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The Sacred Isle: Belief and Religion in Pre-Christian Ireland
The first modern study of prehistoric religion in Ireland to draw on the combined evidence of archaeology, literature and folklore to illuminate practice and belief from the earliest human habitation in the island down to the advent of Christianity in the fifth century AD.
An excellent book... a highly accessible and lively assessment of continuity and change in belief and religion from pre-Celtic times through to the arrival of St Patrick. ...Afine book and to be recommended to a wide readership, especially to all those who think that Irish history started in 1601. IRISH STUDIES REVIEW DAITHI O HOGAIN was Professor of Folklore at University College Dublin.
An excellent book... a highly accessible and lively assessment of continuity and change in belief and religion from pre-Celtic times through to the arrival of St Patrick. ...Afine book and to be recommended to a wide readership, especially to all those who think that Irish history started in 1601. IRISH STUDIES REVIEW DAITHI O HOGAIN was Professor of Folklore at University College Dublin.
268 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
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About the author
Dáithí Ó hÓgáin
36 books29 followersHe was the son of Davy Hogan, a former jockey, and his wife Mary (née Tyrell); both his parents were from Kilkenny. His great grand-uncle was the celebrated historian of Ossory, Canon William Carrigan.
Irish was spoken in the family home, and at De La Salle national school, Bruff, he got a good grounding in Irish grammar. His grasp of the language was further improved by visits to the Kerry Gaeltacht.
He was awarded a county council scholarship and continued his education at the CBS Limerick. A second scholarship in 1967 brought him to UCD, where he studied Irish, English, philosophy and history. He graduated in 1970 and secured an MA in 1971.
He then joined RTÉ and worked as a journalist for 18 months. From there he moved to the Irish folklore archive at UCD, taking up a position as a researcher under the directorship of Prof Bo Almqvist.
In 1976 he completed his doctorate, and his thesis formed the basis for An File .
A former member of the Sinn Féin ardchomhairle, in the 1970s he was involved in policymaking and was associated with the development of the federal Éire Nua programme.
Later he threw his energy into participating in various initiatives centred on Irish cultural heritage and the organisation of folk schools and summer schools on a regional basis.
A constant collector of folklore in Irish and English, he procured some very valuable traditional Irish manuscripts for the folklore archive.
He was rapporteur-general at the Unesco conference in Paris in 1987, at which that organisation’s policy on the preservation of world folklore heritage was decided.
In 1989 he was a founding member of the European Centre for Traditional Cultures in Budapest, later travelling to conferences across Europe and further afield.
He also was, in the early 1990s, a founder of Craobh na hÉigse, an organisation dedicated to infusing new interest into the writing and reading of Irish language material. And he was a founder of the Irish National Folk Company, which liaised with many youth festivals in Europe.
He wrote seven collections of poetry, six in Irish and one in English. He also wrote three collections of short stories as well as a series of books on Irish surnames.
He was a stalwart of Cumann Merriman. He lived with his wife and family in Bray, Co Wicklow, and contributed to a history of the town published in 1998.
He regularly contributed to radio and television programmes. Most recently he appeared on a TG4 documentary on the origins of the ballad Molly Malone . His research showed that what has become the Dublin GAA supporters’ anthem was written by a Scotsman in the 1880s as a send-up of the Irish taste for lamentation.
He is survived by his wife Caitríona, daughters Aisling, Orla, Niamh and Sadhbh and son Ruán.
Irish was spoken in the family home, and at De La Salle national school, Bruff, he got a good grounding in Irish grammar. His grasp of the language was further improved by visits to the Kerry Gaeltacht.
He was awarded a county council scholarship and continued his education at the CBS Limerick. A second scholarship in 1967 brought him to UCD, where he studied Irish, English, philosophy and history. He graduated in 1970 and secured an MA in 1971.
He then joined RTÉ and worked as a journalist for 18 months. From there he moved to the Irish folklore archive at UCD, taking up a position as a researcher under the directorship of Prof Bo Almqvist.
In 1976 he completed his doctorate, and his thesis formed the basis for An File .
A former member of the Sinn Féin ardchomhairle, in the 1970s he was involved in policymaking and was associated with the development of the federal Éire Nua programme.
Later he threw his energy into participating in various initiatives centred on Irish cultural heritage and the organisation of folk schools and summer schools on a regional basis.
A constant collector of folklore in Irish and English, he procured some very valuable traditional Irish manuscripts for the folklore archive.
He was rapporteur-general at the Unesco conference in Paris in 1987, at which that organisation’s policy on the preservation of world folklore heritage was decided.
In 1989 he was a founding member of the European Centre for Traditional Cultures in Budapest, later travelling to conferences across Europe and further afield.
He also was, in the early 1990s, a founder of Craobh na hÉigse, an organisation dedicated to infusing new interest into the writing and reading of Irish language material. And he was a founder of the Irish National Folk Company, which liaised with many youth festivals in Europe.
He wrote seven collections of poetry, six in Irish and one in English. He also wrote three collections of short stories as well as a series of books on Irish surnames.
He was a stalwart of Cumann Merriman. He lived with his wife and family in Bray, Co Wicklow, and contributed to a history of the town published in 1998.
He regularly contributed to radio and television programmes. Most recently he appeared on a TG4 documentary on the origins of the ballad Molly Malone . His research showed that what has become the Dublin GAA supporters’ anthem was written by a Scotsman in the 1880s as a send-up of the Irish taste for lamentation.
He is survived by his wife Caitríona, daughters Aisling, Orla, Niamh and Sadhbh and son Ruán.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
March 25, 2011
I had a few problems reading this book.
