Matheson Collection > Deirdire; and, The lay of the children of Uisne

NOTES 143
building down below. In the neighbourhood of
Dun Bhail-an-righ is Bail-an-righ, the town of
the king, or Dun Bhalaire, the famed 'Barra-
gobhan,' 'Barr-nan-gobhan,' the ridge of the smiths
or armourers. George Buchanan, the greatest
Latinist of his day, and a Gaelic-speaking man,
Latinised many of the Gaelic names of the
country, to the confusion of investigators, and he
converted ' Barr-nan-gobhan ' into ' Beregonium.'
This place was known by many names — ' Barr-an-
righ,' the ridge of the king; 'Dun Uisne,' 'Dun
Uisneachan,' ' Dun mhic Uisneachan,' and corrupted
'Dun mhic Snitheachan,' the dun of the sons of
Uisneachan, Dun Dearduil ; Dun Loisge, ' Dun
Loisgte,' the burnt dun ; ' Dun nan seachd Dun,'
the dun of the seven duns ; ' Dun Fhinn,' the dun
of Fionn ; ' Dun Banruinn Fhinn,' the dun of the
queen of Fionn, corrupted by Hogg and other ^\Titers
into ' Queen Hynde.' This place of many names is an
isolated ridge on a vnde plain by the edge of the sea.
One end of the ridge abuts on a long strand called
* Traigh-li,'.the strand of water, fresh water, from the
wells and pools of fresh water immediately behind.
One of the two or three passes to the summit of
the ridge of Barragobhan is called 'Bealach na
Banruinn,' 'Bealach Banruinn Fhinn,' 'Bealach
Banruinn Fhionnghail ' — the pass of the queen,
the pass of the queen of Fionn, the pass of the
queen of Fingal.
Tradition says that Barragobhan was the seat of
the Pictish monarchy of the west, and that it was