Descendants of Judah in Ireland
(2 August, 2021; 24 Av, 5781)
Note that the mythical king of the Tuatha De Danaan was someone variously called Dagda, Deaghda or Daghda (all pronounced Dah-da), a king who was also known as "In Ruad Rofhessa", a name which, "shows him to be the god of wisdom" as well as other names, "which reveal him as the sun-god". (Early Irish History & Mythology pp.469 & 320, Thomas F. O'Rahilly.) We know this mythical 'king' as Darda son of Zerach, the word Zerach meaning "bright" or "shining" - hence the association with the "sun". In the book of Chronicles, he is called Dara. Josephus called him Dardanus.
Quoting the words of John Lynch:
"It appears, too, that the 'Dergtinnii' or 'Dergthene,' was another alias name for the Ithians. (Ogygia, p.268). It is not unlike 'Darnii,' the tribe which Ptolemy places in that part of Ulster, which, according to tradition, was occupied in the second century by the Deagaigh Dalfiatach.
"Finally, in the Eireamonian genealogies (infra, p.[248]), I find no names to explain how the same tribe could be called 'Deagaidh' and 'Dergtinne;' but in the Ithian genealogy (Ogygia, p.149) we have a 'Dergene,' and a 'Deagaidh Dearg,' which explain the common appellation, if we admit that the Deagaidh were Ithian. The Derga are expressly classed among the Ithians by Irish Nennius, p.262." (Cambrensis Eversus Vol. 1, p.509.)
Dergtinne in its various forms was pronounced Dertan and is equivalent to the Dardan/Dardanus of Josephus. These sons of Deaghda were also known as "sons of Daire". If you do a Google search you will find that this name Daire is pronounced DARA!!! The Ithians, however, are descended from Ethan son of Zerach.
The Tuatha De Danaan were part of the First Milesian Invasion which occurred around 420 BCE with Geoffrey Keating informing us that the Nemedians (i.e. Menashe), Fir-Bolgs (i.e. "men/sons of Belga" son of Benjamin) and Tuatha De Danaan were all descended from Sru son of Easru. (General History of Ireland, p.75.) The Second Milesian Invasion occurred in the middle of the fourth century CE which is when Ammianus tells us that there were mass migrations of tribes across Europe, including the Scotti (i.e. Scythians) who were "ranging widely and causing great devastation". (Ammianus Marcellinus, Rerum Gestarum xxvii.8.5.) When you ignore the mess the Irish monks made of the Irish history and look instead at the actual evidence, everything slots neatly into place, but most people cannot seem to let go of the highly contrived king lists which these monks have compiled.
Ireland means literally the land of Er son of Judah. The names Ir, Er and Eire are all phonetic variations on the same name. That these three names are completely interchangeable is confirmed by Seamus MacManus (Story of the Irish Race p.19.) The rulers of the Tuatha De Danaan were of the tribes of Darda and Ethan of the sons of Zerach son of Judah.
This just gives you a brief taster of what is to come in my forthcoming paper entitled Ancient Irish History Reconsidered. Hopefully this will make you stop and make you think again about what you are actually saying about early Irish history.
Regards,
Steve Phillips