Aonach Urmhumhan / The Fair of Ormond, A talk by Dr Catherine Swift in the restored 18th Century Rathurles House followed by a walk to the rath at the original site of Aonach Urmhumhan, Saturday 10th October, 12:00pm, Rathurles House, Rathurles, Nenagh, E45 HH77, €20 (including a reception on arrival and bus transfer from Streame Retail Park. NB Access via bus transfer only )
The tenth-century text, Bethu Phátraic gives a detailed description of St Patrick’s activities in north Munster finishing with his visit to the people of Urmhumhan. This is one of the texts which allows us to identify the existence of the kingdom and its interactions with the neighbouring communities. This is important information when considering the local óenach as these were quintessentially community affairs, drawing people together from the entire surrounding area. They were usually held in the same designated spot every year and were marked by a wide range of activities from horse-racing to poetry-recitals and music competitions, marriages to tax-collecting and all points in between. Just as is the case of festivals today, they were (mostly!) joyous occasions of celebration and consolidation of a shared sense of community identity and tradition.
Dr Catherine Swift is a lecturer in Medieval Studies in Mary Immaculate College, Limerick. While secretary of the Thomond Archaeological Society she was one of the editors for their volume of essays on Limerick and Clare history entitled Limestone and River (Four Courts Press 2024). Her expertise is in the history and archaeology of early medieval Ireland on which she has published extensively. She is currently a Government of Ireland Scholar working on a second Ph.D on New Testament texts in the ninth-century Book of Armagh in TCD.
Note: The walk to the rath is over rough ground so please wear suitable clothing and footwear.
This talk is courtesy of Faye & Andrew Coman.