Corpus of Electronic Texts Edition: T302005

The Expulsion of the Dessi

Author: Unknown

Background details and bibliographic information

File Description

Kuno Meyer

translated by Kuno Meyer

Electronic edition compiled by Beatrix Färber

Funded by University College, Cork, School of History

1. First draft.

Extent of text: 5256 words

Publication

CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts: a Department of History project at University College, Cork
College Road, Cork, Ireland—http://www.ucc.ie/celt

(2015)

Distributed by CELT online at University College, Cork, Ireland.
Text ID Number: T302005

Availability

Available with prior consent of the CELT programme for purposes of academic research and teaching only.

Notes

I would like to thank Donnchadh Ó Corráin for supplying the following summary from his forthcoming book, Medieval Irish Manuscripts (Turnhout: Brepols 2015). "The story is known under various names: 'Tucait Indarba na nDéssi'; 'Tairired na nDéisi'; 'Tochomlod na nDési ó Themraig' (recension 1, 8th century; recension 2, 11th century, c. AD 1050). The migration legend of the Déisi, from Tara to Leinster and then to East Munster where they got land for settlement through their offspring, Eithne Uathach, wife of Óengus mac Nad Fraích, king of Cashel. The tale is not historical and it links the Déisi to the legends of Uí Néill. It is, however, based in part on narratives and genealogies that go back at least to the seventh century. To this is attached an early settlement tract, Do thoirgib na nDéssi, an invaluable listing of early lineages and lordships. There is a short Latin summary in Dublin, Trinity College Library, 1298 (olim H. 2. 7), col. 78 and a longer Latin version in the Life of St Declán by Charles Plummer. It includes the texts 'Ceithri maic batar la hArttchorb mac Mes Chuirb .i. Brecc & Óengus & Eochuid & Forad' (recension 1); 'Cid dia tá cóechad Cormaic hi Temraig?' (recension 2)."

