[I] A king of Connacht whose death at the hands of his own child is foretold. Ragallach attempts to avoid his fate by destroying his only child, a daughter. The child is saved and raised by a swineherd. She grows into a beautiful maiden and Ragallach makes her his concubine. She fulfils the prophecy.
[I] A son of Fionn Mac Cumhail.
[I] Also rannaigecht. A stanza of four heptasyllabic lines often appearing in Old Irish texts.
[I] He was lulled to sleep by a mermaid and then torn to pieces by her and her companions, a fate that occurs to many unwary mariners in the Irish tales.
[I] A fortress or earthwork, generally circular.
[I] The body of warriors who were guardians of Ulster during the days of Conchobhar Mac Nessa. Cúchulainn was their greatest champion. As far back as Irish tradition goes there is an institute of “knighthood.” The Red Branch were the Ulster equivalent of the Fianna, the bodyguard of the High King. Out of this concept came the later medieval Christian idea of Arthur’s “Knights of the Round Table.” The Red Branch were founded by Ross the Red of Ulster, who wed Maga, daughter of the love god Aonghus Óg. Their banner was a yellow lion on a green field of silk.
[I] Also known as the Ulster Cycle, this is the great heroic cycle of Irish mythology. The main stories comprise the famous epic of the Táin Bó Cuailgne. Scholars accept that the cycle must have been transmitted orally for nearly a thousand years before it was transcribed. The basic text of the epic survives in the Leabhar na hUidre (twelfth century Book of the Dun Cow) and in the Leabhar Laigneach (twelfth century Book of Leinster).
[W] One of the oldest creatures in the world in the story of Culhwch and Olwen.
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