{{Short description|People of mixed Gaelic and Norse heritage}} {{EngvarB|date=October 2013}} {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2023}} {{multiple image|caption_align=center|header_align=center | align = right | direction = vertical | width = 250 | header = Norse settlement | image1 = Kingdom of Mann and the Isles-en.svg | alt1 = | caption1 = | image2 = Viking Ireland.png | alt2 = | caption2 = Regions of Scotland, Ireland and Man settled by the Norse }} The '''Norse–Gaels''' ({{langx|sga|Gall-Goídil}}; {{langx|ga|Gall-Ghaeil}}; {{langx|gd|Gall-Gàidheal}}; {{langx|gv|Goal-Gael}}, 'foreigner-Gaels') were a people of mixed [[Gaels|Gaelic]] and [[Norsemen|Norse]] ancestry and culture. They emerged in the [[Viking Age]], when [[Vikings]] who [[History of Ireland (800–1169)|settled in Ireland]] and [[Scandinavian Scotland|in Scotland]] became [[Gaelicisation|Gaelicised]] and intermarried with [[Gaels]]. The Norse–Gaels dominated much of the [[Irish Sea]] and [[Inner Seas off the West Coast of Scotland|Scottish Sea]] regions from the [[9th century|9th]] to [[12th century|12th centuries]]. They founded the [[Kingdom of the Isles]] (which included the [[Hebrides]] and the [[Isle of Man]]), the [[Kingdom of Dublin]], the [[Lord of Galloway|Lordship of Galloway]] (which is named after them), and briefly ruled the [[Kingdom of York]] (939–944 AD). The most powerful Norse–Gaelic dynasty were the [[Uí Ímair]] or Ivar dynasty.
Over time, the Norse–Gaels became ever more [[Gaelicisation|Gaelicised]] and disappeared as a distinct group. However, they left a lasting influence, especially in the Isle of Man and [[Outer Hebrides]], where most placenames are of Norse–Gaelic origin. Several [[Scottish clan]]s have Norse–Gaelic roots, such as Clan MacSween, [[Clan Donald|Clan MacDonald]], [[Clan MacDougall]] and [[Clan MacLeod]].<!--three names is enough for the lead--> The elite mercenary warriors known as the [[gallowglass]] ({{lang|ga|gallóglaigh}}) emerged from these Norse–Gaelic clans and became an important part of Irish warfare. The Viking [[longship]] also influenced the Gaelic {{lang|gd|[[birlinn]]}} and {{lang|ga|[[Irish galley|longa fada]]}}, which were used extensively until the 17th century. Norse–Gaelic surnames survive today and include [[Mac Íomhair|MacIvor]], [[MacAskill (disambiguation)|MacAskill]], and [[Cotter family|[Mac]Cotter]].<!--three example names are enough for the lead.-->
==Name== The meaning of {{lang|ga|Gall-Goídil}} is 'Foreign[er] Gaels' and although it can in theory mean any Gael of foreign origin, it was used of Gaels (i.e. Gaelic-speakers) with some kind of Norse identity.{{Citation needed|date=June 2022}} This term is subject to a large range of variations depending on chronological and geographical differences in the [[Goidelic languages|Gaelic language]], e.g. ''Gall Gaidel, Gall Gaidhel, Gall Gaidheal, Gall Gaedil, Gall Gaedhil, Gall Gaedhel, Gall Goidel, Gall Ghaedheil'', etc. The modern term in Irish is ''Gall-Ghaeil'' or ''Gall-Ghaedheil'', while the Scottish Gaelic is ''Gall-Ghàidheil''.<ref>[[Clare Downham]]. [http://www.abdn.ac.uk/staffpages/uploads/cel049/MEdScand.pdf ''Hiberno-Norwegians and Anglo-Danes:anachronistic ethnicities and Viking-Age England'']. University of Aberdeen.</ref>
The Norse–Gaels often called themselves Ostmen or Austmen, meaning East-men, a name preserved in a corrupted form in the [[Dublin]] area known as [[Oxmantown]] which comes from Austmanna-tún (homestead of the Eastmen).{{Citation needed|date=June 2022}} In contrast, they called Gaels Vestmenn (West-men) (see [[Vestmannaeyjar]] and [[Vestmanna]]).{{Citation needed|date=June 2022}}
Other terms for the Norse–Gaels are '''Norse-Irish''', '''Hiberno-Norse''' or '''Hiberno-Scandinavian''' for those in Ireland, and '''Norse-Scots''' or '''Scoto-Norse''' for those in Scotland.
