Placenames, Politics, Settlement and Society in Medieval Argyll, c.AD 400–1400
Talk by Russell Ó Ríagáin
Given online by Kilmartin University, on November 17, 2022
Abstract: This lecture will take a broad view of the evidence that placenames can provide for exploring the history of Atlantic Scotland by investigating them in tandem with historical and archaeological evidence. Having begun with an introduction to sources and methods, it will continue by using placenames to locate the group of dynasties collectively referred to as the Dál Riata, drawing on a range of sources: annals and chronicles, saints’ lives, genealogies, and collections of medieval scholarship. Developments in the ecclesiastical landscape will also be treated. The lecture will then examine what seems to be the biggest rupture in the settlement history of the region, which saw the decline of the use of long traditions of enclosed settlement and the appearance of a large number of farm names derived from Old Norse rather than Gaelic. It will then move onto an era bookended by the emergence of Somerled of Argyll, his sons and their descendants, and closed by the settlement of the Great Cause in the time of the Bruces and Stewarts. Taking such a long-term approach has many benefits, as it emphasises the cycles of change at work over several centuries and throws up some surprising results, as will be discussed.
Placenames, Politics, Settlement and Society in Medieval Argyll, c.AD 400–1400
Talk by Russell Ó Ríagáin
Given online by Kilmartin University, on November 17, 2022
Abstract: This lecture will take a broad view of the evidence that placenames can provide for exploring the history of Atlantic Scotland by investigating them in tandem with historical and archaeological evidence. Having begun with an introduction to sources and methods, it will continue by using placenames to locate the group of dynasties collectively referred to as the Dál Riata, drawing on a range of sources: annals and chronicles, saints’ lives, genealogies, and collections of medieval scholarship. Developments in the ecclesiastical landscape will also be treated. The lecture will then examine what seems to be the biggest rupture in the settlement history of the region, which saw the decline of the use of long traditions of enclosed settlement and the appearance of a large number of farm names derived from Old Norse rather than Gaelic. It will then move onto an era bookended by the emergence of Somerled of Argyll, his sons and their descendants, and closed by the settlement of the Great Cause in the time of the Bruces and Stewarts. Taking such a long-term approach has many benefits, as it emphasises the cycles of change at work over several centuries and throws up some surprising results, as will be discussed.
Russell Ó Ríagáin is a Post Doctoral Researcher at University College Dublin. Click here to visit his academia.edu page or follow Russell on Twitter @Rusticulus_R
Top Image: Detail from the Gough Map showing Argyll
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