Sengoídelc - Similes, Metaphors & Kennings

adba r�n

Tue, 16 Oct 2007 15:14:00 -0400

adba rón

(abode * of seals)

the abode of seals = the sea

This kenning, essentially a two-word poem, is found in a short, finely wrought poem. This is James Carney's edition and translation found in "Medieval Irish Lyrics":

Fégaib úaib
sair fo thúaid
in muir múaid
mílach;
adba rón
rebach, rán,
ro-gab lán
línad.

Look you out
northeastwards
over mighty ocean
teaming with sea-life.
home of seals
sporting, splendid,
its tide has reached
fullness.

Ard bot fiaich ...

Sun, 12 Nov 2006 15:39:32 -0500

Ard bot fiaich ocainn, íseal bot con.

(high * tail * of raven * at-us * low * tail * of hound)

The raven's tail is high for us and the hound's tail is low.

In other words, food is scarce for us. The expression is presumably based on a close observation of the appearance of animals at the beginning of spring, when the winter's stores of food were almost exhausted.

Ardithir immurgu...

Fri, 04 Feb 2005 01:21:15 -0500

Ardithir immurgu, remithir, tailcithir, tresithir, sithidir seólcrann prímluingi móri!

(as tall * indeed * as thick * as firm * as strong * as long * (as) a mast * of a main-ship * great)

Indeed as tall, thick, firm, strong, and long as the mast of a great sailing ship!

This description of one of Cú Chulainn's attributes comes the LU version of "Táin Bó Cúailgne". The attribute in question is the gush of blood that spouts from the top of his head during his "ríastrad" or "contortion", when his whole body is distorted by battle fury.

Ba fras de n�mannaib bo� ina b�laib.

Sun, 06 Feb 2005 21:23:28 -0500

Ba fras de némannaib boí ina bélaib.

(was * shower * of * pearls * (that) was * in her/his * lips)

It was a shower of pearls that was in her/his mouth.

This very common image, used of both men and women, is found in the Táin, and in tales such as "Togail Bruidne Da Derga" and "Siaburcharpat Con Culaind".

Bo� coire f�ile la Laigniu, Buchat a ainm.

Thu, 06 Sep 2007 15:23:14 -0400

Boí coire féile la Laigniu, Buchat a ainm.

(was * cauldron * of generosity * with * Leinstermen * Buchat * his * name)

The men of Leinster had a cauldron of generosity, and his name was Buchat.

These are the opening words of the tale "Esnada Tige Buchet", edited by David Greene. The centerpiece of any guesthouse (tech n-oíged) or hostel (bruiden) was always one or more cauldrons, a reliable source of comfort and sustenance for all comers. The fires beneath the cauldrons of Buchat's house were never extinguished, according to the tale. Thus it is not surprising that a generous man would be metaphorically called a "coire féile" or a "coire don t-sochaide". The latter expression is found in FDG (p. 58). The text says "is e in senfhocal ó chein mair, .i. in coire don t-sochaide" (it is a proverb in longstanding, 'the cauldron for the multitude'). The application of the proverb here is slightly muddled, but the reference is to Suibne, a man celebrated for his hospitality.

cenn i mbolg

Mon, 06 Nov 2006 21:28:45 -0500

cenn i mbolg

(head * in * bag)

head in a bag

This proverbial metaphor for ignorance is found in "In Tenga Bithnua" a sermon for the vigil of Easter composed around 1000 A.D, where it is paired with the similar expression "bith i tig dorcha" (being in a dark house). The full context is:

"ar ba cenn i mbolg 7 ba bth i tigh dhorcha do sil Adhuimh iarsindi na fes riam cissi dealbh ro bai forsin domun nó cia dhorigne" (for it was "head in a bag" and "being in a dark house" for the seed of Adam, since it had never been known what shape the world had or who made it).

Cid as dech de sh�taib?...

Sat, 24 Dec 2005 21:00:32 -0500

Cid as dech de shétaib?
Scían, ar is fri céill samailtir.

(what * that is * best * of * treasures?
knife * because * it is * to * intelligence * it is likened)

What is the best of treasures?
A knife, for it is a simile of intelligence.

This play on the keeness of blades and intellects comes from "Tochmarc Ailbe", where it is one of thirty riddles that Finn poses and Ailbe answers.

Cid as m�ithi saill tuircc mesa?

Sat, 24 Dec 2005 21:18:33 -0500

Cid as méithi saill tuircc mesa?
Miscais do·berar íar serc.

(what * that is * fatter * than salt-meat * of boar * of mast /
hatred * that is given * after * love)

What is fatter than the bacon of an acorn-fed boar?
Hatred that comes after love.

This arresting image comes from "Tochmarc Ailbe", where it is one of thirty riddles that Finn poses and Ailbe answers.

Cruth cen ch�ill...

Thu, 03 Feb 2005 16:36:53 -0500

Cruth cen chéill, dóiriu cach cor:
is neime i n-órlestar.

(form * without * sense * more ignoble * (than) every * condition /
(it) is * poison * in * golden-vessel)

Beauty without intelligence, the worst of all:
it's poison in a golden vessel.

