, 34, 49, 122, 176, 181, 184, 208, 238.

Tech Duinn, an island in Kenmare Bay, 184.

Tech na Romanach, now Tigroney, in co. Wicklow, 180.

Temhair, sec Tara.

Temple Kieran, in Meath, 218.

Temple Martin, (a) near Bandon, (b) near Kilkenny, 134.

Temple Michael, 133.

Thomond, or North Munster, 88, 238.

Tig Lommain, in co. Westmeath, 56, 227.

Tirawley, see Amalgada,

Tirconnell, or Donegal, 234.

Tiree, an island oft" Mull, 232.

Tir Lugdach, in barony of Kilmacrenan, co. Donegal, 121, 122.

Tir na bennact, "Land of the Benediction," near Clonard, 195.

Toi, see Tai.

Tor>' Island, oft" the Donegal coast, 141.

Treoit, now Trevet, in co. Aleath, 11.

Tuaim Tenma, i.e. Dinnrig, q.v., 58, 229.

Tulach Dubglaisse, now Temple Douglas, near Letterkenny, in co. Donegal,

121, 122.
Turbi, in Bregia, N. of Dublin (.?), 193.
Tyrrhene Sea, adjoining \V. coast of Italy, 19, 32, 132, 180.

Uachtur Gabra, " in the plain of Leinster," 43, 201.

Ui Bard, 4, 7.

Ui Barrchi, now the barony of Slievemargy, Queen's co., 31.

Ui Briuin Cualand, partly in co. Dublin and partly in co. Wicklow, 195.

Ui Ceinselaig, in co. Wexford, 200, 201.

Ui Cerbaill, 203.

Ui Cluasaig, 12.

Ui Culduib, 204.

Ui Domnaill, 140, 234.

Ui Enna (?), 180.

Ui Garrchon, in co. Wicklow, near Glenealy, 180.

Ui Loscain, 201.

Ui Lugair, 31.

Ui mac Carthaind, the region between Coleraine and Derry, 85, 237.

Ui Muredaig, in co. Kildare, 201.

Ui Neill, i.e. the southern O'Neills occupying a territory in Meath, 192.

Uisnech, the reputed centre of Ireland, now Usnagh, in Westmeath, 20,

Ui Tigernan, in Meath, 53.

Ulstermen, 68, 84, 87.

Ur of the Chaldees, 15, 115, 119.

Whitheme, see Futerna.

ERRATA.

Vol. ii. p. xxxiii. for *thes Irishe' read 'these Irish.'

Vol. ii. p. 50. After 1. 32 of the Lorica of St. Patrick, insert 1. 33 " Power
of God to uphold me," and alter accordingly the number-
ing of all the lines which follow.

55/ CI

LONDON :
HARRISON AND S0N5, PRINTERS IN ORDINARY TO HER MAJESTY,

ST. martin's lane.

;;^

BQT 4005 .H5 v. 14 I . M . S .

THE IRISH LIBER HYMNORUM 2

' '^ •' r

PonSirt.^- Inii.i-.o -.t M.ciiasvai Siudies

113 ST. JOSEPH STRElT
TORONTO. ONT.. CANADA M5S 1J4

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