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From: "brian quinn" <>
Subject: RE: NW Irish Variety and Cenel Conall, part IIreply
Date: Tue, 4 Apr 2006 14:30:34 +1000
In-Reply-To: X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2900.2180






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Alan, Hi.



Interesting what you write about the Ivogenos ('son of yew') or cult of the
yew.



Eogan means son of yew so Eogannachta means tribe or sept of the Sons of the
Yew. Red sided tree of Tortu is yew because it is a red timber. The walls of
Tara were red because I think they were made of Yew. But also yew is the
best bow wood because if you cut it so that it has red heart wood on one
side and white sapwood on the other you have a natural composite bow, that
shoots way further than other wood. So when they talk about The Ulster
warriors of the Red Branch maybe means Archers. And maybe you hung up your
bow on the walls of Tara. But probably they just thought it a neat tree.
They used Elm for bows mostly I think.



Maybe the red wood of the Yew just looks like blood- soaked wood.





I think all this stuff predates all the celts and shows the totem of the
various Mesolithic Neolithic groups. Like in Australia- the tribes still
have their totem animal. A man has to find a wife from another totem. So the
Emu man has to find a Wallaby woman etc. The totems are matri lineal and you
have rights to get food in your mother's totem land area. In parts of
Australia these areas are huge in comparison to Ireland



From http://arts.anu.edu.au/aesatc/case_studies/yuwaaliyaay.html



"Modes of governance bore similarities to the previous regions; neighbouring
groups cooperated in performing Bora initiation rites associated with
Baiame, but participants identified by matri-group totems as well as
locality. Section identity formed a basis for the organisation of the
ceremonies, and enabled people of a wide region to interact. Resources of
male power included the wirreenun roles as well as the role of matri-group
elder. My impression is that gender relations were relatively equal."



The Bora Ring is a round area where dancing in a circle wears down a trench.
Now I think that is what was the start of places like Stonehenge, Navan etc.
The male initiation is the largest gathering and prob gathering leads to
election etc of the Wirreenun. So a male leader in a Matri lineal/totem
society.



The Mesolithic people hunted horses, boar etc and these totems I think are
preserved in the Irish system. O Neill being horse, but also the Echach Cobo
of Antrim is the horse. Cuchaillin means Dog of Ulster I notice below there
is a Connail Cu Connail of the Dog.



You didn't need all that many totems to divide the people's of a continent-
it is the 4 colour theory. You only need 4 colours or totems to make sure no
adjacent tribe has the same totem. So Dog (Cu), Horse (Echach) , Deer
(cabrach), Wild Boar ( Torc and Orkos and Muc) Let's add Yew Tree (Eogan) 5
should do it. Now that is the matri lineal line of course and should appear
all over Ireland in a 4 colour/name/totem mosaic. Specially after 5000 years
or so. (Could Cabrach be a form of Cairpre?)



So maybe the Eogannachta are a totem based on Yew tree. In which case it is
matri lineal and may be all over Ireland. And as a man of the Eogan you have
to marry a woman of the Echach or one of the others.





Brian Quinn


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