Glendalough Fair (38 page)

adze
– a tool much like an ax but with the blade set at a right angle to the handle.

Ægir
– Norse god of the sea. In Norse mythology he was also the host of great feasts for the gods.

Asgard
- the dwelling place of the Norse gods and goddesses, essentially the Norse heaven.

athwartships
– at a right angle to the centerline of a vessel.

beitass
- a wooden pole, or spar, secured to the side of a ship on the after end and leading forward to which the corner, or clew, of a sail could be secured.

berserker
- a Viking warrior able to work himself up into a frenzy of blood-lust before a battle. The berserkers, near psychopathic killers in battle, were the fiercest of the Viking soldiers. The word berserker comes from the Norse for “bear shirt” and is the origin of the modern English “berserk”.

boss
- the round, iron centerpiece of a wooden shield. The boss formed and iron cup protruding from the front of the shield, providing a hollow in the back across which ran the hand grip.

bothach
– Gaelic term for poor tenant farmers, serfs

brace
- line used for hauling a
yard
side to side on a horizontal plane. Used to adjust the angle of the sail to the wind.

brat
– a rectangular cloth worn in various configurations as an outer garment over a
leine
.

bride-price
- money paid by the family of the groom to the family of the bride.

byrdingr
- A smaller ocean-going cargo vessel used by the Norsemen for trade and transportation. Generally about 40 feet in length, the byrdingr was a smaller version of the more well-known
knarr
.

clench nail
– a type of nail that, after being driven through a board, has a type of washer called a rove placed over the end and is then bent over to secure it in place.

curach
- a boat, unique to Ireland, made of a wood frame covered in hide. They ranged in size, the largest propelled by sail and capable of carrying several tons. The most common sea-going craft of mediaeval Ireland.
Curach
was the Gaelic word for boat which later became the word curragh.

derbfine
– In Irish law, a family of four generations, including a man, his sons, grandsons and great grandsons.

dragon ship
- the largest of the Viking warships, upwards of 160 feet long and able to carry as many as 300 men. Dragon ships were the flagships of the fleet, the ships of kings.

dubh gall
- Gaelic term for Vikings of Danish descent. It means Black Strangers, a reference to the mail armor they wore, made dark by the oil used to preserve it.
See
fin gall
.

ell
– a unit of length, a little more than a yard.

eyrir
– Scandinavian unit of measurement, approximately an ounce.

félag
– a fellowship of men who owed each other a mutual obligation, such as multiple owners of a ship, or a band or warriors who had sworn allegiance to one another.

fin gall
- Gaelic term for Vikings of Norwegian descent. It means White Strangers.
See
dubh gall
.

Freya
- Norse goddess of beauty and love, she was also associated with warriors, as many of the Norse deity were. Freya often led the
Valkyrie
to the battlefield.

halyard
- a line by which a sail or a yard is raised.

gallows
– tall, T-shaped posts on the ship’s centerline, forward of the mast, on which the oars and yard were stored when not in use.

gunnel
– the upper edge of a ship’s side.

Hel
- in Norse mythology, the daughter of Loki and the ruler of the underworld where those who are not raised up to Valhalla are sent to suffer. The same name, Hel, is given to the realm over which she rules, the Norse hell.

hird
- an elite corps of Viking warriors hired and maintained by a king or powerful
jarl
. Unlike most Viking warrior groups, which would assemble and disperse at will, the hird was retained as a semi-permanent force which formed the core of a Viking army.

hirdsman
- a warrior who is a member of the
hird
.

jarl
- title given to a man of high rank. A jarl might be an independent ruler or subordinate to a king. Jarl is the origin of the English word
earl
.

knarr
- a Norse merchant vessel. Smaller, wider and more sturdy than the longship, knarrs were the workhorse of Norse trade, carrying cargo and settlers where ever the Norsemen traveled.

league
– a distance of three miles.

leech
– either one of the two vertical edges of a square sail.

leine
– a long, loose-fitting smock worn by men and women under other clothing. Similar to the shift of a later period.

levies
- conscripted soldiers of 9
th
century warfare.

Loki
- Norse god of fire and free spirits. Loki was mischievous and his tricks caused great trouble for the gods, for which he was punished.

luff
– the shivering of a sail when its edge is pointed into the wind and the wind strikes it on both sides

longphort
- literally, a ship fortress. A small, fortified port to protect shipping and serve as a center of commerce and a launching off point for raiding.

Odin
- foremost of the Norse gods. Odin was the god of wisdom and war, protector of both chieftains and poets.

oénach
–a major fair, often held on a feast day in an area bordered by two territories.

perch
- a unit of measure equal to 16½ feet. The same as a rod.

Ragnarok
- the mythical final battle when most humans and gods would be killed by the forces of evil and the earth destroyed, only to rise again, purified.

rod
– a unit of measure equal to 16½ feet. The same as a perch

ringfort
- common Irish homestead, consisting of houses protected by circular earthwork and palisade walls.

rí túaithe
– Gaelic term for a minor king, who would owe allegiance to a high king.

rí ruirech
– Gaelic term for a supreme or provincial king, to whom the
rí túaithe
owe allegiance.

sheer strake
– the uppermost plank, or strake, of a boat or ship’s hull. On a Viking ship the sheer strake would form the upper edge of the ship’s hull.

shieldwall
- a defensive wall formed by soldiers standing in line with shields overlapping.

shroud
– a heavy rope stretching from the top of the mast to the ship’s side that prevents the mast from falling sideways.

skald
- a Viking-era poet, generally one attached to a royal court. The skalds wrote a very stylized type of verse particular to the medieval Scandinavians. Poetry was an important part of Viking culture and the ability to write it a highly-regarded skill.

sling
- the center portion of the
yard
.

spar
– generic term used for any of the masts or yards that are part of a ship’s rig.

strake
– one of the wooden planks that make up the hull of a ship. The construction technique, used by the Norsemen, in which one strake overlaps the one below it is called
lapstrake construction
.

swine array
- a Viking battle formation consisting of a wedge-shaped arrangement of men used to attack a shield wall or other defensive position.

tánaise ríg
– Gaelic term for heir apparent, the man assumed to be next in line for a kingship.

thing
- a communal assembly

Thor
- Norse god of storms and wind, but also the protector of humans and the other gods. Thor’s chosen weapon was a hammer. Hammer amulets were popular with Norsemen in the same way that crosses are popular with Christians.

thrall
- Norse term for a slave. Origin of the English word “enthrall”.

thwart
- a rower’s seat in a boat. From the old Norse term meaning “across”.

Ulfberht
– a particular make of sword crafted in the Germanic countries and inscribed with the name Ulfberht or some variant. Though it is not clear who Ulfberht was, the swords that bore his name were of the highest quality and much prized.

Valhalla
- a great hall in
Asgard
where slain warriors would go to feast, drink and fight until the coming of
Ragnarok
.

Valkyrie
- female spirits of Norse mythology who gathered the spirits of the dead from the battle field and escorted them to
Valhalla
. They were the Choosers of the Slain, and though later romantically portrayed as Odin’s warrior handmaidens, they were originally viewed more demonically, as spirits who devoured the corpses of the dead.

vantnale
– a wooden lever attached to the lower end of a shroud and used to make the shroud fast and to tension it.

varonn
– spring time. Literally “spring work” in Old Norse.

Vik
- An area of Norway south of modern-day Oslo. The name is possibly the origin of the term
Viking
.

wattle and daub
- common medieval technique for building walls. Small sticks were woven through larger uprights to form the wattle, and the structure was plastered with mud or plaster, the daub.

weather
– closest to the direction from which the wind is blowing, when used to indicate the position of something relative to the wind.

wergild
- the fine imposed for taking a man’s life. The amount of the wergild was dependent on the victim’s social standing.

yard
- a long, tapered timber from which a sail was suspended. When a Viking ship was not under sail, the yard was turned lengthwise and lowered to near the deck with the sail lashed to it.

Acknowledgements

My warmest thanks to Nicky Grene for his insights into the country around Glendalough and for the great kindness he has always shown me and my family on our visits to Ireland. Thanks also to my sister, Stephanie, for her on-going support in general and for the wealth of Glendalough books, pamphlets, postcards, tour guides and maps she sent me. Thanks to David Mullaly for his help with this book and earlier volumes in this series, and for leading me into temptation with regard to buying Viking antiquities. Thanks again to David Bellows for his help. On-going thanks are due to Steve Cromwell for the look he has developed for these books. The fact is, people do judge books by their covers and Steve has been instrumental in helping build the popularity of this series. Thanks again to Alistair Corbett for the great, moody background photo. Thanks to all my great readers who help spread the word about this series and to my family for all their support.

And to my beloved Lisa….