Diarmait Ó Cobhthaigh, Irish

Irish people

The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...

 poet

Poet

A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...

, fl. 1584.

Ó Cobhthaigh

Ó Cobhthaigh

-Overview:Ó Cobhthaigh was the name of an Irish Brehon family from what is now County Westmeath and County Longford.There were at least three other families of the name, located in the regions of Limerick-Kerry, Down, west Cork, and Galway....

 was a member of a hereditary bard

Bard

In medieval Gaelic and British culture a bard was a professional poet, employed by a patron, such as a monarch or nobleman, to commemorate the patron's ancestors and to praise the patron's own activities.Originally a specific class of poet, contrasting with another class known as fili in Ireland...

ic family, based in what is now County Westmeath

County Westmeath

-Economy:Westmeath has a strong agricultural economy. Initially, development occurred around the major market centres of Mullingar, Moate, and Kinnegad. Athlone developed due to its military significance, and its strategic location on the main Dublin–Galway route across the River Shannon. Mullingar...

 but was once the heartland of the original kingdom of Mide. The family were from the district known as Fir Thulach.

Dairmait was the author of a lament

Lament

A lament or lamentation is a song, poem, or piece of music expressing grief, regret, or mourning.-History:Many of the oldest and most lasting poems in human history have been laments. Laments are present in both the Iliad and the Odyssey, and laments continued to be sung in elegiacs accompanied by...

 for his murdered relative, Uaithne Ó Cobhthaigh

Uaithne Ó Cobhthaigh

-Biography:Ó Cobhthaigh was a member of a hereditary bardic family based in what is now County Westmeath. His father's name was William.According to the Annals of the Four Masters, in 1556 Owny, the son of William O'Coffey, the most learned in Ireland in poetry, was treacherously slain at night, at...

 (died 1556), which begins Dá néll orcha ós iath Uisnigh/Two clouds of woe over the land of Uisneach. His other work included five theological poems:

• Díon cloinne a n-éec a n-athar ("Safeguard of children in the death of their father"), which consisted of one hundred and sixty verses.
• Fiú a bheatha bás tighearna ("The cost of life the death of a lord")
• Mairg as aidhne a n-aghaidh breithimh ("Alas! the pleader is facing the judge")
• Mairg nach taithigh go teacgh ríogh ("Alas! that I did not go to the king's house")
• Deacair aidhneas earca ríogh ("A powerful argument the tributes of a king")

Extant versions of some of these poems are held by the Royal Irish Academy

Royal Irish Academy

The Royal Irish Academy , based in Dublin, is an all-Ireland, independent, academic body that promotes study and excellence in the sciences, humanities and social sciences. It is one of Ireland's premier learned societies and cultural institutions and currently has around 420 Members, elected in...

.