Furbaide Ferbend
Encyclopedia
Furbaide Ferbend is a character from the Ulster Cycle
of Irish mythology
. His father is Conchobar mac Nessa
, king of the Ulaid
. His mother is one of the daughters of Eochu Feidlech, the High King of Ireland
: in the saga Cath Boinde ("the battle of the Boyne
) and the Dindsenchas
poem "Carn Furbaide" she is Eithne, in the saga Aided Meidbe ("the death of Medb") she is Clothru. Eochu gave several of his daughters to Conchobar in marriage in compensation for Conchobar's supposed father, the former High King Fachtna Fáthach
, whom Eochu had killed in the Battle of Leitir Ruad. In the sagas Furbaide's mother is murdered by her sister Medb
, Conchobar's former wife and the future queen of Connacht
, in the poem by her nephew Lugaid Riab nDerg
, and her child is born by posthumous Caesarian section.
Cath Boinde explains the name Furbaide as deriving from Old Irish urbad, "cutting", and says his original name was Diarmaid. According to the Dindsenchas poem he had two horns on his head, hence his epithet ferbend, "horned man". The glossary Cóir Anmann ("fitness of names") says the horns – two of silver and one of gold – were on his helmet.
At the age of seventeen he fights in Conchobar's army in the Battle of Gáirech and Ilgáirech at the end of the Táin Bó Cúailnge
("cattle raid of Cooley
"). In the saga Mesca Ulad ("the intoxication of the Ulaid"), where he is said to be Cúchulainn
's foster-son
, he fights against the Erna
, but he is so beautiful none of them can bring themselves to wound him. After Conchobar's death his son Cúscraid Mend Macha succeeds him as king of the Ulaid, and gives his brother Furbaide the regions of northern and southern Tethbae
.
In later life, according to Aided Meidbe, he avenges his mother's death. Medb had taken to bathing in a pool on an island. Furbaide measures the distance from the pool to the shore with a rope, and practices with his sling until he can hit an apple on top of a stake from that distance. The next time he sees Medb bathing, he shoots the nearest missile to hand – a piece of cheese – at her, and kills her. In the Dindsenchas poem he kills the mother of Lugaid Riab nDerg, and Lugaid pursues and kills him in revenge.
Ulster Cycle
The Ulster Cycle , formerly known as the Red Branch Cycle, one of the four great cycles of Irish mythology, is a body of medieval Irish heroic legends and sagas of the traditional heroes of the Ulaid in what is now eastern Ulster and northern Leinster, particularly counties Armagh, Down and...
of Irish mythology
Irish mythology
The mythology of pre-Christian Ireland did not entirely survive the conversion to Christianity, but much of it was preserved, shorn of its religious meanings, in medieval Irish literature, which represents the most extensive and best preserved of all the branch and the Historical Cycle. There are...
. His father is Conchobar mac Nessa
Conchobar mac Nessa
Conchobar mac Nessa was the king of Ulster in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. He ruled from Emain Macha .-Birth:...
, king of the Ulaid
Ulaid
The Ulaid or Ulaidh were a people of early Ireland who gave their name to the modern province of Ulster...
. His mother is one of the daughters of Eochu Feidlech, the High King of Ireland
High King of Ireland
The High Kings of Ireland were sometimes historical and sometimes legendary figures who had, or who are claimed to have had, lordship over the whole of Ireland. Medieval and early modern Irish literature portrays an almost unbroken sequence of High Kings, ruling from Tara over a hierarchy of...
: in the saga Cath Boinde ("the battle of the Boyne
River Boyne
The River Boyne is a river in Leinster, Ireland, the course of which is about long. It rises at Trinity Well, Newbury Hall, near Carbury, County Kildare, and flows towards the Northeast through County Meath to reach the Irish Sea between Mornington, County Meath and Baltray, County Louth. Salmon...
