Texts

Aided Cheltchair maic Uthechair ‘The death of Celtchar mac Uthechair’

  • Middle Irish
  • prose
  • Ulster Cycle, Aideda
A tale of the Ulster Cycle.
Summary
Celtchar kills Blaí Briugu, who has slept with his wife, and as éraicc is required to rid Ulster of three menaces. The first is Conganchnes mac Dedad, who comes to Ulster seeking revenge for [[Aided Chon Roí |the death of his kinsman Cú Roí mac Dáire]]. The second is the loch donn, a fierce feral dog. The third is his own dog, Dóelchú, who has gone rogue among the Ulstermen's livestock, and in carrying out this task Celtchar is killed.
Language
  • Middle Irish
Form
prose (primary)
Textual relationships
The opening section corresponds with Aided Blaí Briugad, found in [[Medieval Irish tale lists |tale-lists]]. Bloth Blaí and Celtchar's deaths are referred to in the poem Fianna bátar i nEmain, attributed to Cináed ua hArtacáin, and the resting place of Blaí's head is mentioned in the poem Inna hinada hi filet cind erred Ulad, found incomplete in Lebor na hUidre. Celtchar's killing of Conganchnes is referred to in Fled Bricrenn. The luch donn and his dire deeds are mentioned in the dindsenchas of Alend. Dóelchú appears in the dindsenchas of Sliab Callann.

Classification

Ulster Cycle
Ulster Cycle
id. 1797
AidedaAideda
...

Subjects

Celtchar
Celtchar (mac Uithechair)
(time-frame ass. with Ulster Cycle)
Celtcha(i)r mac U(i)thechair, warrior in the Ulster Cycle of tales.

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Blaí Briugu
Blaí Briugu
(time-frame ass. with Ulster Cycle)
hostel-keeper (briugu) in the Ulster Cycle of tales

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Cú Chulainn
Cú Chulainn
Young Ulster hero and chief character of Táin bó Cuailnge and other tales of the Ulster Cycle; son of Súaltam or Lug and Deichtire (sister to Conchobor); husband of Emer (ingen Forgaill)

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Conchobar mac Nessa
Conchobar mac Nessa
(time-frame ass. with Ulster Cycle)
king of the Ulaid in tales of the Ulster Cycle; son either of Cathbad or Fachtna Fáthach (father) and Ness (mother); husband of Mugain; father of Cormac Cond Longas, Cúscraid Mend Macha, Furbaide Fer Bend and Fedelm Noíchrothach; fosterfather of Cú Chulainn.

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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.] Meyer, Kuno [ed. and tr.], The death-tales of the Ulster heroes, Todd Lecture Series, 14, Dublin: Royal Irish Academy, 1906.
CELT – edition: <link> CELT – translation: <link> Internet Archive: <link> Internet Archive: <link>
23–31 Critical edition based on LL and Gaelic XL
[ed.] Best, Richard Irvine, and M. A. OʼBrien, The Book of Leinster, formerly Lebar na Núachongbála, vol. 2, Dublin: Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, 1956. xi + pp. 261-470 + 2 pl.
CELT – pp. 400-470: <link>
Diplomatic edition of the text in LL direct link

Secondary sources (select)

McCone, Kim, “Aided Cheltchair maic Uthechair: hounds, heroes and hospitallers in early Irish myth and story”, Ériu 35 (1984): 1–30.
Contributors
Dennis Groenewegen, Patrick Brown
Page created
October 2010, last updated: January 2024