"(mountain-)stream of Eilís?
Eilís — ainm pearsanta mná?
Triomán/tromán — a term for a (mountain-)stream that occurs in the hills of County Wicklow and south County Dublin.
Tromán is the spelling Eoghan Ó Comhraí used in the
Ordnance Survey Letters for the word as he heard it from the Irish
speakers of Glenasmole (e.g. ‘Bun na ttrí ttromán’), which would imply
that the word is based on a secondary sense of the adjective trom (primarily ‘heavy’, etc.) with the diminutive suffix -án. But see also A Dictionary of the Irish Language s.v. tírmán, ‘exsiccator’: perhaps these names reflect triomán, in the sense ‘stream which drains water from the hills’. See also the name An Triomóg/Trimoge River in County Mayo.
It is difficult to ascertain the origin of the qualifying element here, however, for lack of evidence: -(n)ellish, -(n)ellis, and (-n)Allison are the only surviving forms. It appears that the forms in -ellis(h) represent the female personal name Eilís (< Elisabetha), and the form given to Ó Comhraí is rather an explanation of the name (cf., perhaps, both Aill Mháire and Aill Mháirín given for Mareen’s Brook); there is also a surname Eilís (< Ellis, Ellison). Or it may be a corrupted form of the plant-name feileastram,
‘iris’ (this plant has been recorded along the Dodder at Ballinascorney
and Castlekelly) or some other dissimilation of the consonants /l/,
/n/, /r/.
In the hills of southwest County Dublin another term for (mountain-)stream occurs, namely slád (which originally had the sense ‘glen’, ‘vale’; it comes from the English slade), e.g. Slád na Cloiche Báine, ‘the stream of the white stone’; Slád na Riaibhche, ‘the stream of the brindled cow’, in the civil parish of Saggart. In the Glens of Antrim Holmer found allt,
which usually means ‘glen’, ‘vale’, in that area, used specifically as a
term for the streams flowing through those small glens (cf. Aill Mháirín here in Glenasmole).
Note that stream-names based on the word sruth(án) also occur alongside both of these terms: in 1937 Liam Price noted the name ‘Srugh’ for what is marked on the maps as Slade Brook in Glenasmole, 600m from Tromanallison, for example."
Sé mo thaithí go mbíonn flosc agus eolas ag taighdeoirí An Bhrainse Logainmneacha, agus sheol mé ceist tríd an suíomh. Fuair mé an t-eolas chuimsitheach anseo thíos ó
Aindí Mac Giolla Chomhghaill ón mBrainse:
1837
Litreacha na Suirbhéireachta Ordanáis
Liam
& Úna Ó Reachtúra, Caisleán Uí Cheallaigh; Aindrias Ó Gabhann
(†1834), An Carraigín
Is
iad Litreacha na Suirbhéireachta Ordanáis an príomhfhoinse atá againn
ar Ghaeilgeoirí Ghleann an Smóil sa 19ú haois. Bhí an taighde ar
logainmneacha Chontae Bhaile Átha Cliath nach mór curtha
i gcrích ag an tSuirbhéireacht nuair a thug an scoláire Eoghan Ó
Comhraí cuairt ar an ngleann i samhradh na bliana 1837 chun fuaimniú
áitiúil na logainmneacha a fháil ó mhuintir na háite (chomh maith lena
raibh ann de shéadchomharthaí a iniúchadh). Tugaim
anseo i mo dhiaidh tras-scríobh de na litreacha a bhaineann leis an
ngleann, as na bunchóipeanna atá le fáil in Acadamh Ríoga na hÉireann
(cuirim
cló iodálach ar aon rud a scríobhtar i bpeannaireacht na Gaeilge):—
21, Great Charles St.,
26th July, 1837
[.i. Dé Céadaoin]
...
