This blog explores part of the rich folklore of the Gaels and the importance of the Gaelic heroines of Scotland and Ireland in the naming of places.  A must read.…

Loch Etive from Dun Leigh near Inverawe,Taynuilt. ©Lorne Gill/SNH

An English translation is below Gaelic text.

Na Dùin a bh’ aig Deirdre

’S iomadh ainm-àite a dh’èirich bho thachartas ann am beul-aithris nan Gàidheal, agus tha deagh eisimpleir de a leithid anns na trì cnuic air a bheil Dùn Deardail (no Dearduil). Tha iad uile ainmichte airson Deirdre, a’ bhana-ghaisgeach ainmeil agus, chanadh cuid, an tè a bu bhòidhche a tharraing anail riamh ann an tìrean nan Gàidheal.

Bha am faoinsgeul Deirdre agus Clann Uisnich aithnichte air feadh Gàidhealtachd na h-Alba ’s na h-Èireann fad linntean mòra, agus bidh feadhainn ga aithris fhathast. Chaidh dreach dheth a chruinneachadh ann am Barraigh ann an 1867 le Alasdair MacIlle Mhìcheil, a fhuair cuideachd dreach de Laoidh Chlann Uisnich anns an dearbh eilean.

Anns an sgeulachd, tha Righ Uladh – dom b’ ainm Conachar – ag iarraidh Deirdre a phòsadh. Tha i a’ diùltadh agus tha i a’ gabhail gaol air Naois mac Uisnich a tha ga toirt air falbh o Èirinn. Tha iad a’ teicheadh a dh’Alba cuide ri dithis bràithrean Naoise – Aillean agus Àrdan – agus tha iad a’ togail tùr air mullach cnuic – an ‘Dùn’. Tha gràdh mòr aig Deirdre air Alba agus tha luchd-sgrìobhadh sheann làmh-sgrìobhainnean a’ cur faclan milis na beul, agus i a’ moladh coltas a’ chreamha agus gug-gùg na cuthaig.

Mu dheireadh, tha an ceathrar a’ tilleadh a dh’Èirinn far a bheil iad uile a’ faighinn bàs. Ach tha craobhan a’ fàs às na h-uaighean aca, agus tha na geugan gam filleadh fhèin am measg a chèile, a’ sealltainn mar a tha an gaol eadar Naois is Deirdre beò eadhon an dèidh bàs nan daoine. ’S e a th’ ann ach tè de na sàr-sgeulachdan againn – faoinsgeul de dhìoghras domhainn agus ìomhaigheachd iongantach.

Tha na trì cnuic ainmichte mar Dùn Deardail rin lorg taobh Loch Nis aig Inbhir Fharragaig (comharra-clèithe NH 527239), ann an Gleann Nibheis (NN 127701) agus ri taobh Loch Èite faisg air Taigh an Uillt (NN 018324). ’S e Dùn Lèigh a th’ air na mapaichean airson an fhir mu dheireadh, ach bidh muinntir an àite ga cheangal ri Deirdre agus Clann Uisne. ’S iad dà àite eile le ceangal làidir don sgeulachd – Gleann Masain agus Gleann Dà Ruadhail ann an Comhghall.

Loch Etive ©Lorne Gill/SNH

Deirdre’s Forts in Scotland’s Landscape

It sometimes surprises non Gaelic-speakers to find out how many places in Scotland are named for people and events which might only ever have existed in the collective imagination but which became part of the rich folklore of the Gaels. Among them are at least three hills called Dùn Deardail (or Dearduil) ‘the fort of Deirdre’, named for perhaps the greatest, and certainly the most beautiful, of the Gaelic heroines of Scotland and Ireland. Deardail is a Scottish form of Deirdre (or Deirdire).

The great legend Deirdre and the Sons of Uisne was recounted in homes the length and breadth of the Gaelic lands for centuries, and is still told today. A version was collected on the Isle of Barra in 1867 by the avid folk-collector Alexander Carmichael, as was a version of the Lay of the Children of Uisne.

In the story, the beautiful young Deirdre comes to the attention of the King of Ulster who seeks her hand. She rebuffs him and falls in love with the handsome Naois, son of Uisne, who agrees to take her away from her native Ireland. Along with his brothers Aillean and Àrdan, Naois and Deirdre flee to Scotland and build a tower on a hill (the Dùn). Deirdre loves Scotland, and writers of ancient manuscripts have her praising the wild garlic and the sweet voice of the cuckoo. But she and the young men are convinced to return home by a messenger from the King of Ulster. There they suffer tragic deaths, although trees growing from their graves demonstrate, by their branches intertwining, the love of Naois and Deirdre that even death could not destroy. It is one of our great legends – a story of terrific passion and powerful imagery.

The three locations where a Dùn Deardail is to be found are on Loch Ness-side near Inverfarigaig (grid reference NH 527239), in Glen Nevis (NN 127701) and on Loch Etive-side near Taynuilt (NN 018324). The last is given on the map as Dùn Lèigh but is known locally for its connection to Deirdre. Other places in the Loch Etive area are also linked to Deirdre and the Sons of Uisne, as are Glen Massan and Glendaruel in Cowal.