Macha
Macha (Irish pronunciation: [ˈmˠaxə]) was a sovereignty goddess[1][2] of ancient Ireland associated with the province of Ulster, particularly the sites of Navan Fort (Eamhain Mhacha)[3] and Armagh (Ard Mhacha),[4] which are named after her.[5] Several figures called Macha appear in Irish mythology and folklore, all believed to derive from the same goddess. She is said to be one of three sisters known as 'the three Morrígna'. Like other sovereignty goddesses, Macha is associated with the land, fertility, kingship, war and horses.[6]
Proinsias Mac Cana discusses three Machas: Macha wife of Nemed, Queen Macha wife of Cimbáeth, and Macha wife of Crunnchu who caused the debility of the Ulstermen.[6] Gregory Toner discusses four, with the addition of Macha Mong Ruad.[7]
Etymology and alias
The name is presumably derived from
In the Dindsenchas Macha is called Grian Banchure, the "Sun of Womanfolk" and is referred to as the daughter of Midir of Brí Léith.[4]
Macha, daughter of Partholón
A poem in the Lebor Gabála Érenn mentions Macha as one of the daughters of Partholón, leader of the first settlement of Ireland after the flood, although it records nothing about her.[9]
Macha, wife of Nemed
Various sources record a second Macha as the wife of Nemed, leader of the second settlement of Ireland after the flood. She was the first of Nemed's people to die in Ireland – twelve years after their arrival according to Geoffrey Keating,[10] twelve days after their arrival according to the Annals of the Four Masters.[11] It is said that the hilltop where she was buried was named after her: Ard Mhacha, "Macha's high place". The surrounding woodland was cleared by Nemed's folk and named Magh Mhacha, "Macha's plain". She is described as the daughter of red-weaponed Aed, as the raven of the raids and diffuser of all excellences.[12]
Macha, daughter of Ernmas
Macha, daughter of
Macha Mong Ruad
Macha Mong Ruad ("red hair"), daughter of
Marie-Louise Sjoestedt writes of this figure: "In the person of this second Macha we discover a new aspect of the local goddess, that of the warrior and dominator; and this is combined with the sexual aspect in a specific manner which reappears in other myths, the male partner or partners being dominated by the female."[23]
Macha, wife of Cruinniuc
Macha, daughter of Sainrith mac Imbaith, was the wife of Cruinniuc, an Ulster farmer. Some time after the death of Cruinniuc's first wife, Macha appears at his house. Without speaking, she begins keeping the house and acting as his wife. Soon she becomes pregnant by him. As long as they were together Cruinniuc's wealth grew. When he leaves to attend a festival organised by the king of Ulster, she warns him that she will only stay with him so long as he does not speak of her to anyone, and he promises to say nothing. However, during a chariot race, he boasts that his wife can run faster than the king's horses. The king orders Cruinniuc be held on pain of death unless he can make good on his claim. Although she is heavily pregnant, Macha is brought to the gathering and the king forces her to race the horses. She wins the race, but then cries out in pain as she gives birth to twins on the finish line; a boy named Fír ("True") and a girl named Fial ("Modest").[4] For disrespecting and humiliating her, she curses the men of Ulster to be overcome with weakness—as weak "as a woman in childbirth"—at the time of their greatest need. This weakness would last for five days and the curse would last for nine generations. Thereafter, the place where Macha gave birth would be called Emain Macha, or "Macha's twins".[24][25]
This tale, The Debility of the Ulstermen (
This Macha is particularly associated with horses—it is perhaps significant that twin colts were born on the same day as Cúchulainn, and that one of his chariot-horses was called
Relationships of the Machas
Macha is named as the wife of Nemed, son of Agnoman, or alternately as the wife of Crund, son of Agnoman, which may indicate an identity of Nemed with Crund. Macha is also named as the daughter of Midir and Aed the Red.[4]
See also
References
- ^ Ó hÓgáin, Dáithí (1991). Myth, Legend & Romance: An encyclopaedia of the Irish folk tradition. New York: Prentice Hall. pp. 284–285.
- ^ ISBN 9780714123127.
- ^ Toner (2010), p. 86.
- ^ Stokes, Whitley, ed. (1870), "The Rennes Dindsenchas", Revue celtique, 16: 44–46. "94. Ard Macha".
- ^ a b c Koch, John T. Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO, 2006. p. 1231
- ^ a b Mac Cana, Prionsias. "The Goddesses of the Insular Celts". Celtic Mythology. Hamlyn, 1970.
- ^ Toner (2010), p. 81.
- ^ Proto-Celtic lexicon Archived 27 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Lebor Gabála Érenn §38
- ^ Keating, Foras Feasa ar Éirinn 1.7
- ^ Annals of the Four Masters M2850
- ^ The Metrical Dindsenchas "Ard Macha"
- ^ Lebor Gabála Érenn §62, 64 Archived 15 July 2010 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ James MacKillop, Dictionary of Celtic Mythology, Oxford University Press, 1998, pp. 281–282
- ^ Angelique Gulermovich Epstein, War Goddess: The Morrígan and her Germano-Celtic Counterparts, September 1998, pp. 49–52.
- ^ Geoffrey Keating, Foras Feasa ar Éirinn 1.11
- ^ Lebor Gabála Érenn §60, 62, 64 Archived 15 July 2010 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Whitley Stokes (ed & trans), The Second Battle of Moytura, p. 101
- ^ Eugene O'Curry, Lectures on the Manuscript Materials of Ancient Irish History, 1861, Appendix No. XXXVIII
- ^ Geoffrey Keating, Foras Feasa ar Éirinn 1.27-1.28
- ^ Annals of the Four Masters M4532-4546
- ^ R. A. Stewart Macalister (ed. & trans.), Lebor Gabála Érenn: The Book of the Taking of Ireland Part V, Irish Texts Society, 1956, pp. 263–267
- ISBN 0-913666-52-1.
- ^ "The Debility of the Ulstermen". Archived from the original on 26 December 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2007.
- ^ a b Hull, Vernam, ed. (1968), "Noínden Ulad: The debility of the Ulidians", Celtica, 8: 1–42
- ^ Fee, Christopher and Leeming, David. The Goddess: Myths of the Great Mother. Reaktion Books, 2016.
Works cited
- Toner, Gregory (2010). "Macha and the Invention of Myth". Ériu. 60: 81–109. S2CID 245847281.
Further reading
- Tatár, Maria Magdolna. "The Cult of Macha in Eastern Europe". In: The Journal of the Indo-European Studies (JIES) Volume 35, Number 3 & 4, Fall/Winter 2007. pp. 323–344.