| Reference Number | 191 |
| Title | Eachann Bacach and other Maclean Poets |
| Author | N/A (Edited work) |
| Editor | Ó Baoill, Colm |
| Date Of Edition | 1979 |
| Date Of Language | 17c, early 18c |
| Date Of Language Ed | 17th c. |
| DateMacro | Various |
| Date Of Language Notes | |
| Publisher | The Scottish Academic Press for the Scottish Gaelic Texts Society |
| Place Published | Edinburgh |
| Volume | N/A |
| Location | National, academic, and local libraries |
| Geographical Origins | Various |
| Geographical Origins Ed | Various |
| GeoMacro | Various |
| GeoX | |
| GeoY | |
| Geographical Origins Notes | WG suggested Maclean Poets as Short Title |
| Register | Literature, Verse |
| Register Ed | Literature, Verse |
| Genre | Literature |
| Medium | Verse |
| Rating | B/D
20 poems by Maclean poets from the mid-17th to early 18th centuries.
Seven of the poems are by Eachann Bacach.
The majority of the poems in this volume are elegies or eulogies containing many panegyric motifs.
Some of the elegies are devotional in tone.
Some of the poems in this volume touch on the social affairs of the time.
A number of the poems refer to battles and fighting. |
| Alternative Author Name | N/A |
| Manuscript Or Edition | Ed. |
| Size And Condition | 22cm x 14cm |
| Short Title | MacLean Poets |
| Reference Details | EUL: .891631 Eac |
| Number Of Pages | lxxxiii, 322 |
| Gaelic Text By | N/A |
| Illustrator | N/A |
| Social Context | This volume is a collection of poems by several Maclean poets. According to the Editor, ‘the intention which gave rise to the present collection was to get the poems of Eachann Bacach into Print. But since I have found only seven poems which are usually ascribed to him, it was decided to expand the collection to include some other Maclean poets of the 17th and early 18th centuries, whose extant work is so small as to make it unlikely that any of them would have his work published separately’ (p. vii). The volume contains 20 poems, seven by Eachann Bacach, and the rest by four or five other poets – the ambiguity arises from the fact that there may be two poets called Lachlann Maclean (see Introduction, pp. l-lii). There are two poems by ‘Lachlann Maclean’ in this volume. In addition, there are five poems by Anndra Mac an Easbuig, one poem by Dòmhnall Bàn, and five poems by Maighstir Seathan. See Introduction, pp. xliii-lxxxii, for detailed information on each of these poets.
Eachann Bacach: Eachann Bacach seems to have been a ‘semi-official poet’ to Sir Lachlan Maclean of Duart in Mull (Thomson 1994, p. 68), and he is referred to in the Eigg Collection (p. 85) by the term Aosdana. (See MacMhathain’s article in Gairm 8 for a discussion on the meaning of this term.) We know from the internal evidence of his poems that he flourished around 1650, but the dates of his birth and death are unknown. Ó Baoill warns (pp. 186-89) that poem no. five may in fact not have been composed by him (see Notes), and that the anonymous poem printed in Appendix I (pp. 306-08) could indeed have been composed by him.
Lachlann Maclean: Two poems in this volume are attributed to Lachlann Maclean. In the Introduction, Ó Baoill examines the evidence for the existence of two poets by this name, but concludes: ‘Nothing seems to be known about the life of (either) Lachlann’ (p. li).
Anndra Mac an Easbuig: There are five poems by Anndra Mac an Easbuig of Knock in Morvern. He was the eldest son of Hector MacLean, the minister of Morvern and, later, Bishop of Argyll. His poems are from the period 1680-1718, and he seems to have lived from c.1635 to c.1720.
Dòmhnall Bàn: Very little is known about Dòmhnall Bàn, who has one poem in this volume. He may have been from Mull, but this is not certain, and there is no concrete evidence even to suggest that he was a MacLean. Ó Baoill finally cautions that ‘there was at least one other poet called Dòmhnall Bàn alive about the same time’ (p. lxi).
Maighstir Seathan: Maighstir Seathan (c.1680-1756), also known as Rev. John MacLean, was a poet and genealogist from Mull. He became minister of Kilninian in Mull in 1702. He contributed a poem to Edward Lhuyd’s Archaeologia Britannica (1707), given here as no. 17, and he may have been one of Lhuyd’s informants. Maighstir Seathan was chosen by the Presbytery of Lorne to compile a Gaelic-English vocabulary for the SSPCK. It is not clear how much, if any, of this work was undertaken by Maighstir Seathan. The mooted vocabulary was eventually published in 1741, compiled by Alastair Mac Mhaighstir Alastair. |
| Contents | In the Preface to this volume (pp. vii-x) the Editor describes its genesis and explains how he set about his task. This is followed by a list of Contents (p. xi), a Bibliography of books and manuscripts (pp. xiii-xxviii), and a list of Abbreviations and Sources (pp. xxix-xxxiii). There is also a Table of Primary Sources and Index of first Lines (p. xxxiv), which shows that eight of the poems were taken from the MS of Dr Hector Maclean of Grulin. This in its turn is followed by The Pedigree of The MacLean Chiefs 1400-1750 (p. xxxv), which shows the genealogy of the Maclean chiefs as set out in Alexander Maclean Sinclair’s The Clan Gillean.
