Background

Ó hUiginn was a member of a 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...

-based family of bards. His father was Conn Crosach, but nothing else is known of his place within the family, or where he lived. His obituary in the Annals of Ulster

Annals of Ulster

The Annals of Ulster are annals of medieval Ireland. The entries span the years between AD 431 to AD 1540. The entries up to AD 1489 were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luinín, under his patron Cathal Óg Mac Maghnusa on the island of Belle Isle on Lough Erne in the...

 describes him as an observanntine Franciscan

Franciscan

Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....

 brother. His membership of this order led to his nickname bocht (poor), as the Franciscans observed vows of poverty

Poverty

Poverty is the lack of a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or destitution is inability to afford basic human needs, which commonly includes clean and fresh water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter. About 1.7 billion people are estimated to live...

.

Poems

O hUiginn's poetry is exclusively religious. Clearly highly trained, he utilised the strict dan direach form of classical modern Irish. Much of his verse used complex and very difficult metres with ease and to good effect. Frequently invoking Saint Francis and Saint Michael, they however show little of theology

Theology

Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...

 and are more of a type associated with lay bards. They give almost no glimpse of his personal life and times. His compositions however enjoyed a high leval of popularity among fellow poets in his lifetime,

Twenty-eight poems are ascribed to him. Twenty-seven are in McKenna's 1931 edition, while poem 58 of Dioghluin dana gives him as its author in one manuscript.

O hUiginn was further distinguished by been the first Irish poet to have his work published in Gaelic

Goidelic languages

The Goidelic languages or Gaelic languages are one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic languages, the other consisting of the Brythonic languages. Goidelic languages historically formed a dialect continuum stretching from the south of Ireland through the Isle of Man to the north of Scotland...

. Tuar feirge foighide De was published in Irish script in Dublin in 1571.

Obituary

O hUiginn's death was noted in the Annals of Ulster

Annals of Ulster

The Annals of Ulster are annals of medieval Ireland. The entries span the years between AD 431 to AD 1540. The entries up to AD 1489 were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luinín, under his patron Cathal Óg Mac Maghnusa on the island of Belle Isle on Lough Erne in the...

, sub anno 1487. It accorded him the status of best and most prolific composer of religious verse "in recent times", again suggestive of his popularity in his lifetime. His place of death is unknown.

See also

• Tadg Óg Ó hÚigínn
  Tadg Óg Ó hÚigínn
  Tadg Óg Ó hÚigínn, Irish poet, died 1448.-Life and background:Ó hÚigínn was a member of a well-known Irish family of bards, based in Connacht. His father, Tadhg, died in 1391, while all that is known of his mother is her first name, Aine. He had an elder brother, Fearghal Ruadh O hUiginn, who's...
  
  
• Tadhg Dall Ó hÚigínn
  Tadhg Dall Ó hÚigínn
  -Background:One of the most well-known of the late-Gaelic era poets, he was a member of a family of professional poets from north Connacht. He was called dall because he was blind. His mother's name is unknown. His father was Mathghamhain mac Maolhmuire, directly descended from Tadg Óg Ó hÚigínn ....
  
  
• Tadhg Mór Ó hUiginn
  Tadhg Mór Ó hUiginn
  Tadhg Mór Ó hUiginn, Irish poet.Ó hUiginn was a member of a highly regarded Connacht family of bards. His surviving poems include:* Gach éan mar a adhbha* Slán fat fholcadh-See also:* Tadg Óg Ó hÚigínn* Tadhg Dall Ó hÚigínn...
  
  
• Gilla na Neamh Ó h-Uiginn
  Gilla na Neamh Ó h-Uiginn
  Gilla na Neamh Ó h-Uiginn, Irish poet, died 1349.Gilla na Neamh was member of the Ó hUiginn family of poets and historians, based in Connacht....
  
  , d.1349
• Maol Sheachluinn na n-Uirsgéal Ó hUiginn
  Maol Sheachluinn na n-Uirsgéal Ó hUiginn
  Maol Sheachluinn na n-Uirsgéal Ó hUiginn, Irish poet, fl. c. 1400.Ó hÚigínn was a member of a well-known Irish family of bards, based in Connacht...
  
  

External links

• http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/surname/index.cfm?fuseaction=Go.&UserID=
• http://celt.ucc.ie/published/G402081/index.html
• http://bill.celt.dias.ie/vol4/index.php?letter=o&typeID=1