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Uspag Fhionnlaigh

Uspag Fhionnlaigh

Posted by Shelagh on Thursday 18 August 2016

According to Gaelic folklore, Finlay was the chief of the fairies and the name muinntir Fhionnlaigh, ‘Finlay’s people’, was given to fairy-folk, who were said to travel through the air in whirlwinds. Thus, a sudden gust or eddy of wind on an otherwise calm summer’s day was called an uspag Fhionnlaigh, ‘sigh of Finlay’. The word ospag or uspag means a ‘gust of wind’ and is derived from the verb osp, ‘to sigh’ or ‘to gasp’.

Similarly, the Tiree placename Baca Fhionnlaigh (Balevullin) means ‘the sand dune of Finlay’, referring to a sandbank which was believed to have been a fairy residence.

Another term with the same origins which appears in Carmina Gadelica is oiteag sluaigh, defined as ‘the wind of the fairy host’ – the noun sluagh is usually defined as ‘people’, but can also mean a ‘host’, i.e. of the spirit world.

Oiteag is generally used by informants in the Fieldwork Archive to refer to a lighter gust or ‘puff’ of wind than an ospag, which would die out quickly. Other synonyms collected include plathag, derived from the verb plath, ‘to puff’, and suabag, from the adjective suabh, ‘mild’.

Have you heard of Uspag Fhionnlaigh? If so, it would be interesting to hear further stories, either through our Facebook and Twitter pages or in the comments section on this page.
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