The Introduction (pp. xxxvii-lxxxii) contains a section entitled ‘Dol Sìos Chloinn Ghill-Eathain’ followed by six sections dealing with each of the six poets in turn. There is an Index of Poems on p. lxxxiii. The edition follows, under the heading ‘Text and Translation’ (pp. 1-121), in which the twenty poems are printed with Gaelic and English on facing pages. The edition is supported by ‘Sources and Readings’ (pp. 123-52); ‘Notes’, containing discussion of subject-matter and interpretation (pp. 153-274); and ‘Metres and Tunes’ (pp. 275-99). There are five Appendices (pp. 301-16), contain five further texts relevant to the edition. There are two indices: an Index of Names (pp. 317-18) and a Glossarial Index (pp. 319-22). |
| Sources | It appears from the Table of Primary Sources and Index of first Lines (p. xxxiv) that sixteen of the twenty poems edited in this volume depend on a single primary source. The following six primary sources are listed in ‘Sources and Readings’: Lhuyd’s Archaeologia Britannica (1707), Hector Maclean’s MS (c.1750), the MacNicol MSS (c.1775), the Eigg Collection (1776), John Maclean’s MS (c.1815) and Alexander and Donald Stewart's Collection (1804). |
| Language | The majority of the poems in this volume are elegies or eulogies. Eulogies include Eachann Bacach’s ’S ann Di-Ciadain an Là (pp. 2-5), Iorram do Shir Lachann (pp. 6-9), and Òran do Lachann (pp. 26-33). These are replete with conventional panegyric motifs, e.g.: ‘Shir Lachainn nam bàrc, \ Chuireadh luingis air sàil, \ Leis an taghar an càbhlach acfhuinneach’ (p. 2); ‘Nuair a nochdadh sibh sròil \ Ris na caol-chrannaibh stòir, \ ’S mairg a thachradh d’a dheòin roimh’n lasan sin’ (ibid.).
There are three love poems in this volume, one by Anndra Mac an Easbuig and two by Maighstir Seathan. The first two of these, Oran do Bharbra Nighean Easbuig Fullarton (pp. 78-81) by Mac an Easbuig, and Òran d’a Leannan (pp. 104-11) by Maighstir Seathan, are as much eulogies as they are love songs, with little or no evidence of real affection for their subjects. The following lines in Mac an Easbuig’s poem are typical: ‘Gu maiseach mìn-gheal tàbhachdach, \ Anns gach gnaoi neo-fhàileasach, \ Aigne sèimh neo-àrdanach, \ Gun fhàillinne fo’n ghréin’ (p. 78). The third song, Maighstir Seathan’s Òran Gaoil d’a Leannan agus i pòsadh ri fear eile (pp. 112-17) is very different and, as Ó Baoill recognises, contains none of the ‘parental tone’ of his other love song (p. 271), but rather reveals its author’s genuine love of the woman, and his despair at her marrying someone else. Ó Baoill also considers evidence which suggests that this poem may have been written by another author (ibid.).
This volume also contains a number of elegies, including Eachann Bacach’s A’ Chnò Shamhna (pp. 14-25), Lachlann Maclean’s Òran do Lachann, triath Cholla (pp. 48-53), Mac an Easbuig’s Òran do dh’Alasdair Mac an Easbuig (pp. 68-71) and his Iorram for his brother (pp. 72-75), and Maighstir Seathan’s Marbhrann d’a mhnaoi, Isibeal Nic Gill-Eòin (pp. 118-21). Most of these contain numerous panegyric motifs, e.g.: ‘Thriall bhur bunadh gu Phàro; \ Có b’urrainn d’a sheanchas \ Ach Mac Mhuirich, Mac Fhearghais? \ Craobh a thuinich ré aimsir, \ Fhreumhaich bun ann an Albainn’ (p. 14); ‘Cha bhi mi teachd air do bheus \ O nach gnìomhan balaich iad; \ Cha robh thu taisgeil air séid, \ ’S thug luchd teud an aire dhuit’ (p. 48).
A number of these elegies are religious in tone. This is particularly true of Maighstir Seathan’s elegy for his wife, in which he expresses his sadness at her death, but acceptance that it had to happen and that it was for the best: ‘Tha do chadal sàmhach buan, \ Gu aiseirigh ’n t-sluaigh o’n bhàs; \ ’S àghmhor a’ chabair a rug ort \ O anacair ghoirt ’s o chràdh. \ Tha mo dhòchas ann an Crìosd, \ ’N Tì dhìol air son peacadh chàich, \ Thé as tric riaraich am bochd, \ Gu bheil t’anam nochd ’na bhlàths’ (p. 120).
