Fenius Farsa
Encyclopedia
Fénius Farsaid is a legendary king of Scythia
who shows up in different versions of Irish folklore. He was the son of Bathath who was a son of Magog
. According to some traditions, he was the creator of the Ogham
alphabet and the Gaelic language.
According to recensions M and A of the Lebor Gabála Érenn
, Fénius and his son Nél
journeyed to the Tower of Babel
(in recension B, it is Rifath Scot son of Gomer instead). Nél, who was trained in many languages, married Scota
, daughter of Pharaoh
, and their son was Goidel Glas
.
In the Lebor Gabála Érenn (11th C), he is said to be one of the 72 chieftains who built Nimrod's
Tower of Babel
, but travelled to Scythia after the tower collapsed.
According to the Auraicept na n-Éces
, Fenius journeyed from Scythia together with Goídel mac Ethéoir, Íar mac Nema and a retinue of 72 scholars. They came to the plain of Shinar
to study the confused languages
at Nimrod's tower. Finding that they had already been dispersed, Fenius sent his scholars to study them, staying at the tower, coordinating the effort. After ten years, the investigations were complete, and Fenius created in Bérla tóbaide "the selected language", taking the best of each of the confused tongues, which he called Goídelc, Goidelic, after Goídel mac Ethéoir. He also created extensions of Goídelc, called Bérla Féne, after himself, Íarmberla, after Íar mac Nema, and others, and the Beithe-luis-nuin (the Ogham) as a perfected writing system for his languages. The names he gave to the letters were those of his 25 best scholars.
Auraicept
claims that Fenius Farsaidh discovered four alphabets, the Hebrew
, Greek
and Latin
ones, and finally the Ogham
, and that the Ogham is the most perfected because it was discovered last.
Scythia
In antiquity, Scythian or Scyths were terms used by the Greeks to refer to certain Iranian groups of horse-riding nomadic pastoralists who dwelt on the Pontic-Caspian steppe...
who shows up in different versions of Irish folklore. He was the son of Bathath who was a son of Magog
Magog
Magog may refer to:* Magog , a grandson of Noah in the Old Testament* Gog and Magog, a Biblical pair * Magog, Quebec, a town in southern Quebec, Canada...
. According to some traditions, he was the creator of the Ogham
Ogham
Ogham is an Early Medieval alphabet used primarily to write the Old Irish language, and occasionally the Brythonic language. Ogham is sometimes called the "Celtic Tree Alphabet", based on a High Medieval Bríatharogam tradition ascribing names of trees to the individual letters.There are roughly...
alphabet and the Gaelic language.
According to recensions M and A of the Lebor Gabála Érenn
Lebor Gabála Érenn
Lebor Gabála Érenn is the Middle Irish title of a loose collection of poems and prose narratives recounting the mythical origins and history of the Irish from the creation of the world down to the Middle Ages...
, Fénius and his son Nél
NEL
NEL or Nel may refer to:People:*André Nel , South African cricketer*Anton Nel , American classical pianist*Dewald Nel , Scottish cricketer...
journeyed to the Tower of Babel
Tower of Babel
The Tower of Babel , according to the Book of Genesis, was an enormous tower built in the plain of Shinar .According to the biblical account, a united humanity of the generations following the Great Flood, speaking a single language and migrating from the east, came to the land of Shinar, where...
(in recension B, it is Rifath Scot son of Gomer instead). Nél, who was trained in many languages, married Scota
Scota
Scota, in Irish mythology, Scottish mythology, and pseudohistory, is the name given to two different mythological daughters of two different Egyptian Pharaohs to whom the Gaels traced their ancestry, allegedly explaining the name Scoti, applied by the Romans to Irish raiders, and later to the Irish...
, daughter of Pharaoh
Pharaoh
Pharaoh is a title used in many modern discussions of the ancient Egyptian rulers of all periods. The title originates in the term "pr-aa" which means "great house" and describes the royal palace...
, and their son was Goidel Glas
Goídel Glas
In Irish and Scottish Medieval myth, Goídel Glas is the creator of the Goidelic languages and the eponymous ancestor of the Gaels.-Scotland:...
.
In the Lebor Gabála Érenn (11th C), he is said to be one of the 72 chieftains who built Nimrod's
Nimrod (king)
Nimrod is, according to the Book of Genesis and Books of Chronicles, the son of Cush and great-grandson of Noah and the king of Shinar. He is depicted in the Tanakh as a man of power in the earth, and a mighty hunter. Extra-Biblical traditions associating him with the Tower of Babel led to his...
Tower of Babel
Tower of Babel
The Tower of Babel , according to the Book of Genesis, was an enormous tower built in the plain of Shinar .According to the biblical account, a united humanity of the generations following the Great Flood, speaking a single language and migrating from the east, came to the land of Shinar, where...
, but travelled to Scythia after the tower collapsed.
According to the Auraicept na n-Éces
Auraicept na n-Éces
Auraicept na n-Éces is claimed as a 7th century work of Irish grammarians, written by a scholar named Longarad....
, Fenius journeyed from Scythia together with Goídel mac Ethéoir, Íar mac Nema and a retinue of 72 scholars. They came to the plain of Shinar
Shinar
Shinar was a geographical locale of uncertain boundaries in Mesopotamia. The name may be a corruption of Shene nahar , Shene or , or Sumer .It has been suggested that Shinar must have been confined to the northern part of Mesopotamia Shinar (Hebrew Šin`ar, Septuagint Σεννααρ Sennaar) was a...
to study the confused languages
Confusion of tongues
The confusion of tongues is the initial fragmentation of human languages described in the Book of Genesis 11:1–9, as a result of the construction of the Tower of Babel....
at Nimrod's tower. Finding that they had already been dispersed, Fenius sent his scholars to study them, staying at the tower, coordinating the effort. After ten years, the investigations were complete, and Fenius created in Bérla tóbaide "the selected language", taking the best of each of the confused tongues, which he called Goídelc, Goidelic, after Goídel mac Ethéoir. He also created extensions of Goídelc, called Bérla Féne, after himself, Íarmberla, after Íar mac Nema, and others, and the Beithe-luis-nuin (the Ogham) as a perfected writing system for his languages. The names he gave to the letters were those of his 25 best scholars.
Auraicept
Auraicept na n-Éces
Auraicept na n-Éces is claimed as a 7th century work of Irish grammarians, written by a scholar named Longarad....
claims that Fenius Farsaidh discovered four alphabets, the Hebrew
Hebrew alphabet
The Hebrew alphabet , known variously by scholars as the Jewish script, square script, block script, or more historically, the Assyrian script, is used in the writing of the Hebrew language, as well as other Jewish languages, most notably Yiddish, Ladino, and Judeo-Arabic. There have been two...
, Greek
Greek alphabet
The Greek alphabet is the script that has been used to write the Greek language since at least 730 BC . The alphabet in its classical and modern form consists of 24 letters ordered in sequence from alpha to omega...
and Latin
Latin alphabet
The Latin alphabet, also called the Roman alphabet, is the most recognized alphabet used in the world today. It evolved from a western variety of the Greek alphabet called the Cumaean alphabet, which was adopted and modified by the Etruscans who ruled early Rome...
ones, and finally the Ogham
Ogham
Ogham is an Early Medieval alphabet used primarily to write the Old Irish language, and occasionally the Brythonic language. Ogham is sometimes called the "Celtic Tree Alphabet", based on a High Medieval Bríatharogam tradition ascribing names of trees to the individual letters.There are roughly...
, and that the Ogham is the most perfected because it was discovered last.