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Old Irish metrical version of the Infancy Gospel of Thomas
verse beg. Imbu maccán cóic blíadnae

  • Old Irish
  • verse
Old Irish metrical version (48 qq) of the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, which is preserved in a late manuscript (NLI MS G 50) only. It relates a number of deeds which Jesus is supposed to have performed as an infant, such as the creation of sparrows out of clay, his encounters with boys thwarting him, his revelations to the scholar Zacharias and various miracles. The Irish poem may have been based on an Old Latin version, which ultimately goes back to a Greek or Syriac text.
First words (verse)
  • Imbu maccán cóic blíadnae
Manuscripts
Dublin, National Library of Ireland, MS G 50 [s. xvii]
pp. 118–120
beg. ‘Imbu macan coig bliadhna’
Language
  • Old Irish
Date
c.700? According to Carney, this poem and the short one that follows (Maire máthair in maic bic) “seem somewhat older than those of Blathmac, and a seventh- rather than an eighth-century date may perhaps be thought of”.
Form
verse (primary)
Length
Number of stanzas: 48
Textual relationships
Related: Maire máthair in maic bicMaire máthair in maic bicShort Old Irish poem (7 qq + 1 possibly interpolated) on the Virgin Mary, preserved only in a 17th-century manuscript (NLI MS G 50).

Classification

Subjects

nativity of JesusLife and miracles of Christ
nativity of Jesus
id. 43514
Jesus
Jesus
(fl. c.5 BC–30/33 AD)
Galileian Jewish religious leader whom Christians believe to be the incarnation of God on earth, the Saviour of mankind and Messiah (the Christ) through His death and resurrection.
See more Joseph
Joseph
son of Jacob and Rachel
See more

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.] [tr.] Herbert, Máire [intr., ed., tr.], and Martin McNamara [intr., notes], “A versified narrative of the childhood deeds of the Lord Jesus”, in: Caoimhín Breatnach, John Carey, Brian Ó Cuív, Pádraig Ó Fiannachta, Martin McNamara, Jean-Daniel Kaestli, and Diarmuid Ó Laoghaire (eds), Apocrypha Hiberniae, part I: Evangelia infantiae, 2 vols, vol. 1, 13, Turnhout: Brepols, 2001. 441–483.
[ed.] [tr.] Carney, James P. [ed.], The poems of Blathmac, son of Cú Brettan: together with the Irish Gospel of Thomas and a poem on the Virgin Mary, Irish Texts Society, 47, London: Irish Texts Society, 1964.
90–92
[ed.] [tr.] Carney, James P., “Two Old Irish poems”, Ériu 18 (1958): 1–43.  
comments: Edition and translation of two poems from Dublin, National Library of Ireland, MS G 50:
  1. ‘Imbu macan coig bliadhna’ (pp. 10-26), Irish version of the Infancy Gospel of Thomas (apocryphal text)
  2. ‘Mairi mathair, an maic bic’ (pp. 26-29), poem on the Virgin Mary.
10–26
[tr.] [ed.] Greene, David, and Frank OʼConnor, “2: Jesus and the sparrows”, in: David Greene, and Frank OʼConnor [Michael O'Donovan], A golden treasury of Irish poetry, A.D. 600 to 1200, London: Macmillan, 1967. 23–24.
First extract from the poem, with text from Carney’s ITS edition.
[tr.] [ed.] Greene, David, and Frank OʼConnor, “3: Jesus at school”, in: David Greene, and Frank OʼConnor [Michael O'Donovan], A golden treasury of Irish poetry, A.D. 600 to 1200, London: Macmillan, 1967. 25–26.
Second extract from the poem, with text from Carney’s ITS edition.
web page identifiers
Contributors
Dennis Groenewegen
Page created
December 2020, last updated: June 2023
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