Fir Domnann

TheFir Domnannwere a people named inIrishlegendary history.

The nameFir Domnannis based on the rootdumno-, which means both 'deep' and 'the world'. The suffix -on- often occurs in Gaulish and British divine names. The tribal nameDumnonii,found in Britain, would therefore mean 'people of the god of the world'. Old Irishfirmeans 'men', and soFir Domnannhad the same meaning as the British tribal name, leading to conjecture that these tribes had a common origin.For example, O'Rahilly's historical model proposed that the Domnann were aP-Celtic,pre-Goidelic people who, along with theGaleóin,invaded the south-east coast of Ireland from Britain.O'Rahilly's theory of P-Celtic precedingGoidelicin Ireland is not widely accepted by experts today, but the idea of some connection between the British and Irish tribes of the same name remains.

In early Irish literature, the Fir Domnann were located inCóice Laigean(Leinster). A probably 7th-century Irish poem credits their ruler, Mess-Telmann, with the over-kingship of the province and with wielding power from the royal site of Leinster atDún Áilinne.The place-name Inber Domnann, nowMalahideBay inlet in northCounty Dublinon the east coast of Ireland, preserves the tribal name. Yet the area with the strongest placename associations with the Fir Domnann is in north-west Mayo: the Iorrais Domnann, from which thehistorical baronyofErristakes its name,and the nearby Mag Domnann and Dún Domnann.