Sources

    Manuscript sources for the Irish text
  1. Oxford, Bodleian Library, Rawlinson B 502, ff. 72rb19–73r30 (facs. pp. 131b–133b); first half of 12th century. [Version A (=recension 1), the older one, complete.]
  2. Oxford, Bodleian Library, Laud Misc. 610 ('Saltair mic Ruisdeard'), ff. 99vb15–102rb13; 15th century (AD 1453x1454). [Version A, complete.]
  3. Dublin, RIA, D ii 1 (1225) al. Book of Uí Maine, ff. 35ra1–va73; 14th century? [Version A, incomplete.] See R. A. S. Macalister (ed.), The Book of Uí Maine, otherwise called The Book of the O'Kelly's, with a descriptive introduction and indexes (Dublin 1942). Digital images and a description of the MS are available on http://www.isos.dias.ie.
  4. Dublin, RIA, 23 O 48 (476) al. Liber Flavus Fergusiorum, part 2, f. 51va–b; 15th century (c. AD 1435x1440) [Version B (=recension 2), the later one, fragment.] for full details see Kathleen Mulchrone, T. F. O'Rahilly et al. (eds.), Catalogue of Irish manuscripts in the Royal Irish Academy (Dublin 1926–70) MS. 476, 1254–73.
  5. Dublin, RIA, 23 E 25 (1229) al. Lebor na hUidre, p. 53a33–54b21; second half of 11th century to 13th century?; fragment; interpolated. [Version B, fragment, earlier than H. 3. 17 and H. 2. 15.]
  6. Dublin, Trinity College Library, 1316 olim H. 2. 15A, pp. 67a–68b; 14th to 15th century. [Version B, complete, contains material added later.]
  7. Dublin, Trinity College Library, 1336 olim H. 3. 17, part 6, cols. 720–723; 15th to 16th century [Version B, complete].
    Internet availability
  1. Volume 14 of Y Cymmrodor is available on www.archive.org.
    Editions and translations
  1. Kuno Meyer (ed. & trans.), The expulsion of the Dessi, Y Cymmrodor 14 (1901) 101–135. (Rawl. 502; variants from MS Laud 610). (Available online at https://archive.org/details/ycymmrodor14cymmuoft).
  2. Kuno Meyer (ed.), 'Tucait indarba na nDéssi', in Osborn J. Bergin, R. I. Best et al. (eds.), Anecdota from Irish manuscripts, 1 (Halle 1907), 15–24 (TCL 1316, variants from TCL 1336).
  3. Charles Plummer (ed.), Vitae sanctorum Hiberniae, 2 vols. (Oxford 1910), 2 33–35 (Latin version).
  4. R. I. Best & Osborn J. Bergin (eds.), Lebor na hUidre (Dublin 1929), 137–141 (RIA 23 O 48, diplomatic edition).
  5. Vernam Hull, 'The Book of Uí Maine version of the Expulsion of the Déssi', Zeitschrift für Celtische Philologie 24 (1954) 266–271.
  6. Máigréad Ní C. Dobb al. Margaret E. Dobbs (ed.), 'From the Book of Fermoy', Zeitschrift für Celtische Philologie 20 (1936), 161–184: 174–177 (loose paraphrase of the opening section of Tucait Indarba na nDéssi, from Dublin, RIA, 23 E 29 (1134) al. Book of Fermoy, pp. 77a–78b; 15th century).
  7. Séamus Pender, 'Two unpublished versions of the Expulsion of the Déssi', in Séamus Pender (ed.), Féilscríbhinn Torna (Cork 1947), 209–17 (MSS RIA D ii 1 and RIA 23 O 48); corrections by Vernam Hull, 'The later version of the Expulsion of the Déssi', Zeitschrift für Celtische Philologie 24 (1954) 270–71.
  8. Vernam Hull, 'The later version of the Expulsion of the Déssi', Zeitschrift für Celtische Philologie 27 (1958/59) 14–63. (RIA 23 E 25, TCL 1316 and TCL 1336].
    Literature
  1. Eugene O'Curry, On the manners and customs of the ancient Irish, ed. W. K. Sullivan, 3 vols. (Dublin, 1873; facs. repr. Dublin, 1996), 2, 205–208.
  2. Henri d'Arbois de Jubainville, Catalogue de la littérature épique de l'Irlande (Paris 1883).
  3. Heinrich Zimmer, Nennius Vindicatus. Über Entstehung, Geschichte und Quellen der Historia Brittonum (Berlin 1893).
  4. Kuno Meyer, 'Gauls in Ireland', Ériu, 4 (1908/10) 208.
  5. Eoin MacNeill, 'The native place of St. Patrick', PRIA, Section C, vol 37 (1924-1927) 118–140.
  6. Vernam Hull, 'A collation of Tucait indarba na nDéissi', Zeitschrift für Celtische Philologie 24 (1954), 132–134 (re-collation of TCL 1316 ).
  7. Vernam Hull, 'The Book of Uí Maine version of the Expulsion of the Déssi', Zeitschrift für Celtische Philologie 24 (1954), 266–271.
  8. Tomás Ó Cathasaigh, 'On the LU version of 'The expulsion of the Dési'', Celtica 11 (1976), 150–157.
  9. Tomás Ó Cathasaigh, 'The Déissi and Dyfed', Éigse, 20 (1984), 1–33.
  10. Tomás Ó Cathasaigh, 'The expulsion of the Déisi', Journal of the Cork Historical and Archaeological Society 110 (2005) 13–20.
  11. Thomas Charles-Edwards, Early Christian Ireland (Cambridge 2000).
    The edition used in the electronic edition
  1. Kuno Meyer, The expulsion of the Dessi in Y Cymmrodor. volume 14, London, The Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion (1901) page 105–135

Encoding

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CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts

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Text has been checked and proof-read twice.

Normalization

The electronic text represents the edited translation on odd pages 105–135. Meyer's corrections are marked corr sic="" resp="KM". Text supplied by him, including that from Rawlinson 502, is marked sup resp="KM". Editorial footnotes are omitted except for two..

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Direct speech is marked q.

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div0=the whole text; p=the editor's paragraph; page-breaks are marked pb n="".

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Profile Description

Created: (1901)

Use of language

Language: [EN] The text is in English.
Language: [GA] Some words are in Old Irish.
Language: [LA] A few formulaic words are in Latin.

Revision History