==History== [[File:Skuldelev II.jpg|thumb|right|Skuldelev II, a Viking warship built in the Norse–Gaelic community of [[Dublin]] ({{circa}} 1042)]] [[File:MacDonald of the Isles (MacIan).jpg|thumb|[[R. R. McIan]]'s impression of a Norse–Gaelic ruler of [[Clan Donald|Clan MacDonald]], Lord of the Isles]] The Norse–Gaels originated in [[Viking]] colonies of Ireland and Scotland, the descendants of intermarriage between Norse immigrants and the Gaels. As early as the 9th century, many colonists (except the [[Norsemen|Norse]] who settled in [[Cumbria]]) intermarried with native [[Gaels]] and adopted the [[Middle Irish language|Gaelic language]] as well as many Gaelic customs. Many left their original worship of [[Norse mythology|Norse gods]] and converted to [[Christianity]], and this contributed to the [[Gaelicisation]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.asncvikingage.com/key-written-sources#:~:text=The%20Saga%20of%20the%20People,upon%20by%20subsequent%20Icelandic%20scholars | title=Key Primary Sources }}</ref>
Gaelicised Scandinavians dominated the region of the Irish Sea until the [[Normans|Norman]] era of the 12th century. They founded long-lasting kingdoms, such as those of [[Isle of Man|Mann]], [[Kings of Dublin|Dublin]], and [[Lords of Galloway|Galloway]],<ref name=Charles-Edwards>{{cite book|last=Charles-Edwards |first=T. M. |title=Wales and the Britons, 350–1064 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AK_yn7Q3_x0C&pg=PA573 |date=2013 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=9780198217312 |page=573 |quote=The Gallgaedil of 12th-century Galloway appear to have been predominantly Gaelic-speakers...remained a people separate from the Scots...Their separateness seems to have been established not by language but by their links with Man, Dublin, and the ''Innsi Gall'', the Hebrides: they were part of a Hiberno-Norse Irish-Sea world}}</ref> as well as taking control of the Norse colony at [[Kings of Jorvik|York]].
===Ireland=== {{main|History of Ireland (800–1169)|Early Scandinavian Dublin}} [[File:Irishman of Nordic type.jpg|thumb|In 1873, [[Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland]] shows an [[Irishman]] as an example of the Nordic type.]] The Norse are first recorded in Ireland in 795<ref>{{cite book |last=De Breffny |first=Brian |author-link= |date=1983 |title=Ireland: A Cultural Encyclopedia |url= |location=London |publisher=Thames and Hudson |page=246|isbn=}}</ref> when they sacked [[Rathlin Island]]. This island is located off of the Northeast coast of Ireland and contains with it many gravesites with formal evidence of existence.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.vikingeskibsmuseet.dk/en/professions/education/the-viking-age-geography/the-vikings-in-the-west/ireland|url-access= |title=The vikings in Ireland|department=Professions|website=[[Viking Ship Museum (Roskilde)|Viking Ship Museum]]|location=[[Roskilde|Roskilde, Denmark]]|language=en-gb|access-date=2024-12-10|quote=[[Rathlin Island]] is the site of the first recorded Viking attack on Ireland in 795 AD. A number of Viking graves, some with magnificent grave goods, and a Hiberno-Norse coin hoard from the 1040's has been found here}}</ref> [[Annals of Ulster]] states that the first raid on this island was known as the ''Loscad Rechrainne o geinntib,'' otherwise known as 'the burning of Rechru by heathens.'<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Annals of Ulster |url=https://celt.ucc.ie/published/T100001A/index.html |access-date=2024-12-10 |website=celt.ucc.ie}}</ref>{{Verification needed|date=December 2024}} Sporadic raids then continued until 832, after which they began to build fortified settlements throughout the country. Norse raids continued throughout the 10th century, but resistance to them increased. The Norse established independent kingdoms in [[Dublin]], [[Waterford]], [[Wexford]], [[Cork (city)|Cork]] and [[Limerick]]. These kingdoms did not survive the subsequent Norman invasions, but the towns continued to grow and prosper.