Some of the poems in this volume touch on contemporary events and conditions, including Maighstir Seathan’s Ge grianach an latha (pp. 90-99), in which he laments the state of the Clan Maclean in the current social and political climate, and his Rainn (pp. 100-03), composed in praise of the Gaelic language and its speakers and lamenting its decline. In Mac an Easbuig’s Uam-s’ tha Ràitinn (pp. 60-67) the following verses occur: ‘Ged thà ar fearann \ ’N dràsd fo’r gearradh, \ Chan e bhur ceannas \ Bhuin dhinn le lannaibh còir e. \\ Bu bhuan strì dhuinn \ Ri sluaigh rìoghachd; \ Cha tuath chrìon seo \ Fhuair dhinn strìocadh còmhluath’ (p. 64). The text of this poem is given in normalised form here, while the original text, as it appears in Hector Maclean’s MS, is printed in ‘Sources and Readings’ (pp. 141-44). Ó Baoill points out that this MS was written with ‘unusually “phonetic” spelling’ (p. 229).
A number of the poems refer to battles and fighting, both specifically and generally. These references are often embedded in panegyric motifs – as, for example, in Eachann Bacach’s Oran do Shir Eachann (pp. 34-43) and Is beag aobhar mo shùgraidh (pp. 10-13), which includes these lines: ‘Togail suas am bragàda \ Bu neo-sgàthach air each thu. \ Ge b’e chitheadh do dhaoine, \ Rìgh, bu ghreadhnach am faicinn, \ Le musgacha dubh-ghorm \ ’S iad gun sùith orr’ gun deatach. \ Donn-ghràbhailte shoilleir \ Nach bu doilleir r’a faicinn’. Again, Dòmhnall Bàn’s elegy Òran do Dhòmhnall, Fear Bhròlais (pp. 82-89) includes the following lines: ‘Sliabh an t-Siorraim gun stàth \ Chòmhdaich sinne measg chàich \ Le làn togar gun sgàth gun chùram, \ Mar bu chubhaidh ’s bu dual \ Ann an toiseach an t-sluaigh \ ’N déis an t-òrdugh thoirt uad dod’ mhuinntir’ (p. 82).
Other poems of note are Lachlann Maclean’s dispraise of the pipes, Ascaoin Molaidh na Pìoba (pp. 54-59), and Mac an Easbuig’s poem of compliment to the scholar Edward Lhuyd (pp. 76-77), which was published in the Preface to Lhuyd’s Archaeologia Britannica (1707). This eight-line poem is reproduced in the present volume as it was first published. It reads: ‘Ordheirc an gniomh saor bhur comhluinn \ Clíu do fhoghlum beirid uáinn: \ Ti do chur do na thuit or sinnsreadh \ Cus do sgeimh bhur linn a mfuaim. \ Molfid Mc Liath na Sheanchas, \ Ochd mhacigh’achd do leanmhuinn oirinn, \ Brathreachus Gaoidhil Fear Shaxan, \ Thabhart nar ccuimhne ceart na loirg’ (p. 76).
The Notes section contains much information on words and phrases found in these poems, giving references to parallels, discussing the various uses of particular terms, and drawing attention to relevant scholarship where this exists. |
| Orthography | The Editor provides the following statement about the orthographical principles and practices he has employed: ‘In the case of nos. 13 and 17, which were printed during their authors’ lifetimes, I have reproduced the poems exactly as they first appeared in 1707: some argument in defence of this procedure is given in the Notes to no. 13. All the other poems I have attempted to present in an acceptable modern spelling. This means rejecting local dialect forms and archaic forms (like chuaidh, go bhfuil) present in the sources, except where they are clearly part of the rhyme or metrical system, and it also means making more or less arbitrary decisions on the spelling of certain common unstressed words (e.g. seo/so, o/bho): this can be justified by the fact that such forms in the sources are likely to reflect the spelling or pronunciation systems of scribes or their oral sources rather than those of the poet concerned. All significant divergences from normal modern spelling are given under Sources and Readings’ (p. viii). The editor also reveals that some unstressed syllables have been restored, ‘where required by the metrical patterns of the poems’ (p. viii). |
| Edition | First edition. Editors should use the most authoritative, usually the earliest, source of each poem where possible. For the poets in this volume the Table of Primary Sources and Index of first Lines (p. xxxiv), backed up by the section ‘Abbreviations and Sources’ (pp. xxix-xxxiii), will usually give a firm indication of which source to follow. Where the readings of primary sources differ significantly from the text as printed here, and where other independent sources have variant readings, the reading(s) of the primary source(s) can usually be found in the section ‘Sources and Readings’ (pp. 123-52). |
| Other Sources | |
| Further Reading | MacMhathain, Aonghas, ‘Aos Dàna’, Gairm 8 (1954), 343-47.
Thomson, Derick S., ed., The Companion to Gaelic Scotland (Glasgow, 1994: Gairm). |
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| NumWords | 86378 |
