(cc) Ní’l marcaċ fó t’ aois ann, a Ṁic,
Nár baineaḋ na cinn díoḃ i n-éinḟeaċt;
Ní’l aṁ ná cuiḃe (?) cruaiḋ
Naċ ḃfuil lán dá ṁór-ṡluaġ.
(dd) Ní hé sin is misde liom féin,
Aċt t’ḟeiceáil fó ċrann na Páise,
A riosta is gile ’ná an ġrian,
’S a ġnúis naċ ndearna droiċḃeart!
Is tú Bainríoġain Ḟlaiṫis Dé,
Is tú breiṫ(eaṁ) gaċ dainséir,
Is tú mo Ṁáṫair gan loċt
A’s níḋ ar biṫ is áil leat, ġeiḃir é.
(ee) Ní’l aon ċuiṁneoċaḋ orra (= uirre) lé
mo ḃuaiḋ,
Is deuraḋ í lé n-eug.
Ġeaḃaḋ sé Neaṁ ó Ríġ na gcreuċt.
NOTES.
This piece seems to be made up of fragments of several recitals. Only a small portion of it has any relation to the Resurrection, from which the poem is named, Eiséirġe (as pronounced, ais-eiḋrí). Other parts of it treat of the birth, youth and passion of Christ, and of the duties of the Christian. The poem addresses sometimes the hearer directly, at other times the Virgin, at other times the Saviour, at other times it is simply narrative. The parallel passage that I have been enabled to cite at (h) proves two things: first, that the poem is made up, as I have said, of remnants of other compositions; and secondly, that part at least of it is of considerable age, dating back to the time when there was a community of literature between the Gaedhil of Ireland and of Scotland. The parallel also serves to illustrate the corruption of language that the poem has suffered. Much of it was unintelligible to the reciter. It seems as if some passages have been transposed, and others perhaps omitted. It is not unlikely that other versions of this poem, or of parts of it, are to be found elsewhere in Ireland or Scotland. If they are to be found, they should be taken down and sent to the Editor of the Gaelic Journal.
(a) I am inclined to think that the Paidir mentioned in the first two ceaṫraṁna is not the following poem, but the Pater Noster, formerly called in Irish, “an Paidir,” and that the two stanzas belong to a poem in praise of the Pater Noster.
“Paidir anam” ḟóireanns í, Pater of souls (is the name) that befits it. For fóirim, the word now used in Aran is foileann.
(f) lá here seemed to be pronounced laṫa, as written in Scotland (Old Irish laiṫe).
(h) The following lines occur in a poem in the Turner MS. printed in Cameron’s Reliquiæ Celticæ (Inverness, 1894). edited by Alex. McBain, M.A., and John Kennedy, a volume of rare interest to Gaelic students:—
“Is beag orm Ifrionn fuar fliuċ
Baile biṫ-ḃuan is searḃ deoċ
Baile tá gun ċill gan ċrois—
Ċo dtéid mé ann a ċois nó ḋ’eaċ.”
The last verse should evidently read ní raċa mé ann (or nár ṫéiḋead ann) d’eaċ ná do ċois. It may be added that the MS. containing this quotation is supposed to be a century and a half old.
(k) Contamatar: the reciter did not understand this. It may be a corruption of consummatum (est), the last words of Christ on the Cross.
(o) Longínus (pronounced Longaonus, Long-íonus) was unintelligible to the reciter. It is the name of the centurion who was present at the Crucifixion.
(cc) Aṁ=áiṫ, a kiln.
Mac Léiġinn.
GAELIC NOTES.
Dr. Shahan, of the Catholic University of America, who has recently been doing splendid work in the cause of Celtic literature, has contributed a very able article to the American Catholic Quarterly, in which he deals, in a most attractive manner, with the literature of the Celtic people. The article is beautifully written, and it is to be hoped that it will be reprinted and widely read.
The New Ireland Review for August contained a paper by Rev. Dr. Barry on MacPherson’s Ossian.
The Henry Bradshaw Society is to publish a new edition of the Antiphonary of Bangor, and of the Martyrology of Marianus O’Gorman.
The Marquis of Lorne has written the libretto of an opera entitled, “Diarmid and Grainne,” founded on the Irish story. Mr. Standish O’Grady has written a novel called “The Coming of Cuchullin.”
The August number of the Celtic Monthly is the best that has yet appeared. Send 4d. for a specimen copy to Mr. John Mackay, 17 Dundas-street, Kingston, Glasgow.
Mr. Alexander MacBain of Inverness proposes to publish soon a Scottish Gaelic Dictionary in one volume, price 7s. 6d.; containing after each word its meaning, and the various forms of the word in Irish, Welsh, and other Celtic languages, with references also to its probable pre-historic form.
Mac Talla improves with every week. The Turus Domhnaill Bháin is one of the finest specimens of Gaelic prose ever printed. With the issue of July 7th the third volume was commenced.
The Weekly Sun recently contained a very favourable notice of this Journal, written by “An Shuler,” an siuḃlaire. In another weekly paper attention was directed to the fact that in the year 1808 there was baptized in the Isle of Thanet “a child who rejoiced in the name of Boetius Egan.” Anyone acquainted with Irish literature could at once have said that Boetius is but the conventional Latin form of the old Irish name Baoṫġalaċ, a name that for centuries has been hereditary in the old family of the MacEgans. The late Father James Keegan was a member of the family.
The words irregularly pronounced in Irish are not very numerous, and if properly classified would present little difficulty. When the easy lessons are completed an