The term Ostmen was used between the 12th and 14th centuries by the English in Ireland to refer to Norse–Gaelic people living in Ireland. Meaning literally "the men from the east" (i.e. Scandinavia), the term came from the [[Old Norse]] word ''austr'' or east. The Ostmen were regarded as a separate group from the English and Irish and were accorded privileges and rights to which the Irish were not entitled. They lived in distinct localities; in Dublin they lived outside the city walls on the north bank of the [[River Liffey]] in Ostmentown, a name which survives to this day in corrupted form as [[Oxmantown]]. It was once thought that their settlement had been established by Norse–Gaels who had been forced out of Dublin by the English but this is now known not to be the case. Other groups of Ostmen lived in Limerick and Waterford. Many were merchants or lived a partly rural lifestyle, pursuing fishing, craft-working and cattle raising. Their roles in Ireland's economy made them valuable subjects and the English Crown granted them special legal protections. These eventually fell out of use as the Ostmen assimilated into the English settler community throughout the 13th and 14th centuries.<ref name="Laing">{{cite book|title=Early People of Britain and Ireland: An Encyclopedia, Volume II|editor-last=Snyder|editor-first=Christopher A.|last=Valante|first=Mary|pages=430–31|publisher=Greenwood Publishing |date=2008 |isbn=9781846450297}}</ref>
===Scotland=== {{main|Scandinavian Scotland}}
The [[Lords of the Isles]], whose sway lasted until the 16th century, as well as many other Gaelic rulers of Scotland and Ireland, traced their descent from Norse–Gaelic settlements in northwest Scotland, concentrated mostly in the [[Hebrides]].<ref>Bannerman, J., ''The Lordship of the Isles'', in Scottish Society in the Fifteenth Century, ed. J. M. Brown, 1977.</ref>
The Hebrides are to this day known in [[Scottish Gaelic]] as {{lang|gd|Innse Gall}}, 'the islands of foreigners';<ref>[[James Hunter (historian)|Hunter, James]] (2000) ''Last of the Free: A History of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland''. Edinburgh. Mainstream. {{ISBN|1840183764}}. p. 104</ref> the irony of this being that they are one of the last strongholds of Gaelic in Scotland.
===Iceland and the Faroes=== It is recorded in the {{lang|is|[[Landnámabók]]}} that there were [[papar]] or [[culdees]] (Gaelic monks) in [[Iceland]] before the Norse. This appears to tie in with comments of [[Dicuil]] and is given weight by recent archaeological discoveries. The [[settlement of Iceland]] and the [[Faroe Islands]] by the Norse included many Norse–Gael settlers as well as slaves and servants. They were called [[Vestmen]] (Western men), and the name is retained in [[Vestmanna]] in the Faroes and the [[Vestmannaeyjar]] off the Icelandic mainland.{{Citation needed|date=June 2022}}
A number of Icelandic personal names are of Gaelic origin, including [[Njáll]], [[wikt:Brjánn#Icelandic|Brjánn]], [[Kjartan]] and [[wikt:Kormákur#Icelandic|Kormákur]] (from [[Niall]], [[Brian]], [[Muircheartach]] and [[Cormac]]).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ellipsis.cx/~liana/names/drafts/irish-norse.html |access-date=22 September 2021 |title=Old Norse Forms of Early Irish Names |first=Brian M. |last=Scott |date=2003}}</ref> [[Patreksfjörður]], an Icelandic village, was named after [[Saint Patrick]]. A number of placenames named after the papar exist on Iceland and the Faroes.
