Re: The Chant on the Dog's Grave

On Wed, 21 Feb 2001 00:14:15 +0000, kam@CARROT.CLARA.NET wrote:

>On Monday 19th Feb. 2001 Jeff Jones <jeffsjones@...> wrote:
>
>> Re: The Chant on the Dog's Grave
>
>>> Corrections to my previous post in this thread :
>
>>> For "Slaves" read "Slavs" no insult intended, genuine typo -- sorry!
>>> (sounds like 1066 And All That, 'for sausages read hostages ...')
>
>> My favorite standard history reference.
>
>I particularly like the description of how Bruce overcame the English
>knight at Bannockburn, which isn't in fact too far from the truth!
Yes, and the skotch map is very helpful!
I still have one question: since a bannock is a cake and "burn" is "burn",
where was King Arthur during all of this?

Jeff

>> [snip]
>>> So could the Dog's Grave have begun as a spoof on the sort of poems
>>> composed in praise of fallen heros? Someone perhaps who died raiding
>>> cattle (meat) from the neighbouring clann?
>
>> You mean a "1066" style version of "Tain Bo' Cuailge" (or however
>> it's spelled!)
>
>Nearly right, "Tain Bo Cuailnge" with acutes on the first "a", "o" & "u",
>but I was thinking of something a bit shorter than 4920 lines, more
>like say, Marwnad Owain ab Urien.
>
>I think nicking the neighbours' cattle was all part of our rich IE
>heritage, although I admit that from the great bull Cuailnge Donn to
>a string of sausages is a bit of a come-down (but nevertheless the
>fate of most domestic bovids). Maybe it should be a string of
>hostages :-)
>
>Interesting though, the main protaganist of TBC, Cu Chulainn, has
>like many Celtic warriors, a name that literally means "dog"!
>
>Keith
>
>P.S. Is anyone else up for translating these timeless verses?

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