) and the Dindsenchas
Dindsenchas
Dindsenchas or Dindshenchas , meaning "lore of places" is a class of onomastic text in early Irish literature, recounting the origins of place-names and traditions concerning events and characters associates with the places in question...
poem "Carn Furbaide" she is Eithne, in the saga Aided Meidbe ("the death of Medb") she is Clothru. Eochu gave several of his daughters to Conchobar in marriage in compensation for Conchobar's supposed father, the former High King Fachtna Fáthach
Fachtna Fáthach
Fachtna Fáthach , son of Cas , son of Rudraige, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland. He came to power when he defeated the previous High King, Dui Dallta Dedad, in the battle of Árd Brestine...
, whom Eochu had killed in the Battle of Leitir Ruad. In the sagas Furbaide's mother is murdered by her sister Medb
Medb
Medb – Middle Irish: Meḋḃ, Meaḋḃ; early modern Irish: Meadhbh ; reformed modern Irish Méabh, Medbh; sometimes Anglicised Maeve, Maev or Maive – is queen of Connacht in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology...
, Conchobar's former wife and the future queen of Connacht
Connacht
Connacht , formerly anglicised as Connaught, is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the west of Ireland. In Ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for...
, in the poem by her nephew Lugaid Riab nDerg
Lugaid Riab nDerg
Lugaid Riab nDerg or Réoderg , son of the three findemna, triplet sons of Eochu Feidlech, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland.-Conception:...
, and her child is born by posthumous Caesarian section.
Cath Boinde explains the name Furbaide as deriving from Old Irish urbad, "cutting", and says his original name was Diarmaid. According to the Dindsenchas poem he had two horns on his head, hence his epithet ferbend, "horned man". The glossary Cóir Anmann ("fitness of names") says the horns – two of silver and one of gold – were on his helmet.
At the age of seventeen he fights in Conchobar's army in the Battle of Gáirech and Ilgáirech at the end of the Táin Bó Cúailnge
Táin Bó Cúailnge
is a legendary tale from early Irish literature, often considered an epic, although it is written primarily in prose rather than verse. It tells of a war against Ulster by the Connacht queen Medb and her husband Ailill, who intend to steal the stud bull Donn Cuailnge, opposed only by the teenage...
("cattle raid of Cooley
Cooley peninsula
The Cooley Peninsula is a hilly peninsula in County Louth, Ireland, which includes towns such as Omeath, Carlingford and Greenore.-Geography:...
"). In the saga Mesca Ulad ("the intoxication of the Ulaid"), where he is said to be Cúchulainn
Cúchulainn
Cú Chulainn or Cúchulainn , and sometimes known in English as Cuhullin , is an Irish mythological hero who appears in the stories of the Ulster Cycle, as well as in Scottish and Manx folklore...
's foster-son
Fosterage
Fosterage, the practice of a family bringing up a child not their own, differs from adoption in that the child's parents, not the foster-parents, remain the acknowledged parents. In many modern western societies foster care can be organised by the state to care for children with troubled family...
, he fights against the Erna
Iverni
The Iverni were a people of early Ireland first mentioned in Ptolemy's 2nd century Geography as living in the extreme south-west of the island. He also locates a "city" called Ivernis in their territory, and observes that this settlement has the same name as the island as a whole, Ivernia...
, but he is so beautiful none of them can bring themselves to wound him. After Conchobar's death his son Cúscraid Mend Macha succeeds him as king of the Ulaid, and gives his brother Furbaide the regions of northern and southern Tethbae
Tethbae
Tethbae, also Tethba and other variants, and often anglicized Teffia, was a region of Ireland in the Middle Ages. It was divided into two distinct kingdoms, north Tethba, ruled by the Cenél Coirpri, and south Tethba, ruled by the Cenél Maini...
.
In later life, according to Aided Meidbe, he avenges his mother's death. Medb had taken to bathing in a pool on an island. Furbaide measures the distance from the pool to the shore with a rope, and practices with his sling until he can hit an apple on top of a stake from that distance. The next time he sees Medb bathing, he shoots the nearest missile to hand – a piece of cheese – at her, and kills her. In the Dindsenchas poem he kills the mother of Lugaid Riab nDerg, and Lugaid pursues and kills him in revenge.