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Lebor Bretnach‘The book of the Britons’

• Middle Irish
• prose
• Irish legendary history, Adaptation

Middle Irish adaptation of the Historia Brittonum ascribed to Nennius

Manuscripts

The manuscripts with the sigla attached to them by Van Hamel:

• L¹ =
  Dublin, Royal Irish Academy, MS 23 P 2 = Book of Lecan [s. xvⁱⁿ]
• L² =
  Dublin, Royal Irish Academy, MS 23 P 2 = Book of Lecan [s. xvⁱⁿ]
• L³ =
  Dublin, Trinity College, MS 1319 vol. 2, pp. 172-187, 192-194 = fragment of the Book of Lecan [xvⁱⁿ]

  pp. 174b24–176a
• B =
  Dublin, Royal Irish Academy, MS 23 P 12 = Book of Ballymote [1384 x 1406]

   

  Interpolated version.
• D =
  Dublin, Trinity College, MS 1336 6 (first part), cols 710*-831 [s. xvi]

  cols 806–826
• H =
  Dublin, Royal Irish Academy, MS D ii 1 (1225) = Leabhar Uí Mhaine (The Book of Uí Maine) [1394]
• U =
  Dublin, Royal Irish Academy, MS 23 E 25 (1229) = Lebor na hUidre [s. xi/xii]

  ff. 3a–4b

   

  Fragment.
• (Unidentified)

  A manuscript used by John Lynch, but now lost. See Dumville in Éigse 16 (1976).

See also results from manuscript descriptions

Language

• Middle Irish

Form

prose (primary)

verse (secondary)

Textual relationships

• (Possible) sources:
• Historia Brittonum
• Related:
• Irish story of Silvius
• Historia Brittonum

Classification

Irish legendary history

Sources

Primary sources Text editions and/or modern translations – in whole or in part – along with publications containing additions and corrections, if known. Diplomatic editions, facsimiles and digital image reproductions of the manuscripts are not always listed here but may be found in entries for the relevant manuscripts. For historical purposes, early editions, transcriptions and translations are not excluded, even if their reliability does not meet modern standards.

[ed.] Hamel, A. G. van [ed.], Lebor Bretnach: the Irish version of the Historia Britonum ascribed to Nennius, Dublin: Stationery Office, 1932.

Irishmanuscripts.ie – PDF: <link>

[ed.] [tr.] Todd, James Henthorn, Leabhar Breathnach annso sis: the Irish version of the Historia Britonum of Nennius, Dublin: Irish Archaeological Society, 1848.

CELT – edition: <link> CELT – translation: <link> Internet Archive: <link> Internet Archive: <link>

Secondary sources (select)

Clancy, Thomas Owen, “Scotland, the ‘Nennian’ recension of Historia Brittonum, and the Lebor Bretnach”, in: Taylor, Simon (ed.), Kings, clerics and chronicles in Scotland, 500–1297: essays in honour of Marjorie Ogilvie Anderson on the occasion of her ninetieth birthday, Dublin: Four Courts Press, 2000. 87–107.

Dumville, David N., “The textual history of Lebor Bretnach: a preliminary study”, Éigse 16:4 (Geimhreadh 1976, 1975–1976): 255–273.

Dumville, David N., “‘Nennius’ and the Historia Brittonum”, Studia Celtica 10–11 (1975–1976): 78–95.

web page identifiers

page name: Lebor Bretnach
page url: https://www.vanhamel.nl/codecs/Lebor_Bretnach
redirect: https://www.vanhamel.nl/codecs/Special:Redirect/page/3888
numerical alternatve: https://www.vanhamel.nl/vhcodecs/index.php?curid=3888
page ID: 3888
page ID tracker: https://www.vanhamel.nl/vhcodecs/index.php?title=Show:ID&id=3888

Contributors

Dennis Groenewegen,Patrick Brown