Cla7'e Island Survey — Place- Names and Family Names. 3 11 



was caused by the oppression they suffered from the Gaelic ascendancy. The 

 tract on the plebeian communities 1 says: — "From these a bondage-rent of 

 service accrued over the free race of Ireland. That is to say, the free races 

 deprived them of the lands on which they served ; and they decayed, and the 

 free races encroached upon them and took their land from them, so that the 

 servile rent thenceforth was attached to the free races, being fixed upon their 

 lands. 2 For all the men of Ireland are free except the people we have 

 enumerated." Among those enumerated is Tuath Mace n-'Umor, plebsfiliorwm 

 'Umoir, already mentioned and hereinafter to be mentioned in connexion with 

 Clare Island and the district of Clew Bay. If these accounts are legendary, 

 they come nevertheless from writers who were familiar with the relations 

 between patricians and plebeians in their own time. Like things happened 

 at a less remote period than that of which these stories are told. 



O'Donovan, in a note on Ui Maine, "Book of Bights," p. 106, cites a life of 

 St. Greallan to the effect that " Duach (recte Dui) Galach, the third Christian 

 king of Connacht, permitted them to dispossess Cian, the Firbolg king of the 

 district, which was then called Mag Sein-cheineoil." The dispossessed people 

 was named Tuath Sen-cheneoil (" the Tuath of the Ancient Kindred "), and is 

 one of those named in the list of the plebeian peoples (BB 255 a 24). 



Annals of Ulster, a.d. 551 (=552). " Bellum Cuilne in quo ceciderunt 

 Corcu Oche Muman (' of Munster ') orationibus Itae Cluano (' of Saint Ita of 

 Cluain Ciedail')." The Corcu Oche (Corc[o] Oige) are named in the list of 

 plebeian peoples, 1. 15. 



lb. A.D. 751 (= 752). " The annihilation of the Brecrige by Cenel Coirpri 

 in Telach Findin." The Brecrige are named in the list of plebeian peoples, 

 1. 20. Cenel Coirpri was a sept of the Ui Neill. " The annihilation of the 

 Caillrige of Lorg by the Ui Briiiin." The Caillrige (Cailraige) are named in 

 the list of plebeian peoples, 1. 12. The Ui Briuin, akin to the Ui Neill, were 

 the dominant sept in eastern Connacht. 



lb. a.d. 752 (= 753). " The killing of the Ui Ailella by the Greceraige." 

 This was a revolt. The Greceraige were a plebeian people (Tuath Cregraighe, 

 list, 1. 26) partly settled under the Ui Ailella (BB 256 a 13), who were akin 

 to the Ui Briuin, and occupied Tir Ailella (= Tirerrill barony, Sligo). 



lb. a.d. 776 (=777). "Strages Calraigi la Hu Fiachrach " ("by the 



'lb. 255a: "Of the names of the rent-paying communities (aithechthuatha) and of their 

 distribution throughout Ireland, according to the Book of Glenndaloclia." 



2 The " Book of Rights " gives several instances of free peoples to whose lands a servile rent was 

 attached: the Deisi of Munster, p. 51 ; the Luighne of Connacht, p. 105 ; the Delbna and the TJi 

 Maini of Connacht, p. 107. To the list of tributes to the king of the Ulaidh (p. 168) is appended the 

 statement : " These are his food-rents {Hatha) from his free peoples (saer-thuatha), not mentioning 

 his servile communities (daer-thuatha) ." 



B2 



