362 FISH 



Amon^ fish, as among animals and birds, as we are tohl in 

 Skene's Celtic Allmn, there are leaders, and the term applied to 

 such is " ceann-snaoth," which refers particularly to the salmon, 

 "ceann-snaoth an eisg," leader of the fish, and " righ nan iasg," 

 king of the fish. A proverb or saying runs, " Chuir e'n car geal 

 dheth," he turned up his white side, as a fish does when he's 

 played out — this is said of a person dying. Fish hung exposed to 

 the light and influence of the moon acquire poisonous properties. 

 In addition to our own intimate acquaintance with this, " Nether 

 Lochaber " vouched for it as regards herrings. 



Numerous superstitions as to fishing luck, etc., it is generally 

 known, exist among Celts and Saxons. In Skye, for instance, it 

 is said that in river fishing, which is confined to the district north 

 of Broadford, if a woman crosses the water during the fishing the 

 luck is doomed. Some youngsters use certain expressions to tempt 

 luck when fish are not taking well, such as putting out their line in 

 the name of some particular person, generally, strange to say, a 

 woman, with the saying after referred to of " Ceann dearg air na 

 bheil a muigh," etc. It is thought unlucky to count a catch of 

 fish, or to take away any fish found dead upon the sea or seashore. 

 Herring fishers are said to be very superstitious ; they consider it 

 unlucky even to mention the names of certain people, when fishing 

 or going a-fishing, notably the name " Ross." This, it is surmised, 

 is the origin of bye-names, or as they are called in English tee or 

 to-names, so common in fishing settlements or villages. Such an 

 unlucky named individual is called in the north-east of Scotland 

 a " ChifFer-out." In Aberdeen the name Whyte lies under the 

 same ban or stigma. In a certain loch in Ireland, called " Lough- 

 a-dereen," the fish are held sacred, and fed formally on Whitsunday. 

 At Applecross there is a place called " AUt-na-raealg," where 

 large quantities of fish used to be gutted and cleaned. To dream 

 offish means a birth, or as grandiloquently put by a writer, "a 

 signal portent of the arrival or advent to this sublunary sphere of 

 an addition to the human species." The catching of fish in the 

 Highlands, as may be presumed, was followed out in the best and 

 readiest available way, but no record exists of foul means being 

 adopted. In Ireland, however, the natives were wont to poison 

 fishes by means of the sea-spurge or Buidhe-na-ningean, the 

 yellow (plant) of the waves — 7iin being an old Celtic word for 

 wave. 



From resemblance of name, crests have been granted to or 

 otherwise acquired by many families, inter alia, the following : Barbel, 

 Breame ; Chubb, Codd, Crabbe ; Dolphin (though not a fish) ; 

 Eales ; Fish, Fry ; Gougon ; Haddock, Hake, Herring, Hogan or 

 Hoggan (from " ugan," throat or gills) ; Karpfen ; Loach ; Mackerel, 

 Mullet ; Pike ; Roach ; Seal (not a fish) ; Shelley, Smelt, Spratt, 

 Sturgeon ; Tench, Troutbeck ; Whalley (mammal). Whiting ; while 

 the following are from local names : Butt (flounder) ; Carter (carter 