This half-stanza comes from the poem "Nímgeib format fri fer find" ("I do not envy a handsome man"), edited by Meyer in ZCP 6, p. 267.

C�aille feda i feilm n-airgit.

Fri, 03 Jun 2005 21:37:19 -0400

Cúaille feda i feilm n-airgit.

(stake * of wood * in * fence * of silver)

A wooden stake in a silver fence.

This is the first line of a message that the fool Lomnae carves in ogham into a wooden rod that he hands to Finn, alerting him secretly that the child borne to him by one of his wives is not really his own. A slightly different version runs "Is cúaille feada i n-airbe airgit inísin", and both are quoted by Myles Dillon in "Stories from the Law-Tracts" (Ériu vol. 11, pt. 1). The same image is found in Sanas Cormaic #1018. Another traditional metaphor for a child of doubtful paternity is "áth i fochlucht", an image of a poisonous plant (possibly Oenanthe crocata) growing in the midst of a patch of an edible stream plant (possibly Veronica beccabunga 'brooklime', or a type of Sium 'water parsnip').

Deog a topur �ca itib...

Fri, 10 Jun 2005 15:50:13 -0400

Deog a topur éca itib
i cath Detna la Lagnib.

(draught * from * well * of death * he drank /
in * battle * of Detna * with * Leinstermen)

He took a drink from the well of death
in the Battle of Detna against Leinster.

This half-stanza is from the poem "Mide magen clainne Cuind" by Flann Mainistreach. It is found in the Metrical Dindshenchas in LL (23881-2).

D�a faetsath sn�that...

Sat, 01 Oct 2005 11:39:22 -0400

Día faetsath snáthat isin tig ro-cechlastai a toitim in tan labras beóus.

(if * were to fall * needle * in the * house * would be heard * its * falling * the * time * that he speaks * still)

If a needle fell in the house while he was speaking, it would be heard.

This may be the earliest instance in western (or world?) literature of the "so quiet you could hear a pin drop" image. It is found in "Togail Bruidne Da Derga" (792-3), where it describes that respectful attention that Taidle Ulad, the "rechtaire" or steward of Conaire Mór, could command whenever he made a pronouncement about the seating and serving arrangements in the royal house. Combining the powers of a chief protocol officer and a maître d', the rechtaire was a "servant" to be reckoned with in the medieval Irish hierarchy!

Dia�fagbainn-se br�in �achtair...

Tue, 09 Aug 2005 13:27:09 -0400

Dia·fagbainn-se bróin úachtair, do·géntae bró íochtair dím.

(if I were to find * millstone * upper * would be made * millstone * lower * of me)

If I found an upper millstone, I would be the lower millstone.

Ailbe says this to Finn during the verbal sparring and word play of their courtship in "Tochmarc Ailbe", letting him know that she'd gladly join in marriage with a man who was suited to her. The image of the wife as the lower millstone, also called an "inneóin" or "anvil", is found in Fíthal's advice to his son on choosing a wife. Their exchange begins:

Cid imma ngabthar trebad? ol a mac fri Fíthal.
Ní hansa. Im indeóin cothaigthe, ol Fíthal.
Ceist. Caide an indeóin threbtha? ol in mac.
Ní hansa. Ben maith, ol Fíthal. (ed. Meyer, ZCP viii 112)

Around what is a household established? said his son to Fíthal.
That's easy. Around a steady lower millstone, said Fíthal.
Tell me, what is the lower millstone of a household? said the son.
That's easy. A good woman, said Fíthal.

"Cá ben dobér?", also in this collection, is from later on in this father-son exchange.

Duibithir dath a berrtha...

Thu, 03 Feb 2005 12:20:47 -0500

Duibithir dath a berrtha
bruinde brain, brollach n-aidchi,
édgad luin, lúaithe ngaimche,
caera finchi, fúan fuinche.

(as black as * color * of his haircut /
as breast * of raven * bosom * of night /
clothing * of blackbird * ashes * of winter night (?) /
berries * of vine (?) / tunic * of scaldcrow)

The color of his hair is as black
as a raven's breast, as the bosom of night,
as a blackbird's garment, as the ashes of a winter night,
as the berries of the vine, as a scaldcrow's tunic.

This stanza, a bit of a tour de force which manages to fit the archaic alliterative rosc style into the common seven-syllable lines of the classical dán díreach, was edited by Kuno Meyer in ZCP vol. 9, but not translated. A couple of the words are problematical, but the overall sense is clear.

duibithir �c, buidithir �r, glaisithir bun cuilinn

Thu, 03 Feb 2005 12:21:18 -0500

duibithir éc, buidithir ór, glaisithir bun cuilinn

(as black (as) * death * as yellow (as) * gold * as green (as) * trunk * of a holly tree)

as black as death, as yellow as gold, as green as a holly trunk

This dramatic set of similes is found in "Sanas Cormaic", where it describes the spectacularly ugly youth who later is physically transformed and who reveals himself to be the Spirit of Poetry. The "yellow" and "green" refer to color of the tops and bottoms of his pre-transformation teeth!