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About the name
- Origin
- Irish
- English version
- Sweeney
- Variants
- Suibne
- Stronghold region
- Ulster
Overview
Suibhne Geilt (Mad Sweeney), 7th-century king of Dál nAraidi who, cursed by Saint Rónán, went mad at the Battle of Mag Rath and lived as a bird-man in the wild; subject of the medieval tale 'Buile Suibhne'.
The story behind Suibhne
His madness inspired the great Old Irish text Buile Suibhne — and the title poem of Seamus Heaney's Sweeney Astray.
Mythology & legend
Suibhne Geilt, the mad king of Dál nAraidi.
Did you know?
Driven mad at the Battle of Mag Rath in 637, he lived among the trees as a feathered bird-man.
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