Glossary

Because our novels are enriched with words from multiple languages, we have provided this quick reference. This is a living document, so if you feel there is a definition that is missing, please do not hesitate in contacting us, and we will add it.

Áedh – Gaelic. King of Tír na nÓg, the Otherworld.

Aquilifer – Latin. The standard bearer. The aquilifer carried the first cohort’s – and therefore – the legion’s eagle.

Avernus – Latin. Roman land of the dead.

Ban Sidhe – Gaelic. Women of the Sidhe who were said to keen at the death of a family member, later known as banshee.

Bhéara – Gaelic. The Crone, or Cailleach Bhéara, often associated with the owl, and could be the harbinger of death or a defender of honour.

Bod – Gaelic. Penis.

Bodalán – Gaelic. Arsehole (masculine).

Bundún – Gaelic. Arse (masculine).

Caliga – Latin. Roman legionary’s sandal.

Camán – Gaelic. A hurley.

Castrum – Latin. A fortified compound. For the legions it could mean both large or small forts.

Catuvellauni – Ancient Celtic clan who ruled the area north of the River Thames. Their capital was in modern day St. Albans.

Celta – The name the Romans attributed to the Celts. Derived from the Greek Keltoi. Plural is Celtae.

Cnapán – Gaelic. A lummox.

Contubernium – Latin. A group of eight soldiers in a cohort. It was the smallest unit in a legion and would be equivalent to a modern squad.

Craic – Gaelic. Good fun.

Cúlaistín – Gaelic. Henchman.

Cúl an tí – Gaelic. Back of the house. Pejorative term for rural person. Possible forerunner to the modern word culchie, referring to Irish people not from Dublin.

Cumhal – Gaelic. A female slave used as a measurement of wealth equivalent to the value of three milch cows or six heifers.

Dagda – Gaelic. The Good god. Controller of life and death. Known as the Cheerful Chieftain of the Tuatha Dé Danaan.

Danu – Gaelic. Mother Goddess of the Tuatha Dé Danaan.

Denarii – Latin. Roman silver coins. Plural of denarius.

Díoltach – Gaelic. One of the swords of the sea god Manannán.

Donn – Gaelic. The Dark Lord, or God of the dead.

Draíocht – Gaelic. Magic. Druidic art.

Dún – Gaelic. A fortified settlement.

Éireannach – Gaelic. Irish. Éireannachaigh the people of Ireland.

Ériu – Irish Celtic Mythology. Ireland. The three sisters Ériu, Banba, and Fódla, were the Mother Goddesses of Ireland.

Equites – Latin. Cavalry soldiers recruited from the equestrian class of Rome.

Filius ignavi – Latin. Son of a coward.

Fíoch – Gaelic. Fury.

Gaimbín – Gaelic. Money lender or the sum owed to such. Used in a derogatory fashion to mean “lump”. Plural gaimbíní.

Geis – Gaelic. Taboo. In Irish mythology, the geis or geasa when plural, were obligations, which if broken, would lead to dire consequences. For example, High King Conaire broke several geasa, leading to his destruction at the battle of Da Derga’s hostel.

Gladius – Latin. Short sword used by legionaries. Plural gladii.

Imbolc – Gaelic. One of the four main festivals. Imbolc celebrates the coming of spring in February.

Lorg Mór – Gaelic. The Dagda’s club or mace – it was said to give life with one end and take life with the other.

Loricae – Latin. Body armour. Plural of lorica.

Lugh – Gaelic. God of light.

Magairlí – Gaelic. Testicles.

Manannán – Gaelic. Celtic God of the sea.

Mars – Latin. Roman God of war.

Morrígan – Gaelic. Goddess of war and fate, often portrayed as a crow or raven. Warriors feared her because she was said to predict their deaths before battle.

Ogham – Gaelic. Ancient Gaelic alphabet used to inscribe text in wood and stone.

Os gwelwch yn dda – Welsh Gaelic.If you will see well. Please.

Poseidon – Latin. Roman God of the sea.

Praetorian Guard – Latin. Unit of Roman soldiers who acted as bodyguards and intelligence agents for the emperors.

Primus pilus – Latin. The first spear. Senior officer in the first cohort and, therefore, senior officer in the legion.

Pute – Latin. Prostitute.

Ráth – Gaelic. Earthen rampart or fortress, often with a wooden palisade on the top.

Samhain – Gaelic. A festival celebrated midway between the Autumn Equinox and the Winter Solstice. The date would be on or around modern-day October 31^st.

Seanchara – Gaelic. Masculine. Dear friend of long standing. Feminine would be seann caraid.

Síabair – Gaelic. A phantom or a ghost. Plural is síabraí.

Sídhe – Gaelic. The people of the mounds. Also known as the Fae, or Tuatha Dé Danaan (the People of Danu).

Sleabhctha – Gaelic. Flaccid.

Sliotar – Gaelic. The puck used in a game of hurling.

Spatha – Latin. A longsword used by cavalry and officers.

Sybil – Latin. A Roman seer located in caves below the city of Cumae. To many historians, the Sybil under the city of Cumae was the true Oracle often cited as being in Delphi.

Táin – Gaelic. Cattle raid (or driving out). The most famous is the Táin Bo Cuailnge, or the Cattle Raid of Cooley, where the combined armies of Connacht, Leinster, and Munster attempted to steal the Brown Bull of Cooley.

Testudo – Latin. Military formation whereby legionaries would use their shields to create a shell around a unit.

Tír na nÓg – Gaelic. The Otherworld in Irish Celtic mythology. The “Land of the Young”. It is the land of the Tuatha Dé Danaan, where departed souls go after death.

Tóin – Gaelic. Arse (feminine).

Trivia – Latin. Roman Goddess of crossroads.

Triús – Gaelic. Tartan trousers.

Tuatha Dé Danaan – Gaelic. The People of Danu, the mother goddess. According to myth, the Tuatha were the people who inhabited Ireland before the arrival of the Milesians. When defeated, they retreated into mounds and became known as the Sidhe.

Turmae – Latin. A heavy cavalry squadron of thirty horsemen.

Typhon – Latin. Monstrous serpent of Roman mythology.

Uerulámion – Ancient name for St. Albans.