n
o, m. orig. s, n.? occas. treated as neut. in law texts; the gender is m. when denoting a person or animal (male or female) and n. when denoting an abstract notion (e.g. 'sacredness' or 'privelege') or a place,
Bechbretha 107-8
,
ZCP xlv 100
, but see
CMCS viii 48
.
cf.
coa nemthe nert,
LU 3480
(g
s.? `to the protection of the
shrine',
ZCP xv 188 § 15
). g
s.
ind nemid
,
Trip. 240.19
=
in
nemhid
,
ib. 4
. d
s.
-nemiud,
LL 227a20
. n
p.
nemid,
Laws v
14.12
. a
p.
nemthiu,
LU 9786.
neimthiu,
Laws i 260.17
.
neimed (o, m.),
IGT Dec. § 11. 20
.
I The orig. sense is prob. that of a consecrated place,
= Gaulish νεμητον (cf. Αὐγουστο-νέμετον Ptolemy's name for mod.
Clermont Ferrand; see
Pedersen Vgl. Gr. ii 37
,
RC xxiii 138
), which prob.
represents an indigenous word used of sacred groves; cf.
de
sacris silvarum quas nimidas vocant
,
Du Cange s.v. nimida
(< Conc. Liptini A.D. 743
), which seems to represent an orig.
fem. It is sometimes not possible to distinguish the sense 'sacred place, sanctuary' from 'privilege',
Bechbretha 107
. In Irish lit. a sanctuary
: nemed gl. sacellum
'(small) sacred place'
Sg. 13 b 1
. atnaig tar fót crúach i n-ardnemed dia díte, di-eim ar díantólae slúaig 'he brings him away over gory sod into a high sanctuary for his protection, which protects [him] from the swift tide of a [hostile] throng'
Críth G. 53
. nemed gl. asilum
'a place of refuge'
Ériu lv 9
; in early Christian lit. prob. a
small chapel or oratory (or else the spot on which such stood),
freq. in connexion with `cell'.
conid Dún a sen-nemed,
LU
754
(of Downpatrick, the burial-place of Colum Cille) =
RC
xx 178 § 44
(`senior church') =
senneimedh,
BCC § 374
; perh.
for sén-n.¤
auspicious holy spot, i.e. the place of his resurrection.
ní ra cráid chill nā nemed,
RC xiii 84 § 98
(
LL 303b39
).
nemed
cille no duin,
Laws iv 214.4
(glossed .i. in releg cemetery,
ib. 24
; cf.
LU 754 above
). neimhedh naemainglech (of Cluain
Cesáin),
Acall. 500.
neimedh Sináin,
ZCP x 12 § 7
(seems =
tempall S., ib.).
can comarci . . . do cill no do nemead,
Cog.
152.3
.
ro cumdaigedh leis ceallaca dhais Erenn ┐ a neimhedha,
138.21
.
nior fhagbhadar Lochlannaigh naomh nó neimheadh
no ceall uasal . . . gan argain,
Ériu i 80.12
.
Content. vi 196.
cin chadus do chill nā do nemedaib,
Ann. Conn. 1236 § 16.
?
nipsa cell cin chlocc . . . nipsa haí cin imditin, nipsa neimeth
cin imfochaidh,
Anecd. ii 60.5
; cf. nemeadh cin imfochaid
(sign of degenerate times),
ZCP ix 168.22
.
pn
Prob. in this sense in place-names:
Nemed,
Trip. 240.19
(place where there was a `neimed').
a Nemud slebe Fúait,
TBC-LL¹ 5355
=
o nemiud,
TBC-I¹ 3298.
i nNemiud,
Metr. Dinds.
iv 166.55
(also in Sliab Fuait). Cf.
termond na fían . . . im
rēid airthir Nemid nāir,
LU 4148.
II Secondary meanings, arising prob. from the immunities
or honour attached to a consecrated spot.
(a)
sacredness
;
privileges or
insignia (belonging to a profession, rank, etc.), status, dignity:
nemeth .i. nem iath .i. i n-as dír d'eclais,
Corm. Y 962.
nemaith .i. a n-as dir d'ogaib,
963
( =
nemáith,
Corm. p. 31
).
nemuath .i. a n-as dir d'filedaib,
964
: all three exx. are etym.
glosses on `neimed' acc. to its various applications; similarly
O'Mulc. 830 fg.
(There may have been a techn. term nemiath;
cf.
Anecd. ii 74 y
: crodh neich nat ba neoit nim [nem v.l.]
iath, from a judgement pronounced by `filid' and `brethemain'
= the property of a person who is not niggardly towards the
Church?.)
ro ordaigset fir Herend a nemthiu and sin .i. cloc
┐ salm do eclais. Gēill do rigaib. Trefoclae techtae do filedaib.
Aithgabáil do fennethaib,
LU 9786
=
RC vi 165.9
,
Trip.
564.33
(`privileges' in both places).
cia nemed as uaisle fil i
talmain? Nemed n-ecalsa. Cia nemed is uaisliu fil a n-ecluis?
Nemed n-espuic: is e espuc as uaisliu dibside easbuc ecalsa
[sic leg.] Petair,
H 3.18, p. 17a
(
O'Curry 46
).
Colum ar chennsa
. . . fri neimhedh eccalsa ┐ ealadhan,
2296.26
.
Possibly in this sense in chevilles:
for nem noebda niab
nemed
,
SR 7135
(g
p.? or n
s. in sense I?).
naemda nemedh
,
Anecd. i 61 § 93.
mét nemed
,
Ériu iv 106.6
. acht ní sóeras nemed de 'except that which sacredness increases of it'
Bechbretha 58
.
