An Mhaighdean Mhara [The Mermaid]

Ennis wrote that the song is about a mermaid called Méirí Shinídh. It concerns a man who went out fishing one day and the mermaid came to the stern of the boat and she had a cloak (that was what was keeping her on the surface). He stole it from her and she came home with him. He hid the cloak in a stack of oats. They married and had two children Máire Bhruinnil and Pádraig Bán. One day, the daughter saw this beautiful cloak in the stack of oats and she told her mother about it. The mother went to the stack, took the cloak and returned to the sea. She was very close to her daughter and she would come every day and would comb the girl’s hair and the song is the conversation that took place between them.

Ennis wrote the account from Síle Mhicí.

[ from NFC 1282:250-252]

Note to music transcription:

Ennis wrote the following note at the start of the music notation of Síle’s songs:

Music from Gaoth Dobhair

From Síle (Mhicí ) Ní Ghallchóbhair (82), Dobhar Láir, Donegal. She is not a pure singer now – she does not sing the notes accurately and so I wrote the following six songs from Cití Ní Ghallchobhair (21) (v. the manuscript with lyrics). I wrote the music of the songs from number seven onwards from Síle.

He wrote in Irish ‘slowly’ above the music notation of ‘An Mhaighdean Mhara’.

He also wrote in Irish : ‘ The words ‘ádha’, ‘sámh’ and ‘snámh’ pronounced as in the English word ‘bough’.