According to some circumstantial evidence, [[Grímur Kamban]], seen as the founder of the Norse Faroes, may have been a Norse Gael:<ref>Schei, Liv Kjørsvik & [[Gunnie Moberg]] (2003) ''The Faroe Islands''. Birlinn.</ref> {{blockquote|According to the Faereyinga Saga ... the first settler in the Faroe Islands was a man named Grímur Kamban – ''Hann bygdi fyrstr Færeyar'', it may have been the land taking of Grímur and his followers that caused the anchorites to leave ... the nickname Kamban is probably Gaelic and one interpretation is that the word refers to some physical handicap (the first part of the name originating in the Old Gaelic ''camb'' 'crooked' ... another that it may point to his prowess as a sportsman (presumably of ''camóige / camaige'' 'hurley' – where the initial syllable also comes from ''camb''). Probably he came as a young man to the Faroe Islands by way of Viking Ireland, and local tradition has it that he settled at Funningur in Eysturoy.}}
== Mythology == [[Heinrich Zimmer (Celticist)|Heinrich Zimmer]] (1891) suggested that the [[Fianna Cycle]] of [[Irish mythology]] came from the heritage of the Norse–Gaels.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Zimmer |first=Heinrich |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M6tJAAAAYAAJ&dq=fianna+zimmer+fiandr&pg=PA15 |title=Keltische Beiträge III, in: Zeitschrift für deutsches Alterthum und deutsche Litteratur |date=1891 |publisher=Weidmannsche Buchhandlung |pages=15ff |language=de}}</ref> He suggested the name of the heroic ''[[fianna]]'' was an Irish rendering of Old Norse ''fiandr'' "enemies", and argued that this became "brave enemies" > "brave warriors".<ref name=":0" /> He also noted that [[Fionn mac Cumhaill|Finn]]'s [[Fionn mac Cumhaill#Thumb of Knowledge|Thumb of Knowledge]] is similar to the Norse tale ''[[Fáfnismál]]''.<ref>{{harvp|Scowcroft|1995|p=154}}</ref><ref>Scott, Robert D. (1930), ''{{URL|1=https://books.google.com/books?id=-WDYAAAAMAAJ&q=Sigurd|2=The thumb of knowledge in legends of Finn, Sigurd, and Taliesin}}'', New York: Institute of French Studies</ref> Linguist [[Ranko Matasović]], author of the ''Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic'', derives the name ''fíanna'' from reconstructed [[Proto-Celtic language|Proto-Celtic]] ''*wēnā'' (a [[troop]]),<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |title=wēnā |encyclopedia=Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic |date=2009 |last=Matasović |first=Ranko |author-link=Ranko Matasović |publisher=Brill Academic Publishers |page=412}}</ref> while linguist Kim McCone derives it from Proto-Celtic ''*wēnnā'' (wild ones).<ref>McCone, Kim (2013). "The Celts: questions of nomenclature and identity", in ''Ireland and its Contacts''. [[University of Lausanne]]. p.26</ref>
==Modern names== Some modern surnames and forenames are of Norse-Gaelic origin. ===Surnames=== {| class="wikitable" |- ! '''Gaelic''' ! '''Anglicised form''' ! '''"Son of-"''' |- | Mac Asgaill | [[MacAskill (disambiguation)|MacAskill]], [[McCaskill]], Castell, Caistell | Áskell |- | Mac Amhlaibh<br />(confused with native Gaelic Mac Amhlaidh, Mac Amhalghaidh) | [[Macaulay (surname)|MacAulay]], [[McAuliffe (surname)|MacAuliffe]], [[Cowley (surname)|Cowley]], [[Cawley (surname)|Cawley]], MacCamley, McCamley, Kewley | [[Olaf|Óláf]] |- | Mac Corcadail | [[McCorquodale]], [[Clan McCorquodale]], [[Corkill]], Corkhill, Corkell, Corkey, [[McCorkindale]], McCorkle, McQuorkell, McOrkil | [[Thorkel|Þorketill]] |- | [[Cotter family|Mac Coitir]] | [[Cotter family|Cotter]], MacCotter, [[Cottier (surname)|Cottier]] | [[Ottar (disambiguation)|Óttar]] |- | Mac DubhGhaill, Ó DubhGhaill, | Doyle, McDowell, MacDougal | [[Dubgall]] |- | Mag Fhionnain | [[Gannon]] | “the fair” (possibly in reference to someone with