1. I had no clue to whom Dáithí Ó hÓgáin was referring when he used the term "Celt" - as I am used to Celtic being a reference to certain languages that had grown out of those areas that traded with mainland Europe, not a people who invaded or settled certain lands - and the nearest I could discern was that the Celts arrived sometime between the start of the Iron Age and the arrival of Christianity in Ireland. Perhaps another reader might find where the term Celt is clearly defined in the book.
2. From what I could gather, Dáithí Ó hÓgáin is equating all male deities with the sun and all female deities with planet earth (either as land or water), which seems at odds with other books I have read on the subject. All names were traced back to "fierce", "bright", "red", "light" and are thus representative of the sun.
3. My understanding has been that the gods of the peoples of the British Isles (in which I include Ireland) were more localised, associated more with the immediate landscape; i.e. the same gods were not worshipped across the nations, except perhaps one or two and whilst Dáithí Ó hÓgáin does look at each of the four/five provinces of Ireland, the impression given is, in all provinces, the people worship a/the sun god (though possibly by a different name).
I feel though these problems are because of my lack of any knowledge on the history of Ireland - something I am attempting to rectify. Perhaps my confusion arises from reading both more recent releases on history (which can now include DNA research and other advances in the field of archaeology) and books written more than 10 years ago.
At this point, I am just not sure I can recommend this book.
1. I had no clue to whom Dáithí Ó hÓgáin was referring when he used the term "Celt" - as I am used to Celtic being a reference to certain languages that had grown out of those areas that traded with mainland Europe, not a people who invaded or settled certain lands - and the nearest I could discern was that the Celts arrived sometime between the start of the Iron Age and the arrival of Christianity in Ireland. Perhaps another reader might find where the term Celt is clearly defined in the book.
2. From what I could gather, Dáithí Ó hÓgáin is equating all male deities with the sun and all female deities with planet earth (either as land or water), which seems at odds with other books I have read on the subject. All names were traced back to "fierce", "bright", "red", "light" and are thus representative of the sun.
3. My understanding has been that the gods of the peoples of the British Isles (in which I include Ireland) were more localised, associated more with the immediate landscape; i.e. the same gods were not worshipped across the nations, except perhaps one or two and whilst Dáithí Ó hÓgáin does look at each of the four/five provinces of Ireland, the impression given is, in all provinces, the people worship a/the sun god (though possibly by a different name).
I feel though these problems are because of my lack of any knowledge on the history of Ireland - something I am attempting to rectify. Perhaps my confusion arises from reading both more recent releases on history (which can now include DNA research and other advances in the field of archaeology) and books written more than 10 years ago.
At this point, I am just not sure I can recommend this book.
December 29, 2008
I thought this was a very good explanation of ancient Irish religion. It would serve as a good introduction to those who are new to this area of study, as well as add to the knowledge of more experienced readers. O hOgain discusses the evidence beginning with preCeltic cultures, and gives his own interpretations. One caveat to keep in mind however, is that he has a tendency to emphasize solar mythology, which is a rather outdated Victorian conceit that most Celtic scholars have since rejected. While the sun was undoubtedly important to the ancient Irish, it was not the be-all and end-all of their religious worldview. He also likes to make arguments that various mythological figures are the same being. These points aside, there are a lot of interesting insights on the deities to be found and intriguing interpretations of the myths. He devotes Chapters 3 & 4 to the druids, giving detailed information on the evidence we have of their practices and teachings as well as reading in between the lines with comparison to other cultures.
February 7, 2022
slow, dense, and sooo tasty. give me all the pre-catholic pre-colonized ireland content
September 28, 2015
Wasn't keen on some of the ideas presented at all.
March 29, 2017
A lot of this didn't quite gel with me and the last chapter about the defeat of paganism by Christianity was quite simplistic.
It was a lot of good food for thought and the bibliography probably good for mining for information.
It was a lot of good food for thought and the bibliography probably good for mining for information.
September 4, 2022
What a pity, it seems the author has a fixation on sun gods and land godesses which gives this book a rather 19th century/beginning 20th century feel. Conclusions are also sometimes rather hastily made without proper supporting facts.
December 10, 2023
This is the best book I’ve ever read on pre-Christian Irish religions. Most modern books on this topic are based in theory, supposition and “inspiration”, that is to say, imagination. There is not much substance but a lot of poetic license. In other words it’s mostly fictional and caters to a certain readership. Dáithí Ó hÓgáin, however, was literally a product of Gaelic Irish culture and inhabited that world completely. His Phd thesis, “An File”, “The Poet”, is a masterpiece in learning about those keepers of the flame of Irish pre-Christian traditions. Though he never would have admitted it, Dáithí Ó hÓgáin was, in the truest sense, a modern File, a modern Druid - An Ollamh - because he knew that this class of Irish intellectuals had embraced the learning of Christianity, but maintained most of their own traditions. And he was himself, a preserver of those traditions who has thankfully bequeathed them to us. His passing dealt a tremendous blow to Irish culture but his unbelievable output of writing will keep students sustained for generations to come.
December 9, 2019
I read this book for research for a novel, and I got so much information out of it. I had no idea about so many elements in Celtic and Pre-Celtic societies. Easy to read even for a novice historian like myself and a wealth of material.
November 8, 2025
interesting and informative with a good bibliography, but i’ll always drastically prefer footnotes to endnotes. could use a little more in-text set-up and support for some claims and assertions in places
September 17, 2011
3.5 please see my review at Celtic Scholar
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews