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Cerball mac Dúnlainge (died 888) ) was king of Ossory in south-east Ireland. The kingdom of Ossory (''Osraige'') occupied roughly the area of modern County Kilkenny and lay between the larger provincial kingdoms of Munster and Leinster. Cerball came to prominence after the death of Fedelmid mac Crimthainn, King of Munster, in 847. Ossory had been subject for a period to the Eóganachta kings of Munster, but Feidlimid was succeeded by a series of weak kings who had to contend with Viking incursions on the coasts of Munster. As a result, Cerball was in a strong position and is said to have been the second most powerful king in Ireland in his later years.〔Byrne, ''Irish Kings'', p. 266.〕 Upon his death, he was succeeded by his brother Riagan mac Dúnlainge. Kjarvalr Írakonungr, a figure in the Norse sagas who appears as an ancestor of many prominent Icelandic families, is identified with Cerball.〔http://www.mbl.is/greinasafn/grein/228491/〕 ==Nature of the sources== A large body of contemporary and near-contemporary material on early medieval Ireland has survived. From the titles of works mentioned in these sources, it is clear that a great deal of additional material has now been lost. The surviving materials usually exist in the form of much later copies, and it is only from comparison of the various texts that the original documents can be reconstructed.〔Hughes, ''Early Christian Ireland'', is a general survey of the subject.〕 The Irish annals which document the ninth century are ultimately derived from the now-lost Chronicle of Ireland which was then being compiled in the midlands of Ireland. All annals include material derived from other sources, or added at a later date. None are complete, although the ''Annals of Ulster'' and the ''Annals of Inisfallen'' cover Cerball's lifetime. The ''Annals of Clonmacnoise'' survive only in an eccentric 17th-century English translation, and the ''Annals of Tigernach'' for this period are lost, although Dubhaltach Mac Fhirbhisigh's abbreviated copy known as the ''Chronicon Scotorum'' supplies much of the missing material. The ''Annals of the Four Masters'' are late, and include some material of doubtful origin. While the annals provide a considerable amount of information, they are generally terse, and most focus their attention on the doings of the Uí Néill, sometimes to the extent of omitting inconvenient events.〔Hughes, ''Early Christian Ireland'', chapter 4, especially pp. 135–137; Charles-Edwards, ''Early Christian Ireland'', p. xix.〕 A source which concentrates on Cerball's career is the ''Fragmentary Annals of Ireland'', so called because only fragments remain of a seemingly longer work, these again copied by Mac Fhirbhisigh in the 17th century from a 15th-century manuscript. The fragment which deals with Cerball's lifetime ends in the early 870s, so that the last fifteen years of his life are missing. Joan Radner, editor and translator of the modern edition of the ''Fragmentary Annals'', argues that these were compiled at the court of Cerball's great-great-grandson Donnchad mac Gilla Pátraic. Although called annals, these are closer to narrative history and are derived from a number of sources. The basic framework is from the ''Chronicle of Ireland'', but to this has been added a variety of material whose source is unknown, perhaps including early sagas, which concerns Cerball. The ''Fragmentary Annals'' were intended to magnify Cerball's achievements, and to present his dealings with Vikings and Norse–Gaels in a favourable light.〔For the origins of the annals, see Radner, "Writing history", pp. 321–325. Comparable later works, more polished in style, include ''Cocad Gáedel re Gallaib'' (War of the Irish with the Foreigners), written around 1100 for Muirchertach Ua Briain, a great-grandson of Brian Bóruma, and ''Caithréim Chellacháin Chaisil'' (Deeds of Cellachán Caisil), written a generation later for Cormac Mac Cárthaig, a great-great-grandson of the eponymous Cellachán Caisil; Ó Corráin, "Afterthoughts", pp. 18–19 (numbers after etext ); Radner, "Writing history", p. 323; Flanagan, "High-kings with opposition", pp. 916 & 919;〕 If the various annals are partisan, the remaining sources which concern Cerball are notably unreliable. Perhaps inspired by the Fragmentary Annals, which offer some positive views of Vikings and may have been popular in the Norse-Gael Dublin of the 11th century, many Icelandic genealogies include Cerball—Kjarvalr Írakonungr—as an ancestor.〔Byrne, p. 162; Ó Corrain, "Viking Ireland – Afterthoughts", pp. 17ff.〕 Lastly, ''The Prophecy of Berchán'', an 11th-century verse history of kings in Ireland and Scotland presented as a prophecy, may include Cerball.〔Hudson, ''Prophecy of Berchán'', pp. 135–138.〕 A very large number of genealogies exist, along with geographical and legal texts. Of these last, the ''Frithfolad Muman'', a document purporting to set out the obligations of the Kings of Munster to their allies, clients, and subjects is of interest as it sheds light on the position of Osraige within the provincial kingship of Munster.〔For discussion of the ''Frithfolad Muman'' see Byrne, ''Irish Kings'', pp. 196–199 & Charles-Edwards, ''Early Christian Ireland'', pp. 534–548.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Cerball mac Dúnlainge」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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