Lí Ban (mermaid)
Flood-drowned woman, turned mermaid, then baptized as a saint.
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In the legend of Lough Neagh's formation, a woman named Lí Ban was transformed into a mermaid.[1] After 300 years as a mermaid, she was taken and baptised by Comgall.[2][3] Upon baptism she received the name Muirgein ("sea-born") and instantly died, going up to heaven.[3][4]
Quick Facts
- Also known as
- Muirgein
- Muirgeilt
- Saint Muirgen
- Nationality
- Irish
- Feast day
- 27 January
- Father
- Eochaid
- Place of capture
- strand of Ollarbha (River Larne or Inver River, Larne)
- Baptized by
- St. Comgall
Facts from the source article.
Life and work
There she was captured in a fishnet and baptised by Comgall.[3] The Annals of the Four Masters records her capture in the year 558 AD.[5] Her capturer Béoán was a monastery member on a mission to Rome when he encountered her.[6] For one year she lived in a submerged chamber, then changed into a form that was half human and half salmon.[2]
Her small dog turned into an otter; for three centuries she swam the oceans while still residing under that lake.[2] In the era of Comgall, a boat passing by heard her angelic singing.[2] She agreed to appear after twelve months at the coastal inlet called Inbhear nOllarbha.[3] Two oxen pulling her chariot resolved a conflict over her burial by conveying her to Dabeoc's monastery.[6][7]
What the cited sources add
The Annals of Ulster gives brief notice of her capture under the year 571.[5] Her feast day is assigned to 27 January in genealogies of Irish saints.[3] In exchange for a Christian soul, she gave up an additional three centuries of life.[4]
References
- Wikipedia, "Lí Ban (mermaid)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Carney, James, "The Earliest Bran Material", in: Bernd Naumann (ed.), Latin Script and Letters A. D. 400–900, 1976, p. 188.; Koch, John, Celtic Culture, ABC-CLIO, 2006, p. 1608.; MacKillop, "Dictionary of Celtic Mythology", Oxford University Press, 1998, p. 297 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Lí Ban (mermaid)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: : "spends 300 years living in Loch nEchach"; : See the verse Lí Ban chants in the text (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Lí Ban (mermaid)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: O'Donovan 1856, p. '''I''', p. 201–202; Imhoff 2008, p. p. 114 note 37; MacKillop, "Dictionary of Celtic Mythology", Oxford University Press, 1998, p. 297 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Lí Ban (mermaid)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: O'Grady 1892, p. 265–9; Imhoff 2008, p. p. 114 note 37; Vries 2007, p. 42 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Lí Ban (mermaid)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: O'Donovan 1856, p. '''I''', p. 201–202; O'Donovan 1856, p. '''I''', p. 201–202 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Lí Ban (mermaid)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Imhoff 2008, p. p. 114 note 37 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Lí Ban (mermaid)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: O'Donovan 1856, p. '''I''', p. 201–202; Imhoff 2008, p. p. 114 note 37 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Lí Ban (mermaid) (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
More in Supernatural beings identified with Christian saints
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Lí Ban (mermaid) (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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