(b) closely connected with preceding sense, and not always
to be distinguished from it, is that of a person (or class of
persons) possessing legal status or privileges
; acc. to MacNeill,
MacNeill, Law of status 273 n. 1
, a generic term for every person having
the franchise of the Féini
(but the word seems to be sometimes
employed collectively of an entire class); used with much
latitude of application, somet. (chiefly in the compd. uasaln.¤
)
of the highest dignitaries, king, bishop, head of the `filid',
somet. (esp. in the Uraicecht Becc in
Laws v
, a late text) of
handicraftsmen or master-workers; see
ZCP xv 262
-
3
and cf.
Corm. Y 962
-
964
quoted above.
atat do [ = dá] neimhid do-cuisin for talmuin, saeirnemead ┐ daerneimeadh. Ite saer-nemead filead and .i. ecalsi, flatha, filidh, feine. Daerneimead
imorro, aes gacha dāna olchena. Is aire ada daernemead aes
cacha dāna, fobith is do shaernemthib fognait. Acht i[s] saer
cid cach creanus a suiri dia dán,
Laws v 14.1 fg.
; i.e. the free
`neimid' comprised churchmen, rulers, `filid' and `féini', the
subject `neimid' handicraftsmen, but the latter could purchase
franchise by their art.
ni tuath gin tri saorneimthibh samaigter,
eclais, flaith, file,
Eg. 88 f. 20b
(
O'Curry 2272
).
admestar díre
cōir cach graid do ṡoernemthib ┐ doernemthib,
ZCP xi 95
§ 52
; cf.
dire .i. di-errethe do nimt[h]ib ara n-uaisligitaid,
Corm. Y 417
=
nemthib,
Corm. p. 15
(i.e. `díre' is not paid
by `neimid' on account of their rank). gúala nemid filed `the
coffer of a privileged poet',
Triads 255
. mórad nemed `exalting
privileged persons',
Tec. Corm. § 1.16
.
nā ben ra cellaib
nemid !,
LL 141 m. sup.
nib dulta duit da thig | ar enech noím
no nemid,
LB 277a12
. a chombrāithre naom ┐ neimhedh his
brother saints and churchmen (?),
Anecd. iii 2.4
.
cach dán a
nemed,
ACL iii 226
(
Aib. Cuigni 14
; expld. `to every art its
practiser',
ZCP xvii 49
, but perh. = a).
neimheadh gach dán
da ndernta,
Metr. Gl. 28 § 43
(where n. seems equated with
the handicraft, etc. itself), cf. neimheadh .i. gach dán no
gach ealadha, O'Cl. There is a distinction between nemed Dé 'a person privileged from God' (i.e. a cleric) and nemed duini 'a person privileged from man' (i.e. a king, poet etc.),
Bechbretha § 39 (notes)
.
A law-tract freq. alluded to was the Bretha Neimed, which
contained among other things rulings of the `filid' on technical
points and was included in the curriculum of the `cana' or
poet of the fourth year; see
IT iii 36 § 18
(Bretha Nemídh)
and
Auraic. 1298.
isna Brethaib Nemed,
Corm. Y 142
,
143
=
Nemid,
Corm. p. 7.
(c) a halidom; any valued article (property, etc.)? consuitter
fir ┐ dliged imaille for neimiudh truth (proof) and right are
founded on `neimed',
Laws v 8.14
; by Thurneysen,
Cóic Con. p. 12
, transld. Heiligtum and expld. as someth. sacred;
from the sequel it appears that the `neimed' for judgements
of the church was the Scripture, for those of the `fili' rules of
law (roscada) and for those of the `flaith' rules, maxims or precedents and testimonies. Cf.
O'Dav. 1175
: lam fo nemiath .i.
. . . lam fora mindib. nach nemedh do gait `the stealing of an
article of little value' (? of great value),
Laws iii 394.13
.
in
cintach in neim-neime do gabail de riana nimhe, a neimhe
riana ferunn,
H 3.17 c. 132
(
O'D. 160
), i.e. non-`neimed'
property was to be confiscated before `neimed' property, the
latter before land. Of cattle
:
ro suidiged son la Feine hi comdire fria huasalneimthiu cethra,
Laws iv 198 z
, cf.
200.3
,
19
.
ni gaibhtiur nimhe cethra i n-athgabail,
H 3.17 c. 131
(
O'D.
159
).
nemeth bó,
O'Mulc. 830 e
.
(d) in special sense of
landed property, any land owned by a nemed-person, esp. glebe-land:
neimheadh .i. neamhiath .i. talamh as dlightheach d'eaglais,
O'Cl. teampall . . . do forbhadh lasan epscop . . . ┐ neimheadh .i.
talamh ecclusda do órdughadh dhó `glebe-land',
AFM ii 1082.21
.
?
nir dhíon ar an ccaptin . . . neimhedh naoimh nā filed, fiodh
nā foithirghlend,
v 1788.12
(transld. `sanctuary'). fer médaigthe
neimhedh eccailsi ┐ ealadhan who augmented the property of
church and science,
vi 1908.8
(tr. `an exalter of sanctuaries'). ro
croithset neimheadh an naoimh ┐ an innsi uile `glebe-land',
Hugh Roe 92.2 (f. 24b)
, of Tory Isl. blessed by Colum C.
gan
indradh no orgain neimheadh eccailsi ná eladhan,
190 z (f. 51a)
.
?
screpul gach teineadh cin tart | do neimeadh coicidh
Connacht,
Lism. L. 4780
(tr. `the chapel').
pn
Nemed occurs as name of the leader of the Fir Bolg in the
Book of Invasions =
Nimeth, Gildas Hist. Brit. § 13
(
ZCP x
155
); also N.¤ mac Sraibchind, see
LL 129b14
. Possibly the
same word as the above, see Van Hamel,
ZCP x 183.