I went on yesterday
[.i. Dé Máirt, 25/7/1837]
to Tallagh and visited a mountain above Ballynascorney called by the people
Suíghchán, i.e. the seat. It is a very high boggy mountain … I
descended the east side of the mountain into Glen a Smoil, the far famed
residence of the mighty Finn Mac Cool. There are many old recollections
of him still in this glen. However I had not
time enough left to make more than a passing enquiry, but expect to
collect some curious facts when I visit it again, which I hope to be
able to do on Friday next
[.i. 28/7/1837].
* * * *
21, Great Charles St.,
2nd August 1837
[.i. Dé Céadaoin]
Sir,
Since I wrote to you last I visited
Glen-a-smoil and the neighbouring mountains twice. I could
collect no tradition of Finn Mac Cool or his warriors in the glen, but
what is current all over Ireland. The most remarkable features of this
celebrated Glen are the four mountain streams that
descend into it and form the River Dodder.
The first and largest of these streams, which is called
Aill Mháire, or Mareens brook, rises in Kippure mountain near
Lough Bray and rolls down a rocky precipitate channel to Castle Kelly in
the Glen, a little below which it meets the Dodder or
Aidhin Dothar.
a small stream which takes its rise in a Slough called
tromán Dubh (black stream) some distance to the north [recte south]
of Mareens Brook on Kippure ridge, and running down through
Coill mhór and receives the stream of Lug Mor, immediately before it joins Mareens brook at the place already mentioned.
The united waters then flow onward, and at a short distance receive the stream of
glaise an Mhuilin which descends from Seechawn mountain, dividing the mountain of
Carrigeen Roe in two parts.
The Glens through which these streams descend have a great many local
names among them that I had not time to collect, they are so difficult
to ascend, so remote from persons to point out the localities
and so far distant from where I get off and meet the Tallagh Car.
I met an interesting old man at the bottom of the glen from whom I collected the subjoined list of local names. His name is
William Rafter — Uilliam Ó Rachtabhra, he is now 84
years old, with all his faculties in full vigour, and with more
activity and buoyancy of spirit than his son, a man of about 50 years of
age. He was born and bred in the old Castle Kelly,
on the foundation of which his house is built, and part of the old wall
of which may be still seen in the gable of his house.
I speaks [sic!]
as good Irish as ever I heard
spoken, as does his sister Una. He says that 40 years ago
very few spoke English in the Glen except the Dublin Carmen — very few
men of 40 years of age even now in the Glen that don’t
understand tho’ they don’t speak the Irish.
He has no account of O’Kelly from whom the Castle is named nor have I.
He knew many persons who read and wrote Irish, the last of whom was
Andrew Smith,
Aindrias Ó Gobhan, who died three years ago at Glasamucky on the glenside [recte
An Carraigín/Corrageen, de réir an taifid pharóiste thíos].
The following local names are to be found in the glen and about it,
Cnoc a tsidhain, a tumulus.
Glais a mhuicídhe. brácaidhe Cón árd. Sliabh na ccloch. Dochtog.
bun na ttrí ttromán. Aill Mháirín. Caislén Ui Cheallaigh. Aidhin
Dothair. Troman dubh. lug na ffiach. leó mhór. Carraig na síodhóg.
Coill mhór.
&c, &c.
As I will have to write to you again more particularly on this subject, I will mention no more names at present.
Aill Mháirín is remarkable for producing (perhaps) the largest
ivy leaves anywhere to be found. In the old Fenian poem of Glean aSmoil,
Ossian, complaining of Saint Patk’s scanty fare, says that he would
find a quarter of a black bird in Glean a Smoil
larger than his quarter of mutton, a quicken berry larger than his Measgán of butter, and an ivy leaf larger than his griddle of bread.
I send you two of the celebrated ivy leaves, which though not arrived
at maturity of growth, will yet afford you a good specimen of the
produce of the famous glen. Can the name books of Tallagh
be spared, I would want it as soon as it could be spared.
* * * *
23rd August 1837
[.i. Dé Céadaoin]
Sir,
I went on yesterday
[.i. Dé Máirt, 22/8/1837]
to
Gleann-a-Smoil with Mr. Williams and pointed out to him all the remains
of antiquity that I have been able to discover there as yet. There is a
moat on the edge of Feather-bed Bog called
cnocán Mhéidhbh (Cnockan Mheibh) through which the county
boundary line runs. This moate has been cut through to the depth of 5
feet within the last month, but no grave, stone, urn or anything else
turned up but the bog of which the mound is composed.
...
Following the boundary line from this to the foot of Kippure mountain,
at the distance of a mile it passes through another moat immediately on
the brink of Mareens Brook, and very near the head
of that stream. The trench has not been dug deep here, so that the
mound remains still unbroken. A few yards lower down the stream there is
another small mound which has not been opened. These moats have no
names.
A little below these a rapid stream falls into Mareens Brook, on the right side, called
Eas Caorthain Duinn [noda
-ao-; -n agus líne os a cionn in Duinn], i.e. Cataract of the
brown Roan tree. This stream is not marked on the plan.
A little below this on the other side, another stream falls into Mareens Brook, which the people call
tromán Allison, i.e. Allisons stream: I can make but little of this name, but will enquire more about it.
The point of junction of these three streams is called
bun na ttrí ttromán.
A little lower down still is
Cnocán caorthainof the Roan tree [an síneadh fada i
pl]. This is a large oblong mound of considerable height, with a cairn on its lower end, and another at its upper end.
Lower down the stream still is
Aill MhaireMarys Cliff where the ivy leaves are to be found.
A little lower down yet, are three moats more, one of them very large,
it is probably a natural mound, modified by man for his own purpose.It is called
cnocán ruadh. There is a fine bold stream descending into
the brook here, which does not appear on the plan and for which I was
not able to get a name as yet. A cromleac a little up on the mountain
side, and a few circles further on to the north
east, fills up my discoveries on the right side of Mareens Brook.
I have yet to explore the
Adhain Dóthair or Dodder Stream up from its junction with
Mareens Brook to its source. This I hope to be able to accomplish in a
day, after which I would have but little more to do among the mountains,
so that I think I could get very rapidly
over the remainder of the county.
Tá tagairt eile ag Ó Comhraí don Reachtúrach in Ainmleabhar an pharóiste seo faoi ainm cnoic in iarthar an ghleanna:—
|
|
|
|
An dá fhoirm seo sic ag EC, meascán de Ghaeilge agus Béarla. I bpeannaireacht Bhéarla atá siad, i ndúch anuas ar pl.
|
|
|
|
|
"William Rafter, a native who speaks very good Irish." [Nóta EC; dúch anuas ar pl]
|
Is
léir go raibh meas ag Ó Comhraí ar Ghaeilge an Reachtúraigh, cé go
bhfuil cuid de na hainmneacha a fuair sé uaidh níos cruinne ná a chéile,
chomh fada agus is féidir linn a dhéanamh amach ar
an bhfianaise iomlán (tá iarracht den ghaelu ad hoc, mar shampla, le sonrú ar
Glaise an Mhuilinn [rectius an Mhulláin], Glaise an mhuicídhe
[rectius na Muice], agus brácaidhe Cón árd [ón bhfocal Béarla
brakes, ach ní brácaí atá i gceist ach raithneach/mothar] thuas).
Tabharfar
faoi ndeara ná fuil an sloinne seo Ó Reachtúra le fáil sa ghleann in
aon fhoinse a mhaireann ón 17ú haois, cuiream i gcás na
Hearth Money Rolls (1664) agus an ‘Census’ (1654). Ach
taispeánann taifead eaglasta Pharóiste Caitliceach Ráth Fearnáin go
raibh an teaghlach seo bunaithe sa ghleann le cúpla glúin ar a laghad
agus nach amhlaidh gur thánadar thar paróiste isteach agus
an Ghaeilge a thabhairt leo.
(Féach leis go liostaítear ‘Tyrlagh Smith’ [<
Toirleach Ó Gabhann] sna Hearth Money Rolls (1664) in ‘Glasnemucky’ [<
Glaise na Muice].)
Is
dócha, ar an bhfianaise seo, gur féidir iontaobh a thabhairt lena
ndúirt an Reachtúrach le hÓ Comhraí faoin nGaeilge sa ghleann (cé go
gcaitheann William Nolan amhras air seo in ‘Society and
Settlement in Glenasmole’, Dublin City and County).
1850:
? Séamas Ó Broin, An Baile Mór
Tá tagairt ag Donn Piatt sa leabhrán
Gaelic Dialects of Leinster (1933) do Ghaeilgeoir eile de bhunaidh an ghleanna:
“Letters
from Harold's Cross” (Joly Pamphlet, National Library), refers to Irish
being spoken by Séamas Byrne of Ballymorefinn, Dublin
Mountains, showing the traditions of Irish still alive in 1850.
Níl an Branach seo liostaithe in
Griffith’s Valuation (1848–51) ar an mBaile Mór/Ballymorefinn. Féach, áfach, an ‘James Byrne’ a bhí ag cur faoi in “Haroldscross E. Rathmines Road” ag an am.
1852:
“... the glens of the County of Dublin, where the people still speak Irish ...”
Féach, leis, an nóta seo ag Seán Ó Donnabháin faoi ainm an ghleanna in 1852:
According to the traditions in Meath and in the glens of the County of Dublin, where the people still speak Irish,
Gleann-a-smoil means 'the valley of the thrush.' We of the south add another syllable to
smol to express thrush (smolach); but the Meath men will have their own form (an smol, gen.
an smoil) and interpretation to be correct; they insist that the Gleann-a-smoil
of the Fenian story, is the place still so called in the County of
Dublin, and they hold us in great contempt for attempting to transfer
this glen to the south [.i.
Gleann an Smóil na seanscéalta a ionannú leis an ngleann den ainm
céanna i Sliabh na mBan].
— ‘The Fenian Traditions of Sliabh-na-m-Ban’,
Transactions of the Kilkenny Archaeological Society, iml. 1, cuid 3, lch.358 (1852).
Is
fíorspéisiúil an abairt sin an Donnabhánaigh “the glens of the County
of Dublin, where the people still speak Irish”, mar bhí sé féin agus
Eoghan Ó Comhraí ar obair pháirce le chéile sna sléibhte
sa bhliain 1837 sara ndeachaigh Ó Comhraí ar ais go Gleann an Smóil
leis féin agus bhuail leis an Reachtúrach. Níorbh aon duine é an
Donnabhánach a bhí tugtha don bhéal bán mar gheall ar shláinte na
Gaeilge, ach a mhalairt.
In Ainmleabhar pharóiste Theach Sagard tugann Ó Comhraí foirmeacha Gaeilge le haistriúcháin, e.g. “Gleann na Raithnidhe, ‘the Ferney Glen’—the natives” agus “Cnockslinge,
‘slate-hill’—John
Keegan, a resident native”, a thabharfadh le fios, b’fhéidir, go raibh
cur amach éigin ar an nGaeilge ag muintir na háite seo chomh maith.
Ach,
ina choinne seo ar fad, cé go dtugann Ó Comhraí liosta fada
mionainmneacha Gaeilge sna Litreacha timpeall Chnoc Thamhlachta agus
Chnoc Theach Sagard agus i nGleann Cuilinn, tá an chuma air
gurb amhlaidh a dhein sé crot Gaeilge a chur ar na hainmneacha a chuala
sé ann. Féach, leis, an ráiteas seo a leanas aige sna Litreacha faoi
sheanduine 90 bliain d’aois a bhuail leis i nGleann Cuilinn i mí Iúil
1837, cúpla seachtain sarar bhuail an Reachtúrach
leis i nGleann an Smóil:
No
person in the neighbourhood ever heard any name for [The Giant’s Grave]
but Peter Welsh, who when he was a boy heard the old Irish people call
it
Leaba na Saigh (the greyhounds bed). ... Peter gave me some old topographical names, such as
lug mór, Sliabh Gearr, lug aPhuca, &c., and
promised me some more when I call to see him again, which I intend to do
the first day I go out, as I think it fortunate that one man lives in
that un-Irish part of Ireland, who remembers something
of the ould times.
Agus féach a raibh scríofa ag an Donnabhánach féin i mí Aibreán na bliana céanna:
Mr.
Curry and I travelled through Glencullen yesterday to ascertain whether
the inhabitants retain any traditions worthy of preservation, but I am
now satisfied that they retain none. We met some
features not in the name books, but which certainly should be on the
plans. Perhaps they are.
1) Cloghnagon, a remarkable rock on the Glencullen mountain … Cloghnagon signifies the stone of the hounds (cloch na g-con) but there is no
one (a native) in the glen that understands the name or retains any old story about it.
An chanúint féin:
Is
mór an trua é, mar sin, ná tugann Ó Comhraí cur síos dá laghad ar an
gcanúint a chuala sé i nGleann an Smóil, ach b’fhéidir gur leid é sin
féin dúinn ná fuair sé aon bhlas neamhghnách air.
Tá
tuairisc suimiúil ó 1790 ó thurasóir Francach, Coquebret de Montbret, i
dtaobh Ghleann Molúra, Cill Mhantáin, 30km ó dheas, ina ndeirtear go
raibh Gaeilge fós á labhairt ag an seandream ansúd,
“their dialect being closer to that of Munster than to the Irish spoken
in the neighbourhood of Dublin” (‘Coquebert de Montbret in search of
the hidden Ireland’,
JRSAI 82, 1952, pp. 62–7). Gan dabht is é an scoláire Éireannach a
bhí i dteannta de Montbret ag an am, .i. Risteard Ó Ciarabháin ó Chinn
Mhara i gContae na Gaillimhe (an-ghairid do Chontae an Chláir), a thug
an breithiúnas seo.
Is
beag rian den Mhuimhneachas, mar a thuigimidne é, ar logainmneacha an
cheantair sin, áfach. Is cosúil gurb é an rud a bhí i gceist ná go raibh
difríocht measartha suntasach, i dtuairim an Gaillmhigh
léannta seo (b’fhéidir ó thaobh gnéithe ná fuil caomhnaithe sna
logainmneacha, ar nós stór focal, blas, deilbhíocht, gramadach, srl.)
idir Gaeilge an cheantair shléibhtiúil seo agus an Ghaeilge a bhí le
clos i gceantair thuaithe Chontae Bhaile Átha Cliath
taobh thuaidh den Life. Bhí Gaeilgeoirí fós le fáil an-ghairid do
theorainn na Mí/Bhaile Átha Cliath aimsir na Suirbhéireachta féin
(1830í) agus ní foláir nó bhí an ceantar céanna, 15km ón gcathair, ina
bhreacGhaeltacht ar a laghad nuair a scríobhadh na focail
thuas i 1790.
Tá alt spéisiúil ag Nicholas Williams ar Ghaeilge Chúige Laighean in
Stair na Gaeilge agus tá seoda luachmhara le fáil in Labhrann Laighnigh (go háirithe ar Ghaeilge Osraí). Tá roinnt nótaí teangeolaíochta sa
Leabhar Branach, cnuasach filíochta ó Chill Mhantáin, leis. Tá
mionainmneacha anseo is ansiúd a thagann lena bhfuil ar eolas againn
faoi ghnéithe áirithe de chanúint Chúige Laighean ach inseoidh an aimsir
an bhfuil mórán adhmaid le baint as logainmneacha
an cheantair seo Cill Dara–Cill Mhantáin–Ceatharlach–Loch Garman ach an
staidéar córasach a bheith curtha i gcrích orthu sna blianta beaga
amach romhainn. Tá mórshaothar ar logainmneacha Loch Garman á chur i
dtoll a chéile ag an Dr. Conchubhar Ó Crualaoich
faoi láthair a chaithfidh solas ar Ghaeilge an cheantair úd chomh
maith.
