Ogham Origin, Meaning and Use

19th November 2013

Foxrock Local History Club

᚛ᚄᚔᚑᚅᚅᚐᚉᚆ᚜

Agenda

What is Ogham? How was it used? Ogham outside Ireland Ogham in modern use

Ogham

Oldest writing system in Ireland, 400-1600AD

Ogham is just the script – any language can be written in Ogham…

Used for Middle Irish, Latin & Pictish

Spread overseas by Irish migration Devon, Cornwall, Wales, Isle of Man, Scotland

Ogham – Origins

Just about every possible source has been suggested over the years

Phoenician Hittite Old Norse Aramaic…Even Atlantis!

Origins

Probable origin in Kerry (Corcu Duibne) C. 500AD Centered on Dingle & Iveragh Peninsula Area ruled by O'Shea, O'Falvey, O'Connell

Origins

Probably Origin area based on surviving stones

BUT many Ogham inscriptions would have been on wood or wax tablets & have not survived

Created in local monasteries

Distribution

Ireland (~325 inscriptions) Kerry (130) Cork (84) Waterford (48) Kilkenny (14), Mayo (9), Kildare (8) Wicklow (5),Meath (5) Carlow (4)

Wales (40)

England (11)

Isle of Man (9)

Scotland (30)

Language Distribution

Green = Mainly Q-Celtic (Goidelic) areas

Blue = Mainly Pictish areas

Red = Mainly P-Celtic (Brythonic) areas

The script

Similar to Nordic Runes Called Beithe-Luis-Nin (after the

first, second and fifth symbols) 25 symbols (eventually) No word division or punctuation No letter ‘p’

The script

All characters have names associated which have the same initial sound as the letter

Associated with tree or plant names

LetterOgham Name

Tree Name

B Beithe Birch

L Luis Rowan

F Fern Alder

S Sail Willow

N Nion Ash

H Huath Hawthorn

D Duir Oak

T Tinne Holly

C Coll Hazel

Q Quert Apple

M Muin Vine

G Gort Ivy

NG Ngetal Reed

STR Straif Blackthorn

R Ruis Elder

A Ailm Fir

O Onn Gorse

U Ur Heather

E Edad Aspen

I Idad Yew

Ogham - inscriptions

Followed lines of a stone Chiselled in sandstone, limestone,

slate, even granite Inscriptions sometimes written in

‘boustrophedon’ fashion

Ogham – inscription formula

Name ANM name Son MAQI father (maic = son, ab in Welsh) Grandson AVI grandfather (aui = grandson) Nephew NETA uncle (nia = nephew) Name CELI patron (céle = companion) Name MAQI MUCOI forefather (maccu = descendant)

Grave Marker

Example from Greenhill Cork

C. 500 A.D

Grave Marker

Basic name stone

CATTUBUTTAS "(Stone of) Cathub"

Standing Stones

Example from Rockfield (Adare)

C. 550AD

Standing Stones

More informative Translates as

MAQIRITTE MAQI COLABOT |MAQI MOCO QERAI

"(Stone of) Mac-Rithe, son of Coílub,son-descendant (of the tribe) of the

Ciarraige"

Christian or Pagan?

Mass rock, Maumanorig, Co. Kerry

Christian era

Mass rock, Maumanorig, Co. Kerry

Christian era

ANM COLMAN AILITHIR "(Inscription in the) name of Colmán, (the)

pilgrim"

Mass rock, Maumanorig, Co. Kerry

Viking use

Bilingual cross shaft inscription in Killaloe

Norse in Runic Irish in Ogham

Viking use

Runic Inscription

[Þ]URGRIM RISTI [K]RUS ÞINA "Þorgrim engraved your cross"

Viking use

Separate Irish Ogham inscription

Overview

Irish Ogham inscription

BEANDACHT [AR] / TOROQR[IM]

"Blessing upon Þorgrim"

Pictish Ogham

Pictish inscription at Brandsbutt, Aberdeenshire

Pictish isn’t well understood

IRATADDOARENS“Lord (of) Arens?"

Pictish Ogham

Maglocunus Stone

Bilingual inscription of Nevern, Pembroke

Originally 5th Century, reused in church

Maglocunus Stone

Bilingual inscription of Nevern, Pembroke

Maglocunus Stone

Both Latin and Irish

Latin (Roman script): MAGLOCVNI FILI CLVTOR

Irish (Ogham script): MAGLICUNAS MAQI CLUTAR

"(Stone of) Maélchú, son of Cluthar"

Scholarly Ogham

Developed manuscript based literature

Book of Ballymote (1390) noted example

Describes mythical origin of Ogham

Mythical Origins

Auraicept na n-Éces ("the scholars' primer")

C650 AD, written by Longarad, provides origin myth for Ogham

Credits the invention of Ogham to Ogma Grian-ainech mac Elatha mac Delbaeth,'a man well skilled in speech and poetry'.

He invented it ‘as a proof of his  ingenuity, that this speech should belong to the learned alone'.

Word Ogham derived from Greek ογμος (ogmos) meaning a row or furrow, also Celtic name for Greek god Heracles

Scholarly Ogham

St Gallen Grammer C. 845AD

Over 9000 glosses, including marginal notes in Ogham including

“LATHEIRT”

“Hungover!”

Ciphers

Ogham used for secret codes & ciphers

Tally sticks (animals, crops)

Easily used for hand signals

From the story of Fionn mac Cumhaill and his servant Lomnae.

Lomnae tells Fionn of his wife Sadhbh’s infidelity by cutting an inscription on a four sided rod and handing it to Finn. The message does not directly accuse Finn’s wife, but is instead a series of Ogham metaphors:

‘An alder stake in a fence of silver, hellebore among gorse & heather on the hill’.

Finn understands the message, but Sadhbh has Lomnae’s head cut off in revenge.

Magical Ogham

Magical uses include Divination Curses

Viewed with suspicion by church

A charm to cure a man of impotence by writing his name in Ogham on an elm wand and striking him with it

Using Ogham sticks to determine the sex of an unborn child

Tristan engraved his name in Ogham on sticks of wood, putting them in a stream so that they would flow down to where Iseult could see them, but no-one else could understand them.

Cursing someone by carving their name on a Fé

Development of family names

 Ogham Irish  Old / Middle Irish  Modern

  MAQ AMMLLOGADO  mac amalgado   Mac Awley

  MACI BROCANN  mac bróccan   Mac Brohan

  MAQI CORRBRI  mac cairpre   Mac Carbery

  MAQI DUMNOVALI  mac domnaill   Mac Donal(d)

  MAQI VERAGOSO  mac fergoso   Mac Fergus

 MAQI OINAGOSO  mac óengoso   Mac Guinness

  AVI CELACI  ua cellaig   (Ó) Kelly

  AVI CORRE  ua cuirre   Ó Corry

  AVI CUNACOBRO  ua conchobor   Ó Connor

  AVI QENAVIDO  ua cinaída   (Ó) Kennedy

  AVI MURACADO  ua murchada   (Ó) Murphy

Development of Irish family names

Ogham allows us to trace surnames

Ogham – renaissance

Appropriated for tourists?

Local Modern Ogham

“Newman’s Razor” (1970), by Brian O‘Doherty

Beside UCD Restaurant

3.3m high

Inscribed with a progressive series of Ogham numbers on stainless steel

Thank you

Additional material

Detailed Ogham distribution maps

Distribution

Distribution

Distribution

Distribution