CAHSS Faculty Articles
Title
Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh as Craftsman and Trickster
Department
Department of Literature and Modern Languages
Publication Date
1982
Publication Title
Béaloideas
ISSN
0332-270X
Volume
50
Issue/No.
1982
First Page
54
Last Page
89
Abstract
In the romance, Bás Chearbhaill agus Farbhlaidhe [BCF] ('The Death of Cearbhall and Fearbhlaidh'), because of his harp-playing, of Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh is called ioldánach ('many skilled'), the same epithet used for the god Lugh.1 In two poems by Pádraigín Haicéad written c. 1630, another Cearbhall possibly from Co. Wexford, is described as a poet, magincian, smith, fuller, fool, and weaver.2 In folk tradition, Cearbhall possesses a multitude of talents, appearing at various times as a fisherman, cowherd, poet and singer, harpist and piper, comb-, sieve- and basket-maker, shoemaker, weaver, tailor, smith, mason, carpenter, cooper, shipwright, bridgebuilder, saddle-maker, hurling- and backgammon-player, fuller, fool, lover, physician, scribe, sailor and soldier. Moreover, Cearbhall is often depicted as a trickster within those roles, and it is undoubtedly this aspect of Cearbhall's persona which led Proinsias MacCana to describe the Cearbhall who figures in BCF as 'the legendary poet, lover and trickster figure'.3
NSUWorks Citation
Doan, J. E. (1982). Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh as Craftsman and Trickster. Béaloideas, 50 (1982), 54-89. https://doi.org/10.2307/20522186
ORCID ID
0000-0002-4966-1251
DOI
10.2307/20522186
