Index of Names in Irish Annals: Descriptive Bynames: Becc/Beag
by Mari Elspeth nic Bryan (Kathleen M. O'Brien)
© 2000-2006 by Kathleen M. O'Brien. All rights reserved.
Version 2.2, updated 11 July 2006
Descriptive Bynames: Becc/Beag
Meaning:
"Small"
Spellings:
What we know as a set of Irish Annals are manuscripts that were each compiled during a
particular time period, usually using older material as sources. For example, when
the Annals of the Four Masters were written from 1632 to 1636, they covered events
that occurred centuries and millenia before (including legendary history). So, when
an entry in this set of annals refers to a person who lived in the year 738, the
spelling used for that person's name is very likely not using the spelling that
would have been used in 738.
Standard forms of this name (based on spelling systems of different periods) would be:
| Oghamic Irish (pre-700) nominative form: | [unknown] |
| Oghamic Irish (pre-700) genitive form: | [unknown] |
|
| Old Irish Gaelic (c700-c900) nominative form: | Becc |
| Old Irish Gaelic (c700-c900) genitive form: | |
|
| Middle Irish Gaelic (c900-c1200) nominative form: | Becc |
| Middle Irish Gaelic (c900-c1200) genitive form: | |
|
| Early Modern Irish Gaelic (c1200-c1700) nominative form: | Beag |
| Early Modern Irish Gaelic (c1200-c1700) genitive form: | |
Frequency & Dates:
| Number of men found in the annals with this name: | 11 |
| Found in Years: | 568, 587, 593, 721, 725, 731, 738, 995,
1170, 1184, 1189, 1201, 1259, 1260, 1584 |
Research Notes:
Woulfe (p. 228 s.n. Beag) gives the meaning of this byname as "little, small".
[Answering a question about the meaning of becc:]
OIr becc "small"; now beag. [email from Talan Gwynek - 15 Jul 2001]
Sources:
Further information about the byname Becc/Beag, may be found in:
The Sources page lists the Annals referenced below.
Information about secondary sources is included on that page as well.
Raw Data
In the table below, I have separated individuals with a blank line. That is, when there are multiple
entries in the annals that refer to a single person, those entries are grouped together.
Within the list of entries refering to a single person, I have sorted the entries
primarily by orthography when it is obvious that what I am seeing is the same entry
showing up in multiple annals. The entries that tend to use older spellings are listed first.
NOTE: The Annals referenced below under the code letters A, B, C, E, & F tend to use
later spellings than the other Annals. In some cases, the spellings listed in these Annals
may not be appropriate for the year referenced in the Annal entry.
In some Gaelic scripts, there is a character that looks approximately like a lowercase f,
but without the crossbar. This character (represented by an underscored , e, in
the entries below) sometimes represents e and sometimes ea depending upon the
context of the text.
| [Standardized form of this man's name] |
| Annals | Entry | Context | Citation (formatting preserved) |
| |
| (d. 587) |
| U | U568.1 | | Colman m-Bec m.n-Diarmato |
| I | I568.1 | | Colmán Bec mc. Ailella m. Comgaill |
| U | U587.1 | | Colman Bec mc. Diarmato |
| |
| (d. 593) |
| U | U593.3 | | Colman Beag mc. Diarmoda |
| |
| [] (d. 721) |
| U | U721.1 | | Dunchad Becc, rex Cinn Tire |
| T | T721.1 | | Duncadh Becc, rí Cínd Tiri |
| |
| [Faeldobhar Becc] (d, 725-731) |
| U | U731.8 | | Faeldobur Becc sapiens Fobair |
| A | M725.6 | | S. Faeldobhar Becc, eccnaidh Fobhair ["St. Faeldobhar Beg the Wise, of Fobhar"] |
| |
| (d. 738) |
| T | T738.7 | | Bran Becc mac Murchada |
| U | U738.4 | | Bran Becc m. Murchadho |
| |
| [Muirchertach Becc ua Congalaig] (d. 995) |
| B | M995.10 | | Muircheartach Beag ua Conghalaigh |
| |
| [Áed Becc Mac Canai] |
| U | U1170.1 | | Aedh Bic Mac Canae ["Aedh Mac Cana the Little"] |
| |
| [Maolsechlainn Becc] (d. ?) |
| U | U1184.3 | | Mael Sechlainn Bec |
| C | M1184.4 | | Maoil Seachlainn Beacc |
| C | M1189.8 | | Mael Seachlainn Beg ri Temra |
| |
| [Concobhar Beag Mac Lachlain] |
| U | U1201.6 | | Mac Lachlainn .i.,Conchubhar Beacc |
| |
| [Art Beag Ua Ruairc] (d. 1260) |
| Co | 1259.4 | | Art Becc mac Airt h. Ruairc |
| C | M1259.4 | | Art Beacc mac Airt Uí Ruairc |
| Co | 1260.11 | | Art Bec mac Airt h. Ruairc |
| C | M1260.9 | | Art Beacc mac Airt Ui Ruairc |
| |
| [Donnchadh Beag mac Taidhg mhic Donnchaidh Uí Bhriain] |
| E | M1584.7 | | Donnchadh Beacc, mac Taidhcc, mic Donnchaidh Uí Briain |
Medieval Scotland | Medieval Names Archive | Index of Names in Irish Annals
Feminine Given Names | Feminine Descriptive Bynames | Masculine Given Names | Masculine Descriptive Bynames
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(Jan 2006)
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