Norse ancestry)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Surname Database: Gannon Last Name Origin |url=https://www.surnamedb.com/Surname/Gannon |access-date=2024-04-29 |website=The Internet Surname Database |language=en}}</ref> |- | Mac Ìomhair | [[McIver|MacIver]], [[Clan MacIver]], [[McIvor (surname)|MacIvor]], [[MacGyver (disambiguation)|MacGyver]], [[McKeever]], etc. | [[Ivar]] |- | [[Clan MacLeod|Mac Leòid]] | [[Clan MacLeod|MacLeod]] | [[Ljótr]]<ref>[http://www.ancestry.com/facts/Mcleod-name-meaning.ashx Mcleod Name Meaning and History] Retrieved on 23 April 2008</ref> |- | Mac Raghnall | [[Crellin]], Crennel | [[Rognvald|Rögnvald]] |- | Mac Shitrig<ref>[http://www.ancestry.com/facts/McKittrick-name-meaning.ashx McKittrick Name Meaning and History] Retrieved on 23 April 2008</ref> | MacKitrick, McKittrick | [[Sigtrygg]] |- |Mac Thórfinnr |MacToryn, MacThoryngt, [[McCorryn]], MacCorran, Corran, [[Corrin (surname)|Corrin]], [[Turpin#Surname|Turpin]] |[[Þorfinnr]] |}
===Forenames=== {| class="wikitable" |- ! '''Gaelic''' ! '''Anglicised form''' ! '''Norse equivalent''' |- | [[Amhlaibh]]<br />(confused with native Gaelic Amhlaidh, Amhalghaidh) | Aulay (Olaf) | Ólaf |- | Goraidh | Gorrie (Godfrey, Godfred), Orree (Isle of Man) | Godfrið |- | Ìomhar<br />(confused with native Gaelic Éibhear, Éimhear > Mac Éibhir, Mac Éimhir) | Ivor | Ívar (Ingvar) |- | [[Raghnall]] | Ranald (Ronald, Randall, Reginald<ref>the option favoured by early Scottish sources writing in Latin</ref>) | [[Rognvald|Rögnvald]] |- | Somhairle | Sorley (or Samuel) | Sumarliði ([[Somerled]]) |- | Tormod | Norman | Þormóð |- | Torcuil | Torquil | Torkill, Þorketill |}
==See also== * [[Caill Tomair]], a sacred grove near Dublin targeted by [[Brian Boru]] in the year 1000 * [[Scandinavian York]] * [[Old English (Ireland)]] * [[Clan Donald]] * [[Earl of Orkney]] * [[Faroe Islanders]] * [[Gallowglass]]es * [[Icelanders]] * [[Kings of Dublin]] * [[List of rulers of the Kingdom of the Isles]] * [[Diocese of Sodor and Man]] * [[Galley#Use in northern Europe|Galley]] * [[Lord of the Isles]] * [[Lords of Galloway]] * [[Papar]]
==References== {{Reflist|2}}
==Bibliography== * {{cite journal |last=Downham |first=Clare |date=2009 |title=Hiberno-Norwegians and Anglo-Danes |journal=Mediaeval Scandinavia |volume=19 |publisher=University of Aberdeen |issn=0076-5864}} * {{cite book |last=Haywood |first=John |title=The Penguin Historical Atlas of the Vikings |date=1995 |publisher=Penguin |location=London |isbn=0140513280 |url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/penguinhistorica00john}} * {{cite book |last=McDonald |first=R. Andrew |title=The Kingdom of the Isles: Scotland's Western Seaboard, c. 1100 – c. 1336 |date=1997 |publisher=Tuckwell Press |location=East Linton |isbn=1898410852}} * {{cite book |last=Ó Cróinín |first=Dáibhí |title=Early Medieval Ireland, 400–1200 |date=1995 |publisher=Longman |location=London |isbn=0582015669}} * {{cite book |last=Oram |first=Richard |title=The Lordship of Galloway |date=2000 |publisher=John Donald |location=Edinburgh |isbn=0859765415}} * {{cite book |last=Scholes |first=Ron |title=Yorkshire Dales |date=2000 |publisher=Landmark |location=Ashbourne, Derbyshire |isbn=1901522415}}
==External links== *{{Commons category-inline}} *[http://skyelander.orgfree.com/menu6.html Norse History of Clan Gunn of Scotland]
{{Scandinavian Scotland|state=autocollapse}} {{Gaels}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Norse-Gaels}} [[Category:Norse-Gaels| ]] [[Category:Medieval ethnic groups of Europe]] [[Category:Ethnic groups in Ireland]] [[Category:Ethnic groups in Scotland]] [[Category:Ethnic groups in the Isle of Man]] [[Category:Kingdom of Norway (872–1397)]] [[Category:Viking Age in Ireland]] [[Category:Scandinavian Scotland]]